Sunday, March 30, 2008

Day 3 and Home Again

On the third day of our trip, we finally went to the beach. We got up early, because Dusty wanted to go and see the tide pools, so we had to go at low tide. However, that turned out to be a complete disaster. It was freezing cold, and we couldn't find very many animals, probably because it was winter. Plus, Petra was wearing shorts, and Talia didn't have a wind-breaker, because we forgot it at home. We did buy her a sweatshirt at Pier 39, but it wasn't nearly warm enough to keep up with all of the wind.

So, we got back in the car, and drove into Pacifica, which is where Dusty lived for a time when he was a teenager. We tried to go to a store to buy the girl's some warmer clothes, but it wasn't open yet, so we drove around and Dusty showed us his old house, and his old schools. It was really neat to see one of the places where he grew up. We got Petra some pants and got some brunch, waiting for the sun to come up and warm everything up a bit.

Finally, we got to the beach. It was still really cold, but the girls had a blast playing in the sand. They dug and built sand castles. Dusty and I flew kites. We had these really tiny kites that were only 4 inches wide. They didn't fly terribly well, but it was fun. Still, it was too cold to stay long, and as we were getting ready to go, Petra wet her pants. Got her cleaned up, rinsed sand off as best we could, got into the car, started driving, and Talia threw up all over herself. At this point, we pretty much knew the vacation was over.

However, that evening, we went into the American Fencing Supply Company store. I've never been to an actual fencing store before, and frankly it wasn't all that impressive, however, they also had a bunch of traditional fencing weapons there. They were sooooo cool, with twisted wire bells and things. They were very beautiful.

We went back to Pier 39 to play and eat dinner. There is a bridge over the road from Pier 39 to the parking garage, and as we were leaving, we stood there and watched the sun set over the ocean. Amazing.

We drove home all in one day. YUUUUCKKKK. We started at 7 AM, and drove until 12:30 AM, stopping roughly every 2-4 hours for a few minutes to eat or go to the bathroom. By the time we got to Twin Falls, I was going bonkers. I wanted more than anything to stop at a hotel, but it was only a couple of hours more, and Dusty was desperate to get home. We made it, at any rate.

It was a wonderful trip. I am SO happy that we got to go.

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Day 2

Today was day 2 of our trip to San Francisco, and it was a really great one. We rode BART back into the city, and then took one (very looooong) bus ride to the Exploritorium. Fortunately, we met some really cool Germans who were chaperoning a bunch of high school students. They were fun to talk with. The Exploritorium was a very neat hands-on science museum. I think that Dusty and I were more interested in it then the girls were, but Petra seemed to think that they were just a bunch of cool toys. Unfortunately, it was overrun with rowdy kids, and she nearly got knocked down a couple of times. Also, we got there just at lunch time, and we were determined to eat dim sum in China town. We really only got to see a fraction of the museum before I and the girls were dying of hunger, so we left and caught another bus to China town (I'm getting pretty good a this public transportation thing!) We had a delicious lunch. With dim sum, they bring bring several dishes around to all of the tables, and you just say what you want. They put the plate on your table and add it to your bill. It actually turns out to be pretty reasonable. Anyway, it took me a while to get into it, because I was sooooo hungry, and they weren't bringing us any food! Also, we accidentally bought some really gross things. We ordered duck feet. The lady was like, "Duck feet?!?! Okay....." and she was right, we hated them. But it was fun to try new things. We went around to some of the shops, and I got a bag, Dusty got a shirt, and Talia got a cute little outfit. Also, we found some bakeries. I love the custard buns, and Dusty loves these rice cakes, which have a texture which is half-way between rice, and mashed potatoes (yuck!) The girls we exhausted tonight, because neither of them got a nap today, and Dusty and I are pretty sore, from all of the walking, but it really was such a wonderful day. Tomorrow, the beach.

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

On Vacation

We are in San Francisco right now! We are having a great time. We started driving on Sunday at about 4:30, after a lovely Easter dinner with Mom and Dad and Reed and Katie. The drive was pretty un-eventful, except for after I had been driving for a while and it was became dark. I was going through Arizona on a two lane highway, when all of the sudden, there were two deer in the road! I had to hit the brakes and swerve around them. It was quite the adrenaline boost! We spent the night in Wells, AZ. Then, we had to drive pretty much all day, but we finally got to San Fran (without any more excitement.) Our hotel is really nothing great, but we are very close to a BART stop, which is the public train system here. Today, we took BART into the city. We explored Pier 39 for a while, which was really fun. I bought a beautiful garnet and pearl necklace and earring set from an outdoor market. The weather here is pretty weird--it changes very suddenly from warm and sunny to cold and windy. At Pier 39, we went to the Aquarium. Petra got to touch a shark. Talia touched a starfish. It was a lot of fun. We also went to Ghiridelli Square and although we got some VERY good ice cream there, it really wasn't worth the walk. Tonight, we are very exhausted. We walked a very long distance today. Two more days here, and then the long drive home. NOT looking forward to that!!

Sunday, March 16, 2008

My Current Hobby

I made a new cake today. Can you guess what it is? Hint--it's for Dusty's journalism class.




I am really enjoying decorating these cakes. I took a class at Michael's. I am going to take some more, but at the moment, my health won't really allow it. I wish that I could make some money by selling my cakes, but it just seems like Brolims could do it more cheaply. I thought about doing unusual cakes, like the ducky cake, but maybe I'm just not good enough yet.

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

The Joy of Motherhood

It is 6 am here right now, and I've been up since 4. Talia's sick. She has a fever and seems pretty miserable. She just keeps sucking on her favorite blanket, one that Natalie bought for her when she was born. Actually, it's not really her fault that I'm up. I just couldn't get back to sleep! The doctor gave me some new medicine for energy, and this is the result. Oh, well.