Promoting Education

Aside from the "freezing" cold weather here in the Bay Area (yes, we have definitely become acclimated to Arizona weather), it was another phenomenal vacation day.  We wrapped up our brief San Francisco leg of the trip with a harbor cruise this morning, enjoying some great views of the city, Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz.  The cruise was a hit with Alexa, especially after we spotted some sea lions swimming in the choppy waters.  She was also very intrigued with the concept of jail/prison, as I did my best to explain the significance of Alcatraz.  She asked quite a few questions that even had me stumped; it really is fascinating to see how her mind works.  Thankfully, after Alcatraz, we quickly approached Pier 39 so I was able to distract her by pointing out the sea lions laying on the pier.

Before we left San Francisco, we had to make one special stop for Alexa - she desperately wanted a Sea Turtle sourdough roll from Boudin Bakery.  Alexa and Damon love watching the show 'Cake Boss' together, so the Boudin Bakery and its visible demonstration bakery was a huge attraction for Alexa.  I will admit, it is pretty impressive to watch them bake the various varieties and shapes of sourdough.  Damon was more than happy to swing into the bakery to grab the bread for Alexa (and successfully sneak a cookie for himself...finally!), and she munched on her sourdough turtle roll as we made the drive south to Monterey.

As we drove to Monterey from San Francisco, I stopped in Palo Alto to grab something to drink.  When I came out of the store, Damon and I realized I had parked in front of a Stanford gift shop...so of course we had to pick up a sweatshirt for our future Stanford graduate.  Haha.  For the record, she does have Purdue apparel as well, so Damon and I are not neglecting our alma mater, but a 35% off sale was too good of deal to pass up.  Alexa fell asleep for the rest of the drive to Monterey, clutching her sweatshirt in her lap.  I'll take that as a good sign of her educational endeavors!

Tomorrow should be another fun day - the beach in Carmel is on the agenda, as Alexa is very interested in searching for seashells.  I'm just looking forward to a relaxing day in one of my favorite places...Monterey!

Showing off her coveted sourdough sea turtle;
the best kind of souvenir...an edible one!

Our future Stanford grad (she'll grow into the sweatshirt)!