Lovebirds

For the first time in nearly 7 years, Forrest and I spent a night away from the kids. Our destination? Pacifica. Let's just say we'll be doing this more often.



The first night there we drove a few miles up Highway 1 to Princeton Harbor, a cute little place that is adorned with fun restaurants and shops. Our favorite part was walking out on the pier and seeing all of the seals and seagulls. We spotted this little guy coming out on the dock to say hi.



We found this relatively new upscale restaurant called Crab Landing (great referral, Tiff.) We were so impressed by the ambiance and professional service. We had a table upstairs overlooking the ocean, and dinner was so good. Forrest had fish and chips with housemade coleslaw and tartar sauce, and I had the crab and scallop fettucini with pesto sauce. I was so tired afterwards I could've fallen asleep at the table.



We stayed in a hotel that was right on the beach, and it was so nice to climb into bed without having to do dishes or put the kids to bed. We were just lulled to sleep by the waves.

The next morning we headed into Half Moon Bay, where we made a stop at this cute little Farmer's Market. They had lots of yummy goods to offer, but I settled on a bottle of hand-crafted strawberry basil balsamic vinegar. It is soooo delicious, and I can't wait to have some on a salad. Afterwards we took a walk on the beach.



We lucked out with another weekend of beautiful coastal weather.



This was the most amazing sight. Literally hundreds of seals swimming up and down the ocean just off the coast from where we were, leaping and diving into the water. You could always spot the seals by the flock of seagulls and pelicans following them. I have never seen so many marine animals in one place.

(You have to click on this picture and see the seals!)



We ended the day by having lunch at this cute little historic restaurant right on the beach. We could see the seals from our table. Apparently the place used to be an old bootlegging and prostitution brothel. (I discovered this interesting piece of history on the back of the menu.) Nonetheless, the atmosphere was nice and cozy, and I couldn't get enough of staring at the ocean.



I can't believe we waited almost 7 years for this. We were laughing at ourselves for missing the kids so much, but it was also nice to feel like a couple again. I guarantee we'll be carving out more time for ourselves from now on. Until then, I'm back on mommy duty and grateful for it.

Dillon's Beach

After hearing that the Crystal Basin campgrounds (Ice House, Union Valley Reservoir, etc.) usually fill up by Thursday night, we figured our chances of finding a spot late Friday night were slim to none, so we made a last-minute detour to Dillon's Beach. The weather happened to be beautiful, and we had a great time.

We arrived at about 10:00 Friday night, and snagged what looked like one of the last spots. We were sandwiched in between a couple of partiers, but the kids were so tired that not even Linkin Park blaring until 1:30 a.m. could keep them from falling asleep (thank goodness.)

After a yummy breakfast of hot cocoa, scrambled eggs, bacon and sausage, we headed down to the beach. It was beautiful upon first sight!

Is that the Lochness Monster!!?? Oh wait, it's just Ashlee...

Determined to outrun the wave.

Forrest thought he'd call my bluff when I told him I was going to get in, but he was wrong! I have always loved playing in the ocean since I was a kid, and it was just as much fun this time around. We had to dodge a few huge jelly fish that we spotted coming towards us in the waves, and I knocked Ashlee over a couple of times because she insisted on standing right behind me as the waves were coming, but other than that it was a good time. I'd forgotten how painful it was to be drug across the sand, though! The ocean is so therapeutic. It was like a natural mineral bath, seaweed treatment, and microdermabrasion all in one. You pay big bucks for that stuff at the spa!

This sight was amazing. There were hundreds of birds gliding over the water, swooping and diving. They must have been following a school of fish.

Forrest had fun watching us from the beach and taking pictures. He didn't get in the water, though.

Forrest cleaning up in the "kitchen."

A cozy bed for 6. We had really nice air mattresses and sleeping bags and slept surprisingly warm.

Kaitlyn all bundled up by the camp fire.

Roasting marshmallows for S'mores at the end of the day. Good bye Dillon's Beach, you were good to us!

San Francisco

Last Saturday our family took a day trip to San Francisco. We began the day with a picnic lunch on this nice little beach area we found right across from Ghirardelli Square. The weather was sunny, breezy, and perfect.



Ashlee loved the beach. She was begging us to go swimming, but we thought we'd save that for another day. There was too much we wanted to see and do. The boys had fun playing tag and knocking each other over in the sand.

I loved these ships in the harbor.

We made a stop by Boudin's Bread Company, home of the original "San Francisco Sourdough." You could smell the bread baking from a block away, and it smelled wonderful. I could've stayed there all day and just smelled the bread. Instead, we went inside and bought a loaf. They have a place on the sidewalk where you can stand and watch the bakers, and ask them questions on a little microphone that protrudes throught the glass. They get really creative forming the dough into different animal shapes. See these cute little teddy bears? This guy attracted quite a crowd.

The history of Boudin's sourdough bread is printed on the exterior window of the building. I have made sourdough bread from a starter before, and it was a lot of fun, but it didn't turn out nearly as good. I think it's fascinating that they have been using and replenishing the same "mother sponge" (i.e starter) for over 150 years!

Afterwards we headed over to Pier 39, my favorite place on the embarcadero. They had a Farmer's Market going on with lots of yummy-looking fresh produce.

Ashlee was the only one brave enough to do the bungee cord jumping on the trampoline.

I bought a bag of Mrs. Fields cookies while she was waiting in line, and told her I'd only give her one if she did a flip. It worked!

We of course had to go see the stinky, barking sea lions. It was very cold and windy out on this part of the pier, so we bought the kids some hot chocolate from an outdoor cafe stand.

Carousel ride- our whole family was able to ride together.

Ashlee being sassy.

We were on the upper level of the carousel, which made me a little nervous being so close to the edge.

I think this was my favorite sight of the day- Alcatraz in the fog. What added to the effect was the foghorn of a ship pulling in. This is what I love about San Francisco- the breeze, the fog, and the ships.

The streets were crawling with these crazy guys who paint themselves gold and silver, put little kazoos in their mouths, and go to town with thier boom boxes. What a way to make a living.

We looked down and some homeless-looking guy was making these balloons for the kids. We felt obligated to give him a buck.

Time for dinner. We went to Cioppino's, a seafood restaurant right on the Embarcadero. Here I am gearing up for my Dungeness crab.

The kids were more interested in playing with my food than eating their dinner. Ashlee ended up taking home one of the claws. I must say, this crab was deeeelicious. I had to have Forrest crack it for me, though, and get the meat out. Much too tedious of a job for me to take on being as hungry as I was. Forrest got the clam chowder in a bread bowl.

We ended the night with a trip to one of my other favorite spots in San Francisco- Ghirardelli Square. Originally we had planned on getting sundaes and eating them on the beach before we went home, but it was 9:30 by the time we got out of the restaurant and it was FREEZING! So we bought some chocolate bars and ate them in the car instead.

It looks so neat lit up at night.

Good bye, San Francisco. We hope to see you again soon!

One Down, One To Go

One of my goals this summer was to get both of my boys (ages 3 and 5) swimming. Seeing that I'll be beached with a new baby next summer (and have been for the past 5 years, which is why the boys are not swimming yet,) I figure now is my window of opportunity. Ashlee set a high standard by learning to swim across the pool above and under water at age 3, and the boys are (um, constantly) reminded of this (by me.) Today we had success. Jacob is swimming... under water! I am very proud of him. We spent the afternoon at the El Dorado Hills Community pool. First I would lead him around in the water holding on to my hands, then by a finger, until finally he let go and did it himself. He can also float underwater for a very long time. Noah took the first step by sticking his face underwater, and he likes to float around in his life jacket, so he's not far off either. Kaitlyn got dunked a few times, too. Can't say she liked it very much, but I am acclimating her nonetheless. Now, next summer I'll be able to relax on the beach (or poolside) with the baby and not have to worry as much about the other ones. When we were leaving the pool Jacob said, "You're, like, the nicest mom. I knew you could teach me to swim." We then headed to the store to get the promised "treat." Hey, I never said I was above bribery.

Summer Spectacular

One of the things I love about living across from the lake is being able to watch the fireworks every year. It has become a tradition of ours.


Our camera actually has a "fireworks" setting (funny, huh?) so we were able to capture some good shots. The CSD puts on quite a display, I daresay the best around. It makes me proud of our little community.



I had brought back some candy from the wedding, which helped to keep the kids occupied while we were waiting for the fireworks to start. Here's Kaitlyn with a dum-dum in her mouth.



Once the fireworks started we laid back on our blanket and enjoyed the show. Kaitlyn was so scared that she pressed herself flat against my chest and wouldn't move a muscle; we caught her peeking, though.

Primary Water Party

Last Thursday the kids had a Primary water party at the Hayden's home. My friend Brittany came up to me and put her fancy-dancy camera around my neck and said, "Here, they're your kids. Take some pictures." I was a little intimidated using such a nice camera for the first time, but here is what I got:


Jacob and his best friend Luke having a relay race to transport water to a bucket on the other side.



Here's Ashlee blowing her baby Moses across the water.



Noah just being cute.



Kaitlyn doing the same.









This was a fun party for the kids. Thanks for the pics, Brittany!