Kayaking in Elkhorn Slough

We got up and out of the house early today, which is rare for a Sunday.  We headed south to Moss Landing to kayak on the Elkhorn Slough.  

The kids had expressed some hesitation about this kayaking adventure, but their excitement increased when our ski house friends Nico and Carlo arrived.  

 Here are the kids learning about paddling.  They are wearing life jackets and splash skirts.

 Tom looks pretty cool in his life jacket and splash skirt.

 I was paired up with Serafina.  She was a good sport, but not a particularly helpful paddler.

 Shortly after leaving the dock, we passed by "seal beach".  It was a beach all most completely covered with lazy seals.  It was smelly and amazing.

 Serafina and I were bringing up the rear the whole time, but we were treated to an immense amount of wildlife.  Seals swam right next to our kayak, juvenile otters frolicked and mama otters cuddled their babies.  It was awesome and the kids loved the experience.

 After a nice lunch and stroll in Santa Cruz, we headed to our favorite ice cream spot.  You can probably see that it was absolutely jammed packed.  We had quite a long wait, but we were positioned right by the number ticket dispenser so the kids were handing out numbers to all the arriving customers.  I'm not sure if it is always that crowded on a weekend (we usually go during the week) or if it was extra crazy because it was National Ice Cream Day.  Thanks made-up internet holiday for the massive crowd.

 Of course, the ice cream is worth the wait or we wouldn't bother to go there in the first place.

Last day of Cheer Camp

It was the last day of Cheer Camp for Serafina, which means we were treated to a little cheer at pick-up time.  

She enjoyed Cheer Camp, but honestly she loves any chance to perform.  This was her last camp of the summer.  Leo will start his camp on Monday.  

Leo and the "deal"

The kids' dentist expressed concern about Leo's overbite.  It's easy to see why since I can stick my entire thumb between his top and lower teeth when his jaw is closed.  We went to the orthodontist today and he was a really nice guy.  He was friendly to Leo and clear about the situation.  Fortunately, we get to wait and see what happens as Leo grows and gets more of his adult teeth.  The orthodontist wants to keep checking in to see how he's doing.  The big issue is Leo's tendency to stick his lower lip between his teeth.  It's pushing the rows away from each other and pronouncing the overbite.  

 Leo has been working on his "deal" since before the end of the school year.  We made a deal with him that if he had good behavior and completed some spelling and math worksheets every day, he could have a Lego set as a reward.  He finally earned his Lego set.  It arrived yesterday and he worked hard to assemble it.  (You can see how he's sticking his lip between his teeth in this picture.)

 This is Kylo Ren's ship from the new Star Wars movie.  It was over a 1,000 pieces and a bit of a challenge.  He's thrilled to have it and will keep up the good work.  Serafina is still working towards her deal, but there is a Lego set in the near future for her too.

Addison sleep over

Leo's first friend, Addison, is attending a girls tech day camp here in Sunnyvale all week.  It ease the burden on her mom driving down here twice a day all week and to have a little fun, I offered to had Addison sleep over.   

Today we picked her up from camp and she was eager to show us the robot and video game she had been working on.  

 Serafina went to Nana's house because Leo didn't want to share his Addison time with his sister.  We went and picked up dinner.

 The evening was filled with Star Wars movie watching and ice cream sundaes.  They had a great time.  I made this little collage of the two of them.

Cheer camp

Serafina started her third and final camp of the summer today.  She's in a week-long cheer camp through the parks and rec.  It's just 1.5 hours in the afternoon.  

She had fun.  Leo is on a wait list for a camp next week and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that he gets in since it is the best camp with our schedule.  If he doesn't get in, I'll try my best to find him a different camp.  

Because the date is 7/11, the convenience store of the same name was giving away free Slurpees.  Of course they were a small size which was perfect for my kids.  Nothing says summer like an ice cold cup of sugar and food coloring.

Goodbye Grandpa Skip

We said goodbye to Grandpa Skip today.  He was driving back to Southern California, but next month he'll be moving to Asia.  Since retiring, he's done a lot of traveling, but Asia (specifically Thailand and Vietnam) have spoked to him.  He's decided to relocate for at least a couple years.  We are going to miss him a lot since he always made a point to visit us both at our house and in Seal Beach when we are down there.  

Wine tasting adventure with Grandpa Skip

We weren't up for a big trip today, so the famous "wine country" was out of reach.  Luckily about 20 minutes away, Saratoga is home to a handful of very pretty wineries.  

We visited two today and first up was Picchetti Winery.  We have hiked the trail that runs behind the tasting room but this was our first time going inside.  Here's Tom, the kids, Nana and Grandpa Skip.  

 Next stop was Savannah-Chanelle.  The grounds were quite stunning.

Grandpa Skip!

Grandpa Skip arrived yesterday for a visit and immediately got roped into playing Legos with Leo.  

Today, Grandpa Skip got to see Serafina's hip hop dance in person.  This evening we went to downtown Campbell for dinner with Nana.  

 We went to Frost Cupcake Factory for dessert.  This shop won Cupcake Wars on the Food Network, which is a show my kids love.

Hip Hop Dance Camp performance

Today was the last class of a short four-day Hip Hop Dance Camp and the girls put on a performance.  The instructor made sure to let the audience know that four days is not a lot of time to teach two dances.  Plus the kids did crafts, including making the shirts they wore.  

Of course since Serafina is so tall, she was mostly in the back for the first dance.  

This dance ends with some "freestyling", which the girls told us meant "dancing from your heart".

Hip Hop Dance Camp

Serafina has been wanting to try Hip Hop dancing.  Her dance studio is holding a Hip Hop dance camp this week with her favorite teacher so I signed her up.  She was excited when we got there this morning.  

Not sure what Hip Hop move this is.  

  It's three hours of dancing with a snack break.  She was cranky this afternoon and acting more like a moody teenager than a six year old.  I think it may have worn her out.

While Serafina was in camp, Leo and I had a nice breakfast date and ran some errands.

At Target, he tried to convince me he needed his own Swiffer sweeper for his room.  He cracks me up.

Happy 4th!

We had fun little pool party with friends.

Visiting with old friends

Today we had Leo's first friend, Addison, and her family over to swim and spend time together.  

 Leo and Addison have always gotten along well and today was no different.

 Back in April, they became a family of six when they added little Andrew to their trio of girls.  Don't mind Andrew's worried look; Tom is an excellent baby wrangler.

 Leo, Addison, Riley, Serafina and Paige.

 Silly faces.