Galileo Road Trip - Route 66

You might remember that I mentioned before summer started that Landon & Tatum were heading to Camp Galileo over summer break.  Landon went last year and had so much fun, we definitely wanted to send him again.  This year, Tatum was old enough to attend as well as a Nebula (their PreK to K program).  This year Landon went as a Star, which is their 1st to 2nd grade program. 

Their were four new themes this year and as a returning camper like Landon, it's nice to have a new set of themes to choose from the year prior.  They attended the week the theme was Galileo Road Trip, which incorporated art and engineering along Route 66 (Chicago to Santa Monica). Everyday included an art activity, science activity and an outdoor activity.  I loved that Camp Galileo balances all three together in one day.  They exercised their creativity, minds and their bodies. 

Not only does Camp Galileo teach them new things in art and science, but they instill really great values as well.  As you can see from my pictures above, you would find posters in all of the classrooms and on the lockers outside that had positive messages being shared with the children - Innovate, Create, Collaborate, etc. 

Every morning the staffers would be waiting in front of the school to welcome the kids into camp with extreme enthusiasm to get them excited for the day ahead.  You could either walk the kids in or you could drop them off with the staff where you knew they were being well taken care of and would be guided to the proper room after they were checked in.  Everyday at pick up, you would get a chance to chat with the staff member that had worked with your child everyday about their day.  Camp Galileo also provides a summary sheet of the activities that your child did that day and what to expect for the next day (dress-up themes, activities, etc).  

At the end of the week, the kids show off their inventions, share songs and special moments from the past week for their parents.  Then Landon & Tatum took me to their different rooms (Art and Science) to show you everything that they created with their friends that week.  As you can see in the picture above, there are A LOT of fun creations and art that came home from their week at camp.

But the best part about Camp Galileo to me is the smile on my kids faces as they share with me everything that they got to do, build, create and learn that day from camp.  They have already asked me if they can go again next summer!

What was your child's favorite summer camp or activity this summer? 

*This post is sponsored by Galileo, but my opinions and thoughts expressed in this post are my own. 

Cheers,

Cheers to the Weekend

Cocktails at Bottega in Yountville - I love the large ice cubes in a cocktail!

Cheers to the weekend!  Has this week felt extremely long to anyone else?  Excited that Friday is finally here and can't wait to kickoff the weekend with date night at Farmshop tonight!

• I'm headed here tomorrow in downtown San Francisco and I'm excited to hear some interesting speakers and meet some fellow bloggers in real life!

• Sunday we are probably headed out to Nicasio Valley to do a little pumpkin patch expedition!

• I read this blog post and it kind of stopped me in my tracks!  It's something that all parents have to stop and think about.  Are we doing the best that we can do?  Are we letting stress and life get the better of us?  This post made me cry and made me want to really think about my actions and responses towards my kids! 
• Also, if you live up in Marin or on the North side of San Francisco - Target has opened in San Rafael - making it a lot closer for us to spend all of our money at! 

What are your plans this weekend?  I hope you all have a fun and relaxing weekend! CHEERS!

Happy Easter Weekend

image via

image via

Happy Good Friday and happy Easter weekend!  I'm excited for a weekend full of egg coloring, Easter egg hunts and a lingering Easter brunch!  Here are some of my favorite Easter posts from around the web:

• Loving these watercolor eggs from Modern Parents Messy Kids as a different way to paint your Easter eggs! 
• Calligraphed Eggs from Oh Happy Day look so simple and clean! 
• Black and White Eggs with sharpies by Obviously Sweet!
• Love this set up for a Easter Egg decorating party set up from see jane blog!

Don't forget that today is the last day to sign up for the DODOcase iPad sleeve giveaway! Good luck to everyone! 

What are you plans for the Easter weekend? 

Hoppy Easter! (sorry, I had to do it)

Cheers,

Halloween

Hope that you all had a safe and fun Halloween! The rain hit us off and on while we trick or treated, but everyone was in pretty good spirits (except when I tried to snag the Peacock's aka Charlotte's binky to tag a binky-free picture of her).

What did you or your little ones dress up as? Leave a link to your pictures - I would love to see them! 

Cheers,

Nicasio Pumpkin Patch

If you are looking for activities to do this weekend, you can take a little drive north of San Francisco to a tiny town called Nicasio.  They have a pumpkin patch nestled against the hills that is open from 10am - 6pm everyday.  They have a field full of certified organic pumpkins to choose from, hay rides, hay maze, farm animals for the little ones to look at, bouncy houses, live music and BBQ with plenty of seating.  As a bonus, it's right next to Nicasio Valley Cheese Company where you can do some cheese tasting or pick up some cheese, crackers and salami for lunch.

On the way back to the city, stop in Fairfax for a delicious scoop of ice cream at Fairfax Scoop!   

If you don't feel like venturing out of the city, my favorite "pumpkin patch" in the city is Clancy's Pumpkin Patch.  Once you step onto their lot, you almost feel like you have left the city.  

The 26th annual Goblin Jamboree is going on all weekend long at the Bay Area Discovery Museum this weekend!

What are your plans for the weekend? 

Cheers,
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Fitzgerald Marine Reserve Tide Pools

About 30 minutes south of San Francisco, in Moss Beach, is the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve with its gorgeous tide pools to explore.  It is really quite easy to get to and a quick walk from the parking lot down to the beach (3 minutes). Unfortunately, when we first arrived around 1:00pm the tide was in and we couldn't see the tide pools.  So make sure that when you go you coordinate it with when the tide is out.  By 2:00pm the tide was starting to recede and we were able to explore all the different sea life.  There was also about 40-50 harbor seals at the end of the beach just basking in the sun (note: you have to stay at least a football field away from them).  I highly recommend wearing your rain boots to keep your feet warm (even though it didn't seem to bother the bambinos).  Before or after visiting the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve, you could stop at Moss Beach Distillery for a drink on the water's edge (recommend a drink or beer outside on their back patio while snuggled up underneath a blanket but not a fan of the food) or drive down another seven miles down to Half Moon Bay and enjoy a drink and a lobster roll at Sam's Chowder House on the water's edge.

This is my first video with iMovie! What do you guys think? Do you like to see a video of pictures or just the pictures on the website?

*Side note for all of my dog lover friends: Dogs are not allowed at the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve (I assume because of the harbor seals).

**Music on the video is From the Morning by Nick Drake and Here Comes the Sun by M.Ward.

Tutu School

Tatum went to her first ballet class this last Monday at the Tutu School.  The Tutu Toddler class is not really a structured ballet class, but an introduction to movement and music for the little ones.  The parents/caregivers participate alongside their little ones to help them through the class. 

As you can see from the very first picture, Tatum wasn't a huge fan of a class where you have to listen to a teacher.  Let's just say she wasn't "feeling" it that day.  Visualize her sitting on the floor while Mommy circled the class with butterfly wings and shimmied across the floor with a rose held high in the air (just a little prep for my Dailey Method classes that I am going to start next week)!  I think it will take Tatum a couple of classes for her to get used to the structure of the class and hopefully she will really start to enjoy it.  

I was very impressed with the way that the teacher talked to all of the little ones and led them through the stretching, movement exercises (beginning techniques of ballet with a fun toddler twist) and music.  

I definitely recommend their classes if you are interested in getting your little one involved in a dance class and want to start them out in a very relaxed and fun class to check out Tutu School.  They have classes in San Francisco and in Marin! Happy twirling!

If you are a GGMG member, you receive a 10% discount!

Finger Painting

I am definitely getting tired of the old San Francisco summer!  Go away fog and drizzle! This mommy needs some sunshine! 

Bring Your Daddy to the Discovery Museum Day

We love going to the Bay Area Discovery Museum and we mostly go during the week. But this last Saturday we took Carlos aka Daddy along with us and met Jeff, Linsey and Baby B there. It's pretty funny to see as you pull in the parking lot all the Dads getting out to their cars and heading into the museum. During the week it is mostly Moms with some occasional Dads there. But on the weekends....the Daddies are out in droves! 


After the Discovery Museum we headed over to Fish in Sausalito for some fresh seafood. If you are in Sausalito and it is a sunny day you should definitely stop there.  Sit out on the deck overlooking the marina and try their crab roll sandwich or the fresh catch of the day! Delicious!

Favorite Photo of the Week

Playing around at the Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park!

San Diego Vacation

We headed down to San Diego to tag along on a business trip that Carlos was taking and to celebrate Landon's 4th birthday! The whole week Landon was so excited about going to Sea World to see Shamu, dolphins, turtles and SHARKS! Unfortunately, the weather didn't cooperate and it wasn't as warm as we wanted it to be. Our beach/pool plans didn't really pan out since it was so windy and I thought that everyone would be way to cold. We headed to Old  Town on Friday for some delicious Mexican Food at Casa Guadalajara . 

On Saturday, we headed to Sea World. We arrived in time for the Shamu's first show, which worked out well timing wise. You never know how long you have with two toddlers. Landon was very serious the entire time and just stared at the tank of water (the picture above of Landon staring at the water was before Shamu even came out). As soon as the show was over Landon said that he was ready to go home. Ha!  We ended up being there for five hours! I was shocked that the two of them lasted that long. The last set of pictures was Landon and Carlos deciding to climb up the rope bridge, then proceeding to get really upset on the rope bridge and then once at the top of the rope bridge, happy again. Poor guy! 

On Sunday we headed to La Jolla to check out the beach, have some brunch and walk around before we headed back up to San Francisco in the afternoon. It was a quick little trip, but it was a nice little getaway for this family of four (soon to be five)!

**Not so crazy about the preggers pics of me...but in an effort to make sure that I am documented in our lives...I am coming out from behind the camera and allowing more pics to be taken of me...good or bad!