Lake Almanor Weekend

This weekend Kyle and I flew/drove to Lake Almanor for a couples getaway.  Our friends have a baby on the way, so we were celebrating that – but instead of a girly shower with cheesy games we relaxed, drank and enjoyed our peaceful vacation with friends. 

 

The hosts own an amazing cabin that I couldn’t even being to describe.  Not only does it have tons of bedrooms, a TV den and game room, a huge living room with an equally huge outside deck, a bocce ball court, horseshoe and corn hole set ups, and a wooden swing, but it’s surrounded by wilderness. 

 

Welcome to Honey Lodge.

The view from the top deck.

No neighbors in sight.  Except chipmunks.

We arrived late Friday night after a long flight and windy drive so naturally we slept in quite a bit on Saturday.  Immediately upon waking, we all migrated outside to take in the fresh forest air. 

And then it was time for breakfast.

 

The rest of the group hadn’t yet arrived, but we enjoyed scrambled eggs, hash browns, breakfast sausage, and fruit.

 

My eggs were made separately with soy milk (and I skipped the sausage).

After we ate, it was time to get the bocce ball tourney under way.

It’s no secret amongst our group of friends that I’m slightly competitive. ;)  So obviously I had my eye on the championship from the start.

It wasn’t all serious business though; we did plenty of lounging too.

Action shots.

 

 

After several games, we took a break for lunch.

Burgers and hot dogs with chips and hummus.

 

There were veggie burgers (Trader Joe’s brand) for the vegetarians (aka Kyle and myself).  Stacy’s pita chips and Sabra hummus rounded out my meal.

Yum all around.

Next up baby presents!

And some gag gifts.  This women’s neon tank is not a real present, but rather a prank that’s too hard to explain in full.  In any event, someone lost a bet and had to wear it later.

But he did so with pride.  And grace.

 

I think it really helped get them to the finals of the bocce ball tourney (he will probably kill me for posting this photo).

We took a break to watch some of the Olympics and then decided to head to the lake.

Half of the crew went for a dip, but I stayed on dry land.  I didn’t bring a swim suit, which I thought was a valid excuse until one of the moms just decided to go swimming in her clothes.

We took a scenic route home for a tour of the lake houses.  Girls in the truck, boys in the bed. 

Once back we chatted and snacked. 

Brendan made bruschetta.  It was ridiculously good, despite it’s simple ingredient list.  They even made some of the toasted bread without parmesan especially for me.  So good. 

 

The girls huddled around the food while the boys had a corn hole tourney in the backyard.

Kyle’s team won, but he did have a bit of an advantage due to his teammate.

For dinner, there was BBQ chicken, corn, baked potatoes, and salad.  I threw together the salad with whatever veggies I could find. 

It wasn’t terrible.  The lettuce work was all Kyle’s. 

Again, the very thoughtful hosts made a separate potato (without butter) for me.  I used some leftover bruschetta for garnish.

 

So gooooood!

After dinner, the boys got to test out their diaper skills.

This was pretty hilarious.

I took a video of Kyle’s attempt.  He wasn’t the best, but he also wasn’t the worst.

Cindy doesn’t look thrilled about the man-handling of her baby. 

Cake!  I didn’t have any (because it was in no way dairy free).

And then we played Apple to Apples and watched the Olympics into the wee morning hours.

The next morning was just as slow.

 

We had gigantic pancakes and fried eggs.  I syrup-ed the bejeezus out of mine (even more than you see there) post-photo.

Before heading out, we had to play the championship bocce ball game.  Guess who took home the gold???  The hippie duo of course!  Ha.

After a pit stop in Chico, we headed to Davis (where some friends live) just in time for lunch.  Kyle was really excited to show me the co-op so that’s where we went.

I got a split pea soup (delicious), while Kyle got sushi.  This was only to hold us over since we would be eating again in a bit.

 

We munched in the shade, with a nice view of the pool and garden.

A while later we put together a real spread.

 

Tuna, hard boiled eggs, red onions, potatoes, olive oil and balsamic glazed produce, French bread and butter.

 

This plate had fresh tomatoes, avocado, mango, and mozzarella.  They were so ripe and juicy – it was perfect with nothing but the simple dressing.

Kyle and the boys had a meeting (business talk, snooze) while the girls vegged in the shade and discussed books. 

Eventually it was time to head to the airport.  Even though the Sacramento airport is super veg friendly, I still bought a Pumpkin Bolani from the co-op earlier.

I had both for dinner #1 and then got a big salad for dinner #2 (on the plane).

 

Alise is close enough.  I was very impressed with the salad options, so I made my own with spinach, peas, carrots, tofu, jicama, tomatoes, and mandarin oranges, topped in a mustard dressing. 

 

An airport with tofu in a salad bar!?!?  Dear LAX, take notes.

 

Satrbucks got my name right though.

 

Sadly our vacation had to come to and end. :(  I definitely didn’t want this weekend to end.  Ever.  I love getting out of LA.  The forest scenery reminds me of camping in Pinecrest (any other Lair of the Bear readers?) growing up.  But now I’m back to reality.  I guess it just makes these special weekends even more memorable.