What we did last Summer.

School started on the day after Labor Day. Before they went back to classes, I asked the girls,

"So can you tell me what we did this summer?".

The kids looked at me blankly, then said that they went to California. Really, Girls? That's it?

Sitting all alone at home while they were in school, I decided to go through some of the photos that we took the past few weeks. I'm going to post a few here so I can easily remind them again, of all the things that we did in Summer. ;-)

Summer Break started a few days early for us because we took the kids out of school to visit Southern California. Disneyland was our first stop and we were lucky to see the Frozen sisters without much of a wait.

We also made our first trip to Legoland! It was fun meeting Emmet and WyldStyle and very cool to see the set of the Lego Movie.

The kids got a lesson on celebrity knowledge when we went to the Chinese Theater and the Walk of Fame...

...but nothing screams "Hollywood" louder than the Hollywood sign itself.

While we enjoyed visiting the popular tourist spots, Newport Beach was a nice getaway from the hustle and bustle of the city.

We loved the food in Southern California! We are avid fans of the Great Food Truck Race and the kids have wanted to visit the Seoul Sausage Company ever since our favorite team won. We were excited to finally visit the store and try out their famous Flamin' Balls. Yum!

While browsing Yelp as we explored the city, I chanced upon Porto's Bakery. We took a chance and thought we would drop by for a coffee break. I am so glad that we did- Porto's is wonderful! The bakery is HUGE and there are SO MANY pastries to choose from! Everything that we bought was d-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s! We *heart* Porto's!

Joe's Crab Shack is another favorite stop of ours. We always order a steampot whenever we see a Joe's. 

"Vacation" was still on our minds when we returned from Southern California and so after touring the Theo's Chocolate Factory in Seattle, we made a road trip over to Vancouver, British Columbia.

The weather wasn't that agreeable while we were there (Did we bring the Seattle rain across the border?) but the Rotato (deep fried spiral potato on a stick) from the Richmond Night Market made everything better. :-)

Summer had barely begun but we had already done all our traveling. I can't have the kids stay home and play Fantage all day so what's a Mom to do? I sent the kids to classes. :-D

The girls had a blast at their cooking camp, and I got some good "Me-time" when they were at the ceramic workshop and cupcake decorating class. I was bummed when the camps ended. >_<

For the first time since we heard of the Ikea Crayfish Party, we actually remembered to get tickets for the event! We were curious and excited to attend the party and it didn't disappoint. All-you-can-eat crayfish and meatballs? Yes, please!

We started our Summer with a trip to Southern California and Hubby and I thought that the kids will get a kick out of ending it with a trip to Northern California.

They did. :-)

The girls LOVED the Jelly Belly Factory! Hooray for free tour and free jelly beans!

Even though they are both located in Northern California, the Fortune Cookie Factory in Chinatown, San Francisco, was a world of difference from the Jelly Belly factory. It is teeny tiny and we had to pay 50-cents to take a photo inside but hey! We got free cookies and that's kinda nice. :-)

Hubby and I made sure that we brought the kids to all the popular tourist spots. Ghirardelli Square and Fisherman's Wharf were interesting but they really loved Lombard Street. We drove down the crooked road 7 times! (Sorry, Lombard Street residents!)

Twin B had read about the "Painted Ladies" by Alamo Square Park and asked to see them. We drove to the park and found out that the houses are taking turns being repainted. Ha!

No trip to San Francisco is complete without a visit to the Golden Gate Bridge. On the day before our flight back, we walked on the bridge and drove across to Sausalito.

Summer came and went by fast. Even though we didn't have a lot planned at the beginning, somehow things started falling into place. Our empty schedule was suddenly packed and filled with all kinds of kiddie activities. Between all the out-of-state traveling that we did and all the driving the kids around, I'm surprised that I got anything else done at all!

The kids are now back in school and it is time to prepare for Fall. In case the girls should ever need a reminder on what they did in the Summer, I'll point them to this post and say,

"And Girls, this is what we did last Summer.". :-)