Many thanks to the SF local who told us about "The Pirate Store" also known as 826 Valencia. I had no idea what to expect and this crazy little wonder of a place just blew me away. 826 Valencia, the store, exists to support 826 Valencia the writing project. I may not be getting it right but the way I was told was that, for some reason, the 826 Valencia writing project folks have to keep a storefront (or get some benefit from a storefront) so they came up with the pirate supply store. I love the fact that, although they could have some sort of regular store selling books, they came up with this, far more interesting concept. They sell a few things- some books, t-shirts, dice, flags, prints and so on but most of the store is like an art installation. There are all these drawers lining one wall with weird little trinkets in them. One drawer had clay marbles, another had nets and one even had cloth fake limbs. It's funny and interesting and the boys loved it!

To the right of the entrance, they have a little corner that looks like a movie theater but with an aquarium instead of a screen. In the center of the room they have a large vat of sand where you "dig for treasure". When you find treasure (glass beads in the boys' case) you have to barter in order to keep them. They had to either perform for the people in the store or draw in a special book. They drew in the book.

I loved the bulletin board, especially the part about taking the notes out of the bottle before posting it. By the cash register they have a big vat of lard. Sayer was totally intrigued. He asked the lady how much is was and she said for each scoop of lard he had to give them a chunk of his hair. It was hilarious to see the look on his face. He thought about it though, I have to say. I told him we couldn't take lard on the plane. That and the part about the hair convinced him to pass it up.

The shop is all about the little details. I personally loved the employee of the month illustrations- amazing!

So, if you find yourself and your little pirates in the SF area, make a stop at 826 Valencia. While you're there, buy something and support a great cause. Sayer and Finn are the proud owners of some 826 Valencia pirate t-shirts!

He loved digging around in the sand inside the ruins. I was just holding my breath hoping he didn't find something gross or cut himself. He was super excited about all the "sea glass" he was finding. He knows that I love sea glass and I didn't have the heart to tell him it was just broken beer bottles. He loved it just the same and I left with a pocket full of treasures.

Steven, taking in the awesomeness...

The tide was out and the kids enjoyed the combing the sides of the rocks for starfish, crabs and other little sea creatures. Steven took them up on top of the rocks.


some more favorites from the day. This first one is the sun peeking out from behind the fog.

I'm a huge fan of Moleskine books. The boys each have one that they draw in (or collect stickers or write or whatever). Our favorites are the ones with the elastic closure and the inner pocket. On this day, Sayer used his to keep a record of all the animals and plants that he saw, so cute!

Winter Wren, I'd like to take this moment to publicly apologize. 5 and 7 year old boys are incapable of doing much of anything quietly, including tromping around the redwoods.

Sayer did take a moment to meditate. It only lasted for about 3 seconds. Despite the very frequent "get down from there!" and "be careful please!" warnings, we did manage to soak in some of the magic. It's a truly beautiful place.

This is an example of the "be careful!" moments. One the other side of them was a small trail and then a sheer drop, eek!

The view up was so amazing that it was hard to pay attention to much on the ground.

This one is my favorite from the day.

Next to the park is a community garden. The kids hunted for and ate strawberries and goose berries and ate carrots straight from the ground. They watered plants and gathered limbs. Finnian and I watched the bees fly around the lavender.

After the garden they played more- their energy is astounding to me by the way because it simple never ends! Jasmine did manage a few minutes of quiet time on her Mom's lap though.

Next up was lunch and a walk. Finnian stopped me at one point and asked me to take his picture. His sweet face just melts me.

After more play at a second playground, Gina took us on a tour of Balmy Alley. It's one alley completely covered in amazing murals. Here's a virtual tour for you.

And, finally, our motley crew all together for a photo. I tried my best to get all 6 to look at me and smile but, of course, that would never happen. So, I did my next favorite thing. I got them all to scream for me. The other alley walkers got a big kick out of it I have to say.