Fall is here!

Yaaayyy! Fall is here! It's my favorite time of year, when the temperatures finally start falling (although around here, that just means it stays below 100 degrees, if we're lucky) and the scents of apples and pumpkins are in the air.

Yesterday, we drove up the mountain to Oak Glen for a little taste of fall. We went to Los Rios Ranch, with friends Dan and Gloria (see picture of them below). We got barbequed tri-tip sandwiches (YUM!) and had a picnic outside, enjoying the gorgeous weather. Then we went hiking on some trails, which was so much fun. I think I was drunk on the fresh air! One of the trails had a pond with a floating dock, where Anthony, of course, tried to climb through the railing to get to the water! Another trail had wild blackberries growing along it - yummy! Anthony enjoyed running on the trails and had fun sitting and climbing on the rocks. As you can see, Darrell had to put Anthony up in a tree for a picture!

After the hike, we went back to the little store and bought some apples (I plan to make a pie), apple butter, and apple cider. Gloria got a pie, and then we went back to their place in Calimesa for apple pie and coffee. It was probably the best apple pie I've ever had - now I have a lot to live up to with my own pie! We sat outside and enjoyed the cool evening as the sun went down. It was the perfect day!

We left Calimesa around 7:30 p.m. to drive back out to the warm desert. At least my house is decorated for fall, even if it doesn't feel much like fall outside!

We're contemplating another camping trip, perhaps up to Big Bear, sometime in October. Anthony has not been sleeping well at night, so we're a little hesitant after our last experience. We'll have to see what the next few weeks have in store for us. At a minimum, we're planning to do some more hiking with Dan and Gloria.