Santa Barbara 2008

Sunday, June 15th, Father's Day - Mark and Ryan flew with us from Seattle to Redondo Beach where we spent the night then headed up to Santa Barbara for the week. Brook and Hannah joined us on our drive up the coast where we met up with Jeff at Grandma's condo. Unfortunately, neither Ryan nor Ashley were able to join us because of work commitments. As always though we had a lot of fun going to the beach, playing tennis, going shopping, and eating great food. On Ryan and Brooke's recommendation we ate at a little Italian restaurant called Ca'Dario in downtown Santa Barbara where we all enjoyed an exceptional meal. We also had a great time taking Hannah to the zoo while Jeff, Mark, and Brooke got some rays at the beach. Hannah loved seeing the animals, especially the huge male lion stretched out taking a snooze right next to us - a mere inch from where we stood. She also loved the train ride around the zoo, but unfortunately Grandpa had to stay behind because he was too big to fit in the seat.

Mark had to leave on Thursday so he could be ready to start his new job as a campaign manager for a Washington legislative incumbent. He was excited about his new job but stressed out about all the changes going on in his life - graduation, moving, finding a new place to stay, starting a new job, studying for the LSAT, and applying to law schools. He definitely has a lot on his plate. It took Hannah a while to warm up to Mark, but by the time we took him to the airport she was giving him hugs and kisses and said "Mark not go," and "I love Mark."

Jeff has really won Hannah's heart. She loves her Uncle Jeff and likes to play with him and give him hugs and kisses. He will even play princesses with her. He enjoyed playing tennis with Brooke and Dedra, digging giant holes in the sand, and boogie boarding in the waves with Mark and Lanny. He headed back to San Francisco on Friday and back to work on Saturday. He loves it there so much that it's not much of a sacrifice to leave the beautiful surroundings of Santa Barbara for the magnificient city of SF.

Brooke, Hannah, and Dedra spent some girly time shopping for clothes on Thursday. There is some fun shopping in SB, especially compared to Blackfoot where the only clothing is at Wal Mart or DI - no joke!

When Jeff headed home we drove back to Redondo Beach with Brooke and Hannah. We stayed there until Sunday morning when we caught a flight for home at 6:30 AM. Ryan was nice enough to take us to the airport at 4:45 AM - hopefully he got back home for a little rest before Hannah got up.

All in all we had a great trip, but we must admit we were exhausted when we got home. Thanks for a great trip everybody. We missed you Ashley.