Fun with puppets...

Friday afternoon the boys and I went to the Reading Caterpillar (www.readingcaterpillar.com). I had heard about it as a library for kids but we had never been there. When I heard that it was hosting a puppet performance of people (the Puppetarians from Mumbai) that have worked on Galli Galli Sim Sim, the Indian Sesame Street, I knew I had to take the boys. And, it was such fun! The boys were captivated as well as the parents...I think for about 20 minutes we were all children. After the show, the kids got to make sock puppets. It was a great afternoon and we will definitely go back to the library for the books next time.

The evening wouldn't have been complete without a puppet show at home:

It's raining rain

I mentioned how damp it has been in our house. The rainy season is in full swing so we are spending lots of time indoors painting, baking and setting up the train tracks. 

But, D did enjoy some time outside in the rain, washing his bike:

A not so much so while walking to his morning school:

Ewww...part 2

A few months back I wrote about the black dust that had collected on the boys' toys (see: ewww). Now we're back after being away for a while this summer and the toys were not touched for that entire time. This is what we came home to:

Ewww, seriously. I was expecting dust but not mold. This mold was everywhere. Since we've been back, I've spent almost the whole time doing laundry and cleaning out shelves. It is amazing how damp it is here. I just can't wait for the rains to stop...

Fire Station

Near my parents house is a fire station. The other day when I drove by all the doors were open and the fire engines could be seen in all their glory. I knew the boys would love to see them, so later that day we drove back by with my dad. We didn't want to just waltz in the the fire house so we rang the bell and the nicest fireman answered and let us in. He took us through the building and out back to the garage with all the trucks. So impressive! The boys were so happy and the fireman was so nice he let us climb in the big engine, open up the side compartments to see what was inside (shovels, brooms, axes) and showed us a super cool infrared camera that he uses to find people in emergency situations.  It was one of our best and unexpected outings of the summer. Thank you fireman!

Checking out the engine:

Looking at the infrared camera:

Arthur's amazed:

Inside:

CA Signs...

Some of my favorites from California:

The lesser known...

San Francisco is a great city. There are tons of things to see and do. We have (maybe) pretty much done it all on our various trips throughout the years. Our favorites places for the boys are the Exploratorium and California Academy of Science. We also love the zoo, the museums and the beaches. If you're looking to escape the crowds at some of the big venues, try visiting these places: Cable Car Museum and Musée Mécanique. 

These big wheels are what are turning the cable cars, impressive and loud:

This museum near Fisherman's Wharf is fun to walk around:

With old game machines:

The Cable Car Museum is fun to see and look at the machines and old photos of the city while the games museum is fun for pushing buttons. Great for kids and parents alike!

Great America and Giants

The boys did two new things during our trip to California. We went to an amusement park and a baseball game. So much fun!

Arthur loved seeing Snoopy:

 Dorian went for anything on four wheels:

The stadium was packed and it was sunny in San Fran:

Sadly, the Giants did not beat LA. But, we had a great time!

photo-op...

My cousin Katie is an amazing photographer (she is also sweet and smart and funny and great with the boys). We had a chance to catch up with her and her camera recently and she so kindly took some photos. I was so happy because we have almost no family shots since I'm usually the one taking the photos. Here are some of my favorites from our time with her. Check out her website and call her if you're ever in the Bay area and want some photos taken: http://kmsphotos.weebly.com/