Bodega Bay Vacation

Last weekend, the Grahl family got away for a much needed vacation after basketball season. We rented a little house off Hwy 1 in Bodega Bay. The weather was perfect, and we had a lovely time at the coast :)

We actually walked along the water from our house, past the souvenir shop in the background, to get to the Inn at the Tides wharf. The house was about 50 yards up the highway and right on the water. Here, Kurt is helping little Ella walk through the parking lot.

The next souvenir shop along Hwy 1 . . .

The Tides Wharf shops . . .

They have whale bones and this old anchor in the back along the water.

Later, we decided to have a picnic on Doran beach.

Ella is munching on grapes as a surfer walks past . . . there were a ton of surfers out that day.

Ella didn't just munch on grapes . . . some sand found its way into her mouth. Daddy was eager to have Ella try out digging in the sand for the first time . . . she didn't like it very much.

Daddy and Ella play their favorite game . . . throw Ella up in the air!

Watching the surfers together . . .

We were discussing how crazy it is to be back here with our 16 month-old after getting married on this very spot three and a half years ago :)

The whole gang . . . except me, of course! I'm like Snuffleupagus in this blog :)

Daddy tried one more time with the sand, and Ella face-planted. She really got a good taste of the beach!

Back at the house, Ella decided to entertain us from inside the house with her screen face-smashing skills.

Grandma won't like this one . . .

or this one . . .

Bathtime! Time to wash off all that sand!

The next day, Sunday, was very windy. We tried Portugese Beach a few miles up the coast, but we didn't stay long because of the wind.

She liked the sand better this time!

Good morning! I caught these two sleepyheads looking at cycling news :)

Some sunny days and our silly cat

We had a week of sun to dry out the yard after all that rain in the end of January and beginning of February, so we finally took Ella outside to "play" in her yard. We also let the cats out to Ella's delight. She had fun chasing them around.

She had trouble with the transition from cement to grass . . .

She also loved climbing the deck steps . . .

Sally and Ella have become pals, even though Ella tends to hold on too hard and too long to Sally's tail. A few nights ago, Sally got bolder and decided to observe Ella's bath. I think she might just jump in one day!

"Hi kitty!" is Ella's first sentence.

The Littlest Honker Fan

Here is how Ella has been spending just about every Wednesday and Friday night for the past couple months . . .

As you can see, Ella has lots of fun in the stands with Amy and her dad. Amy's brother, Donnie, is a senior on the team, so they come to every game and help out Mommy with her little handful. Amy graciously hands over her purse full of goodies to Ella so she can sit at our feet and play happily while looking up to check the score once in a while.


After the game, Ella gets to wander around the gym floor and chase basketballs!

Notice she always wears her Yuba City basketball shirt in support of the team . . .

Of course this makes Daddy really happy . . . she already holds the ball and looks up at the hoop, just yearning for the day when she has the strength to make a left-handed layup.

Ella at the Railroad Museum

On Thursday, Ella and I went to the Railroad Museum with our MOPS group. This was our first outing to a museum, so I had no idea what we would do. Basically, we went through the museum really fast and then got to the Thomas the Train play set upstairs where we spent all of our time. Ella had a blast playing with the trains and the kids.

This is how she gets colds . . . everything goes in the mouth!

"Excuse me! I'm little Ella, and I will be taking your train away from you now."

I think Ella took this older boy's train and he wanted it back :)

Ella's first smoothie

I made a berry smoothie for Nonna and myself the other day, but Ella, of course, wanted some too. Here are the results . . .

She loved it!! Ella is actually a blueberry fiend lately . . . she can't get enough of them.