August Trip to California

Last week we took a family trip to California to visit some friends and family. First stop was Los Angeles - the Hollywood Hills area - to visit Julie's friend Mindy, her husband Mike and two kids Sam and Sadie. This would be my first visit to LA - other than a very brief layover many years ago on a trip to Hawaii. First off, I knew that there were lots of mountains in LA but I didn't realize they were everywhere! I had this image in my head of La being very flat - but that wasn't the way I experienced it.

Our flight out was on Wednesday morning. After a o-dark hundred departure from Newark we landed at LAX and picked up our rental car and headed the family off to Mindy's house in the hills. Up and up and around we went. The streets are relatively steep and narrow - Julie was very glad that I was driving.

We got to Mindy's house just time for lunch. The boys made short work of getting into the pool and basically being boys playing in a pool. Mindy has a great 4 story house cut right into the side of the mountain with lots of interesting neighbors!

We set out on a little sight seeing - I wanted to grab some pictures of the famous Hollywood sign and we also decided to hit Hollywood Blvd and walk along the stars. It took us two attempts to find Mulholland Drive, but we eventually found it and stopped along several spots to do the tourist thing.






First stop was an overlook of the San Fernando Valley, overlooking NBC studios.

Then we motored along Mulholland Drive some more until we came upon a good vantage point to see the Hollywood sign.



After snapping some pics we headed to Hollywood Blvd. The trick was, finding some parking first - as parking seems to be a contact sport. Eventually we found a spot and made our way out among the stars.


Julie insisted that I take a picture of Antonio's star.

Thursday we said our goodbyes to Mindy and family and once again loaded up the car and headed south to San Diego to visit Julie's cousin Amy. The drive to San Diego was easy (and mountainous) and we made it there in just about three hours. Of course we stopped at Burger King along the way - and to get to BK for a very brief time we cruised along the PCH. We made it to the Embassy Suites in La Jolla in no time, were Jan was waiting for us (actually she was shopping). Once again the boys wasted no time in finding and using the hotel pool. I don't think the boys care where we go, so long as there is a (heated) pool for them to play in. The pool was a huge fan favorite with the boys.

Amy met up with us at the hotel (and would end up spending a lot of her free time us being our tour guide - thanks Amy!) for happy hour. You gotta love a free happy hour. The boys loved it too, 'cause they got to pig out on snacks and sodas. After happy hour we loaded the whole lot into our rental minivan and headed to C-Level for dinner.

For Friday the plan was to go to Lego Land first thing in the morning.



Ryan was particularly excited about going to Lego Land - he knew about this part of the trip for weeks. I had no idea what to expect at Lego Land but it was actually very cool. There were giant Lego creations all over the place - some requiring hundreds of thousands of Lego's! There were rides and shows and all sorts of places for the kids to sit and play with Lego's too. We were there for the better part of 4 hours at least and we didn't even see a quarter of the place. After Lego Land we headed right next door to Sea Life.

Once again happy hour called - Amy and Jan joined us for happy hour and then we all went to Old Town for an authentic Mexican dinner. Tour guide Amy found us a great spot to eat - unfortunately for Jason - he had run out of steam and fell asleep before we got seated. Amy held him for most of the dinner - I think Jason has a new best friend!


Saturday morning we went to the San Diego Zoo.



I've heard all sorts of stories about the San Diego zoo in particular that it was a world class zoo and a must see. The zoo was pretty huge, and very hilly. All the travel and running around was taking it's toll on Jason, and he insisted that he was too tired to walk and had to be carried for most of the day. The zoo was fun, there sure was lots to see and we didn't even see half of it I'd guess. We took an aerial tram ride to the far end of the zoo and walked our way back. The highlights seemed to be the reptile house and the polar bears. Unfortunately the lions were not on display. Ryan also really wanted to see the pandas so - we waited on a very long line to see the pandas. Only one panda decided to come out and visit though, so we had a very brief visit with Suzi the panda.

After the zoo we headed to La Jolla Cove for lunch. Again, parking was at a premium and we were just about to give up when we finally found a spot. We had lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe - mostly because it was close and in betewen where we parked and where we wanted to go. The Cove was beautiful, the cliffs and the water were something to see. Our tour guide Amy told us the night before that there used to be lots of seals hanging out at the Cove, but recently they've been chased away from the area. We still did see a few, but not the numbers that they used to gather in.



Saturday evening Jan watched the boys at the hotel while Julie and I went to visit Amy at her apartment. Amy kept our thirst at bay with some cold beer - although next time Amy I could do without the exploding beer!

Sunday morning said goodbye to Jan as she made her way back to Ohio - by way of Atlanta. Amy joined us again and we all went to the Wild Animal Park.



The Wild Animal Park wasn't always open to the public - it started out as a breeding ground and feeder for the San Diego Zoo. Eventually they realized they were missing out on a great revenue stream and opened the park up to the public for tours. At least that's my version of the story. We took a bus ride around the park and took lots of pictures while the tour guide (not Amy this time!) gave us the rundown at what we were looking at. The Wild Animal Park was impressive, and if it wasn't so hot and the kids not so tired, I would have liked to have explored some more.

After the Wild Animal Park we all went to the beach near Amy's house in Pacific Beach.



The boys had fun playing in the surf and I finally got to swim a little in the Pacific. I had heard tales of the Pacific being very cold - I didn't find it any colder than the beaches in NJ. In fact, I thought it was probably warmer. There was lots of seaweed and kelp though and it wrapped itself all around you in the surf zone.

By the end of the day Sunday we were all pretty tired. Not too tired for a dip in the hotel pool of course. Personally, I soaked for a while in the hot tub.

Monday morning we had time for another dip in the hotel pool before we had to pack up and leave for San Diego airport. Our 3pm flight left more or less on time and we were home around 12:30am.

We had a great trip - many thanks to Amy our dedicated tour guide and to Jan for her great babysitting - especially in the mornings!

Next time we head out west I want to go to San Francisco and to the redwood forests. Time to start planning.


Click on the Hollywood picture below to view the complete photo album from the trip:

California Trip August 2008

August Trip to Margate

August 1st we headed down to Margate to visit with our friends Rich and Pam and their three kids. The weather was great, save for a brief thunder storm that rolled in Saturday morning. That gave us a chance to hit the Atlantic City Aquarium. The kids had fun playing with the touch tanks. Then it was on to the beach where much boogie boarding was done. The surf was pretty calm - which was good since it made watching over the kids in the water a lot easier.

The beach was great, the food was great, the company was great and much beer was consumed - by the adults! What more can you ask for?

Follow this link to view pictures from the trip:

Margate Trip August 2008

July Trip to Ohio

In July we packed the whole family into the minivan and headed west for Ohio. We decided this year to drive instead of fly. Personally I prefer to drive as I hate flying. We had planned to leave in the afternoon on July 3rd and arrive in the early morning (it's about a 10 hour drive) on July 4th. The boys were all going to go to a Cincinnati Reds game with their cousins on the 4th and the bus that would take them there was leaving at 10am. At the last minute Cory had a little league game rescheduled for the evening on July 3rd. Cory was already going to miss 6 games while we were away so we felt compelled to not miss any more.

So we went to Cory's game in Warren and after the game (we lost) at about 8pm we all loaded into the car and started our trek. Julie took her turn driving first since: 1) I can stay awake later than she can, 2) she hates to drive at night and 3) I hate it when she drives at night. A few hours in I took over and drove through till about 5am. At that point no amount of coffee or Red Bull was keeping me alert enough so Julie took over for the last hour.

Once we arrived, Julie and I immediately headed for some quality shut eye. It took a while for the caffeine to burn its way out of my system, but by mid afternoon I was good to go. In all, we spent 5 days with Julie's family and we had a great time. We hit all the regular activities – fishing, miniature golf, play at the park, swim at the town pool, bbq's, wiffle ball games and campfires.

Julie and I also took had our 2nd annual "Shoot 'em up" with Julie's uncle Jim. Last year during our visit Jim took us to his favorite gun shop / shooting range where for the first time ever Julie and I fired live rounds from hand guns, along with Jacqui and Lindsay. Which was cool. This year, the ante was upped a bit as Jim brought out his Mac 10 submachine gun and his Mauser 98 rifle. No range this time, we headed to Don and Jan's backyard and fired them there. Firing the submachine gun was really cool and the Mauser was lots of fun too. After we kids had our fun Julie's mom, dad and brother Doug took a turn. If anyone wants to see what Grandma looks like pumping 20 rounds per second from a Mac 10 into a gravel pile, I have photo evidence! Next year Jim is going to have to reach deep into his bag of tricks to keep us entertained. I'm thinking perhaps a flamethrower or a howitzer…hmmmm…which to choose?

Another first for us – we all got our turn taking a Combine ride with Don while he harvested his wheat fields. With a 20 foot wide cutting head on it, that Combine is an impressive machine. Cory, Ryan and Jason each had their turn taking a ride with Don, as did Julie and I. The boys will all have something fun and unique to write about in our "what I did this summer" assignments in school.

Pictures from our trip can be found here:

July 2008 Trip to Ohio

Cavern Diving, Easter Eggs, Little League Parade, Cory's first Communion and Travel Baseball

Ok, I know, it's been a long time since I updated this blog. I have no excuse other than to say that I keep thinking that eventually I'll get around to it. So here it is...

March started off with me heading down to High Springs, Florida for a little Cavern diving. Things started off pretty poorly on this trip as I came down with a stomach virus pretty much as soon as I got there. I didn't finish the cavern course, but I did get to explore the Ball Room cave in Ginnie Springs. That is some amazingly clear water. And it's incredibly dark in the back of the cave with no lights on. Like really dark. Someday it would be nice to go back and finish the course.

While I was down there we had some seriously bad weather too, let's just say that I survived my first tornado warning intact.

Also in March, the boys had a blast coloring and decorating their Easter eggs. The creativity and talent level has definitely been stepped up a notch. Mom and Dad joined in the fun and we all had a great time decorating our eggs. Of course, the really fun part is pouring all the colored water down the drain. Some things never change.



In April we had Julie's birthday...Happy Birthday Julie! Of course, we have no pictures from that day. Hmmm...not sure how that happened. We all went to Fujiama Mama for some hibachi Japanese food. You'll just have to imagine it.

Also in April we had the kick off parade to the spring in-town little league baseball season. Ryan's is the Lugnuts and Cory is on the Lookouts.




In May Cory had his First Communion. We surprised Cory by having his cousin Sam come to visit and spend the weekend with us. Cory and Sam quickly made up for lost time.



Cory tried out for and made the 2nd grade travel baseball team. In June, Cory started playing with his new team - the Westfield Blue 2nd Grade Team. Here's a shot of Cory in his first game of the season about to slide into second on a stolen base attempt. He was safe, and later came around to score. Unfortunately, Cory's team lost their first game 8-9. We'll get 'em next time.

The Giants win the Superbowl(!?), Cory turns 8, a lunar eclipse and a snow day

Wow, February was busy.

Who predicted that the Giants would make the post season, let alone win the whole shebang? A bunch of us gathered around on Superbowl Sunday to watch Eli and a bunch of no names take on the mighty NE Patriots. What a game. Even if you weren't a Giants fan it was a great game. And it had one of the defining moments in sports history - "The Play" - Eli breaking free from what looked like a sure sack and then hitting David Tyree(!?) downfield where Tyree catches the ball with his helmet! Incredible. Made even better by NY beating the hated NE Patriots!

GO BIG BLUE!

The kids put on a special own Half Time show.

February 16th Cory turned 8! To me he is still my baby, I can't believe he is 8 already. We threw him a small party. The kids had cake, the grownups had beer, and everyone was happy. Ok, the grownups had beer AND cake. There, I said it.

Happy 8th Birthday Cory!!!

February 20th was the lunar eclipse and I quickly snuck outside and tried to snap a few pictures of the event. This is the only picture I took that came out remotely Ok. For this shot, I mounted the camera on a tripod and set the shutter speed to 3 seconds.



Friday February 22nd we had a nice late February snow day. We probably had about 6+ inches of snow total. The kids had a snow day from school - boy were they psyched! What's better then a snow day if you're a kid?

Jason, enjoying his snow day.

42: The Answer to Life, the Universe, and Everything

As I was lamenting turning 42 my friend Stephan reminded me that 42 is the Answer to Life, the Universe and Everything. For those that have no idea what he was referring too - in Douglas Adams' "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" novels - a computer named Deep Thought is built to answer the Ultimate Question (what is the answer to life, the universe and everything?). The computer chugs along for 7½ million years and finally comes up with: 42.

Of course, just about everyone is disappointed with the answer - one individual demands of the computer: "Forty two?! Is that all you've got to show for seven and a half million years' work?"

The computer replies: "I checked it very thoroughly, and that quite definitely is the answer. I think the problem, to be quite honest with you, is that you've never actually known what the question is."

Ain't that the truth.


Yesterday marked my 42nd birthday and I celebrated with a tri-fecta. Some quality time with Julie in the morning, then off to meet up with some of my diving buds for a little winter diving. We went up to Dutch Springs in PA and dove in a retired limestone quarry - which is now a now a freshwater lake. It was cold out, the air temp was about 36F. The water temp was 41F. When I dropped under the surface and was completely submerged in 41F water I was completely aware of how alive I was - I was also completely aware of brain freeze. The great thing about the lake in the winter is that the underwater visibility is outstanding and yesterday didn't disappoint - we had easily 70 feet of vis - or more.

My buddy Stephan and I did two dives, total combined runtime of 1 hour and 9 minutes. It was a great way to spend a chilly afternoon. When I got home - we headed over to our friends Joe and Christine's house for some dinner and drinks (more drinks than dinner actually) while the kids ran around and generally caused a ruckus.

All in all, a great day.

Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and Happy Birthday!!!

So - it's been a few weeks since my last update. Christmas came and went, as did New Years and Ryan's sixth birthday! Wow, that went fast. On deck is my birthday - followed by Cory's birthday in mid February. Then a little break until Julie's birthday in April. Who's idea was it to have all these birthdays so close together? Oy, with all the cake.

For Christmas we stayed home - in our newly re-done home - which I LOVED. Nothing better than waking up in my own bed on Christmas morning - basking in the glow of not having to travel during a holiday. The boys had a great time opening up all of their gifts - especially Cory as we got him a Wii. I think his exact words were "My life is saved! I got a Wii!!!!". The Wii IS pretty cool, although after a full day of playing "Wii tennis" I started to develop "Wii shoulder". I had to learn how to swing the Wii "racket" - and not try to swing like a real tennis racket.

Here are the little rascal's on Christmas morning.

As you can plainly see, we went to great lengths to make sure they were dressed nicely.

For New Years Eve we were invited over to Rob and Barb's house - there new house which I had never seen before. I liked it - great job Rob and Barb and good luck in your new home. The kids stayed up until midnight and we watched the ball drop on Barb's 13" tv - yes 13" that wasn't a typo. Personally, I can't believe that Dick Clark is still bringing it at 78 years old. Where would we be without Dick Clark's Rockin' New Year? Julie went around and collected everyone's new years resolutions. I've decided to opt out, as I don't see the point in making promises that I know I won't keep! I gave myself a low hanging goal of trying to get in 30 dives in 2008 - I should be able to hit that one.

Cory and I on New Year's Eve.

No sooner was New Year's over, and the Christmas decorations packed away, and here come's Ryan's birthday. We had a small group of Ryan's friends from his class over and threw him a party at our house.

Here's the big boy about to blow out his 6 candles.

That's all for now, I promise not to take so long to make my next post.