dripping with passion

i just got pictures (from my sister shawni) from our sisters’ trip in california back in march. going through these photos has made my heart feel so overflowing with love and gratitude for my mom, sisters and sister-in-laws. i am so incredibly honored and glad to be related to and to be able to constatly learn from these remarkable women. the days we spent together in northern california were wonderful and wild . on our first full day together, the van we were driving to our airbnb place got broken into when we made a stop en route - tons of my mom’s and sisters’ stuff (wallets, computers, etc) got stolen (i was so glad that i took my bag with me, as it had my and little mo’s passports in it!).  and on our last full day together, moses was treated for pneumonia in the emergency room (after days of worry and sickness and very little nighttime sleep). looking back, those days seem pretty blurry – taking care of a seriously ill infant is no joke and i was in a state of near con...

in our love story, it was the first kiss that really changed everything. it happened on a beach a bit south of half moon bay, california, just after sunset. that kiss was the true beginning of the most wild and wonderful adventure of my life. the boy and i returned to that beach and the area surrounding it several times during our courtship. it’s just down the coastal path from a gorgeous ritz carlton resort. we often enjoyed sitting by the fire pits overlooking the ocean outside the hotel. we continued to visit this special place during the first few months of our marriage (when we were still living in palo alto). we always thought it would be so cool to stay a night at that ritz carlton. but we would never pay to stay there (it’s very expensive). welllll, we recently qualified for some free nights at ritz hotels, so we booked a room at our dream place!! and our overnight date there was seriously dreamy. we flew back to california from utah, went straight to the farm my sist...

i don’t think i can really explain how happy it made my heart to be back in the san francisco bay area. i feel something there that i truly feel no where else on earth – a particular brand of adoration and belonging that is so, so sweet. moving to san francisco was a huge leap of faith, my time living in the city and on the peninsula was a wild learning adventure, and it was in that part of the world that i found my true love. i grew up in utah, but i grew up in northern california. …and that spot on earth just so happens to be stunningly beautiful, richly fascinating, and full of colourful character. gosh, i love the bay area.   after a pretty pleasant ten hour airplane ride (that moses is a champ! … and check out the spectacular scenery as we flew over greenland! ^^), we headed straight to my uncle chris and aunt hedy’s beautiful home in fremont. we love these people so so much. we shared a lovely meal, and enjoyed catching up until our jetlagged eyelids just coul...