a beautiful sunset

Well, we are home safely after a very busy (but very important) weekend in Southern California. I'd forgotten how beautiful, and different from both Wisconsin and New York, the landscape is. Both the vigil and the funeral itself were lovely. It was abundantly clear why so many people loved Grandma Kroll -- and still do. Here's a look at a few notable places we went.

Grandma and Grandpa Kroll have been active members
of Padre Serra Catholic Parish for many years. It's gorgeous.

After the funeral, we went up to Conejo Mountain Cemetery
to see the rose garden where Grandma's ashes would be interred.
A fitting resting place for a person who lived such a beautiful life.

I was so excited to see citrus growing in peoples' yards!
On the way down Conejo Mountain, we even passed by a lemon grove, plus fields of berries, tomatoes, and corn.

On Saturday evening, the night of the funeral,
Wendy and Abigail got to see the Pacific for the first time.

And we all got to witness a very nice sunset.

On our way back to the airport, we thought we smelled a campfire.
But where you can see sky, you should be able to see a clear view
of the LA skyline and a mountain range.
It was the beginning of this week's forest fires.

Ian and I are so thankful we were able to go to California to remember Grandma Kroll along with many of her loved ones. But the whole time I kept thinking about how unprepared I am to lose any of our living family (and friends too). I know we'll all have to face losing each other some time, but for now, try to stick around, okay?