Last Campus, Sleeper Hit

So many schools in 4 days. Tuesday was time for the last campus--SDSU. 

This one had really only made the list because it would get Bean down to SD, but I think it kind of grew on her. (And she totally looks like she's ready to be in college in this pic--how did we get here already?!)

I'd forgotten what a beautiful campus it is, and with some fun architecture. It's the best designed school after UCLA, I think. And it's not as spread out as some, which could be really nice when trying to get from class to class.

I think it also won for best plants--we just kept finding interesting trees

and strange fruits and seeds. I tried identifying some with google lens, but was having a hard time finding some of them.

And the koi and turtle pond was another fun spot. 

Lots of kids studying around this area. Really, all of the schools we've seen have such great outdoor study spots, and of course, the weather this past week has been perfect!

After we finished at the school, we stopped by Old Town for lunch in Bazaar del Mundo. We didn't have time to go explore the area, but we've been there before, and will be there again, I'm sure. 

Ate WAY too much food. We didn't even really have dinner because everyone was still kind of full from this lunch.

Then, we had a little, distanced visit with my old roommate, T, and her family. We were originally going to go hiking with them, but then her husband had a co-worker get a positive COVID test the day before ad they hadn't had time to see if THEY were positive. Kind of a bummer, but we wouldn't have met their sweet bunny (and guinea pig) if we'd gone hiking, so there is that.

As we were driving back to the hotel from their house, we thought we'd run by Belmont Park to see if the roller coaster was running. We'd told the kids we would go ride it, but hadn't been able to tell if it was actually open. Turned out, it was, and we happened to get a front row parking spot, so we decided to go for it.

This kiddo was so brave. He's not really a ride guy, but it's been a few years since he's been on any type of fast ride, so he wanted to try. He survived, didn't scream (which was his goal) and said he did NOT want to do that again, haha. We're proud of him for facing a fear, though.

And the rest of the evening was spent in the hot tub and game room at the hotel. Little bit of ice cream for dinner, some reading, some sleeping. The vacation part of our trip has begun!

Fairyland Date

While the big kids played at blacksmithing, Peanut got to cash in on a Christmas present from 2017, haha. We are terrible at giving coupons for activities, or sometimes actual gifts, and then taking forever to make it happen. This one was for a trip to Fairyland in Oakland. He may have enjoyed it more a year ago, but we still had a good time. Running around the Wild West and the train ride there were his favorite parts. He's pretty much at the upper age limit for a lot of the stuff.

We explored the different fairytales and stories, watched a puppet show, and then went to IKEA for lunch, which ended up not being the most brilliant idea because holiday weekend + IKEA = crazy. And they didn't have any of the glasses that I wanted to buy, so it really ended up being a wasted trip. As Daddy-o said, we can probably find the same glasses at Target and pay less than lunch costs at IKEA. :)

Either way, it was fun to spend a few hours with just our little guy.

And while we were in Berkeley, we also looked up the house that Daddy-o's grandparents lived in when his dad was born. It's fun to track down old family sites.

Donuts, Rollercoasters, and Reunions

Duck Donuts was on our list of must-dos while in NC, and we lucked out that Friday was National Donut Day! After we'd already ordered a dozen donuts, we found out we could each get a free cinnamon and sugar donut, so we walked out of there with 17 donuts! We didn't eat them all right then, but those first warm donuts were the best.

Wish Duck Donuts was a thing on the west coast.

And then we were off to Carowinds, where you can stand on the NC/SC border. It was a first visit for Peanut and I, and the other three were so excited to go back.

Bean was mostly excited to meet up with a bunch of her school friends who were all going that day.

We didn't see her until it was time to go home, but she had a fabulous day hanging out with everyone.

The rest of us went back and forth between doing rides together that Peanut would like (Plants vs. Zombies was a hit),

(the Dinosaurs Alive was a bit of a flop only because most of them were NOT alive that day),

and then splitting up so Peanut and I could hang out in Camp Snoopy

which he really loved,

and Daddy-o and Bug could ride the rollercoasters. Lines weren't too long and they got to ride the stuff they wanted to the most.

Overall, it was a pretty good day. A little too hot and muggy to be outside for so long, but mostly fun.

And the fun didn't stop there--we left the park at 4 so we could make it back up to Huntersville for an Alexandriana ward reunion. Our church congregation that we were a part of the first 7 years we were in NC had dwindled in numbers to the point that in 2015, we split and were assigned to be a part of two different existing congregations, which was hard for a lot of us because with our small numbers, we had bonded in a way you really only can when you serve so closely with the same group for years. It was so fun to visit with those who were able to make it, and we missed all those who have moved away or who couldn't come.

Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk

After a busy week of Activity Day Camp, we squeezed in another day of fun at the Boardwalk. One of Bean's NC friends came out to visit her NC-now-CA friend so we met up with them down at the beach for a day of fun. 

It was awesome seeing these three girls together again. They were in class since 4th grade and always have so much fun together.

As soon as we got there, they took off with Bug and the 4 of them spent the afternoon going on all the rides.

We only saw them for a few minutes to buy them ice cream, and then Bug grabbed me at the end to get a picture of him on the carousel. I think since I have a really cute picture of him as a baby on one, he likes to get these photos whenever he can.

In the meantime, Peanut got to hang out with A.

Because of the height thing, he didn't go on too many rides (and he isn't a ride kid, anyway, so he's totally okay with being too short.

They did do a couple of these type of rides, and played a couple games. And then we hung out on the beach. 

Which is where I got this great shot, haha. This is what I got when I asked them if they could stand by the water so I could get a shot. A was just keeping her dress from getting wet. My child. . . I'm honestly not sure what he thought he was doing, but it was done with attitude. :) What can I say?

Officially a Teenager

We have a 13 year old in the house! It's actually not that hard to believe. Along with some of the typical negative teen "stuff", Bean is seeming really grown up lately, and in a lot of ways, it is fantastic (as long as I don't think too hard about the fact that the next 5 years are going to fly by). She works hard at improving herself, whatever she is going--swimming, writing, keeping her room organized--and she is so helpful with Peanut. Having a built-in babysitter has been awesome and we can see her accepting more responsibility all the time. 

This year, her birthday celebration was a multi-day event. On Monday, Daddy-o took Bug, Bean, and her friend to Great America for a day of roller coasters.

From all reports, they had a great time and were able to ride things multiple times,

A came home with them and spent the night, which meant the girls got to spend Tuesday morning working on their Warriors stories and hanging out.

While they were gone, Peanut and I made and mint cookies'n'cream ice cream cake with a brownie base. We did her birthday dinner and the cake and ice cream celebration Tuesday night because she had other plans the next night.

Wednesday was the big day. Bean had requested her favorite rice pudding for breakfast and then we did gifts. And while she was really happy about all her presents, I think we really scored some parent points with tickets to see Imagine Dragons in October. We're pretty excited to take her to her first concert.

And then, in case Great America wasn't enough, Bean spent Wednesday evening at the Santa Cruz Boardwalk with the youth group from church. She had a lot of fun hanging out with friends and got to eat funnel cake, dippin' dots, curly fries, a dole whip, cotton candy, a churro, popcorn, and a doughnut. They pretty much got one of everything and then shared them.

I think she was pretty happy with 3 days of birthday celebrations. We felt like we got a glimpse into these upcoming years when she spent her birthday night with friends and we had to wait up past our bedtime for her to come home.

We love this Bean of ours and are so proud of who she is.

Moving In

Reunited with our stuff! (Also known as The Jenga Puzzle, or Why Didn't We Get Rid of More?)

We spent the morning cleaning (my favorite way to spend the first hours in a new home--especially when we don't have all our cleaning supplies) while we waited for our containers to be delivered, and then, the unpacking began!

The kids were a big help. Hahaha. They actually did help unload boxes and get their things into their rooms, but this was what I found later in the day, after I'd asked Bean to take an armful of hangers into our closet.

Unpacking is all about priorities. I had the hammock up before we could find dishes in the kitchen. I figured we needed a way to enjoy the absolutely gorgeous weather, and without any couches in the house, this was the most comfortable place to sit. 

And Peanut got to work painting as soon as the easel came out, which kept him out of trouble, I guess (except when he spilled purple paint all over the driveway and it turned out to not be washable, but I'm sure it will wear off eventually.)

We did get a lot of unpacking done the first couple days, interrupted by a trip to the DMV for new driver's licenses (which was a priority because mine had expired in Charlotte, so I wasn't exactly legal to drive), and trips to Costco and Trader Joes so we could eat. 

And then, because we'd worked so hard, we thought we'd go to Six Flags Discovery Kingdom for the day on Friday. Actually, because I'm a little crazy, we went to Six Flags on our third day in town. Hahaha. When I was looking into homeschool days at various Bay Area locations, one popped up for DK that happened to be right after we got to town. The price was too good to pass up, and Daddy-o wasn't working yet, so he'd be able to come with us (which is a must for amusement parks since we've got kids at different levels of roller coaster riding). So, with a house still full of boxes, and no couches and limited beds, off to play we went.

There were a good mix of rides--small stuff for Peanut, medium things that we all enjoyed going on, and the big ones for Daddy-o and Bean, who are the only ones who really enjoy them at the moment.

But the best parts were the animal shows and exhibits. It's kind of a weird park--half zoo, half rides. The boys and I enjoyed a lot of time at the different animal areas and shows, listening to the trainers talk about conservation efforts and animal rescues and training. 

Even though we could have used the day for working at the house, it was a fun final vacation day. The boxes were still there the next day and Daddy-o started work on Monday, and we were glad we had some fun mixed in with all the moving.