She Came, We Saw, We laughed and Loved

How much fun can be packed into a two week vacation with my daughter?

Posting to this blog was all but stopped so that I could spend as much time as possible with my daughter... "Stop, in the name of Love..."

Kasmira lives in Georgia so we had a lot to catch up on. We wanted to fit as much as possible into her visit so we were constantly going, doing, eating, laughing and loving.

Here are Kasmira, Red and their brother Mick (yes, Mick's a dog)outside of the Bagel Bakery in Pacific Grove California, home to their grandparents.

PG is a fun little town along the central Coast but tends to be a bit foggy. It is also very cold in the summer months especially to visitors from the South East.

Kasmira went from temperatures in the 90s to the mid 50s in a few short hours.

Carmel Beach is one of our favorite places. The white beach and dog friendly locals make this a must place to visit.

Kasmira wasted no time at all house hunting.

She chose this home adjacent to Pebble Beach with access to the Carmel Beach on private steps. She clearly understands the 3 most important aspects to real estate; location, location, location.

Her second choice wasn't shabby either, The former newspaper tycoon's castle on the Central Coast in San Simeon wasn't available though. It is now an historical monument and state park.

Umm, tough call to make... so many houses available in Carmel along the beach... if she does get the one next to Pebble Beach, she may just have to take up golf.

The locals are friendly in either location although down in San Simeon they tend to hog the beach. These huge elephant seals are amazing beasts to observe. A word of caution - stay upwind and do not walk among them on the beach.
We got in a lot of shopping. The amazing thing is that we were not thrown out of any shops, including this Macy's at Del Monte Shopping Center in Monterey California. Here is Lacy, my Mom, posing with some of her "friends".

She particularly liked the colored hair and the flash-back fashions that still make even mannequins look pregnant. What are designers thinking?

We drove the coast highway from San Simeon into Carmel and the Monterey peninsula. Words can't do justice to this incredible journey. We stopped several times for pictures.

The Bixby Bridge has been featured in several movies over the years and is one of our usual stops. No matter how many times we stop there is a magic and newness that still leave us in awe.

The recent fires that raged through this area didn't seem to harm the view along the highway although they did burn a lot of the Los Padres area.

The last weekend we had a rendezvous in Santa Barbara for a mini family reunion. We ate and played and only slept when we absolutely needed to. Balderdash was our nightly game of choice and we had plenty of laughs and interruptions for leftovers and passing hugs.

Beaching with the family during the warm sunny days was a natural choice. The cousins went swimming in the waters, played paddle ball, and just sat and visited.

Kasmira and I walked up the beach and got a stranger to take our picture. I can't spend enough time with her. The clock has been racing from the day she was born and she is headed at warp speed to her future at Embry Riddle and the Air Force.

I know it is cliche, but why must they grow up so fast? And why do they do this during the years we are busy scrambling to make a life for us all? The best I can do is snap some pictures and hold the memories close.

We got a new family picture taken. My brother's backyard patio is perfect for this type of thing. Red and Mick especially do better with these informal photo sessions. That's not to say that they can't be a challenge but as the years go by they get better. Sadly there was one family group missing, my sister who now lives in Colorado. Missed you Ro and family.

We went to the water park with friends several times while Kasmira was visiting. She's been instrumental in teaching our friend here how to flirt (not that much instruction was needed).

I put my baby girl on the airplane and sent her home to her dad on Monday.

I was mostly able to keep my smile up while she was here but the last few days were a challenge. I spent close to 15 minutes sobbing as her plane took off and had to rinse my contacts before starting the drive back home.

I tend to have random cries for a fw days after she leaves and periodically thereafter. Red understands this now and offers many hugs to help me through.

I am so blessed to have such a beautiful, intelligent and sensitive daughter. I love you my dear and wish you such happiness and success in your new adventure in college. May you be blessed with friends and challenges that serve you well. Always.