Craftcation - Day 2

Rachel brought the rain with her from Colorado, but despite the dreariness outside, things were bright and fun inside Craftcation. My first class today was Sashiko coasters -

This was the workshop I'd been most looking forward to and it did not disappoint. Relaxing, fun, productive . . . loved it!

Rachel's first class was hand-sewn notebooks and, unfortunately, it was a snore. She made 3 or 4 books in the first 30 minutes, then went looking for another class - any class! - to learn something new.

Our afternoon was spent making the Quick Market Bag, with the same teacher as my Sashiko class, and it was awesome.

Great instructions, beautiful fabric, fun, fun, fun.

Rach and I both finished early and we're thrilled with our results.

Great way to end the first part of the day.

Meanwhile, Addy and Pop headed back to L.A. and the Science Museum.

Addy is fascinated by space and was super excited to see the space shuttle.

She was even happier that she got to see it before her Daddy.

Not that she'd rub it in or anything.

And since they were in the area, Pop and Addy stopped by the Natural History Museum to admire the dinosaurs too.

And to finish off the day? Dinner at Stacked and a trip to Bare Minerals makeup store. I needed to update my 'look' for the Queen Mary 2 cruise and apparently Addy loves her some lipstick.

We made the sales lady's day - and the store's profit margin for the day, I'm sure - but Addy and I are both very happy. And that's what really counts.

Craftcation 2016 - Day 1

We found this cutie wandering around LAX last night and brought her (and her mom) home with us. She's so grown up now!
 
This morning Rachel and I headed out for Craftcation and a day of craft workshops . . . 
 
while Pop and Marie took the 3 cousins on a whirlwind tour of Los Angeles.
  
So while Rach and I made slippers from felted sweaters and
 
travel journals with Amy Tangerine;
 
then learned to put gold foil on leather (Rachel) and

embroidery stitches for a Craftcation sampler (me) . . . .

 Pop and Marie took the girls horseback riding,


steam train viewing,
 
and train riding,
 
the Hollywood sign,
 
then to the Griffith Observatory
 
(this was the highlight of Addy's trip so far; after watching The Martian - many times - she's determined to work for NASA someday).
 
Tomorrow Rachel and I head back for another hard day of crafting while Pop and Addy head for the LA Science Museum and the space shuttle.  
 
Stay tuned! 

Zoo Break

While Leia was on spring break last week, we packed up both girls and headed for the Santa Barbara zoo.
 
You'd think, going to the zoo, that the first thing they'd want to see is the animals. Wrong.
 
First on their list, every time, is a trek to the Wild Slidinghill.
 
Second on the list?
 
Face painting.
 
Then they actually do get interested in the animals. We missed the giraffe feeding (tears from Leanne), and baby Chad wasn't yet on view in the giraffe enclosure; 

but we got to see everything else, including the gorilla bachelors, Goma and Kivu, who are moving shortly to new zoos to start their own families.

Cotton trees - I'd never noticed these before.

And last on their list - because smart grandma insists that this is dependent on their behavior -

 
Toys! Tigee for Leanne and Poisonous Poison Ivy for Leia.

And best of all, especially for me and Pop, both girls were happy and cooperative all. day. long. Surprise!  

Biking Adventures, Take 2

We hadn't realized quite how much Leanne had grown over the past few months until we saw her try to ride the bike that used to fit her so well.
 
So back Pop went to the flea market and home he came with this treasure.
Photo bomb by Leia

A little fiddling with the seat adjustment and we were ready to try her out.
 
Leanne's not quite sure about this; the bike wobbles a bit from side-to-side on the training wheels, so Pop may have to adjust those also. 
 
But a little adjustment and a bit of practice and I bet Leanne will be right on Leia's wheel in no time.   

NatHiMu

Leia's on spring break this week,

and Mary took some time off work to hang out with her,

so today we packed everyone up and headed south.

Leanne has been to LA's Natural History Museum a bunch of times - it's one of her mom's favorite places -

but Mary had never been and she's lived in California all her life!

Leia's been studying rocks and volcanos in school

and is about to start learning about dinosaurs, so the Dino hall was one of our first stops.

The little girls had a great time. There were lots of touchable exhibits, including this giant polar bear. The girls loved being able to touch and poke and explore things without anyone telling them "hands off!"

I think Pop was hoping to get to the Science Museum today too, but we'll save that for next time. Four hours of museuming was about all Leia and Leanne could handle. And now that we know Mary hasn't been to some of our favorite places, we've got a whole long list of museums and gardens to take her and the little girls. Desconso Gardens and Huntington Library, anyone?