La La Land

Getting back to our vacation...  After our visit to San Diego, we headed up to Pasadena for a visit with Nana and a trip to Disneyland.  We spent a couple of days helping Nana prepare to move and just hanging out, visiting Steve's old favorite restaurants, our new favorite taco stand, and hitting the hotel pool.  It was hot, as is usual for the San Gabriel Valley, but very welcome to our SF-chilled bones.  

One night we all overate at dinner and were feeling it as we walked back to the hotel... read Grace's parts with dramatic flair:

Grace:  Don't walk so fast!  My tummy hurts.  It might break!
Steve:  Oh no.  Your tummy really hurts?
Grace:  It might crack open like an egg!
Steve, to me:  So, her tummy hurts and might crack open like an egg...
Grace:  That's what I was taaaalking about!

At Nana's.  Grace was really mad that the girl wouldn't share her book.

We had told Grace that she could pick either Disneyland or Legoland for her birthday.  For a while she was stuck on Legoland, but in the end I think Snow White and the parade won out.  In fact, when she told me she had chosen Disneyland, she said that she just wanted to see the parade and didn't need to go on any rides because she had been on them before.

Grace is definitely at the perfect age for so much of the park (though we are looking forward to her getting a few more inches so we can all ride the big roller coasters together).  She was beside herself with anticipation about seeing Snow White and Minnie Mouse.  We started out in Fantasyland with her beloved Snow White ride.  At the end, she announced "and then she went with the doctor prince to help people!"  So, our re-interpretation of the story (that SW is the smartest and nicest and that's why the queen is jealous, and that she and the prince went to help people at the end - Steve added the "doctor" part to the prince) stuck.  Counter-indoctrination - yessss!  

We visited ToonTown for the first time ever, and Grace got to have her picture with Minnie and Mickey.  I honestly don't know why she loves the characters so much - we don't make a big deal of them at home, but she was just delighted, which is adorable to see.  I thought she would be nervous about going up to Mickey and all the other kids were going with their parents. But she marched right up and said "Hi," and posed for her picture.  We took her on her first roller coaster, which she LOVED and rode twice with her arms in the air the whole time as she laughed.  

My biggest worry of the day was that she wouldn't nap and would be a wreck by parade time.  At the last minute we decided to bring the Ergo Carrier.  Uh, brilliant!  She miraculously fell asleep in it within minutes of me putting her on my back!  Steve and I enjoyed a break from the heat and an actual sit down lunch, though I did have to rock awkwardly in my chair for fear that she would wake up.  

All day Grace kept asking when we would see Snow White and I kept saying "in the parade."  There was no way we were going to wait in line for 70 minutes to maybe see her at the princess faire so Steve kept telling me that she better really be in that parade.  Well, the parade didn't disappoint!  There was music and dancing and characters galore, including Snow White (tg).  Grace was beyond thrilled, and it was awesome to see how much she loved it.  I still tear up if I think about the expression on her face.  Oh, to be three!

We capped off the day with ice cream for dinner and few more rides, including a space mountain switch off.  We left just before the park closed and shamelessly high-fived for Grace's not melting down, our ride count, and the Ergo Carrier coup of 2012.  Yes, as a parent of a three year old, the highlight of Disney is strategic success and the child's nap.  I'll take it.  

 

There was one sobering moment of the day.  As we were in line for Small World, we noticed a group of boats being loaded with kids on stretchers with IVs and in fancy wheel chairs.  These kids were clearly incredibly sick.  It was wonderful to see these kids getting to do something so "normal" (never mind the debatability of whether Disney is normal or an elite privilege), but also heartbreaking to wonder whether they could sense what was going on and how painful it must be as a parent to want your kid to experience this normal thing not to mention take away their pain.  I wasn't the only one in line totally choked up. It also put the few extra minutes in line in perspective and reminded me to be happy to have a kid to chase when she gets excited.

Anyway, after D-land we spent another day in Pasadena, and I really wish I'd gotten some snaps of the cool art deco hotel and the views of downtown Pasadena.  I love the glimpses of old California you get in that area.  I also wish I'd gotten some poolside pictures.  Grace discovered hot tubs on the trip, or as she calls them "hot pools".  

Watering the plants at Nana's

The last of our SoCal adventuring was a quick stop in Santa Barbara on our way north.  We met up with some SF friends who were visiting family for the weekend.  And we went to the coolest restaurant.  It was beachfront with a huge grassy area and sandpit.  Seating was at outdoor picnic tables.  It was packed with kids and was totally okay for Grace and Lizzie to run around like crazy.  But, the food was also reallllly good.  I still haven't really seen Santa Barbara but it was a really fun stop!

On language acquisition 4

Steve, reading a grant proposal aloud to Grace

Grace:  Is that Spanish?

Fathering

A little late for Father's Day, but here are two pieces I read in the last few days... both moving in different ways.  This one had me crying at work and this makes me reconsider/reframe civil rights issues as socially acceptable bullying - food for thought.  Both make me see how powerful present, engaged and loving dads are. 

Happy Father's Day...

To Steve.  Grace couldn't be more blessed in the dad department.

In Grace's words, on the card she made at school:

"Daddy tickles me.  I eat dinner with Daddy and Mommy.  He cooks pasta and tomatoes and asparagus. Daddy plays with me. Daddy says I got to sleep and be quiet.  He says funny jokes.  I love daddy."

And to my Dad.  We love you, Dad/Pop, and especially appreciate all the help lately.  You are THE BEST!  Pix from a recent visit to SF.

Finally...

Our vacation in May was mostly excellent, but I haven't gotten around to posting anything about it because life is currently a roller coaster.  Let's just say that Steve and I now fully understand the term "sandwich generation"...  More on that when (if) things settle down.  (And I actually wrote that on Sunday... now it's Thursday... le sigh...  can one overuse ellipses?)

We'd been planning forever to take a big California road trip and spend longer than a weekend in So Cal.  It didn't quite work out as planned (see above) as Steve had gone to LA ahead of us and Grace and I flew down to meet him.  He was gone four days without us and Grace was beside herself with excitement about seeing Daddy. We took two buses, a walk and BART to get to the airport and her behavior was perfect.  She ended up levitating as walked through the airport and she sang "I'm going to see Daddy."  (There was an awkward moment on BART when she pointed to a guy with a giant red mohawk and loudly asked "What's on his head?!").  

Anyway, we met up with Steve in OC and headed straight to the beach in Corona del Mar, a place Steve and I used to go often in college.  Then we took the familiar drive down the PCH toward San Diego.  Steve has been there for work since we left, but I'd only been back once since leaving 5 years ago - for the fabulous wedding of Megan and Lars. We started the trip with a visit to UCSD, showing the future Triton around.  Lots of new buildings, self serve fro yo (in fact, this seems to be a So Cal phenomenon as we ended up trying many such places), and we visited by old boss for a lovely but all too brief chat.  He immediately gave guerrilla dolls from chiapas to play with while we talked and then none of us could decide how to explain the guns they were holding when she asked.  After our quick visit to campus (most of which was spent discussing if we want Steve to get a job there or not one day - jury remains out), we met up with Grandpa and headed to Las Olas.  Um, yum.  My goal for the San Diego portion of our trip was to each as much Mexican food as possible, which turned into a fish taco marathon until Steve cut me off after eating them daily for a week.  

We spent the next several days visiting our old haunts.  Lots of time at various beaches, time at the hotel pool, hiking, walking and tide pooling.  I had kind of forgotten how beautiful San Diego is.  I mean, I remember that the bright blue ocean is an amazing backdrop and the coastline is pretty, but I guess I had forgotten it's like to just have that view always there - sparkling water, crashing waves, sandy beaches, sandstone cliffs, boats and dolphins.  Plus, it's WARM.  In the 9 years we lived there, I actually found the relentless sunshine oppressive, but man after 2 years in SF and 3 in Boston, I'll take all the 70 degree weather I can get.  

Also, I discovered how nice it is to vacation some place familiar.  We didn't feel compelled to see any sites or do anything other than have fun and relax because we've pretty much seen/done everything we want to there.  And we knew where to eat so we didn't have to stress about whether we going to the right restaurant.  We did go one new place - a great little beach and park in Solana Beach.  They've recently added a playground at the beach where Steve learned to swim during the year he lived there as a kid.  A lovely little spot with fab views and a fun playground and walking distance to Pizza Port.  We also had such  nice visit with Grandpa - Grace just loved playing in the sand with him.  We attended mass at the church where we were married (almost) 9! years ago. At one point, an Asian man was singing in Swahili while the African American priest bopped his head in time to the music while preparing the gifts.  That moment pretty much sums up the diversity I love about California and  that church in particular.  

Corona del Mar

La Jolla

Checking out the seals

Solana Beach

Hiking at Torrey Pines (one of our favorite places)

 Looking at cacti

 On the trail down to the beach

Walking and watching the dolphins (Grace kept claiming she could see them, but I'm not so sure).

 

Tidepooling at La Jolla Shores (the tide was coming in and we got wet!)

 Love it with Scripps Pier in the background

Back to Downtown La Jolla for a picnic and more tidepooling

So fun to be back in San Diego!  I hope we make it there one more time before we head east next summer.

All the pix from the So Cal swing portion of our trip are here.