Taking On The Pacific Coast Highway - Day 5

Stop 11 - MacKerricher Tidepools: The next morning we got up early to arrive at the MacKerricher Tidepools at low tide. We brought the kids' rain boots and went out onto the rocks to search for sea life. We immediately started finding crabs, sea anemones, starfish, sea urchins, and sea cucumbers. It was so cool to be able to explore with the kids and let them touch and pick up the amazing creatures that they found. This was definitely another highlight of the trip. 

Stop 12 - Chandelier Tree: As we ventured through the Redwood Forest we made a quick stop to drive through the famous Chandelier Tree. While the tree was impressive, we quickly discovered that the true gem of the park was the densely populated frog pond. The kids found huge toads, small frogs, and hundreds of baby frogs just waiting to be caught. I'm pretty sure we ended up catching more frogs than ever thought humanly possible.

Stop 13 - Avenue of the Giants: As we drove through the Avenue of the Giants we ended up stopping to let the kids get out and play. They balanced on logs, made branches into massive swords, and chased each other around the trees. I'm pretty sure that we if we didn't have other places to be, they could've played there all day long. 

Stop 14 - Wizards Hat: Our final stop for the day was at the Wizards Hat in Bandon, Oregon. The weather was really cold and windy when we stopped so we just ran out and saw it before jumping back in the car. 

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Taking On The Pacific Coast Highway - Day 4

Stop 8 - Muir Woods: We started the next day off with a hike through the beautiful Muir Woods. It was a bit cold and the kids were a little tired but with a little encouragement they did alright. It was our first experience seeing a redwood tree so we were all a bit in awe by the sheer size of the trees. 

Stop 9 - Point Reyes Shipwreck: Our next stop was at the abandoned shipwreck in Inverness, California. The kids were sleeping when we arrived so Ryan and I just hopped out of the car to go see the boat on our own.

Stop 10 - Glass Beach: Our stop at Glass Beach was by far one of our favorite stops on the whole trip. As soon as we arrived at the beach the kids immediately kicked off their shoes and ran down to play in the sea glass. Ryan took the kids out on some rocks to look for crabs an they ended up spending a good amount of the time searching for crabs. We weren't planning on staying very long but when we saw how happy the kids were we decided to stay until they got bored. A couple hours later we ended up leaving when the sun started to go down. 

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Taking On The Pacific Coast Highway - Day 3

Stop 6 - Swanton Berry Farm: Our first stop of the day was at the Swanton Berry Farm along Highway 1. The kids enjoyed getting to run down the rows of the strawberry patch to find berries ripe for the picking. One of the coolest things about the farm was that it was right along the coast so you could actually see the ocean while you picked. After we finished picking we went inside the vintage farm store to pay and sat in their lounge area snacking on the berries while the kids admired the many knick knacks displayed throughout. 

Stop 7 - San Francisco's Chinatown: Anyone who knows Maeli knows that ever since she started the Mandarin program in school she has been completely obsessed with all things Chinese. Some people may think it's crazy to make a stop in San Francisco just to see Chinatown, but we knew it would be a highlight for Maeli. 

We walked out the elevator doors & were immediately surrounded by old Chinese people gathered in groups playing card games in the park. We first stopped and let the kids play at a park in Portsmouth Square. Maeli quickly made friends with a little Chinese girl and they practiced hanging upside down together. 

After the park we headed down Grant Avenue to let the kids explore the various touristy shops. The kids each brought spending money on the trip and decided that their money would be best spent in these shops. Maeli bought an umbrella that came in a hard case and Milo and Cooley each purchased a small airplane. We also made a stop in a kite shop and overpaid for a Minion kite to use at the kite festival we would be attending a few days later. 

Next we made a quick pit stop at the Willy Woo Woo Wong playground so the kids could run around before heading down Waverly Place to view the pretty painted balconies lining the road. 

Before our trip Maeli watched a travel show where they showed many of the strange foods sold on the streets of China. We told her that she would be able to see some of the foods they eat in the local food markets in Chinatown. It took all of 60 seconds of walking through a market for her to decide she would stick to her unauthentic Panda Express.

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