Our Recent "Adventures". Lots of Pics!

Gosh, it's been a while since I updated this thing! That being said, time is going so quickly and I can hardly believe we're already halfway through October! I have a few things lined up here to update with, but I haven't finished going through photos as I've been a bit lazy when it comes to editing them and organising them. 

Mr 2 began soccer lessons a few weeks ago. I felt like he/we needed more things to do, especially during the week. The term began last month, so we were a bit late to the party, but oh well. The classes are held in the Marina District in a really beautiful spot. They're set right on the water in front of Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge. It's a gorgeous area, and I guess how I feel about it is probably how people feel about the Harbour Bridge and the Kirribilli area when they go there for the first time. 

That being said, I don't think soccer star is on the cards for a future occupation for Mr 2. He's not completely into the classes and prefers to partake in only a few of the activities they do in the 40 minute classes. Although, being a combination of myself and Robert, I guess I shouldn't be so surprised by that. Haha...

Robert's Mum came to stay with us last week after she'd been on a trip to Europe. We didn't end up doing as much with her as I thought we might have. She'd been here before and I think she mainly wanted to just see Mr 2 (and us). So she accompanied us to a soccer class and basically just experienced everyday life with us. Robert did take the week off, though, which was awesome. I have to admit that it was really nice to have a little break from full time motherhood for a bit! Heh... The most tourist-y thing we did was go to Muir Woods (again. It was the third time we've been. LOL) and Sausalito with her.

In other Bartlett life news, Mr 2 got accepted into a pre-school the other week, which is awesome. I was getting anxious not knowing whether he'd be going to a school of our choosing, so I was very relieved at this! He won't start until September next year (because that's when the school year here starts), but it's so competitive here and you really need to get in early. So I'm glad we did. 

And having said that, I'm sure I had a lot more to say, but I'm so tired after a terrible night last night that I'm just going to leave you with lots of pictures. I apologise for the incoherence. I need another coffee.

xoxo

Ghirardelli have filled their fountain with pumpkins. Pumpkins are everywhere at the moment!

Muir Woods: beautiful no matter how many times you go!

I spent a lot of time on this visit looking for 4-leaf clovers. I'd never found one; I still haven't! :-(

Sausalito

View from Sausalito

Golden Gate Bridge and ANZAC Cookies!

I feel very lucky that we have essentially moved from one very picturesque city to another. We finally managed to get over the Golden Gate Bridge today! I feel like I've levelled up my San Francisco-ness or something! I'm not sure why. Maybe because the bridge is one of the most well known landmarks of the city or something? I wonder if that's how people feel when they go to Sydney and cross the Harbour Bridge for the first time? LOL. Either way, it was quite amazing. The view from the bridge itself is gorgeous; you can see the whole city: from the CBD across the Bay Bridge, and Alcatraz in the middle. What was more interesting was that you basically go from being in the middle of a very bustling city to what looks like the country. Waiting to welcome you on the other side of the bridge are massive hills so steep there are no houses around. It's sort of surreal to see city on one side and what looks like the country on the other. 

San Francisco from Sausalito

We didn't have time to check out all the awesome-looking lookouts around the bridge, itself (we're hoping to do that next weekend), we ended up in Sausalito as we all needed some food. And wow, I'd die to live there! (Apparently Robin Williams used to live there.) Aside from the tsunami warning that was pinned to a garbage bin, the place was amazing. We had lunch and wandered along a lovely strip of shops that are right on the water. Then drove up the hill that's home to some amazing houses that are situated on a very steep incline. The houses would have the most incredible views; I'm not sure I'd want to know how much those houses would be to purchase! It's hard not to compare your new city to the one you're used to, however I'm not sure that Sydney really has an equivalent suburb or area to Sausalito, or the massive hills that greet you on the other side of the bridge, right outside of a very busy city! It's quite amazing, really. I'm looking forward to exploring more. 

On another note, however, I was feeling rather homesick during the week. But as I mentioned the last time I posted here, I did manage to make some ANZAC cookies! They actually turned out pretty well considering I hadn't baked for a while and I also wasn't able to get golden syrup here (I don't think it's really used here?). So I used honey, instead, and they tasted great. It was definitely nice to have a small taste of home. I think the toddler preferred the cookie batter, though, as the cookies themselves were a bit hard for him to chew. Haha. I am missing home, but I'm also thankful to have things like Skype and the internet to at least be able to stay in touch with people. Making ANZAC cookies, though, has made me see the importance of keeping certain traditions alive, regardless of how small. While we're living here (and even while we're not), I hope to incorporate small things like this into our lives. For my sake and for our child's. For the past few years, I've tried to do small things on certain Korean holidays to have some small touch of my heritage in our lives. So it's going to be interesting to see if I manage to remember both Korean ones and Aussie ones while we're living here. I guess it's sort of important for me for our child to know his background. I didn't know a lot about Korea growing up, and I feel like I'd missed out a bit by the time I got into my 20s. So here's hoping he can grow up with the knowledge and not the wondering about his heritage. 

In random news: American news articles and politics worry me. Again, I don't really like to discuss politics online, but I am a little worried as to where this country is going...

Anyway, I'm not sure what this week has in store for us. I've sort of been taking each week as it comes; it's hard to plan a lot when you're still quite clueless as to what's around you. Ha... But whoever is reading this, I hope you have an awesome week! Thanks for reading! ^_^

xoxo