It just felt like a Jolly Cone kind of a day

There are lots of things I miss about living in West Sacramento: my friends, that lovely house and giant yard, the Nugget Market, our favorite Chinese restaurant, the amazing Little League fields, and Whitey's Jolly Cone--just to name a few. The little guys and I had to drive to Sacramento the other day to pick Koen up from the Amtrak station. (He had ridden home from my mom's house on the Amtrak Thruway bus driven by Papa Phil.) We were all in need of a quick snack before the long drive home, and it was still 93 degrees, so Whitey's seemed like just the spot!

San Francisco Field Trip, Part 2

After a not-very-fabulous night's sleep (Ah, the joys of sleeping with toddlers...), we jumped up and got ready for our second day of sightseeing.

On a side note: In case you're wondering how we financially manage all of these trips, I don't blame you. It is a stretch. We pack basically all of our own food, drinks, and snacks; I prepare many meals in our hotel room (This time, I used the coffee maker to prepare instant Annie's Mac & Cheese for the little guys.  When we go to Disneyland this spring I'll be bringing our rice cooker!)   We have grown very skilled at using discount sites such as Hotwire to rent our rooms; we use our AAA discount for lots of attractions. Most importantly, though, we don't buy souvenirs! We still have small struggles with the big boys over this, but they have to be content with the maps, ticket stubs, and memories of our adventures. (Sometimes a patch or postcard if they're lucky!)

Anyway.... We were blessed with a beautiful, warm, sunny day for this trip, which made the ferry ride to Alcatraz a special treat. 

The island and former prison were both absolutely fascinating to me, and as the history buff of the crew, I was expecting a leisurely stroll through the exhibits, imagining I'd carefully read and understand each placard. Uh, yeah right. I was there with two toddlers, remember? I did get to listen to some of the audio tour, and walked around to see some of the sights, but Hayden was such a train wreck from his poor night's sleep (on top of his utter refusal to nap the previous day) that he was just sad, squirmy, and fussy the entire time. He and I ended up sitting down at the dock watching the seagulls steal people's lunches. 

As all of our trips to 

San Francisco tend to, this one ended with a trip to Pier 39 for chowder in a bread bowl and ice cream cones. We watched the magic show, and Koen was chosen to "help" with one of the tricks. He was thrilled!

We were all utterly exhausted by the end of the day, no one more than Lawson, who ended up like this: