I have a little free time to post today because I am on vacation at beautiful Lake Tahoe. We’ve had a full day and now we are back a the hotel relaxing and trying to cool down. (We are used to temps in the 60’s, not 90’s.)

Grateful…

• For a safe trip to Lake Tahoe.
• That my mom and dad could join us for the trip.
• That I spent Father’s Day with two of my fave dads – Brian and my own daddy.
• For vacations in general. I need this recharge!

Praying for…

• The tired, the weary and the overworked.
• For the safety of all travelers.
• For those suffering from hatred and injustice.
• Some special intentions.

Pondering…

I’m pondering just how much I love this man. There’s nothing like a vacation to slow you down and help you to realize what matters most in life. This morning I woke up and stumbled out of bed looking like I’ve been living out in the wild for weeks, yet Brian treats me like I’m the prettiest woman in the world. That’s just crazy. Love has a way of seeing beyond the exterior and allows you to see the beauty that others don’t always see. I’m blessed, so blessed to be the love if this man’s life. I don’t know a better man or better best friend. Happy (late) Father’s Day to my sweetheart and my own Daddy that I am blessed to be with this week! 🙂

Around the Hotel…

My home this week is a hotel suite and I’ve been trying to keep it orderly.

My mom walked into the room and said, this can’t be the Rol family’s room. All the jackets are hung up and the shoes are lined up neatly. I know, right! (Just don’t don’t go in the bathroom. You could then tell who was living here.) 😉

Family Chit Chat…Road Trip: Lake Tahoe

I have to stop posting to make dinner so Bella said she would fill you in on the family chit chat. Take it away Bella…

Hello! Right now the Rol family is at Lake Tahoe, along with our Grandma and Grandpa. One day we went on a nice walk and had a picnic. My mom took some nice pictures from our walk, so you will probably see them sometime soon.  (Bobbi’s note: I added some in.) 🙂

It’s actually going to be pretty hot this week. The highest is 90 degrees! Hopefully we will be able to get some ice cream this week. 🙂

Another day we went to a park in the forest. My brothers played on the playground then my mom and I went searching for a little stream behind the trees. Afterwards my Grandma and Grandpa made BBQ sliders. It was delicious.

I’m having a really great time!

My brothers enjoyed kicking the HUGE pine cones that were around on one of the trails.

Bella and Andrew with Opa in 2009

The pine cones reminded me of my Opa because whenever I came over to his house when I was little we always had a pine cone throwing contest to see who could throw the pine cone the farthest. Right now we are resting in our hotel room.

Maybe I should tell you a little bit about myself. Here are a few of my favorite things. Colors –  blue and pink. Book series – Divergent, Hunger Games and Dork Diaries. Social Media Apps – Instagram and Twitter. Movie – Divergent. Musicals – Aladdin on Broadway, Newsies, Sound of Music, and Wicked. Seasons – Fall (only because its my birthday) and Winter. These are just a few of my favorite things, but I would probably take up a whole page typing everything! I hope you enjoyed my post. Hopefully my Mom will let me have a blog someday! May God bless you! (Bobbi’s note: Bella just did a happy dance when I told her I would help her set up her own blog. Like mother, like daughter.)  😉

In the Kitchen…

Thankfully our hotel has a good sized kitchen so we’ve been able to cook our meals. However, the fridge is getting full so it’s leftovers night – chicken, spaghetti and meatballs or sliders with a green salad and chocolate chip cookies and mint ice cream for dessert. Yum!

 Watching…

(On Netflix) Brian and I are still watching Daredevil. We love it except for the violence. I don’t mind seeing a zombie on the The Walking Dead get slaughtered since it is not human but I don’t want to see the portrayal of a person getting literally slaughtered. I am very visual so I turn away from the more violent scenes. It doesn’t gross me out or anything, I just don’t want it to desensitize me.

Did I also mention that I am binge watching Gilmore Girls. How have I never seen this before?? Actually I think it first came on when Brian and I were nearly married and didn’t have cable yet. Well, I’ve made up for lost time and have gone through the first six seasons. Now I am trying to slow down and savor the last season. I love binge watching until I get to the end of my show! Grr.

(At the Movies)

Last week I saw San Andreas, which forced me to face the a Californian’s worse nightmare. To be honest with you even more than the earthquake, I am more scared of the tsunamis that follow, especially since I live in a tsunami zone. Anyway, I was really reluctant to go see it because I usually dislike the cliched disaster movies that are so over the top and predicable, it hurts to watch. (I’m looking at you 2012.) However, a number of people told me it was worth watching (including my mom) so I gave it a try. They were right. It is not Academy Award material, but as a summer popcorn flick, it is perfect. There is plenty of action but it is not completely overblown. There is just enough chessiness in the disaster related dialogue to make it a guilty pleasure but there is also a heart warming family story that digs deeper that most action flicks. My only complaint was the way they made one of the characters do a 180 in personality. He started out fine and then out of the blue, he is an idiot. (I was thinking a different word but I’ll keep it clean.)  Perhaps it was supposed to show how pressure situations bring out the real character of a person. Secondly, I wished they had ended the show with the main character getting back to work and saving people other than his immediate family but there are enough positive moments so even those points can be overlooked. (Parent note: Lots of peril and people being killed, although nothing graphic. Some language.)

Next on the movie list, Brian and I have a date night on Friday to watch Jurassic Park. I hope it is as good as everyone has been telling me! 🙂

Listening to …

I have been listening to Florence + The Machine’s new album How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful.

Reading…

I finished reading Dear Mr. Knightley: A Novel. I am trying to figure out what I feel about it. At first it was a little weird since it was written as a series of letters from an young adult (dealing with a difficult past)addressed to the benefactor that is paying for her schooling and giving her a chance at a better life. The main character, Samantha, avoids the harsh reality of her life by escaping into books. Her conversation is filled with quotes from beloved novels by authors such as Austen and Bronte. At times the habit is endearing but eventually you want to see her speak her own mind and not just imitate the words of another. As she grows and matures, she learns how to do this. As I continued to read, the story became more interesting and I couldn’t put it down. However, the ending left a bad taste in my mouth. At a pivotal moment, Samantha reverted back to her quoting persona and then we are expected to forgive a main character for a terrible decision he made. Part of me was willing to forgive and the other part of me was thinking – hell to the no. However, 99% of the time I root for a happy ending… I just wish it was obtained in a different manner. That being said, I still enjoyed it and will be looking at other titles by this author. I rate the book 3 1/2 out of 5 stars.

 The next book on my list…

Death Comes to Pemberley

 You still have until the end of the month to join the RoL Pinterest Party & Link-up. The link-up is open for new or old posts. 🙂

Here are some Instagrams I’ve taken these past two weeks.

1. #projectblessed – Sunset. It’s almost sunset at Lake Tahoe.

2. #projectblessed – Starts with M. Me & Matthew, 3 monkeys in bed and Mount Tallac near Lake Tahoe. #laketahoesummertrip2015

3. The morning was filled with chaos and stress and an airplane seat would be spacious compared to all the suitcases surrounding us in the van but the egg and bacon burritos are ready to kick off our #laketahoesummertrip2015

4. I’m in love with this package from @bigwhitefarmhouse and I haven’t even opened it up yet!

5.#projectblessed – Doodle. I’m sorting through the kids paper doodles and artwork. This one is in the keep pile.

6. #projectblessed – Home. Be it ever so messy (and weird) there’s no place like home. #angrybirdstarwarslegos

7. Time for Sacred Heart sundaes.

8. #projectblessed – Begins with F. The sick bug has caught up with me and I finally have a chance to sit and rest. Today’s photo prompt immediately reminded me of Sense & Sensibility and Mrs Jennings trying to figure out who is the famous Mr F.

9. #projectblessed – Shadows & Cross.

So that’s what I’ve been up to lately! What about you? What’s currently happening in your life? Will you be doing any traveling? Do share.

Have a great weekend!

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