Our little SHRIMP!

We signed Keira up for swimming classes down at the YMCA. Her classification is a shrimp! Keira had a great time splashing around in the pool with her daddy.

Check out these cute pictures.

Day 11: San Francisco, 2470 Total Miles

View Larger Map

So it's actually been more than a week since we've been back at home and the demands of work-life had taken over and delayed us in posting this the obligatory "conclusion" post. I can tell you that after more than a week of driving with the family, it was very, very hard to get the head back into the work mode :( But all is good now and we are back in the daily rhythm of our life in SF (although Keira's sleep cycle sometimes seems to still be on vacation mode).

The Grand Autumn Ramble came to an end, and we have many miles and many memories o remember, not to mention Keira's first experience with the freedom of the open road.

Here are some things to remember, especially for those of you with little ones on the way:
* Multiply your trip time by a factor of 1.5 or 2, the extra time is needed buffer for "stuff". We could probably have done all of this in 7 days, but we planned for 15 and actually got done in about 12.
* Baby will fall out of any routine very quickly, especially when driving a lot during the day and being in new places each night - Expect the party to go past midnight
* Don't expect to get the routine back quickly when you return. We are now learning this lesson
* Plan for down time - days where you do nothing, and times during the day where nothing is planned. This is good with a baby and even without.
* Expect meltdowns, especially at dinner and especially at the nice restaurant; you can't expect to tour all day and have a 9pm dinner w/o something giving...well you can, but the baby will keep you honest
* Traveling during the fall is awesome. You get great deals no matter where you go and no crowds
* Yellowstone is awesome
* Tetons are awesome
* Jackson Hole is awesome
* Avoid staying in casinos - We found a great deal on expedia for our night in Reno, but it was at Harras. We thought nothing of it until we went to check in, and we realized that we were staying in a Casino. There's something just not right about staying in a Casino (especially in Reno) w/ your baby. You'll know this when you go down to eat at the Casino restaurant and see who else is there on a Sunday night at 8pm.
* Truckee is awesome
* Unless you're eating at the Ahwahnee, the 'nice' food at National Parks is typically not so nice. You pay 4-star prices for 2-star food and 1-star service, not worth it. Check out the lower end places or even the bar/pub for more reasonable price to quality parity.
* 2 weeks off with the family is all sorts of awesome





Some notable places to remember (and forget) for next time:
* Old Faithful Inn in Yellowstone - Great experience staying in this historic lodge (the first to be built in the US) in such a geyser basin in Yellowstone. Old Faithful and a bunch of other geothermal points of interest right out the door, and not to mention, tons of wildlife. Most of the buffalo pics we took were right outside the door here.

* Salt Lake City - Surprisingly great food, this coming from two SF'ers. Great Himalayan/Nepalese food at Himalayan Kitchen (order all the Nepalese dishes). Even more surprising was the sushi at Takashi's. Many of the reviews were from Californian's being surprised by the quality, and we were having a sushi craving so we decided to try it and were not disapointed. The Strawberry Fields Maki was out of this world, never tasted anything like this before. We went to Blue Iguana to sample some Mole after reading about it in the New York Times. It was just an OK experience, I wouldn't go back. Verde Mole was great, my traditional mole was so-so, and service and ambiance were meh. If you want good mole, go to Oaxaca, or the Red Iguana (which I had tried years earlier).

* Jackson Hole - Just simply an awesome town. Being a resort town, you will have to deal with some kitsch factor, but there is a thriving local community which gives it much of it's charm and character, especially during the fall shoulder season. It also has an impressive lineup of restaurants which we were pleasantly surprised by. Thai Me Up is ridiculously great thai food for a mountain town. Plus they had a great beer selection and we learned that they're actually planning on opening a brewery on-premise. We also had great asian fusion/sushi at Nikai Sushi which I also highly recommend. I was disappointed not to find a good (non-tourist-trap) stakehouse around the town square (I was told that you'd have to drive just a bit to get to a couple of good options, but we didn't want to drive). What is funny is how so many tourists praise the Teton Stakehouse, which is actually just a resurfaced Sizzler in disguise.

All in all, it was a great trip. I recoomend it to anyone who wants to see this part of the country by road, especially up by Jackson, the Tetons, and Yellowstone. No final pics to post, but we do have this one of Nip greeting Keira when we got back home:

Pumpkin Patch

After such a wonderful trip to Yellowstone we couldn't just sit around at home, so we piled back into the car and drove down to Half Moon Bay for some pumpkin picking!

By now Keira was an old pro in the car and was surprised to be at our destination after only 30 minutes. We were also surprised how many other families were out picking pumpkins on a random Thursday afternoon.

There were plenty of pumpkins to choose from and Keira enjoyed exploring the sea of orange. As you will see from the pictures she took the outing very serious and after much debate found her perfect pumpkin (which she promptly put in her mouth!)


Play slideshow - 44
View photos individually

Tuesday Day 10: Salt Lake City, UT - Truckee, CA, 549 miles

View Larger Map

On Tuesday morning we hit the road early as this would be another long day of driving. On the way out we stayed in Reno, but we were hoping to get a little further today and spend the evening in Truckee, CA. Keira was a good sport and slept for much of the morning. While she slept we listened to, The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell. As we got closer to the CA border we were hit by some pretty heavy rain. I think that the pitter patter of raindrops on the car roof and lack of sunshine helped Keira to sleep. We made great time and were in Truckee by about 5pm. After checking in at the Best Western (nicest Best Western I have ever been to), we let Keira stretch out and play. The rain stopped and we had dinner at Drunken Monkey for some sushi, tapas, and sake. It was good to be back in California.

No pictures but check out this cute video, Keira Attack!

Sunday & Monday: Days 8 & 9: Jackson Hole, WY - Salt Lake City, UT, 294 miles

View Larger Map

It was back in the car on Sunday morning... of course we stopped to grab a latte on our way out of Jackson Hole. I think we had coffee at all three of the town's coffee shops during our visit. :) It was a bit snowy so we took our time and enjoyed each others company. As new parents we spend most waking moments talking, playing, and taking care of Keira so adult conversation in the car (while Keira is asleep) is a must. We arrived in Salt Lake City early in the afternoon, hung out and then had dinner at the Blue Iguana, not to be confused with the Red Iguana (which Naveen decided had the better mole).

Monday was spent walking around Salt Lake City (even though all the locals that we were nuts, apparently this is a driving city). We had breakfast at Bay Leaf Cafe, enjoyed touring Temple Square where Keira was a big hit with all the Sisters, and then ate lunch at Vesuvio. Took an afternoon drive up to Park City to check out the ski resorts. Hopefully the next time we are in Salt Lake City it will be for some time on the slopes! For dinner we really wanted to try out Takashi which had amazing reviews from other SF tourists. While the employees were super nice the restaurant itself did not appear to be kid-friendly so we ordered take-out and had a picnic in our hotel room. All in all I would have to say we had a great experience in Salt Lake City. The people were nice and the food was better than expected.


Play slideshow - 11
View photos individually

Saturday Day 7: Jackson Hole, WY

With six days on the road, we thought it might be nice for Keira to have an entire day with no driving. She certainly earned it. After sleeping in and eating a yummy breakfast, we spent the morning walking around Jackson Hole.

It seemed like there was a good mix of touristy shops as well as a local community. We even stumbled upon a Leeds Certified elementary school, which means the school has a focus on being environmentally friendly as well as being technology driven. Very cool. We had a late lunch at the Wort Hotel and picked up a pizza for a quiet evening in our hotel room. Jackson Hole is definitely a place worth visiting if you are ever in WY. There are not many mountain towns where the food and coffee experience meet the expectations of people from San Francisco.


Play slideshow - 16
View photos individually

Friday Day 6: Yellowstone - Jackson Hole WY, 157 miles

Snow came in again overnight and closed up all the high roads in Yellowstone. This was not good considering that we were planning on heading back down to Jackson to the south over these now closed exists. The only road that was open was the west exist out of Yellowstone that would take us into Montana and then south towards Jackson around the backside of the Tetons. It would add about an hour to our trip, but we're not in a rush so we figured it would be a good option to try something new.


View Larger Map

Now they sure have very liberal road controls in Montana and Idaho as you can see by the 'open' road below that looks like it's barely been plowed.


Not to fret, we took our time driving through some amazing country side with occasional snow as well as beautiful sunshine breaking through the clouds.


We got back to Jackson at a descent hour and it begin to snow again so we figured it might be a good time to take Keira for a dip in the heated indoor pool.


On the way, Keira got to witness her first snowfall and was mesmerized by the flakes as the fell from the sky.


We had the whole pool to ourselves and Keira got a chance to stretch out and swim around like a little tadpole.




Play slideshow - 17 Photos
View photos individually

Thursday Day 5: Yellowstone, 176 miles

We spent the day in Yellowstone seeing all that the park had to offer. Unlike some National Parks, where you have to venture out beyond the road on a hike or a backpack, most all of the major regions of Yellowstone are accessible by car thanks to the two large loops that wind through the park.


View Yellowstone in a larger map

We wanted to head out early to see some morning wildlife, but were met with a 'Road Closed' sign right as we were leaving the Old Faithful basin. Evidently, the gaper factor is pretty high in Yellowstone so they have to close the mountain passes even with only a couple inches of snow on the ground. We made the best of it by filling up on a fatty breakfast and hanging out until they plowed the road.

Once that was done, we were well on our way to see some spectacular stuff. Here are some quick teasers with full set of photos at the bottom.

Geysers on the shore of Lake Yellowstone


Geothermal funness in B&W


Yellowstone Elk


Small town of Mammoth Hot Springs on the northern end of Yellowstone, where few people go. The sweeping vistas and deep valleys up in this end of the park remind me of Montana Big Sky country. Super cute place, and we wished we could have stayed here a night...maybe next time.




Play slideshow - 49 Pics
View photos individually

Wednesday Day 4: Jackson WY - Yellowstone National Park, 97 miles

Back in the car this cold and cloudy morning for a short(ish) drive up north through Grand Teton National Park and into Yellowstone where we'd be staying for two days.

We were worried about the weather as the day called for clouds and snow showers, which would severely limit visibility. However, mother nature did not disappoint, as there was a lot of fun and impressive stuff for Keira (and Crystal and Naveen) to see along the way.

First, just 30 miles outside of Jackson, we were greeted by parting clouds and a magnificent view of the Tetons with fall colors in view.


Keira also got a chance to see her first bear once we were in Yellowstone.


Not to mention her first geyser as well.


And not to be outdone, Mr. Buffalo also made an appearance.


Plenty more pics here...

Play slideshow - 49 Photos

View photos individually

Tuesday Day 3: Salt Lake City - Jackson Hole WY, 275 miles

View Larger Map

We got rolling out of Salt Lake City for another partial day of driving, this time turning due North to head up to Jackson Hole Wyoming. The drive was simply magnificent as we got off the interstate and took to some of the state routes and highways as we meandered through the foothills and mountains of Utah, Wyoming and Idaho. Fall colors were in full show with aspens speckling hillsides in their signature yellow.

As we checked off the states that Keira had been to, we had a debate about Idaho. We were only in Idaho for maybe 1 hour total and we didn't really spend time there. To "claim" that someone's been to a state, you either need to stay in a town or have a memorable experience there. Well, just as the debate was in full swing, Crystal noticed that little Miss Keira had sprouted her FIRST TOOTH right as we were driving through Idaho. So that settled it, and Keira can lay claim to having "been" to Idaho seeing that we spotted her first tooth bud there.


Play slideshow - 20 Pics
View photos individually

Monday Day 2: Reno - Salt Lake City, 519 miles

View Larger Map

We lit out of reno (Ok, I had to say it) at 5:35am to head out on probably the longest stretch of driving in our journey. The winter weather we saw they day before as we crossed the Sierras had moved into the intermountain states so there was a chance of running into some snow on the way across the Nevada desert as we made our way to Salt Lake City.

Keira was happy to take it all in, feeling the cool desert air when we stopped at rest stops, seeing freshly dusted mountain tops, the vast open spaces of desert valleys and basins, and of course listening to all the new and old tunes that dad had loaded up on the ipod...including some choice faves like the Allman Brothers, Dead, the Byrds, as well as some new (and untested) tunes from Camera Obscura, Memory Tapes, and the Big Pink (these are all still growing on us).

Keira was especially happy about hangin' with her little giraffe:


After 9 hours of driving we arrived in Salt Lake City with the clouds parting and the Wasatch Mountains revealing their recently snow-capped peaks as the sun lingered in the afternoon sky.

Keira got to stretch out on a nice king sized bed as her reward for being such a good little road tripper:



We went out to walk around downtown Salt Lake on a chilly evening, and had a great treat in store for us for dinner. We found a Nepalese/Himalayan restaurant not too far from our hotel and even by San Francisco standards the food was solid. If you're ever in Salt Lake and have a hankering for something exotic, you will not be disappointed with Himalayan Kitchen (we tried the Nepalese dishes: Himalayan Momo, Chilli Chicken, and the Goat Curry and avoided the standard North Indian dishes)


Enjoy some more pics:

Play slideshow - 17 pics
View photos individually

Sunday Day 1: SF - Reno, 219 miles

View Larger Map


After a late night (early morning), including a conference call at 9am, we finally got down to the business of staging all the stuff that would come on our journey. While we used to pride ourselves on "traveling light", we've realized that phrase is a very relative one when traveling with a newborn. A wise man once told me that traveling with a baby is like packing to go camping every time.

Well after all was said and done, we hit the road at 2:30pm...with the obligatory coffee stop of course ;)

We did pretty well for the first 3 hours on our way to Reno, but then encountered some very unusual and unexpected weather surprises. When we hit the foothills of the Western Sierras, we were met with sun showers, and Keira's first full-fledged rainbow (which literally looked like it ended on the highway, but then shortly after that, we hit some early season snow crossing the Sierras.



We rolled into the tasteful, neon town of Reno around 6:30pm to settle down for some dinner, drinks and a good nights rest



Enjoy a few more pics from the day...

Play slideshow
View photos individually

Road Trippin...

It's 1:30am on Sunday morning and I finally got (most of) my work cleared off my plate (ok, one more conference call at 9:00am and hopefully that does it).

Now it's time to get stoked for the upcoming road trip that's going to take the V's on an epic two week ramble across the Great American West.

As 'Kings of Leon' plays on iTunes, all the prep work is in full swing...
* Loading up the ipod w/ some choice road tripping favorites
* Clearing out memory cards from the cameras to start fresh
* Booking hotels
* Checking the weather
* Planning out the route
* Doing laundry (ok so this is Crystal)
* Packing clothes (so is this)
* Packing snacks (and this)

And all the other goodness that comes with anticipating the roll-out tomorrow morning.

Now Keira's been a pretty good little rambler thus far.

There was the 570 mile trip into and around Yosemite and the Sierras:

View Yosemite in a larger map

Then there was the epic Tour de Keira that took place this summer spanning 3 states and 914 miles over two weeks

View Tour de Keira 2009 in a larger map

And then, just last weekend we took a trip down the coast to El Capitan State Beach which tacked on 630 miles to her little odometer:

View Larger Map

So if you're wondering where we're headed off to tomorrow morning, stay tuned for some updates as our adventure unfolds. As of now, the fresh map of our journey looks like this at mile 0:

View Larger Map

September

Hope you enjoy this assortment of pictures from the month of September. Keira is certainly growing and changing every day. We are amazed at how quickly she is growing up!



Play slideshow - 64
View photos individually