Christmas in Los Angeles
Hi all,
Sorry this has been a bit quiet as of late. I haven't gone anywhere new (Los Angeles, Sacramento, Arkansas) so I haven't been too quick with it. But it has been five weeks since the last update and I just found out that somebody other than my mom is reading this. So, here's a catch-up edition:
22-31 December 2008: Los Angeles, California
We packed the bags and hauled the kids to be with my parents for Christmas. We hadn't been to California in a while, and 2008 saw us go twice - once for my father's 70th birthday back in June and now for Christmas. As you can see from the pictures, getting there was half the fun. The next day we went to Knott's Berry Farm and had a great time riding the rides and eating the food.
http://picasaweb.google.com/khalaf.writes/ChristmasInLosAngelesKnottSBerryFarm
During this time, Basma and I managed to sneak off for a second honeymoon in San Diego. Our first day there we walked across the street to the USS Midway Museum, a vintage World War II aircraft carrier. Upon entering we were each issued personal listening devices that allowed us to bring up narration at each exhibit. We learned so much about the war effort and the people who served. The best part was being able to meet one of the naval aviators, Bob Jackson. He told us of several of his harrowing experiences, including ditching his airplane in the water (upside down - getting out was a challenge) and being outnumbered in a dogfight. It was a privilege to personally thank someone who served. As they say often about World War II, "All gave some; some gave all." I think we as a nation ought to go back to that.
http://picasaweb.google.com/khalaf.writes/USSMidway
The next day we drove up into the mountains to the town of Julian. It was about a 90-minute drive, and a 4000+ foot change in elevation. On the way we saw families sledding on the snow! The big attraction in Julian is the pie shops. We bought an apple boysenberry crumb pie which was not bad. I must confess I'm a bit spoiled when it comes to pie, as my wife and my mom are both fantastic bakers.
Later that evening, after coming back down the mountain, we walked through the Gaslamp District. We looked through several art galleries and took in the atmosphere. Too bad I ate so much pie; there were some really neat restaurants that could have had my business that night.
http://picasaweb.google.com/khalaf.writes/Julian
We spent our last day in San Diego just puttering about. We walked through Horton Plaza and didn't go out of our way to do anything memorable. But we did need the downtime, and it was refreshing.
Meanwhile, my parents took the kids to Universal Studios. Apparently they all had a good time. In fact, I get the distinct impression that my parents would rather we drop off the kids for the whole time and make ourselves scarce. Perhaps next time!
On our second-to-last night we were invited to dinner at Stuart and Sheila's house. They are friends I met in college, and they love the Lord dearly. It was so much fun to reconnect and see our children play together. I think not a few anecdotes of our college years fell on the listening ears of my daughter. I pray she finds friends in college with the same commitment to the Savior and a similarly righteous influence as Stuart and Sheila were for me.
The return trip was uneventful. We celebrated the new year somewhere over Indiana. After retrieving the car and luggage, we got home at around 2:30am only to discover that the furnace had stopped working and the house was a cold 41 degrees. To make a long story short, we didn't unpack until two days later. Thankfully, the furnace is working just fine now.
Sorry this has been a bit quiet as of late. I haven't gone anywhere new (Los Angeles, Sacramento, Arkansas) so I haven't been too quick with it. But it has been five weeks since the last update and I just found out that somebody other than my mom is reading this. So, here's a catch-up edition:
22-31 December 2008: Los Angeles, California
We packed the bags and hauled the kids to be with my parents for Christmas. We hadn't been to California in a while, and 2008 saw us go twice - once for my father's 70th birthday back in June and now for Christmas. As you can see from the pictures, getting there was half the fun. The next day we went to Knott's Berry Farm and had a great time riding the rides and eating the food.
http://picasaweb.google.com/khalaf.writes/ChristmasInLosAngelesKnottSBerryFarm
During this time, Basma and I managed to sneak off for a second honeymoon in San Diego. Our first day there we walked across the street to the USS Midway Museum, a vintage World War II aircraft carrier. Upon entering we were each issued personal listening devices that allowed us to bring up narration at each exhibit. We learned so much about the war effort and the people who served. The best part was being able to meet one of the naval aviators, Bob Jackson. He told us of several of his harrowing experiences, including ditching his airplane in the water (upside down - getting out was a challenge) and being outnumbered in a dogfight. It was a privilege to personally thank someone who served. As they say often about World War II, "All gave some; some gave all." I think we as a nation ought to go back to that.
http://picasaweb.google.com/khalaf.writes/USSMidway
The next day we drove up into the mountains to the town of Julian. It was about a 90-minute drive, and a 4000+ foot change in elevation. On the way we saw families sledding on the snow! The big attraction in Julian is the pie shops. We bought an apple boysenberry crumb pie which was not bad. I must confess I'm a bit spoiled when it comes to pie, as my wife and my mom are both fantastic bakers.
Later that evening, after coming back down the mountain, we walked through the Gaslamp District. We looked through several art galleries and took in the atmosphere. Too bad I ate so much pie; there were some really neat restaurants that could have had my business that night.
http://picasaweb.google.com/khalaf.writes/Julian
We spent our last day in San Diego just puttering about. We walked through Horton Plaza and didn't go out of our way to do anything memorable. But we did need the downtime, and it was refreshing.
Meanwhile, my parents took the kids to Universal Studios. Apparently they all had a good time. In fact, I get the distinct impression that my parents would rather we drop off the kids for the whole time and make ourselves scarce. Perhaps next time!
On our second-to-last night we were invited to dinner at Stuart and Sheila's house. They are friends I met in college, and they love the Lord dearly. It was so much fun to reconnect and see our children play together. I think not a few anecdotes of our college years fell on the listening ears of my daughter. I pray she finds friends in college with the same commitment to the Savior and a similarly righteous influence as Stuart and Sheila were for me.
The return trip was uneventful. We celebrated the new year somewhere over Indiana. After retrieving the car and luggage, we got home at around 2:30am only to discover that the furnace had stopped working and the house was a cold 41 degrees. To make a long story short, we didn't unpack until two days later. Thankfully, the furnace is working just fine now.
