Surprise!!!

Look who showed up on our doorstep one night!

Of course they were chaperoned by my Mom and Ginger (and Hazel).

We came home from dinner at a friend's home and the kids were just about in bed when there was a knock on the door. I was so shocked it took me a minute to realize who they were. Did you really just drive all day to see us? It was a wonderful surprise! Just what I needed!

Of course we filled the days they were here with the best Burbank can offer:

The beach (not really offered by Burbank - just kind of close)


We choose the hottest day of the week (79). It was cold at windy. Ginger and Hazel stayed safe in the car. All the kids were brave enough for the water and Hattie even tried the boogie board!
"She's the queen of the wa-a-a-aves!"

The grand tour of NickelodeonAnd playtime in our backyard

Eliza even had an early birthday party!

"This is the best birthday EVER!"

Thank you for coming!! We miss you!

Chinatown L.A. style

We are trying to go somewhere new each Saturday. One week we made it to Chinatown. It was only 15 minutes away - which really means an hour on the freeway.

The kids loved checking out all of the 'stuff'. They had each earned about 50 cents doing chores. I was surprised to discover there wasn't much for even that in Chinatown! I supplemented their earnings so they each had four quarters instead of just two.

Eliza found a "China fan" early. William tried out the ride on toys and quickly put his quarters in before I could stop him. He enjoyed a 30 second ride on a spaceship and had enough leftover to buy a tiny box of snaps.

An arts festival was happening at the same time and part of the streets were abandoned except for strange and too-modern-for-us art on display. Including the pink brigade: 5-6 people wrapped up in bright pink material - all attached together and blocking our escape route. The festival also included a woman dressed in an American flag (which she had had enough of because she decided to take off the top half and talk to some friends before she felt like putting a shirt on! Good thing her back was to us and the kids were busy with something else)
Overall Chinatown wasn't like the Chinatown in San Francisco. I remember a trip there with my Dad, Jenny and Tom when I was in college. There seemed to be much more to see and experience. The kids, however, weren't disappointed. They can't wait to go back to buy more quality trinkets!