Halloween and Festivities

Happy Halloween!!! 

Captain Hook, Peter Pan, Creepy Inmate (?), The Joker

Our lovely pumpkins, along with all the cool free gourds we got with them!

Some serious carvers. 

Nothing too scary for us this year! 

American Flag by Liz, Bert by Chris

Don't forget to roast your pumpkin seeds! Yum!

 On another evening, we decided to make our own cheese. It's long been on our list of to-do's. 

Chris' parents gifted us with this mozzarella kit last Christmas. 

Oh my goodness! The whey separated! It's working!!!

 Carefully separating the curds from the whey. 

Stretching the cheese! We were so excited it worked! Thanks Steve and MaryAnn!

 Somewhere in the last 10 days, we finally received the photos from our wedding! Our photographer is so sweet and included a surprise wedding album. Awesome :D

 We decided to host a build-your-own-pizza party for our friends, in honor of Alex whose birthday was coming up. Liz made up the pizza crusts a few days before and froze them. 

 Love the colors that fall festivities bring! Our Happy Birthday sign made from felt.  Wish it was homemade...just Target. 

 Alex getting his pizza prepared. He introduced us to banana peppers and salami as indispensable pizza toppings! 

 Hugo seems pleased with his pizza creation :)

Slicing the "Chris Supreme". People said it was the best pizza they ever had. Whether or not that's true, we had a great time and can't wait for the next pizza party. 

Come visit us and we'll throw one in YOUR honor! 

Dan's Visit

Dan Lowery paid us a couple days' visit after his music-playing stint in Las Vegas. We were glad to welcome our first guest and family member to our California home! 

A self proclaimed "sucker for sunsets," Dan was very excited to play frisbee on the beach at dusk his first night with us. 

Cool ship coming in to harbor right as the sun went down. 

Supposedly this is how you mimic the odd Dr. Seuess trees outside our apartment. Don't forget your suit coat and your gym shorts!

Liz, very excited about the bright yellow matching mountain bikes we rented to ride the Ventura River Trail, one of the most scenic in our area.

Off-roading...the guys couldn't resist a hill we passed. Gotta test out those mountain bikes!

The next day, hiking Pt. Mugu - the tallest peak in the Santa Monica mountains.

On a break mid-hike, Liz climbed a tree higher than she could handle. Chris to the rescue!

Not the peak yet, but almost there! It was a great hike. 

We cooled off on the way home by stopping at the beach. Daniel happily donned the wetsuit we found for him at the thrift store for $3! 

After fully plunging in the freezing water, Dan gives the wet-suit an A+! He was especially happy to be in the water after we spotted some curious seals bobbing their heads up very close by. 

BALDERDASH! None of us had ever played this 1980's classic (thrift store - one buck!). We won't forget the laughs we had....highly recommended by us all! 

We had a great time, Dan! Thanks for visiting!

Mini Golf and Hiking

A normal weekend with a few photos to enjoy :)

 Our first game of mini golf together. Chris definitely won, but Liz did get an exceptionally lucky hole in one that left Chris speechless! 

 After a big pancake breakfast with our friend Alex (fellow CECOS student), we spent the next day hiking at the breathtaking Piedras Blancas.

 We didn't waste too much time on the trail...our goal was to reach the top of the tallest rock mountain we could see! Chris used up some spare energy while Alex and Liz rested. He was up that rock in 30 seconds!

 Turns out we weren't the only ones interested in making the tallest peak. We came across some installed ropes for two of the perilous areas of ascent. 

 Alex showing how to properly hang his weight on the rope. 

 Getting to the top. What an adventure....definitely the most unique hike we've done!

Stay tuned for a post on brother Dan's visit!

If You're Going to San Francisco

Chris had Columbus Day off, so we made the most of our long weekend! Our final destination was San Francisco, but we hit Big Sur, San Luis Obispo, and Monterey on the way. 

Scarecrow Festival! What?! We spotted it as we drove by. We had to stop! On Main Street, every establishment had a creative scarecrow display. 

Yes, kind of creepy.

Chris played until he won, of course. 

We stopped along the Pacific Coast Highway to spot some Elephant Seals sunbathing on the shore. They are huge slippery, writhing oafs that bark and occasionally burp. Hilarious to watch! We had to pull ourselves away!

Chris spotted this lone otter from atop a cliff near our campsite. The otter stared at us for a couple minutes as he floated away on his back. 

At a beach we found after a local tipped us off. The beach is tiny and came into existence in the recent years due to big storms. It was a perilous descent from the cliffs, but well worth it!

Elizabeth getting Chris to pose for "just one more!" timed photo shot.

The Lone Cypress, a famous tree near Pebble Beach, Monterey.

Ghirardelli square in San Francisco! YUMM! We tried several samples of the limited Pumpkin Spice Caramel Chocolate. Highly recommended by us both!

Alcatraz, the old prison island famous for the prisoners who tried to escape into the water. We passed up the tour  to the island, but it looked pretty cool.

Hiking out to the Golden Gate.

A nice ending to our weekend!

Welcome to our blog! While we're far away from those we love, we created this blog to stay connected. We miss you all so much.
Enjoy!