Birthdays

Sea World

Posted on April 4, 2013 by Debora

This isn’t a real post; I just want to share some pics I took at Sea World yesterday, and this is the most convenient place for me to display a stack of photos.

Orcas are always bigger in real life than I expect them to be. They are technically dolphins, not whales, so my brain always thinks of them as large-dolphin-size. And then I see them again in real life and remember that they are actually small-whale-size. Photos don’t really do them justice.

This was a belated birthday trip for Elizabeth, who turned 15 about three weeks ago. My little (hah, she’s taller than me) adrenaline junkie wanted to check out the new roller coaster, Manta. When we saw it in person Manta looked disappointingly tame — no loop-de-loops or steep drops or gimmicks, just a nice swoopy coaster. It’s unexpectedly fun to ride, though, we did it twice yesterday and loved it. (Actually there is a gimmick, but you don’t see it until the ride begins.)

The older coaster, “Journey to Atlantis,” is still the reigning favorite. Elizabeth’s bff Emma rode it once, Luke and I rode it twice and Elizabeth braved the chilly weather and splashy soakiness to ride it three times.

I love the Atlantis-themed aquariums in and around that ride. Really beautiful designs.

They’ve added a few new rides besides Manta since the last time we were there.

There’s also a new sea-turtle exhibit over by the Shark Encounter.

Sea turtles know how to boogie.

Can’t remember which aquarium this guy was in. He seemed to enjoy looking out as much as we enjoyed looking in.

I don’t know what these are, but I like them!

Petting the mantas.

Why do they call these sea lions? They look and sound like dogs…all they need is little corgi legs.

April in San Diego is gorgeous. Everything is in bloom.

Obligatory “smile big” pic. Can’t believe how tall Luke is getting.

That’s probably enough for one post. Happy Birthday, sweet girl. You make me so proud.

Addendum: A Sea World rep has asked if I would include a link to the park in this post. I don’t really do advertising on my blog, but I see no harm in this case — Sea World is pretty awesome and we love it.

So here is where you can check out the park’s attractions and visiting info.

(I have no affiliation with Sea World and I’m not being paid to add the link, it just seems like a good cause.)

Categories: Animals, Birthdays, Family, Friends, kids, Life, Love, Wildlife | Tags: Sea World | 3 Comments

Storming The Castle

Posted on August 9, 2012 by Debora

Yesterday the kids and I went to Castle Park in Riverside for Luke’s birthday. He won’t officially turn twelve until next week, but the Castle will be switching over to their fall (well, school year) schedule next week so this was our last chance to catch the summer hours/rides.

The scorching heat kept the crowds away, so we didn’t have to stand in a single line all day. We pretty much had the place to ourselves.

Elizabeth was the only one of us with the intestinal fortitude to ride Fireball.

…Twice in a row.

They’ve added a water park since the last time I was at the Castle, and that’s where all the people were. Next time we’ll bring bathing suits and spend more time splashing around.

I was a little disappointed to see that the actual Castle building itself has suffered a decline in artsy ambience. The upstairs is closed off now; when I asked an employee she said it had been converted to offices. And the awesome old medieval decor downstairs was traded in at some point for just cramming as many arcade games into every square inch as could possibly fit. There were still air hockey and skeeball though (and air conditioning!) so we did spend a little time inside.

But where Castle Park really shines is in its miniature golf courses.

Sadly my favorite course was closed yesterday, but the one we played was almost as fun.

Confession: I’m not the world’s biggest fan of youngsters in general. But I love hanging out with these three in particular. They’re smart and funny and fun and nice.

Elizabeth’s favorite ride was the flying saucer. I didn’t think to get a pic of it because it doesn’t look like much from the outside. Riders walk into a UFO-shaped structure and stand against padded walls. There are no restraints, and none are needed. The saucer starts to spin, faster and faster, and centrifugal force makes the padded sections of wall slide up, with the people pressed flat against them so their feet leave the floor. I’ve ridden it before but I didn’t yesterday, because my 43-year-old stomach can’t handle the spinny rides the way it used to. Emma and I waited outside while Luke and Elizabeth tried it for the first time. We both marveled at how fast it was spinning. “It looks like one of those…what are they called?” I asked Emma.

“Those things they use to train astronauts for zero G?”

“No, the tiny things that scientists use in labs.”

“A centrifuge?”

“That’s it! How do those things work, anyway?”

Emma gave me a tidy little discourse on how and why a centrifuge can separate blood cells from plasma and so on. It was awesome. Even the ride operator was listening in. When Luke and Elizabeth stumbled out of the UFO we asked them if their blood cells were all separated from their plasma now. They said it was entirely possible. And for the rest of the day Elizabeth couldn’t stop talking about how amazing and mysterious centrifugal force is. And the thing is, I know very few adults with whom I can have those kinds of conversations and make those kinds of jokes. I do know a few, and treasure their friendship with all my heart, but why aren’t there more grownups who manage to bring their wonder and whimsy and uncomplicated enjoyment of life with them into adulthood?

Anyway, we had a ridiculous amount of fun yesterday. Happy almost-birthday, Luke! You’re one of the coolest kids I know, and I love you like crazy.

Categories: Birthdays, Family, Friends, Humor, kids, Life, Love | 6 Comments

Sampler Saturday: Espio At Disneyland

Posted on October 9, 2010 by Debora

I’m sure it comes as no surprise to readers of this blog that my children live rich fantasy lives. I don’t worry much about it; I’ve come to believe that most children (and frankly, a lot of adults) spend a fair amount of time in alternate realities of their own imaginings. I know I did when I was a child, and later as an adult through online rpg’s and such. These days my need for fantasy seems to be at a low ebb, but I get plenty of it through the eyes and stories of my kids, so maybe that’s enough to keep my imagination entertained.

Anyway. Elizabeth’s current favorite fictional friend is Espio the Chameleon, and he’s pretty much her constant imaginary companion. On our trip to Disneyland and California Adventure in August, she made observations now and then like, “Espio LOVED that ride!” or, “”Man, Espio got soaked on that that one.” I’m sure there’s some fancy psychologist’s term for this sort of imaginary attachment and projection, but when I think about all the other things that a 12-year-old girl could be getting into in this town, I count myself (and her) lucky that this mild obsession is only about a cartoon reptile-boy. (And yes, I have my own theories, but they are personal and I cannot share them with you, Dear Internet.)

So after we got back home, Elizabeth took a bunch of the DL/CA pics and photoshopped Espio into them, for her own personal collection. Here are a few of my favorites:

I love that Luke and Espio have pretty much the exact same expression in that last pic.

Nice to see Cartoon Reptile Boy had a fun time. And…that concludes this week’s glimpse into the mysterious workings of Elizabeth’s brain.

Postscript: I used to think that I have one child who loves to talk and communicate and express himself, and one child who is quiet and private and keeps her thoughts and feelings to herself. And to a certain extent that’s true, but…not really. Elizabeth has the same need to express herself and be heard that every other human on the planet has. She just does it in her own language, like, well, every other human on the planet. Elizabeth’s language is artwork, so you have to listen with your eyes and with your heart.

In the past couple of days I’ve read some articles and blog posts and seen a movie that collectively have left my heart aching for all the children whose parents never bother to learn their children’s language, or never really see or hear them at all. If you’re a parent, PLEASE, take the time to learn the language your child speaks in. It is so worth the effort, for them and for you. The future could be a much better place.

And every dad, married or single, NEEDS to read THIS. Seriously.

/soapbox

Categories: Birthdays, Family, Fiction, Gaming, Humor, kids, Life, Love, Sampler Saturday | Tags: California Adventure, Disneyland, Espio, Imaginary Friends | Leave a comment

These Small Hours

Posted on October 7, 2010 by Debora

This one is dedicated to two of my fellow bloggers, who are having (separate and unrelated) rough times right now and are looking for some happy.

********************

The first time I ever heard Rob Thomas’ song “Little Wonders” was shortly after Steve and I separated. I immediately downloaded it from iTunes and played it over and over for weeks. It seemed to be speaking directly to the tangled knot of pain and hope that had taken up residence in my chest, and I wanted the knot to hear and believe, and maybe loosen its grip a little.

For a long time (like, until just the past couple of months), it was difficult for me to look at photos taken during that first year or so after the split. You could see the hope and the growing glimmers of peace and joy in those images, but my memories of the raw underlying pain were still too fresh. I looked at those pictures and remembered just putting one foot in front of the other in a determined effort to get through the tunnel and into the light.

I’ve been out of the tunnel for a while now, but I still love that song. It’s full of truth and light and strength, and if you’re ever going through a difficult time you should add it to your favorite playlists and listen to it until the sunshine comes back.

All of this is to explain that today’s Love Thursday post is in video form, and also to express my gratefulness that even the first half of the video makes me smile now instead of making my stomach hurt. Always a bonus. I’m hoping it can bring a smile or two to anyone else who needs one today.

So now, without further ado:

Happy Love Thursday everyone, and special virtual hugs go out to Jenny and Mir. Things will get better. You are loved by so many.

Categories: Birthdays, Christmas, Family, Friends, kids, Life, Love, Love Thursday, Marriage, Music | 5 Comments

Luke’s Belated Birthday Post

Posted on September 23, 2010 by Debora

Luke hit the Big One-Oh in August. He’d told me way back last winter that for his tenth birthday he wanted to do what we’d done when Elizabeth turned eleven: a two-day trip to Disneyland and California Adventure. I told him that sounded like a grand idea, and when I was working at the Census job I set aside a chunk of cash to cover the expenses, basing my estimate on what we’d spent for Elizabeth’s trip.

A few weeks before his birthday, I started looking into the details and realized that the only SoCal discount the resort is offering this year is a 3-day pass. It was a great deal, but even so, the money I’d set aside wasn’t even going to cover the cost of the passes to get in. Never mind the two-night hotel stay, the food, the gas…yarg.

Now, this was a complication, not a catastrophe — except for the fact that my hard drive had just crashed, it was going to cost upwards of $300 for a new one, and if I went ahead with the Disneyland plans there was no telling when I might be able to afford the repairs. Part of me felt like the only reasonable thing to do was to cancel Luke’s birthday trip, or shorten it to a single day at Disneyland. And in fact that probably would have been the “reasonable” course of action.

The funny thing is, I never gave any serious thought to going that route. The kids wanted three days at the parks, I wanted three days at the parks, it wasn’t going to kill us to be computerless for a while, and a kid only goes from single-digits to double-digits once in his life. I bought the 3-day passes.

It was TOTALLY the right choice. Three days is exactly the right amount of time to spend at the Happy Place. We went to Disneyland the first day…

…California Adventure the second day…

…and back to Disneyland on the third day:

It was definitely the highlight of the kids’ year. (I had a blast too, but the highlight of my year was getting new wall siding to replace the tinfoil stuff that used to let in the wind and cold and bugs and stuff. But that’s another post.) I know that from a strictly logical point of view it doesn’t really make sense, on our budget, to spend all the money we spend on these birthday outings. But someday when Luke and Elizabeth have grown up and moved on and they look back at their childhood years, it’s not the home improvements or the size of the savings account that they’re going to remember with a warm glow of nostalgia. It’s these times we spend enjoying each another’s company, sharing our laughter and ourselves with one another. And maybe someday when they have kids of their own, they’ll instinctively know how create a life of true joy and love and laughter for their own families, instead of buying into the world’s relentless message that More Stuff is the key to happiness.

Happy Love Thursday, everyone. May your Happy Place always be shared with the ones you love!

Categories: Birthdays, Family, kids, Life, Love, Love Thursday, Travel, Uncategorized | 2 Comments