Woodworking class

 

Nate LOVES his woodworking class on Friday evenings. He's only attended twice, but in a car ride home asked me "Are there any tools you don't know the name of? Tell me what they look like, and I'll tell you their names." And the answer to everyone's questions: yes, they use real wood working tools, but only hand powered.

Kindergarten Field Trip

 

 

 

 

I chaperoned Nate's kindergarten class to the Lawrence Hall of Science in Berkeley. Great sweeping views outside toward San Francisco, Golden Gate and Marin, but some of the exhibits were closed as they switched displays. The kids seemed to enjoy the class inside and of course went bonkers outside, especially around the "river". I enjoyed seeing the different kids Nate sees every day, and it's somehow reassuring to see the common energy, attention deficits, and innocence across the class.

Hike & Swing

 

 

I took Nate and Julie on a little hike on the park behind Burton Valley Elementary school. We couldn't find the trail to the creek, but settled with some old fashioned tree swing on one of the hills.

Full moon

 

Picture taken in the backyard through the now-bare oak trees.

Nate and Binks

 

New best friends.

Benicia

 

 

 

 

We had a fun lunch and walk around downtown Benicia with Gina's brothers. It was fairly cold, but clear...typical weather this winter.

Briones Park

 

 

 

 

A foggy hike New Years day through Briones Park...Gina kindly allowed the "guys" to do a more strenuous loop while she took the kids back pass the flock of sheep. It was a foggy day, but was one of the best hikes I've experienced since we've moved to the East Bay.

San Francisco Civic Center

 

 

 

 

We *cough* drove to San Francisco -- at least it was a carpool -- to take MUNI and visit the San Francisco Libary and the Martin family statue at the Filipino center. We walked then to the always stunning San Francisco City Hall to see how far we could walk up (four of the five stories) as we watched half a dozen couples getting married. I particularly liked the huge christmas tree with peace cranes which incidentally almost covered up the bust of Harvey Milk.