It's been a long time since the last post. But here it is.

We are back from California. We had a wonderful, although HOT time. But I guess Sacramento doesn't have the corner on HOT these days...

We flew down on Wednesday the 12th. The flight down was unfortunately very eventful with non-sleeping, very tired kiddos. And for some reason all of our ears were plugged, which made for a painful descent into Sacramento. However, once we landed, things immediately picked up. Caleb wanted to use the potty when we got into the airport. And Papa Bishop met us. Caleb within the first 30 minutes said "I love you" and shocked Papa Bishop and made the trip worth it. We got home and said hi to Grandma Bishop before she had to resume working on a project that needed to be completed before we left Thursday for South Lake Tahoe.

From the first moments that Josh was out of his car seat both grandparents were impressed with Josh's attempts at walking. And he literally began to learn and improve before their very eyes over the course of the vacation. By the time we left he was going down their hall or accross the room 10 feet! I think it is so cool that they could be a part of such a huge milestone in Josh's life. It's not often that a vacation can be timed so perfectly to see walking begin to happen in a little guy.

Josh had a good time down there. He was a real trooper. He went along for the ride and came with us to several activities and watched with contented interest or slept in peace. It was wonderful to have such an ammendable little boy on a vacation. He had fun cuddling and playing with both grandparents. Josh did well with the dogs. Josh's highlight, other than walking and playing with the grandma and grandpa was the visit from cousin Alexandra (approx 2 weeks younger). Oh, does he like babies! He wanted to play so much. He likes to reach out and pat and play and try to discover the eyes, nose and mouth of the other babies. It was very neat to watch the cousins interact.

Caleb had a fantastic time. It was a whirlwind of activity for him. He really liked seeing Papa and Grandma Bishop. It surprises me how quickly he adjusts to them each time, when he is often a slow to warm up little guy with many people. He quickly becomes attached to them and wants to go with them, cuddle with them, wake them up in the morning, or asks what they are doing. Caleb went with Papa Bishop nearly every morning and got Starbuck's coffee. By the end of the trip he was calling it "starbucks" not "coffee", and he was very sure that he was entitled to some of mama's mocha frappucino.

Thursday we got in the car and began the drive up to Tahoe. It was a nice drive. And thankfully we got into the "cool" mountian climate and enjoyed mid to high 80's temperatures. Once everyone was appropriately napped and fed we set off to have some fun. We took Caleb to an amusement park. It is a small town type carnival set under the ponderosa pines. I expected Caleb to be interested in the kids' rides... the small and slower rides. Not the "inertia kid", as daddy nicknamed him so long ago. His first choice was the ride that goes upside down. Now, Caleb is fortunate enough to have a mommy that would go on those rides with him, but he was not yet tall enough. So the first ride was a multi-tiered slide. The kind that you sit in a burlap sack and slide down in between little raised grooves. He squealed from the first drop all the way to the end. And he was such a small little guy that mommy got to go with him on everything for free. (Hey, who says there isn't any perks to being a mom?!) The next ride that Caleb went on was a BIG ride. It happily surprised me that they allowed us on. And it astounded me that Caleb had a good time. I was half expecting him to be scared half way through and scream to get off... which would have been okay since we were the only ones riding at the time. But I tried to get into a positive, encouraging mantra... "look how fast, this is the fastest swing ever" "look how high, taller than grandma and grandpa, look how far we can see, this is fun, look over there, we will do that next!" And of course, I held on tight. Caleb had a GREAT TIME! He would have done that over and over I think! But we tried the little roller coaster next instead. Again, he surprised me at how much fun he had and how little fear he had. What a great way to start a vacation. That, and after the amusement park we ate at McDonald's then stopped for Slurpees on the way back to the condo. Grandpa Bishop knows Caleb's weakness for cheeseburgers and slurpees.

The next day was packed with activities. The first thing. Fishing at the Tahoe Trout farm. This is the best way to guarantee catching fish. We were fortunate enough to be warned by a fellow to have our camera's ready because the fish were practically jumping into the buckets. I expected this activity to be a 2 hour process, little did I know that we would be there, fish, pay and leave in 30-45 minutes. The fast pace was perfect for the 3 year old attention span. Grandpa Bishop baited the hook and tossed it in. There wasn't ever more than 10 seconds before there was a fish on! And just ask Caleb to tell you about how the fish wiggles and struggled. He is very animated and shakes his whole body to show you. He pulled in 2 fish and said "I like fishing". I had to begin telling him only 2 more, ok now only 1 more. Because it is an addictive activity. As Daddy pointed out, it really gives a false impression of the sport of fishing because in real life it doesn't happen that fast. As long a Caleb has a good time, that is what is important. Grandpa Bill took Caleb out fishing in a boat with a lifevest... I'm not sure that the fish were so eager to bite, but I think the boat kept him interested. Two very different experiences. Caleb is lucky to have such wonderful grandparents that are willing to open up the world to him and let him experience it all in a fun and safe way.
In the end, Caleb caught 4 trout. He told us which fish was for me, for Grandpa, for Grandma, etc. He was willing to share them all. His largest fish was 14 inches long.

Our next stop was an arts and crafts outdoor fair. This was fun, once Caleb was convinced to do it. He and Josh got moulds of their hands made. These are complete 3-D hands. You can see the fingerprints, the little creases, the fingernails, etc. Josh's hand is posed in a little baby wave with his little pinky curled. And Caleb's is cupped just like he is holding a ball (which of course would totally be typical of him). I love the pose of Josh's, and I LOVE the fact that we got Caleb's left hand, the one that he sucks the thumb on because the mould captured the little soft calouse pad on the back of his thumb! There isn't a better way out there to capture that trademark of Caleb and it is precious; I can't wait to show him when he is 30! (Or show his kids.)

That evening, we putt-putt golfed. Or in the case of Caleb... Whack-whack-whiff-whiff golf. He pursued each ball just as if he was on the driving range. He had a great time. But I had to adjust my frame of mind... I can't expect a normal game where you tee off once and hit the ball until it goes into the hole and then move on with any timeliness. No, no. With Caleb, as always, it is an adventure and a test of time and wills. He was very enthusiatic to try each hole, many times, and not always in the correct order. I was very glad to have shared this experience with him. And Grandpa Bishop and Joshy were wonderful to come and watch with patience and joy. We finished up the game with riding the quarter slot rides by the entrance. I think those made just as great an impression as the near 2 hours of golf. I'm always amazed that my little son is so happy with the affordable and easy to provide fun! (A blessing, truly.) And then we swam in the pool and hot tub that evening.

Saturday we woke up and went to pick up the finished and dried hands from the arts and crafts fair. Then to wear Caleb out for the drive home, we went to the amusement park and went on the big slide again. There are LOTS of stairs he has to climb to get to the top. Then we let him ride a few of the quarter rides again... and then it was off to pack, load, and drive home.

Saturday evening we went into the hot tub. It was a nice refreshing 89, perfect for a hot day.
Caleb really looks forward to swimming in the hot tub. It is something that he talks about alot, so we did that Sunday and Monday night too. On Sunday night, Grandma joined us. It was dark when we were out there. She showed him the stars. He found the Big Dip and the "New" star. And then he told her that he had stars in his backyard too and that he borrowed them, and she should say thank you. We also saw "flying stars", i.e. satellites.

Sunday, we got out to the Zoo! It was neat to see. Caleb liked seeing some of the bigger animals and the monkeys. It was starting to get hot out and time for lunch then naps, so we jumped on the little 1/3 scale steam choo-choo train for a quick spin around the city park before heading home. Caleb really liked this too, but he was too shy to stand next to the conductor for a picture.

Caleb and Josh got to spend some one on one time with Papa Bishop Sunday and Monday afternoon while Mommy and Grandma went out for a bit. I was glad to hear that the boys behaved well for Grandpa. Then Great Grandma Dyer and a family friend Phinas came over for dinner. Caleb had a good time interacting with both, although I think that he took extra joy in trying to impress Phinas. And Phinas gave him all the laughs Caleb was working so hard to get. It was a win-win situation, and even fun as a spectactor.

Monday morning the boy visited Grandma's work and then it was off to Check E. Cheese. Papa Bishop got Caleb hooked on this and it is fun for Caleb every time! For the restof us it requires patience. Josh is especially wonderful at the patience in this place where there isn't much for him to do but listen, watch and wait. Grandpa and Mommy trade off who chases Caleb around and help him play the items he thinks look fun. When we had enough of that, it was time for naps.

After naps, it was time for Grandma Bishop to get some time in with Caleb. Mommy, Grandma and Caleb went to the movie "Cars". Caleb really liked this. Great-grammy Dyer had given him a little toy car modeled after the movie and he liked playing with this on the floor. He sat still for most of the movie. And Caleb liked the snacks in the movie too.

Monday night, Mommy's Cousin Meghan and Caleb's cousin Alexandra came over. Caleb was interested in the new people. But it was Josh that really interacted. Caleb was very sweet in trying to bring Alexandra toys to make her happy etc. He liked getting into the pictures too. The little guy is either all shy or loves to be the center of attention. He also had to show us all his gymnastics tricks and splits.

The flight home, although delayed, was wonderfully peaceful. They both fell asleep and made up for the chaos they caused on the flight down.

So that was the trip. A great time and we can't wait for the next time. Hopefully it won't be in the triple digit temperatures. :)

Also, so much has happened since we have been back... but that is for another post when I have more time.