Family Visit to San Diego

Brenden and Dan at Coronado Beach

It was time for the family to come visit us in San Diego

My Photo Book

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REAL PIRATES Exhibit at the Natural History Museum

The year was 1717. Valuable cargos were being shipped across the Atlantic. Piracy was at an all-time high. Sam Bellamy and his fearsome flotilla had just captured the slave ship Whydah on her way to England, laden with gold and silver. But before the crew had a chance to divvy up the abundant spoils, a storm would send the ship, its treasure, and 143 men to the bottom of the sea. Discover the perils and privileges of 18th century pirate life as you explore more than 200 authentic artifacts recovered from her wreck.

Of course Brenden was mostly interested in the activities at the end of the exhibit as you can see by the pictures. There was any photography allowed in the actual exhibit.

Valentine's Day

Today my friend Donna and her son Davis met us at the new YMCA in Eastlake for a one hour free play - the kids had a blast!

 

 Doughnuts for Dada

 Valentine's Day card from NaNa and PaPa

More Legos!!!

Finally getting around to building one of his biggest Christmas presents! Brenden loves the Lone Ranger!

Montessori School Field Trip to Museum of Man

Today I helped chaperon Brenden's class on their field trip to the Museum of Man at Balboa Park. There are 10 kids in his class and 12 kids in the upper class. The kids really liked the Egyptian exhibit and the 'hands-on' play area at the end of the museum. They all behaved relatively well.

Brenden's Second Ski Lesson

Brenden, Dave, Erica and George all went up to Alta to ski after the nice snow storm yesterday. Brenden did well at the Alf Engen Ski School and is ready to "go to the red level"!

Slay Snow Sledding at Sugar House Park

FUN!!! Brenden had a complete blast sledding with Dada! He was a little hesitant at first but that soon dissipated after the first run down the hill.

High West Distillery and Saloon - Park City, Utah

Spending two days in Park City was nice! COLD but nice. We took a tour of the High West Distillery and Saloon which was informative and entertaining. Here is a short history on the buildings which I thought warranted attention.

The National Garage / Livery Stable

The horseshoe in High West’s logo and on our bottle honors a shoe we found during renovation of the “National Garage” which was originally a livery stable to service the workhorses that pulled the heavy ore carts up and down to the mines. Master Carpenter Ellsworth J. Beggs rebuilt a smaller livery stable in 1907 for his “Beggs and Buckley Livery”. As automobiles became popular, the partners began servicing cars, changing the name to Beggs and Buckley Garage. Local sign painter Roy Fletcher painted the original National Garage sign. Later, when the business became the Sinclair Park Motor, Fletcher painted the sign as well. The garage business operated until 1942. When the Silver King Coalition Mines Company building burned down in 1981, the heat was so intense it melted the paint away from several layers of re-painted signs to what you can see today.

Natural History Museum of Utah

No trip to Salt Lake City would be complete without going to the awesome Natural History Museum located at the University of Utah. Every year we take Brenden he becomes more and more in awe of the dinosaur bones and the other exhibits. This year was no exception..he loved it all!

Happy New Year 2014