This week I got the opportunity to head down to California with my Dad and brothers to go scuba diving. We’d been planning this trip for quite a while, but due to people constantly bailing out, we weren’t sure we were going to get to go until about 2 weeks ago. Luckily, we were still able to make it work.

On Wednesday morning we got up and on the road by 8am and drove straight through to Long Beach harbor with only a couple gas stops. After arriving at the harbor and putting all our dive gear on the boat, we drove into town and got some dinner at Bubba Gump Shrimp house. After some fine seafood we went back and bunked down on the boat. The next morning the crew got the boat up and running around 4:30am while the rest of us were still sleeping. I finally woke up about 8 while we were headed across the channel to Catalina Island. After grabbing some pancakes in the galley, the captain shouted out to inform us that a pod of Dolphins was swimming along the bow of the boat. It was a good start to the day.

After arriving at our first dive location we all started getting our gear on. The fog that had rolled in the night before was still laying low on the island and the captain pulled out his bagpipes to play for us as we got in the water for the first time of the day. With the fog and the bagpipes, it was a little like diving off the shore of Scotland, but lots warmer. We made 4 dives that day at Ship rock and Two Harbors. The last dive of the day was by far the best as we got to dive through a cool kelp forest just outside of Two Harbors. We saw lots of starfish, sea urchins and sea cucumbers and we even found a random shark egg drifting along the rocks on the bottom. There were tons off cool overhangs and walls to explore and the visibility and colors were great. My Dad’s neighbor even caught a small octopus and brought it up to the boat. After diving that evening, we ferried onto the beach and had steak cook out on the beach.

Friday morning we got another early start and made 3 dives at Rock Quarry and Whale Rock. Again, the last dive of the day was the best and we saw multiple Spanish Dancers and even a horned shark. There were some great wall dives and we explored lots of cool terrain. Although diving through the kelp is one of my favorite things. I love the surreal feeling as the kelp sways back and forth around you. It’s like flying through a quiet forest, except the whole forest seems to move around you. It’s hard to describe unless you’ve experienced it, but it’s a cool experience.

After finishing up our dives we cruised back to the harbor at Long Beach and we all hopped in our cars and started the long drive home. We were all tired and sore and a little sunburnt so a long drive was the last thing any of us wanted to do, but we made it as far as Mesquite before crashing at a family friends vacation home. We slept late and after getting a big breakfast at the Casa Blanca casino, we finished up the drive home. It was a quick trip with lots of road time, but the diving was great and it’s always fun to get away now and then. We didn’t get any underwater pictures this trip, but check below for the pictures and videos we did take…

And here’s some video of the dolphins…

And here’s Captain Greg and his bagpipes…

Annie was pulling some faces for Emily the other day. Here’s a couple she caught on camera:

So there I was just watching tv minding my own business when all the sudden there comes a knock at the door. I went to see who it was and it turned out to be Emily’s folks. We weren’t expecting them, but they often stop by to visit so I wasn’t really wondering why they had were here. Then Paul pulled a box out from behind his back and said Happy Birthday. To be honest, I had kinda forgot that my birthday is tomorrow, but now I have a whole new reason to be excited…

If you’re thinking “hey, that looks like an X-Wing Fighter Kite.” then you’re exactly correct. Now I just need a clear windy day to take it to the park and see if it really flies. You ready up there R2?

My dad was recently nominated by his ward to recieve an important scouting award called The Silver Beaver Award. On Tuesday night we got to go to the awards ceremony to watch him receive it. It was neat to see him and my mom on the stage. He has always been a big scouter and he makes sure that the boys are warm, respectful and have a good time. He always brings lots of chapstick to camp with him because for some reason boys don’t think to bring their own. (My girls would bring a different flavor for each day!) He is always prepared. He would always give us extra stuff when we packed for girls camp so I know the boys are in good hands. He is such a good example to us girls! We are so proud of him. My mom also got a smaller version of the Silver Beaver to wear and she has also earned it. Maybe not for camping out in the cold, but for supporting my dad. And she was the prettiest one on the stage. We love you dad and think you are the best silver beaver around.

Although we have trimmed the hair above Jack’s ears once or twice, we finally decided to give him a real-live haircut this weekend. I don’t know if Emily was quite sure if she wanted it buzzed, but it turned out pretty good. Unfortunately we didn’t think to get the camera out until we were almost done, but we thought we ought to at least capture part of the event for posterity.