Mama's Royal Cafe

Beach Overlook

Golden Gate Park Highpoints

Another Whimday in the Cit-tay.
We museum hopped- from the de Young's tower, then across the park to the Academy's Living Roof, looking over to the other side each time. (Zoe calls the living roof the "sunroof"). The de Young's look out tower provides unbelievable views, which before it's completion weren't available anywhere else, and it's a great sight.
The Living Roof is full of wildflowers, so the view is great from right beneath your feet to way across the park.

Another sprinkly day

Another sprinkly spring day, well spent. Thanks, GGP!
At Stow Lake having snackies, then off to the AofSciences to watch the butterflies.

Whipped cream whiskers

I know that I remember this act being one of life's great pleasures as a child, don't you?

Wednesday Whim-day

Zoom! They're up!

First flight, no problem

Two more flight to go...

At the de Young, and
Zoe takes the camera


Today was our whim day. With a rush out the door at 9:50 (to make the carpool lane at the bridge) we headed out across the bay. We stopped first in the Marina to have some brunch at The Grove on Chestnut- my current favorite cafe pit-stop. Sated with bagels, cream cheese, lox and lavender lemonade we headed for the Presidio to cut over to GGP. But as we passed Lyon, I pointed out the steps, which intrigued Zoe (The 'Lion' St. Steps...) and she insisted we stop and let her climb the steps. I let her out of the car, and before I could unbuckle Julian, I heard her yell from the top of the staircase. She bolted to the top in no time, despite the slight drizzle. She wanted to see the view from the top.
After descending, we drove over to Fulton and up the into the aves where we parked and piled into the B.O.B. As we approached the Cal Academy of Sciences (which we'd been planning since last night) we passed a huge line of people holding umbrellas. I figured that tourist season had started early, and headed for the Member's Entrance. Oh no! It's Free day at the Academy. I keep forgetting about this. The line was over an hour long, in the rain, and Zoe broke down into tears. So we wandered over to the bandshell and Zoe took the camera for a bit. Then she wanted to check out the de Young, which was advertising the opening of a new exhibit (The Birth Of Impressionism featuring works from the Musee d'Orsay- !!! -). I bought a membership on the spot, and we all went inside. The new exhibit doesn't open until tomorrow, but the kids loved the rest of what the de Young had to offer, from copper walls to gardens to paintings to glass and sculpture. I followed Zoe as she seemed to have a plan on what she wanted to see, and when she and Juge became too loud and I threatened to leave, she quieted down and begged not to leave.
After while, everyone was pretty worn out, so we went back to the car and headed back up Fulton towards the Haight. Driving along, all of a sudden something caught my eye along the park- it was a Blue Heron, standing in the grass and looking at the sky. I slammed on the brakes and rolled down the windows, yelling "look! Look!" to the kids. But the guy behind me was in a hurry and off we went. That bird had to have been taller than Zoe. When we circled back around, he had disappeared back into the park, probably headed to look for snacks in the pond at the arboretum.
We ate 3 slices of NY pizza between us before heading home, full, tired and happy.

Trader Joe's AGAIN?

"Mommy, even with the nutritional supplement of this 19 cent bananana, I'm not sure I can make it through another grueling shopping experience..."

Lomographic

Zoe loves Lomo at Urban Outfitters

Greekfest 2010

Lowerd knows we love a Greekfest. Here we are at Oakland Greekfest. Zoe and Daddy remember Papou with a candle at the altar.

Piedmont Fire Dept.

Today, the kids in Zoe's Playschool Class went for a visit at the Piedmont Fire Dept.
Julian and I were invited along on the field trip. The kids were given a presentation by the fire guys where they put on each piece of their uniform, explaining what it was for, then crawling on the ground and shaking their hands. The guys told the parents, that the reason they do these visits is that if there was ever a fire in your house, the first thing they do is to go in and look for 'live people'. And when a small child is hiding under their bed, or in a closet, this is what they're confronted with- a huge scary looking creature in sooty, puffy uniform wearing a freaky mask over their face and beeping. Pretty frightening.
The kids got to sit in the shiny red engine (everyone's favorite part) and even got to shoot water out of the hose in the middle of the street! (Mommy's favorite part). All the kids had a great time. Though our kids seemed a little overwhelmed at first- especially Julian- who loves the trucks from afar- they all warmed up and had a great time. You know who seemed to have the best time of all? The fire guys. They clearly love hosting the kids.

Mt. Diablo

It's Whim Wednesday! Our family adventure day. No school, no swim, no classes, no shopping- just a jaunt to wherever we feel like exploring.
I am usually drawn to the ocean, or the City, but today we headed Eastlike. Into the hills, or rather, up a mountain. Mt. Diablo is the highest peak for hundreds of miles, and the summit supposedly has one of the largest viewsheds in the world. From the top, I felt a little lost, like I couldn't find a direction- all my markers were so far away. The view was staggering. In mid spring, the drive up was just as amazing. Most of the grasses were still green and long, billowing in the breeze. Lupin and California poppies were everywhere. We entered through the Walnut Creek gate (N) then hit the summit a while later. We checked out each of the two campgrounds for future reference and had a lovely picnic. On a Wednesday, the park was nearly void of cars. There were more bicycles than cars for sure. We stopped at some other neat geological spots on our way to the Danville or South Gate. I look forward to spending more time on the grassy slopes of Mt. Diablo.

The long drive

The Long Drive is quite a journey. One that we're all getting used to. We enjoy seeing our favorite places along the route, and fill in the time between with books, toys and gazing out the window. Troopers.

Mission Portraits

Traditions are funny. You don't realize that they are until you've done them so many times that you can't not do them. Like our portraits at Mission San Miguel. We find ourselves there so many times a year, and I always think of the first shot I took of Zoe sitting on the step. The light is really pretty, and now I look back at that shot, and see how much she's grown. Now our Mission Portraits are a tradition, and they know they won't get out of there until they sit for it.

Hitching a ride

Disneyland Birthday

It's hard to tell who has more fun at Disneyland. Nana or the kids. Everyone turns into a kid again when they visit anyway. Especially when you take one that you love. You are suddenly 4 again, and seeing all these crazy things for the first time. Flying over London with Peter Pan, sailing through the Carribean with pirates, exploring a haunted house with hitch hiking ghosts, or jumping into a cartoon in Toontown. We all had a blast- until the next day when we paid dearly with sore legs, tired souls, and sleep deprivation! All worth it! Happy birthday, Nana!

"Ma-mow-ah"