Foursome

Wait - Was I supposed to write something on here? I thought it just got filled in all by itself.

Anyway, the kids got taller, Dave and I got more tired, and we tucked away a few days of 2014 under our belt. Our first vacation of 2014 (vacation already!?!) was a road trip up to San Francisco by way of the mission at Santa Cruz (fourth grade project). It took FOREVER to get through Friday afternoon traffic up to Santa Cruz, and we wound up stopping overnight in some cow town on the way up but we finally made it to Stop #1 on Saturday morning. (I'm getting much more efficient with pictures; I'm packaging them in foursomes.)

They say that Santa Cruz is one of the *least* interesting missions to visit because there's the least left of it, but I found it pretty darned interesting. I hope to get to a few more before fourth grade is over.

Then it was off to the City By the Bay for a crazy-cool weekend in this fun hotel apartment that we "won" at a silent auction last year. The residence is located INSIDE the old Ghirardelli factory (the "Cocoa Building" to be precise) and it has two bedrooms, two baths, a beautiful kitchen and living room, exposed brick walls, a bay view, and every amenity you could ask for including a Town Car at your service.

The first morning we went to Alcatraz, which Luke feared, because as you remember, "creepy museums" are his least favorite thing. And yet who listened to the audio tour of the Alcatraz escape not once, not twice, but three times, as we all waited patiently for him to finish?

Here is a surprisingly grim photo montage of Alcatraz that Dave made:

Although this montage is technically correct, it is quite sterile compared to the actual island, which has all sorts of interesting nooks and crannies, as well as fascinating gardens. I thought I would add in this shot I took, looking out from the guard door in the Alcatraz recreation yard. You can just barely make out the Golden Gate Bridge in the distance:

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..and Dave showing the boys the view:

...and Luke stuck in the prison cell:

...and, upon return back to the city, the sea lions lounging at Pier 39 (which Zach could have watched all day, like TV):

And then we piled in the car again to head over the Golden Gate Bridge and out onto the vista point with the view finders. Worth noting: Beautiful weather, highs in the 70s all weekend.

Wouldn't it be fun to take a road trip with us? Well now you can, with this brief snippet of life in the car with the four of us, driving down Lombard Street ("I smell bacon!"). Believe me, it's as good as (if not better) than being there.