San Diego Getaway

It's been a brutally cold winter in New York this year. So cold, in fact, that in December we decided to scrap our original February-break plans of skiing in the Poconos, and warm up in sunny San Diego instead. Boy, did that turn out to be the right move! The day we flew out it was 18 degrees. When we landed in San Diego, it was only about 65 degrees, but to our miserable, winter-beaten bodies, it felt like paradise.

We stayed at the Catamaran Resort in Mission Bay based on a friend's recommendation, and I was so grateful we did. I'd originally planned on booking a Residence Inn near the zoo, but after my friend mentioned how awesome the Catamaran was, I decided to look into it. Turns out it's located directly on the beach and features resort-like facilities. From the looks of the website, I figured it would be an expensive place to stay, but it turned out to be slightly cheaper than the Residence Inn! This was the view from our sliding glass backdoor. 

We sent the kids out to play on the sand while we unpacked our things. The front desk even let us borrow beach toys, free of charge. 

The interior of the complex was gorgeous as well, with lush foliage lining the paths, koi swimming in the ponds, and fancy-looking ducks roaming the grounds.

I honestly couldn't recommend this hotel enough. We even got free breakfast at the resort's restaurant thrown in, just because I had a nice conversation with the receptionist when I was booking the place. And the Catamaran offered great discount tickets to the San Diego Zoo and Legoland, two of the destinations on our itinerary.

Our first day in San Diego, we decided to drive about 20 minutes north to Torrey Pines Natural Reserve. We were told that the views along the hiking trails couldn't be beat, and that there was a nice beach there. Hiking with two small children who prefer riding in their strollers to walking isn't an easy feat, however, so I did extensive research on how doable the trip would be for us. It looked like the Guy Fleming trail, which does a 2/3 mile loop, was the simplest, so that's the one we attempted. 

It turned out to be just right for us. The trails are sandy, so pushing a stroller is out, but the hike is just the right length and offers breathtaking views along the way, so the kids were too occupied to complain. 

There are signs along the way to tell you about the various plants and trees on the path, and my kids were excited to see the namesake Torrey pine tree. Toward the end of the trail, just as my daughter started whining about thirst, we came upon a water fountain. It was a hiking miracle!

Feeling accomplished, we got back in our car and drove down to the beach below. Oh, I should mention that if you're planning on hiking here with small children, it's worth it to pay the parking fee ($10) to park inside the reserve. I'd read that there's free street parking outside, and at first we attempted to snag a spot, to no avail, but it turned out that it was lucky we didn't find street parking because there's an extremely steep climb to get into the reserve in the first place, and then to get onto the first hiking trail. We would've been done before we began.

The Torrey Pines beach is amazing. Easily one of the best beaches I've ever visited. The entrance is layered with smooth rocks of a ridiculous variety of colors and patterns. 

We wanted to take one of each kind home, but soon gave up because there were so many kinds. My kids spent a long time just picking through the rocks. 

The rocks give way to smooth, fine sand, and next my kids spent an hour on their all-time favorite activity - outrunning the waves. 

The shoreline goes on and on, the water is crystal clear, and the sand is pristine. Why can't East Coast beaches look like this?

Next we drove to La Jolla for lunch. We ate at Puesto, which bills itself as a Mexican street food restaurant, but it's actually more like upscale Mexican fusion. Think lobster tacos and fruit salad drizzled in chile sauce. The ambiance was nice, though, and the food was good. 

After refueling, we were ready to check out La Jolla's famous coastline. There are several popular stops that are within walking distance of one another along the coast: La Jolla Cove, Shell Beach (for tide pool exploration), the Children's Pool (which isn't a pool at all, but a beach where seals gather and people go to watch them), and the La Jolla sea caves. 

Our first stop was Sunny Jim's Cave Store, which is the only way to access a sea cave on foot. Usually people swim or kayak to check out the caves, but we were in no position to attempt such adventure. So instead we paid $5 each (Leah was $3 and Matt was free) to descend 145 steps down a dark, wet tunnel. 

At the bottom, we got to view the mouth of the cave, which is said to be shaped like the profile of a famous British cartoon. (Shrugs.) 

Then it was time to head back up. In retrospect, I would've skipped this activity, as it was rather touristy and expensive for not that much payoff. But I suppose it's worth it if you're a cave enthusiast whose unable to kayak or swim. Going down the dark stairway was also kind of fun for the kids. 

Next we made our way over to La Jolla's famous cove, which was indeed beautiful. The space is rather small, though, and swarming with tourists. My kids had fun outrunning the waves on the beach, but had to dodge other people while doing it. The cove was definitely worth visiting, though, because of the seals. Seals would swim up to the shore just a few feet from us, and then climb out! Some of them hung out on the rocks by the water, while others made their way to the back of the cove and took a nap against the back wall. 

We moved onto Shell Beach after that, to check out the tide pools. Turned out to not be such a good activity for small children, as the rocks were very slippery and I was pretty sure someone was going to end up with a huge gash on their knee or head. We spent more time on the beach instead. 

Our last stop was supposed to be the Children's Pool, but we'd seen plenty of seals up close already, so we decided to head back to the hotel to wash up for dinner instead. Our intention was to venture into the Gaslamp Quarter (about a half hour away) for burgers, but we weren't sure the kids would make it without falling asleep, so we ended up driving back to La Jolla and eating at Burger Lounge instead. It was a tasty (though far from healthy) meal, and the vanilla milkshake was good. 

The next day, we all woke at the crack of dawn thanks to jet lag. The plan was to visit the San Diego Zoo, but it opened at 9, and it was about 5:30. So after breakfast we spent some time checking out the Spruce Street Footbridge first, located near the zoo. I'd read that it offers great views and is fun to cross, and both these things are true. But it's also totally dangerous for kids! The whole bridge wobbles from your weight when you walk on it, and the sides are pretty open, so falling to your death is totally a possibility. It was fun to walk across, but we were gripping our kids' hands pretty tightly the whole time. 

Finally it was time to visit the zoo. I actually don't love zoos, but of course we had to go to the San Diego Zoo while we were in San Diego. The goal was to see the pandas first, since we'd heard that the line for that exhibit could get out of control. As soon as the gates opened, we sprinted to the back of the park, where the pandas are located, and breathlessly entered their exhibit. It was completely empty! We were the first people there! Jet lag is good for some things.

After we had our fill of panda cuteness, we walked around the back of the zoo for a while, and then took the skyride back to the front of the park, where we boarded a tour bus that takes you to all the major exhibits (both these rides are included with the price of admission). If you're going to take the bus tour, make sure to sit on the upper level, and on the RIGHT side of the bus. You see so much more that way! I felt bad for all the left-siders who had to stand up and crane their necks through the whole tour.

After that, we were done with the zoo. It'd only been about three hours, but as I mentioned, I'm not much of a zoo person and it turns out that neither are the rest of my family members. We headed out and across the street to Balboa Park for lunch. The park is amazing, by the way, sort of like New York City's Central Park, but more low-key and artsy. So much to see and do - carousel, museums, gardens, water fountains. It's just a nice place for kids to run around. And they loved the clock tower there, which chimed every quarter hour. 

We had lunch at the Tea Pavilion near the Japanese Friendship Garden in the park. It was Japanese fast food, but it was pretty good. We all had the soba noodles. The outdoor seating is very pleasant and overlooks the Friendship Garden. 

That evening we tried a divey taco place called La Playa Taco Shop, right next to our hotel. It looked kind of dicey, but had great reviews on Yelp. Turned out it was our best meal of the whole trip. I had the combination plate with two fish tacos, and they were literally the best tacos I've ever eaten in my life. I regretted not having discovered this place sooner.

Next we headed around the corner to a custom ice-cream sandwich place called The Baked Bear. The concept is fantastic (choose your cookies and ice cream flavor, and they combine it into an ice cream sandwich for you), and everyone in my family was very excited about the cookies on display at the front of the store. 

The sandwiches are gigantic and we couldn't finish them, so we had to choose which parts to eat. My husband and I were more into the ice cream (the cookies 'n' cream is excellent - perfect texture), while the kids focused their attention on the cookies. Difficult decisions, I know.

For our last day in San Diego, we drove half an hour north to Legoland California. This is a great park for kids ages 3-8. Just about all the rides are geared toward younger children, and there were lots of those driving types of rides that my kids love, where they're behind the wheel of a car or boat or plane. 

I was impressed by all the stations where you could play with Legos. On rides where the wait time is pretty long, there's a play area for children so they're occupied while the parents stand in line. For the most part, we didn't have to wait longer for 10 minutes for rides, although for one ride (Safari Trek in the Duplo Village) we waited almost an hour. My kids also spent a lot of time at the Build and Test building in the Imagination Zone, where they built cars and raced them. 

We also visited the very cute miniature land, where Star Wars scenes and famous U.S. landmarks are recreated using Legos. My favorite replica was of Grand Central Terminal. 

All in all, I enthusiastically recommend Legoland for younger children. As someone who's done her share of amusement parks, this place ranks highly for originality. We ended up staying the entire day, from 10 to 6, which is something we've never been able to do before. The food was also very good, and fairly priced. I liked the cinnamon-covered apple fries that they sell toward the back of the park.

And that was it for our trip to sunny San Diego. When we got on the plane to return to New York, the stewardess announced that it was 7 degrees back home. Not the best conditions to return to, but at least we got to escape the cold for a few days! 

Unleashing Mayhem on the Slopes

Today my 5-year-old and 3-year-old both had their first-ever ski lesson. It blows my mind that this is even a thing - a skiing preschooler. A year ago, he was in diapers. I was more than double their ages added together when I first hit the slopes.

I had very low expectations for the outing, but since Tuxedo Ridge in Tuxedo, New York, is only about 45 minutes from our house, my husband and I figured that if everything went to hell we could always just turn around and be home in less than an hour. Why was I worried, you ask? My kids hate the cold. They don't do well with uncomfortable or bulky clothing. They're not particularly athletic. They cry whenever they fall down - sometimes the surprise of falling down is enough to set them off. The younger one occasionally has separation anxiety, so I was concerned about dumping him on some unsuspecting ski instructor. And they can both go from cheerful and excited to grumpy and uncooperative at the drop of a hat. That's why I was worried.

I'd heard lots of good things about Tuxedo Ridge, though. It's supposed to be a tiny mountain, geared toward learning and good for families. That's exactly what we needed. Plus, the weather was great - low 40s, no wind. So I signed each of the kids up for a one-hour lesson and packed up all our snow gear (no easy feat), and we headed to the mountain.

The day turned out to be GLORIOUS. Things weren't looking so good at first; the gear was cumbersome and Leah started getting apprehensive about going off with a ski instructor. We were late for our lesson because it was so difficult to get the kids ready. We rushed out to the meeting spot and I was about to reassure each kid that they would do great and we'd watch them from the bottom, but the two instructors flew over to us on our skis, identified themselves, and whisked the kids onto the lift before I could say goodbye. Matt's instructor, a really tall, athletic girl, literally picked him up, his skis dangling from his little boots, and skied off to the lift, holding him in front of her. I don't even think my husband could've done it so gracefully.

What proceeded was nothing short of a miracle. Both kids proceeded to learn how to ski, and they had fun doing it! They each came down the mountain several times, smiles on their faces the whole way. If falling occurred, they were quickly lifted up, and continued on their way. They barely cared to say hello to me at the bottom of the mountain - they were just excited to get back on the lift. The hour flew by, and then it was time for lunch.

After lunch, they both wanted to go out with the teachers again. I was so excited about their excitement that I didn't bat an eye at spending the extra $140 for two more private lessons. (Did I mention that today's miracle on the slopes came at a hefty price?) We were able to secure the same instructors, and off they went. This time instead of hovering at the base of the mountain, I went into the canteen and read a magazine by the fire. Paul went off snowboarding. The money we were spending was totally worth it.

We ended up staying at the mountain till the lift closed, which is way longer than I expected. We all left tired, but happy. Which is all I could want in a first-time skiing experience. I love Tuxedo Ridge. It really is the perfect place to start your kids with skiing - not crowded or crazy at all. And we couldn't have asked for better instructors. I will say that I also witnessed some not-so-great instruction going on, and the group lessons didn't seem to be particularly helpful. I was standing at the base of the mountain for a long time, so I got to witness the gamut of ski instruction capability. The foot of the bunny slope, by the way, is an extremely dangerous place to be.

So perhaps we just got lucky with our two wonderful instructors. And you basically need to be rich if you want private lessons all the time. If I were rich, I'd be on the mountain every weekend, catching up on some reading while my kids became proficient skiers. But as it is, I'm extremely happy with the experience that we had today, and more importantly, my kids came away with confidence, a sense of accomplishment, and a positive attitude toward skiing.

Plants and Trains

Every year we attend the train show at the Botanical Gardens in the Bronx, and every year I'm happy that I have a friend who gets us free tickets from her employer - because this event costs an arm and a leg! It's a beautiful exhibit - but $28 per adult and $16 per kid for an experience that lasts half an hour, tops? (Plus $12 for parking!) I guess those plants aren't watering themselves.

I've also heard that this exhibit should be avoided at all costs on the weekend, as the lines are insane, even with the timed-ticket entry, and you're basically herded down the aisles. I'd be pretty upset if I paid all that money only to be rushed along. For $28, I think I'll take my sweet time, thank you very much!

Anyway, if you can manage to go on a weekday, I'd recommend checking out the train show, as it is a pretty awesome experience. Buildings, bridges and New York City landmarks are constructed from flora of all manner, and train tracks are laid throughout the exhibit for miniature trains to run along.

We had nine kids in our group, ranging from 1 to 5 years old, and everyone had a good time. The older kids loved running from display to display to keep up with the moving trains.

My personal favorites are the cool bridges made from thin, entwined branches. Such delicate twig-work. (That's a real botanical term, yes? Twig-work?)

So in the end I give the exhibit a thumbs up, but the prices and crowds a thumbs down. Such is life in the big city, I suppose.

Land Before Time

Matt vs. Brachiosaurus

We visited The Dinosaur Place in Oakdale, Connecticut, this past summer, and I think the pictures speak for themselves. 

My kids were enchanted, and I was, too. The dinosaurs don't move, but the fact that they're life-sized makes this attraction so worth the two-hour drive into Connecticut. In addition to the hike around the park (on paved roads) to view all the different dinosaurs, there's a splash pad, a maze, and a truly awesome playground. There are more activities next door (for an additional price), such as unearthing fossils and panning for gold, but we did not partake in those. Mystic Seaport is also very close by. You could easily make a weekend of it.

Oh wait, I take it back, there is one dinosaur that does move - an animatronic Dilophosaurus that's tucked away in a cave was added to the park recently. There's a sign outside the cave that warns that this attraction may be frightening for small children, and after going in to view it myself, my conclusion is that they need to make that sign larger! That dinosaur was crazy scary! The Dilophosaurus was featured in Jurassic Park - you remember, it's the small dinosaur that has a frill on its face which fans open when it's provoked? And it spits venom at you? Well, this guy did both of those things (presumably water was used in place of actual venom), and my blood ran cold at the sound of its screeching. The thing looked positively evil!

Anyway, aside from that, The Dinosaur Place provides non-scary family fun.

'Tis the Season for Giant Pretzels

Not being a big beer drinker, I've never celebrated Oktoberfest before. But since having kids, the idea of downing a tankard of beer the size of my torso has become more appealing. So we decided to check out the Oktoberfest celebration at Bear Mountain this year, which promised good food, good music and good pedal-boating. 

Well, the food and music were good, but pedal-boating season had come to a close and there were no boats on the water. Either that, or the parks department had decided that drunk pedal-boating would be trouble and shut it down for the festival. At any rate, two out of three weren't bad. I had a wurst of some sort and potato pancakes with applesauce, and the kids had the kids' version of that (hot dogs and fries). We decided to polish off the meal with a Bavarian pretzel, which is basically a giant, overpriced pretzel. Are Germans all giants? What's with all the oversize food? I could barely get my mouth around the sausage. (Yes, I know: that's what she said.)

Some tips that we picked up from this trip:

1. Go early. We arrived at 11 a.m., one hour before the festival started at noon, and it was already way too late. The parking situation was already atrocious, and we had to wait on a long line of cars just to get into the alternate lot. 

2. Go to the Bear Mountain Inn, which is near where the festival is held. Don't go to observatory (which we did by accident) and don't go to lodge (which we did by accident). 

3. Bring a picnic blanket. There are actually tons of picnic tables available, but they get claimed pretty quickly. Anyway, it's nice to throw open a blanket on the grass by the lake.

4. Bring your kids' bikes. We wish we did. There were so many open, paved roads, perfect for your kids to careen out of control on.

5. Did I mention that you should go early? The wait for food was about two minutes when we started out. By the time we were ready for dessert, the wait was at least half an hour. We decided to skip dessert.

The nice thing about celebrating Oktoberfest at Bear Mountain when you have kids is that it's, well, Bear Mountain. There are so many kid-centric activities. We went on the carousel twice; it's only $1 per ride, and adults don't get charged if they have kids with them. 

The animals that you get to ride on are native to the area. My kids chose to ride on black bears. There were also otters, frogs, Canadian geese, foxes, rabbits, bobcats, wild turkeys, skunks and more. 

After eating, we went to the zoo ($1 suggested donation), where we saw some real black bears. They were pretty darn cute. We also got to see some coyotes and hung out in the reptile house for a bit. There was more to see, but at that point all the heavy food was catching up to us, and we decided to call it a day.

Happy October to you and yours!

Matt vs. Life

Over the years, I've taken many photos of my son, Matt (now age 3), battling it out with various situations. Here are some of my best "Matt Vs." photos.

Matt vs. Gender Stereotypes. When your older sibling is a girl, it's inevitable.

Taking a manly stroll along the Bronx River Parkway.

He wanted the pink headband.

Matt vs. the Seasons. The kid loves the outdoors. But do the outdoors love him?

"Not sure what's happening here, but I like it."

Taking a dip in our private leaf pool.

Reluctantly gathering eggs at Stone Barns Center. 

"Matt vs. Citrus" at Showcase of Citrus in Orlando.
Matt won, but citrus had the last laugh.

Matt vs. Yoga. Guess not everyone finds it relaxing.

Matt vs. Yoda. A tie, it is.

Matt vs. Food. Because apparently food issues start at a young age.

Feeding time at the zoo.

Matt vs. Shake Shack

Matt vs. Momofuku chicken

Matt vs. Pat's Cheesesteak

The kid loves his tofu. He wouldn't wait for me to dig up a fork.

Cupcakes are his Achilles' heel. 

Cotton candy shouldn't be taller than your child.
But at Rye Playland it is.

Matt vs. Fate. So when a Korean child turns one (Matt is half Korean), he is presented with a huge party and a table that holds symbols of his future. Money = wealth, string = a long life, pencil = scholarly pursuits, etc. The baby is placed in front of the table and given the opportunity to choose an item. The first one he grabs is supposed to determine his fate. Guess which item Matt chose?

Five points to everyone who said pencil. Apparently we have a scholar in our midst ... which may be for the best. He'll need his wits about him to continue winning these battles in life.