For McKenzie's twelfth birthday, Brian and I gave her A Trip To San Francisco with just the three of us because we felt like it would solidify her impression of us being the Most Awesome. An impression I would like to have strengthened as she preps herself to enter into this land of teenagers who are too cool, ya know? We hired a young couple to come stay in our house and take care of the boys under simple instructions: As long as everyone is happy and alive when we get back, anything goes.
Brian had to see a few patients at his clinic on Saturday morning before our plane took off, so McKenzie and I tagged along. I know Brian so well... I know what kind of a doctor he is, I know how he treats his patients, I know how much they love him. But seeing it? That was a pretty cool thing. McKenzie and I waited in the waiting room for the most part and listened to the patients tell us how much they loved Dr. Alder. Of course you do, I wanted to to say. He's Brian. But I didn't say that because that would have been awkward and presumptuous. So I just nodded along and agreed that he's a pretty great guy.
Also, his name is on the side of a building. I'm pretty sure that makes him some kind of famous.
Brian rushed through the patients that morning so we wouldn't miss our flight, but he needn't have. Turns out our plane was (and so we were) delayed for s.e.v.e.r.a.l. hours (3) before we finally got the idea to ask if we could fly out on a different plane. Yes? Hm. Wish we had done that earlier...
But no biggie. We entertained ourselves by walking around to look at the butterflies hanging from the ceiling.
Or, I should say McKenzie and I walked around... Brian suddenly crashed with a fever and spent the three hours sleeping on a bench. Terrible timing, really.
Finally we were off!
We landed at the perfect time to stroll to our hotel through the sunset. Poor Brian was about to die, so we stopped in at a CVS and bought some Tylenol. He and McKenzie each had some because by this point, McKenzie had started to feel extra lethargic as well. Terrible timing, really.
But she was happy to jump on the bed for a minute anyway.
McKenzie and I almost left Brian back in the hotel room to rest while we went in search of food, but at the last minute he decided he wanted to join us. I was so impressed by his will to Be Present during this special vacation - even though he felt so awful. During the dinner, McKenzie fell further into her own slump of sickness. But, aside from feeling bad for the two of them, I had a delightful time. The Caramel Pizza was the cutest little pizza place with delicious (to Brian and me) and disgusting (to McKenzie) wood fired pizza.
On our way back to the hotel, we stopped in at Ghiradelli Square to get ourselves some chocolate. Brian decided it would be best for him to walk back to the hotel instead of to stop in for chocolate, and after he left McKenzie and I had some great girl talks about being twelve and the situations she might find herself in. We talked (a lot) about friends and (a little) about boys before Brian showed up again. "It gets a little dark on the way back," he informed us in his feverish state. "I didn't like the idea of you guys walking back alone."
Love him.
Hello to Brian and his double sized head!
The next day Brian was feeling better and McKenzie was feeling worse. Darn. So we took our our itinerary ideas and whittled them down into the things McKenzie most wanted to do. Alcatraz topped the list (whew, because we had already spent a lot of money on those tickets!) so we spent most of the day slowly exploring The Rock.
It was fantastic. I'd been a couple of times before, but taking McKenzie through it was the best. She was so intrigued and such a sponge... at the end she even bought a book written by a woman who was a resident teenager on the island during one of the most famous escape attempts. It was this that she wrote about and, as luck would have it, she was sitting in the bookstore signing copies. We talked to her for a few minutes and had her sign Kenzie's book.
After the tour we sat and chilled for a while - talking (Brian and me), reading (Kenzie), and waiting for our name to be called for dinner.
The Fog Harbor Fish House had the most incredible crab sandwich I have ever eaten. Which isn't actually saying much because I'd never actually eaten one before.
McKenzie had a few bites of her salad and was done.
But even so, it was such a beautiful setting and I was with such beautiful people and eating such a deliciously beautiful crab sandwich that all was well.
McKenzie reeeeeeeeeally enjoyed the bubbles in her soda.
After dinner we decided to hop on one of those double decker tour buses that I always make fun of. It seemed like a good option that would allow Kenz to be able to sit, but still see the city. So just like eager little tourists, we climbed up the stairs with our cameras in hand and found a spot on the top of the bus.
Turns out it was actually a terrible idea because it was freezing on top of the bus, and down inside the bus she felt nauseous and car sick. So, darn.
But the bus did take us to this incredible spot where we could see the skyline and the bay bridge. Beautiful.
And being on top of the bus was pretty cool as I got to see things from a vantage point that isn't all that common.
I hope McKenzie will have great memories of this vacation even though she was sick. I think she'll remember Alcatraz, and I think she'll remember our crazy bus driver (who for some reason was obsessed with talking about nude people) who kept shouting "Happy Valentimmme's Day!" to everyone passing along on the street, and I think she'll remember the random 3D interactive adventure ride we did where our purpose was to shoot crazy people in cars (?), and I think she'll remember the hours of playing scum and nertz in our hotel room, and on the ferry to Alcatraz, and in airports, and I think she'll remember chocolate at Ghiradelli's, and that she does not care for wood fired pizza.
But I hope, most of all, that she remembers the happiness. I hope she remembers the love. I hope she remembers the beauty.
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