All Things Elise & Alina

Sunday, June 9, 2013

Point Cabrillo Light House - Mendocino, CA

Charming Point Cabrillo Light House in Mendocino, CA

Daddy and Elise by the sea

Point Cabrillo Light House is beautiful from every angle

This is how the girls "hike"; they hitch a ride

The imposing cliffs where land meets sea

Inside Point Cabrillo Light House Museum

Great little aquarium by the light house.
This was our first time seeing a live abalone

On our third and final day in beautiful Fort Bragg and Mendocino, we visted Point Cabrillo Light House and Russian Gulch State Park. The light house has been beautifully restored and the interior is now a gift shop and museum detailing the history of Point Cabrillo Light Station. The girls each picked out a stuffed animal as a souvenir. Elise got a cute sea lion and Alina picked out a cuddly blue whale. There is also a small aquarium right next to the light house, with some fun activities for the kids. In the aquarium inside we saw sea slugs, anenomies, starfish, and our first live abalone. We were also able to tour inside The Head Lightkeeper's home. It was all nicely restored inside, and the girls had fun exploring the rooms and asking about some of the uses of the vintage appliances. We had a picnic right outside and managed to finish most of our lunch before the rain came down. Momma braved the rain to get one last photo at Devil's Punchbowl in Russian Gulch State Park. It is a huge 100 ft wide by 60 ft deep collasped sea cave or sinkhole. After all this fun, we made the drive back home in the rain We had sunny and clear days the majority of our trip, so it was nice the rain held out until our final day.

Heading toward the lightkeepers homes

The Head Lightkeeper's workstation with a view

Exploring the restored interior; Alina dug the wash bin

Charming dining room in the Head Lightkeeper's house

Alina and Whaley saved us a table for our picnic

Devil's Punchbowl in Russian Gulch State Park

Monday, June 3, 2013

Beautiful MacKerricher State Park - Fort Bragg, CA

Entrance and visitor center at the state park

Massive gray whale skeleton at MacKerricher State Park

Beautiful yellow flower fields in May

The girls roaming the park and searching for flowers

Pretty girls and bright flowers

Exploring MacKerricher State Park tide pools

The girls loved all the hermit crabs

Much to mom's dismay, daddy and Elise scaled this steep rock

We spent day two, of our Mendocino trip, visiting the very beautiful MacKerricher State Park in Fort Bragg. I can't emphasize enough, how incredibly fascinating this park is. Upon our entrance to the park, we were greeted by the massive gray whale skeleton. The girls had fun posing next to it, pretending to be eaten (a la Pinocchio), and climbing through its belly to make a quick escape. We spent the rest of the day exploring and admiring the natural beauty of the park. With every turn we were met by the most stunning views and the May weather was nothing short of perfect. There were fields of bright yellow flowers; wooden pathways leading to scenic ocean lookout points; colorful ice plants blanketing the shore; tide pools; an idyllic lake; and perhaps the most exciting part of the day was watching the seals from the cliffs above the beach. There were close to fifty of them just sleeping on the beach and basking in the sun. A few of them had pups, and watching the interaction between mother and baby was wonderful to see. I would love to bring the girls back again someday. They had plenty of fun on this day trip and really enjoyed spending time with their grandparents too.

Bright yellow ice plants cover the beach of MacKerricher SP

Nana and papa scored a great seal watching spot

We saw tons of seals and even a few pups on the beach

More stunning views in MacKerricher State Park

Little Alina caught a ladybug

Idyllic Lake Cleone

Monday, May 27, 2013

Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens - Fort Bragg, CA

The four of us ready to explore the botanical gardens

Beautiful Rhododendrons and spring flowers in bloom

Gorgeous views of the Mendocino Botanical Gardens

The beautiful gardens and wildlife

The girls enjoyed the day with nana and papa

Elise playing hide-and-seek in the gardens

Momma by the pink Rhododendrons

Beautiful May flowers in bloom

Alina did some exploring of her own

Daddy with his sweet girls

On our first day in Fort Bragg, we took advantage of the beautiful weather and headed straight for the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens. The best part about the Mendocino Botanical Gardens is that they are situated right on the Northern California coast with stunning ocean views. May is also the perfect time to see all the gorgeous multi-colored Rhododendrons in bloom. The ocean overlook trails had the most incredible views and were only a short hike from the gardens. We also had the good fortune of arriving on a weekend where the botanical garden was hosting a Mad Hatter's tea party. It was all things Alice in Wonderland with free treats and games for the kids. This is, without a doubt, one of the most beautiful botanical gardens we have seen and a must for anyone visiting Fort Bragg. We all had the most enjoyable and relaxing day. I definitely plan to take the girls back here when they get older.