Lions and Tigers and Bears!

This Tuesday, we (S1, S2 and I) headed to Park Safari with two of my cousins and their children. I asked myself during the long drive over whether or not it would be worth it...

As it happened, the kids did not complain too much on the way over, S2 fell asleep on the way back. And in between, they enjoyed a water park geared towards young kids, enjoyed some ice cream, and saw many animals, including lions, a large tiger, and some sleeping bears.  So exhausted were they by 14h, that we decided to forego the driving safari, and instead drove home...Perhaps next year we will return, I told my toddler after she asked to return the following day!

Greetings from San Francisco!

I waffled about whether or not to go, and finally decided that I would attend a medical conference in San Francisco less than a month ago. Initially we were unsure if we were going to bring the Brat along, and eventually decided that it would be too much for my mother if we left her for an entire week. And of course we would miss her horribly...

So here we are in sunny San Francisco. Of course, everything  is relative...The high today was only 20C, but it was a pleasant change from Montreal where we haven't been outdoors for longer than a few minutes at a time in well over a month.

I mostly dreaded the flights, as there are no direct Montreal-San Francisco flights. However our daughter behaved herself surprisingly well on the way over. She stayed in her seat (actually our lap) for the most part, and took a two hour nap on the second, and longer of the two flights.

We arrived on a Monday evening, and my conference started on Wednesday morning. My husband and I would have probably planned our trip a little differently had we been without child, but we found it nonetheless amusing. Here is our week in photos:


Her first cable car ride:

Captivated by the cable car

At the San Francisco Zoo on Tuesday:

Backing up with her very own tractor

On her first ever carousel ride

Wednesday took us to the the Aquarium by the Bay in Fisherman's Wharf:

Looking at a starfish

Thursday at the Yerba Buena Children's Garden:

Warm enough to remove shoes and don a hat!

Friday, the only rainy day all week took us to the Exploratorium, an indoor kid's science centre:

Making music at the Exploratorium

Saturday at the Westfield Shopping Center:

Trying on some Ugg shoes

Overall the trip exceeded my expectations, but for one small matter. The three-hour time difference. It was a breeze for my husband and I. As for the Brat, she had no difficulty falling asleep a few hours later in the evening. The problem has been the really early mornings. She has insisted on waking up at 4:30 every morning. Despite getting only 6 hours of sleep...my husband and I pretend to be asleep when she awakes at this crazy hour, and she eventually falls back asleep, but 2 hours later! Perhaps upon our return, we will be rewarded, and she will sleep in a little later every morning...