Pacific Finale

             It always goes so quickly, doesn't it?  The first days seem long, almost leisurely...but the last couple fly by!  We had some fun, as my expert parenting skills led us to find some awesome dive bars late at night after Bella had gone for a final run and was off to sleep.  'The Duck Dive' was one, with many big screen t.v.'s, killer BLT's and Pacifico on tap. My favorite. The waitresses loved the bambini!  'Dirty Bird' was another, a tribute to the Baltimore Ravens (my Dad would have loved this place and the wings!!) and 'Bare Back' where the kids feasted on donut holes at 11:00 at night and our waitress inexplicably walked out of the window to chase some people that she knew who had walked by...great IPA's on tap there.  We watched a bunch of hockey (lots more NHL fans on the coast, especially with the L.A. Kings in the Stanley Cup chase!), some basketball (I still cannot believe Oklahoma has pro-sports.  Oklahoma.  Seriously.) a little baseball and some surfing.

              The weather was incredible the last two days - sunny, 70 degrees and the water was pretty nice...Autumn and Cody wore themselves out boogie boarding and Tonio got into the act this morning. 

Cody and Autumn head into the surf together.  It was heartwarming to see these two find common ground and enjoy each other.

Tonio barely left my side.  We built sand castles, dug holes and jumped waves together

The bambini captured some fiddler crabs and are holding them here.

They discovered a large cave in the cliffs...near the sign that says 'Danger!  Stay off cliffs!  Unstable!'  I know the feeling.

Then, they built sea side condos for their crabbies!

Look close!  Autumn has a little guy resting on her thumb (that's me wrapped around her little finger!)

After a full day on the beach, we decided to go downtown.  I showed the kids the hotels that Kim had once upon a time booked us in and told them tales about those trips...like the Hyatt on the bay, next to Sea Port Village and the Best Western Carillo, just up the street from the ballpark.

Cody poses with his dream car - a Ferrari!

Well, maybe coming downtown was my idea because there was a Padres game.  Maybe.

Autumn was fascinated with Petco Park.  It is a nice ballpark, not so glitzy like Chase Field - more of a traditional ballpark, but with family friendly features...like this sand box!

The Giants were in town and we got to see Tim Lincecum, at one time one of the best in MLB, pitch.  The Padres took a 4-1 lead - but they are in last place and they quickly showed why falling behind 5-4.  Carlos Quentin, who we used to watch regularly here in Tucson when we had minor league baseball, the Sidewinders (Oklahoma has a pro team.  Really.), tied the game with a monster home run.  Logan Forsythe, who neither you nor I have ever heard of, won the game in the 9th with a walk off home run.  It was a great game!

Bella and I ran the beach near midnight...

And were back running it around 6 this morning..

With two little shell hunters (yes, Cody is still asleep!)

We walked to Paradise Pier, where you can rent a cottage right on the pier.  Kim looked into this once, but I can't remember what happened...

Another great day at the beach and back to Little Italy...

Cody chose a place called Davinta's, because he remembered going there a lifetime ago, when it was called something else and was so beautifully decorated. He asked 'Dad, where was the place that you could sit out back and they had incredible statues and paintings?'....it was very different, but he and Aut enjoyed pizza with prosciutto and arugula, while Tonio feasted on rigatoni and sausage!

We spent some time with our old friend Jeanne, who owns Bella Stanza on the corner of Beech and India, the beginning of Little Italy. She had just been to Italy and is going to San Fran tomorrow and to Laguna Beach Sunday. We got a neat pitcher to add to our collection of things Kimmy picked out there for our home, and a St Francis ceramic wall hanging...Tonio got a Pinocchio to hang in his room!

All of these beach visits and I cannot decide which are more beautiful...sunrises over the Atlantic or sunsets over the Pacific...

The sunrises were a part of our early life together, so very special...Bar Harbor, Maine...Plymouth, Mass, Providence, R.I....and I've told you about all of the southern beaches..

And yet...the Pacific was where we spent our married life...cherishing the beach time...and where our sun set....