Family at Ahwahnee Thanksgiving DinnerMore and more, our vacations have become centered around rock climbing destinations, as the boys – and Andrew’s girlfriend Celeste -- become more and more drawn to what had been their father’s obsession at their age. Even I, at the ripe of old of – well, let’s just say ripe old age -- have caught the bug as well.

Ironically, rather than inviting them to tag along on one of our vacations, we were actually tagging along on one of theirs – a 5 day trip to Red Rocks, a premier rock climbing destination just outside of Las Vegas that they had planned on their own.

Herb loves the desert – the more heat and sun the better – so after four incredible, but exhausting, days of climbing with people less than half our age, we continued with the desert theme, but at a slower place, visiting the Mojave National Preserve, Death Valley, and Joshua Tree.

After our fill of desert, we headed back to the San Francisco Bay area via the coast, exploring Carpinteria, Santa Barbara, and Monterey along the way. We found that the contrast between desert and sea made us appreciate the beauty of each of them even more.

Then, after another wonderful pre-Thanksgiving weekend with Celeste’s family in Sonoma County, we headed out to Yosemite National Park where the boys met us for our 2nd annual Yosemite Thanksgiving.

My idea of a perfect vacation – some time alone with Herb sandwiched between two great long weekends with the boys.