Ayie
Every year we go to San Francisco to do our taxes. It's quite a drive to go there but we have our trusted Tax Preparer there who's been handling our taxes for the longest time. We take our tax day as a reason to go somewhere special around the bay area. This year we went to Pacifica, located just 12 miles south
of San Francisco along the scenic coast of the Pacific Ocean. Known for
its natural beauty, Pacifica is filled with numerous hiking trails
through rolling hills that overlook the ocean surf and forested canyons.
"Pacifica means "peaceful" in Spanish.
However, the City of Pacifica did not receive its name from its Spanish
foreparents. Pacifica's name was the product of a contest held in 1957
to find a name for the newly incorporated coastal city. The winning name
was based on an 80-foot statue by sculptor Ralph Stackpole, created as
the theme lady for the Golden Gate International Exposition. The
Exposition was held on Treasure Island in 1939-40. The statue was
destroyed after the fair was over but two of the sculptor's working
models have been saved. One is over the front stairs at City Hall; the
other sits in the City Council Chambers."
So there, we went to Pacifica to spend some quality family time with our little boy. We knew he'd enjoy the beach with the sand and the water. I told hubs I prefer to stay under the tree to shield us from the scorching sun but to our surprise it was a hazy day. Sun was completely shielded therefore it was freezing cold, chilly like winter! Hubs was actually laughing at me teasing me about the tree shade I was asking for, it was so chilly even under faint sun. Luckily we had all our snow clothes in the car trunk and managed to keep ourselves warm adding some layers.
See our happy boy gathering wet sand for his sand castle and few sticks? It was too cold that we didn't want to stay near the shore. Getting some "building materials" for little J's sand castle needed much effort walking to the shore and back. Pobresito carrying a bucket full of wet sand, quite heavy for a little boy so he made mommy do the carrying for him after few rounds.
We have a little Architect in the making, he was being so crafty and creative trying to etch and put doors and windows on the sand castle. I was even telling him not to be that detailed because I was afraid it would collapse and I didn't want to deal with crying and all. Can you see the proud and happy daddy behind all bundled up as well? It turned out to be a simple but special outing for us. Having a picnic lunch at the beach and just kicking back some time. We did more fun stuff later on but this is it for now.
Ayie
My boy and I would often go for a walk around the neighborhood, carrying along our camera we would take photos of beautiful flowers along the way. It's very nice to walk around with him because we get to be out and do a little exercise together. I get to teach him road safety during our walks. He's doing really good when it comes to stopping before nearing the crosswalks and staying on the sidewalk. He was so terrible with that when he was younger, would often run off here and there.
Back to the lovely tulips, we took this photo near the library by the Ainsley Museum. Every Spring the whole garden is planted with lovely flowers, I love this photo because the tulips stand out with its vibrant colors against the green background. Of course it's not photo perfect given our "playtime" camera but I love it. J gave me a hand taking this photo or should I say I gave him a hand as he's starting to be intrigued holding the camera and taking the shots himself.
Ayie
There's a story how these shoes got to be on the sandy beach. What's up with the stick? Oh well, a little boy had to keep his stick together with his shoes. Why did I post this shot which doesn't seem to mean anything else? Seriously, I just love it. Looking at the photo makes me feel nostalgic, it gives me the feeling that the shoes were just part of a bigger story, an experience which made memories. For now I'll just let you ponder...
Ayie
One thing that hubs didn't want us to miss is to see where he has grown. To revisit the place where he spent much of his childhood. What's this place called? It's Alameda, an island city in San Francisco Bay. This island community has a small town with beautiful Victorian charm vibe, gives you that nostalgic feeling when you walk through and stroll around.
I've been to this place twice and I wouldn't coming back for more. Hubs would check out those spots where they used to play before and show it to our boy. There's Crab Cove Museum but we haven't had the chance to visit that place. Having our little boy, the beach is pretty much enough for us to spend most of our time. Making sand castle with moat surely keeps us busy there.
Last time we went there our boy was so happy making footprints on the sand. It's so nice to see him commune with nature that way, feeling his bare feet on the sand and getting dirty just like any normal kid. We ran, dig some canals and chase sea gulls.... made some memories, that's what we did.
Ayie
Can rain stop a little boy from enjoying a day out? I guess not, at least for our boy. You can judge from the photo that he's absolutely enjoying the rainy day. Normally it would be a fight just to make him wear a jacket but when it comes to some splashing on puddles, he would be so eager to dress up and go.
This is just one of those rainy days when we had to do some errands and go out in the rain. It was just a light shower and the temperature was not freezing cold. At first he was loving the walk without umbrella and I was the one holding it running after him. It was just a pain to do that so luckily I wore my waterproof jacket and let him have the umbrella himself. At first there was much complains and rejection but after having the hang of holding it, he was actually happily singing and hopping on puddles.
I love having this kind of moment with my little boy, nothing fancy just plain old fun. At least he'll grow up remembering he once played in the rain and wasn't just locked at home looking out the window. We have to enjoy every moment, we can't stop the rain from falling, just like how I can't stop my boy from growing so fast....
JIF Hub
This is the beautiful sight on our way to Tahoe, snowy mountain!
Ayie
Hello! It's been so long since my last input here. My boy has been growing and I have been missing so much time to share my little boy's fun activities. He's almost 3yrs old now and it seems like days are passing by so fast. His speech has improved a lot this past month, constructing simple sentences and learning how to put words all together. That also means he's starting to learn how to reason out, testing how to use his new found words.
I love seeing him playing most especially when he gets his hands with boxes. he will pretend like it's his house, bed or whatever. Of course those boxes don't last so long after a long abuse from active play. Just look at how he's stretching out that box.
One morning he got out of bed too early and went to his play area. He was suspiciously quiet so I went to check, only to find him snug in a box. I never thought he'll ever pay attention to that bin cart box since it's open on both ends and folds. He eventually found his way on how to play with it.
This one is when he's the happiest, when he saw a huge box delivered that day. He claimed it as his bed since it's big enough to accommodate his length. Don't think it was just plain laying down on that box, he grabbed his blanket and pretended sleeping there as well aside from marching on top and doing all sort of things.
Ayie
This photo was taken last year, the second time J got to play with snow. We didn't have much rains last year so we were lucky to find some snow pockets by the mountain sides. Small shaded areas were slightly covered with snow, good enough for a little fun play time. Perhaps this year will be a lot more different. It's been raining so probably more snow in the mountains. I sure hope so because J would definitely be playing there for hours this time around, hes even anticipating sledding.
Our snow trip only happens once a year a little after Christmas. That's the only time I get to bundle up our little boy and let him enjoy wearing his snow boots. Occasionally when it rains here around the city we would walk around jumping on puddles with his snow boots or rains boots but of course nothing beats the fun he gets to have playing in the snow.
Wearing the proper shoes is very important as it can be freezing or soggy wet after a while. It's also quite hard to walk o thick snow and most especially slippery melting ice. Definitely you would have to get comfortable boots for women if you were to run and chase after a happy little boy. To climb those hills and sled, leave marks on snow, or simply to keep your feet warm enough for hours of fun.
Ayie
Christmas is just around the corner. It seems like time is passing by so fast that in two weeks time it will be Christmas already. Yearly we try to have baby's photo with Santa taken, unfortunately last year he wasn't so cooperative that it didn't turn out good.
Yearly there's a "Storytime With Santa" event at the community center. I didn't make it to the registration last year as I thought there will be slots left if I register by November. I was wrong, so wrong! When I called in to register, the lady told me it gets filled up right on the first day of registration so better do it really early next time. That's what I did, I waited for the registration time to open and I did.
There's a fee of $18 for residents in our area and a bit more for non-residents. I think it's worth it because they even have a spread of cookie assortment, hot cocoa, coffee or tea, craft tables for kids, storytime with Santa himself and the highlight... each kid has the chance to sit on Santa's lap for a little talk and photo opt. I love this event as we managed to have a family picture all together with Santa! They said we'll be given a copy/copies of the photos.
Seeing this photo makes me realize how much baby has grown over the years. I'd love to go back to the past and cradle him once again like a tiny new infant. Soon he'll be 3yrs old, surely time has flown so fast.
Ayie
The moon was really amazingly beautiful, glowing brightly against the dark gray sky. I had a very basic point and shoot at that moment so I took the best shot that I could.
Ayie
I was browsing through the photos then I saw this one. Baby happened to see his inflatable ring and wanted to play with it again so I gave him the freedom to enjoy it in the tub. Yes, it is just the bath tub!
Ayie
I was captivated when I looked up the sky and saw the white clouds stretched all over as if the sky was painted. It's like looking at an abstract painting, only way up there and not on a canvass.
Ayie
I know I haven't shared any of our little boy's video since his first words.... he's truly grown now and this is just among the things he does at the park. As long as he sees grassy hills, expect him to run up there and roll going down. He was still figuring out how to roll SAFELY that's why he was zigzag-ing all the way. Was still scared to roll sideways all the way down. He's very experimental so I just always keep close look when he does such things.
Ayie
When I was a kid I used to climb trees...higher than this but of course as a mommy I will be scared to see him climb on such tree at this age. He's no longer the cuddly tiny baby, practically half my height already and growing. He talks a lot too. It's a shame that up to now I haven't uploaded any post with baby talking and moving around. Anyway, this shot was taken at Japanese Friendship Garden in San Jose. We love this place and will certainly keep coming back whenever possible. I'm trying to inch my way back to blogging so this will do for now, just a little update to share to all of our friends and readers.
Ayie
Hi dear bloggers! I just want to share this one, it's me at 3yrs old and our little boy at 2yrs old. I just noticed the resemblance of reaction and a bit of everything else! lol! What do you think? Anyway I think I'm done for the night..... baby drained my energy at the park earlier tonight and I'm ready to join him to sleep! Goodnight and enjoy your weekend!
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