Vacation!

We just got back from a wonderful vacation. We stayed in a cabin right on the Yuba River, up in a teensie tiny little town called Sierra City, which is in Northern California. James' parents, sister and brother in law and their baby, and an aunt/uncle also joined us.

The first full day we were up there we did lots of exploring. We tossed Zack in the hiking backpack and headed out for a nearby waterfall. We attempted a family self-portrait. It was not successful.

Along the path we saw a big pile of fresh, wild animal poop. We took a picture for Brandon, thinking that he would really enjoy it. We were calling it bear scat, just cause we found that to be fun. The day before when we had checked into our cabin, the owner told us not to leave food in our car, cause there have been bears in the area, but that they hadn't seen any recently. We went along our merry way, enjoying our hike. After the hike we explored some nearby lakes, then came back to the cabin for nap time.

The next day the rest of the family had arrived. When James' aunt and uncle checked in they were told a different story about bears, that a mama and baby bear had just been spotted the day before. James' sister didn't sleep well that night, she was afraid the bear was going to come in the cabin and snatch away her baby. We figured the dirty diaper smell would keep any bears far, far away.

The majority of our time at the cabin was spent playing with dirt and sticks, or throwing rocks into the river. Zack loved it, and he loved all the outdoor time. He's never had such grubby fingernails, he was in heaven.

On our last full day up in the wilderness we took a trip to Lake Tahoe. When you are that close to Tahoe it is a requirement to visit!! Zack enjoyed playing on the sandy beach, and even took a little dip in the water. Just like his parents, he too loves Lake Tahoe. It must be genetic.

We've been home for a few days now. It's been great to sleep in our own beds, and have the beagle back to clean up after Zack at meal times. We do miss the much cooler temps, however. And Zack is pretty mad at me for not letting him play outside every waking hour, like he got to do while on vacation.

As a side note, I just googled "bear poop" and lots of lovely pictures came up. My quick google research has confirmed that the big pile of wild animal poop did indeed belong to a bear. YIKES!! I sure am glad we didn't encounter that mama bear......