California Dreaming

We are actually back from vacation, but a part of my heart is still in California.  We were blessed on this trip to spend time with wonderful friends and see family, and all around have a safe and fun trip.

Feeding the ducks at Waller Park.

While in California, the kids got to do quite a few fun things.  There was the annual Strawberry  Festival in Santa Maria. We spent a whole day there and the kids rode lots of rides. We even shared a funnel cake (AFTER the rides, for obvious reasons!).  I bribed the kids into letting me take a photo of them with a living strawberry.

While in Santa Maria, we visited Waller Park.  I used to hike in this park years ago when I lived nearby and it's changed so much over the years.  The pond near the front of the park has evolved and is absolutely lovely now.  I remember when it was pretty stinky and icky, but now it is just a gorgeous area to walk around and enjoy the ducks and geese. We spent an evening there feeding the ducks.

I got to visit a whopping one quilt store during the entire trip.  But it was good. I was in a patriotic mood and managed to find a lot of patriotic-themed fabric and panels to add to my quilting stash.  I can't wait to get back to some Bernina time!

Quilt store shoppies!

Toward the end of our time in California, we drove down to Carlsbad by the Sea and spent a day at Legoland. That was the first time any of us had been there.  Originally, we thought we'd spend two days there, but it's quite small and largely oriented toward wee ones, so one day was plenty of time. And I'm glad we visited now, because I imagine in a year or two, the kids will be much too old for this park.  My son is a Lego fanatic, so he was thrilled to be in a Mecca, of sorts, for Legos.  And it was amazing all the things they had in the park that were made out of Legos.  The evening before our day at the park, the receptionist at the hotel recommended we get "apple fries" at the park, so we did do that. And they were good! I'm sure they have about 18,000 calories, but you know what?  They are delicious.  Sometimes you just have to try something.

During the trip, the kids also got to spend some time at the ocean, playing in the sand, in Avila Beach.  We had gone there so I could show the kids the pillow basalt that's easy to see in that area.  And we ended up staying for a few hours while they played in the water and got some sun.  From the beach, we could see a sea lion playing in the water and occasionally hear it bark, which I assume was him (or her) begging for chum from the tourists on the pier.

Speaking of critters, on the way back home yesterday, on the highway, I saw two strange little creatures trying to cross the busy road.  One was up on top of a post of a guard rail along the highway.  I know I've seen such creatures before, but not often. I am thinking they were marmots.  They were very dark brown, larger than a squirrel, but smaller than a fox.  I just hope they were able to cross safely.  I also noticed that fences along the interstate through Utah and in parts of Colorado had these unusual sections that had a steep slope up one side and a drop-off on the side away from the highway.  I wondered if these were for animals to get away from the interstate and not allow them to get back?  In parts of Utah, they were erecting these, and the fences they run along are quite high, I would guess about eight feet or more.

It is good to be home and good to have a few days to relax before going back to work and back to the routine of things.

Now to plan next year's big trip.