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For my birthday this year I took the day off work and we made the trek up to San Francisco with the girls to see the California Academy of Sciences.  This amazing museum, which just completed a multi-million dollar, five-year renovation, is a must see for everyone.  The only downside is that everyone knows they need to see it so the lines are very long, and the museum is very crowded.  Most days they sell out and unless you arrive early it’s unlikely that you will be able to see any of their shows or get into the centerpiece rain-forest exhibit.

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As a handful of our readers know – and anyone that attended our wedding – my parents have a pair of American Eskimo dogs that they treat like children.  Imagine our surprise after visiting Sausalito to get a chance to see a couple with THREE of these beautiful dogs.  They seemed to be of great personality and the girls dived right in to get their kisses and hugs from this great family.

Since I know that Grammy reads this, I’ll remind everyone that you can click on any photo for a larger video (thanks to the recent fixes) and now the kids are talking more and more about seeing grammy and the dogs that they miss so much.

Papa

The best part of not having written in a while is that there is so much to talk about.  I want to catch up quickly, but think it might be best to talk about current events first and roll back into the older stuff.  That way everyone knows what’s going on now as well as having a chance to catch up on what’s been happening.

I’ve aways been a fan of the ocean – and the water in general – so this weekend we decided to take the ferry from San Francisco across to Sausalito to talk around for a bit.  It would be a great way for the girls to get out and enjoy the beautiful weather and for us to introduce them to the experience and fun of riding the ferry.  Needless to say, it was an awesome day and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

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The Downtown Livermore Christmas Parade was one of last years highlights.  So much so that this year we decided to get involved so that we could be a part of the fun.  After decorating the J. Rockcliff mobile and trailer – complete with Snoopy and Woodstock – we toured through the parade route in spot 49 and enjoyed the thousands of people that came out to enjoy the festivities.  As a wonderful bonus, the girls got to spend a little one-on-one time with Santa!

We’re already looking forward to something bigger and better for next year!

Papa

Lisa C Being a Great Sport with PJ's on Her Head!

It’s been a long time since Mama and I have had a party that didn’t include a princess related theme, more children than adults or a jumper, and I realized this morning (after yesterday’s party) that’s it been way too long.  Needless to say, we did a friendly potluck yesterday (with more adults than children) and it was awesome.  Thank you so much for everyone that joined in.  The food was fantastic, the weather was amazing (especially for November), the wine was divine, and the company cannot be matched.  Thank you to everyone that joined in, we appreciate it more than you know.

Of course, no good party would be great without some stories, a few pictures and maybe a video or two.  Fortunately for all, we got a few of each.  Don’t worry, nothing too embarrassing for anyone.

Many of our friends that came to this party were co-workers of Gina and their spouses and children.  It’s nice to see that most of the teachers have geeky husbands, and that similarity seemed to give everyone something to talk about.  John Ironmonger was in town for his daughter’s basketball game (University of Oregon vs. San Jose State) and was able to make it by for a snack and catch-up.  I’ve missed seeing John every day, and am very happy to know that he’s doing well, enjoying life and very, very happily married to his sweetie.  Carolyn and Carl are (finally) engaged, which added some additional celebration, and there was plenty of good food – for the meaties and the vegies – to go around.  Everyone brought along a bottle or two of wine and I think we consumed all but one.  That made for a very light afternoon, and at 6:00PM we were still sitting outside enjoy a 71 degree evening in November!

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My earlier posts on Halloween 2008 already showed some of what we did at Braly Elementary and Boo at the Zoo, but we didn’t really go into the Halloween Happenings or the actual trick-or-treating that we got to do.  Everything was wild fun, but man can it be overwhelming.  I can hardly imagine how larger families do it, even while knowing that the rewards must be tremendous.

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Generally speaking, I don’t like posting items out of order, and I still have a ton of stuff leftover to share from Halloween.  That will come, I promise, but I had to share today’s trip to the beach and thought I’d drop in a quick little video to show you how great it was.  More pictures, more story, click more…

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It was wild – we were at the zoo and there were so many children dressed up.  Everyone was looking great, excited as all get out, and if anything like us, having the time of their life.  That’s right – we went to the 2008 Boo at the Zoo at the Oakland Zoo.  We got there quite early – about ten minutes to 9:00, before they even opened, and we were one of the first to arrive.  I’m glad we got through the exciting stuff quickly, because we really did get to see the zoo and the other kids in their costumes – the girls even got their face (Sofi) and arm (Natalie) painted.

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Halloween rocks! This year has been awesome and for the first time I think, like my children, I get Halloween.  It’s not about the candy – although that is certainly one of the perks – it’s about the excitement, the costumes, dressing up, and all the mixture of freak and fright that makes this kid’s holiday a true joy.  This year we started at Braly School, and my princesses took in the sights, sounds, smells, and visions of what this halloween was going to be like.  There were costumes, games, parades, prizes, candy, pizza, baked goods, smiles, laughter, and plenty of fun for all.

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Sofi and Natalie visiting with KBAY

It was a great Sunday afternoon and Sofi and Natalie got to meet some local celebrities, Sam and Lissa, from the KBAY (94.5) morning show.  They even made their web site! The best part, of course, was that they had a marvelous time, got to experience the excitement of an early Halloween festival, got to dress-up, and did I mention that they got tons of candy?  I mean, TONS of candy!

This annual event is normally held at Happy Hollow, which is presently being remodeled, but having been to the old Happy Hollow I really believe that this was a better venue and we are hoping that they will continue the tradition.  The old homes, businesses and wide open spaces make this ideal for an event like this.  See a later post for more details and pictures.  KBAY certainly did their part, too, and we give them our thanks and appreciation for a job well done.

Papa