Home?

We made it back to Monterey!  Home?  So strange to think that we are not in Texas and yet we are home.  I love this opportunity to be here but it still seems so odd to me.  I guess it has a lot to do with the fact that we have not lived here for the lost two months...three for Michael, but everyone back in Texas expects to already be settled into life here in California.    I would not have traded the time in Washington for anything; however, I knew it was getting to be a long stay when I started telling people there that I had just MOVED there from Texas.  WHAT!?!?!  I am not LIVING here...I am just VISITING!!!  But it was a nice place to visit.


SO...how do I make this California house a home?  First step...Most of all...just bringing EVERYONE back together in one place.  Meeting Michael at the airport back in Washington was the first step in that process.  We are so happy to be together again.  It makes all the time away from each other wipe away.
No more I am staying here...you are staying there and some others there.  We are all living under one roof.  Having this adventure together!  YAY!!!!

Step two...start unpacking our things...putting photos on the wall...putting our things away...and making sure all my crosses and religious items are out.  When the house looks "normal" then it begins to feel normal.  And then we feel comfortable enough and confident enough to spread our wings and follow through with the last step to this process...

Step three...discovering the area around us.  I think you will all agree from these adventures that we are starting to make this house a home...and embracing our time here in California.

Found the library...

The boys were at a teen event the day after we arrived.  They played interactive games with other youth their age.  Great motivator to get out of the house instead of sleep...even though we probably could use a little more sleep after our travels!

One library was not good enough for us, so the following day we went to a second library to watch a clown act (Coventry and Kaluza) for the younger ones.  It was very well planned and funny for everyone to enjoy!

Then back to the first library for the weekend to see a performance with Pete the [Groovy] Cat.  It was a groovy show but it reminded us of Miss Elizabeth who introduced us to these books.  We miss you and want you to know that no one can replace you!

The following week we went to a folk singer who paid tribute to Woody Guthrie as it was his birthday.  He told stories with his songs while he played his guitar and autoharp.  He told us that he is one of the few singers who makes his living telling stories.  Maybe you have heard of him (Adam Miller) as he travels all over the United States.

Then we enjoyed a marionette group (Fratello Marionettes) who performed a combination of "The Tortoise and the Hare," "The Three Little Pigs," and "The Ugly Duckling" to the musical composition "Carnival of Animals."  They did a great job and even let the children ask questions and "meet" the puppets after the show.  I really appreciated seeing the show, but also that fact that the children were fascinated with the puppets and the classical music.

The library is giving us an opportunity to continue this delve into the classical arts with a Bach concert.  It is also in a cute little town we drove through named Carmel-by-the-Sea.  We cannot wait!

Found the chapel...

Mass on Sunday at the chapel.  I do not know if this is where we will go to church while in California.  However, the other parishioners are happy to see our big family walk in the door and definitely making us feel welcome.  The priest is here going through language school as well so he is a good fit for the soldiers.  We are going to try going to the local Catholic church because we want the children to be around others their age, but maybe this is where we need to be for this short time.

Found some caches...

One of the main reasons I love geocaching is because it takes us places we never would have found on our own.  I decided to use this to our advantage when we had some time on the weekends.  We have now reached over 200 caches since we started this hobby a year ago.  Here are some of the places we have visited in the last two weeks:

We drove down the main strip called Cannery Row.  One day soon I hope we can actually walk down through all the stores and attractions.  We did manage to stop for ice cream at a Ghiradelli ice cream shop.  Did you know they make their chocolate here in California.  We also hope to visit their main factory in the near future as well.  We also found tributes to John Steinbeck  that we want to view as well.

Ocean View Blvd is a road that travels right along the coast.  It was easy to stop along the way for caches and just enjoying the beach.  The beach is very rocky here and we learned that swim shoes would be very helpful when we decide to try this trip again.  One cache that we were determined to find was out from the beach on a large rock formation.  I wish I had videoed the group trying to reach the coordinates.  It was high tide and there was no way to make it there but the boys made every effort to try.  We will need to find this one during a low tide.

Point Lobos Reserve was full of caches but I centered in on four Earth caches because it gave us several geographical locations of interest.  We were able to view harbor seals, fossils, conglomerate beds, and even an area designated for birthing area for seals (We spotted one as it came out of the water but never saw it again to take a picture.).

SIDE NOTE:  Michael had been on duty the night before and I only brought a change of clothes without shoes.  He chose to go barefoot (not normal for him) and the paths were very rocky.  Poor guy had sore feet by the end of the day.

Edward decided he did not want to go to the beach.  He stayed in the van.  I thought he was being dramatic and pouting.  So he only saw things from the van window and is not in any of the pictures. Poor guy ended up being sick...fever and vomiting later in the day.

Santa Cruz is only a short drive away and had heard there was a museum of interest for the children along with other sites.  However, it was a geocaching event that finally got us in our car for a brief visit.  We were able to go to the natural history museum as well as view the beach, board walk, and grab an earth cache (telling us about the shift in the river that empties into the bay) before going to the event at a park.  We were even the first to arrive and earned ourselves a new geocoin!  We will need to come back here to explore some more.


SIDE NOTE:  Notice the dog in the group picture.  This is a trackable dog...you can follow on the Log Your Dog website.  Sienna has traveled over 1500 miles in the last three years!  Very impressive!

There are so many things to see within a short drive from our home...that's right...I said home...at least for the short time we are here...loving the experience!  We are so thankful for this amazing opportunity!  Praise God!