The Sea! The City! The Mountains!

I've admitted this before: I miss the desert. This time of year during monsoon season, the desert is especially a marvel. Baba Butterfly was our "chief family meteorologist" and would alert us to big storm clouds forming near our little yellow home. We'd race outside to hear cracks of thunder, and we'd look up and see the sky ablaze with lightning. Tarantulas would dart further into their burrows. Scrawny coyotes nervously ran for cover. We'd breathe in the fresh scent of creosote lingering in the wild wind and rain, and feel our hair become tangled by the storm in minutes. It was pure magic. 

While I have some days of longing for my time in the dust and saguaros - there are many days I feel a sense of gratitude for this new place of ours. This place has majestic Redwoods in our backyard, self-driving cars whizzing by, and the bay not more than a 15 minute drive up the road. I often pinch myself that I get to be a stay at home mom in this bewildering yet fascinating city. 

For a young child, merely exploring with a small picnic basket on a Saturday afternoon can lend itself to day of imagination and discovery. Here's a few stand out moments this month, if you're feeling curious...

::Sister and Brother Butterfly experience their windiest day at the beach yet. They watch the waves crash tumultuously onto the shore. We observe how seagulls all face the wind to prepare for takeoff. Brother Butterfly crawls after one curious seagull and giggles the entire way. They built sand castles behind some driftwood to block their treasured creations from the wind. 

::We took an impromptu trip to Golden Gate Bridge. Sister Butterfly remarks, "Wow! Red steel is really strong!"

::The children take their time meandering on a path in the redwoods. Sister Butterfly collects the clovers and wildflowers and Brother is happy to hold the loot. Sister Butterfly points out a leaf chewed to bits by a hungry caterpillar. And we wonder aloud what might have emerged from a tiny cocoon found on a leaf - "I think it's a lady bug!" she guesses. 

:: Brother Butterfly has learned how to get into a small chair himself. He sits their for nearly 5 minutes straight some days, his big eyes beaming with pride!

::Sister Butterly has taken an interest in constellations and volcanoes - a topic her wonderful preschool teachers helped her to discover. At home, she built her own volcano with clay and her eyes lit up watching it erupt with "lava" - this idea was all her own. 

For now, I'm treating our stay in this amazing place as the best extended vacation ever.