Field Trip

Cora and her fifth-grade classmates took a field trip Tuesday to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, a trip that some students call their favorite of elementary school.

We've been looking forward to it, and Jen and I were lucky enough to be chaperones. (This is one where very few parents are able to chaperone, due to Reagan Library rules.)
Here are Cora and Trent in front of Air Force One, the official plane that carried President Reagan.

The fifth-graders take part in a special learning experience centered around the U.S. invasion of the Caribbean island of Grenada in 1983, under Reagan.

They were divided into three groups - the media, the military and the Oval Office - and given personas to act out from that period.

Cora was given the identity of a reporter from the Los Angeles Times, in the media unit. The students got to act on a tip that the U.S. was in fact preparing to invade Grenada to rescue 600 medical students.

Here, Cora is amazed to see that when she is reporting "live" in front of a green screen, it looks on camera like she's standing in front of the White House.

Later, she manned the camera while Trent, acting as the Washington, D.C., media bureau chief, gave his report.

We then got a tour of Air Force One and the rest of the museum. Here, Cora is showing off her L.A. Times badge, with her notebook. Such a proper young reporter! I love that she took a notebook to take notes with; no other student thought to do so. She is such an eager learner.

This is inside Air Force One.

We also had a look at the piece of the Berlin Wall, with the docent providing a good overview of the wall's historical importance.

This was the first time I'd visited since Mrs. Reagan's passing. We spent a moment in front of their tomb.

It was a fabulous field trip, and I'm so pleased I was able to go.

Weekend Fun

While walking down to the Mandalay Bay pool area to get cocktails Thursday, I got another anniversary present when I checked my phone - I found out I won Dodger tickets in a contest from our local radio station!

Though it meant for a long day Saturday - coming home from Santa Barbara to unpack and then prepare to head to Blue Heaven on Earth - it was nice to spend be together with the girls after being away.  This photo doesn't do the skyline justice, but it was a gorgeous evening in L.A., with pink and lavender making a sunset appearance.

Unfortunately, the Dodgers were still mired in a tailspin that began the last time we went to a game, two weeks prior. They were competitive in this loss, and even hit a home run, but the girls did resort to reading to entertain themselves.

We rested Sunday - Cora, especially, needed the rest. After a late night at Disneyland on Friday and a late Dodger night Saturday, she slept until past 11 a.m. on Sunday!

In the evening, we went to the annual Block Party at Valencia Methodist. The girls enjoyed the water slides and the rock wall, especially.

Anniversary Getaway

Stace and I don't make a big deal about every anniversary, but this year we decided to take a few days away to enjoy the beach and being together on our own.

We left on Thursday afternoon, our actual 14th anniversary, and got checked into the Mandalay Bay resort in Oxnard, right on the sand.

We were lucky enough to choose our room, and one with a "partial ocean view" was available. We were thrilled -  partial was pretty substantial!

We went down the pool area to enjoy the manager's reception, a two-hour period of time with free snacks and cocktails. This is one of the best parts about staying here.

Then we went out to the shoreline to catch sunset, before heading into Ventura for dinner at a great Thai place on Main Street, in the cool trendy area. Thanks, Aunt Patty, for the recommendation!

The resort's made-to-order breakfasts are the other best part. We went down Friday morning for awesome omelettes, which we took back to the room so we could enjoy our view again.

After checking out, we went to the mall in Ventura for some shopping and lunch, before making our way north. We stopped at the beach in Carpinteria, where it was a stunning 75 degrees and sunny. Stace had a nap while I took in the scenery.

When we made it up to our next hotel, we weren't quite sure what to expect, because I got a good deal online. The Coast Village Inn in Montecito was 100% charming and adorable, with a fountain and patio right outside our door.

The inn was built in 1935, but is completely clean and modern, and the attention to detail was outstanding. While our Mandalay Bay room had some paint peeling on the bathroom door, iffy hot water, and the stairwell needed sweeping, this place was pristine.

We got settled and went into Santa Barbara, where we walked along the beach and the pier. Then we did some more shopping on State Street, before getting dinner.

We ate at Los Agaves, the fabulous Mexican place we went to with Uncle Bill and Aunt Patty a couple of years ago. My margarita and the guacamole were so yummy.

When we got back to the hotel, we walked along the main street of Montecito, and then had a drink on our patio.

We had breakfast on the patio, too, on Saturday morning. If we'd had a little more time, we might have gone into the pool behind us. It was lovely and warm.

We checked out, and did some scenic drives, including this spot in front of the Biltmore.

We also made a quick visit to the beautiful San Ysidro Ranch, a luxury resort where John and Jackie Kennedy honeymooned and Winston Churchill stayed. We had a look in the adobe house, dating from 1825, where Stace rescued a bird that was inside and continually flying into the closed window.

For our final stop, we went back into Santa Barbara for an ice cream lunch at McConnells', a local institution that has crafted the finest ice cream since 1949.

Then it was time to head back to SClarita, where our kiddos and our kitties were awaiting our return, refreshed and relaxed.

Pool Party, Disney Day and Football Fun

We started our week with a day off Monday for Labor Day, and thankfully the crazy heat finally broke.

It was still warm enough for the pool, of course; this is early September in SClarita, naturally. Our friend Liz had us and a few other families over for a pool party.

Here are a few of the kids, taking a break from the one-on-one wrestling wars that occupied them for at least an hour.

And here's most of the children, who were happily occupied between the pool and the playground for the entire afternoon. It was fabulous.

We then only had to get through Tuesday and Wednesday before Stace and I got to take a mini break for our anniversary.

My dad spent the night Thursday at our house and got the girls off to school Friday. Then, he and Grandma took the girls to Disneyland.

They spent a lot of time in the Redwood Creek area of California Adventure - so fun!

Cora had her first flag football game Saturday morning. Stace and I were sad to miss out on the action, but Grandpa sent us a few photos. She played well - she's picking up on the basics of this new game to us.

Cora's team won, by a score of 14-6. Great start, Chiefs!

A Grand Celebration

We're celebrating Grandma turning 60 this month, and she chose to gather some of her favorite people together for dinner at Medieval Times.

It was a lot of fun, with a nice meal and a show that the girls absolutely loved. Cora, especially, got such a kick out of watching the knights battling, the horses, the falconry, and the pageantry in general.

She told Grandma it was a great choice, and when can we go back?

The food was very decent - a tomato soup with garlic bread; half a roasted chicken (yay for leftovers!), corn and a roasted herb potato. 

For dessert, they offered lemon pound cake, but Melanie made Mom a very special chocolate birthday cake that we all enjoyed as well.

Besides our immediate family, cousin Lucy and both of mom's special Lindas were in attendance, with their husbands.

The show was based around an 11th Century Spanish castle, though of course everyone had English accents. 

Knights battled for supremacy, and a foreign invader came in threatening harm if the princess did not return with him to marry another royal. Huzzah!

We cheered for the black and white knight - see our paper crowns. 

 I'm not sure what was so funny, but it made for a great photo!

Thanks to Dad, as always, for documenting the event. Special thanks for the photos of the girls, since we were sitting on the other end, far from them.

Happy Birthday, Mom! Or at least, happy start-to-the-birthday. We celebrated a bit early because the date worked better for everyone...
We love you!

Hot, hot, hot

 This past week, we had an intense heat wave that made us beg for our normal summer heat. The temperatures reached past 110F several days in a row, and a few of those early mornings only dropped to 80. That meant the AC was running off and on all the time.

The only good thing about that kind of heat is nighttime swimming! We enjoyed the pool a few evenings.




Sadly, the extreme heat seems to have played a role in our friend Trent falling off a low part of a play structure and breaking both arms. He started feeling woozy, and down he went.

We went over to visit him a couple of times in the week, while he was home recovering.

 Here he's holding up his heaving left cast with his right arm, which is in a red cast. He has such a great attitude though, staying positive with a smile on his face.

 On Friday, we went back to visit after school, and a few other friends turned up with goodies to encourage him.

 We made it a mama playdate, too.

While we moms chatted, the kids played Uno, and then held a drawing contest, before watching a movie. Perfect Friday afternoon!

Well Done, Cora

 Stace and I went to Back to School Night on Wednesday, and got to hear from school administration and from Dr. Porter and Ms. Packer, Violet and Cora's teachers, respectively.

We loved Cora's name card for her desk - she wrote about what makes her special...

 ...and our favorite part was the back, which was facing out when we came in.
":( Closed.  :(
Come back later.
Cora's Desk hours 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m."

 I also loved what she wrote on her goals:
Under the prompt "My goal for the school year is," she wrote "to be more positive while I'm at home doing my chores or playing with my little sister."

The next prompt said, "I will use these steps to help me accomplish my goal."
She wrote, "I will fake it until I make it. I'll always try to put on a huge smile and be very helpful at home."

Yes, please, Cora darling!

While we were at the school, Cora made these gorgeous and delicious chocolate-covered strawberries, with two types of chocolate. Yum!

Cora also received in the mail the book she made, from her miner's biography project a few months ago.

Her biography was excellent - truly a great piece of writing from a 10-year-old.We also had such excellent photos to work with, from our day with Wylie, Cooper and Pam at Placerita Canyon.

She expanded the story a bit, and added in photos we took in Cornwall, where Cora's miner comes from when he heads to California's Gold Country.

The finished project - My Golden Dreams - is such a fun read, and something we'll treasure, like the gold those miners were after.

Cora's writing skills were documented by the state testing results we just received, from late spring. She actually scored the very top score possible for English Language Arts - 2663. She exceeded the state standard in math, as well, but that ELA score is breathtaking.

We are so proud of our big girl!