that place

You know those homes, those places that just ooze- "Please, relax and make yourself at home. Help yourself to anything in the fridge, curl up on the couch, whatever, really, we don't mind."

My Uncle Jim and Aunt Ceressa's home is one of those places. We had never been there before. In fact, we hadn't seen them since our wedding. That's not one, but two kids ago! A lot has changed in four years, but alot has stayed the same. My uncle is still building. Their kids, my cousins, Andrew and Julianna are much bigger now. Hovering on the brink of teenage years. But so kind and patient and friendly, especially, and this meant the world to us, to our kids.

Eli was absolutely in love with both of them. He wanted to jump off the diving board like them, ride the dirtbike like them, eat cereal like them, ride a skateboard like them, play basketball like them...you get the idea.

I just soaked up the space. It was everywhere. They live on 50 acres, and there is just lots of beautiful scenic space. Rolling hills, sprawling vineyards, lazy blue skies, twisting turning oak trees, cows, horses, big estates that almost look like normal sized homes against all the open space. It was hot and sunny and we loved it.

Aunt Ceress had a huge pile of toys ready for Eli when we got there.








Eli loved running around.









Joel said it best, that it just felt like family. We ate, hung out at the house, talked, read, saw the town, spent an afternoon at the beach, saw San Luis Obispo, and got a tour of the area. It was great to visit with them, and we were so thankful for the days we got to spend there.