Halloween Is Coming!!

Gavin is always excited about Halloween--all year long. For his birthday (in March) when we asked him what kind of party he wanted, he enthusiastically announced he wanted a skeleton party! Well, now it's finally starting to be time to start thinking of Halloween and costumes anyway. He wants to be a witch just like his sister. But he was very excited today when we drew a picture of a skeleton all by himself. I thought it was pretty good for a three year old!

Family Walk to Lovers Point & Tidepools in PG

We had a really fun time looking through the tide pools at Lovers Point! We always find so many cool things! I really need to get better at taking pictures and taking good pictures. I got a few of the kids on the rocks but then we were so caught up in finding things in the tidepools, I didn't get any pictures of our cool discoveries! Albert just got one of me looking at what was a sea star in the water. I will eventually improve, I promise. But tide pooling is one of our favorite things to do!

Gavin and I Love Our Little Outings

Gavin and I love to find time in our day when the other children are at school to find fun things to do together. The other day we had an hour or so before it was time to pick up Linnea and Jacen from school so we went for a little walk down to Cannery Row and went over to watch the baby seals. Their is a private beach owned by Hopkins Marine Station, a part of Stanford University, where there are always many seals and right now, many baby seals as well. Gavin LOVES to watch them. He'll stand there for twenty minutes just watching them. So, we did that and he climbed a little on the train that is on Cannery Row. He likes the train a lot too and reminds me that he wants to ride on one. We'll have to plan that trip sometime.

My Morning Run in Paradise

I leave for my run. As I walk out the front door, I am chilled by the mist in the air. I shiver a little in my light running clothes as I begin warming up with a brisk walk. I turn the corner to go down the hill to the ocean and forget everything as I view the amazing panoramic scene before me. The sun is just barely peeking out behind a distant mountain lighting just a portion of the bay. The clouds, mountains, ocean--a breathtaking view. I forget about my chill as I am caught up in the beauty around me.

I begin my run. All is quiet in the early morning. All I hear is the music of the world around me. I fall into the steady rhythm of my run. I hear seagulls around me noisily searching for their breakfast. I feel and hear the sand crunching with every step. The water is quiet and glass-like beside me. I hear subtle splashing and grunting and look down on the beach to see baby seals waking. I smile to myself. I look ahead and see the Juniper trees silhouetted against the lightening sky and water. I run through a small group of trees and spot a buck with majestic antlers quietly observing me pass. I look back at him as I pass, appreciating his presence. My eyes are drawn again to the water as I round a corner and am able to view out of the bay into the vast wide ocean. I feel small. I feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude for this beautiful world that I am blessed to live. I watch the uniform "V" shape of geese skim the water and rise into the sky. I enjoy the silent revelry for several minutes as I leave behind quiet and beautiful Pacific Grove and enter the historic Cannery Row of Monterey. My mind travels through time to the people that settled here and worked here so many years ago. I think of these same streets and buildings that have seen so much change. My mind gets caught up in the history that John Steinbeck popularized. Up ahead I hear the rhythmic footsteps of many runners and see the military recruits. The city is awakening. I try to take a piece of their discipline with me as I begin to ascend the sizable inclined hill that leads me home. I internally switch gears to make it up the hill as a biker coasts down the opposite direction. I think of my last calorie busting effort after a long peaceful run. I reach the stop of the hill, my lungs heaving in my chest. I am grateful for the cool mist.

First Day of School--August 6, 2007

The first day of school came early this year as Jacen and Linnea moved to a new school. The Monterey School District has a kind of a modified year round schedule. Jacen has commented somewhat humorously and somewhat seriously that his summer has been cut short. However, they were happy to go back to school and are both such great students. Jacen has several friends from Bayview, as he went to Kindergarten and First grade there. It is the same school that Grama Neufeld taught almost her entire teaching career at and I actually went there for part of my second grade. Jacen is in sixth grade and Linnea is in second grade. Jacen is excited that his teacher plans on doing a lot of writing. He loves to write and is talented at it. Linnea is happy that her teacher has a huge music background and will be incorporating a lot of music into the classroom. I'm happy that Jacen is still in elementary school instead of middle school! <: The school year will be a fun one!

Trip to Universial Studios

We had a great time going to Universal Studios in Burbank, CA with the Lucero Family, some friends from Coalinga. They were fun to go with and it was also helpful to go with them since they are regulars at the theme park and it was our first time. We loved the attractions and movie sets and all the incredible things that can be done to make movies! When I asked Linnea what her favorite part of the park was, she enthusiastically replied that she loved the shuttle that drove us through the movie sets and showed us some great special effects. Cars were exploded and thrown at us, flash floods pouring down the mountain and engulfing us in a tiny Mexican village, Earthquakes and Fires engulfing us were just a few of the special effects. Gavin loved spotting Spiderman popping in and out throughout the park. Jacen liked taking a picture with some TV stars from CSI and Law and Order and Pirates of the Caribbean. All the kids loved getting soaking wet in the water zone! We had such a great day and the kids absolutely loved it as well as a couple of tired but happy parents.