The Great Outdoors

Now that the weather is nicer we have been spending a lot of time outdoors.

Fishing:
Santa Clara held the annual fish derby at the Civic Center Plaza reflection pool at the end of April.  They filled the pool with trout for the children (ages 3-11) to catch.  We set off for the event at 7 AM (it started at 6) and I didn't think anyone would be there at such an early hour, but it turns out that it was already super packed!  Only children were allowed near the pool (they did have volunteers to help the kids bait and throw the fishing line) so I was really nervous that Ethan would not want to go off by himself, especially doing something he never had done before.  But he had a blast!  He didn't end up catching anything, but the experience was great.  Now we have to look for other places to go fishing (or crabbing because that is super fun too!).

Getting some help placing the bait.


Trying different pole holding techniques to lure the fish.

We didn't get any fish, but others near us did.

Biking:

Of all the outdoorsy things we have been doing, our favorite these days has been biking (even I got a bike and that is saying a lot since I am the worst biker ever). We recently got a Copilot Weeride and Ethan has been having a lot of fun riding around with Daddy.

When we got it a few months ago Ethan could barely reach the pedals, but now he can pedal with the best of them.

Soccer:

This past spring E started soccer.  The first time we tried it was when he was almost two and that did not go over very well.  This time when we tried it, E was super excited and said he wanted to sign up for the term.  The class is split with the first half performing drills and the second half doing an actual game.  E doesn't enjoy the game part as much (because he doesn't like to compete with others to get the ball) but he loves the drills.  Our last class was this past Saturday - we are now a Soccer Shots alumni!

Some clips of the drills that take place in the class.

Emma Prusch Farm

We went to Emma Prusch Farm (closed Mondays) as a field trip for E's school.  It's a great park with a small animal area where we got to feed the pigs, goats, geese and chicken.  We also took a tour of the barns to see the cows and the vegetable and fruit gardens as well.  E's favorite were the geese which followed him around and gave him a few 'kisses' (aka little pecks to check if he had food on hand).  Outside of the animal/garden areas, there is a nice playground and also a huge lawn picnic area where you can BBQ.  We have gone back to the park a few times since the field trip - it's one of E's new favorite places to play!

Our tour guide introduced us to all the animals and showed us how to pet and feed them.

Pigs!

Ducks!

And the geese!

Getting a kiss from one.

Not as excited about seeing the cows.

Feeding the sheep.

Friend from school.

Class picture!

Finding chicken eggs nestled in between hale bales.

Fun on the tractors.

Monterey/Carmel

On our trip to Monterey we stopped by the aquarium of course.  I actually did not think that our little guy would enjoy it that much since he never has much patience for the zoo, but he looooved it.  His favorite exhibit (and ours too!) was the jellyfish, but he liked watching the penguin feeding and the seahorses as well.  I think the Monterey Bay Aquarium is much nicer than the one in Boston which is my only other comparison point...but Boston's Museum of Science is hands down the best science museum ever.  If you are a resident of Monterey county you can get free passes to the aquarium through the library, and if you are local I think it is worth it to get a family membership since it pays for itself  if you go to the aquarium at least twice.  Otherwise tickets are $33 for an adult and $20 for children older than three.   Metered street parking is easy to find.

 

The jellyfish!

Seahorse Exhibit.

At the coloring station.

Laying down to watch the sardines swim around and around.

It's an Ethan dolphin!

After an seafood lunch we headed over to the Denise the Menace park.  It was pretty awesome.  The kids just ran around for over an hour trying all the different things to do - bridges, rock walls, a hedge maze, a million different types of slides, tunnels, you name it this, playground had it.  And it is free!  Just FYI, park is closed on Tuesdays and does not open until 10 AM on the other days.

Denise the Menace.

Entrance to the park.

Lots of trees to climb on.

And play structures to explore.

Bridge to climb up.

So many different slides - rolling, twisty, and winding ones to try out.

The Thais.

Carmel:

We also went to Carmel beach, which has the softest sand and overlooked the Pebble Beach golf course.  The beach is dog friendly, family friendly and bbq friendly.  We went late in the afternoon both days so parking at the beach was easy to find.

Pretty views!

Getting buried in the soft sand.

The Zhangs.  Cameron kept falling down on purpose because the sand was so soft.

Dipping toes in the water.

Ethan's favorite activity was to make sand angels.

Roaring Camp Railroads

Over Easter weekend we stayed overnight in Monterey. On the way down, we stopped in Felton to take a train ride through the redwood forest. The train was pulled by a 19th century steam engine (and as Ethan was quick to point out, it had actual connecting rods on the wheels!)which brought us to the summit of Bear Mountain. Since we went on Easter, the train stopped at the top so we could meet the Easter bunny and hunt for eggs (the egg hunt was divided into two age groups, those above and under three years old). If you get there early enough you can watch them pour the water into the train and watch the steam bellow out before it leaves.

The base camp is a recreation of a old logging camp and contains a shops for souvenirs and food. The day we went they had Easter craft activities and a bounce house set up for the kids. Ethan had fun, and I thought it was nice to experience, although quite expensive. Tickets were $24 for adults, $17 for children older than 2, and there was a $8 parking fee on top of it all.  It was fun to do once, and if we go next time, I would definitely make some time to go hiking through the forest.

The entrance to the camp.

Running to catch the train.

Rare family photo!

The kids clowning around.

Aww!

Finally aboard the train!

The pretty view of the redwood trees as we drove up the mountain.

We got to meet the Easter bunny!

And one of the train conductors (although E was much more interested in eating his chocolate egg)!

Excited to see the engine up close.

Scrunchies on the train.

A brief stroll on the tracks.