How to go to the beach in our part of California

When you hear the words "sun", "beach" and California, you may think that involves bathing suits and swimming in the water.

That is true in some parts of California...but not our part.  Here is what it is like to go to the beach in our part of Northern California.

Walk down to the small but interesting lighthouse.  Look at the Youth Hostel that is there and consider what it would be like to spend the night there.  Without your teenager.

Look at the waves dashing against the rocks and imagine yourself falling into the water and what you would do if that happened.

Think about the book The Water Babies.

Look at the brown cormorants flying across the horizon.

Look at the signs that have different milages to different cities and realize again that you are really far away from China.

Consider this. 

You have known this your whole life.

When you go to the beach in our part of California, you wear heavy sweatshirts and blankets.

The waves with the dangerous rip tides.

Some teenagers have to feel the water to be reminded how blood chilling cold it is.

The seagulls wait eagerly for  left over sandwiches.

Walk away happy and refreshed.

Finally, Filoli!

For years, I have heard people talk about Filoli.  Somehow, despite growing up in this area, I have never been.  I've seen the house from highway 280 but never knew it was Filoli.  Filoli is a beautiful home and grounds built by a family that got their money from the Empire Mine.  For more information, click on this link. 

http://www.filoli.org/

It was warm and sunny and it was fun to walk around with my daughter.

This is the house.  It was used in the filming of the old  night time soap opera "Dynasty." Not that I ever watched that of course.

Floo network anyone?

Ready to travel.

The hills were gorgeous.

These were a kind of ball flower.

Close-up- it was really funky.

The pool- stunning.

The hills, the colors....lovely.

Roses.

The knot garden.

The Door to the Secret Garden.  Elisabeth played Mary in last years school play so we had to take a picture for her director, Mrs. Johnson.

Again my soul was fed with beauty and I am so glad we went.

Growing up near water.

I think that when you grow up on the water, you just never get used to not living near water.  The waves, the colors, the fresh air, the fog...all are a wonderful comfort to me.

On our second night in CA, we went to Venice Beach.  Paul grew up near here and lived on the beach growing up.  He was on the Surf Team in high school which basically meant that they went to the beach early in the morning, surfed, called it PE and didn't always make it to school.

Elisabeth on Venice Beach.  The Boardwalk could serve as an excellent visual in teaching kids to just say no to drugs.  Sad, sad people with broken lives.

Yesterday, we flew up to San Jose to spend ten days with my family in the San Francisco Bay Area.  We started off the evening in one of my favorite places- the Palo Alto Baylands.

The boardwalk look out towards the bay.

My mom and Elisabeth walking back towards the nature center.

Herons are nesting this time of year and the trees were full of them.

Another heron.

Swallow's nests at the nature center.

Egrets are also nesting and the trees are full of them.

If you look really closely, you can see stilts and an avocet.

One more egret.

My soul has been thirsty for beauty this year.  I am so thankful for seeing all of this last night.

Hello, America!

Cereal!

Elisabeth is happy!

Taco Bell!

Panera and Trader Joe's Side by Side!  Are we in heaven?

Milk in cartons, not boxes.

Cheese, glorious cheese!

Varieties of pet food!

Check out the tortilla's!

Yes, it's good to be home.

Goodbye, my darling boy.

We wish we could take you with us in our suitcase.

But we can't.

But while we are gone, we will miss 

your sweet face.

Waking up to your cheerfulness...even at 5AM.  Yes, it is that light at 5AM here.

We will miss your chubby little hands that grab at hair and fish crackers and hold on to us tightly.

We'll miss your little feet.

And your delicious legs and tummy.

We will miss your sense of fun and laughter.

And while we are gone in America, we will speak of a little boy that waits for a family.  We will speak of the Father that loves him more than we ever could.  We will speak of how much we love this country and these people and their need to know that Father.

We love you, our little treasure.

The finding place.

I did a sad thing today....and a joyful thing.  I took a picture of a finding place...a place where a baby was found.  An adoptive mom had read my blog and found that one of her daughters was from our city.  She knew where her child had been found and asked if we could get a picture.  I was happy to do it and rode my bike over today.

This was it.  The west gate of a hospital near us.  Ironically, from our old apartment, we could see this hospital from our back window.  It's an easy bike ride away.

.  

A finding place means that a baby has been left.  Abandoned.  Babies are left at all kinds of places...but almost always where they can be found.  Hospitals are very common as are police stations.  It is not unusual for the parents to be watching to make sure their babies are okay.  Our own little guy was left at a hospital.  His parents checked him in...and then left.  I've been in a the hospital with him when he was so sick last fall.  It would have been easy to just walk out.  Parents of special needs kids often leave them in hospitals in the hopes that they will get the care that they need.

Why do parents do it?  The reason's are as varied as the parents.  Lack of resources.  A second child that is going to bring a large fine.  A child with special needs that the parent can not afford. Mythology and superstition about certain special needs. A girl when the family needed a boy.  Parents who simply don't want to child that was born to them.  All sad reasons.

When children are abandoned and to be adopted, a finding ad will be placed in the newspaper.  I understand the reasoning behind this but it strikes me as sad and odd.  These children are not lost, like a puppy or cat.  They are....for lack of a better word...abandoned.

Look at that picture and imagine what it felt to leave your child there.  Were they afraid of getting caught?  It's a crime to abandon a child.  What were they thinking or feeling when they left.  Was it sadness?  Relief?  Hope?  All of the above?

A finding place means that a baby was found.  For this little baby found here, there is a happy ending.  She has a sweet family who loves and cares for her.  She is one of the few that has this kind of happy ending.

As we have entered this world of orphans and foster care and adoption, I have been on a sharp learning curve.  I had no idea how few orphans are actually orphans..most have parents somewhere.  I had no idea how long and complicated the adoption process was.  The biggest thing that I have learned was that the approach must be multi-faceted.  More and better foster care is a good place to start.   Less complications with adoptions.  More domestic adoption.  Better structures in place for birth families who have children with special needs.

What I do know is that the abandoned need to be found and that children belong in families.  I will believe that forever.