This past weekend, with the kids having a three day break because of Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday, we headed to a house at the beach for three nights. Our friends, Allen and Kristen Co, and their son Jackson joined us Saturday and Sunday, and Violet enjoyed having a buddy to play with that didn't want to go in the waves either. The weather was fantastic! The sun was out the entire time, warm temperatures. We spent hours just relaxing on the beach, playing in the sand, jumping in the water, and listening to the crashing waves. We also visited Natural Bridges State Park to see the monarch butterflies. There weren't near as many as I remembered from my childhood (my parents brought me here in the 80s). I was curious about it, so Kristen and I asked a park ranger that told us about the monarch butterflies' depleting numbers. This year, only 4500 butterflies were counted in the grove. Compare that to 120,000 in 1997, and somewhere upwards of 200,000 in years before that! Apparently, monarch butterflies feed ONLY on milkweed when they are in their caterpillar stage, and milkweed is usually killed off by pesticides nowadays. So she encouraged us to plant milkweed in our yards for monarchs to lay their eggs on! Despite the lack of butterflies, we enjoyed the drive to and from Santa Cruz, and had a great picnic lunch near the tidepools. The rest of the weekend was nothing but relaxing, and we returned home ready for the long haul of school days until Easter break.
This past weekend, with the kids having a three day break because of Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday, we headed to a house at the beach for three nights. Our friends, Allen and Kristen Co, and their son Jackson joined us Saturday and Sunday, and Violet enjoyed having a buddy to play with that didn't want to go in the waves either. The weather was fantastic! The sun was out the entire time, warm temperatures. We spent hours just relaxing on the beach, playing in the sand, jumping in the water, and listening to the crashing waves. We also visited Natural Bridges State Park to see the monarch butterflies. There weren't near as many as I remembered from my childhood (my parents brought me here in the 80s). I was curious about it, so Kristen and I asked a park ranger that told us about the monarch butterflies' depleting numbers. This year, only 4500 butterflies were counted in the grove. Compare that to 120,000 in 1997, and somewhere upwards of 200,000 in years before that! Apparently, monarch butterflies feed ONLY on milkweed when they are in their caterpillar stage, and milkweed is usually killed off by pesticides nowadays. So she encouraged us to plant milkweed in our yards for monarchs to lay their eggs on! Despite the lack of butterflies, we enjoyed the drive to and from Santa Cruz, and had a great picnic lunch near the tidepools. The rest of the weekend was nothing but relaxing, and we returned home ready for the long haul of school days until Easter break. 
4 comments:
Looks like a great time!
Great pics. We took the bump to the beach as well. It was awesome. 60 degrees and no wind with clear skies. Couldn't ask for more. Looks liek you guys had a lot of the same. Miss you guys.
Ben
Jackson and I just sat and watched your slideshow, good memories! You got a lot more photos than I did. Thanks again for a great weekend!
We are sooooo jealous! Here we are headed into teen degrees again and you guys are "chillin" at the beach! Love, Grandma and Grandpa Porter
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