Christmas

I keep waiting until I have inspiration to write something cute and clever and detailed about our Christmas, but the inspiration is just not flowin'.  However, we had the most delightful Christmas with my family in Merced and then at the beach house in Cambria.  It was so peaceful and happy and relaxing and I just love, love, love my family to pieces.  Here are some pictures that give a brief, and certainly not complete, account of Christmas 2014.

Grandma Rowan, as per tradition, reads Luke 2 at the Rowan Family Christmas Eve party.  This year we added songs between certain verses and it was so lovely.

Ben, Grandma Rowan, and me.

Anne Marie & me.  How I love this lady!  I miss living close to her.

On Christmas we got to talk to Elder Rowan!  He'll be home this summer!

The day after Christmas we drove to the beach house and this is the sunset that greeted us.

Our house is right next to this ranch with paths for walking.  I love it and I took a lot of pictures on my walks.

Ice Plant on the ranch.

Funky bench and paths up the hills.

This is a view of the beginning of the ranch, taken from right next to the beach house.

It's pretty either way you look - beach or hills.

We visited the beaches where the elephant seals come to give birth in the winter.  They are the funniest animals and I love them.

Elephant seal beach.

We played football on the beach at sunset one evening.

How dreamy can life get?

San Simeon Pier.

We also went tide-pooling right below the beach house.  It's definitely one of my favorite things to do.

Sea Anemone.

Sea Urchin.

My father, commander of the tide pools.  But seriously.

We even saw a whole bunch of seals out on the rocks when we were tide-pooling.  Seals are funny.

Besides seals, we saw whales and dolphins swim by the house multiple days!

This rock is covered in little Sea Anemones closed up while the tide is out.

The men-folk + Emily looking down at Mom & I at the tide-pools from up on the bluff/ranch.

This is taken from the ranch, looking back at our house.  It's the very first one when you reach the houses.

Emily.

Dinner at the Sea Chest.

The boys rode their bikes every morning and on Sunday we drove one of their routes - so pretty and so hard!  Glad I wasn't biking it.

"Batch" in San Luis Obispo on New Year's Eve - I thoroughly enjoyed my cookie ice cream sandwich!

Panoramic view taken from the back yard.

I love my family and I love Cambria - Christmas 2013 for the WIN!