Kaity Girl...: California 2012

It seems like we go to California once every two years or so. However, I feel like it's going to be YEARS before we go down there again. Maybe to say hi to my aunts but that's about it.

We went down every so often to see my great grandpa. For the past ten years it seemed like he was on his death bed. Everytime I said goodbye to him it felt like it was the last time. The last time I saw great grandpa was at his 90th birthday 2 years ago. He died 10 days after his 92nd birthday.

I woke up early on my birthday and saw grandma and grandpa's car in our driveway at 5:45am. I knew why there were there. We all did. I don't think his passing was such a sad thing... He had been wanting to be with my grat grandma for so many years and we all know that he is in a better place. We all miss him but at least he isn't suffering anymore. He lived a great life!

About a month after he passed we all went down to California for his memorial. It was great seeing everyone again. My aunt from Arizona came, Uncle from Texas and my Aunt and Uncle from Kennewick...Is it sad that my siblings and I were most excited about seeing the cousins from Kennewick? When we see them several times a month? We left a day apart and we all were so excited to see each other in California, I think they were excited that they would have their "crazy cousins" in California with them haha. The car ride sucked. 14 hours down, 14 hours up and the car was cramped!

When we got into Auburn we met up with BB and Erin at Foster's Freeze and coincidently enough Uncle Gene's flight came in around that time and Auntie Alicia and Uncle Trevor arrived in Auburn then too...So the whole gang basically filled up Foster's Freeze and we all caught up with each other before moving the troops to Aunt Mert's to see grandma and grandpa (who were there days before us).

While at Aunt Mert's I got attached to Miss Ainsleigh!!! She played on the trampoline with me (scared me too when she jumped too close to the edge). Then she showed me how she liked to line up all the crochet balls by color along my leg. We spent what seemed like hours on there. I had fun with her!

My family then separated from everyone else and went to the house. Mom cried seeing her footprints in the ground. I felt like I couldn't get enough pictures to hold onto all those memories.

Hard to see but those are my mom's baby foot prints...

Grandpa's chair that he would feed the birds in

The gate to "the woods"

After our detour to the house we all met up at Round Table pizza with crazy kissing cousin kelly and her husband tom! That was fun! I got pizza down the front of my shirt from Ainsleigh throwing it, ended up with more pizza on me from Lolo and then got cranky and tired that I fell asleep after all the little kids went back to the hotel (there wasn't enough room in the car for me...).

Lolo chowing down on some pizza....we just kept feeding him!

Someone else was a little tired too.... Grace!

The next day, Saturday, we all got ready for the memorial. My sisters and I did hair for everyone, Emma made flowers for them too and we all were lookin snazzy in our black outfits lol. One by one the cars left for grass valley and then I somehow ended up with the kiddos walking to the church...sitting with them at the church and during the service and then walking home with them from the church. It was nice though. Then all the family members met up at the house and we just hung around for awhile. It was nice to see people I haven't seen in years and even met little Wyatt! After the service it was time for Taco Time where we let off some steam chasing the little ones around the restaurant. Somewhere between the service and Taco Time we went shopping and got all the little kids Mad Bird pajamas :-)