10.30.2011 Warriors Dash - a 5k run through mud

This is a summary video of an event called Warrior Dash. It's the first race of any kind that I've participated in. It was a lot of fun and not too difficult at all actually. It's a 5k run but has 12 obstacles ranging from simple plank walks to muddy mud pits. And after the race, you get to shower with other participants out in the open space by a firetruck. What can beat that on a Sunday morning in California? Definitely worth doing again!!

The location of this particular race was in Pacheco Pass Hwy., Hollister, CA 95023, but similar races are held throughout the country.

Sorry about the quality of the video - ipod nanos aren't exactly made for these kinds of things.

For larger sizes of the pictures (although still fuzzy), go here.

10.26.2011 Evan walking

After months of taking one or two steps by himself, Evan's been taking multiple steps alone lately and progressing really quickly.  Here's a video of a few trips that Evan took on 10/26 - when Evan was 13 months old.

10.22.2011 Oakland Zoo

On a beautiful Saturday, we took Evan to Oakland Zoo.  We were a little hesitant to go that 'far' but were quite glad we did.  It only took about 40 minutes to get there as there wasn't any traffic.  The parking was $7 (no discount) and the admission totaled $14 for the two adults (half off as a result of displaying Happy Hollow Zoo [SJ] membership).  The first exhibit we saw once inside the zoo were the flamingos and spoonbill.  Everything was uphill from then on!  We saw Siamangs, gibbons, alligators, lions, tigers, elephants, giraffes, etc.  These were all animals that Happy Hollow Zoo didn't have, so it was great to see them.  The zoo itself is extremely clean and well-maintained, and beautiful, with its many hills and hollows. We're definitely looking forward to coming back here!

For more photos, go here.

10.18.2011 A baby liking carrots?

Talk about instilling good eating habits for the children.  Here Evan's munching on a raw carrot stick and apparently liking it quite a bit.  Might be because it's soothing for his 8 baby teeth!

10.09.2011 Ardenwood Farm Fall Harvest Festival

We were at first going to go to Half Moon bay to see the pumpkins, but since the pumpkin festival was next weekend, we went to Ardenwood Farm instead.  It was our first time there and were pleasantly surprised at how much fun it is.  It was full of kids from young to old, with numbers easily in the hundreds, perhaps into the several thousands.  But it's a big place so it didn't feel that crowded at all.  The biggest attraction this weekend were the pumpkin fields and the corn picking.  As you can see from the photos below, there were thousands of pumpkins to pick from (they even supply the wheel barrels and kiddie pull carts), a pyramid made of straw bales, a maze made of the same, and lots of corn to pick.  The corn were of two types: indian and popcorn.  The indian corn is just for decoration (though I suppose you could grind it down to cornmeal if you had the machinery), and the popcorn corn could be popped once they've dried (6-8 weeks from now).  There were old fashion tractors that Evan really liked, people in colonial times apparel, corn husk doll workshops, magic shows, etc.  Oh, and train and tractor rides which we didn't do this time.  It's a fun place and we're likely to come back in the future.