Nightmare on the 101

We left Danville this morning without a time schedule, the weather was nice and we thought it would be fun to head home on the 101 South.  We always take the 5 up and back, but there isn't anything fun to look at and I've always wanted to see San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara.

The ride started off great through the rolling hills, beautiful farmland and wineries along the way.

We stopped in San Luis Obispo and drove through the campus of Cal Poly and got lunch downtown.

We were so excited to find a Spudnuts in Santa Barbara too before getting back on the freeway.  Unfortunately, it was bumper to bumper as soon as we got back on.  I checked Google Maps and it said it would take 1 hour 25 minutes to go 10 miles.  Yikes!  We took some backroads to avoid some of it, but there was no escaping it.  Traffic was horrible through Ojai and Ventura and by that time we were in rush hour traffic through Burbank and Pasadena.
The scenery was gorgeous but was not worth the 12 hour ride home.  I think I will take the ugly 7 hour drive on the 5 from now on, but we made it home safe and were so excited to be out of the car!

All Around Town

It was a rainy week in Danville, but we found plenty to do when we weren't relaxing.

 We went to Earl Anthony Bowl with my parents one afternoon and saw Parental Guidance another evening.  It was hilarious.

 We took lots of walks with Max and always love the walking paths

 and bridges that surround my parents' house.  The "red bridge" was one of the best spots to catch crawdads when Chris and I were little and it hasn't changed a bit.

 Matt and I walked to Starbucks downtown one morning and loved walking along the creek.

 Taylor was a huge help in the kitchen and loved making my Grandma Li's pasta sauce with Grandma.

 Papa entertained the girls with a game of Monopoly and took them to breakfast one morning.

Allison loved playing "Grandpa Talk" with my dad and learning about his childhood, likes/dislikes, family history, etc.
We also had a nice visit with Scott and Elizabeth (forgot my camera again) and I had an extra special visit with the Scioscia's (a family I babysat for in high school).  Their sons, Sam and Johnny, are now 27 and 22.  They barely remembered me, but it was great fun for me!

Jelly Belly Factory

 This morning, Sarah picked us up for a fun day at the Jelly Belly Factory.

 My girls love Molly and Brooklyn!  We were all given these fashionable hats to wear on the tour and were so happy to see that production was open today.

 We toured the packaging area and got sample the Jelly Bellys at each stage of production.  Today they were making Pink Grapefruit and Sour Grape.

Molly and Allison were best buds throughout the day

 and Brooklyn was glued to Taylor.

 On the way out, we made sure to buy our fair share of Jelly Bellys to take home and had a nice lunch at Panera before saying goodbye to the Mascardo's.

Christmas Day

I was really bad with the camera today and almost forgot to get any pictures. 

 The girls were up early to see what Santa had left for them.  Allison loved her bean bag chair, Paul Frank alarm clock, iTouch cases, a new pair of Toms and a stocking full of goodies.

 Taylor loved her AE boots, Sony iTouch speakers, Super Mario Bros. for the Wii and a filled stocking.

 Pitch Perfect on DVD was a huge hit and the girls both loved their new beanies from Matt.

We were all pretty spoiled this year and had a relaxing morning with Grandma and Papa opening gifts.  In the afternoon, Mike and Joannie joined us for an late afternoon dinner and dessert.  It was a pretty nasty weather day outside, so we enjoyed watching the Aztecs basketball game and lounging around.

Christmas Eve

We spent the first week of Christmas break up in Danville.  Unfortunately, Chris and his family were in Florida so we didn't get to see them. 

 On Christmas Eve, we attended afternoon mass.

 We ate a delicious Italian dinner when we got home and got everything ready for Santa's arrival.

 The presents were all ready under the tree and the girls were anxious to open one on Christmas Eve night.

 Allison got American Girl ice skates

 and Taylor got new pajama bottoms.

 The girls made put out the reindeer food in the front yard

and left plenty of carrots for them too!  Santa got lots of cookies and a glass of milk and Allison attached a note that said "9 carrots for the reindeer.  The rest of them are for you. Love, Allie & Taylor".
She even put the Santa key on the front porch and said she was up most of the night listening for him!

Christmas Eve Ice Skating

We arrived in Danville late Friday night and it rained all weekend!  We had a nice breakfast and visit with the Curtis Family (forgot my camera), but pretty much were stuck inside.  The weather finally broke on Monday, so we took advantage and went ice skating.

 My dad knew of this nice rink in Walnut Creek and went with us.

 Matt showed off his awesome skills too!

 Allison was stuck on the wall in the beginning, but finished strong and a lot more confident!

 Taylor was a big help and convinced Allison to leave the wall.

They were all pretty proud of themselves and I had fun on the side as a spectator.

5th Grade Holiday Performance

 This morning was Allison's last Holiday Performance in Elementary School...sniff, sniff!  We had planned on leaving for the Bay Area this morning, but she couldn't miss this.

The 5th graders all performed in the MPR at 10:30, singing a few holiday songs for the families to enjoy.

Allison has become good friends with Paige this year and hopes to get together over the holiday break.

Then we went back to the classroom for the Poetry Reading.  Each of the students took a turn on the mini classroom stage to recite their poem for the class and families.  We left right after the poems to try to beat traffic through LA, but the class spent the afternoon watching the Polar Express and having snacks and hot cocoa.

Goals Achieved

 Allison worked hard again this semester and achieved her goal of making Honor Roll!  She was called up at today's Flag Salute and Mrs. McBride presented her with the certificate.

 She earned 5's in Science, Math and Social Studies and got 4's in Reading and Writing.

She took great pride in her schoolwork this year and the hard work paid off!!  Taylor also finished her semester with another 4.0!  This was her toughest semester so far and she had to work hard to keep an A in Geometry and Science, but she pulled it off with great scores on her finals!

GU13 Holiday Party

 It was the older team's turn for our Annual Holiday Cookie/Ornament Exchange. However, this group wasn't as easily entertained by Elf so they spent more time chatting and even did a little caroling in the neighborhood.

 Gaby, Madison, Taylor and May enjoying hot cocoa

 Jessica, Lauren and Jenna

 "Photo-bombed" by Coach

Delicious cookies to share with the team.  We ended the night with our traditional cookie plating and ornament exchange.

TrailDazzler's Holiday Show

Chorus has been a little bit of an emotional roller coaster this fall.  Although Allison wanted to try out for a special part, we knew it would conflict with her community theater play practice, so she didn't try out.  All but a few 5th graders had special roles, which she struggled with.

 However, Mrs. McBride let Allison be the unofficial "stagehand" which brought a smile to her face.  This morning was the 2nd of 3 shows and I was able to attend.

 Allison with her chimney sweeper friends, Faith and Lorien.

 The chorus performers sang songs about Christmas, Chanukah and Kwanzaa.  There were angels and elves and even a visit from Santa and a snowman.

Mrs. McBride and all of the TrailDazzlers work incredibly hard and the show never disappoints. The students seemed to love it too and Allison can't wait to audition for the spring performance!