FAMILY VISITS.

 Raf and his mom being silly on the beach :) 

We have had a whirlwind of visits and visiting lately!  It has been a really great summer, as we actually got to stay here in the Bay and show people around our beautiful home.  We also were able to meet up with more of Raf's extended family on their cross-country trip (4 kids, 2 parents, 1 mini van and 10,000+ miles!!) during their Pacific Northwest leg.  First his parents,aunt, uncle and two cousins all came out here for their summer vacation, which was a blast.  I love when people visit--it gives me a reason to do some exploring and checking out our old favorites again, such as the Golden Gate Bridge and Point Reyes National Seashore.  Here are some highlights from that visit...

a pelican near the GGB

 wandering a trail at Point Reyes

 a random gate in the middle of the beach (??)

 cool and creepy-looking moss on trees along the shore

The next photos are from the beginning of our Oregon road trip.  As previously mentioned, we met up with his family, got a campsite near Crater Lake, cooked dinner together, had a camp fire, got some sleep and then explored the lake the next day for a few hours.  After a hike or two, we ate a quick lunch together and then parted ways--them continuing on to Nevada/the rest of their trip, and us on to the hot springs in central Oregon and then to the coast, driving all the way down to Humbolt County before heading home (via the scenic wine country of Mendocino County).  It was an AMAZING trip for the two of us, and something we have been wanting to do together since I moved here 2 years ago!  (more photos from that leg of the trip soon...)

Crater Lake and the cousins...

the sun was hurting our eyes!

 SO BLUE!  :)