Birthday Saturday Fun

 Vasquez Rocks hosted an Open House on Saturday, so we made our attendance part of Violet's birthday weekend fun.

We made it just in time to catch the tail end of the animal presentations; the ranger is holding a red tail hawk.

I love this photo - my girls seem to fight all the time these days, but this unscripted moment show that they do have some affection for each other!

 This expert on the local Native people showed the girls how they used juniper berries and a mortar and pestle in their daily lives.

 The local astronomy club came out as well.

 We also took a nice hike, going down a direction we hadn't explored before. Cora and Violet both had on new hiking boots, and they loved them - so much better grip on the rocks!

 Wonder of wonders, a blooming cactus! So pretty.

Later, we went to Melanie's 8th birthday party, where they showed The Greatest Showman. We had a great time with a great movie and great friends.

Birthday Girl!

The happy girl is now 8 years old!

When she went to bed for the last time as a 7-year-old, she gave us instructions on how to lay out her gifts, and was pleased Friday morning that we followed through.

Stace met us at school to give Violet a birthday morning kiss, and off she went to class, wearing her birthday shirt.

Since it was a half-day, Violet, Cora and I went out for a birthday lunch at Lazy Dog. She chose it because she likes making her own pizza here.

This is her "Do I have to take a photo, Mom?" smile.

When Stace got home from work, we went to the Wildlife Learning Center together, with Grandma.

This was Stacey's first time to the small zoo-of-sorts, though Violet loves it and has been numerous times with my parents. It's close, easily navigable, and inexpensive - a perfect place to spent a couple of hours.

The employee brought out a snake to touch, and since it was Violet's birthday, brought out another for her to hold.

We were there at feeding time - perfect! The animals were all out and active, either eating or waiting to be fed. These bald eagles were enjoying their rats.

There wer several interesting smaller wild cats, including a lynx, a bobcat and a couple of servals.

The monkeys were cute, climbing all over and vocalizing.

Stace loved his experience at the WLC, and had a great time chatting at length with the owner/zoologist, who happens to also live in SClarita.

After a birthday dinner at MOD Pizza, we went back home for cake with Grandma and Grandpa and gifts. Because Violet's birthday "party" is a camping trip next weekend with Liana and Lucas, Cora's gift to her sister was a s'mores kit.

And because Vi has formed an after-school art club with some of her friends, our gift was an art kit.

We also gave her this adorable Peanuts backpack, which will be great for hiking and little trips.

Happy Birthday, sweet Violet. We love you and we're so happy you're ours!

Cowboy Festival

We had fun at the Cowboy Festival on Saturday, where the girls were greeted at the entrance by the amazing rope guy who's been at every festival that I can remember.

After checking out all the shopping booths, we chatted with the Native American man about flint arrowheads.

We then moved over to the axe-throwing area. It's harder than it looks.

The blacksmith was interesting to watch, too.

We also watched the Messick Family Singers, a Newhall group we love to see because they're talented and they're a part of our community. Cora really loved listening to them, and wanted to meet them afterwards.

It was warm enough to need a cold Slurpee after our Cowboy fun. And because our girls will only be 7 and 11 for a few more days, I had to get a photo of them in front of 7-Eleven. Aren't they sweet?

Dinner Fun

We had Daryl and Juliana and their girls over for dinner Saturday night, and fun was had by all.

Careful with the cheetah in the center - she's armed and dangerous!

It's always great spending time with this beautiful lady!

On Sunday, Stace and I had a few hours alone while Grandma and Grandpa took the girls miniature golfing with vouchers we won several years ago.

Stace and I enjoyed a nice walk through the canyon up in the Summit, where the hills were green and the oak trees are in full-leafed glory.

We stopped on the way home at the Alamo for chips and guacamole and margaritas. It's perfect walking/biking distance from home.

Spencer still likes sleeping with Violet, especially in the early mornings, while Seb will sleep on Cora's bed as often as she lets him. (Sometimes, she prefers a full night's sleep without the risk of him banging the door to be let out in the middle of the night.)

We went out to Pei Wei for dinner the other night, and our fortunes from the cookies were cute. Cora got the top one, Violet got the second, and Stace got the third. Yep, one should be creative with those hats!

School Wind Project

Violet's class had a fun project this week. After learning about the effects of wind on various buildings, the students were placed in groups, given a variety of materials, and created their own wind-resistant buildings. 

Here's Violet's team with their clay castle. The design went through several major structural changes as the girls dealt with the challenge of heavy clay and a weak substructure.

But, they persevered.

Then, Dr. Porter used a fan to test out the designs. The castle stood strong!

I love that even though Dr. Porter has been teaching for many years, she still brings in new projects and challenges for her students. We're so happy Violet has been in her class this year!

Miss Melly's 30th Tiki Extravaganza!

My baby sister is 30 years old! How can that be? And if she's 30, I must be... never mind!

Melanie's birthday was in March, but the earliest date she could get her closest friends and family together was a month later, this past week.

We went to a cool tiki bar in Downtown L.A. and had yummy drinks.

Melanie had a fabulous Disney tiki-themed cake made for her celebration.

The restaurant is really old, and down by the restrooms we found these old phone booths - the type my mom remembers using.

Happy Birthday again, Melanie! We love you and we're so proud of the woman you are. May your 30s bring you joy, love and fulfillment.

Spring Break Tidbits

We had a few restful days our second week of Spring Break; Violet had fun creating cute little fuzzy chicks and bunnies with a kit from her Easter basket.

Cora has been enjoying vanilla creme frappuccinos, and she likes to buy them with her own money.

I encouraged her to use my Starbucks card and give me the money, so I could get the points toward free drinks. But no... she wants to really pay for them herself. So, I then suggested she put the money on her own Starbucks card, so she can earn her own points. Bingo! Proud moment.
She likes having another card for the card pockets in her wallet, too; it sits next to her library card.

Cora's also spent some time on the hill, working on her hideout. This is her happy place.

On Friday, Violet and Liana had a playdate at Liana's house. They've been planning this for a while, exchanging pen pal letters with their ideas. Thankfully, Colleen and I both had free days while the kids were all off school. Cora ended up staying as well, and all the kids checked out Rigo's new chickens and chicken coop.

Colleen and I planned out the menu for our upcoming camping trip, which will be Violet's birthday treat, at her request.

Camping in Carp!

Our friends Patrice and Geoff and their three kids spent the second week of Spring Break camping at Carpinteria State Beach, and they invited us to join them.

Luckily, Stace could get a day off, so we headed up Tuesday afternoon and spent the night in a tent, alongside Patrice and Geoff's trailer.

We had a fantastic 36-hour mini-vacation, and we're excited to get back into camping after taking a break for a few years.

We have lots of friends who love camping at Carp, so it was nice to finally see what all the fuss is about. The location is perfect - right next to the beach! We saw lots of other SClarita friends, too.

We took a walk down to the overlook for the harbor seals - there are dozens on the sand behind Cora and Emily here.







While we spent a lot of time with Cora's friends the first week of Spring Break, this little trip was great fun for Violet, too. She enjoys playing with Tommy and Charlie, while Cora and Emily also get along very well.

It wasn't exactly beach weather, so the campfire was nice in the morning and even at lunchtime. Violet was very excited about cooking beans over the fire.

Stace took a nice nap after lunch.

On our stroll down the beach, the kids found tide pools to explore.

On our beach walk, we also came upon some cool teepees. No, we didn't make them - we just used them for photo opps!

We had such a great time camping and spending time with Patrice, Geoff and their family. We then went home and ordered up a new tent and air mattresses, and some better sleeping bags for the girls. We're planning our next trip already!