The Desparrois Family Trip to Meet a Real Life Cowboy!

The trip started much later than usual as Pam was driving the girls from Midland and I was driving my rental car out of Houston. The plan was to meet up at the rendezvous point in Dallas late Friday evening for another fun-filled fambam adventure. The last two weeks have been a grind for the entire family. So when our good friend Leslie asked Pam if we would like tickets to watch Oklahoma State take on the mighty Wildcats from Kansas State, it was a no-brainer!

 Pam and the girl part of the fambam were running a little late coming to Dallas as they stopped in Abilene to see Daddy Bill, Pam's great uncle. Daddy Bill is an extraordinary man and someone we treasure dearly. Unfortunately, he is in the hospital and would appreciate any prayers. Pam and the girls went in to see him and give him some love and a few hugs to help with his spirits. AK reported that despite not feeling well, Daddy Bill was still himself and filled the room with stories and laughter that only Daddy Bill can do!

 After a quick bite with more stories and humor from cousin Hayli, the girls loaded up for the last stretch and rode into Dallas around 10:30 at night. Since I arrived earlier, I had already checked us into the Doubletree hotel which would serve as our sleeping quarters for the evening. It was a beautiful reunion to get the fambam back together in one place as I had been in Houston for most of the week. We enjoyed catching up, but soon realized that it was late and time to turn as we had another four-hour drive ahead of us in the morning to Oklahoma for the game.

 We got up early and enjoyed our usual free Doubletree breakfast and found ourselves on the road. AK turned 15 this year and had jumped through the hoops to acquire the proper documents to get her driver's permit. Pam and I decided early on that our daughters were going to learn to drive well before they turned fifteen in parking lots and back roads.  So now that she has her permit, AK has come along nicely and is learning to drive rather well. Pam’s simple rule of thumb is If we are going somewhere and AK is with us, then she is driving! The rule also pertains to long distant trips. We strongly feel that our girls need every opportunity to learn and we have to be comfortable with allowing this to happen and not just "do everything for them". The hardest part of the whole kids driving thing is giving complete and total control over to kid!

Pam's stomach started to growl and I remembered that I stopped at to pick up the much sought after Beaver Nuggets the day before on my trip from Houston at the worlds largest convenience store called Buc-ees's. To avoid a "hangry" Pam, I pulled out the southeastern Texas delicacy and fed them to my wife and Little D so peace would be kept in the back seat of the road warrior!

 With it being our first time to eat Beaver Nuggets, we honestly don't know what all the hype is. As a family of four, we only ate a quarter of the bag leaving lots of beaver morsels left in the bag. We all agreed that Rigo had it right when he claimed that Allsups fried burritos with taco sauce are the only way to go on a road trip!



















We soon arrived at Boone Pickens stadium and met up with Leslie. The tickets were in a great spot, and the girls were eager to take in some college football. 

Little D was eager to see the stadium, so we snuck off and found our way to the stadium store. Like most sports stadiums we visit, Little D had her sights on a game ball. Little D is well known for playing catch regardless of the sport. She is kinda like a puppy dog. You just cannot throw it to her enough. She just keeps coming back for more until your arm is ready to fall off!

 

We enjoyed cheering on the Pokes and were hoping they were going to pull off one the greatest college football comeback ever. Unfortunately, they came up a few points short on their final drive. After the game, we thanked Leslie for the tickets and took the opportunity to get a picture of the girls favorite Cowboy and starting lineman Johnny Wilson #72!

 

Johnny is an awesome kid and has taken the college playing field by storm this year being named a team captain and getting the MVP for the game against Texas. We were honored to be asked to come to a game and look forward to watching Johnny's success in the future!

We once again loaded up and headed to Oklahoma City to find rest for the night. The girls were starving and we sought refuge for their hunger pains at Waffle House. Many families have dirty secrets they keep hidden away for no one to know. Ours is the pure pleasure of the greasy cafe food from Waffle House. I can't exactly tell you why we like it so much, be we do and we are proud to say it could be a Top Ten spot for us when it is available.

After stuffing our faces full of sweet waffles, biscuits and gravy, eggs, bacon and their world famous hash browns we found ourselves ready for a long food-induced coma and settled in at the local Hilton Garden Inn.

It didn't take long for the girls to pass out and Pam to take control and declare that we would be in no hurry to return home. She decided the girls were needed some rest for the long journey back and was going to allow them to catch up on some much-needed teenager sleep.

As usual, I was up early the next morning and enjoying my free Hilton morning coffee when Pam came down to join me. We spent several hours just drinking coffee and enjoying some time to ourselves. We are so busy with work and the girl's activities that we appreciated a simple cup of coffee together.

Little D woke up and decided to join Pam and I for our free complimentary Hilton breakfast while AK opted to snooze longer. Little D was eager to get some pool time in and try out her new football. I loosened up my arm and Pam dragged AK out of the bed so we could all go to the pool together. We had a good time playing catch and having chicken fights. The girls may be getting big, but are still not match for their parents in a good old fashion chicken fight.

We soon checked out and headed to lunch at Braum's for lunch. Pam and the girls had never had eaten there and thoroughly enjoyed their first trip while scarfing down Braum's burger, french fries and washing it down with the delicious Braum's shake!

Before heading home, Pam and I participated in a friendly game of rock-paper-scissors to see who would have to play parent and sit up front with AK as she navigated the way home while she drove. I won and Pam had to sit in the pressure seat while I enjoy a leisurely ride home watching Wonder Woman and Spider-Man with my best buddy, Little D.

After spending over 13 hours in the car, one college football game, trying out some unimpressive beaver nuggets, a picture opportunity with a Cowboy, and two different hotels, Pam officially declared the weekend over as we arrived home at our little zoo filled with roue dogs and two cats.

The Desparrois Fambam to the Big D! Day 2

Day 2

The day started out early as I played the role of primary hunter and gatherer of the family. The game would not be birds like most of the men hunt in Texas during the Labor Day weekend. Instead, I would be on the hunt for petrol in the great city of Dallas. My theory was to wake up early enough so I could beat the traffic and find enough gas to be able to make it out of the city when we were ready to head home. After six different stations, I was able to pull in and find my gas destination. I was more than ecstatic to pay the $2.65 a gallon If it meant my hunt was over.

I filled up and headed back to the hotel and set up shop to write yesterdays blog. It was still early, and Pam once again showed why she was declared Supreme Leader of the Fambam as she made the decision the night before to allow the girls to sleep in. The water park did not open until 11:00 so there was no hurry in getting ready for the day.

The girls finally woke from their teenage coma and came down to eat some free complimentary breakfast from the Hilton Garden Inn. AK went for the traditional eggs and toast while Little D felt it necessary to load up on an all carb diet of biscuits and gravy with a waffle and a side of flapjacks to prepare herself for a day at the water park!

We arrived at the water park early and lubed up our bodies with sunscreen in an effort to thwart away the oppressive Texas sun from burning our pale white bodies. Pam tans naturally but unfortunately the girls have my Irish genes and are as pale as a tall cold glass of milk. AK complained of being"oily". I quickly put my best dad advice forward and told her it would just make her fly faster down the water slides. She seemed satisfied with the response, and off we headed for the first slide of the day!

Little D decided we would go on the "Taco Slide". Its a large slide shaped like a taco the tow people ride together on a joint tube. AK declared that she wanted to ride with her daddy since I was"fat" and simple physics would suggest that we would go fast and higher than anyone else thanks to my girth! AK's theory proved to be correct as we screamed with glee as we reached maximum height and speed on the ride.

The lines were short, and we were able to hit all the fun stuff with little waiting time. We hopped from slide-to-slide and pool-to-pool without any issues. It was a great day to be at the water park and I smiled at Supreme Leader of the Fambam knowing that it was her genius that planned out the day.

It was soon time to feed the girls as we had been at the park for a while and we know from experience the more food we supply the younglings, the more fun we are likely to have. We spent about $30 for an order of fries with bacon and ranch, a medium soda and some chicken tenders that were so small we had to dig through the fries to find them. Six Flags wears me smooth out with their price for food. Lucky we were able to stick it to the man as we snuck in a bunch of our own water bottle and snacks to avoid paying the ridiculous price of $4.50 for water!

We continued on and hit the lazy river, the pool of waves and another round of slides. As the day wore on, the sun burned into my bald head. No amount of sunscreen could prevent the sun from beating down on me like the beating Jonathon takes on his Vegas vacations at the blackjack tables!

Between the sun, my old man back and the heat I tapped out and followed the girls around as they continued their quest for more Fambam fun. AK soon found herself exhausted but Pam and Little D still had more good times in them. AK and I watched from shaded areas of the park as Pam and Little D got maximum fun out of their day. After several more slides Little D declared she was hungry and Pam decided it was time to call it a day.

Pam let Little D decide where to eat since she lasted the longest at the water park. Without hesitation, Little D demanded we head to "Waffle House" for some greasy diner food. All families have dirty dark secrets they like to keep hidden in closets so nobody can find out how weird their family is. Our dirty secret is the pure love and pleasure we have from eating at Waffle House. Before you judge, I suggest you get some waffles and eggs!

After getting our fill of grease, we drove around and saw some sights. We returned to the hotel, and each took a long shower to get all the oil from the sunscreen off us. Little D led the family prayer, and we all passed out from all the Fambam fun Pam planned out!

The Desparrois Fambam to the Big D!

Day 1:

With a crazy summer packed full of volleyball camps, work, a family reunion, travel for work, and a mission trip across the world for AK...Pam decided that the Fambam needed to get together and get out of town for some Desparrois family fun. It may have been the call of carnival food, perhaps it was the lure of going up-and-down on wild rides really fast, or maybe it was the fact Pam and I had not been to Vegas in a really long time.  Anyways, she felt the need to gamble and see if we could even get back to Midland with the total lack of gas in Dallas. Either way, after a long exhausting first week of school that found AK starting high school and Little D beginning her final year of elementary, The Desparrois Fambam loaded up the gas guzzling Tahoe and headed out to the Big D to hit Six Flags over Texas!

We made the wise choice to let the girls sleep in for a while before we set out on our drive. They were tired from the start of school and Pam's theory was the longer they slept, the less time we would have to spend in long lines while sweating in the humidity of the North Texas heat. Pam choice proved to be a wise one as the drive was easy going for the first three hours.

Since Little D rarely gets to pick where to eat, we let her have the choice and she didn't disappoint with wanting some Golden Chick. The food was good but the free ice cream made AK and I smile with delight as we cleaned our plates to appease Pam so we could enjoy the cool summer treat.

Full of fried food and carbs we headed out for the final hour of the journey as the girls mapped out their plan of attack on what rides they would hit. Pam and I agree the best thing about the girls getting older is not that they are independent and can care for themselves. it's the simple pleasure knowing they both love all the scary twisty, loopy rides we want nothing to do with. This means we no longer have to go on them and can wait in the shade as we drink ice cold water and enjoy our pre-golden years in peace.

Pulling up to the park the girls were pumped to see the park was relatively empty for a holiday weekend. The quickly decided they would hit the much anticipated Mr. Freeze. The line was short and in no time they were churning their guts with delight. I was pleased to see we were not raising any sissies as they took the last seat on the roller coaster for extra fun!

Since Pam declared herself Supreme Leader of the Fambam because of her smarts and great looks. She determined it would be a good idea to bring a couple of cold water bottles into the park. With the high humidity and the Texas heat beating down on us similar to the beating Rigo has been known to dish out to Jonathan on the poker table, the water did not last long. Pam refused to pay the ridiculous amount of $4.50 for a water bottle. She told the girls to go have fun while we hiked through the parking lot to load up my backpack full of ice-cold waters from the cooler. 

We soon came back to find our worst fears coming true. AK looked a little green and declared she must be "outgrowing Six Flags" because she "no longer felt very good" when she went on all the "crazy roller coasters!" Now, normally this would be welcoming news as perhaps we would no longer have to come to said amusement park. Instead, it meant that Pam and I would have to determine who would go on the rest of the rides with Little D. With Pam being Supreme Leader of the Fambam...I knew I was screwed on this deal and would become the new chosen one!

I decided on some diversion tactics as Little D talked about her deepest desire of riding the brand new coveted Joker ride. I lured her away from her thoughts and offered her some food. The girls we happy to eat as it had been a few hours since their last intake of food. In teenage years that is like an eternity. I decided on some carnival nachos and pretzels while the girls discovered a Panda Express in the park. 

I was soon disappointed to learn they didn't serve jalapenos on the nachos. Maybe this is a sign of bad things to come as Trump continues to push for his wall to be built. I declined the nachos as eating them without jalapenos would be a vote for the dark side! Pam and I chowed down on our extra large pretzel with salt as the girls devoured their amusement park Chinese food.

During the meal, Little D kept talking about The Joker ride wondering who was going to be the lucky rider to go with her. I still had some more tricks up my sleeve and led the girls to the car ride. I figured if we did enough slow rides the girls would get bored and want to leave.

This soon backfired as it only meant that Little D craved more excitement. My last ditch effort was to take the Fambam on the Texas Giant roller coaster hoping this would tame the beast that is Little D. The Texas Giant is an oldie but a goodie, but most importantly, it doesn't have any loops or spins. I rode with Little D and made sure I screamed like a little girl the entire way to let her know this was as scary as her old man could go in the world of amusement rides. Little D was not willing to budge as she wanted more fun and grabbed my arm and lead me across the park to the much-dreaded Joker ride.

The Joker is a free hanging roller coaster that flips you while moving and has several loops and tilts and spins. It has everything my brain and stomach no longer need or have any desire of doing. We waited in line and Little D could sense that her daddy was not digging the thought of going on the ride. Instead of telling me that we could walk away and do something else, Little D hedged her bet and double down by telling me that she "would go on the ride alone" and that I could "take the walk a shame and go back through the line as everyone stared and laughed at me!" Since Little D laid down the gauntlet, I stepped up to the challenge and buckled myself into the dreaded coaster. 

I would like to say I walked off the ride a hero to my daughter. Instead, she told the rest of the Fambam tales of her daddy screaming and begging to get off the entire ride! 

It was soon time to hit the road and find some very late dinner. We scoped out an Olive Garden and enjoyed our meal as Little D and I watched Pam and AK have a breadstick eating contest. I won't tell you how many they ate, but I will tell you the manager was happy to see us leave! We checked into the hotel, took some quick showers and were fast asleep dreaming of the sunburns to come as we take on the water park on day 2 of the Fambam exploring the Big D!

Little D, Peters and Me Without Our Pea! Day 5 & 6

Little D, Peters and Me Without Our Pea! Day 5 & 6

I got up early again on day 5. While I was working out, I missed a call from my mom wishing me a happy birthday. After I got done, I texted her back and wished her a happy birthing day. After all, she is the one that did all the hard work 43 years ago!

I drank some coffee and finished up the previous days report while Pam and Little D enjoyed sleeping in. After a while, they both joined me so we could load up on fuel. It was the first day Little D came down for breakfast, and she was pleased to find she could get a homemade waffle.

With Little D amped up on sugar it was time to go the attraction I had anticipated since I stepped foot in San Fran. We were going to "The Rock". I couldn't think of a better way to spend my birthday. Being a history buff, I have always been fascinated with Alcatraz and the story behind the prison. I had no idea it was a military fort, military jail, a federal prison, reclaimed Indian Land and now a National Historic Park! We took the ferry out to the island in anticipation of our tour.

What I didn't know is how Pam planned the super secret scary tour for me and Little D to be locked up. Little D and I looked into our new dwellings and settled in to serve our sentence.

After several hours of work duty, Little D and I were granted time in the rec yard where we played some baseball with other notorious criminals.  Little D had a plan to distract the guards from thinking we were model inmates like "Machine Gun" Kelly.

Little D and I partook in a friendly game of baseball out of the rec yard with the "Birdman" and Al Capone. Capone was pitching, and he didn't like the way Little D was crowding the plate. He gave her some chin music by pitching one high-and-tight to Little D's head. Little D reciprocated by reminding Capone that she was a true Texan and if he was going to "mess with the bull, he was going to get the horns!" Capone realized he messed with the wrong inmate and backed away sheepishly!

When the guards weren't looking, we hit the wall to escape from what they claimed to be inescapable!

Little D and I were able to clear the wall and swim our way back to the beach where we met up with Pam for more fun with the fam bam. It was was late afternoon, and we had one more destination to check off our list. That was The Upper Haight area.

Local lore has it that the hippie counterculture got its start on the corner of Haight-and-Ashbury. This is where legends like Janice Joplin and Jefferson Airplane launched their musical careers. Many come each day to homage to the hippie culture in some fascinating ways. It is safe to say that the hippie community is still alive and well in the Upper Haight area.

It was getting late, and our feet were once again tired while our stomachs were growling from a busy day. Pam declared it time to hop on the bus and find a birthday dinner fit for a king. She searched out a location, and we soon found ourselves at the entrance of a Pizza Hut!  Pam ordered dinner so we could take it back to the hotel and relax. It could have been the long, exhausting day of escaping from Alcatraz, or maybe it had something to do with walking through Upper Haight--but whatever the reason for our immense hunger, we mowed through the pizza, wings and cinnamon sticks like Tony aka Holmes taking on a tall stack of flapjacks after a long night finds him at a Denny'

With the food devoured and our feet tired from clocking in 13.4 miles with the Fitbit we called it a night so we could get up early for our flight home.

Day 6:

Day six found us up at 3:30 am to catch the red-eye back to Texas. We were ready and waiting as Uber picked us up and hit the airport in no time. The lines were fast, and Pam was soon on the lookout for Little D to have some breakfast. Little D settled for a turkey sandwich and Pam went for the coffee. 

The flight went off without a hitch with Little D napping off her turkey sandwich while Pam and I caught up on some reading.

We arrived in Dallas grabbed our luggage and picked up our car for the five-hour drive back home in the oppressive 110-degree heat of Texas. The ride was long as it was hot and we were ready to be home. Pam and I love to eat spicy food, and the idea of spice doesn't really exist in San Fran. We stopped off at Taco Casa and grabbed a  couple of chiladas and some tacos for the trip. We soon found our way back to Midland to the delight to all four of the dogs. They were pleased we came back home. Maddox, the Mad Dog, quickly realized his Pea was not with us. Maddox went into depression when he found out AK would not be returning until early Sunday morning.

We have been able to keep in touch with AK most of the time. We are really proud of all she has accomplished and the people she has been able to help and guide. AK really is a fantastic kid, and we were thrilled with her desire to share her love of God with others.  As proud as I am of her courage to go to a third world country, I am even more excited for her to return so I can hear all about her adventure. I would like to give Mickey and Bonnie Eckles and the entire 3:23 Ministries volleyball club a special shout out for making this mission trip possible. I know Avery Kate will cherish the memory for a lifetime.

After 672 miles driven and ten hours in the car, seven hours of total flight time, two quality bowls of clam chowder devoured, seeing sea lions several times, walking the Golden Gate bridge, getting lost in the Golden Gate Park, conducting experiments at the Exploritorium, hanging with hippies, checking off seeing the Giants play off the bucket list, getting locked up in the hoosegow known as Alcatraz, hoping every day the report left Kelly satisfied as she drank her morning coffee, countless slices of pizza and churros to keep even a Rigo filled, 70.26 miles walked according to the Fitbit and not being able to accurately calculate how much we missed out Pea...Pam declared the Little D, Peters and Me Without our Pea vacation to San Fran complete.

Little D, Peters and Me Without our Pea! Day 4

Little D, Peters and Me Without our Pea! Day 4

Day four started out at the same early hour. I enjoyed another quick workout and breakfast with Pam before dropping her off for her morning activities. Pam only had a half day, so I decided to go for a walk and let Little D sleep in as she is still nursing her cold. 

After my walk, I got Little D up, and we packed since we needed to change rooms for the day. Pam was done and met up with us for an afternoon of fun and sightseeing. Little D had done a spectacular job as team captain! But truth be told, there is only one team captain in this fam bam, and that person is Pam! With Pam at the helm, she led us to the San Fran aquarium. I live in a family of animal people which means lots of visits to zoos and aquariums. 

Pam was as excited as a Rigo when he reaches down and sees he is holding a pair of aces against his arch nemesis Jonathon who has been known to bluff! Pam wanted in so she could see her beloved river otters. Pam truly believes that someday she will own an otter so she can "cuddle it and play with its toes!" Pam was pleased to see the sea otter but rather disappointed when her request to play with the river rat fell on deaf ears!

We enjoyed the aquarium but found ourselves a touch on the disappointed side as it was minimal with few attractions. We shrugged it off and went in search of food. Holmes had visited the area a few weeks earlier and told tales of enjoying a scrumptious In-N-Out Burger close to the sea. Neither Pam or I spoke of this tale because we didn't want to jinx the possibilities of getting our hooks around a Double-Double Animal Style. After a short walk around Fisherman's Wharf, we spotted the treasure and aimed our sights on the California delicacy. 

I gave my customary score of 5 palm trees while Pam came in with a close 4.9. After grubbing on some burgers and texting Cathe to let her know they are still good, we continued our walk down to Hyde Street Pier. This pier is unique as it is a National Historic Park and has several large sailboats and other old vessels that were important to the development and commerce of the Bay area. Little D and Pam went an explored the ships while I deemed my sea legs unworthy and sat on a bench to watch the waves and take in the sun like a beached sea lion.

Little D had been itching all week to get her feet in the ocean and spend some time on the beach. She didn't seem to mind the fact the water is freezing. She took off her shoes and ran back an forth as the tide rolled in. Pam and I sat for an hour and watched Little D. We talked about how much we missed our Pea and loving all the stories about all the fun she was having exploring other foreign lands and touching people lives in profound ways.

Little D spotted a dock way out on the horizon and decided we needed to continue in that direction. The dock went out a way into the bay. It was breezy but warm, unlike the past few days.

Little D enjoyed walking next to me on the concrete curb and pointed out that it made her taller than me. Once we reached the end of the dock, we came up to Fort Mason. This Fort was established by the Spanish when they first colonized the city. The US took over the fort. It remained in operation until the mid-1960's. 

We continued up a very steep hill that overlooked the bay and the fort. Little D noticed a park on the other side. Pam knowing full well that I took every opportunity to let Little D do whatever she wanted that last few days to get a leg up on the early voting for Parent of the Year pulled out the wild card and suggested that we go see the house from the hit TV series Full House. Little D quickly pointed out how "happy" she was with her mama and how "this trip is just the best" because of her! Disgusted by Pam's trick to pull ahead in the voting, I tailed them a few yards behind as Pam navigated the bus system to get us where we needed to be.

Although Pam and Little D liked the Full House house, to me it was just another house. Regardless of my thoughts, they were delighted with Pam's find--Little D as she got to wave to Uncle Jessie and Joey her were looking out the window and Pam because she knew she was leading by a large margin in the polls.

After Little D waived goodbye to Uncle Jessie and Joey, We caught yet another bus that put us outside our hotel. We checked into a room that was a touch bigger but not by much. Once again, Little D was totally pumped with the view from our room.

Since we were starving and it was officially 10:00 pm Texas time, Pam felt we should go to the local Denny's to dine on some flapjacks in honor of Holmes aka Tony, who has shared all the tricks of navigating through San Fran.

With our bellies full of pancakes and our hearts filled with ove, we laid our bodies down to rest as the Fitbit calculated we put in a solid 12 miles for the day. Day 5 will bring on more fam bam fun with Pam and also bring us one more day closer to our much-needed reunion with our Pea whom Little D dearly misses!

Little D, Peters and Me Without our Pea: Day 3

Little D, Peters and Me Without our Pea: Day 3

Day 3 started out early just like the others with a quick workout in the gym followed by another complimentary breakfast. With one exception. Today was not the standard powdered eggs and greasy thin bacon type of breakfast. Nope, the early morning meal was the day all Hampton Inn breakfast enthusiasts relish. Pam jumped with glee when she pulled away the heavy lid to see what she dreams of every time she books a Hampton Inn. The impressive yet scrumptious "Bagel Topper". A half bagel with cheese, egg, and bacon all melted on top of a bagel. Pam powered down her food and reminded me that no rating would need to be given since complete and total joy had filled her heart in the form of breakfast food.

Once again I walked Pam over to tend to her daily activities and headed back to finish up the previous days trip report, drink some coffee and read the news. Little D soon called and was up and ready to leave for more adventures. She has liked being in charge of taking control of the schedule and the transportation. We loaded up on the cable car and were off to partake out on a harbor tour.

The harbor tour was an hour long experience on a large craft that pushed through the choppy bay. Under normal circumstances, I would have been a little concerned at this point as Little D is susceptible to getting car sick. There is no knowing what the vicious seas of the San Fran Bay would bring my precious cargo. But then it occurred to me, I was not in charge. If Pam had appointed me team captain, I most likely would have forgotten to give Little D her medicine to battle off the seasickness. Since Pam declared Little D ruler of the day I was pleased to see my supreme leader take out a pill and swallow it down with some water.

The tour was stunning as we got to see the Golden Gate Bridge up close and came in close to "the rock". We liked hearing the history of the bay and how many forts have been built to protect the gateway from the evil doers of the world. One interesting tidbit we learned was a hostile shot has never been fired from any of the forts!

After giving up on our sea legs and getting on dry land, Little D declared it was time for lunch. She had her sights set on some onion rings she spotted the night before. Just like her Papa, Little D appreciates a quality onion ring from time to time. What I had not expected was the pure excitement that overcame her face when she was able to take in the aroma of the garlic fries being served to the patrons on Pier 39. Leader D took her leadership skills to new levels when she deemed we would be lunching on both garlic fries and onion rings. We would polish it off with a bottle of water. 

Little D chowed down on the garlic fries the same way Pam had attacked her bagel topper earlier for breakfast. In fact, Little D was so enamored with her new find that the most critical of food critics gave the garlic fries an unheard of 4.9 cloves of garlic out of five!

With our breath refreshed from the garlic and onion we took in, it was time to walk down the beach in search of the Exploratorium. This is a rather interesting take on a science museum. The idea is to make it interactive with experiments to be a part of and learn. Little D was in her element. After all, she did win the prestigious Science and Math Award this past year for school. I must say even I was impressed with the setup and design as Little D got busy conducting her own experiments. No doubt old Rigo would have himself a good time had he been able to go!

We were having so much fun we failed to pay attention to the time and realized it was time to get back and reconnect with Pam. On the way out Little D saw a water fountain and needed a drink to quench her thirst for all the experiments and garlic that still lingered.

It was such a pretty day we decided to hike back to the hotel. We were there in no time to see Pam where Little D was able to catch her up on the doings of the day.  Pam was excited to hear about our journey and honed in on the fact that we had garlic fries.

It was soon time to walk to the Giants game down the road. Whenever we are visiting a city, we always try to make it work out so we can see a new ballpark and watch a game. One of my bucket list items is to see all the ballparks in my life. It's a lofty goal, but one I hope to achieve through the years.

The game was great as Tony aka Holmes suggested we sit high enough to take in the bay and the game at the same time. Pam was also pleased to see they served garlic fries; however, she did say the Dodgers did a much better job with their garlic fries. The hot dog was not noteworthy, but the ballpark is a sight to see. It reminds me a lot of Coors Field in Denver. The only difference being the fans at Coors seem to attend for craft beer and conversation while the Giants faithful is tuned into the game.

After the game, we went back to the hotel for some rest. Our feet were exhausted from the Fitbit clocking us in at just over 14 miles walked. We were not able to talk with AK in Costa Rica, but she was able to send us a few texts and pictures. All reports are still sound from across the world as she has continued to enjoy her friends, serve others and manage to play some volleyball on the side.