Ketchup: Life with Liebels II

So, my blogging took a back seat to a frenetic pace of work lately, as well as, my inability to carry my camera around with me anywhere.

On March 11th, Jen, Louloudi and I took a trip to go down to my sister in Julie's in Bakersfield for little Jack's 2nd birthday. Although, he looks closer to 4, the little guy was surrounded by family and fun for a great weekend. My dad even flew in from Kentucky on Saturday and drove the 4 hours to Bakersfield. Jen anxiously awaited the little nieces attention and after a day had won them over with a series of fun games, pranks on Stu and plying them with treats to give Louloudi.

More great pictures for the related event on my sister's far superior blog. 

 Jack and Louloudi had a unique interest in each other.

 We never thought LL would cause any problems and she was super well behaved and accident free.

 Zoe and her favorite mode of transportation. I think she missed me a little. 

 Jen fit right in with the easy going nature of the weekend. 

 Athena actually took about 80% of the weekends photos. Just look for the shorter angle an more artistic flair in the following photos, which I whittled down from about 200 pictures. 

 Jen and the girls played girly games and even painted my toes. 

 The star of the weekend got his Batman jammies and Giants gear that he really wanted. 

 My favorite little comedian. 

 Having fun with the mood mustaches I brought for everyone. Zoe will never cease to amaze me with her humor. 

 Family shot

 The birthday breakfast tradition.

 Athena got a globe and world coloring book from me and we got to explore several new countries. 

 Later on, we took the girls to the park for some exercise. The girls loved taking turns walking LL.

 Jack's grandpa and my dad came for the festivities! He is very loved among the kids and LL. 

 There was a pinata!

 And a warm (not rainy) day, which was nice for a change. 

The festivities carried on in to the night as we made the pinata into excellent party hats and had a fantastic chicken tortilla soup and taco dinner. 

I'm truly lucky to have such a wonderfully close family that isn't too far away. 

Hip Hop Academy

So we don't know too many people in our neighborhood, but that number seems to grow every day. Just the other night I was walking Loulou when I smelled some fantastic pizza and stopped in for a bite. The table next to me struck up a conversation (as is the case when you have a dog as cute as her) and one thing led to another, before we were all exchanging phone numbers. One girl in the group worked as a teacher/ nature specialist at the nearby Academy of Arts and Sciences and invited us to the Conscious Hip Hop night. She got us comped tickets and free passes to the Planetarium.

The Academy of Arts and Sciences is a giant museum right in the middle of Golden Gate park that we have passed many times, but hadn't had the opportunity to go in. A Thursday night with service bars set up around the museum supplying plenty of beers and cocktails, while hip hop sounds throughout the museum from underneath the Blue Whale skeleton.

 Sea urchin petting

 Aquarium you can walk under

 Awesome planetarium

 DJ

 Jen and her bug

 Jellyfish

This museum was recently renovated entirely about 4 years ago and I have to say, it is by far the most impressive museums I've ever been in in terms of style and engagement and definitely one of the best for its exhibits. It's hard to top such museums as the Egyptian Museum and the Met, but this is a new favorite. We'll be back.

San Francisco So Far

So, we made it here and the blog took a backseat to all the business we had going on. What can we say aside from eagerly anticipating our next box to arrive and quickly installing everything inside it, before we were tasked with what else to get for the apartment. A small apartment is easy to fill and we are already pretty settled aside from the TV and couch we are still deciding on, but those aren't essential by any means.

SO for those of you who want a peek into our inner city lives (and who doesn't, it's thrilling finding the grocery store at this point) here are a few shots of the apartment.

Where we walk Louloudi is in the fantastic Golden Gate park just two blocks away. Since moving in, we have discovered that dog owners run this neighborhood and there are plenty of dog friendly restaurants, stores and even pubs! The best spot is a dog run that right next to us where lots of dogs and their keepers mingle. Louloudi loves her walks and is always eager to get to the park to play with about 3-6 other dogs at any given time.

Then we made our way north to Baker Beach, which is renowned for its view of the Golden Gate bridge, as well as being a wonderful place for dogs to roam free. Jen had planned the trip as her Valentine's Day present to me and packed a wonderful picnic of fresh cheese, wine and bread from the farmers market, salmon and some wonderful artichoke dip. We gorged and laid in the sand, while watching the Golden Gate bridge seemingly disappear in the distant fog. We watched surfers ride their skimboards on the waves and the hobbyist fishermen catch Dungeness crabs. Louloudi ran til her hearts content until she was a big lump of exhausted dog.

Then our very romantic candlelit Valentine's Dinner, sans plates (yet to arrive) and a simple dinner together.

That's our live in San Francisco so far. Soon there will be much more to update!