HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND AN OUTING

I note that a few fellow bloggers have been posting each day during the Christmas and Hanukkah festivities. (Congrats Jenn!!) I have barely had the energy to to read a few posts, much less to write one. But I have tried to pay enough attention to record a few highlights. The girls are snuggled on the couch watching the Yule Log channel.




Tom came down with a bug on the evening of the 23rd and did not accompany the rest of us to my sister's home for Christmas Eve dinner. When we can home at about 9, he was entranced by the televised Yule Log. We had a good laugh at him, but then, slowly, we were all drawn in. Particularly because he swore it was live and there was someone tending the fire. He said the fire tender occasionally poked the fire or put new logs on to burn. One by one we snuggled down to watch and after about an hour - the fire tender placed a new log on the fire. We cheered and clapped and got ready for bed.



The next morning Tom and I were up before 6 and hung out listening to holiday music and watching a real fire (the Yule Log broadcast did not resume until 8am.) The kids finally rolled out of bed at about 8:30 and the aftermath may be seen in the photo above. I made a big breakfast and then went "off duty" for the remainder of the day.

Friday morning we popped out of our beds and made a trip to San Francisco to visit the newly remodeled California Academy of Sciences, I had purchased tickets Santa put tickets in our stockings. Along with approximately half the population of the Bay Area, we toured this wonderful new facility, watched the show in the planetarium and toured the aquarium. I found the sea dragons enchanting, but the kids dragged me off to visit the living roof, an acre of native California plants covering the roof of the building. You can see above that it was a lovely day.

We ended our outing at a fun Cuban restaurant called ChaChaCha in the Haight neighborhood. It was colorful, hip and the food was good.

A nice day with my children - and now no plans. Sigh. I hope I can finally relax and get some quality sleep!