Skipping Town

We've had lots of calls, emails and texts about our well being and the Rim Fire. Thank you! We are totally fine and safe. And while things were/are worrisome for our community and county, it looks as if the fire is slowly being contained and actually burning away from us. Unfortunately, it is now headed toward Yosemite and Mariposa County residents.

This fire has been a weird thing. We've known about it burning for over ten days, but it didn't really seem "real" until we started seeing and smelling the smoke. We had light smoke all through the beginning of school and last week. But on Friday it started getting scary. It had doubled in size for the second night in a row and they had only contained about 2%. By Friday afternoon, we had thought it was possible for the fire to encroach on Nick's parents and brothers, along with hundreds of other Tuolumne County residents. The smoke was thick and daunting, but it would only hover until about 1 or 2 in the afternoon and then would clear into the most beautiful of blue skies.

While the fear has worn off a bit, the reality is that this fire is still a real threat. Mandatory and voluntary evacuations are still issued all over the county. Our schools have been cancelled for the next few days. The Mother Lode fairgrounds has been packed with evacuees. Firefighters are arriving daily. It's awe inspiring and heartbreaking, because our backyard, Yosemite National Park, is being burnt to a crisp. It is really hard to stomach. Nick works right outside the park and this fire is wreaking havoc on the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir and potentially San Francisco's water and power supply. We live in a beautiful part of country and fires have always been a threat, but it has never seemed so REAL, until now....

Check out this Instagram post from Molly Baker, while visiting her parents in the evacuation area. It exemplifies the weirdness factor.  It seems so close AND far away. Scary stuff.

That all being said we skipped town. The smoke is heavy and you can feel it in your eyes, chest and throat if you even so much as walk outside for an extended amount of time. My boys needed fresh air and Daddy needed beer. We made an impromptu trip to Petaluma. Our view on our way out of town...

We picked Petaluma because it's, ummm, Petaluma. Go if you haven't, best part of the Bay if you want my opinion. Except we didn't really go to the pretty part, we did a small craft brewery tour with our two littles and an awesome friend. I know, I know awesome parents (at least I wasn't letting them inhale Rim Fire smoke!)  It was a great day, we ate lunch, sampled craft brews and visited with our cool friend Jessica.