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Once you move to Southern California, you often hear this cliche’:

“It is great to live here because you can surf in the morning, drive through the desert at lunch and ski in the afternoon.”

This saying, quite overused, is technically correct. While I have never done all this in one day (I did drive through Joshua Tree to go skiing before though, so it is 2 out of three), we experienced something similar over two consecutive weekends. As a corollary, I would add, the weather is quite interesting here too: going from winter to summer in a matter of days or sometimes hours.

During the last week of February, we woke up to hail, such a rare occurrence we had to take a photo. It is a little hard to see, but you can notice the small ice balls on the chair.

The next day was rainy, and on Friday it was sunny and warm. This was a good thing, because we left at lunch time to go to Mt. Baldy, driving though classic, dry, southern California terrain. We stopped in Ontario for the night, like we did last year, at our favorite Hotel, Embassy Suites.The Ontario location is particularly cool, as we mentioned, as it is decorated with modern and contemporary furnishing instead of the typical, cheesy decor. It still has all the amenities of a standard Embassy Suites, such as free happy hour and breakfast. So we get a suite, with a separate sleeping area for Keegan, and we can pretend we are in a boutique hotel, like the ones we used to go to before Keegan was born. Win win.

We arrive early enough that Keegan and Matt got to jump in the heated pool.

The next morning, after a nice free breakfast, we leave for Mt. Baldy. We drive through winding roads with spectacular views, and finally make it about an hour later. It is quite windy, but the chair lift is open, so we head up the mountain for our inner tube sliding session. The same storm that brought hail to San Diego, brought lots of fresh snow, so no need for cannons this time. It was a beautiful sunny day, and was a lot warmer than the forecasts predicted, which was a nice surprise. As soon as we made it on top of the mountain, my boot fell apart…but we did not let it stop us or ruin our trip. With a little piece of duck tape we were all ready to go.

We had a great time: Keegan even ventured down the slope by himself, in his own inner tube…until the time he fell out the tube we were riding together while it was spinning. I could not hold on to him, and he flew right out. He did not really get hurt, but it was done with riding alone for him.

When we were too tired or dizzy from sliding, we took breaks and played with the snow.

After a couple of hours, at the end of our sessions, we took the chair-lift down and got back to San Diego. We were home by mid-afternoon, so Keegan had plenty of time to play with his cars.

What else can we do on a weekend in San Diego? The following day we went to visit the  Aircraft Carrier Midway Museum. It was cool to see all these planes, and explore the living quarters and command rooms. Keegan loved trying out the real planes.

What makes this visit more surreal is that the museum is right across the bay from another, still in service, aircraft carrier, stationed in Coronado.

The weekend was now over, and we could not squeeze the surfing/beach in. We had to wait till the following weekend. It was another beautiful sunny day, and the perfect weather for a beach morning. Granted, the water was a chilly 55F but Keegan tried to brave the cold with his spiffy wetsuit.

He did not last more than a few minutes, but it did not matter: there is always plenty to do at the beach, like building sandcastles or climbing on dad.

Snow? Check. Museums? Check. Beach? Check. What is left to do on the weekends? Amusement and recreational parks of course!

You would think that, living here, Keegan would be so excited when the weekend comes to go to all these fun places. I mean, so many other kids get to spend the winter indoors and don’t have all the amazing range of activities he has available to him. You would think he would be grateful and happy about going places. You would think…but not Keegan! Most of the time we have to literally peel him off the floor where he is playing with his cars. He whines and protests and even cries at times when we say: “we are going to Seaworld!” Granted, he usually has a blast when he is out, and he is grateful we went, but the “getting him out of the door” is a huge job.

We don’t give up, though. We try to go out every day, at least in the mornings. I definitely don’t want to spend the whole weekend cooped up at home. And we do have an amazing array of choices. Seaworld is often a favorite: just like us, many of our friends have memberships, and it is so close to us, it is easy to go, even if for a few hours. The shows, especially the dolphin shows are always a hit, but every time we go, we manage to do slightly different things. If we go with friends, the Sesame Street Play Area is a mandatory stop.

playing with Alyce and Betty

Of course there are always lots of animals to see. Some are costumed actors…

…other are real.

Keegan’s favorite, the two-toed sloth

One time we got there early enough to see the flamingo being walked to their bay location. It is quite an experience to see them so close, just walking by.

Another park we really like, and we usually visit in the cooler months is the Safari Park. The end of March it is probably getting close to the end of the season for us, as temperatures easily soar into the 90s and 100s in the warmer months.

The first stop is always the petting zoo, where Keegan can pet the goats.

Keegan also like to watch the aquatic animals and ducks and to play in the different small structures scattered around the park. This was the large replica of a bird’s nest.

We also try to make it to the African Tram, that allows you to see many African animals in a semi-open enclosure. We see giraffes, rhinos, different kinds of antelopes, birds, buffalo, zebras, and so on. On the way to the tram, we always pass by the lion’s enclosure. This time a lion and a lioness were sleeping right up to the glass. Pretty cool.

End of March is also the best time to go to the Park to see the famous butterfly exhibit. The park receives hundreds of chrysalis and it let’s the beautiful butterflies flutter around in an enclosed, tropical environment, filled with the most amazing flowers and plants (and lots of people). This year they had a great system of assigned timed tickets, so there was no line. It was beautiful. We spent more than 20 minutes admiring these amazing creatures.

Talied Jay Butterfly

Also, all of us had a butterfly land on us, and linger for a long time. Matt was first one to have a guest: a beautiful Blue Morpho landed on his shoulder. I love these butterflies, because from the outside they have interesting patterned brown wings, but when they open them, a beautiful bright blue color is revealed.

Next up, Keegan had one landing on him. The little guy stuck around for a long time. We could not see the inside of his wings, but I think it was also a Blue Morpho. Keegan was so excited.

Finally, one more Blue Morpho landed on me, and hung to my shirt.

And as we were leaving the exhibit, just before being “frisked” to make sure the little critters would not hitch a ride outside, one more butterfly landed on my shoulder. This time, it was a Postman. We took a quick photo and made sure she flew away. What a great experience. We will definitely come back next year.

So, cliche’ or not, we love living in Southern California! And one day, I will surf in the morning, drive through the desert at lunch and ski in the afternoon.

 

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March flew by, and it was an intense month. Matt and I both worked really hard (and April is not looking any better), but we also were able to squeeze in some fun times. We had two date nights, a regular sitter night and a Parents’ Night Out at the pool: we went to see Bad Religion in a smoky (blast from the past) dive club, and it was very fun. For a couple of hours, we went back to the time when we were just dating. Matt also celebrated me on Woman’s Day with some beautiful flowers.

On March 17 we celebrated St. Patrick’s Day, an Irish holiday (any excuse is a good one to have an unofficial holiday). And even if we had no green beer this year, we still had fun with it. We read a fun book on the topic, courtesy of our local library, which linked St. Patrick’s legend with the Loch Ness Monster legend.

We also made green cookies, of course.

Keegan, however, had a lot more fun at school, during the whole week. They looked for their mischievous leprechaun, Shawn O’Brien, but never caught him. He left taunting notes and on Friday his treasure of candy. They made art inspired by shamrocks and even made leprechauns’ hats. I made my contribution by buying Keegan a green shirt.

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Oh, yes. Here in San Diego we have an extra season, birthday season. For some strange reason, most of Keegan’s friends were born between the end of January and the end of March, which means that we have an orgy of parties in these two months. 9 kids, mainly from school, celebrated a birthday during that time, but fortunately not every one had a party.

We started with Kenzie’s birthday at the end of January. Next up, Van, Camren and Elliott combined their special days and had a group party at…Pump It Up. However, it was a Star Wars Themed party. As always, Keegan had a blast on the bouncies, but the best part was when Darth Vader showed up, accompanied by its infamous music. He was shorter than I expected, but he was cool.

Darth showing his soft side by giving away stickers and tattoos.

The kids loved it, and were more than ready to pose for pictures.

Keegan looks fierce. Don’t join the dark side!

The three identical, hand-made cakes were Star Wars Themed too. I am surprised that all three kids agreed on a common theme. I guess it is the power of Star Wars.

The following week, it was Rozelin’s birthday party. She also wanted to have it at Pump It Up, but it was not available (we had to reserve almost three months in advance), so the plan B was Chuck E Cheese…and this is where I draw the line. I positively hate that place. So, it was Matt’s turn to go: in all honestly, he does not mind it as much, so it is a win-win situation. Kenzie was invited also, so Keegan loved to pose for picture with his “girlfriend” / future wife and the birthday girl (and the creepy, gigantic rat).

Next up: Jada’s party that was held, you guessed it, at Pump It Up. Fortunately, Kelton was invited as well, so Keegan was not shy and started playing on the inflatables and jumping around. This is my favorite part of the party: I get to talk to other adults while the kids, aside for the occasional potty break, or crying fit, entertain themselves. It still does not make it fun, but it makes it at least bearable.

…and this is Pump it Up group photo number 4!

…having snacks with Kelton and Eilen (Alyce’s friend and also Jada swim partner)

We had a couple of weeks break, and then it was Julia’s Pool Party. It was probably one of my favorite ones, maybe because it was not at Pump it Up…She only invited Keegan from class, but Kenzie and Victoria were there too, so Keegan was excited. The water was pretty shallow, and very warm, so he jumped right in. Matt “volunteered” to get in the water, but to be honest, it was the dads who got wet, while the moms talked.

The pool, The Plunge, is right on the beach in Mission Beach, and it has a beautiful mural.

They also had a bouncie and an inflatable slide, one of the biggest hit of the party.

Sliding was fun, but not quite as much as splashing people with a very high pressure hose.

We got a Julia’s dad to volunteer so all the kids took turns.

We had our own private deck and we feasted on the largest pizzas I ever seen, veggies, and of course ocean themed cupcakes.

After more than two hours of fun, it was time to say goodbye. Kenzie and Keegan walked hand in hand to the parking lot: the cutest couple ever. Keegan is looking forward to seeing her new house and especially her horses.

Our neighbor Markus’s party was the last one of the series: no more parties till summer or fall. It was a more mellow event, held at their house in the mid afternoon, with the obligatory bouncie on the front yard and a worm shaped piñata (which was almost impossible to break). No photos for that party…too busy drinking wine. I think this should be a must for a kid’s birthday party: an abundance of adult beverages…

Well, we survived another year of birthday bashes…and with Keegan starting a new school after summer, I foresee a steep decline in the sheer number. I don’t see this as a bad thing at all. (-:

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