GIlroy Gardens is awesome!

After breakfast Daddy decided to give Mommy the day off and along with Tim and Turtle took the kids to Gilroy Gardens. It was a pretty warm day, which is typically for Gilroy. This park is perfect for young kids and horticulturists. The day started with a stop at the mini carousel. Its a nice stop off the entry way and you can wind through the gardens and waterfalls as you get further into the park.

There are lots of rides and games for younger kids including the cars on the track. Riley was really excited to get an opportunity to drive. Tim and Turtle rode with Cameron and let her drive as well. To see how well Riley did, check out the video.

While Cameron stays away from the water features at amusement parks, Riley is too young to know why that might be a good idea. Jeff decided to stand under the bucket and Riley was blissfully unaware of what was coming. Check out all the photos to see an incredible shot.

Along with the rides, water features, playgrounds, the kids visited the petting zoo and went shopping for crazy hats. Nobody got a hat, but this one looked really good on Riley.

Snowy Plovers don't mess around...

Riley is definitely no longer in the baby room. While he is familiar with clay, they now get tools to work with. Riley is now taking his sticks, making holes, and then putting the clay balls into the holes. His teachers report that many of the other kids look at what Riley is doing and try to mimic him.

He is also now working on puzzles. On this day he pulled the pieces out then proceeded to try and get them back into their space. When that didn't quite work he went to get a bottle to try and use that to get the pieces back in. The teacher reported that when brute force didn't work he went back to moving the pieces back into the slots. He's getting there.

Snowy Plovers are also working with new writing instruments. The kids are very interested in the pens used by the parents for signing in. They are now working with these instruments to observe how the marks look using these utensils. Riley has mastered the pen. (We have some items at home to prove it).

In Snowy Plover they also got rid of the sippy cups. Riley is doing well mastering his cup and has asked that we let him use big cups at home. I'm not ready for that yet, but school is a great place to start this anyway.

One of the other differences is the Snowy Plovers can turn their light table on and off. Riley discovered the switch and spent some time mastering it. He also shared this tidbit with his fellow class mates and now all the children turn it on when they are interested and off when they are done. Its good to teach these "green" lessons at this age.

There is no such thing as too much beach time...

Mommy got a new car. Now she needed someplace to go. Cookie and Mikey invited the group to Half Moon Bay to enjoy the sunshine while it still lasts. Even though we spent a lot of time on the beach while traveling, PJ hadn't and of course he needed to get out in the sun for at least a day.

Cameron really enjoys the new car because it has rear-seat entertainment. We make her where the earphones which she calls her "telephones." PJ has lots of room in the back and his own sunroof.
Cameron, Riley, and Mikey spent lots of time digging, collecting, and rolling around the sand. Mikey even went swimming but it was way too cold for Cameron and Riley. It was not too cold for PJ so he spent almost all the time in the water with Lexi (Elisabeth's boxer) on shore chasing him back and forth (she was not that interested in the water either).

After lots of play there was snacks. PJ stayed very close to Riley because Riley kept putting his hands in the sand and therefore losing his cheese puffs. PJ would then jump at the chance to dig them up and enjoy his cheesy (sandy) treat.

It would be nice to live only a few blocks from the beach like Elisabeth, but we are lucky she shares her home and beach access with us.

Riley is back at school

While we were traveling we missed the first day of school. We were lucky enough to return on Music day. Ms Ana was back and in the Snowy Plover room when we arrived and Riley got to enjoy music once again. The puppets were still his favorite and they consoled him as Mommy left to get back to work.
There were lots to re-familiarize himself with. The infant room shared the play yard with Snowy Plover so that wasn't new but Riley was happy to see the fountain again. Water play was always the best part of being outside as far as Riley was concerned. "Oh fountain, how have I missed you."

Riley was happy to be back with his friends. He showed them all how strong he got while he was traveling and pulled Morgan around the yard being careful to negotiate between the babies and other toys.

Cameron came downstairs to visit Riley's new classroom. She helped the babies with an art project and showed them how to make circles and choose different colors. Cameron was also in a new room, Harvest Mouse but she was lucky to keep all the same teachers. She was especially glad to see her best friend Nadia.

Last Chance in Oz

When Cameron started to finally feel better I took a half day off or work and we decided to join Turtle on a whale watching tour. About 30 minutes into it, I realized this was the worst idea I've ever had. First we didn't see any whales. A humpback showed his back but that was about all that anyone reported seeing. Cameron and I didn't see anything because we were in the cabin with our heads hanging in a bucket. I owed her big for this...

Since the kids, and Turtle enjoyed Bondi so much we decided to go and spend the day at the beach. We enjoyed a great lunch at Nick's and then picked up some sand toys for the kids. They played in the sand and Cameron again was greeted by some Japanese tourist who asked if they could take their picture with her.

I remember my first trip to Bondi where I learned that clothes were kinda optional. Riley got to experience the same thing. He was very curious about the kids running around without their clothes and watched them for awhile.

On our last weekend day I decided to finally go and see the Opera house. We spent the day exploring the Botanical Gardens and enjoying all the performers around Circular Quay.

To pay Cameron back for the awful boat trip on Friday we went shopping and bought a new outfit. She picked it out and it was really outrageous. After buying the new dress, jacket and shoes we went to a chocolate shop where she enjoyed her warm milk with chocolate sprinkles. We really enjoyed our shopping trip together and talked about everything we saw that day. It was hard to remember that she was only 3. I hope we have lots of Mommy and Me dates like this.

You can see more of our pictures from Sydney on Picasa.

Week 2 in Oz

I was really looking forward to doing some sightseeing after missing all the fun this week. On a recommendation from a local co-worker, we headed out with another manager and his friends from the states to a Australian National Park, Bundeena. We woke up early and took a train, then a boat to the little town. We didn't really know much so we just followed some hikers. We didn't realize we were going to have to trek up a hill and through a neighborhood to find the trail head. Then didn't realize we should have grabbed food because now we were in the middle of nowhere. Sumeet ran back to grab a picnic lunch and we decided to start hiking. It took us a long time before we saw anything.

Jeff took the long trail and we took a short cut to the cliffs. It was difficult treking around with the kids and the stroller. The trail was sandy and rutted. Turtle also did not enjoy the hiking or that hill.

When we finally hit the coast it was really beautiful. We spent a long time just taking in the view. After awhile Cameron starting to complain about her ear again so we separated from Sumeet and friends and just headed back to the city.
By the time we reached the hotel Cameron was really sick. The rest of the weekend I just tried to keep her comfortable while Daddy and Turtle did the bridge climb. It was clear that she needed to go to the doctor and the rest of the week was spent trying to get the correct antibiotics. It turned out her complaints about her ear on the first day was more than just jetlag. Cameron had a double ear infection and after 3 visits to the doctor she was finally on the road to recovery.


Riley was a very good sport through the whole thing. I guess he figured he owed us that after Tokyo. He found lots of ways to occupy himself while in the hotel room. The curtains were his favorite hiding spot. He would climb up and wait for someone to go looking for him, then he would pop out and surprise you.

First Week in Oz

After a few days of recovering from Tokyo and a trip to Dr. Lee to make sure Riley was okay to travel we arrived in Darling Harbor, Sydney. It was a long flight but Cameron had a new movie, A Bugs Life on the Iphone and the flight was showing Monster's versus Aliens. We watched them both several times. Riley slept and enjoyed having Turtle in the row next to us. When we arrived everyone was tired and Cameron was complaining about her ear hurting but we didn't want everyone to go right to sleep since it was only 7am. Cameron felt better after eating something and we headed out to explore Darling Harbor. Our first stop was the new (at least to us, it wasn't here the last time mommy and daddy were here) WildlifeWorld next to the aquarium.

We barely got out of the hotel before Riley fell asleep in the stroller. The first section was filled with bugs. The entire cast of "A Bugs Life" was there so it was really fun for Cameron to see Flik, Manny, and Hopper. It was fun for us to because Turtle got to hold a really cool stick bug and it crawled up his arm and on his shoulder. Cameron would not hold it. After making it through half the exhibits and getting to meet the koalas Cameron traded places with Riley and slept while Riley got to meet the Kangaroos and wild birds. We had lunch and realized it was too long of trip to do any more exploring.

The next day Mommy had to work, so Daddy and Turtle headed out to explore Sydney with the kids. They took the ferry over to Circular Quay and explored the Opera House and the Royal Botanical Gardens. There was lots of chasing of birds and Cameron enjoyed finding the "Castle" (or the Government House). After they took the ferry back, mom met them for dinner and a trip the aquarium. We quickly discovered that with the jet lag and a full day of adventure, it was not going to be possible to have a second excursion that included mom. So the rest of the week mom would only get to have dinner with the family and put them to bed, after all, it was technically a work trip.

After taking a day of rest, the gang was off to the Taronga Zoo. This is a beautiful zoo and you have to be jealous of the view the giraffe's have. After getting separated from Turtle because one took the tram which dropped off at the top of the zoo, the two groups finally met us and got to enjoy meeting all of the Australian animals and some non-native animals. There was a great bird show and the elephants were awesome, especially the baby.

Although it was technically winter the sun came out and it was perfect because that is when the family was off to Bondi Beach. This is a beautiful beach and was just a bus ride away. The surf was perfect if you like to watch surfers, which Turtle did for sure! Cameron and Riley enjoyed getting in the sand and running along the beach.

On Friday the family decided to stay closer to the hotel. A week of inconsistent naps was taking its toll on everyone so it was a half-day trip to the Chinese Gardens. There is a photo shop that will allow you to dress in royal costumes so Cameron and Daddy dressed up for photos. Cameron made for a beautiful chinese princess, while Riley explored the interesting architecture.

Tokyo in July

If you ever wondered what Tokyo was like, imagine hot. Then imagine really, really hot. Think of New Orleans on the most humid day and then raise the temperature and humidity level. I couldn't believe men were in suits and women were wearing tights!!! But anyway, everyone slept on the plane except mommy so the trip wasn't bad. We arrived in Japan and took a car to the hotel. The ride in was great and I was looking forward to our weekend to get some site seeing in before my week of work.

On Saturday we started by walking about the city, but Riley wasn't feeling well and given the heat we decided to split up. I took Riley back to the hotel. Daddy and Cameron went to the Imperial Palace without us. They walked through the gardens and looked at the buildings and took lots of pictures with the locals. Cameron was very popular but since she is shy she didn't really like the attention.

Riley continued to get worse so early Sunday we took him to the emergency room. Japan is not keen on sick foreigners who just got off a plane. They gave him every test possible but everything was clear. After more than 12 hours of tests they determined it was just the croup probably triggered by some virus.

The care was excellent (and relatively cheap) even though we could not understand most of what they were saying and not anything they gave us to sign. Luckily there were pictures for the important stuff. Riley had about 8 breathing treatments and when he was finally breathing normally we were able to check out of the hospital. He was pretty traumatized, when any young Japanese woman approached he would just cry (suspecting they were a nurse).

After a few days of being stuck in the hotel, Jeff took the kids to Disneyland. If you ever wondered what Disneyland Tokyo is like, imagine Disneyland California and stop. Everything is exactly the same including the stores and restaurants (except the food is really terrible!!!) After a day long adventure in the park by himself with two kids he called me for help. My boss helped me figure out the trains and I met up with everyone to help with the travel back to the hotel.

Given the rough start, the kids had a good time. Cameron learned to say "Konichiwa" arogatou" which was really cute.

Recipe for a great playdate...

Hannah came over for a play date while her parents went on a real date. The kids, PJ, Cameron and Riley were very excited. So they made sure they had everything they needed....

Ball Pit? Check!

Safety Goggles? Check!

Princess Dresses? Check!!!

It was a very fun night for all..

Congratulations Aunt Juliet!!

This is Crenshaw. Cameron has had this little horse since her birthday, but we haven't really seen him much until today. She insisted that he needed to go with us. I agreed to let her "horsey" in the car and was informed, "This is not Horsey, it is Crenshaw." It was the first time I can remember that Cameron has named any of her toys and cannot for the life of me figure out where she got the name. Regardless its a great name for a horse.

We went to the Palo Alto Clay and Glass Festival with Tim and Turtle before heading to the city. Riley enjoyed exploring all of the exhibits, which was scary, but Tim was great at keeping him away from most of the glass. Cameron was pretty mellow and stayed in the stroller with Crenshaw most of the time.

Next we headed to Golden Gate park to see Aunt Juliet reach her goal of finishing the San Francisco Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. We missed her crossing the finish line, but caught up with her celebrating. She looked awesome even though she had just walked 1.5 marathons in two days. She trained for months and raised more than $5000 in memory of her mother. Her accomplishment was amazing and we are incredibly proud of her. Congratulations Aunt Juliet!!!

First Camping Trip

We headed to Mendocino for a fourth of July camping trip with several of our neighbors and friends (one and the same). The kids were super excited as this was their first camping trip. The drive up took a lot longer than we remembered. Cameron got really tired of the car and insisted we stop about a half hour from the campground. We obliged and had a snack at a rest stop along the way. Mendocino is a little town on the Northern California coast.

Our first outing together was to the riverbank which had a great beach. We played in the sand and planned out some other outings. We decided we would take a canoe trip (Jeff, Tims, and Riley opted out but we had a great time), explore Mendocino, check out the Stanford Inn, and of course stay for the parade.

The beach was really nice. The dogs especially loved it. There was a leash law so PJ obliged. He carried his leash around and enjoyed swimming and rolling around in the sand. It got pretty cold at night so we didn't mind the sand as long as he kept us warm. Although the days were comfortable, the nights got really cold. It was going to be a rough couple of days.

The kids had fun. I couldn't believe how dirty they would get. I thought about trying to keep them clean, but realized that was a lost cause. I don't think they have ever been that dirty before. Besides the fun in the dirt, and the running between campsites, there were things to explore. One of our favorite discoveries were the banana slugs. They were everywhere. It was pretty surprising how big they actually get. Besides the slugs we walked down to the Stanford Inn and saw theire gardens, horses, and llamas.

Each night we took turns cooking and enjoyed each other's campsites. We especially enjoyed the Tim's, which happened to be at a Bed and Breakfast near downtown Mendocino ;-) That was our pizza night and the restaurant was very cozy and warm!

On the day of the fourth we went downtown and watched the parade. We expected it to be very quaint, and was surprised how political it was. The displays varied from the fire dept's trucks, and people dressed as the Mendocino founders, to the local farm animals and SPCA animals in costume, to a float of several teenagers dressed as the Statue of Liberty wrapped in chains being pulled down by the media.... It was fun...interesting... and hot dogs were great. For more pictures from the camping trip check out our Picasa and Sonya's Kodak album.