San Diego Part 3

On the evening of October 1st, after our day at the beach, we headed to Stone Brewery in Escondido. It was a beautiful facility with great areas to hang out. Our crew found a spot in the back with picnic benches and plenty of area for Tanyon to run around. 

Many of our friends liked the 15th anniversary black IPA, including the birthday girl:

There was a neighborhood garage sale where we were staying that morning and some of our friends found little cars for Tanyon.  They were eager to help him try them out. Here Tanyon is playing with Allison:

Tanyon, after some black IPA...OK, he is just holding the glass:

Our friends Tara and Jeff:

That night, we ordered pizzas and growlers from a local brewery and had birthday celebrations at the house.  Tanyon got to stay up late for cake, which he thought was awesome.

The next morning, we headed to the San Diego Zoo.  It was amazing!  Expensive to get in, but you can see why.  The zoo is huge and it is beautifully done.

Here is Tanyon with the map, ready to explore the zoo. He had a great time picking out animals on the map that he wanted to see:

Tanyon at the beginning of the Monkey Trail, which was his first choice in destinations:

On the way, we saw some hippos, frogs, snakes, etc. He was so excited, that he pulled other children over to the glass, so they would see what he was seeing.

Tanyon really liked the gorillas that came right up towards the glass:

At around 1pm, even the most interesting animal could not keep him awake:

He awoke for some more monkeys though:

He also requested to see some giraffes and was thrilled to see a baby with his mama:

Right after the zoo, we were whisked off to the airport, where we flew home, just the two of us.  We had great fun watching airplanes land and depart while waiting for our flight. Then, mama was so tired on the way home, she splurged on a $3 Go, Diego, Go! marathon on the private tv screen, handed over her headphones and let Tanyon zone out, while I read my book. Going through the airport was much smoother than anticipated, but we were still happy to get home and rest a little before we both had school the next morning.

San Diego Part 2

Saturday morning, we hit the beach early. I was a little concerned about Tanyon's dislike for sand getting in his shoes and not wanting to get in the water; however, he had a blast and we all enjoyed the San Diego sun.

First, he spent some time playing frisbee with Aunt Julia:

The sand "hot tub" where many of our folks gathered:

Tanyon rested with me in the sun:

Picnic lunch:

Tanyon really enjoyed rolling in the sand and pushing it around:

Taking in the view and contemplating the water:

He decided to take a peek with Aunt April:

Tanyon finally went to the "water's edge" (10 feet away), leaned down and hoped the water would come to him:

He eventually got a little closer, but refused to get his feet wet:

Finally, I scooped him up and jumped in the water with him, which he thought was great:

He even let me get his feet a little wet:

Then, Tanyon spent a little time building sand castles and sand food with Aunt Julia:

Carissa and Matt were the only ones that braved getting fully in the water:

Our friend Kevin joined in the sand play:

Trying to get the big preggie belly less white:

San Diego Part 1

At SFO with part of our crew, headed to San Diego to celebrate April's 30th birthday!

 Tanyon got spoiled immediately, with a little frozen yogurt from Aunt April:

Once we got into San Diego, we headed to Old Town for dinner. Immediately, April found the penny machines and got Tanyon hooked.

At dinner with Julia:

Tanyon happily played with April's iphone until dinner came:

 Once dinner did come, he decided to eat chips and guacamole for dinner.  Actually, he ended up ditching the chips after awhile and just ate his guacamole by the spoonful.

Here he is with April and the rose Matt got for her:

We even had the mariachis sing to her to start the weekend off right:

After dinner, we settled into our house rental, which was SWEET!  It was a gorgeous 8 bedroom house in Mission Hills. Each of us had our own room and there was even a massage chair to help in our relaxation.

Viking Opener

The big 20th anniversary of the Viking Classic. Tanyon and I could not participate, but we had many family representatives to take our place.

Funny how when you bring a stroller, it becomes a catch-all for everyone's crap.  Poor Tanyon had to squish in among the stuff:

 Paul and Julia pre-race...buck up guys, you haven't even started running yet!:

Paul and our friend Doug when the race began:

The Aunties in the first 200 meters of the race:

Papa, head down and focused on the mission in front of him:

The halfway point:

Julia, April and Doug, just over a mile in:

Papa still smiling:

We were very proud of everyone.  Each person hit a goal time for the race.  Paul kicked rear, despite running sick with little sleep the night before.  He can't wait to actually train a little and do it again next year.

Hanging at the park for a minute after the race:

Doug and Paul on the kiddie horses:

 Tanyon cheering them on:

 April got in on the action as well:

Tanyon hanging out with Papa at Mary's for a post-race meal: