Yosemite Sams

This past weekend we decided to head up to Yosemite for a few days to get out of the city. The weather was fantastic, and it wasn't too dry - especially compared with the last few years. We had a great time walking the trails on the valley floor and then spent one day cycling as well....which included a very close encounter with a rattlesnake (picture below). The kids had a ball. Z enjoyed all the scavenger hunts, finding spiders, minnows, frogs and lizards. He took part in one of the plays held at the lodge (he loves being on the stage) as well as dropping by Curry Village for bird watching. He said the funniest thing on Sunday as we were watching a mother deer and her two babies. They were close to the cabins and some people had set up an outdoor eating, rec area for themselves off their porch, and this included some bocce balls they had been playing with. As the deer walked away Z went up to the bocce balls and said 'Look mum - deer eggs!'. Oh dear... Anyway, A had a great time too, being out in the fresh air, seeing all the trees, ducks and deer. Though I get the suspicion she's not a big fan of squirrels - based on her reaction to them as we sat on our back porch...






Look mum - deer eggs!






















At the start of the bike ride...


...At the end of the bike ride!

Wiggly Fun

Z, A and Michelle packed up and headed south the other week to see the Wiggles while they were in Northern California. Despite the hullabaloo with getting tickets, we ended up with good seats and a great view of the stage. Z saw the Wiggles a few years back when he was about 18 months old, but it would appear that he has completely forgotten the experience, so this was as new to him as it was to A. He took it in his stride, ensuring that he got some cotton candy as part of the bargain! A on the other hand wasn't sure what was going on. She was looking everywhere with her big eyes wide open - looking at the stage, then looking at the crowd, then looking at Mum. When the band came on stage she was still a bit uncertain, but intrigued, and within 20 minutes decided that this was definitely her thing - and from then on you couldn't stop her. She was swinging to the music (as she does!), clapping wildly and smiling for the entire rest of the show!

4th of July Parade

We spent the 4th of July in Mendocino, where they have an annual town parade. After a 'make-your-own' waffle breakfast and then quick dash to the store to get Z a new jacket (we left his jacket at home!), we headed to the parade which started at 12pm. Mendocino is a really small, but very quaint town, with only half a dozen or so streets, so the parade went down Main Street, and then up one of the side streets - and you could get a great view of all the festivities. They don't actually have a parade like this in SF, so it was great to get out and see how they celebrate the 4th in small town America. We all had a blast at the parade and Z got to wear his hat that he made at school. We even got to have the traditional hotdog lunch!

On the Road to Mendocino

This past weekend was a long weekend here for Independence Day. So we decided to take the opportunity to get out of town for the weekend and headed north to Mendocino. Here are some shots from the drive up.

Welcome home Mum, Happy Father's Day Dad!

Michelle was away in Chicago for a week in mid-June, so when she got back, in the wee hours of Saturday morning, there was a surprise waiting. Then on Sunday we celebrated Father's Day. Here are some pictures including the great keyring and card Z made for Dad!

First Day in Big Class

Z moved up to the big class in the middle of June. Z's reading at Grade 3 level, so it was good for him to be able to move up and be challenged a bit more with the bigger kids. He's now with the Pre-K group, and all the other kids are already 5 in his class. Here's some pictures of his first day.