A Thanksgiving To Remember

Well, the trip to San Francisco is officially in the books and it was one at least three of the Kecklers will remember for a long time to come.

The journey West began on Nov. 22 with a flight through Minneapolis to San Francisco International. All four of us enjoyed our own seats, and actually the flights weren't totally full so we had room to spread out! Bryce and Kari seemed to do quite well heading out there. Despite the occasional "How long until we get there?" from Kari, it went fairly quickly.

The trip was definitely more difficult for Mom and Dad than the kids. We had to lug two car seats, a stroller, a carry-on suitcase and two back-packs (not to mention the children). Once in San Fran, we had to get checked suitcases and venture to get our rental car. Much to Holly's dismay, I upgraded into a mini-van knowing it would serve us best for the long week.

Perhaps the funniest part of the trip was Kari's confusion as to when we left the airport in a mini-van. She never did fully grasp the concept of renting a car. A quick drive to Menlo Park allowed us to arrive at M&M's house by about 10 p.m. EST. The kids remained awake and excited to see the Californians.

Most of the week included playing with the wonderful toys M&M were kind enough to get before we arrived. The most popular, by far, was the propane grill with rotisserie chicken on it. Both Bryce and Kari loved this! As parents, we got a kick out of M mentioning on more than one occasion that she had pictured Kari and Bryce quietly playing with the toys in one section of the house. This was busted within about 15 minutes. M&M also picked up a Snow White dress for Kari, as well as several DVDs.

Chef Kari bar-b-queing.

Bar-b-queing babies.
M was astonished that toys could have multiple functionality.

There was plenty of watching Mary Poppins on Uncle M's computer. There was a lot of "play time" with the little dollhouse with M. We ventured just past Menlo Park to Palo Alto for a trip to Stanford. Here the kids got some Stanford gear, saw the horses at the equestrian center and got their first parking ticket ($45 bucks is about $44.25 more than it would have cost to properly feed the meter for 30 minutes).

Perhaps the highlight of the trip was our trip to downtown San Fran. We weren't down there long, but we absolutely had to do the most touristy thing available and ride the cable cars. Now, keep in mind it was maybe 40-45 degrees and very chilly in the city, but we all toughed it out and sat on the outside of the car. What an absolute thrill it was.

Kari sat on Dad's lap and Bryce on Mom's, but the cool breeze and smell of the wooden brakes burning a bit after going down steep city hills was awesome. It was capped off with a wonderful meal at Boudin's on Fisherman's Wharf, and a quick trip to the candy store for the kids to pick out a sucker. The ride back to the city was equally memorable and hopefully something Kari will one day be able to remind us about.

Kari's first taste of Pop Rocks.

We hit a children's museum, made sugar cookies and took a trip to Trader Joe's. That was all before we headed to the Redwoods for a few days at M's parents' cabin in Brookdale. Needless to say, if you've not traveled up (or down) HWY 9, it's certainly something you should consider. Much cheaper than an amusement park but same sensation as a crazy roller coaster.

Beefcake.

Once we arrived in the quaint town of less than 1,500 residents, we quickly felt at home at the cabin. Surrounded by beautiful 100 year old Redwoods, tranquil sounds and cool, crisp air, we greatly enjoyed our 72 hours in the Redwood Forest.

L got Kari a backpack from China.

The Kecklers seemingly fit right in with the crew despite never having met them before. M's parents and sister were so welcoming and easy to get along with. Kari hit it off with the girls instantly. Whether it was making a gingerbread house with sister L, fetching fresh chicken eggs with M's mom or meeting the family bird with M, there was always SOMETHING for her to do.

A Gingerbread house tradition!

Collecting eggs from the chickens. Kari asked if there were eggs to collect almost every waking hour.
Kari and M snapping green beans for the Thanksgiving dinner.

And that's without even mentioning the two huge dogs - Maggie B and Luke. These two sweet creatures were larger than our daughter but equally as loving and caring. In nearby Boulder Creek, we went downtown for the famous parade welcoming Santa Claus to town, to a park so the kids could play and on walks through the forest.

We were all joined by Grandmo and Grandpo Haugstad on Friday afternoon. It was truly a packed cabin with 10 people present, but we all had a wonderful time.

We flew out of San Francisco on Monday afternoon with a brief stop in snowy Salt Lake City. We couldn't have asked for a more wonderful trip surrounded by family and new good friends. We hope to visit again!