Saturday 16 October 2010

Nicol Time



No trip to California would be complete without a visit with Great Grandma Nicol!

With tear filled eyes fter 2 fantastic weeks in Mammoth, we to the San Francisco Bay area for a visit with Great Grandma Nicol. Scott's paternal grandmother lives in Fairfield, California. And Fairfield is home to the Great American Jelly Belly! Yipee, Yahoo. Two treats in one day. GG Nicol and the Jelly Belly Factory.


Scott dropped the boys and I off at Jelly Belly Lane so that he could have a quiet visit with Grandma before we arrived. And the boys and I toured the factory, which we highly recommend, and bought our fair share of the treats! Loaded up on sugar, we then went to Grandma's house for pizza and a visit.

The boys always remember their visits to see her and to us, this time together is priceless. Scott measured the boys on the same door frame that he, his siblings and cousins were measured throughout the years. I love these simple family memories. And the boys love the tradition of the visit. Great Grandma and Aunt Mary Marcha, we look forward to our next trip to Fairfield.


Next stop, Danville, CA. This is close to Scott's surgeon's house and to Aunt Alison and Uncle John. So we spent the night in a hotel, and woke the next morning to have quick visits with Dr. Ian, Aunt Alison and Uncle John. Dr. Ian said Scott looked great and therefore gave him the OK to travel back to Scotland.

The boys also remember well their trips to see John and Alison. John always spoils them with tromps around his garden and Alison with treats galore. Such a fun time and a great tradition on our visits to California. Thank you again John and Alison. Now it's your turn to come and see us!


Our last stop in the good ole USA, San Francisco. Always a crowd pleaser. Ethan had requested clam chowder in a bread bowl so that was our main mission for the afternoon. We had a terrific lunch at the pier and then headed to China Town. The sights, smells and crowds are always something to take in.


Scott was such a trooper and the rest of us sure looked like dad/husband abusers as we dragged him all through the hilly neighbourhoods.


After China Town, we stopped in at the Cable Car Museum. I found it fascinating and I think the children learned from it as well. It is always nice to learn how something works.......



and then to immediately use it. It's well worth the stop if you are in SF. The cable cars are an institution!


http://www.cablecarmuseum.org/mechanical.html

Check out the above link if you are curious about how the cars work.

And to finish off our trip in SF, we met cousins Brett, Ashley and Janice for a seafood dinner. It was fun to catch up and we promise to let you pick the location for our next dinner! (wish I had photos from that night...)

Next stop, Glasgow.