Last Trip Of The Summer 2011

Well its beginning to get darker just a  little earlier, school has been in session a few weeks now  and its  Labor Day weekend , which means a close to the summer . SO, we decided to take 1 last trip before  the weather changes and, we won't be able to get anywhere !   Saturday ( 9/3 ) as soon as Damian got off work we gassed up the car and, headed North on I 5 to Roseburg, OR.  on Sunday, the  4th. we will be visiting Winston, OR. and the  Wild Safari Animal Park. and then heading over to the Oregon Coast for a few hours . before heading back to Roseburg for the night and, coming home on the  5th.  This has been a "Mild Summer" so I can't say we're heading North to get out of the heat, But, it sure will be nice to get of town and the  craziness for a while!!  I have  posted a few pictures from our travels!!

 The pictures above were taken at a wildlife park in Winston, OR. Mandy LOVED it here as we were able to see so many of the animals close up !!  The picture  of the Dog and Cheetah  in the snow, is an actual dog who "Adopted" this cheetah when it was rejected by  its Mother, shortly after birth even NOW, they are the best of friend's and  have formed a bond!!

 

After we were done  at the Animal Park, we decided to drive over to the Coast ! what a  beautiful and serene spot  we can't wait to return there when we have more time to explore.

 This little friend was waiting for us up by our car, undoubtedly looking for "Snacks" We had nothing to share!

We returned to our hotel in Roseburg, and after we ate dinner, Mandy wanted to take a swim .

The "Pink Goggles" Mandy is wearing were packed without my knowledge, but, when I saw them AND just how "SERIOUS" Mandy was about wearing them, it was all I could do  to keep a straight face! Another girl at the pool had "Purple Goggles" and Mandy said she wants those next !!!   Such a FUN Trip, what a way to end the summer !!!

Happy 24th Anniversary !!

I decided early on that I was going to do something this year for our Anniversary that would "SURPRISE" Damian !! Let me tell you, its NOT EASY to do that task but, still I decided to forge ahead and see what I could find and figure out . While on the "net" one day, I found a website advertising  a "Dinner Cruise" so after digging around a bit and, some research I thought this sounded PERFECT.  1st I called and found out how to make reservations , costs and everything, then I called and got a sitter for Miss. Mandy ! As soon as those 2 things were firmed up, I called Damian's boss and asked her assistance in giving him the day off  ! I am happy to announce, everything was made   and set just PERFECT and he still had NO idea !!! Since I don't drive, I had to load into the GPS where it was we were going, and creatively name it, so  only I understood it :) !  The night we went, was also,  a special night with a couple of  radio personalities, providing  the music !  SO fun !  below, are just a few of the pictures of our wonderful night on Shasta Lake . NOW, to come up with something just as fun  or BETTER for our 25th !

 

The Sign as we drove into the parking lot !! The road up was pretty twisty and curvy !! Damian said more than once " I'd hate to have a couple of beers and try and drive this road in the dark !! 

There was a "Patio" to wait on, for the boat to come in and pick us up ! The boat was full and EVERYONE had so much FUN!!!

We waited patiently for our  boat , The "Cavern Queen"

The Staff was wonderful and SO accomodating  to make sure each guest had a FANTASTIC  time

Here are just a few pictures of them ! I didn't  get pictures of everyone  :( !

Above are a few of our servers  and below  is another server along with Matt, the  General manager. !

and we wouldn't have been able to go out on the Lake if  we  had not  been  provided a smooth and wonderful drive ! 

Not only was this a  dinner Cruise to celebrate our 24th wedding Anniversary but it was one, that personalities  Billy and Patrick from local country radio station  KNCQ97 FM  were on  to provide a little entertainment !

in this picture the both of them, were trying to name off everyone on the boat and, they did a fine job too

Passing with flying colors !

The Cruise itself was a little over 2 hours on the Lake , and as the sun started to set, I wanted to be sure and get some great shots, and so hoped that they would turn out  :)  happy to report, that they did !!

The young lady below, was absolutely entertaining  and, when I asked her if I could take her picture, she struck a pose !!

We had a wonderful Anniversary AND this Cruise was just a highlight !!!

4th Of July 2011

We decided  since we had a "3 day weekend"  that we should take advantage of it and, so it was off to Vallejo  we went !!
Damian had to  work Saturday,  So during the day, Mandy and I got things ready for  us to leave  that evening and drive down as soon as Damian got off ,   with Six Flags Animal Kingdom as our destination ! We love the  park and, how it is run and the staff that works there!!!  Below are a few pictures of the MANY animal's  in the park. It was  SO HOT !!!  The animals were outside,but, they were staying in the shade or Water, whatever the case may have been !!   below are several of the animals I was able to  actually take a picture of  :)  and, also some of the sites throughout the park !!

This giraffe is one of the MANY  Ceramic  animals  we saw !!


We saw this fountain, and,  even though we got to the park  EARLY in the morning, it was already quite warm and  several people standing around thought of "jumping in" the nice cool water!!

The animals were having such a hard time, I actually felt sorry for them , especially if they had FUR coats !!

This "Little" Gator was so HOT , when he wandered back in the water  and laid down  and got his body wet, I swear you could see him SIGH.........Mandy asked me    " Can I pet him"  ( NOT !! )

The lion's, Tigers and other Big Cats were out, but, they had taken refuge in ANY shade they could find , it took me forever to get pictures of them, that you could see !!

This "White Tiger" was Gorgeous, that is til he GROWLED and scared the &^%$#**   out of me !

Shortly after we saw the tigers it was on to see the elephants !! when we walked by their area, their was a trainer in brushing dirt and leaves off of them and also "Playing" in the water . They LOVED it and it was so good to see them  enjoying a cool   way to "Play" !

After the elephants , we could see their were giraffes  not to far away, and they were SO brave....walked right up the the fence, and ate tree leaves that were hanging over , my my they are TALL !!

Mandy was getting a little overheated by this time, and, we spotted a raft ride we thought she would love, so we walked over to let her watch and, see if she'd like it, and she asked Damian "CAN WE GO " !!  so, I held all the cups and they went and got in line , and I found a spot that was perfect for taking Pictures !!  Notice the giggling girl in the raft, SHE had a ball!! and getting wet cooled her off and energized her for another hour  of PLAY !!

 while we were walking through there was an area of "Kiddy rides" and I saw the Frog below, on top of one of the rides, it was closed so the picture opportunity was PERFECT,  if there hadn't been a keep out sign and chain up I would have had Mandy go stand by 1 of the Frogs you ride in!!

Our VERY last stop, was to 

Where I Could have sampled EVERY Flavor :)

After all was said and done, we headed back to the hotel to cool off and rejuvenate , so we'd be ready for FIREWORKS !!! The Wild Kingdom park put on a BEAUTIFUL show, that we could see from the hotel parking lot !! because I am such a beginner and don't know ALL the ins and outs of shooting pics at the right time, and my camera  doesn't allow you to shoot pics 1 right after the other, you'll just have to take my word for it .......  It was GORGEOUS !!

We came home to Redding on July 4th,  with a stop at Jelly Belly Factory !!  Below they had this Jelly Belly  dressed up in an Uncle Sam's Hat !!!!

FATHERS DAY 2011 !

Father's Day this year was nothing short of AWESOME !!!  Mandy helped me choose places and things to do and, since Daddy is the only driver at our house, we just told him to get up and, our 1st stop was out for "Brunch"  !!

After Brunch it was off to "Play" our 1st stop was to what Mandy calls  "The Bridge"   aka The Sun Dial Bridge to take a little walk around and of course walk the Bridge and look at the Beautiful Sacramento river.


it had been a long  time since we'd been out there !! but it was GORGEOUS as usual !!!

 The Bridge is constructed of  planks that are "See Through"  and, at night when the lights are on, the planks light up as well as  the actual "Sun dial"  , its a GORGEOUS site !!!   it was quite warm, but still cool enough to enjoy the beautiful surroundings  !  ENJOY the next few pics  ......

 Getting ready for our walk on the bridge and surrounding areas !! soon, the flowers and bushes will be all dead , I am glad we went out when we did !!

 Happy Father's Day Daddy !!!!!!

ALL the flowers were so pretty!!!   sad that soon they will all be dead when the heat gets really bad !! glad we saw them before the heat killed them all !!

 There were a Bunch of ducks at the water's edge, and even some sweet babies too  :)

 After  our time at the Sun Dial Bridge we decided to take  another short drive up and check out the Lake  and Shasta Dam.   


 Shortly after we arrived up  by the Lake and were close by the Dam ,  Damian saw a Doe off in the distance. Not to "Spook" it, I started walking up so I could try and get a picture , I must have shot a BUNCH  and, NOT  pleased with the pics I had, I decided to go  and see how much  closer  I could get to her, and get a better picture ! I was so excited, as I  moved closer but, I must tell you as I got closer I started to get a little "Scared" not knowing what she would do if she realized I was walking towards her !!   I have NEVER used my zoom lens before , to shoot something as beautiful and ALIVE  , I am happy to say, I  actually did it AND, the picture even came out ! lol

 "Cropping" it, even made it better !!

After my exciting time with the deer, I decided to take some pictures of the Lake !!  Its not been as full as it is, right now in quite some time , its GORGEOUS !!!!! The Dam was only letting a VERY little bit out , and the Snowy mountain in the background  of some of the pictures is Mt. Shasta !!

Shasta Dam

Mt. Shasta still covered  with SNOW !!!!

beautiful Shasta Lake !!

Happy Father's Day, Daddy !!

 GOD BLESS THE USA !!!!!

Disney Cruise 2011

We got up on Sunday morning, June 6th, To begin our latest adventure !
After an early breakfast  , we gassed up , and, began our drive over to Reno, NV.   we decided to go early enough so that  we could go  to the Disney store and get Mandy her "Credit Card" aka a Gift Card, so that she would have her own $$'s to spend on the cruise..

Next stop was over to the Best Western by the Airport. We settled in for the evening, which was going to be a short one !   at 3AM  we got up  and ready for the 1st part of our journey. we flew  to Orlando, FLA. transferring in Salt Lake City.

 The plane we flew on for the 1st leg of our journey

 

 Mandy girl is READY to go !!!!!!

  spent the evening there at the Hyatt Regency ,  and got up Tuesday morning to catch our ship, The Disney Dream, our home for the next 5 days, stopping  in Castaway Cay ( Disney's own Island ) , then on to  Nassau, Bahamas and back to another fun day at Castaway Cay  before returning home to Florida.  5 days of more Family Fun than I remember having in a long time !! our 1st stop in Castaway Cay, we rented tubes on the beach, it was so awesome .

Here we GO !! and of course Donald Duck had to travel with us !!

next stop ORLANDO !!!!!!

On Our way to the Cruise ship, Mandy and Dad can hardly wait !!

This was the entrance   to The ship !!!

1st day at Castaway Cay. the water was chilly but it felt SO Good !!!

 The Dream is a BEAUTIFUL ship, a small city on the water, is the best way to describe it !! EVERYONE was so nice and went out of their way  to make sure that we  ALL had a Fantastic time, and they out did  themselves  to make sure that LOTS of good memories were made !!



Mandy had a ball, everyone made sure of that.   here are only a few of the many pics of her !!

And on the formal night , who could forget  Mickey, Minnie and even goofy  :)

                                                          

The 1st night, we met our dinner mates, a family from Texas.

Our server's for each evening were the the same, and followed us to 3 different restaurants ! Gilbert, is  from ,  The Philippines  and, his teammate was Adi ( Pronounced "AD DEE " ) , he hails from Indonesia

Our Stateroom host, was Carlos ( From Costa Rica) was in charge of keeping our  state room clean and our needs met.  And  The Cruise Director was. Rachel  Quinn from  England   what a wonderful job she did, keeping a ship of thousands of cruisers busy and happy  :)

Last but certainly not least is our ship's Captain    Tom Forberg he hailed from  Norway

We can hardly wait to plan another Cruise with Disney Cruise Line .

BEAUTIFUL SHIP, GREAT  MEMORIES  and such a FANTASTIC  time was had by  all.

A Trip of a Lifetime for sure !!!!!!!!