Jelly Bellies and Monkey Suits

Day 2 of our San Francisco trip...

Steve and I just knew our little angels would be waking early on the first morning of Pacific Time.  Luckily, the Jelly Belly Factory in Fairfield opens early, so we had a plan to keep them occupied.  Added bonus: my dad grew up in Fairfield, so we could drive by his childhood homes and his high school to show the kids some of their 'roots'.

The drive from Tiburon to Fairfield is beautiful.  You go from the San Francisco Bay, through southern Wine Country, through farms and hills, and end up in Fairfield, which used to have a lot of fruit orchards.  The kids saw marshes, cows, etc. and it was great to be going the opposite of traffic. 

Jelly Belly does a free tour that includes SAMPLES!!  Visitors get to tour the factory on raised walkways so they have a birds-eye view, and there are windows strategically placed so the little ones can see without being held by their grown ups.  Zachary was very brave and tried some yucky Jelly Belly beans (thanks Harry Potter), and Sophie especially loved the samples.  We had to cut her off due to tummy problems that the excess of sugar was not helping, but she still gets very excited to see jellies. 

After a stop in the gift shop to purchase "Belly Flops" - the irregulars - and some candy corn for Grandma T, we drove through Fairfield and saw the old homes on Pierce Street and Coolidge Street.  I thought I remembered the house on Coolidge Street, but not so much.  We also saw Armijo High School.  The athletic fields seemed bigger and nicer than my old high school's.  Sadly, we could not locate Johannes (great diner where my mom and dad used to eat), and think that it has closed, so we ate at Fresh Choice instead. 

With our time in Fairfield done, we made our way to Green Brae to pick up the guys' tuxedos.  Zachary and Sophie caught some shut-eye on the way, which made for happy children during the monkey suit adventure.  The guys looked so handsome in their suits, and Zachary and Sophie had fun playing in the three way mirror.  The wrestling got a bit out of control and my darlings tackled each other and fell into the corner of a table.  I know the Men's Wearhouse was sad to see us go - NOT!!

Next on the list was a visit to Grandma and Grandpa's hotel, where we got to meet Katey's mom and went for a walk down to the dock.  Zachary had a good time clowning around and seeing the fire station, and the grown ups got a much needed dose of caffeine. 

Although we went back to our rental house for naptime, our kids decided it was bouncing time - no naps for them.  So we met the group for dinner - Grandpa ate CACTUS!

The kids finally got settled down and Steve and I sat up to wait for the Mathis family.  It was great to see them when they arrived!