In January, things tend to feel a little bleak. This year January's climate and political events have filled many hearts with dismay, and I, like so many others, logged off Meta platforms to keep my soul intact. I am finding beauty in my small world, and while I will never ignore the world's problems and will ALWAYS support my fellow humans in the fight for dignity and complete liberation...I will also build peace right here in my own life.
Luckily in our family we kick off the new year and the "dark season" with birthdays! Namely one bright, beautiful, creative little eleven year old: our own Polly Diana, born January 5,
I was so glad Polly asked to go stay one night at our favorite little French hotel in Petaluma for her birthday. A day at the beach and a night at the Metro was just what we needed.
It's a two and a half hour drive straight to Point Reyes Station where we immediately go to
Palace Market to stock up on picnic supplies, then across the street to check out our
favorite bookstore. The girls fell in love with these darling Moulin Roty toys and so the day began with a sweet new friend for each, Huckleberry and Plum.
We headed out to the
lighthouse next but it was sooo crowded. We were leaving the special day’s choices up to Polly and she didn’t want to visit when it was so busy, so we turned around. The day was glorious. Red shouldered hawks kept flying over us, elk grazed majestically in the green hills, and the ocean was positively sparkling with blue January jewel dust. We went back to Drake’s Beach. Though we have heard its praises sung by many, every time we’ve ever tried to go to that particular beach it’s been ice-cold windy to the point that even hearty folk like us can’t hang around for long. But this time there was a different “problem” - the beach was closed due to a colony of elephant seals taking over the shore for pup season! Even though we had to stay behind the park rangers’ barriers it was so cool to be so close to such adorable massive creatures. Some of the females were pregnant, but we didn't see any births or pups. Sometimes the mamas would wave or scratch themselves lazily with a surprisingly deft fin-finger.
We wandered back down to the south end of the seashore. It's not far geographically from Drake's Beach to Limantour, as the crow flies, but driving you have to meander all the way back along Sir Francis Drake Blvd. then turn past the Visitor Center and drive along the curvy Limantour Road out to the shoreline again and it adds about forty minutes to your excursion, but it's a drive worth making no matter the weather. For us, it would be a late afternoon picnic rather than a lunchtime one, but we were excited to frolic on over to the shoreline and the sand and the fro
Finally enjoying our deli snacks!
With chocolate mousse birthday cake, and yes we even lit the candles although the wind helped her immediately blow them out!
We found a driftwood throne fit for a birthday queen.
My favorite sight to see.
Lucy just tripping out and staring up at the clouds, playing a game with herself where she tries to not see anything but sky even in her peripherals; this is her in a nutshell.
Feeling marvelously happy as sparked by this precise moment.
Then back to our adorable suite at the Metro just in time to get cozy.
We let Polly open her presents back in our room. She loved everything and said it was her favorite birthday ever!
And then off for a night walk!
We walked six blocks for a late night snack at McNear's, which is the pub next to the magnificent vaudevillian theater The Mystic. We like it here because it's kid-friendly, there's a cool game area upstairs, and it's open late!
A rare cocktail treat for the parents!
Heading back in the Petaluma night: why is it so much more memorable to wander around cities after dark?
Back in our room, after showers and baths, it was such a cozy feeling when Polly wanted to read in bed with both her parents like the old days.
Mornings at the Metro:
All you can eat crepes and pourover coffee....mmmmmm...
It's so hard to leave the Metro, with all its nooks and crannies of cool Francophilic memorabilia.
Of course downtown Petaluma requires a stop at
HeebeJeebe for all the quirky fun stuff!
Citrussy house whose charming colors we adored.
We had to head back home but enjoyed a super yummy very quick stop at the
Bagel Mill before hitting the road.
It was a delightful getaway and I hope Polly keeps her dream of doing this exact trip every year for her birthday.
And I hope everybody out there in the world is getting ample opportunities for rejuvenation in the midst of the world's madness.
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