Discovery Museum / Sausalito

Lately, we've been blessed with gorgeous weekends here in San Francisco!  We took advantage of the warm weather and made a trek out to the Bay Area Discovery Museum in Sausalito this past Sunday. Traffic was a breeze and we arrived at 10am, just as the museum was opening up. Sarah immediately made herself comfortable with the water feature and the indoor playground designed specifically for Tots.  She had a blast!!  This place is perfect for kids aged 2-5, with lots of activities both indoors and out.  The stunning view of the bridge & the bay also made the place a great hangout place for adults. This place is very nicely laid-out with shady picnic tables for lunch, and different areas for different age groups.

After the museum, we made a quick visit to downtown Sausalito, since we haven't been here in years!  It's still a very charming little town - relatively the same as I last remember it. We had some ice cream and walked along the pier and storefronts.

We ended our long day with an early dinner at Cheesecake Factory in Union Square (downtown SF). What a beautiful and fun-filled day!!

Easter Weekend- Sunday

The weather was sunny and mild today, even in the Sunset so I thought it was a perfect day to go visit the San Francisco Zoo. Although we live literally blocks away from the Zoo, we don't come here often.  I guess it's probably because it's usually so cold and gloomy here in the area.  But not today!  A very last minute plan, but a great decision nonetheless! We really enjoyed our day - best yet was the Sarah was able to name a lot of animals!  The last time we were here, Sarah was only 5 months old.

Today, we saw giraffes, zebras, flamingos, peacocks, brown bear, polar bear, penguins,chimpanzees, hippos, rhinos, lions, and gorillas.  The best exhibit was probably the gorilla's.  They were very playful and active.  Too bad that we're moving, otherwise, we might consider an annual membership here.

Saturday Activities

We had 2 events yesterday, which made the day a bit busier than usual.  In the morning, Sarah went to SKC's house in Castro Valley for a play date with CF and SKC.  Sarah checked out SKC's new kitchen and all his food and cooking utensils! It's more complete and impressive than the real kitchen in our house!  The kids enjoyed each other's company, had a couple of "fighting for toys" moments, but everyone had fun!!  Sarah loved the 2 kitty cats!    

After leaving Castro Valley, Sarah took her usual afternoon nap while we went around Oakland/Lake Merritt to enjoy the unseasonably-warm day. The weather was absolutely gorgeous.

In the evening, we went to St. Thomas' School for their annual CNY fundraiser event. My nephews come here to learn Chinese (Mandarin) and my sister, MT, is one of the committee chairs.  The event has a lion dance, food, raffles, and lots of performances by the children.  Sarah saw the lion dance for the first time. I was pretty surprised that Sarah was not afraid of the lion, even though the drums and symbols were quite loud.  She even saw the lion up close! I am so proud of my two nephews for such awesome performances.  It was a fun-filled day indeed.

Gilroy Gardens

SQ bought some discounted Gilroy Gardens tickets from Plum District a while ago and they were expiring this weekend.  So we went this past Saturday and brought along my 12-year old niece with us.  We couldn't ask for better weather to be in Gilroy.  It was partly sunny with temperature in the mid-60's.  It definitely made walking around the park very pleasant.  We got there around 11:30 and went out a few rides.  Sarah didn't nap so she was kinda cranky.  She didn't even enjoy her usual merry-go-around ride. This park is perfect for young kids - most of the rides are tailored primarily for the 2.5 to 7 age group.  Sarah is probably still a bit young to enjoy the rides and my niece a little too old - but I think we all had a great day regardless.

Sarah - obviously NOT enjoying her ride

A visit from Charlie Brown and friends

I am glad that my niece enjoyed her time there despite the fact that most of the rides were "kiddie rides."  She and SQ got on some of the more "thrilling" rides and had a lot of fun.  We don't see her often, so it was nice to spend some time with her there.

Flying!!

We completed our day at Gilroy Gardens with a train ride around the park.  It started to get chilly so we decided to end our day a little earlier at 4:45pm to beat the parking lot traffic.  We all really enjoyed the day out in Gilroy... a bit far from SF, but it was nice to get out of the City once in a while. When Sarah gets a little bit older in a few months, we will surely come back again.     

          

CF's birthday

This past Saturday, Sarah attended her little friend, CF's 2nd birthday party.  Sarah always enter the room with a great deal of shyness.  She is clingy, refuses to look at anyone, and loves to bury her face into our legs.  Over time, we learn to accept the fact that she needs time to warm up in a new environment.  Food always seems to help warm her up. We distract her by giving her food.  Then after a bit, she becomes herself again, playing with toys and walking around everywhere.  

CF celebrated her 2nd birthday early and we had a nice gathering among the kids' parents.  It seems like all the kids grew taller since I last saw them, which was not too long ago! They grow up so fast!  Here is an attempt to get as many kids looking the same way as we can.  I have to admit I didn't take this picture.  Despite multiple clicks on the SLR, my pictures had the kids looking in all sorts of directions... 

Pumpkin Patch

You know how when you have kids, things don't often go according to plan? Well, today, a group of us organized a play date outing to Ardenwood Historic Farms in Fremont to see the Fall harvest.  We all made it to Ardenwood but never made it into the farm!  We ended up at the Pumpkin Patch right outside the farm and spending an hour there.  We had a lot of fun nonetheless!  

Like we did last year, we all brought our Halloween costumes to the pumpkin patch.  However, unlike last year, we now have 4 little mobile toddlers in tow!  This made it for an extremely difficult group shot.  This is the only photo I got that had the 4 kids on one frame. Sarah was cranky because she's tired & desperately needed a nap.  We thought she would nap on the hour ride to Fremont, but she was too nosy looking outside the car window that she didn't nap! So Sarah was uncooperative and cried so the black kitty cat had to be quickly removed from the scene!   

Sand Blast 2011

This year's Leap Sandcastle Contest was held this past Saturday (10/7) on Ocean Beach.  Although we live so close to Ocean Beach, for one reason or another, we never made it out there to enjoy the sandcastle contest any year. This year, SQ's architecture firm sponsored one of the entries so we took the effort to be there to lend support.  The event is a fundraising event for Leap, a program that encourages and supports arts and architecture in local schools.  Each entry consisted of an architecture firm, a construction company and a local elementary school.  The school children were responsible for coming up with a design, the construction company sponsored the tools, and the architecture firm helped with the sandcastle building process.  There were a total of 26 entries this year.     

Sarah's not so much enjoying the sand

SQ was part of the water crew, transporting water from the ocean to the site

The event started at 9am, but we arrived late, at around 10am. SQ went to help out his Company's sponsored team, while Sarah and I people-watched. People took breaks on and off ~ and enjoyed snacks and a pizza lunch provided by the companies.  We stayed there until around 1:30p when Sarah was beginning to get really tired.   In fact, she felt asleep the second she got buckled in.  I have not seen her fall asleep in such a short time before.  Unfortunately, we left before they announced the winner.  I guess it doesn't really matter. They are all winners!!  

The sandcastle contest is a very nice, family-friendly FREE event.  It's great to let the kids get their hands dirty and create a sense of teamwork and accomplishment.  For the spectators, it's so nice to see the kids' creativity and imagination!  

Happy Hollow

Sarah spent this past Sunday on a play date at Happy Hollow in San Jose with little friends CF and SKC.  At Happy Hollow, Sarah -

• petted a few goats and a lizard
• rode the Danny the Dragon ride  
• sat on a lemur on the Merry-go-around
• saw a tortoise, lemurs, capybara, jaguar, and meerkats 
• had a picnic lunch in the park 
• ran around in a maze
• played on slides
• had loads of fun in the sun with her buddies!! 

We really liked Happy Hallow.  It is a small park perfect for the little ones to run around. Adults don't get too tired walking because it's a small place. All the rides and activities are included in the admission ticket so there are no additional costs.

Oakland Zoo

This past Sunday, we met up with some friends at the Oakland Zoo.  The outing was part of my semi-annual get-together with my girlfriends from elementary school.  Yes, amazingly, we still keep in touch (even before Facebook!) Along with our significant others and kids, we met up at around 10:30am.  We walked through the exhibits one by one.  At around noon, we took a break to eat lunch in the grassy picnic area.  Then we continued our walk around the zoo premises. Sarah saw a lot of animals - including bears, monkeys, giraffes, zebras, elephants, and crocodile.  She also spent some time at the petting zoo, with the goats.  Too bad the lions were not out so we didn't get to see them.  We finally made our way to ride the train.  It was a rather long wait - but the kids all waited so patiently!  The train ride took us to the back side of the zoo, which we saw emus and wallabies.  We left the zoo at around 3pm and Sarah was so tired she felt asleep the minute we left the parking lot!

This was our first time to Oakland Zoo.  I must say that although the premise is smaller compared to the SF Zoo, it seems more catered to the younger kids.  The animals seem to be more lively and/or at least you can see them moving about.  The weather is also nicer and warmer. Too bad, this zoo is so far away from our house; otherwise, we would come back more often.   

Busy Weekend

We are usually very low key during the weekends. We often don't leave the house until after Sarah's morning nap, dine out for lunch, do some shopping, and then head home in time for Sarah's afternoon nap.  But this weekend, we had a couple of special events, which made for a rather unusual busy weekend. 

On Saturday, we went to my friend, YW's daughter, EW's Red Egg and Ginger party in Emeryville. We had a great time, eating and catching up with kids' talk at our table.  After Sarah had her meal, she was eager to release some of her energy.  And after she had the yellow balloon in her hands, she went on a little sugar high. She walked around and around - falling down and then getting up.  She was having a lot of fun with friend CF.      

Sarah and her Yellow Balloon

Because it was time for her afternoon, we left around 2pm and Sarah quickly fell asleep in the car.  She was tired.  Since we don't go to the East Bay often, we decided to stick around the area for a little bit.  We drove to Berkeley, Telegraph Ave/College Ave area.  SQ went to school in Berkeley so he did a little reminiscencing of his college years there (which is a long time ago!)  Later we drove up to Tilden Park. I've heard about the Steam Train there, but have never been. So we decided that it would be fun to go there since the weather was beautiful.  

By the time we got there, the train was about to arrive for the next ride so we quickly woke Sarah up (she had napped about 1hr by that time already) and hopped onto the train.  It was such a beautiful ride! The weather was perfect as the train went through the forest park.  Couldn't have asked for a more gorgeous day to be on the train.  Here is a picture of us as we came out of the tunnel. Sarah's expression on the picture is simply priceless. 

Daddy and Sarah pose in front of the Steam Train at Tilden Park

On Sunday (Father's Day), our family had a party at Rinconada Park in Palo Alto. We had a Hawaiian-themed party.  The Hawaiian dress that Sarah got as a gift from my sister was still too big for her, so she had to wear another dress.  She was walking on the grass but once she fell down, she didn't like using her hands to get up (the grass was too prickly).  

This park has an outdoor swimming pool, and since the temperature was in the high 80's on Sunday, it was a perfect day to introduce Sarah to the pool. She got suited up and ready to go in the water with Daddy.

Unfortunately, even though Sarah loves taking baths**, she was not happy to be in the water.  She whined and whined ~ she just didn't like being there!! So after a few minutes, we took her out.  We left the park around 5pm and Sarah finally took her afternoon nap.  Because it was so late in the day already, I woke her up after 1/2 hour so she can still sleep at night.  

** Don't know what happened... but maybe Sarah got traumatized by the pool, she is not liking her baths these few days. Every time we put her into the tub, she wants to get out.  Oh no, what happened to my bath-loving, water-splashing baby Sarah??  Hope this is only a phase!! 

Birthday weekend

I can't believe today is already Monday and my 5-day mini birthday/vacation long weekend is coming to an end. Can I NOT go to work tomorrow?  :-)   After 3-day off-site seminar, I took Thursday and Friday off as vacation days. What sucked was that I got sick late Wed. I most likely caught the bug from mao-mao (she's a germy baby!).  So on Thursday, I did nothing but stayed home and moped around.  I have to give myself credit though for finishing Sarah's 6-9 months photo book.

On Friday, I was a little better after some OTC drugs, so I did a whole bunch of errands, i.e. Costco and Target runs.  I feel like that's what I always do during my day off, especially since SQ hates going shopping so we seldom go during the weekends. He doesn't realize that diapers and toilet papers don't get filled up miraculously!  After SQ came back from work, we went to Mandalay Burmese Restaurant. This is one of my favorite restaurants in the City. All the dishes are soooo tasty and good.  I always order my usual dishes because I can't afford not to order them (and satisfy my cravings) whenever I go there.  However, I guess it was sort of a bad day to go ...because of my congestion, I didn't enjoy the food as much as I would have.

On Saturday, my sisters took me to Spiazzo Italian Restaurant in West Portal..  I thought the food was just OK, but I was happy for the birthday treat!

I feel especially happy this birthday (despite my cold) because it's my first time celebrating my birthday with Sarah.  Same time last year, she was still inside my tummy! :-)

Gymboree

SQ bought a Groupon for a month's worth of Gymboree classes back in September. Before we knew it, the Groupon was expiring this month, so we had to use it or lose it.  We joined the Saturday class for Babies 6-10 months old and went in a couple of weeks ago. Today was our third class. Even though we made an effort to go in 10 minutes early before class start today to get Sarah familiar with the environment (recommended by the instructor), she still cried.  She cried during the last 2 classes too.  I don't exactly know why. She might be just overwhelmed, which I thought was weird because she is used to having a lot of kids around her in daycare.  I guess she's just a scaredy-cat.  Whenever the instructor rings the bell, Sarah gets scared and cries. She is unable to do any of the activities because she's scared.  She doesn't even attempt to crawl or try to have fun. Most babies there giggle in delight whenever we sing songs, blow bubbles, or do parachute time.  Nope, not Sarah.  She is probably too busy counting the minutes until we're done so she can leave...

So needless to say, we probably won't be extending our membership. We're done after our Groupon classes end - 2 more classes.  I'm glad that we didn't have to pay full price.

    

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.6

Gymboree Play & Music

Today I took Sarah to our free Gymboree Learn & Play session. I actually signed up 1.5 hours before the class because I didn't know how Sarah's schedule would be like today. I fed her at 10am and then she took a nap. By 12:30pm, she was at least awake & ready to have some fun.

There were about 6 other babies in the class, ranging from 2 months - 6 months. During the class, we sang a lot of songs. But I didn't know any of the lyrics! Should have brushed up on my lullabies. We also used a scarf to play peek-a-boo, a paintbrush for touch sensory, and bubbles for hand/eye coordination. We also did tummy time with a big floor mirror. Most babies looked at themselves in the mirror but of course nosy Sarah just looked at everyone else! We also used the big parachute. Overall, she did great although she spent most of the time staring at other people... Towards the end (45 minutes later) Sarah got really sleepy & fidgety. But it was time to go anyways! Sarah ended up falling asleep in the car on the way back home. SQ bought the Groupon for 1 month, so we will go back for at least another 4 more times!

Sunset Cruise

SQ is a fan of Groupon ("Group Coupon"). How Groupon works is that a company will offer a deal (usually 50% off from regular price) to the general public. There is usually a minimum number of purchases required in order for the deal to go through. There is also a time limit and an expiration date/time. So if enough people purchase the item, the deal will go through and be valid. It's a great way for businesses to market themselves and draw the crowd in. It's great for customers to try out the business without having to pay full price. It's a win-win for both parties.

SQ ran across a deal on Groupon recently that sold Bay cruises for 50% off. Original price is $54 per person but we were able to go for $26 each. It was on the Red and White Fleet. We got the Sunset Cruise, which boards at 6pm on Pier 43-1/2, in Fishermen's Wharf. These boats are pretty huge so we only had to call in 1-day in advance to reserve a space (no assigned seats or anything). This gave us flexibility on our schedule as well as the weather! We went on Friday, April 9 and it couldn't have been a better day to go! It was amazingly sunny and warm! The cruise traveled from Fishermen's Wharf to the Pier 27 area and then loops to Alcatraz, then to Angel Island, along the Tiburon/Sausalito area, under the Golden Gate Bridge and then back, passing by Ghiradelli. The cruise provides some light snacks (little finger sandwiches, potato salad, veggie dip, etc.) and a beverage (including beer, wine or soda). The food wasn't anything to rave about, but the scenery was!

Here are some pics we took:

San Francisco skyline / Bay Bridge

Alcatraz / Golden Gate Bridge in the faint background

Tiburon

Golden Gate Bridge

We had a great time. At first I was a bit scared that the boat would be too rough for me but it was fine. I was able to move about the boat from the lower to the middle and upper decks just fine. One of the few things that was best done without a baby in tow!

** SQ have 2 more sets of tickets he bought from Groupon (4 tickets). $52 for a pair. Please let me know if you're interested in buying!

Marin Headlands

I am ashamed to admit that even though I consider myself a San Francisco native, I've never been to the Marin Headlands. I guess because we take for granted that we live so close and that we will "eventually" get there, we end up never going there. There are still so many places in the City or nearby that I have never been.

Yesterday was such a gorgeous day so we decided to take a short trip there - and here are some pictures we took of the beautiful Golden Gate Bridge & San Francisco:

Food-Filled day!

The Fourth is definitely a Food-Filled Day! SQ and I woke up late today, did some garden clean-up and went for a late lunch at the Outerlands. It is a nice, sweet little cafe in the Avenues (Judah and 45th). I always like to patronize our local eateries whenever we can. The Outerlands has an unique decor - their walls, tables, chairs, benches, and floor are all made from re-claimed wood. It not only has a very rustic feel to it, it is environmental-friendly. Since today is a holiday, the cafe served a limited menu selection. We shared a corn chowder, which was really really good. Not too heavy, filled with fresh sweet corn, potatoes and my favorite, roasted bell peppers. Yum! It was so good that the bowl was gone before I remembered to take a pic of it! We also ordered a Roasted turkey open-faced sandwich, complete with cheese and granny-smith apples. It was delicious! I would definitely come back to try some of their other dishes... Yelpers said that their Mac and Cheese is to die for!
As if we didn't already have enough food, we ended up going to Bi-Rite Creamery for their specialty ice cream. They have the best ice cream in town...yes, IMO, even better than Mitchell's. I got the Balsamic Strawberry and SQ got Toasted Coconut. Both flavors are first timers and keepers! Enjoyed the ice cream with a free show at Dolores Park.

Bi-Rite Creamery is also associated with the Bi-Rite Market on 18th & Guerrero. They are very well-known in the neighborhood, because they promote and sell only organic and locally and sustainably-raised meats, poultry and seafood. It is actually a very small market, but check out their cheese selection!

While in the neighborhood, we would be shot if we didn't stop by Tartine Bakery. It was close to 3:30pm by this time - and we were both very stuffed, but we still managed to chow down their famous bread pudding and a cup of latte. The peaches are in-season and extra-delicious! I am not a big fan of bread pudding but this is indeed quite good. SQ loved it!!! Next time we have to come back on an empty stomach.

I wonder if we will skip dinner tonight, having eaten more than we can possibly eat? Chances are, probably not! We love food too much!

Others go out of town on the 4th. Others BBQ. Others go watch the Fireworks. For SQ and me, we chow down on the 4th!!

Academy of Sciences

Today SQ and I took advantage of Free Neighborhood Day and visited the new Academy of Sciences in GGP. We took our parents there. At first I was nervous whether my parents would enjoy these things and if the walking would be too much for my mom. But we took our time and took short breaks when we're tired. We ended up spending 4 hours there. We went through the aquarium, the rainforest, the living roof, saw the albino alligator and the penguins. We watched the show, Bugs in 3D. We had a great time and I enjoyed spending time with my parents.

The building is a lot smaller than I thought it would be, looking from the outside. I was also not so impressed with the Living roof, maybe because I've seen so much hype on TV about this "green roof." Anyhow, I still enjoyed the visit and do appreciate all the work the scientists are doing there to preserve our environment and to ensure the future generations can enjoy the same animals and plants we see today.

Lands End

I am very grateful to be living in the Bay Area. Although we are very much in need of rain, we enjoyed unseasonably warm weather this weekend. It was just pleasantly beautiful! We are very lucky.

SQ and I took the opportunity to visit Lands End today. This area, right by the Cliff House, is the most western edge of the City (I think it's the most western edge of the entire North America continent) . This area is where the famous Sutro Baths once were. After a huge fire in the 1960's, the baths were ruined and the whole area was somewhat neglected. But most recently the Golden Gate National Park Conservancy revitalized the area - building a new parking lot and creating new hiking trails for the residents to enjoy.

We walked along the area and though we did not end up walking the entire trail due to time constraints, it was absolutely spectacular and scenic...not to mention an excellent vantage point of the Golden Gate Bridge! Here's a panomic picture I took with my cell phone along the path. We will definitely come back again!

Saturday adventure

What a glorious day in San Francisco today! A pleasant 66 degrees along the Bay...and most importantly, on a weekend! SQ and I took the opportunity to be outdoors enjoying a bit of sun. After lunch, we went to Crissy Fields, set up a blanket along the beach, and dog- and people-watch for an hour. We had a great time just relaxing and absorbing the beautiful scenery around us. The GG Bridge is of course in its utmost beauty - no fog whatever! The bay was relatively empty, free of sailboats, because I think there was some kind of yacht race in the Alameda/Oakland area because all the sailboats were hovering around that side of the Bay.
Crissy Fields


We later took a hike around Fort Mason, and got up to Black Point Battery. This is where SQ and I exchanged our vows back in September 2003!!! Wow! We haven't been there since our wedding day! It's kinda weird to see it again but it still has very nice views of the surrounding areas. The grass is still damp and wet (I remember that also on the wedding day)... but still beautiful!

Black Point Battery, Fort Mason

It was definitely a nice day to take a casual stroll along the area today. The weather is so pleasant. It's hard to believe that we will have such pleasant, Spring-like weather in the middle of January!!

Thai Massage

I went with my sisters to a Thai massage place this Saturday. We went to Suchada Thai Massage on King St. between 7th and 8th in San Francisco. It's a small, quaint place, but nicely decorated and clean. 1 hour traditional massages were only $60! What a deal! Compared to some of the other massages I've been to, $60 is really a good price.

I had my first Thai massage in Thailand, and I loved it. The good thing about Thai massages is that they don't use oils - but rather, the masseuse concentrates on pressure points and moving your body through the art of Yoga stretches. It is actually very comfortable...I especially like the hand and feet massages! They are the best!!