Thanksgiving

Post Thanksgiving walk on the hill near the Forum with Dan, Mimi, Gina, Julie, Mark & Nate. Oh, and Lucca.

SF Auto Show

On Wednesday we went to the SF Auto show for the first time and met our friends and their three kids. There weren't any concept cars, but we did get to see a BMW i8 in person, kick the tires of a new MDX, and get inside a couple of Maseratis. In the Toyota display they had the three Giants World Series trophies for pictures. Julie said she liked the MINI Coopers where she could work the radios while pretending to drive. Nate liked the Lamborghini and the Lexus dealer who locked each of the kids in trunk to show them the glow-in-the-dark release button. 

Martinez bike ride

After Powells, we took our bike to the new George Miller Trail in Martinez. It's a paved waterfront extension of the Bay Area Trail that reaches from Martinez to the tiny town of Crocket. It was just opened a couple of weeks ago, and with sunny weather, it was perfect for a quick 3 mile ride, and a time-lapse video taken with my iPhone. The ride was more peaceful than it looks!

Powells

I promised a run to the local Willy Wonka-themed candy store, Powells, if the kids did well on their first report cards. It was all A's for Nate and perfect scoring for Julie, so we made good on our promise on Sunday. Nate danced his way into the store front, the goof, and Julie made sure she was extra careful scooping out Swedish fish and chocolate covered sunflower seeds.

Julie's Birthday

Caspian

Julie's 10th birthday present came early: a four-month old, cinnamon pied cockatiel she named Caspian (from the Chronicles of Narnia). He's sweet, shy, and somewhat loud, and Julie's been making him comfortable by reading books to him every day. Today was the first day we were able to hold him.

Two Recent Hikes

On the hills above the Moraga Tennis Club while Julie was finishing her lessons, and around the Lafayette Reservoir rim trail.

Halloween 2014