— Gorgeous view of the valley with Half Dome in the back

I haven’t posted in quite some time now and am realizing how there’s so many stories I have to tell from the past several months and I want to get back into blogging seriously, like when I was on SAS. So here it goes…

For our first family reunion since 2003, we ended up choosing Yosemite National Park as our central meeting place. Cousins from Southern California, Northern California, Colorado, and of course Washington all congregated to meet in this gorgeous California park. 

— Cousins oldest (me, left) to youngest (Jeffrey, in the middle)

We spent a long weekend trekking up trails, getting kicked out of playing in rivers by the Park Rangers (luckily no arrests were made..), and then almost 2 straight days next to a river swimming, floating, eating, talking, jumping off rocks, skipping rocks, staring at the looming rock cliffs above us and so much more! 

— Not long before the rangers found us in the river

We had several August birthdays to celebrate, including my Nana’s, Aunt’s, Dad’s, and a few more. The weekend ended with sunset and photos overlooking the whole valley and was absolutely perfect. We saw the rock Houdini did a handstand on way back in the day, that is now banned for public access and even watched the stars begin to peek out as we headed back to the cabins. 

Since our last family vacation, we have lost 3 family members, and as my Nana and others get older, I am so glad we have that time to spend with people, especially the cousins.

— A Panoramic view of the whole valley (and my cousin Brooke)