This trip was full of surprises and this was one of them. We were simply driving along, looking at the twisted coast then bam! There they were… seals just relaxing on the beach. Take a look.

Things that make you go hmmmm…

We had such HUGE expectations to see the entire Golden Gate bridge. Well turns out they had “fog” issues while we where there. Oh well, we tried.

Hey check these images out. These were shot driving from Anaheim through Las Cruces, New Mexico to San Antonio.

Up to this point we have been blessed with unbelievable weather. I was starting to believe that the only people that sweat live in Miami. Can you think what it would be like to live with 0% humidity… we did for 8 straight days and loved every minute of it.

Day 9 is another story. Can you imagine 0% humidity and 110 degree weather? Well to give you an idea of what that feels like, get your 1800 watt hair blow dryer, point it at your face and turn it on at it’s highest heat setting. Now just leave it there… for as long as you live! It is outrageously hot dude! OMG! No wonder everything out here is dust! It all gets baked to a crisp… day or night! Crazy!

In the video we start at Huntington Beach (awesome!) and work our way west. After we pass Anaheim it is desert, desert and more desert. Check it out.

Hold on to your eyeballs because this was a wicked ride. Starting in SF we dared to cross the Golden (it’s really red) Gate (there are no gates… in neither end) Bridge (at least they got that part of the name right) which always seemed to linger in this massive fog that never went away. It looked like one of those creepy zombie movies… even in the day time. At night the creepy fog would literally roll into the city and obscure the entire landscape. Leaving SF we decided to go to Anaheim via the coast. We experienced an immense variety of scenery. From beautiful rapids between mountains to shear cliffs that dropped straight into the ocean. To the exquisite homes (and golf course) of Pebble Beach to “seaside” farm lands and vineyards. Oh! How about seals sunning themselves on the beach? So what did I come away with in this leg of our journey? That our Lord has a purpose for everything and everyone. Every tree, rock and lake is exactly where He intended it to be… and for us to enjoy. Sadly, we so often drive by and miss the tree whose branches are reaching up to the sky as if worshiping it’s very creator. We dismiss the fact that that giant funky boulder balancing itself on 6 other funky boulders is not an alien thing… It’s a God thing. He put them there for us to stand amazed at His creation.

This video goes out to our pastor and dear friend, Pedro. That through the work that Jesus has done through him, has taught us, shown us and inspired us to “live life to the full”.

Today marked the beginning of our journey back home. We leave California behind and go back to Miami, Florida. Honestly, I don’t want to leave at all. But since we’re taking a different route back home than the way we came, there’s still a lot to see and experience.

This morning we went to church. We went to Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside. Its just such a cool church to visit. Harvest is one of those churches that you walk into and you feel like you’ve been a part of the church since the beginning. Pastor Greg Laurie is a great teacher of the Word of God, and he has an incredible way of relating to his congregation. Its just a really awesome church to visit, and it was refreshing since we haven’t attended a church service in a week.

After that, it was heading to Tucson, Arizona. This is very different than Williams, Arizona, which is where we stayed on the way to Cali. Williams, being in the mountains, was cool… actually, cold. In Williams, its hard to believe its summer. However, the direct contrast would be Tucson. Its incredibly hot. You think 90 degrees in Miami is hot? Well, 110 degrees (literally… not exaggerating) is even hotter. And then the fact that its really dry makes you feel like you stepped in the direct aim of a giant blow dryer. Needless to say, the AC in the car, and now the hotel room, is cranked all the way. Believe me, its hot.

Tomorrow we have a very long journey ahead of us. Its 12 hours to San Antonio, Texas. Plus, we lose an hour once we get to Texas, so its 13 hours in the car. We plan to spend a little bit of time in Las Cruces, New Mexico with some good friends of ours, which is going to be fun. And when we finally arrive at San Antonio, we’ll spend another day there, just like we did in San Francisco. Its going to be awesome!

Pray for us, as we need safety, and patience, to arrive in San Antonio. Believe me, we need it big time.

with much love,
aimee nicole 

This morning we left San Francisco. I was sorry to go, because the city was alot of fun to be in, but I was dying to get to LA. I’ve always wanted to come here and see it. And though I won’t be able to hang out in it much, the drive into it was an experience altogether.

Anyway, we took the PCH (Pacific Coast Highway) down here to the LA/Anaheim area. It was a long journey, and we stopped alot along the way in order to take in the whole view. San Francisco is typically foggy, so the fact that Alcatraz and the Golden Gate were covered in fog wasn’t very unusual. We drove on the Golden Gate Northbound (sans toll) and snapped a couple of pictures, then we had to turn around and go back south in order to get to Anaheim. And to go southbound you have to pay a toll. I don’t really understand that, but there’s California for you.

We ate breakfast at a Starbucks and then continued on our journey. We stopped at Monterey Bay which was incredible. If I had to pick between the places I’ve visited so far on this road trip to live in, it would be Monterey, hands down. Its just a really cute city. Its a city with a beachside small town feel to it. I believe we have a couple of pictures of it, so hopefully you’ll be able to see what I’m talking about. 

After that, we went on to Pebble Beach. Apparently, its a super upscale, high class living place. I’d rather live in Monterey that’s a lot less secluded, but if you like seclusion, this is the place for you. Pebble Beach had mansions with ocean view, not necessarily ocean front. It was really beautiful even though you had most of the golf course in front of you. I’m pretty sure you’ll see a video of Pebble Beach here too.

After that, it was all the PCH. The first couple hours weren’t bad. They were really beautiful to look at. Then the fog rolled in, and then we got a little farther, away from the fog. There was a surprise waiting down the line, which you’ll see in a video later on too. Those last few hours were really boring and tedious though.

Finally we arrived at LA. Since it was a really long journey, we got here kind of late, so there wasn’t much to see. We’re all really tired and we just wanted to eat, update this thing, and go to bed. Hopefully we’ll get to updating video later on. But for now, enjoy the post, and try to visualize it. You’ll be surprised at how different your perception of California will be.

Tomorrow we’ll be going to Harvest Christian Fellowship for a Sunday service. After that, we head back home! As much as I miss everyone, I don’t really want to leave. So if we don’t come back, you know we’re kicking back and chilling in Monterey Bay. However, if we do decide to come back, which I believe is going to be the decision, then our trip isn’t over until we get back to Miami. Keep checking with us for more updates soon!

with much love,
aimee nicole 

Well we got around today. From freezing Fisherman’s Wharf to the Exploratorium Science Museum to… the Mac store. Ahhh, something for everyone:)

San Francisco. Its known for a lot of different things. But today, our family got to know it, up close and personal. And I think we all agree that its a pretty cool city.

So our hotel is super close to everything. Its right in the middle of a shopping district and it gets really busy during the day. Think 5th avenue in New York. Except cleaner… and friendlier. Okay, the only way its like New York is the busyness of the streets and the amount of people.

Believe it or not, we took public transit. Its pretty much the only efficient way to get around and see most of the city. We took a trolley down to Fisherman’s Wharf. The trolley was really enjoyable, and the temperature was really cold outside, so the ride was pleasant. We passed Lombard Street, the crookedest street in the world. We passed Chinatown too, which is pretty different from Chinatown in New York. Down at the wharf, all you smell are fried fish and all kinds of seafood and other food. It was really busy, but the atmosphere was nice. And down at the pier, you could see the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz (video on that later).

Later on, we hit the Apple Store, of course. And if you’re wondering, I was not able to get a shirt. I was disappointed, but I’ll live. Then we ate dinner at Chevy’s. We were kind of surprised to find that there was one here, and even better, it was right down the street. It was relaxing. I have to admit though, its been an exhausting day. Exhausting in a good way. The kind of exhausting where you feel you’ve accomplished much. And we have.

Tomorrow we have a long journey ahead of us. A 12 hour ride to Anaheim through the Pacific Coast Highway. We could get there in 6 hours but we feel the scenic view of California is worth the extra 6 hours. The blog will probably be updated late, but the texted twits will be cataloging our trip up the Pacific.

with much love,
aimee nicole

Here are some of the pictures we took along the way today. Click on the image below to see the slideshow.

For serious animal hunters only. No animal was hurt during the making of this video.

This has been the most beautiful part of the road trip so far. So far we have gone from desert to stony mountain tops… today we went from large expanses of rolling dry grass valleys all the way up (over 5000 feet above sea level) to the giant Sequoia tree forest then back down to the giant buildings and bridges of San Francisco.

When watching the video, keep your eyes on the landscape and how many times it changes. We are so blessed to live in such a beautiful country.

Yesterday we decided to take a detour and go see the Hoover Dam then continue north towards Visalia, California where we will stay for the night. Today we will go further north into the Sequia National Forest then onto San Francisco.

We’re here. Finally. In California.

You know, its amazing how fast we’ve actually gotten to where we’re going. After several 9 hour trips in the car, 9 hours begins to feel like nothing. It flies by. Our family is getting better at loading and unloading the van, packing our things quickly and waking up early. Though the waking up early is due to the time difference. I’ll literally wake up at 6 in the morning and not be tired.

So the drive from Arizona to California was interesting. The landscape changes were the best part. Arizona was red, arid, dry, sometimes yellow and lacking in vegetation at some points. Then we took a detour north towards Nevada. No, we did not stop in Las Vegas. Though it seemed like it because the whole desert that is Nevada was covered in casinos. And yes, Nevada is pretty much a desert. Yellow, cacti, dry, hot, the whole nine yards. All of a sudden, you cross the state border and you have fruit trees, and agriculture inspections (we passed! whoo-hoo!) and trucks filled with goods. Especially garlic. We saw tons of trucks filled with garlic. And I’ve never seen so many U-Pick farms in my life. It had U-Pick strawberries, U-Pick cherries, U-Pick everything. They even had grape vineyards where you can have them make your own label for your own wine. Its pretty agriculture-y. Needless to say, the weather here is gorgeous. Its not hot, but its not freezing cold. Its great, and everything’s really pretty and green. Its like Miami, but with no humidity and cooler temperature. I love it.

Tomorrow, we’re going to the Sequoia National Forest. After that, we’ll head on to San Francisco where we’ll spend the next 2 or 3 days. Its going to be a blast!

with much love,
aimee nicole

PS: thanks to those who have been checking us out faithfully and passing along the website for others to enjoy. also thanks for those who have been praying for our travel safety. we hope you’re enjoying the trip as much as we are!