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The end of October brought us some family fun. First up, of course, Matt’s birthday. We had an early adult celebration the evening before,when Keegan was having fun at his Pool Night. We enjoyed a delicious dinner at Bali Hai, a tropical themed restaurant on the San Diego Bay.

The actual birthday was on a Saturday, so we tried to spoiled him as much as we could. Frst off, he got to sleep in, while I got up with Keegan, and “baked” a cinnamon crumb cake, and prepared some eggs, sausages and hash brown for breakfast.

We set up the table with some 80s tableware, for just the right nostalgic touch.

Then he got to open his presents and we all ate an abundant breakfast together.

We had a quiet day together. The weather was wonderful, and Keegan and Matt played a bit in the pool. Then we just relaxed and played at home. When it got dark we had Movie night, watching the Nightmare Before Christmas on our projector. It was a fun, low-key day.

The following week we had not one, but two of Matt’s siblings coming to town for two separate conferences: Mike and Sue (well, Hannah, was the one with the conference…). We had Sue and Hannah over for a nice dinner on Friday, and we had fun catching up a bit. They were staying at the Conference’s hotel, but we met them there the following day.

We went to the Natural History Museum to see a great exhibit on King Tut. It was really well made: it had video, multimedia exhibits and the whole tomb and artifacts were recreated. From the museum’s site:

Using over 1,000 expertly crafted reproductions of treasures discovered in Tutankhamun’s tomb, the exhibition presents this fascinating subject in an entirely new way: a thrillingly unique experience that explores the legendary tomb and its treasures as they were at the exact moment of their discovery. Visitors can feel the rush of excitement as they step into a moment only ever witnessed by Howard Carter, Lord Carnarvon and a handful of others.

photos from the official site

It was breathtaking. Interestingly, watching these reproductions, I remembered seeing some of them for real in Egypt when I was a kid. I was lucky I had the chance to go.

After the museum, we went to Sue and Hannah’s hotel, and Keegan played in the hot tub, while we relaxed poolside with a cold cocktail.

The next day, we went to pick up Mike at the airport: wow, it has been a while! After giving him some time to relax, we met up with Sue again, and we went to the Birch Aquarium in la Jolla.

We got back home for a delicious dinner that Matt prepared. Keegan was a handful, trying to be the center of attention, but we made it through.

The next day, Matt and I went to work, but he was able to free himself for lunch, and the three siblings went to lunch in beautiful La Jolla.

Sue and Hannah left in the afternoon, but Mike stayed for another night. We had another quiet dinner, and had the chance to catch up. It was great to see them. Hopefully we will not let  4 years pass till next time we see them. Maybe we should try to go east Coast next time.

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…isn’t it? Judging by the weather you could never tell. We are not talking about the usual, balmy weather that makes San Diego so appealing. We are not even talking about the usual October Santa Ana winds, coming from the desert. We are talking about full on, week-long heat waves (2 in a month), with temperatures reaching the 3 digits. Wow, intense, especially if you don’t have AC at home. It was so warm on the first weekend of October that I actually swam in the ocean, which is a very, very rare event. The water was warmer than the Mediterranean. Incredible. We had a fun get together with Hannah’s and her family in occasion of her birthday, and we all had great fun splashing in the waves, till Keegan had his first Surfing accident: he got hit by a runaway board, right on his side. Good thing he was wearing his wetsuit.

We took advantage of the warm weather also to go apple picking in Julian. We all boarded Sara’s car, and drove with Alyce and Betty up the “mountains”. It was cooler there, but still pleasant. The car trip was challenging, but we made it there in about 1 hour. Still felt longer…

The unusually warm and dry weather, and the continued drought, made apple season very short, so there were slim pickings left on the tree, but we still filled out our bags without any problems. We had extra for a snack.

It was quite fun and the apples, even if on the smaller side, were delicious. The kids had a lot of fun…and so did the moms.

Betty, Sara and Alyce

We had a delicious lunch in old Julian, and a even more delicious snack right outside town, with freshly baked apple pie slices – of course – and ice cream. Definitely a fun day and something we would like to repeat.

Early fall also brought us a new friend: we bought a Betta fish, a half moon male to be exact. This species is solitary, and you can’t put more than one the same tank. Added bonus! I found this really cool aquarium, called Aquafarm, that, not only looks very modern, but also requires almost no cleaning. Plants are potted on the top and they are fed by the fish waste, and the cleaned water is recirculated back in the tank. Perfect ecosystem, if it lasts.

Keegan took a couple of days to find the perfect name. He started with Texter (uh?), moved to Zeus, and finally settled on Dart, since the fish can shape itself into a dart when swimming. He is pretty cute: the perfect starter pet.

Dart in all his glory

Of course, Keegan would rather have a dog or a cat, but we are starting with baby steps. First a fish, then, if he dies, maybe a frog, then maybe a hamster, and when he is WAY older, we may consider a cat. For now, we enjoy looking at peaceful Dart.

In this unusually warm October, we also celebrate our wedding anniversary (San Diego wedding). Since October 5th fell on a Sunday, always a family day, we were able to carve some alone time beforehand. Matt took half a day off, and we we had a wonderful lunch at my favorite lunch spot, the casual Kono’s breakfast place. Then we took a beautiful walk on the beach, as well as a “pilgrimage” to the part of North Pacific Beach I consider “my” beach and then Calumet Park where we got married exactly twelve years ago, almost to the minute. It was beautiful and definitely much warmer than 2002, and we both reminisced about that special day.

posing together (thanks to photoshop magic) at Calumet park

This year we were also finally able to go to the Miramar Air Show. We have been trying for a few years but they seemed to always schedule it when we were in Italy. Last year we were all set to go, and then the government shut down and caused the show to be cancelled.

Keegan was so excited to be going!!! His excitement mounted daily, especially when he got to see the main attraction, the Blue Angles jets, practicing on Thursday and Friday afternoons.

Miramar is very close to his school, and right under the flight path, so he got to see an amazing display from his playground. I was treated as well: when I picked him up, we watched together, and even as we were driving to his Italian class, the planes flew incredibly close.

We headed for Miramar on Sunday, October 5. What a fun way to celebrate our wedding anniversary! It was very crowded, but Keegan endured the long line to get in like a champ. In fact he was even used as an example by the mom right behind us. THIS NEVER HAPPENS! It is usually us, pointing at other kids and showing how well they are behaving. It felt nice for a change. (-:

We started watching some of the floor exhibits. We got just in time to see the awesome motocross exhibition: amazing. Then we walked though the many planes on the ground.

It was so incredibly hot, we had to find any way to cool off: snow cones for all us certainly helped. Around 12 we found some seats in the stands just as the show was starting. I am glad we bought the tickets to sit in the stands, because it would have been really difficult to see much otherwise.

First off was a series of acrobatic para-shooters, followed by military simulations and fake explosions. Then we got the first group of acrobatic planes, a civilian contingent. They were amazing! Their manoeuvrings were punctuated by red, white and blue smoke trails. Spectacular.

Right after that, there were other military exhibitions, and then an amazing biplane doing all sorts of crazy manoeuvrings. Unfortunately I missed most of this part of the show because the heat was really getting to me, and I had to go seat in the shade for a while. We were prepared: plenty of cold water, a spray bottle and a small fan, but it was not enough. In fact, it was so hot that the biggest cheers from the crowd came when the smoke for one of the explosions temporarily covered the sun.

Finally we were getting close to the highlight of the event. Keegan could not wait. It was 3pm. He had been sitting quietly for three hours: a real record!

the Blue Angels parked in the background

It was show time! The Blue Angles did not disappoint, and were certainly worth the wait. I have seen them several times, but it never gets old. They are really incredible.

off they go

This concluded the show, and we slowly headed home, tired but mostly happy…well there was some whining about not getting Keegan a toy, but what is a good day without some needless whining?

With the Air Show behind us, now we can focus on the beginning of the crazy season… oops I mean the holiday season: Halloween, Thanksgiving, Keegan’s birthday and Christmas. Bring it on!

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