Giant Sequoias

The girls have been wanting another vacation.  We finally went on what felt like a "real" vacation.  It only spanned three days, but it felt nice.   We saw the most majestic sequoias in a beautiful state park not too far away from home.  The girls got to wade in a wonderful little creek with its very own falls and chase after a baby trout, walk among giant sequoias, climb up a  giant sequoia into a room big enough for about 20-25 people, walk through a hollowed out giant sequoia laying on its side, and even spray a firehose.  We didn't camp but stayed in the local Holiday Inn Express, which is a staple for us since they serve free breakfast, have an outdoor pool and jacuzzi, and doesn't cost an arm and a leg for a night or two stay.   Finding a nice place to eat dinner near the hotel was a little bit of a challenge, since it looked like the town was pretty much shut down for Sunday.   Finally, we found a Black Bear Diner and had an okay dinner.   The girls were happy, since they a large assortment of bear related items to purchase.  Mariah got a big eyed stuffed black bear and Michael persuaded Michaela to hold off on a purchase that evening.  However, on the road trip home, we stopped at one of those tourist trap rest stops, and Michaela found a little beanie ball pink poodle that she was able to purchase.   So both girls got a new stuffed animal after all.  Michael got to stop at Bass Pro Shops and we also made a short stop for a cheesecake cupcake dessert, so everyone ended up getting a little something.  I'm really wishing we can squeeze in another mini vacation before school starts, but we're really short on time.