I think the pictures speak for themselves.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Monday, August 3, 2009
vacation recap #1: Vegas & Yosemite
We went to Hoover Dam first off the airplane and it was 118! We braved the heat to take a quick picture. 
Then, we headed to Vegas. Vegas is totally over-stimulating. (So much so that I took less than 10 pictures there, and they were all of people, not the sights.) The lights, the constant movement of people and cars and busses. To arrive in Las Vegas from little old Tallahassee was shocking to say the least. It’s almost as if the lights and continual action were affecting my mind and telling me it wasn’t really 11pm EST, and that I should stay up and keep going, spending money, observing the sights. I fought the urge and went to sleep anyway. We woke up really early - about 4 AM Vegas time - and went to breakfast. We were pretty much the only ones there. The stores in the hotel were closed, we were the only ones in line for breakfast, and a few late-night partiers straggled in, looking haggered, carrying their shoes, make-up smeared, clothes buttoned incorrectly or missing entirely. It was quite a sight. My favorite observation came on our way out of the hotel parking lot. I observed a man walking down the road, carrying a very energetic (or perhaps agitated) woman over his arm, dangling her shoes in her hands, hitting him on the back with each step. They looked like they’d had a fantastic night on the Vegas Strip. As we drove away from the Strip, I was surprised at how quickly you go from seeing action everywhere to nothing by desert.
We headed northward, toward Oakhurst, California, via I-15, but as soon as we got onto the interstate, my Dad called on my cell and indicated he did not want to drive that way. He had a “scenic, but direct” route he wanted to take, since we would be driving back to Vegas in two weeks via I-15. We all said, sure, not a problem. We assumed that he’d carefully plotted our directions and deemed this route comparable to the interstate. How wrong we were. We set out and quickly realized this was not the route we’d planned. Our Garmin nuvi immediately re-routed and projected a time of arrival in Oakhurst that was almost 3 hours longer than the original route!
The further we drove on my dad’s route, the more our Garmin (affectionately called ‘Karen’, after the name for the Australian pronunciation voice) re-routed us and projected a later and later arrival time. It was a V E R Y scenic drive, one that will forever be in my 
memory. We stumbled upon the California/Nevada state line and stopped to take pictures. Yes, I am a nerd.
We also stumbled upon miles and miles of open range signs. We finally found civilization again when we arrived at the entrance to Yosemite National Park and wound our way through miles of park. Lovely drive, but at the point in the day, no one wanted to stop to take photos. In the end, after almost 11 hours in the car, we arrived at the delightful Houndstooth Inn Bed & Breakfast. We all crashed very early that day and awoke early the next morning. We had loose plans and debated for some time about what activities to select for our first real day of vacation. Robert selected a back massage because after 11 hours of driving on Sunday and all the plane travel on Saturday, his prior hip/back injury was causing him a lot of discomfort. Dad & Hoyt went off on a fly fishing expedition with a guide and the rest of us headed back into the park for a picnic at Wawona and a tour of the Yosemite where we spent quite a few pennies on gift shop finds. Addison picked out a Christmas ornament in the shape of a black bear, Mom got a copper-coated pinecone wind chime, and we bought Addison a National Park “Passport” where she can document which parks she visits with a stamp. Robert had one when he was little and he was excited to start Addison’s book so early in her life. (Over the course of this trip, she visited a total of four National Parks). Besides touring the park while in Oakhurst, we also checked out several restaurants and their local children’s museum.
Here's Hoyt humoring Addison (or was it visa versa?) at the Children's Museum. My favorite restaurant was Todd’s BBQ, but others really enjoyed a place called Crab Cakes. One night, we headed out for pizza at “Me-N-Ed’s Pizzeria” (awesome name, right?!), but I didn’t get to really enjoy my meal. I knew my head hurt, but it didn’t get better when I took Zyrtec (I thought it was allergy/sinus related). It didn’t help when I took Tylenol, either. By the end of dinner, I couldn’t stand to hear any noises, see any lights, adjust to any movements, without an overwhelming sense of nausea seeping over me. My mom took me to lay down while the rest of my family went to bowl and see a movie. I laid still for almost two hours with no improvement, and added another piece of discomfort. When I laid my head down on the pillow, I felt as though my head was spinning, very rapidly, around in a circle. When Robert got back from bowling, I still felt awful. I told him I wouldn’t wish how I was feeling on my worst enemy. He then googled the symptoms I was having and decided that it might be a tension headache, so he gave me an ibuprofen. Within 30 minutes, I felt like a new person. He also googled the spinning-head thing, and found that it might be vertigo, which I have suffered from in the past. He told me to prop my head up under a few pillows, and magically, that disappeared, too. Bless my wonderful husband who fixed me when I was so miserable on vacation.
He made me promise that I would call for an appointment with my MD as soon as we return to Tallahassee, so this is my public promise that I will do so. Once I felt better, I got the full report on bowling, which included a short story about Addison walking into a bowling ball that her daddy was preparing to throw. She survived with little injury, thankfully.
Out last morning in Yosemite, we awoke early and hiked in the Mariposa Grove
to see the giant sequoia trees. That was humbling. It was a beautiful walk & really energized us for the next part of our morning at Glacier Point. We picnicked at Glacier Point
and headed back for afternoon naps and packing. The next morning we left for Solvang for the Watkins Family Reunion.
One of my favoirte moments with Addison on this portion of our trip was early one morning when she, my mom and I were hanging out together. We decided to go for a walk down the path behind the Inn in search of the resident cats, Boots and an unnamed Orange kitten. We walked and sang a little song which Addison adjusted to better suit her speech patterns. It ended up like this: “we’re goin’ on a a-benture, a-benture, a-benture. We’re goin’ on a a-benture, all day long.”
Here are a few other pics from this portion of the trip. Remember that you can see my "condensed" collection of 500 photos at: http://picasaweb.google.com/NWBrown82/WatkinsFamilyTrip2009#
Then, we headed to Vegas. Vegas is totally over-stimulating. (So much so that I took less than 10 pictures there, and they were all of people, not the sights.) The lights, the constant movement of people and cars and busses. To arrive in Las Vegas from little old Tallahassee was shocking to say the least. It’s almost as if the lights and continual action were affecting my mind and telling me it wasn’t really 11pm EST, and that I should stay up and keep going, spending money, observing the sights. I fought the urge and went to sleep anyway. We woke up really early - about 4 AM Vegas time - and went to breakfast. We were pretty much the only ones there. The stores in the hotel were closed, we were the only ones in line for breakfast, and a few late-night partiers straggled in, looking haggered, carrying their shoes, make-up smeared, clothes buttoned incorrectly or missing entirely. It was quite a sight. My favorite observation came on our way out of the hotel parking lot. I observed a man walking down the road, carrying a very energetic (or perhaps agitated) woman over his arm, dangling her shoes in her hands, hitting him on the back with each step. They looked like they’d had a fantastic night on the Vegas Strip. As we drove away from the Strip, I was surprised at how quickly you go from seeing action everywhere to nothing by desert.We headed northward, toward Oakhurst, California, via I-15, but as soon as we got onto the interstate, my Dad called on my cell and indicated he did not want to drive that way. He had a “scenic, but direct” route he wanted to take, since we would be driving back to Vegas in two weeks via I-15. We all said, sure, not a problem. We assumed that he’d carefully plotted our directions and deemed this route comparable to the interstate. How wrong we were. We set out and quickly realized this was not the route we’d planned. Our Garmin nuvi immediately re-routed and projected a time of arrival in Oakhurst that was almost 3 hours longer than the original route!
The further we drove on my dad’s route, the more our Garmin (affectionately called ‘Karen’, after the name for the Australian pronunciation voice) re-routed us and projected a later and later arrival time. It was a V E R Y scenic drive, one that will forever be in my 
memory. We stumbled upon the California/Nevada state line and stopped to take pictures. Yes, I am a nerd.We also stumbled upon miles and miles of open range signs. We finally found civilization again when we arrived at the entrance to Yosemite National Park and wound our way through miles of park. Lovely drive, but at the point in the day, no one wanted to stop to take photos. In the end, after almost 11 hours in the car, we arrived at the delightful Houndstooth Inn Bed & Breakfast. We all crashed very early that day and awoke early the next morning. We had loose plans and debated for some time about what activities to select for our first real day of vacation. Robert selected a back massage because after 11 hours of driving on Sunday and all the plane travel on Saturday, his prior hip/back injury was causing him a lot of discomfort. Dad & Hoyt went off on a fly fishing expedition with a guide and the rest of us headed back into the park for a picnic at Wawona and a tour of the Yosemite where we spent quite a few pennies on gift shop finds. Addison picked out a Christmas ornament in the shape of a black bear, Mom got a copper-coated pinecone wind chime, and we bought Addison a National Park “Passport” where she can document which parks she visits with a stamp. Robert had one when he was little and he was excited to start Addison’s book so early in her life. (Over the course of this trip, she visited a total of four National Parks). Besides touring the park while in Oakhurst, we also checked out several restaurants and their local children’s museum.
Here's Hoyt humoring Addison (or was it visa versa?) at the Children's Museum. My favorite restaurant was Todd’s BBQ, but others really enjoyed a place called Crab Cakes. One night, we headed out for pizza at “Me-N-Ed’s Pizzeria” (awesome name, right?!), but I didn’t get to really enjoy my meal. I knew my head hurt, but it didn’t get better when I took Zyrtec (I thought it was allergy/sinus related). It didn’t help when I took Tylenol, either. By the end of dinner, I couldn’t stand to hear any noises, see any lights, adjust to any movements, without an overwhelming sense of nausea seeping over me. My mom took me to lay down while the rest of my family went to bowl and see a movie. I laid still for almost two hours with no improvement, and added another piece of discomfort. When I laid my head down on the pillow, I felt as though my head was spinning, very rapidly, around in a circle. When Robert got back from bowling, I still felt awful. I told him I wouldn’t wish how I was feeling on my worst enemy. He then googled the symptoms I was having and decided that it might be a tension headache, so he gave me an ibuprofen. Within 30 minutes, I felt like a new person. He also googled the spinning-head thing, and found that it might be vertigo, which I have suffered from in the past. He told me to prop my head up under a few pillows, and magically, that disappeared, too. Bless my wonderful husband who fixed me when I was so miserable on vacation.He made me promise that I would call for an appointment with my MD as soon as we return to Tallahassee, so this is my public promise that I will do so. Once I felt better, I got the full report on bowling, which included a short story about Addison walking into a bowling ball that her daddy was preparing to throw. She survived with little injury, thankfully.
Out last morning in Yosemite, we awoke early and hiked in the Mariposa Grove
to see the giant sequoia trees. That was humbling. It was a beautiful walk & really energized us for the next part of our morning at Glacier Point. We picnicked at Glacier Point
and headed back for afternoon naps and packing. The next morning we left for Solvang for the Watkins Family Reunion.One of my favoirte moments with Addison on this portion of our trip was early one morning when she, my mom and I were hanging out together. We decided to go for a walk down the path behind the Inn in search of the resident cats, Boots and an unnamed Orange kitten. We walked and sang a little song which Addison adjusted to better suit her speech patterns. It ended up like this: “we’re goin’ on a a-benture, a-benture, a-benture. We’re goin’ on a a-benture, all day long.”
Here are a few other pics from this portion of the trip. Remember that you can see my "condensed" collection of 500 photos at: http://picasaweb.google.com/NWBrown82/WatkinsFamilyTrip2009#
to children...
life is always exciting. I love that about Addison. Everything can be turned into a fun game. Even things as mundane as clipping your fingernails, walking to the mailbox, or buying toothpaste can become an adventure. I love my baby girl and thank her or reminding me to take it easy & appreciate the simple joys in life.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
quickly
Because of my horribly insufficient short term memory, I have a total of four pages of notes about happenings on our trip to record here later. I hope to spend the first few days back at home sorting through those pages of notes as well as the - wait for it - 800+ pictures we've taken! I have lots of fun stories that I can't wait to share, but I'm not going to do it now because I'm awaiting Amaly's arrival here in freakin' hot, but astoundingly beautiful Springdale, Utah. Whoo hoo for great friends who are willing to drive 8 hours out of their way to visit you!
Check back for updates sometime next week!
Check back for updates sometime next week!
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
vacation, part 1
We left early on Saturday morning, only to have our flight delayed by more than an hour. The flight from Tally to Atlanta was smooth and uneventful. Addison did an outstanding job, especially considering she was awakened at 4:30am. The lady behind us go up to leave the plane and said, "Oh! I didn't know there was a little girl in front of me. You, little girl, did a great job on that plane ride." We then told the lady that was Addy's first ever flight, and she clarified her statement with, "You, little girl, did an EXCELLENT job on that plane ride!". Addison loved the landings, laughing & giggling through it all. The ride from ATL to Vegas was my longest ever flight, and boy did it seem endless, though in reality it was only about 4 hours long. We had a few bumps on the landing, and something called "clear air turbulence" which startled Addy a little bit. She thought the snacks were fun. When we ordered juice for Addison, the stewardess informed us that until children are about 3 years old, they should not drink juice on airplanes due to the high amount of acid in the juice. Evidently, it causes stomach upset as the body cannot process the acids when at such a high altitude. Who knew?
So, we landed in Vegas, found all our luggage pretty quickly, and rode the shuttle bus over to the rental car terminal. We had quite a wait for our cars, but in the end got two good ones: a Pontiac Torrent and a Saturn Vue. Addison even rented a carseat that didn't gross me out...you know I was worried about renting a car seat! The only problem with her seat is that it's black, so in this extreme heat, it tends to be pretty hot when we first get in the car. We had lunch at a great restaurant near the rental car terminal, Wenchell's and headed over to Hoover Dam. We arrived there to find construction on a new bridge, tons of other sightseers and 118 degrees on the thermometer. We got out to at the visitor's center, but mom, Addison & I didn't make it. We stayed in the gift shop, rather than crossing the street. That was a heat unlike any other I've experienced before. We were all red-faced and sweating profusly, draining water bottles faster than I ever thought possible. Robert called Hoover Dam the civil engineer's "Mecca"...he really enjoyed the quick tour, in spite of the heat. My highlight of the trip there was purchasing a copper bio-medical bracelet that is not only pretty, but could potentially have healing properties. I'll keep you posted on whether or not it heals any ailments.
From Hoover Dam, we drove back to Vegas and wound our way to The Flamingo, on the strip. On our way in, we saw enormous lightning and rain - very cool to watch rain across the desert, watching it's every drop fall in huge sheets. The check-in line at the Flamingo was never-ending, and once up at the desk, we found our rooms were not ready. On the plus side, we got upgraded to rooms with two queen beds. Addison got up on the bed and immediately stated, "This bed is nice and comfy!". She started asking to go home about 10 minutes after that. By this point, we've all been awake for about 18 hours, and still haven't eaten dinner, eventhough it's now about 9pm EST. Robert suggested we check out Serendipity because it was "right across the street" from the Flamingo. This statement, I later learned, is relative in Vegas. You can't just hop across the street. Oh no. There are a seriers of stairs leading to crosswalks that you must manuever around and through in order to cross the street. Serendipity had a 20 minute wait for outside seating (they offered misters for outside seating, which made it almost bearable to eat outside), which turned into a 40 minute wait. We were hot, exhausted, and starving by the time we were seated in a section that had been empty the entire time we waited...Dad suggested that they were short-staffed. I don't know what to think about it, I just found it frustrating & a tad annoying. Meeting my expectations set by the extended wait for seating was the service - extremely slow, didn't get the orders correct. However, the food was delicious, especially their cheesecake. OMG. I would go back just for dessert next time. Poor Addison fell asleep while waiting for her dinner to be delievered...so we boxed it up and she ate it the next day in the car. We all crashed super-early for having been in Vegas. My bros and sister-in-law caught a Blue Man Group show and said it was fantastic.
I'm tired of writing now and need to get Addison ready for bed...I'll write more tomorrow provided I have free WiFi in Solvang. If not, it'll be a week before anymore updates.
So, we landed in Vegas, found all our luggage pretty quickly, and rode the shuttle bus over to the rental car terminal. We had quite a wait for our cars, but in the end got two good ones: a Pontiac Torrent and a Saturn Vue. Addison even rented a carseat that didn't gross me out...you know I was worried about renting a car seat! The only problem with her seat is that it's black, so in this extreme heat, it tends to be pretty hot when we first get in the car. We had lunch at a great restaurant near the rental car terminal, Wenchell's and headed over to Hoover Dam. We arrived there to find construction on a new bridge, tons of other sightseers and 118 degrees on the thermometer. We got out to at the visitor's center, but mom, Addison & I didn't make it. We stayed in the gift shop, rather than crossing the street. That was a heat unlike any other I've experienced before. We were all red-faced and sweating profusly, draining water bottles faster than I ever thought possible. Robert called Hoover Dam the civil engineer's "Mecca"...he really enjoyed the quick tour, in spite of the heat. My highlight of the trip there was purchasing a copper bio-medical bracelet that is not only pretty, but could potentially have healing properties. I'll keep you posted on whether or not it heals any ailments.
From Hoover Dam, we drove back to Vegas and wound our way to The Flamingo, on the strip. On our way in, we saw enormous lightning and rain - very cool to watch rain across the desert, watching it's every drop fall in huge sheets. The check-in line at the Flamingo was never-ending, and once up at the desk, we found our rooms were not ready. On the plus side, we got upgraded to rooms with two queen beds. Addison got up on the bed and immediately stated, "This bed is nice and comfy!". She started asking to go home about 10 minutes after that. By this point, we've all been awake for about 18 hours, and still haven't eaten dinner, eventhough it's now about 9pm EST. Robert suggested we check out Serendipity because it was "right across the street" from the Flamingo. This statement, I later learned, is relative in Vegas. You can't just hop across the street. Oh no. There are a seriers of stairs leading to crosswalks that you must manuever around and through in order to cross the street. Serendipity had a 20 minute wait for outside seating (they offered misters for outside seating, which made it almost bearable to eat outside), which turned into a 40 minute wait. We were hot, exhausted, and starving by the time we were seated in a section that had been empty the entire time we waited...Dad suggested that they were short-staffed. I don't know what to think about it, I just found it frustrating & a tad annoying. Meeting my expectations set by the extended wait for seating was the service - extremely slow, didn't get the orders correct. However, the food was delicious, especially their cheesecake. OMG. I would go back just for dessert next time. Poor Addison fell asleep while waiting for her dinner to be delievered...so we boxed it up and she ate it the next day in the car. We all crashed super-early for having been in Vegas. My bros and sister-in-law caught a Blue Man Group show and said it was fantastic.
I'm tired of writing now and need to get Addison ready for bed...I'll write more tomorrow provided I have free WiFi in Solvang. If not, it'll be a week before anymore updates.
Friday, July 17, 2009
VACATION!
We leave tomorrow morning! Addison is over-the-moon excited and so are we. We're all packed up (except the few last minute things like toothbrushes) and ready to go! I expect to take tons of photos, so check back after August 1st for a post about our trip!
Sunday, July 12, 2009
6 years of my life
WoW! Today marks 6 years since Robert & I got married. I am astounded at how quickly the time has gone and how far we've come since July 12, 2003.
I love my husband more than I ever imagined possible. I cannot imagine my life without him (or Addison). It's been a wonderful ride these last 6 years. I long to see what will happen in the next 6.
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