Life is a Four-Letter Word

Life can certainly be a four-letter word. 

It can be Love. It can be Hard. It can be something else altogether. 

But what I consider it to be most of all is a Gift. 

The Hard times, the Good times filled with Love and the times full of ****. It's all a Gift. 

We cannot know the Sweet without knowing the Sour. We wouldn't be able to appreciate those Good times. 

I know this to be true. 

Quite recently I have felt like crawling in my bed and tuning everything out. But then I turn around and see how Sweet parts of my life are. So I keep on going. 

So today I will look at the Good. There is going to be a bit of Yuck in there too but I won't let it fester in my head. Only the Good will get to stay. 

First Day Of School 2013-14

It's been awhile since I only had two to get ready for school. Since 2004 to be exact. It definitely feels different without Makenzie here. But the morning went smoothly and the girls are off to school. I'm looking forward to Emma having release time seminary. And I'm excited about the new MAPS program at Mountain View. It should be a good year. 

Heidi and Jordan 8th grade

Santa Monica Pier

I love seaside boardwalks where you feel the wind on your face and smell the salt of the ocean.  It has a way of erasing the cares of the day and putting a smile on your face. 

Since we came to California for a funeral it was just what we needed. We loaded up in our rental and headed west to the Santa Monica Pier. 

I think I love these types of places because I'm not a huge fan of sand. I don't like how it gets EVERYWHERE. And I don't particularly like how it feels. The exception to this last part would be Caribbean sand. But at the boardwalk you can enjoy the ocean without walking on the sand. Near my home we have a beac town called Seaside that has one. I love it for its boardwalk, Tilt-a-Whirl, candy store and oceanview hotels. 

I've also been to the Santa Cruz boardwalk. And now I've been to Santa Monica. Santa Cruz definitely ranks #1. It's pretty fantastic. They have a huge assortment of rides, tons of great food and just watching the surfers there can take up the whole day. 

Santa Monica had its own highlights as well though. I loved Zoltar from the movie "Big".  

The views from the Ferris wheel were incredible. 

And the view of the beach with the many brightly colored umbrellas just made me happy to see. 

We had a great day and the beach accomplished its goal: taking our cares away.