Day #4: Muir Woods and Stinson Beach

After a quiet day in Berkley, we were ready to head out on another adventure.  Muir Woods was spectacular:

Abby and Julia, up a tree (near the entrance)

Baby deer in a clearing

Trying to get the scope of the trees in a picture is hard

After Muir, we drove down to Stinson Beach to see the ocean.  The kids jumped right in:

Benji did not want to get his pants wet

 

On the way back, we stopped at an overlook

Fisherman's Wharf

Several of us ventured downtown on day #2.  It was a chilly day in San Francisco, but Fisherman's Wharf was amusing for all of us:

Seal statue

Watching a magic show

The big carousel

Abby, trying to take a picture of the sea lions

Everyone climbing up higher for a better view of the sea lions

We walked (and ate) our way down to Ghirardelli Square, where the kids ran around for a bit:

You can just make out the golden gate bridge behind them

We ended the day with sundaes (and a little tour of the chocolate making process):

More pictures tomorrow!

Low Key Day #1

Continuing the California posts.  We took it easy the first day.  Kevin took Abby and Julia to the Giants game (here are some pictures from his blackberry):

Meanwhile, back in Berkley, the rest of us went to the Thai temple for brunch:

Best Thai Food.  Ever.

California!

We had a fantastic week-long trip to San Francisco/Berkley last week.  The best part?  Good friends.  We shared a house with 6 other CMC families and got time to play with each others' children, catch-up, and just slow down a little together.  Some pics (ok, mostly of the kids - the adults are hard to pin down!):

Girls in Braids (Abby, Julia, Neena)

All the kids

Neena, Drew and Benji on the top of Tilden Park

The whole gang, minus Jake and Megan

Abby and Drew playing glo-bugs on the ipad

Abby and Julia give Neena a birthday hug

Benji explains to Maya the correct way to eat raspberries

The ipad was a big attraction

Many, many Uno games

Benji and Katie watch the older kids skeptically

pig pile on Rich

Drew helps Benji "sing" the National Anthem

American Girl Tea

In lieu of a party this year, Abby asked to go to the American Girl Cafe and Store in Washington, D.C., with her best friend Julia.  After much perusing of the website, Abby decided on an afternoon tea.  They brought their dolls:

There was much giggling in the booth:

The girls chose lemonade in their tea pots over actual tea:

The food was surprisingly good:

And Abby took lots of pictures with her new camera:

After tea, the girls both got their dolls' ears pierced (really):

And Aunt Steph bought the dolls matching outfits:

Abby is already saying she can't wait to go back, so we'll call that a birthday success.