Family Getaways

One of our favorite places for a quick family getaway is the picturesque seaside town of Pacific Grove. Not as famous or flashy as Monterey, Carmel, and its other neighbors in the Monterey Bay Area, Pacific Grove makes up for this in charm, billing itself as "America's Last Hometown" and "Butterfly Town USA". With a close proximity to the Bay Area, plenty of things to see and do, and an amazing coastal location, Pacific Grove is an ideal place for a family getaway over a long weekend.

Winter can be an especially nice time to go, with fewer crowds and nice weather. Last week, we were there over New Year's and the temperatures were in the mid 60s!

The highlight of our recent road trip to California's Gold Country was our visit to Columbia State Historic Park in the Tuolumne County town of Columbia. In fact, much of Columbia is the park itself. While most of the small Mother Lode towns along Highway 49 are just dripping with history, Columbia takes this to an extreme due to the fact that its old downtown has been preserved to represent its mid-19th century heyday. It's the best preserved Gold Rush town, and a fantastic place for families with children since there's a lot to do and see. The downtown state park part of Columbia is also closed to vehicular traffic (stagecoaches excepted), so it's safe and families literally have the run of the place.

Marin Mommies presents a guest post by Bay Area mom blogger Naomi Tripi. You can read more of her tips for parents of babies and toddlers on her blog at www.tripibabytips.blogspot.com

Toddlers are wild and crazy, you might think that taking them out into the wild would be as natural as breathing, but it is really a lot of work. There are more ways for your snuggly little tsunami to hurt themselves out in the woods than there are in a public restroom! However, getting your favorite bunny-hopper out doors is good for them too. You might not be able to enjoy the peace and solace of nature like you used to, but with a few tips, navigating some of the common pitfalls will be much easier.

If you're looking for a vacation destination a little closer to home this summer, consider heading up to California's historic Gold Country in the Sierra Foothills. It's a relatively short 2-1/2 hour drive from the Bay Area, and there are plenty of things for families to do. You can visit historic mining towns, pan for gold, explore caves, go wine tasting (for mom and dad, of course), take a ride on a 19th-century steam train, hike, fish, and more.

We recently took some time off to take a road trip to the southern part of the Mother Lode, where we decided to make a home base of the town of Sonora in Tuolumne County. Sonora, first settled in 1848 by Mexican miners from the state of the same name, is located on appropriately named Highway 49, which winds north to south through the foothills, Sonora is known as the "Queen of the Southern Mines," and with a population of over 4,000, is the "big city" by Gold Country standards. However, its old-fashioned downtown definitely retains the look and feel of the 19th century.

Last year we wrote about the proposal to help alleviate California's budget problems by closing 48 of our priceless state parks. This year, things are worse, and our state legislators have returned with another proposal, this time to shut down 200—80%—of our state parks! This is an incredibly short-sighted, harmful, and embarrassing proposal that ultimately will only serve to hurt the state of California, its citizens, and visitors.

According to the California State Parks Foundtion, the money from the state General Fund received by the state parks accounts for less than 1/10 of one percent of the entire state budget. In 2008 alone, there were over 80,000,000 visitors to the California State Parks, and numbers for 2009 were projected to be even higher. In fact, the parks are a valuable source of income for the state: for every dollar that funds the state parks, $2.35 is returned to California's General Fund by economic activity within surrounding communities. This decision could actually cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue.

We're down in our favorite home away from home, Pacific Grove. It's time for their annual Feast of Lanterns festival, which, if you're unfamiliar with it, is kind of like a combination of the 4th of July, Miss America, Halloween, and New Year's Eve all combined. Needless to say, it's a big deal, and all the hotels in the area are full. Things kicked off yesterday with the Pet Parade, which was a lot of fun in an organized chaos sort of way. At the end, everyone got popsicles and played at the park. More fun is in store today, as well as fireworks tonight. read more »

The last time we went to the Monterey Bay Aquarium (back in January—you can read about the trip here), we were a little disappointed to find that the Splash Zone, their interactive education and play area for kids, was closed for renovation. But it's back now at, and, at twice the size of the old Splash Zone, it's better than ever! We weren't able to make the media preview back in March, but we were back in Pacific Grove a couple weeks ago and had the opportunity to check it out.

One of our favorite relatively short road trips is to head down to the Monterey Peninsula. It's about a 2-1/2- to 3-hour drive from Marin, making it perfect for a day trip, overnight, or weekend. (What makes this easier for us is that we have good friends in Pacific Grove who are willing to put up with us every so often for a few days.) A favorite place to visit, especially with small children, is the Monterey Bay Aquarium

We paid a visit the Monterey Bay Aquarium and its Wild About Otters special exhibition last week. The aquarium is widely considered one of the best in the world, and I'm willing to bet that it is. The displays reflect the Monterey Bay Aquarium's mission to research the biodiversity of Monterey Bay and the California coast, and they're fascinating. Our favorites include the 28-foot-high Kelp Forest exhibit, with its leopard sharks, anchovies, and other fish; the sea otters; and the spectacular Outer Bay exhibit with its amazing 1.2 million-gallon tank, and featuring denizens of the deeper waters of outer Monterey Bay, including giant bluefin tuna, humongous ocean sunfish, sea turtles, hammerhead sharks, and the world's only great white shark in captivity!