Goodbye From Afar

Sad news was delivered last Thursday--we learned that Stegen's Aunt Jan (my mother-in-law's little sister) passed away suddenly, but peacefully. Aunt Jan was just one of those people...trials and tribulations seemed to confront her at every corner, but she always came out of the other side, smiling. We weren't in touch regularly, but she'd always remind us of her thoughtfulness with a greeting card here and there, homemade chocolates, or an email telling us how much she enjoyed reading this blog. We love you, Aunt Jan (just in case you're reading this over my shoulder), and we wish we could be in California to say goodbye in person. You'll be forever in our hearts.

We had a trip to Wales with my in-laws planned, but with the news, Stegen's parents moved their flight up and went home two weeks early. With Aunt Jan on our minds, Stegen and I continued on with the trip. Wales is absolutely beautiful and served up the perfect peaceful serenity that we all needed. 

After a 2 hour drive, we were ready to cross the bridge into Wales. 

During our 3-day stay, we explored a midieval castle called Kidwelly. After seeing so many beautiful castles in Loire, the kids were really excited to see one from the other end of the spectrum. This castle was dark, cold, in ruins, had dungeons, prisons, and several precarious spiral staircases to rope-climb up on. Here are some pictures from that adventure:

Prison with a well to throw in the really bad guys.

The next day was spent driving along extremely narrow country roads to the tip of the Gower Peninsula. We had an early start and beat the crowds to Rhossili Bay and Worms Head. If you're ever in Wales, this is a must-see. For £3 we got to park our car all day, and exploring the bay was absolutely free. The amazing cliffs and huge beach at low tide were so serene and visually stimulating. Off the tip of the cliffs sits Worms Head, which at a glance, looks like an island. Then, at low tide, the water goes out so far that a rocky path is revealed between Rhossili and Worms Head. We saw the path unveiled, but didn't cross it since slick, jagged rocks and the possibility of a quick return of high tide didn't sound very safe with small children. After exploring the cliffs, we ventured down to the beach to marvel at the beauty of the water and cliffs from a different vantage point. Sunburns aside, it was a fantastic day.

Worms Head behind us with path covered.

Lunch at Worms Head pub.

Worms Head path revealed.

Collecting shells with dad.

People rock climbing

On our last day in Wales, we drove over to the Brecon Beacons and took a hike through Waterfall Country. There was no admission and it was about a 35 minute walk to the first waterfall. We explored the first waterfall, hiked around to another path so that we could get behind the waterfall, saw (and smelled) a dead animal, and slowly walked back to the car. 

Aunt Jan had written me an email after reading my post about Paris with my parents. She told me she had a good laugh seeing all of Audrey's jump shots. These are for you, Aunt Jan.