Solar Oven Workshop

We made it through the 5 hour (!) workshop with 15 kids at Josie's school this weekend - and came out with our very own solar oven in the end! The volunteer parents and local UC students/AUSD High School student volunteers spent some serious time putting it together and making all the kits. It's only large enough to bake 1 cookie at a time, but thankfully one of the volunteers from Berkeley Labs brought his gigantic solar oven prototype, which could bake about a dozen cookies at a time, and he kept folks fed the whole time. Whew!

Evie rode her bike around the school, ate snacks, and found some new friends while Josie worked on the project. When we brought it home, there was just enough sun hitting our backyard to bake our first inaugural cookie. Yay!

Assembling the side walls

Stickers held the foil paper into a parabolic shape 

A yoga ball helps hold the shape while taping it together

Kids setting up their finished solar ovens

Josie's is complete! 

Playhouse, Evie and Solar Oven.

Memorial Day Weekend

Stomp rockets at the neighbor's house

Gymnastics open gym - the foam pit rocks!

Goodbye Duck's Nest Garden

The blog is back in business! It's been a busy few years, but we are going to try posting again.

Today, we went to an amazing party at the Berkeley Duck's Nest Garden, at Evie's preschool. We said a sad farewell to the garden, as the property is soon to be developed. We didn't snap photos of the garden itself, but it was a magical place, full of flowers, veggies, trees, water play, and endless wonder.

It was a truly extraordinary day filled with face paint, balloons, games and prizes, yummy snacks, live music and dancing, food truck bites and beer (for the grown-ups, of course).

Black cat with pink sword

Rainbow butterfly with sparkles

Cute teddy bear hanging out at the party

Evie and Josie at the garden

Weekend in Gualala

Dan's office hosted their 35th annual retreat at the owner's property in Gualala, on the north coast. The setting was beautiful, the weather not too foggy, and we all had a great time hanging out with the Ratcliff gang. 

Girls help to set up the tent. Some folks stayed in the cabins, others camped.

Everyone pitched in to help make food and organize events.

Kit Ratcliff, grandson of the founder, loves kids!

The main "house" with kitchen, dining and living room.

Josie had fun with a few other kids her age.

One cabin was elevated in the trees -"the moon viewing cabin"

Playing "memory" with the kids on a burl table.

Stopping for lunch on our way home in downtown Gualala.

Camping on Mt. Diablo

Fog at the lookout near our campsite. Spotted a couple of tarantulas in this area.

Cleaning up or getting more dirty?

Fun climbing challenge for little ones... serious heart attack for parents...

Atop Sentinel Rock 

Evie's 1st Week at Preschool

The first week was full of ups and downs and lot of crying, but there were definitely moments of pure joy - as captured in this photo taken by one of the teachers.

Cousin Max's WeddingFun

A special late night for Josie at Lisa's cousin's wedding... we had a fun time in the photo booth!

Taking Care of Speedy

Speedy enjoys checking out the veggie beds

Speedy, the Russian Tortoise in Josie's preschool class, needed a place to stay during the summer break. We signed up to tortoise-sit for a few days. He was a good house-guest, though he spent a lot of his time sleeping...

During supervised outside time, Speedy's favorite destination was under the bushes

Rainbow Star Magic!

Bay Area Discovery Museum