We just did! Here's a pic of Claire and me leaving for our first trip without Nate! (He's out of town for work. :( ) Let's just say it will be a while before I vacation with Claire without him.
We had a bit of a family reunion. You see, my grandma grew up on Alcatraz. The prison. I know, sounds a little crazy. Her dad was a guard there and she lived there for seven years, ages 3-10. She would have to ride the ferry everyday to get to school and back. Well, for her 76th birthday, she decided it was time to visit again. She rounded up her three siblings and about 30 members of our family to come along. It was an awesome experience! We got an incredible private tour from three of the guides. We even had a San Francisco news crew covering the story. KSL also ran a story, which you can see here. (Watch for me pushing Claire in the stroller!) So fun!
Here we are listening to my grandma tell stories of growing up in an apartment just like this one.
Grandma with her eight kids (my mom is in the front with the pink jacket).
Group shot
Grandma and her four siblings: Uncle Leo, Aunt Priss and Uncle Bob. They are standing in front of the fireplace of their actual apartment.
We found this picture on the wall during the tour. You can see my great grandpa!
After the Alcatraz tour, we did a little sightseeing. Have any of you ever been to Lombard Street? It's this crazy switchback road that is lined with beautiful flowers. We saw a huge Suburban driving down it! Crazy!
The next day, we headed up to Muir Woods to see the Redwoods. The trees were gigantic! Claire was finally able to just run around and I let her get as dirty as she wanted.
My sister, Angie, and her son Drew, Claire and me in front of a tree that is over 1,000 years old.
Claire telling Drew that he couldn't go behind the fence.
Me and my little girl
Crossing the Golden Gate Bridge
Claire and Drew while we were crossing the Golden Gate Bridge
Claire and Drew got to bathe together every night and I swear it was their highlight of the days. Claire would kick her feet and splash and Drew thought it was the most hilarious thing ever.
On our last day, we drove down to Monterey and went to this amazing aquarium. I wish they had something like that here! Claire was entranced by the fish!
They loved feeling the starfish.
Claire kept trying to touch Dory from Finding Nemo.
We officially found one of Claire's favorite places on earth at this aquarium. It was this little walled-in area that had a big water bed-type play area. She could run all over, fall down and never get hurt. Once we had to leave, she pretty much cried the rest of the time because she wanted to go back so bad.
What a fun and memorable trip! I'm so grateful I got to learn a little more about my family histroy!
And don't worry - we're headed to Rawlins, WY again next week to visit Nate, so I'm sure I'll have some fun stories to tell. Hopefully I won't saunter into another AA meeting...we'll see...
18 comments:
What a fun trip! And what a cool family history story! Jeff and I tried to go to Alcatraz when we went to San Francisco a year and a half ago. But the tours were all booked up, so we just took a boat ride around the island. Some day we'll have to go back.
So I've known you for how long and you're only telling us now that your grandma grew up on Alcatraz? That's awesome! I love that story.
I also love how protective Claire is of Drew and telling him not to go behind the fence. Thanks for sharing.
Melissa,
What a fun trip. It did look COLD! Have fun in Rawlins my friend! LOL!! I love it!
Hey Melissa...it's Emily Buckley (I still read your blog...I feel like a little bit of stocker, but really I just love seeing your fun family pics and all the fun things you're doing with your life...I'll send you a link to my blog.) Anyway, I love your new haircut! You look bee-u-ti-ful! We used to vacation in San Fran a lot when I was little. I totally rememeber the "crookedest road in the world" as we called it and we spent MANY days on the beach across from Alcatraz. Fun trip! You are so brave to do it alone without Nate.
What an awesome trip! I loved this post. Too bad Nate had to miss it. By the way, your hair looks cute. And by the way again, could you stay in town for two seconds so we can get together?
Sounds like you really had a blast. No wonder we haven't been able to get a hold of you for VTing! I'm sorry, we're so bad at it. It sounds like you're doing well and having a fun summer. Talk to ya soon!
I love Cali! YOur haircut is so cute!! We missed you at the last GNO - hope to see you soon.
I love San Fran. That is so cool about your Grandma. What a fun trip and you are truly brave to travel alone with a little one. I haven't tried that one yet.
Oh my gosh! I saw this on the news! What an amazing story. My mom, sister, and I are taking a trip to San Fran in a couple of weeks...I'll totally think of you guys while I'm there! :)
p.s. your hair looks adorable!
what a great story... and a fun trip. good for you for braving it without Nate. Seems like often vacation isn't really a vacation anymore. :) Your haircut is so cute- i love the bangs. Love the pix of you and claire!
I can't believe how big Claire is! It was good seeing you at the soft ball game a few weeks ago. If I'd had a blog then I would have totally already known how big Claire was!
What a fun trip and an incredible family history story!! I'm impressed that you braved it without your hubby!! Hope your trip to visit Nate is a fun one! Thanks again for the pictures! We got them yesterday and LOVED them!! No wonder you are so busy! Congrats on quitting your job!! Let us know how the AA meeting goes! :)
Looks like you had a great trip! We'll have to compare notes, but it looks like you didn't have to worry about all the smoke from the fires like we did. What a difference a week makes! That is so cool that your grandpa was a guard at Alcatraz...I'll bet he had some neat stories to tell. See you soon!
That is so cool! What a great heritage! Fun trip! Love you!
How fun is that! Too bad you didn't extend your trip and come down here for a couple of days! You look so good and I love your hair. Have fun and hopefully we can see each other soon.
That is amazing. I am so fascinated by Alcatraz. I can't believe that your Grandma grew up there! I would LOVE to meet her. I bet she has some awesome stories! I was just in San Fran also, Alcatraz was one of my favorite places to visit. I am glad that you had a good time. You are a brave Mom to travel with Claire without Nate :)
So fun! I love San Fran! What a cool story about your grandma too!
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