Freedom at last!!

We ended up at a viewing area with some art that Ashwin could run through. It isn't too good when your baby is crying and there are some snooty "art" people (art in quotation marks - as art doesn't need to be taken so seriously!) shooting you dirty looks. I think Ashwin was enjoying listening to himself in the echoes of silence :)

Finally visiting the SFMOMA...

...very exciting stuff as our mate from Sydney Alex, Ashwin and I went on a daytrip to the Museum of Modern Art in San Fran. We went to see the Picasso and American Art exhibition where the artists were "influenced" by the style of Picasso. Kind of interesting the fact that most of these artists copied Picassos works and reinterpreted them. It was excellent to see more of Picassos work in real life but then Mr Ashwin had enough of the stuffiness of an exhibition space and wanted to escape...

Gotta get up, gotta get up, gotta get up, (Woah-oh)

And time won't take my love away (OMG a Black Box flashback to my old days of clubbing!!) OK back to the present, we are here in the U S of A listening to nursery rhymes these days - not Westside rhymes (rap music)! Mr Ashwin after having a bit of a break gets up to head on down the hill, to fetch a pail of O's... man need to go clubbing again!!

My favourite pic of the moment.

As we went up the hill we had to come back down again! Lucky it wasn't too far down but Ashwin did get a bit fed up with the angle and decided to lay down on the grass for a bit of a break before he held Dad's hand and strolled on down. We were wondering where the cardboard was so you could take a slide down the grass - now that would be cool, I am sure Ashwin will love that too!! The colour of this pic and James and Ashwin are just perfect - well to me anyway, it captures an end to a glorious weekend.

Alex, James, Trish and Ashwin went up a hill...

to see the 'urban sprawl of the the valley surrounding Shoreline park. The camera was set up on a traffic cone and did a decent job of this pic of the four of us. The hard thing was trying to keep Ashwin still as these days he is a runner and has to run everywhere, even in the kitchen after he has trampled all his O's (Cheerio's) on the floor!

Look behind the baby...

it's the Shoreline Amphitheatre, looks like a pair of pointy boobs - maybe they were inspired by John Paul Gaultier's outfit for Madonna in the 1980's. We have not been there as yet, but we did want to go last year to the Diwali Mela in October so hopefully it is on again there this year.

Get it on...

You can tell that romance is in the air when you see a couple of ladybirds getting it on! This pair was getting a bit sick of me trying to get a macro shot of them in action that they decided to hide in a split in the wood just to escape the lens. Looks like they were having some fun while we were watching the kites down at Shoreline kite flying area.

Yee-hah James has a farm...

Wow I didn't know my husband had a farm growing Chicharos. I found this bag of peas downtown at the local Chinese grocer when I couldn't be bothered to travel to Safeway to buy just one item. It really is annoying when you have to go to three different places in different areas to buy your weekly groceries! Nothing like downtown Coburg :)

and I love the Visual Merchandising...

This is a window from the Gump's window in downtown San Francisco. Looking at their website the stuff for sale are luxury gifts, fine jewellery, tabletop, furniture and lighting - all you need to decorate a house. Well a house without a toddler anyway - oh well we can't have the coral placed around our apartment, it will be broken in seconds!

Love this illustration of a Koala!

Wandering around San Fran to get to the gardens we came across a mural of worldwide icons and Sydney was up there with the harbour bridge and this little koala guy hanging in the gum tree. Hopefully when we come home to visit we can take Ashwin to see animals of his native land and take a trip to the zoo or Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary - wow it still exists, I remember photos of going there when I was little. So far Ashwins wildlife experience has been with the local pet shop and when we are out hiking, better than nothing I suppose!

I only wanted 2 see u underneath the Purple Tulip

(sing to the tune of Purple Rain)... This colour is just delicious shining in the afternoon sunlight. There were plenty of flowers as Spring is coming along in a couple of weeks. We are all enjoying the flowers that are around the city and here in the bay area they are just beautiful additions to a landscape dominated by highways and mountains on the horizon. This was near the Arts Centre right next door to a lovely tea bar and a groovy cafe to enjoy some people watching in the afternoon sun.

view of SFMOMA

well in the background! After out jaunt in Chinatown on Saturday we had to take Ashwin out to be entertained in the city, as he was getting a bit bored with the pram. Alex suggested we wander down to the Yerba Buena Gardens and within was the Centre for the Arts, that has some interesting shows and art. It was a very relaxing place to wander around with areas dedicated to butterfly nesting grounds and fountains with birdlife and the highlight was finding a playground by the Moscone Centre!

An apple a day...

...keeps you well in debt with the prices you pay!! Here is James and Alex (our friend from Sydney who is staying with us before he trips off to Cuba & Mexico) outside the Apple store in San Francisco where you can buy, buy, buy all things Apple. Alex was sussing out a Mac mini but the problemo is if you buy a Mac here you have power adaptor issues back home. Hey I bought my G5 (ancient machine!!) in Australia and it's running on a power adaptor here - I do hope it's OK for it, as I love my Mac very much :)

Now for an art-attack!

Check out the gorgeous illustrations on this love heart :) There were hearts at the corners of Union Square in downtown San Francisco. The heart at the opposite corner to this one, was very popular and accessible to strange folk hugging it and laying on it. This one was tucked away behind a barrier and safe from art attackers and I loved it for the colour and of course the animals. Union Square was bright and sunny and surrounded by all the downtown stores - man, get ready to burn the credit card!!

Let me out...

Poor old Ashwin was caught up behind bars in Union Square the other day! He was enjoying himself behind and around the bars - playing a game of Chasey. These were the barriers for the Chinese New Year (3 hour long) parade through the city that the 'officials' were planning to lay out on the main streets.

Yep another S...T coffee!

After the Funnel Cake we needed something to wash it down. Going down a strange lane (that reminded me of Melbourne) we thought - there must be a decent coffee somewhere here... well this is America, no such luck! Anyway this crap coffee burnt my tongue and here is James trying to enjoy it while nerding it up with Alex (our mate on holiday from Sydney). Oh yeah the only good thing about this experience was the live opera singing for its ambience as the coffee here in the U S of A is s...thouse!

You're giving me a heart attack...

Here is James and Alex enjoying a recipe for a heart attack, as we were leaving Chinatown we saw some folk selling 'Funnel Cake' which was pancake batter (that came out of a funnel) and it was covered in strawberry jam and whipped cream - straight out of the can. As soon as James saw Funnel Cake - he said 'Can u go get me some?'

Gung Hay Fat Choy! (may prosperity be with you)

Sat :: Happy Year of the Pig to all! The day of the big parade hit Chinatown in San Francisco - yay! We went to the market day as we couldn't make the parade as it was too late for Mr Ashwin. The market was pretty crap with advertising stalls with tonnes of balloons and McDonalds with a line going halfway up a street, so you could get a free bag of Maccas merchandise.

We had fun wandering around and decided to have an early lunch at 'Lucky Creation Vegetarian Restaurant' (mixed reviews on yelp.com). They had chicken made from gluten on the menu which was very tasty and this delicious stuffed eggplant and gluten dish that we enjoyed as well. With this meal we enjoyed Won Ton soup and jasmine tea - if you are a vego definitely go and check it out!

Nice mullet!

The time came for Ashwin to have his first haircut as his fringe was growing right over his eyes and Ashwin was having trouble seeing! So James & I did the mission together... first James grabbed a portion of hair and then I came over with the scissors and CHOP off it went! Then we did the same with another portion and there it was Ashwins fringe (bang if you are the U S of A) - kinda cool with its asymetrical line! People do notice the haircut and yep Mum & Dad were responsible, ooops sorry Ashwin.

Enter the tulip zone!

This is the inside of the organically grown tulip from a bunch of 5 we bought at the market for just $4. The colour of the tulips is just stunning with 2 tones of orange on the petals. As spring has sprung there are some amazing flowers to admire. At the market we have seen some glorious orchids that just love the weather here.

Dining in style

Here is a pic of our brand spanking new dining suite we scored at a interior design warehouse just down the road. It is a reproduction 50s design and is just perfect for our vintage decor that we have here. It is so good as the vintage stuff here is so cheap and it is excellent quality - this cost us a mere $180, bargain!

Happy 1st birthday to Liam...

Saturday :: Ashwin had his first birthday party to go to for a little friend of his - born in the USA, with parents from Melbourne. It was great fun to have a couple of wines while 'supervising' him in action. As Liam is allergic to egg he had a vegan cake, which was very tasty - chocolate with berries. It was Kaths first attempt and it was a success :) For those of us who like a bit of egg in our cake there was a backup carrot cake. Here is Ashwin looking very excited as there were loads of helium balloons to play with and we all know how the little ones just love balloons! He also had fun on the playset they have in their backyard which took a few weekends to put together - as it was a giant meccano set.

Da Knitting mecca....

Last Friday Shona (pictured - my knitting buddy), Ashwin and I went to Stiches West 2007 - Knitting Expo (see sign!) It was just amazing with so much yarn to fondle and the patterns - man, we just couldn't help but buy, buy, buy. This is one place to save some dollars for as there is so much under the one roof. It was laid out in the Santa Clara convention centre, so Shona suggested we catch the light rail, which didn't take long at all - our stop was Great America! The trip doesn't take that long when you pull your knitting out of your bag and do a few stitches on the way. When we arrived there was a line to get in which curved around the pot plant and back to the entrance - whew should have pre booked tix, think we know for next time (there's Shona in line looking very excited!) We scored this brochure listing the vendors and man there were so many how will we get to see them all... well we did manage to get through them all but the last few were a bit of a blur as Mr Ashwin had enough by then and was ready for bed. I was so excited as I got to see all the yarns that I had collected in my 'Fibres, Yarns & Fabrics' folio in real life (I did the folio as assessment for the Studio Textiles & Design course in Melbourne) and no, I don't have some strange fibre addiction!! We found some great wooden balls to do some shibori felting - which I am looking forward to but first I have to make the fabric for the scarf which is mohair - aaaaah I am scared as it is a really fine yarn!! Well that is another knit project that I have to conquer in time... for now I have a shawl in a beautiful wool from Chile and a hoodie for Ashwin in the project bag. Oh speaking of bags when we bought our mohair from these girls at Knitterley (who were wearing some very cool aprons) they gave us a great take away bag for our knitting projects. We ended up getting the same bird pattern as it was the coolest of the 3 designs they had on offer. We had picked up so much booty and were hanging it on the pram - it became quite heavy and with Ashwin as a counterbalance it was dangerous... so in the last pic I am using all my energy lifting the pram as it has just fallen over from being too top heavy and Ashwin is not too thrilled about being awoken from his slumber.

New seasons trends - fur and stripes...

A couple of fave shots from my shoot the other morning. A magnolia bud on macro revealing it's fur in the sunlight. Striped trees after a downpour, look closer and you'll see a little furry squirrel!

Bloomin' magnolias

The sight of magnolias in bloom - indicating a change of season is what I just love. It is usually at the end of winter letting you know that spring is on the way. Spring isn't necessarily around the corner here, it has been quite chilly lately with a lot of rain! Man it would be so good to send some rain over to Australia, from what I hear the water restrictions are at Stage 5 - which isn't good at all. The rain here comes one minute and then it goes leaving a cloudy blue sky and the next minute an ominous grey cloud brings the rain, which is quite fun when you are in it! Ashwin and I got drenched today doing our missions downtown, it was lovely. These pics are of some beautiful magnolias in bloom at a moment caught just after a downpour when the sun was shining.

Mum, not another yarn store...

As we were tripping to San Francisco for the day my mate Shona (who took us out for the trip!) suggested we go to the mecca of yarn stores in da city. Man, it was so cool and there was so much for us to fondle sorted from thick yarn to thin yarn. On one side of the store there was the natural fibres (50% wool and less) and whew there was a lot to look at - Shona is in the background of the pic. Ashwin tends to get a bit fed up when I take him to yarn stores, especially if I tie him up in his stroller - his favourite thing is to wander around and pull out the yarn from the shelves and I have to work out where it has to go. So thanks to Shona I found my next knitting project - a hoodie for Mr Ashwin in a dark green that Ashwin choose!

Peace man!

Here is a collection of my favourite pics from Hakone gardens. The blossoms that are around at the moment are very special. As we were at the gardens in the morning the turtles were out basking in the sunshine - these guys have a primo spot right in the centre of the pond. It is so tranquil to watch the fish doing their thing and this koi was hanging around the waters edge and I managed to get him on his food mission. The bamboo garden was small but the size of the plants reminded me of the bamboo at the Botanical Gardens in Melbourne. Experiencing the gardens was a peaceful start to the weekend.

Sticks and stones...

may break my bones and names will never hurt me... Here's Mr Ashwin playing with a stick in the water and he accidentally let go of the stick and his stick disappeared in the current... We just said to him his stick went for a swim in the pond with the koi and the turtles. He looks like a bit of a grub close up in the pic but he has had a cold so he has an endless amount of snot. It was very cute to watch him as he was having so much fun with his stick splashing in the water and I was lucky to get him to look at the camera!

Herons in flight...

I just loved this kimono with the fabric design of the herons and flowers. I just love any sort of textile design from Japan. This was on display at Hakone Gardens in a beautiful historical building which featured another kimono and some little Japanese dolls. Looking out from the verandah there were spring blossoms and the gardens in all their glory. Hakone Gardens is certainly inspiring and well worth a visit especially if you love the intricacies of design in Japanese gardens.

Koi drifting in the shallows...

As Saturday was such a glorious day, balmy and sunny we headed down to Hakone Gardens in Saratoga for some peace and tranquility. The gardens were stunning with wonders on every path. The violets were in bloom and the smell of the flowers enlivened the air with sweetness. This pic is of the Koi in the pond and there were quite a few of them. The moon bridge was a vantage point to see them in action. You could just sit there and watch them all day, aaaah the little luxuries of life - dream on!

the CA Legion of Honour

Last Friday we went out on a daytrip down to San Francisco with our mate Shona from Australia to view some artwork (a jewellery exhibition) at the CA Palace of the Legion of Honour (as Karen the Garmin 340 GPS pronounces words on her screen!) We had a fun time with Ashwin making friends with the yanks, eyeing off the art, enjoying a bit of culture and of course - for lunch arugula (rocket) salad with baby beets and fufu soft drink. Here we are at the entrance to the gallery which is spectacular...

It is all a bit fufu??!!

I just had to buy this soft drink for the name on the label it is 'Fufu Berry Soda' which basically breaks down to high fructose corn syrup in a bottle. These guys at Jones Soda Co are pretty hip with their advertising and need I say it the names of their soda. This fufu flava tasted like creaming soda and was very sweet indeed!

Cheetos anyone?

Walking along a trail in Shoreline enjoying the peace and quiet of the area I discovered a smell all too familiar of wattle and home back in Australia. These cheeto shaped flowers is what I found in the bright sunlight when I looked around to see what it was. This tree was in full bloom and it was delightful to see spring in all it's glory.

Ground Squirrel Day...

Oh no, not another squirrel pic! I like this shot as he was saying 'buzz off with that camera paparazzi - I am trying to have some lunch!' This one had a partner and they hang out near their little nests together, from what I've seen anyway. Usually when the sun is shiny and warm they are out and about having a feed.

Duck and cover...

Ashwin had a surprise as he was snacking on his lunch and turned around to find himself a couple of ducks waiting to attack his crumbs. As he enjoys saying the word 'duck' when he sees them, he was a bit too shocked to say anything when he saw them so close. There were three ducks waiting in the wings for the tasty rice cake.

It's finger Lichen good!

No typo - just referring to the pic of the close up of the lichen that I found on a tree in Shoreline park. The colour of the lichen contrasted against the blue sky. As I have been having fun recently with the macro lens on the digital camera it is good to take (yet another) experimental shot of organic matter.

Mackaroni & cheese please

Due to Ashwin being the star of the family the cats are no longer centre stage! Those were the days when all the pics on the camera were cats but alas, they are mostly of Ashwin. As I was trying to get a decent shot for the cool cat website i can has cheezburger - you have to look at the site to understand the rest of this story. Maybe we can come up with something for this pic like 'where is me body?' or 'I has head'. Anyway if you feel like wasting some time and enjoy lolcats click on the link and have a laugh!