A Day in L.A.

I have long assumed that when I first visited California, San Francisco would be the destination. But a variety of things conspired to make L.A. the spot -- largely Disneyland, my love of the movie La La Land, its relative proximity to New Mexico (another state on my list to visit). So L.A. it was. 

While most of our visit to California was spent at Disneyland, we set aside two days to explore: one in the city (today's post) and one at a beach (a future post). 

We started out at Griffith Observatory -- it was closed, but parking is free on weekdays before noon, so we took advantage and took in some great views of the city and the Hollywood sign.

After lunch we sprang for a Warner Brothers Studio Tour and enjoyed it -- about an hour tour of the backlots (including scenery from Friends, Gilmore Girls and La La Land) and the set of Ellen, followed by a couple of hours of exhibits. It was fun to hear how the same fronts and buildings are used in so many different ways. Plus we got a photo in front of the Friends fountain! The La La Land "cafe" was no longer set up, but I got a photo of the building that was transformed into it.

The La La Land cafe

Gilmore Girls

Ellen set

There was lots of Harry Potter stuff too!

Even managed to find something from one of my favorite shows of all time.

I wanted to see a bit of the Hollywood Walk of Fame, so we walked a couple of blocks of it and came across the movie premiere for Shang-Chi. It was kind of surreal. After we got home, I came across some photos and a write-up of the movie premiere, and it was really weird to see the glamour without any of the workaday stuff behind it.

The studio tour was that way too, making abundantly clear that these are people's jobs -- albeit ones whose products are seen and judged by millions. But there are also the extras, the caterers and the ones carting around supplies. Jobs, too.

We ate at In-N-Out Burger before heading back to Anaheim -- how could we resist? Los Angeles isn't my favorite city in the world, but it was fun to see what the city is famous for in the limited time we had.

Photos: March --> September

A few of my favorite photos from the last few month -- some you've seen, others maybe not.

March 3, 2021: The day Edith inherited my Baby-Sitters Club books.

March 5, 2021: Always visiting the penguins at the zoo.

April 14, 2021: Both kids tried baseball in the spring. Here, Atticus is running to first base.

April 24, 2021: Edith's First Communion, in the dress her mom and grandmother both wore.

June 6, 2021: A spring of cicadas.

July 31, 2021: Both kids got a good foundation with swimming lessons all summer long.

August 11, 2021: In Albuquerque.

August 12, 2021: Driving Route 66, in Arizona.

August 12, 2021: At the Grand Canyon. Finally a good picture of me, even if I had to take it myself.

August 13, 2021: Grand Canyon.

August 15, 2021: Staying safe at Disneyland.

August 18, 2021: Masks and 3D glasses at Disneyland.

August 18, 2021: Atticus's new Wall-E souvenir had to ride along at Disneyland.

August 26, 2021: School five days per week once again!

September 15, 2021: Atticus uses up his energy while Edith is in archery class.

A Wedding in the Family!

One of my cousins got married on Sunday, and I was excited for so many reasons!

• It had been delayed a year because of the pandemic, so I was happy for my cousin that it was finally happening.
• I have a great memory of this same cousin at our own wedding 18 years ago.
• This was the first wedding that Edith and Atticus were to attend!

It was every bit as lovely as I expected. The ceremony and reception were near Detroit, in a beautiful outdoor setting overlooking the Detroit River. (Edith said she never knew a wedding could be so fancy!) Boats drifted by, and seaplanes flew within plain view seemingly feet away. The food was terrific, and I will be dreaming of the chocolate truffles and the frosting on that wedding cake for days. (Was it buttercream? But can buttercream be so light? I NEED TO KNOW.)

The kids were surprisingly fond of the dance floor, and we ended up leaving at 10 p.m. instead of our plan of 9 p.m. With a three-hour drive ahead of us, that was no small change! But we were enjoying ourselves too much, and we had packed the kids' pajamas, pillows and blankets in the car. They slept the entire three-hour drive home.

But best of all it was great seeing family, and adding a new member to it!