Of all of the adventures anticipated I never expected to be photobombed by bears and eagles in Juneau, Alaska.

We received a lot of advice about getting to Yosemite early, parking in one of the main lots and then taking the Shuttle, which takes you to just about every popular place, or you can hike from those popular places to where you want to be. This was our plan until my 14-year-old daughter sprained her ankle literally two days before our trip and ended up on crutches.  Our plans for hiking now had to be adjusted to Plan B: driving and parking as close to the sights as possible.

Visiting Antelope Canyon has been on my bucket list ever since I realized it was a place actually in my home state. I’ve always marveled at how beautiful the pictures are of these slot canyons and quite honestly didn’t believe that this could be real.

 The strong personalities of the different home architecture line up as I stroll through Venice. It's like looking at a family portrait of the California family. The colorful houses reflected in the Venice canals under a bright blue sky. If the definition of beauty is symmetry and lighting, well, I just captured the perfect beautiful day.

Flamingos. Enough Said. It's the perfect combination of Flamingos, Wine and Rock and Roll. ...