One Last Set of Family Fun

Hubby Tony and my recent California family visit ended with a bang--two extra days at Son Brian and DIL Nicole's house.

On Sunday morning we all went to Happy Hollow, a small zoo and amusement park. Because the back seat of Nicole's vehicle was full of children in car seats Tony and I followed them there. In the parking lot Brian put twins Dee and Ell in the wagon so they could ride to the entrance. At four years old, Jay was a 'big boy' who could walk.

The boys enjoyed looking at the animals and playing two different playground. They rode a kiddie ride, and then it was time to leave. On the way out of the park Ell decided he could walk on his own. There were large green footprints painted on the sidewalk every few feet. Ell zigzagged from one to the other, stopping to stomp on each. I held back and tried to encourage him to move faster, but he was enjoying moving at his own pace. Eventually the rest of the group stopped to regroup and we caught up. Ell was happy to climb in the wagon for the rest of the trip.

On Monday Brian and Nicole both had to work. Jay went to school, and the nanny came to take care of Ell and Dee. Tony and I went on one last road trip to Half Moon Bay, a town and beach about 45 minutes northwest. Because it was a weekday it was easy to find a place to park. We walked through the town, stopped in a diner for lunch, then drove down to the beach area.

Tony has a friend who grew up in that area and talked fondly about it. I knew that the ocean there was better for surfing than for swimming, but the temperatures were in the low 60s and I wasn't even tempted to take off my shoes and stick my feet in the water. Instead, we walked north along a Coastal Trail from one beach to another, then backtracked to the car.

On our way out of town we stopped at a fish market and bought a container of clam chowder to bring home for dinner.  We got on the road early enough to avoid the rush hour traffic. Back at Brian's got everything out of the car, then took it for a well-deserved wash. After a quick stop at the grocery store for items to complete the dinner menu we returned and helped get food on the table.

 We had one last night of reading stories with Jay. In the morning we had one last set of snuggles from each of the grandchildren before an Uber came to take us to the airport.

Five years ago today: Moving To Music