Samuel & LA

Sam has found his place in his new class, the Lily Kindergarten. Everyday, he and his friends are so busy: cooking, sewing, drawing, playing. They are currently in the throes of beautiful holiday stories and celebrations (Advent, the history of St. Nicholas, Hanukkah, etc.), and he is loving all of it.

Went downtown for a little modern art love at the Broad.

In the pumpkin field.

Apple picking in beautiful, old Oakglen, California! Oakglen is, essentially, a nook of the town of Yucaipa, comprised of solely of apple orchards. After a lot of research, I chose the farm, Los Rios at Riley’s. The Riley’s have been caring for their multiple farms and orchards for years and years, and we had a wonderful time. We enjoyed warm apple and cherry turnovers to start our morning off right, then picked apples and pumpkins.

Extra fun times with Shelley and Cozmo at Mr. Bones Pumpkin Village in Culver City. At some point, the relentless sun was too much for me and the baby, so I took cover under one of the tents while Sam pulled Cozmo in a wagon all over the grounds.

For our last day in the park, we climbed the short, steep path up to the top of Moro Rock. 6725 feet above sea level, I was holding tight to the hand rails, but Sam was so brave, and Nathan exhilarated.

Driving, and hiking, through Sequoia and Kings Canyon.

In the Giant Forest of Sequoia National Park.

Our first road trip in California as a family! For my 40th birthday, we drove up to the town of Three Rivers, also known as the gateway to the Sequoias. It was magical weekend, complete with Sam losing his first TWO teeth!

Above: some shots from our visit to the Getty Center.

At the MoCA museum in Downtown LA.

After a couple weeks of extreme weather, we finally returned to the Huntington Library. This time, we walked around the very quiet, serene Chinese Gardens, before feeling the rise in humidity and turning back.