"Winter Wonderland"

Here's a snapshot of the fields near the Sacramento airport covered with a fine layer of fog. Enough fog that our pilot had to try the landing 2 times the other morning.  Since we've been back in California from Thanksgiving break, the days have started out with heavy fog that burns off into bright blue skies by late morning.  I think this is considered their "winter weather." I'll take it! 

Yesterday at swim practice I challenged my "ole buddy" Rick (3 time Olympic champion.. cough cough) to race me in the 50 free. My coach gave me a 10 second lead and I was able to actually finish before he did!! I fist pumped in victory and wished someone had taken a photo of us near the wall... who would've known I had a significant head start?? ;-)  After practice he pointed at me and said, "Emily, Thursday, we race again." And like a giddy school girl I blushed and retorted, "You're going DOWN Rick!" (I believe in the power of talkin big). That totally made my day/week/month.

Up in the Air to Portland

Well my months of preparation for my friend's bachelorette party have come to a close. This past weekend a group of us girls celebrated her upcoming marriage in Portland, OR, along with crowds of Occupy Portland protesters. It was a cold, wet weekend in the city, but we cozied up inside having delicious meals at Nostrana and Clyde Common, and hitting up some fun bars and clubs. This is a pic from our hotel's restaurant, where I had a hamburger while waiting for the other ladies to arrive on Friday.  

Back down in California, I've been having fun times on the phone with Hertz trying to figure out why they keep charging us for scratches and fuel fill-ups that we shouldn't be charged for. Oh the joys of renting a car every week. I picked up our car for this week in the evening, totally forgetting to do the "car walk around check" only to later find a HUGE gash in the right back bumper, awesome.

It's amazing how many little things Todd and I are learning from traveling each week. I definitely feel like George Clooney's character from "Up in the Air": learning which fuel tank works fastest and actually prints receipts, which security line is fastest and doesn't include nudey scan, and can prep my bags (including taking off shoes and belt) for the security belt in less than 30 seconds.

I'm also learning what makes my man happy, especially if he's had a bad day: beer, a home cooked dinner, and maybe a surprise gallon of Ben & Jerry's "Americone Dream" in the freezer. You should check it out - it's delish!

Tea and Yosemite

Today I woke up feeling like I'm fighting a head cold, so i decided to skip swimming and come to Steady Eddy's instead for lunch and green tea.  It's much warmer than I thought it would be, so I'm sitting outside right now on their front porch drinking from my large green pot of Chinese green tea (refer to large green pot in picture :-) ). 

I cannot believe it's been THREE months since I left my job to become a "travel wife"! Time really flies by.  Sometimes I have moments of wondering if I should be contributing more to the world than just: eating, swimming, napping, planning meal, sleeping, repeat. But mainly I'm just really enjoying the sunshine and sharing my evenings with Todd everyday.  

This past weekend Todd and I stayed in California and drove four hours to Yosemite National Park.  We stayed at the Tenaya Lodge just outside the south entrance to the park. Entering the park was beyond awe inspiring.  I had heard so many people say how beautiful it is, but had no idea until I was there in person. One of Todd's colleagues from Spain even said that Yosemite is worth the whole trip to come to America.  

You drive into the Yosemite Valley which is surrounded by the glacier cut mountains.  The words that come to mind are: immense, majestic, grand.  The initial view through of the valley with all of its mountains is called the Tunnel View, a must see.  We spent one day hiking around the various sites: Lower Yosemite Falls, El Capitan, and then horseback riding through the Sierra National Forest.  The second day it had snowed 5 inches, so we hiked up the closed road to the Mariposa Grove of Sequoia Trees. Gorgeous.  So impossible to believe that the sequoia trees can range from 1,000 to 3,000 years old!! I really recommend anyone to take the trip to see Yosemite. You won't be disappointed!

Take Time to Stop and Smell... the Nut Trees?

Life hasn't been too eventful the past couple of days.  We had a huge windstorm yesterday which kept me on my toes when driving. I even saw REAL tumbleweeds roll across the highway! Todd apparently got "tumbleweeded" when he was out on his daily walk. 


Farmers in the area have been burning piles of wood from their nut tree orchards, so the air has a scent of burning peanut butter which is kind of delicious.  


I'll be cooking my first crock pot meal here in California today. It's called "Chicken Breton" - a simple mix of chicken, veggies, and tomatoes. Should hopefully fill our small guesthouse with yummy smells! 

Good Morning California!

Here's a shot I captured while driving with Todd to work yesterday morning. We were passing large fields covered in a thick morning mist with the rosy sun rising in the distance. Simply breathtaking.

It's been another busy week of travel.  It's surprising to me that I haven't gotten bored yet being a travel wife with no job. You'd think I'd be sitting on my bumpkin watching soap operas and eating bonbons every day, but the days fly by with driving Todd to and from work, grocery shopping, cooking a homemade meal each day, and then going to my swim practice at noon.  I calculated that I spend an hour driving every day, and that doesn't include Mondays or Thursdays which take five hours for us to commute to California or back to Seattle.  Then our weekends seems to be packed with errands, keeping up our home, seeing family and friends, and then getting ready to do the travel all over again on Monday morning.  Phew! (I know, get out your small violins). It's by no means a bad situation, just a lot more tiring and busy than I had anticipated.

However, I feel very grateful to spend each day with my husband, having a meal together each night and catching up on our days in person - something I really missed while being apart last year.  I also am very much falling in love with California.  The blue skies and open countryside have really done good for my soul.  Flying down the highway at 75 miles an hour with my country music cranked up on the stereo is total happiness.    

P.S. Unfortunately no pictures were captured of my last recipe - the chicken balsamico was consumed way too quickly! :)