Yosemite. So magical.

The day after I arrived home from Southern California Hank, Sam and I headed to Yosemite! It was amazing!!! That place inspired me and now I feel re-energized because of our visit. It was incredible. Here we are in front of half-dome.

I leave it up to you to decide what Sam is doing here.

There was so much love being passed around our family while we were there.

This was at Mirror Lake. We tried hiking a bit but Sam just wanted to stop and throw rocks so we eventually gave up and just let him. That was more fun anyway.

Biking in Yosemite is just magical. Most of the trails have sequoias and pines towering over head and then every once in a while a majestic view opens up and you can't help but take a picture.

This was our first day there. We biked a lot and our last destination was at the Ahwahnee Hotel where we allowed Sam to roam free in the back gardens. He got very silly and passed this stick around to each of our mouths. His silliness was infectious and before we knew it we were running around singing loudly and tackling each other. There is something about Yosemite that just sparks happiness in you.

This is the hotel. It was built in the 1920's to house patrons of the park. Isn't it neat architecture?

On our way out we saw and deer and it wasn't afraid of us, we got really close. I guess it's used to people being around. I was so excited and yelled at Hank to get a picture. A lady who was an employee of the hotel was walking by and saw my excitement. She casually said "there's another one over there too" like it was no big deal. I guess I am not accustomed to mountain life.

Are you ready for the most incredible experience? Here we go; Hank and I did a tiny hike to the lower Yosemite Falls and after seeing how beautiful and powerful it was, there was no way we were going to stop. We headed for the top. Little did we both know how intense the hike was going to be.

Sam feel asleep at the beginning of the hike and took a short nap and then fell asleep at the end of the hike, that just shows how long this monster hike was. We started at 9ish and got back around 4ish. If I knew we were going to be crazy and spontaneous I would have packed more food. I guess that's the drawback of spontaneity.

The first view point on the hike, pale in comparison to the top. By the way Hank did the whole hike up 4 miles of steep switchback with Sam on his back and then basically 4 miles back because I am a wimp and didn't last very long with Sam on back. By the end his shirt was dripping with sweat.

The views of the falls kept us going and Sam's cute personality.

After hours and hours we made it!!! Sam was by far the youngest one at the top. Hank is amazing and so is that view!! Being in a place like that makes you realize how insignificant you are. I felt grateful and humble at the same time.

The view of Yosemite Falls. I feel tired just thinking about that hike but at the same time I want to go back. So often I find that some of the most difficult experiences are the most rewarding ones, they are always worth it.

Since Sam was a champion and allowed us to trek to the falls and back without too much complaining we bought him some dibs. I love that boy.

We also took him back to mirror lake where he could go swimming. Well that water is melted glacier water so he lasted about five minutes before he realized he couldn't feel his body. We spend the rest of the time throwing rocks in the lake.

This was one of my favorite moments (one of many) because Sam was so happy to be alive. He was being silly and we were laughing at him as well as helping find rocks to throw. We had had an exhausting day but oh so rewarding and now we were able to just enjoy each other. I love my family and man! I cannot wait to go back to Yosemite!