Family for the Holidays

We really enjoyed having so many families here in Reno for the holidays.  Rosie came for an extra week to get out of the smoke in Santa Barbara and to enjoy a little winter.  We didn't get a lot of snow in December, but there were still a few patches around to make it feel like winter.  The cousins all had a great time together and it was fun watching then interact. The camera didn't come out very often, but here are a few highlights in no particular order. 

We made a couple of trips to Virginia Lake to feed the birds.

The point of feeding the birds seems to be a way to gather a large number of feathered friends that you can then chase.

One Saturday afternoon we took a walk along the Truckee River. It is always an interesting walk, with lots of people to watch.

We decorated a few more cookies

I had some willing helpers while I made Christmas bread this year.

And of course the hot tub saw a little action.

While the parents went to sushi we took the grandkids out to a special lunch at A&W.

Life is fun when you are a grandparent.

Around Sayulta

We didn't do a lot of exploring around town.  We hiked a couple of times through the jungle to a less crowded beach.

with some interesting pelicans

and a lot of beautiful beach.

Most evenings we went to town for dinner.  I love the second floor balcony restaurants where you can watch all the action on the street below.

Or we had lunch at a beach palapa restaurant, which is probably my favorite location to eat, but the food was not great this year, although they did serve Fanta.

One evening after dinner we strolled through the town plaza where Lucy did an impromptu dance to the music.

The rest of the time we just enjoyed lounging in and around the pool at the house.  

A great way to spend a week in November

Ally Cat adventures

One of the highlights of a trip to Sayulita is taking a trip to Las Marietas Islands on the Ally Cat. Calvin and I have have gone twice before and loved it every time.  Sadly Emily got a bout of food poisoning and missed the trip, but the rest of us went.  Emily was probably happy just to have a day of peace and quiet.

As soon as we pulled out of the harbor the crew set up fishing poles and Zach and Austin got to fish.

Austin even caught a fish, but I'm pretty sure they let it go.

We sailed to the islands and left in small groups for the shore.

From the small boat you could see the famous blue footed boobies

Once on the island there were caves to explore and shallow waters and sandy beaches to enjoy.

Lucy and I took the small boat back to the Ally Cat and the boys snorkeled back.

Once we were back on the boat we had lunch and then lounged around for a leisurely sail (actually motored) back.

Then we anchored for some serious fun.  All the boys had a great time jumping off the boat. Austin

Zach

Butch

all together

Lucy and I enjoyed floating on the lily pad

and we finished up with a ride on the drag net

Zach called the best day ever, maybe not the ultimate best day, but a pretty darn good day!

Thanksgiving in Sayulita

Once again I got to enjoy fish tacos on the beach for Thanksgiving, and even better Butch's family joined us on the beach. 

We didn't actually do a lot more than hang out at the beach but it was non stop fun on the beach. A lot of time was spent bobbing in the waves

and building giant sand fortresses

and posing for pictures

One very cool thing we got to do was release turtles.  Sayulita has a turtle conservation group who dig up turtles nests and remove them to a protected area.  The when the turtles hatch volunteers (anyone who happens to be walking along the beach) get to release the turtles and cheer for them as they make their way to the ocean. The kids collected their turtles

and then cheered them on as they raced their way to freedom.

This is what they saw