Fries

How To Eat Fries, by Jaclyn 

First, take the stabber from PopPop’s burger. Make sure it’s clean.

Add fries in a pleasing arrangement.

Keep adding fries. More is better.

Taste. Add salt. 

Consume.

Monday, Fun Day

Monday has become our ‘take Jackie somewhere fun’ day. 

Last week was the Channel Islands National Park visitor’s center, which is usually great for kids.

But it was being remodeled - the cool fish tank we wanted to see was empty - so not as much fun for Jac as we’d hoped.

This week was different.

We headed north to Santa Barbara and the Sea Center on Stearns Wharf.

  ”He’s right behind me, isn’t he??”
The Center is fairly small compact 

 ”Whale? What whale??”

and just the right size for the toddler crowd. 

 Petting her first shark

Best of all, almost everything is touchable

and the college-age docents are enthusiastic and wonderful with kids.  

Jac loved the tide pool exhibits,

especially the touchable(!) starfish and sea cucumbers,

but the best part of the day

was the wet deck.

Jac was the only kid there at the time, so she got to help with everything,

from lowering the collection bucket, to rinsing off sea-floor sand,

and discovering treasures from shells to tiny living creatures. 

She was enthralled. 

 An intact sand dollar!

And there were so many more things to see and touch

when the next basket, with larger creatures, 

came up on deck.

Jac actually discovered a small spiny starfish that had gone unnoticed in the collection bucket and ‘supervised’ his relocation to a safer spot. Yay!

 Octopus
We didn’t realize how lucky our timing was

 Moon jellies

until we finished our walk-thru of the upstairs exhibits

and Jac went flying back to the wet deck only to find school groups crowded around and everyone having to take turns. 

She did managed one last exploration before we left. 

Such concentration!

It’s absolutely exhausting. 

Almost Friends

Surprise, surprise.

Turns out these two can play nicely together. 

Maybe it’s that they are spending more time together 

or that they are getting a bit older

 We have fingers!

but it is a pleasant, very welcome change. 

Donovan hasn’t figured out how to mug for the camera yet, but Jaclyn has it down pat.

Love these cuties.

Donovan

Mary posted these over the last few month, so I’m stealing reposting on the run up to April, when little man will be 2. How is that possible already??

Day Drive

Hubby’s 20-year-old “baby” has been under the weather for a few months - the valve seal had to be replaced - so it’s been awhile since he’s had her out for a spin.

But today was sunny, we had no baby-grand responsibilities and heck, we’re retired!, so off we went, 

up the coast for lunch on the beach in Santa Barbara. Gorgeous!

Baby also failed her smog test for the third time, so back to the shop she goes on Monday.  Poor old girl. 

Whale Watch

For her birthday, Leanne asked to go whale watching. 

So Friday, while she was still out of school for Presidents Day Week (!), 

 
and Leia had parental permission to skip school, 

we headed for Island Packers in Ventura Harbor.

As always, there’s no guarantee we’d see whale(s), 

and for the first 2+ hours it looked like we were going to get skunked. 

We saw a seal almost before we cleared the harbor,

 There’s a seal on the buoy, honest

along with lots of brown pelicans hanging out on the jetty.

It didn’t take the captain long to locate the local dolphin hangout.

They came racing toward the boat,

jumping and diving,

swimming alongside

just under the water

and playing in the boat’s wake

so close we could almost touch them. 

There were easily several hundred dolphins in the immediate area. 

It was amazing 

and the girls were beyond thrilled.

Then we cruised up to Carpinteria

and the outskirts of Santa Barbara 

without seeing much of anything but crab pot markers

and a Mylar balloon that the crew snagged on our way by.

Then finally, with only about 30 minutes left on our cruise,

the star appeared

and put on quite a show. 

Judging by his size, the crew thought this humpback whale was probably a teenager.

He stayed close enough to the boat

that we got good photos with our iPhones,

including details like the barnacles on his (her?) back. 

And, like a seasoned performer, he saved the best for last. A series of about 20 loud tail thumps, one after another. It.was.awesome! 

Or as Leanne put it, “best birthday present ever!”