San Francisco Part II

After Whitney left my friend Ann (who I've known since I was 17) flew in from L.A. and we stayed in San Francisco for three nights at her very generous aunt's house in the Sunset district.

We had a great time walking around the city, exploring restaurants and bars and meeting new people. We even made it wine tasting in Napa Valley one day, a really fun experience for anyone who likes wine or pretty scenery!

Here are a few pictures from our time together:

Ann and I in Napa

It wasn't France, but Napa was definitely pretty

Ann and I together in the city

- Krista

San Francisco Part I

During my trip to the U.S., I decided to go visit my friends Whitney and Ann in San Francisco since I hadn't seen them since my wedding last year.

I met Whitney first, who I've been friends with since the 5th grade. I stayed with her family for one night (who I've also known forever) in San Jose, then got up early the next day to go hiking at Point Reyes, a beautiful spot north of San Francisco. We stayed in SF for a night and walked around the city and did a few touristy things in the sunny weather before she had to leave.

It was really nice to see her, especially since I don't know when I'll get to spend time with her again since she's going into the Peace Corps next year!

Here are some pictures from my visit:

Whitney and I at Point Reyes

The view was beautiful but I wished I could have jumped in the water!

Seals in San Fran... this guy cracked me up!

- Krista

Trout Lake

My parents bought a little place (my mom calls it the barn, but it's much more like a cabin inside) in Trout Lake, Washington a couple of years ago we decided to go up for a visit this weekend.

It's only my third time up there (I went once huckleberry picking last year in the late summer, and once snowshoeing in the winter with Brian), but I really like it. Trout Lake is about a 20 minute drive from Hood River, a really cute and very active little town on the Gorge that my Dad loves for its great windsurfing and kite boarding.

We only stayed for a night - I could have easily stayed longer but we had previous commitments - but we had a really nice time. While my Dad kite boarded on Friday (something I'd like to try someday), my Mom and I walked around Hood River and enjoyed a happy hour and some good food in the sun.

We went for a hike on the Sleeping Beauty trail the next morning, and even though the hike was a good hour and a half uphill, my dad even made it kite boarding again that afternoon - I sure hope to have as much energy as him someday.

Here are a few pictures:

The view from my parents' cabin/barn - not so bad huh!

The three of us at the top of Sleeping Beauty

- Krista

Wake boarding

I went wake boarding with a couple of friends from high school the other day - I've been a couple of times before, but not for a long time. I got up, and even convinced my friend Bryan to try it too for the first time!

Me on the water

- Krista

Pool Time

We had a couple of 100 degree days last week, and anyone who knows me knows that I really don't do well in the heat without water nearby. Well despite the current state of her house (she's remodeling big time), Kena was nice enough to invite me over to hang out in their incredibly comfy little pool. We had a few Coronas, and hung out with the boys... fun times.

Here are a couple of photos:

Kena & Wyatt snuggling

Braxton being a goofball

(Look at the boys' teeth... they're missing the exact same front tooth! Identical twins are amazing)

- Krista

Farmfest 2009

And the American adventure continues...

After Sunriver, Brian went down to Ashland to see his dad (blog post to come soon, courtesy of Brian), and we met up a few days later at Molly & Mike's farm for their annual Farm Fest celebration.

If you aren't already aware of Farm Fest, it's a wonderful tradition started by the Hoffer-Dore family something around 10 years ago (I was wrong when I wrote this - it was 17 years ago! wow.), and involves a great deal of swimming, food, friends & family - and music, lots of music.

As always, this year was a great success. The food was fresh and delicious, the music entertaining, the swimming hole tolerably cold, and the people fantastic. My parents even made it down for the night and got to see the fun - I'm hoping we can convince my niece and nephews to join us next year as well! And we were really glad to get to spend some time with Patrick, Em & the kids since we hadn't seen them for so long.

There are a few pictures of the weekend below, or take a look at our full Picassa album here.

Jack pretend-eating a homegrown cantaloupe

Finn in the swimming hole

Jack & Patrick playing guitar together

The new guesthouse - we were the lucky guests!

Charlie and I playing tug-a-war - Charlie won

- Krista

Sunriver 2009

It's been a while since I've written... I guess sometimes life is too busy for blogging.

Brian has been at his new job for over a month now, and about two weeks ago we took separate long airplane rides back to America where we have had insanely busy schedules packing in family and friends just about up until I took Brian to his flight back to Amsterdam this morning.

Now things are a little calmer, and since the weather is still less-than-perfect I felt inclined to write about some of our adventures so far...

Adventure number one: Sunriver.

As many of you already know, my family and I have made an annual trek down to Sunriver, Oregon since I was about one year old. It's a great place where basically the only things to do are swim, bike, play tennis, eat and relax, and we're pretty good at doing all of those things (especially eating). We had a great time as always, and it was really nice to have Brian there this year (he couldn't make it last year) even though he had to leave a day early.

Here are a few pictures of the trip - see the entire Picassa Album here.

The whole family eating Goody's (only the best candy/ice cream store ever)

Taj, Wyatt and Lily making funny faces

Brian tearing it up on the tennis court

Kena, Mike and (freezing) Braxton in the pool

Braxton & I warming up in the sun

- Krista