holiday. part 2.

After our morning beach trip and walk around Carpinteria, we showered, packed up, and drove four hours north to Santa Cruz.

Denver was such a great little traveler.  He pretty much stuck his head between Danny and I and enjoyed the ride.

We were so excited to get to Santa Cruz, where some of our best friends live.

These are them:

(This girl Erica, oh I love her.  Throughout high school she sat with me over coffee and muffins before school started, read books with me, taught me what it meant to love Jesus, cried with me, let me borrow her clothes, and, and, and, and.  She has modeled to me what it means to be a student, wife, youth minister, and now mother.  And because of these things she is on my top-5-life-influencers list.  And quite honestly, I can't ever imagine life without her.)

The rest of the weekend was spent holding that beautiful baby girl, sipping on Verve, watching the pups play, saying "no!" "sit!" and "leave it!", eating great food, laughing, and having some great conversation.

 And then we had to leave.  Boo.

(Thank goodness for Shocktarts, Starbucks Double Shots, and Trader Joe's white cheddar popcorn to make the ride a little easier.)