Choo-Choo & Stars

Today the whole crew (Mr. Mustard, my dad, Nancy, Paprika, Ginger, and moi) went to the Griffith Park Observatory and to Travel Town at Griffith Park. Travel Town has lots of full-sized antique trains. Paprika thought this train (above) looked like it was smiling. I agree.

She got to climb inside the trains and sit way up high. So fun!



She was fascinated by the model trains behind the glass. She watched them for over an hour and did not want to quit...



I think she could have watched them all day, but we had other things to see, too!



We took a ride on the mini-locomotive around the park...twice.



When we were all trained out, we headed over to the Griffith Park Observatory to look out over the city, see the Hollywood sign, and check out the planets and solar system exhibits inside.



It was Ginger's first trip to the Observatory, but Paprika's second. We took Paprika to the Observatory when she was two months old. Here we are back on November 11, 2006 with Paprika (looking a lot like Ginger in this picture!):



But enough walking down memory lane. Back to the present...

Here we are learning all about the Focault Pendulum, which demonstrates the rotation of the earth.



Then we learned all about the planets.



Paprika had to show her favorite bear, too.



Ginger loved looking up at the big planets in the air.



I think she learned a lot.



Before we left, we looked out over the vastness of the city.



And at the Hollywood sign.



And took it all in.



The End.

Children's Museum & Park Day!

Had a great time at the Children's Museum. It was Ginger's first visit, if you can believe that! Paprika has been going one on one with Mr. Mustard, but today we made it a family affair. Dad and Nancy liked it, too, I think!

We stopped off at the cool rain machine...



So much fun!



Ginger fell asleep in the Bjorn. She really liked the sound of the rushing river- very soothing.



The best part was when we rode bikes. Paprika loved that!



In fact, we all did.



Thankfully, we had the whole place to ourselves. We took over the bike track and zoomed around for a long time.



Paprika tried out all the varieties of bikes and scooters.



I see a possible Christmas present in her future...looks like it's Big Wheel time!



Even though Mr. Mustard made a lot of fun of us for looking so dorky in our helmets, it was worth it. Dorky or not, we had a blast.



Then we went to our fave playground and park. Paprika had a great time on the swings and played on the playground until dusk.



Ginger entertained Grandpa and Nana.



Then we came home and the girls had fun with each other while we made dinner. My dad made lavash wraps with sauteed tofu. They were delish! And we had wine, of course. That always makes things a little more festive!



A good time was had by all!

Malibu!

We had a big day in Malibu & Santa Monica today. We first went to the Getty Villa overlooking the ocean in Malibu. It's an amazing art museum with a host of Greco-Roman art.

We had a delicious lunch at the cafe overlooking the gardens and the ocean. Amazing. Then we toured the galleries. Paprika read The Iliad.



Next we wandered through the gardens.





We spent some time in the family room...lots of fun, educational and interactive stuff to do there.



Hung out in some more gardens.



Went to the playground beach in Malibu at sunset. Paprika played on the playground til the sun started to set. Ginger slept snuggled up in the Baby Bjorn. It was dark by the time we left!



Stopped off at the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica to wait for the rush hour traffic to pass.



Visited the shoe store for Nancy to buy some new kicks.



Went to the Borders and read books in the Children's Section. Ginger was especially taken by this snow globe and could not stop laughing.



Came home, had dinner, played...and lights out!

Papaw Dave & Miss Nancy

My dad and his lovely wife, Nancy, flew in from Indianapolis today! We are so happy to have them here. They said they came "just for the grandkids"- and that's okay by us.

After they landed, we went to Chiptole for lunch (yum!) and then to the Huntington to tour the gardens, and see the rare book library. We saw a rare Gutenberg Bible, an original edition of Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, original Audubon illustrations, and a bunch of other really old books.

The museum also had a new installation of science exhibits. We were all taken by this wing of the museum, especially the lighting exhibit. We saw some of Thomas Edison's original hand-blown light bulbs. These photos were taken there. Who knew lighting could be so interesting?



We saw the rose gardens, the desert part, the Japanese Gardens, the Chinese Gardens, and the Children's Garden! A lot to see in one afternoon.



It was a good excuse for us to spend time together talking and catching up, and getting to know Nancy better. My dad and Nancy are newlyweds- they just got married in March 2009. They are really happy. I'm so happy for my dad. He deserves a wonderful woman in his life! We approve!



Paprika had lots of fun showing my dad and Nancy the sites. This is a magnet with iron shards you can use to make sculptures. Paprika can spend hours here on a regular visit, but today we had too much to see!



It was a happy day, and Paprika was so excited to spend so much time with her Grandpa, aka "Papaw Dave" and "Nana" (the name we came up with for Nancy).



I know my dad had a great time snuggling Baby Ginger. Speaking of which, Ginger is just amazing us with her developments. She is going gangbusters with her movements, her speech...everything. She is now flipping over, rolling everywhere, trying to crawl...basically everything short of cartwheels. She is "talking" to us in her magical baby language, teething, and trying to eat our food.



Where is my newborn who looks up at me with her doe eyes and falls asleep? She is growing up alright. I just didn't expect she'd be doing all of this so soon. We are so proud of her!

D-Land at Christmas

We had a fun-filled day at D-Land today. We picked Paprika up from preschool and scooted on down. Stayed almost til the parks closed. Hit Disneyland and California Adventure.

I picked up a wicked cold at the Santa Barbara Zoo last weekend, and have completely lost my voice. This morning, I started on the meds the doctor ordered- I have been sick since September. Life cannot stop when mom is sick - too much life to cram in with these kids. Must keep going. The meds are already helping. I wish I'd taken them sooner.



We had a wonderful time- we rode lots of new rides today. Paprika is getting quite adventurous. She wants to ride everything scary- rollercoasters, rides that go wayyy up in the air and go very fast, and just a bunch of things that scare me (but of course I don't tell her that)!

She is now just 40 inches (barely)- and she was pulling herself up to her full height so she could go on the rides. She was borderline, but they let her through- it was pretty funny to watch Paprika trying so hard to make the height requirement. A few of the rides require 42 inches, and she was crushed she couldn't ride. Next year perhaps.

Today we rode Soarin' Over California together for the first time. I went on it a few years ago with my step-dad, Eric, and brother Robbie. It was just as nauseating the second time around- but fun!



Ginger did great. She was all giggles. She rode the slow rides- the Dumbo Ride, It's a Small World (twice), the Carousel...and in general had fun people watching and checking out the amazing Christmas decorations. A fun day was had by all!