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On Friday morning, Irving went out to golf with the groom and his friends at the Wawona Golf Course. So Grandma Julie, Adele and I took the shuttle bus to the Mariposa Grove to see the giant Sequoia trees! I was giddy with excitement!

I strapped the sleepy baby to me in the carrier and did my best to keep her out of the shade. The Mariposa Grove has an upper and a lower section. We just did the short .8 mile trail (1.6 miles total).

Adele slept through the whole hike! But I narrated along the way: “Look at that big tree! Did you see the squirrel? etc..” She loved it, obviously!

I seriously waited my whole life to have a kid that I could take to parks like this and explore the great outdoors. I always loved nature walks and learning about the animals and the history of places. I’m so excited that the time is finally here! I feel like my life is just beginning since I get to experience all this cool stuff all over again with Adele.

The Sequoias were beautiful. We took a tour led by a park ranger to learn about where they came from, how they grow and how the park protects them.

The roots of these giants are only 2-4 feet deep! Isn’t that crazy! Here is a picture of the roots of a tree that fell in the 1800s! (Fun Fact: Sequoias have a chemical in them that makes them nearly impossible to decay! They will eventually, but it takes decades longer than a normal tree!)

Why, hello there, big tree!

I was laughing to myself that maybe someday when we take Adele back here, she might whine and complain, “But mom, why did we have to come all the way out here on vacation to just see some big treeeees?” Hopefully she’ll learn to appreciate them for what they are! And if all else fails, at least they sell ice cream in the gift shop, right? LOL

Also spotted on our walk… a Deer! (Actually a few deer, but this is the only one I snapped a picture of!) Thankfully we didn’t see any bears.

Living in LA, it really is something special to stand at the base of so many gorgeous trees reaching towards the sun.

Finally we reached our destination: a Sequoia named The Grizzly Giant. It’s one of the biggest trees in the world.

The branches on that bad boy were as big as regular trees!

Adele did great on our hike. When we got back, she was nice and hungry and I fed her on the Adirondack chairs on our porch.

Then it was time for some playtime and a nap. Grandma took over and I actually went down to the restaurant and dined by myself on the patio. It was awesome! Can’t remember the last time I could enjoy a meal out by myself! It was so nice! (They even served me Pink Lemonade… on the house! Score!)

It was such a perfect day. So far, one of my favorite weekend getaways to date!

(Stay tuned for two more posts Yosemite themed posts this week!)

We just got back from spending four amazing days in Yosemite National Park. Irving’s good friends, Brian and Victoria, love the park so much that they decided to get married there! I’ll save their gorgeous wedding for my next post, but for now, here’s a recap of our first day in the park!

Adele slept almost the whole way there (it was about a four hour drive). We met up with Irving’s mom, who volunteered to watch her while we went to the wedding. She was so excited to spend time with the baby. Adele wore a pretty dress because she was excited too!

Adele continued her love affair with big hotel beds.

We stayed at the Wawona Hotel inside Yosemite. It was so cute. It had an old-time rustic feel, but it was really well upkept and offered lots of charm and comfort. We had a great room with a nice balcony overlooking the fountain out front.

When we first arrived, we spent the time playing on the bed with the new toy Grandma bought for her.

She loved it! The mirror was her favorite part.

When the sun began to set and the temperatures finally dropped, we sat by the pool and took in the sights and sounds of the great outdoors.

Which, of course, turned into a photosession!! Yessss!

And my favorite photo of the day! (Because if this doesn’t scream ‘national park’, I don’t know what does!