I just went back to school last week and several people have asked "how was your summer?" My response has been "this has been the best summer since I started teaching." It's the first time in the last thirteen years that I haven't had some other responsibility during the summer. No summer school. No coaching. No babies being born. No Master's program. No WASC. No major house projects. No kidding.
We had lots of plans this summer and really had a great time. Tracey and I are truly blessed to both be teachers and have the financial ability to stay home for the summer with our children. It's awesome.
The first trip this summer we went camping in Sequoia as a family. We camped with Grandma Judy (GJ), Uncle Scott, Aunt Amy, Emily, and Abby, as well the Shirotas and Wes. It was beautiful, relaxing, and lots of fun. It was great hanging out with friends and family. Hiking, cooking together, hanging out by the fire, riding bikes, and enjoying nature. Last summer we stayed in Yosemite, but couldn't get a campsite there this summer. We "settled" for Sequioa, which sounds ridiculous because it is such a beautiful place. I'm sure we will camp in Sequoia for many years to come. We were only able to see such a small portion of this National Park. We hiked Tokopah Falls, visited Crystal Cave, General Sherman and drove through a Sequoia (I can't remember the name). We also got dangerously close to running out of gas on the way down the mountain. Note to self: get gas before you enter a National Park.
A week later we camped in Carpinteria with the Medlins, Alexanders, Shorts, and Contis. We have known the Medlins for a long time. Tracey has worked with Cindy for nearly 16 years and has known Christy about the same amount of time. The other families are all involved in the Indian Princess program so Grace and Sarah had lots of friends to play with while we were there. The campsite is right by the beach. The days were filled with bike rides, dips in the ocean, seaweed gathering, hole digging and.....throwing up. Unfortunately, Tracey got sick on the third night of a five night trip. In the morning she was absolutely miserable so we quickly packed up and came home. It turns out that having the stomach flu in a campsite is actually worse than just having the stomach flu. A 50 meter walk before you puke in a dirty public bathroom is not a good time. Although we had fun while we were there it ended on a bad note. You could say that it left a bad taste in our mouths. Okay, in Tracey's mouth, because somehow no one else got sick.
In between camping trips we spent a lot of time in the newly redone pool. We had a couple of BBQs with friends and family. We went to Disneyland several times. Tracey and I also bought bikes for our 10-year anniversary. So we went bike riding as a family which the girls love to do.
I played poker throughout the summer. I hosted a poker tournament and 20 people showed up. I won, so it looked totally rigged, but the very next night I played at Pat's house and finished 2nd. He also had 20 people in his tourney and several of the players, played both nights. I also played at the card club a couple of times.
Tracey and I spent three nights in Las Vegas for our 10-year anniversary. The first night we saw a stand-up, Vinny Favorito, he was very funny. The second night I played in a poker tournament at Caesar's Palace. Tracey encouraged me to play, because she knew I wanted to, and it didn't start until 10 PM, so she slept through most of it. I finished 3rd overall out of 67 entries and was really comfortable at the final table. I won $470 which was great. Sometime around 2 AM, one of the guys that I was playing with asked where my wife was, and if she played poker. I had to laugh, because I realized that it was now the next day, and it was technically our anniversary day. So I said "She's in bed, and actually today is our 10-year anniversary." My end of the table overheard the conversation and really didn't believe me. I then explained that we had plans that evening.
The third night in Vegas, Tracey and I ate at a restaurant overlooking the dancing waters at the Bellagio. It was very cool to eat out on the balcony and really enjoy the ambiance. We then saw the Cirque de Soleil show "Love" it was incredible. We both really enjoyed the show and I think we will go back and watch "O" sometime in the future.
A week later we had a nice dinner with my mom's side of the family. She wanted to take Tracey and I out for our 10-year anniversary. It was really thoughtful of her and made me appreciate, even more, the life that I have with my wife. My mom, Grandma Cathy, Mark, Uncle Scott, Aunt Jackie, Uncle Mickey, Aunt Dawn-Ellen, and cousin Courtney were all there. We don't usually all get together like this, unless it's a holiday, so it was nice that they could all celebrate with us.
Last weekend I went to Havasu Springs for the annual guys trip to the river. Allen has a boat and sets up the trip for everybody. It's one of the few times that we all get together during the year. It seems like I usually see those guys individually and not as a group. This year everybody made it out: Allen, Wade, Dave, Mark, and Kirk. I've known Allen, Wade, and Dave since high school. It's been nearly 25 years that we have been friends and I'm sure that we will be friends until we're all old guys. Okay, older guys than we currently are. Forty is right around the corner. Once again we all had a good time. It's funny how there can be no set plans other than a boat, the water, and some beverages, and we always have a good time.
As the summer winds down and I head into another school year, I'm really happy with all the things that I got to do this summer with my family, with friends and on my own. I'm looking forward to the next school year and for many more wonderful summers to come.
