The 4th of July

Monday July 4th- 

After missing the Santa Barbara sailing tour the day before, we decided to try again; this time with the whole family, except Sarah who unfortunately had to work.  We sailed on a big catamaran down the Santa Barbara coast enjoying the sun, waves, seals and the gorgeous views.  Sailing is vacation: nice and relaxing, and we're able to just sit and enjoy the sun and the water.  

They'll be married in a week! - Bryan and Lauren

Along the way we saw a parked boat that must have been there for a while, as the seals decided to make the back of the boat their home.  

Following our sailing trip, we made our way over to the Santa Barbara Mission.  Rumor has it that the Santa Barbara Mission is the last of the 21 California missions which is still operating nearly at the capacity which it was intended for.  It's in phenomenal shape, with most of the buildings still intact.  However, you can't tour the whole thing because portions of it are currently being used by the Church to house monks and nuns.  This mission is also the resting place of the woman from the book 'Island of the Blue Dolphins'.  

In the evening we parked in the mall parking lot, pulled out the chairs and hung out to watch the fireworks.  We thought we had a good spot and would make it home quickly afterwards, but due to some strange traffic directing it took a while longer than planned.  Oh well, I suppose it isn't the 4th of July without a little traffic.  Especially in Los Angeles.