This was a full month that included two new experience for the kids — hiking in the Santa Monica mountains and a visit to the largest alpaca farm in southern California, which happens to be not too far from where we live. And, of course, we capped the month with our traditional family Thanksgiving celebration.
Dad and The Kids Go Hiking
It was a beautiful day so I asked the kids if they wanted to go hiking in the mountains by the beach. Both kids jumped at the opportunity. I was actually surprised they knew what the word hiking meant but they were game for it. So after packing a few snacks in the backpack and putting on the sun screen, we drove out to Sycamore Canyon to begin our journey.
I thought it would be cool to hike up the Overlook Trail so that the kids could climb to the top of a small mountain and get a panoramic view of the Pacific ocean. I knew the kids were in decent shape but I wasn’t sure they’d be able to handle the 1.5 mile hike to get to our destination, since half of it was uphill.
I figured we’d climb at a leisurely pace so that Luke wouldn’t tire out so quickly, but much to my surprise, Luke proceeded to charge up the hill while Lilah slowed down and expressed reservations about going too high. When I asked her about it she confessed she was a bit scared of heights. I assured her there was nothing to worry about — no big cliffs to fall off of or anything like that — and held her hand for part of the climb until she got used to it. Luke, on the other hand, was just “go, go, go” until we reached the top and got to see the view.
On the way back, the kids had fun running down hill, making it back to the campground area in about one fourth the time it took to climb up the trail. As we walked through the campground and they saw the tents and campers, they asked me when we could go camping. I told them they’ll have to talk to their mom about that as she’s not too fond of camping ;-).
A Visit to the Alpaca Farm
I had no idea we lived practically next door to the largest Alpaca farm in southern California. The place is in Somis just a short drive off of Los Angeles Avenue, through a nice country valley road.
There were lots of “ooos and aaaahs” at the farm as the kids saw the furry Alpacas for the first time, including a mother and her baby (called a “cria”).
The only disappointment was that there weren’t too many opportunities to pet the Alpacas. The kids really wanted to touch them, but even though they were all around us (behind fences), it was hard to pet them for a prolonged period as they were rather skittish — probably due to all the people there for the open house. Thankfully there were two other petting opportunities the kids really enjoyed: one was petting a llama (much larger cousin of the alpaca), and the other was gently stroking the fur of a large, sleepy, and very docile dog (one of Luke’s favorite pastimes).
The Kids Favorite Words — “So” and “Weirdo”
Luke has entered his “so” phase. This means that any time you tell him something that contradicts what he wants to do, he’ll respond with a “So” followed by his rebuttal.
Example One:
- Dad: Luke put on your jacket…it’s cold outside.
- Luke: So…I’m not cold…I don’t need a jacket.
Example Two:
- Mom: Luke you need to go brush your teeth and get ready for bed.
- Luke: So, I don’t want to go to bed…I want to play.
These types of exchanges go on all the time these days.
Lilah’s favorite word this month is “weirdo,” a word she calls us anytime we do something that is remotely out of the ordinary. I can’t think of examples off the top of my head right now, but apparently Cathy, Luke and I are very weird as Lilah is always using the weirdo moniker to describe us.
Other Cool Things that Happened This Month
- Lilah dressed up in a patriotic dress for Veterans day and learned all kinds of songs, including the U.S. Marine’s theme song — you know the one: “From the hills of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli.”
- Luke received a trophy for basketball — he was happy, but it led to a little bit of pouting from Lilah as she wondered “why can’t I have a trophy.” I tried to tell her she has “a bunch” of medals from her running races, but apparently “that’s not the same thing.”
- The family got together for Thanksgiving — in addition to the turkey, I made my now famous pulled pork for the third year in a row. The kids absolutely love eating the meat as I pull it apart.
- We started a new business — a “Deal of the Day” website to help parents find the latest deals on children’s toys, clothing, games, furniture and more.
Okay everyone, now it’s on to Christmas and the New Year. Man, doesn’t it go by fast? More next month.