Nursery Prep

After spending most of Wednesday at Babies 'R Us, it was time to start making changes at home. Pete embarked on the classic right of passage of fatherhood - building the crib!
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Bring It On!

Thursday night, we dined at our favorite pre-theater spot of 2011, Le Colonial.

Then, after struggling to park due to the Furthur concert next door at the Bill Graham civic center, we headed to the Orpheum Theater for Bring It On! (and what a long strange trip it's been to take me through the theater door instead of the concert door!)

It was great: all the light-hearted fun of the movie, with better dialogue, new plot twists, and songs mixed in!

We had previously seen one of the actors (Neil Haskell) in a minor role in West Side Story, and as the 2nd runner-up on So You Think You Can Dance, Season 2. He did a good job, and it's nice to see him get more musical theater work.

Overall the cast was pretty impressive. The 4 main characters all displayed an amazing combination of dance moves, cheer leading skills, and vocal range.

Post Christmas Shopping

Just got back from our first trip to Babies 'R Us. Most exciting purchase: the car seat!

Breakfast of Champions

After previously enjoying the Mt Shasta Black Bear Diner, we decided to stop at the Black Bear Diner in downtown Sonoma. It definitely lived up to our high expectations. Simple, filling, delicious! Good way to start our journey back to the city.

Relaxation Central!

Stef booked us an overnight at the Sonoma Mission Inn. We drove up Monday mid-day and spent the afternoon at the spa:



We both enjoyed the warm pools, I took a nice hot steam, and Stef and I both got massages. Stef said it was the best she's felt in a while!

Monday evening we went to The Girl and the Fig for dinner. To start, we shared a fruit and cheese platter, she got a soup, I got a salad, and for our entrees, Stef got the hamburger and I got pork belly sandwich. Finally, we had the profiteroles for dessert. Everything was delicious! I would highly recommend it to anyone traveling through Sonoma!

--Pete

Merry Christmas!

Hope Santa was as good to you as he was to us!

Merry Christmas Eve!

The last of the nog (at least this bottle)

Dinner prep

Pete puts together some extra spicy Kung Pao chicken

Speaking of coming up quickly....

I decided to take the baby bjorn for a test run (thanks Mom for the bjorn and thanks Desiree for the sleep sheep and pajamas!)

Christmas is coming!

Finally with lights and ornaments...

Getting closer...

Got a base, but now our lights are burned out : (

Still, starting to look a little more like Christmas!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

Sorta. Apparently we don't have a Christmas tree stand in the closet.

Inspiration Point

in the Presidio, after Dim Sum at 5 Happiness in the Richmond district, and right before I dropped Stef off at her Ladies Holiday Tea.
Really beautiful spot. You may have stopped here if you've done the 49 mile drive (which I highly recommend).
--Pete

Music City at last!

View of the Tennessee state capitol building from my hotel room.

Layover

In Charlotte for an hour

Pics En Route

As much as I like the Hipstamatic effect, I may have to take some with the regular camera app.

En Route

I paid for in flight Internet to keep up with NFL (and fantasy football) scores, and they include a tracking website! btw - our departure time is bs. We may have pushed back from the gate at 1:12, but we sat on the runway for half an hour, stupid airlines padding their stats!

All packed

New rollie and my laptop bag packed for the trip to Nashville (more pics to come)

Friday Night on the Town

I bought Stef tickets to the theater as a birthday present and we decided to grab dinner at Le Colonial before the show. From the OpenTable description: "Excellent Vietnamese cuisine served in a romantic French setting reminiscent of days gone by. Le Colonial evokes the tropical elegance of Vietnam in the 1920's." and it actually lived up to the billing! Delicious meal in a truly elegant setting, I really felt like I was back at the Elephant Bar in Le Grand Angkor, Siem Reap, right down to the drop of sweat on my brow from the unseasonable warmth (and the uphill walk to the restaurant!).

The play we saw was Richard III starring Kevin Spacey in the eponymous role. The costumes were modern but the dialogue was all Shakespeare, which made the captivating nature of this adaptation all the more impressive. We both really enjoyed the play and thought the entire cast was stellar, but Kevin Spacey in particular stole the show.

All-in-all a great date night!

Sunset in the City

I never get tired of it, though I'm not sure my pics do it justice.

Sarah visits SF

We walked along Embarcadero before and after dinner.

Saturday Brunch

Beautiful day in SF!

Dinner at the Iron Cactus

More Pics from the Aquarium

Work rented out the whole aquarium from 8pm - Midnight last night. It was pretty neat to just sit and watch the fish, with a much smaller crowd than normally present.

In order: the sunfish, the new great white, another hammerhead pic, 2 bat ray pics.

Monterey Bay Aquarium

Monterey / Asilomar

Down by the sea for a work conference. A little chilly, but absolutely beautiful.

The Romo

> In honor of Giants reliever Sergio Romo
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The Tombstone

Inspired by the best cowboy movie of my generation.

This one might stick around a while. Growing up every man I knew had a 'stache. Not sure why it's restricted to hipsters, bartenders, and gypsies in men of my age.

The Biker

As in motorcycle rider, not cyclist. You really see the red in my sideburns here.

Chinstrap

I'm tempted to clean this up with the blade to really make it stand out.

Beard Today, Gone Tomorrow

I know I did this a few months ago, but I figure I may as well enjoy the beard reduction process

View of SF from Potrero Hill

After a morning of doctor appointments and a terrific lunch at Chez Papa.

PT

My latest physical therapy exercise (8 lb.s in a backpack), to improve knee extension / range of motion. Its somewhat passive, but strenuous none the less.

Friday Night Lights

Got the leg on ice, watching TV. Friday's have gotten a little more mellow since the surgery.