adventure seeking in La Jolla

We have favorite things we enjoy as a family but we really enjoy seeking out new adventures, too.  Today's new adventure began with a picnic lunch at the Torrey Pines Gliderport in La Jolla.  What a fun place to simply hang out and enjoy a gorgeous afternoon.  The wind was strong today along the cliffs and the paragliders were loving it.  There were so many paragliders out today!  We also saw a r/c airplane, a glider, airplanes & helicopters, and countless birds fly overhead.  It was neat to sit so close to all the action and watch all the work that goes into paragliding.  None of us had any interest in doing it ourselves, but we all enjoyed watching them today! 

The La Jolla Village area was extremely busy due to the holiday weekend.  Luckily the cave we wanted to visit is located at one end of the village area.  There were many, many steps down into the depths of the cave, but the end result was a nice view of the ocean.  Afterwards we walked up and around the cliffs before stopping at a Haagen Dazs for ice cream.  It was a beautiful day to be in La Jolla with perfectly warm weather and clear blue skies -- and a couple of fun new adventures for our family! 

Legoland afternoon

We waited for the sun to come out this afternoon before heading over to Legoland for a few hours.  It was extremely busy due to the holiday weekend, but we were still able to do the few things the kids wanted to do.  And, as always, it's great when all four of us can enjoy the park together. 

We don't typically purchase things at Legoland because we are there so often, but today the kids each picked out something to spend some of their birthday money on.  Meredith's pick was this pink kitten in a purse.  She has named the kitten Marcia.  We have no idea where she came up with the name and I laugh every time she says it.

Thomas' pick was a lego set from the Ninjago series.  I wouldn't say he's crazy about Legos (like I've seen other kids), but he does enjoy them.  It's fun to see his satisfaction in building these things by himself.  He couldn't wait to get started on this chopper with moveable parts and two little guys.

the Princess Party

Meredith's preschool pal, Lily, celebrated her 4th birthday this afternoon with a princess tea complete with Cinderella.  It was a small party (and by far the quietest birthday party I've ever attended) but it was all very sweet and very fun for these 8 little girls.  Cinderella read a story, sang songs, danced with them, painted their faces, did a little magic, brought along her pet raccoon to share (which they all believed was real) and told lovely stories that only a true princess could understand and appreciate.  These girls were absolutely mesmerized by her.  It was fun for all the girls and all the moms, too, to watch this special afternoon unfold.

Friday afternoons

By Friday, we're all tired and look forward to a relaxed afternoon.  I wanted to spend a few hours at the beach, digging in the sand and playing in the ocean.  However, these two had a different idea.  All they wanted was to play in the backyard and hang out quietly in their rooms.  So we did a little of both -- of their ideas, not mine!

Open House



Thomas' school held their Open House this evening.  He was so excited about this.  He's been talking about it all week and several times this afternoon he asked me if it was time to go yet.  He wanted to show us what he'd been working on, where the other rooms are (music, computer lab, library) and he really wanted to see what the first grade classrooms are like.  The kids and I headed down early -- we walked and collected trash along the way! -- and Mike met up with us down there later.  It was a nice evening spent seeing all the things Thomas wanted to show us, meet some first grade teachers, and see friends.  It was esp. nice for me to watch Thomas play with his school friends in the grass before the Open House.  It was a great evening for this little boy! 

Bela is 12 years old!

Bela's favorites: steamed white rice topped with peanutbutter.

We're a day late with Bela's birthday celebration but we didn't forget!  This afternoon the kids and I spent time with her doing what she loves most: laying on a blanket in the grass, soaking up the warm sunshine.  Later this evening we celebrated with her favorite two foods, rice and peanutbutter.  She loved it.

blueberry picking

Meredith: "White is boring!"

I'm surprised she wanted to wear her white sweater this evening because earlier this week she declared "White is boring!".  Her (day) outfit today was much more colorful than this (evening) outfit.  We've taken to calling her Rainbow Bright when she wears her hoodie and/or rainbow terry shorts.  Today a cashier at Trader Joe's also called her Rainbow Bright.  I should have taken a photo of her "join friends for an animal show at the library and have lunch at the new kitchen in town" outfit.  It was quite the (oh, so colorful!!) sight!

Art Extravaganza

Meredith's preschool held their Art Extravaganza today and yesterday.  It's an annual fundraiser for the school.  All the kids have a piece in the show and parents can purchase their child's piece for $20.  Of course everyone buys their child's piece, because really, how could you not?  I really like Meredith's painting -- there's depth, texture, vivid colors and the enlarged, abstract flower is beautiful.  Of course, I'm biased but I thought it was the best in her class.  I'll probably move her name to the back when I frame it, but it'll be proudly displayed somewhere in our house.  She's so pleased with it, too! 

Thomas the Paleontologist

He says it all the time and whenever asked the question of what he wants to be when he grows up, this is the answer he gives.  We'll see if his interest in dinosaurs continues...

Science Camp today!

Thomas observed the dissection of a chicken today during his weekly Science Camp.  He was the most interested of the children and participated more than the others.  He just loves all this science stuff whether it's anatomy, physics, astronomy, paleontology, etc.  A few times during the dissection I had to suggest he move back an inch or two because he would get so close.  He was really very curious and enjoyed watching and listening to his teacher explain the different things they were looking at and what their functions are.  The chicken was very young and really quite small, but this afternoon he was able to see the skull, brain, heart, eyeballs, wings, spinal cord, intestines, liver...  This is the true beauty of Science Camp: he gets to do and see all this stuff -- and I don't have to! 

all dressed up

Meredith is very much interested in typical girl stuff like makeup, clothes, shoes, purses, jewelry, etc... and she's only four!  I laugh every time she asks me if I'm going to bring my purse because then she also wants to bring hers (the Hello Kitty purse above is always her first choice).  And she notices every little thing I do differently -- new earrings, different bracelet, something in my hair, clothes, etc.  It's fun to watch this little girl try so hard to be a big girl.   

learning to balance

Meredith has told us for several weeks (months?) now that she wants to remove the training wheels from her bicycle. She'll say that, but then soon after she'll change her mind. I've suggested that we remove the training wheels and the pedals so she can understand balance. She's such an amazing little person and so desperately wants to be a bigger person. Today she said again she wanted to take the training wheels off and when I suggested the pedals also be removed, she was game. And she did great! No surprises there.

Thomas' Spiderman/Superhero Party

birthday boy as Spiderman ~ little sister as a superhero

.

pinata craziness ~ YUMMY birthday cake (notice the mistake?)

.

singing Happy Birthday to You! to Thomas

.

The last few years we've celebrated Meredith's birthdays at home and Thomas' at another place outside the home.  It's fun to have them at home, but it's also a lot of work with all the cleaning beforehand, party setup, post-party cleanup, etc.  And with their birthdays less than 3 weeks apart, it's much easier to have one at home and one somewhere else.  However, this year Thomas really wanted his party to be at our house.  So we invited all our friends over for a BBQ, bounce house, pinata, superhero mask craft, birthday cake and hours and hours of fun.

.

superheroes

.

and more superheroes

.

and more superheroes

.

non-stop superhero action (for over 4 hours!)

Thomas is SIX years old!

Thomas' favorite breakfast - Daddy's Spectacular French Toast - topped with fresh strawberries and a whipped topping. What a great way to start his birthday and a fun birthday weekend. Happy Birthday, Thomas!

new swim center

Late this afternoon the kids started swim lessons at a new facility that just opened last week in our area. They were so excited that they got into their swimsuits and got all their stuff ready hours before the lesson -- like three hours before.

aquatic trivia

I love how these places that we frequent continue to change for these two. Today we dropped by the SeaLife Aquarium adjacent to Legoland for an hour. They've done this trivia card in the past, but it's always been more of the adults doing the work while they just run from one exhibit to another. And they were out of the trivia cards when we visited with Grandma last month so the kids were very happy to see the trivia cards today. Thomas and Meredith really didn't pay much attention to the exhibits today at all. Instead they were totally focused on the trivia and enjoyed seeking them out. Thomas would read the question and (3) possible answers and then together they'd decide which one was correct. It was fun to watch them work together and to be so into it today. And it was esp. fun for me to listen as Thomas read all the questions and answers himself. It's amazing how quickly these reading skills develop!

* Meredith had so much fun that when I tucked her into tonight she asked if we could go again after school tomorrow.

"Bela" by M

I rarely see this side of Bela. Maybe it's what she looks like to Meredith when she's grumbling or something?

Happy Mother's Day drawing from T

I got my hair cut yesterday and Thomas drew this of me today. Looks just like me with the shorter hair -- I'd say he captured me perfectly!

Happy Mother's Day card from M

party photos