3rd Birthday at Heavenly Tahoe

Our last ski trip was a big success and Maarten often asks when he is going to put the little skis on and do wjooooo again.


Besides his muffin party at the preschool we considered a party for his birthday at home or somewhere the American way. But since according to him Miss Robin is his best friend and I believe the birthday boy should choose the way of celebration we decided to follow his wish – we go up to the snowy mountains again!
Well, we didn’t expect that this would be followed that literally.
We had already had a several rainy days and the forecast for the Sierra’s promised snow as well.


In Placerville the heavy rain becomes snow and we are forced to put on the snow chains. We always have them with us but this is actually the very first time we really need to use it. There is a chain control on the highway already at Pollock Pines. When we finally get the still brand new interlaced chains apart a hooded man appears behind us offering his help.

Ooh yes, pleeease!

Where are you from? He asks and I can hardly understand him so I ask the same question.

I’m local. I’m a Native American!

Oops!
Later we understand why it was so hard to follow him. When we buy him a beer for his help we know this is not going to be his first one.

Anyway, we continue up and the snowfall is getting even heavier. We are crawling very slowly but we enjoy the beautiful scenery all the time.


After six hours of driving (should have been 3!) we finally arrive at our destination.
Maarten is thrilled about the amount of snow and asks to go skiing immediately. It is late already but fortunately we can comfort him with our snow sled.




It's almost dark when he and Rob build an artistic snowman.





Saturday is the big day! Maarten is turning three! We are all so fortunate to celebrate this wonderful day in such a beautiful snowy setting.

This morning is not snowing and I’m already pretty much healed from our last ski adventure. So, let’s go for it!

We go to the nearby Heavenly Ski Resort. I guess, this is the largest one in the Tahoe area. The ski-runs look challenging and even the sun is coming through the clouds. Though I know there is another challenge for me other than the steep runs...

Unfortunately this ski paradise is also extremely popular and because it is Saturday it is very crowded. Rob and Maarten disappear in the Ski Rental Store. They seem to be there for ages and when they finally come out Maarten is obviously out of patience.
And so am I by the way.
One of the nice guys at the Rentals tries to comfort me that it just looks kind of nasty but the crowd is not that bad for a Saturday!


Once at the lift our mood improves and the view of Lake Tahoe is beautiful. But the sun is completely lost in the clouds again and it starts to snow. We are optimistic and get on another lift to go higher.
But this is a wrong move!
The snow starts falling even harder. Maarten doesn't appreciate the snowflakes falling on his face and he keeps spitting at them.


But to get back down again we actually need to first go up to the very highest trail. (Don't you find this logical? ;-))
We are above 10,000 ft and it gets really stormy up here. Normally the easy trail would be ideal for our little skier who is already skiing so well today, but, unfortunately the weather is teasing him and makes him very angry.


We join all the other red faces and have lunch at the East Peak Lodge.
Poor Maarten hopes he is safe now.
But we still have to ski down...

Ehmm...and we succeed at last!

Is Maarten happy with his birthday adventure? Back in the chalet he seems to forget the annoying snowflakes and keeps talking about his skillful skiing.


The wind is stormy and the snow keeps falling the whole night. We are a bit concerned about our trip home tomorrow.
We wake up to a fabulous white morning.


Maarten can’t stay inside and explores all the huge snow-drifts and piles.
Well, he still doesn’t get enough snow even after yesterday.

Even though the first mile of our drive home took us almost an hour we continue in a reasonable pace over the mountain.

We have to use the snow chains of course and sure we make use of the wonderful chain installers.
For only 30 bucks they put the snow chains on and within 5 minutes we are ready to set off again!

Spring Idyll

When we returned from the snowy Sierras last Sunday the spring has already arrived in San Ramon.


We have sunshine and high sixties the whole week. Just sometimes in the morning thick fog from the bay crawls over the surrounding hills.


Due to a trail closure a stroll around the little Cull Canyon Reservoir turned out to be a challenging hike through the streets of Castro Valley and was not that pleasant easy walk I’ve planned for this Sunday afternoon.


Unfortunately this spring idyll is teased by our demanding son who seems to be intractable for several weeks already. There is a reason for that at least I believe so. Maarten doesn’t get enough sleep. (And me neither!)
He gets up at 3 a. m. turns the lights on and reads his books! It doesn’t help if we hide his books. He would climb wherever to look for them and get them. I even tried to loosen the light bulb in his room but as you know I can’t loosen the bulbs all over the house every night.
I’m not going to describe all his ‘clever’ moves and tricks since there will be no end to this list.

At this age he is coming into his own personality and, looking on the bright side, he is an (extremely!) enterprising little guy and we should be thankful for that. However, it takes a lot of effort to keep him and his environment safe enough.

PS: We DIDN'T pluck the poppies!!!

Donner Lake (7–10 February)

It’s been a while since I last skied, maybe even 5 years?! Maarten is almost 3 and I just couldn’t wait any longer to put him on skis as well.
Here in the Bay Area we don't get snow but I told him that he is going to ski like Krteček (Little Mole from his favorite cartoon) and he got very excited.

We rent a cabin at Donner Lake. It is a nice little cottage overlooking the lake. Like nearby Lake Tahoe there are hundreds of cabins hidden by the pine trees all around the lake. The cabin is very cozy a homey furnished. Very romantic though unfortunately it is not quite pristine because of the highway noise.
We all can’t wait to go to the nearby ski resort. Maarten wants to ski immediately. He screams with joy as he goes up on the ski lift. But then we have to ski down the hill again.
It seems Maarten didn't realize that.

After a few meters he falls and loses his ski boot. I try to put it on and I fail again and again. Maarten is already out of patience and I’m trying to keep calm. I always say Maarten never cries much but now he roars so loud that we get a lot of attention from other skiers. Well, not of our dad who skis down untroubled...
Later he doesn’t even succeed in putting the boot on and he rushes down again to get a bigger size. Maarten keeps on screaming all the time. We couldn’t wish for a ‘better’ start!
Bigger ski boots make a big difference and we can begin again.


On the way up, we are both aware of the absence of the safety bars on the lifts. I’ve already heard that the lifts in the U.S. are not equipped with the safety bars. We don’t even dare to look down and we hold Maarten firmly the whole time. I would like Maarten to attend ski school but just can’t imagine him on the ski lift by himself with other toddlers! Or am I being hysterical?

We ski at Donner Ski Ranch and there isn't any (toddler) ski school anyway. And besides that it has always been my dream to teach my own child to ski.
To be honest, Rob has to remind me of that all the time now.

Even though Maarten is doing so well, it is a really difficult task to explain things to such a little one.

As soon as he manages to stand on his skis he would bomb down the hill no matter where without controlling his speed or knowing how to stop. He doesn’t care about any dangers. He visualizes whales!, counts potatoes (rocks), is fascinated by the snow going so fast under his skis and tries to touch it while rushing down the hill.
There is no consciousness of fear in our little guy. (Does this sound familiar, mom?!)


You would understand that the helmet is not an unnecessary luxury equipment in Maarten’s case.

I agree that a parent should not be the one to teach his or her child but we still did pretty well.

Anyway besides all the hard work, we had a lot of fun ...
Honestly I only hope there is a suitable ski school for Maarten next time.

'Taricha Granulosa'

My trip to snowy Sunol ends in the morning traffic to San Jose.
Maarten is at school and this morning is so lovely I don’t want to give that up too quickly. Comforting myself that Sunol is in the clouds anyway I go back to Las Trampas and climb the Rocky Ridge which I’ve already planned to do last Friday. The streams are all full again and bubble cheerful around the trail. It is silly but I have to think how Maarten would enjoy playing with the water.
Although we already walked here before there was never any water in this small stream bed.

Now there is even a small waterfall along the Elderberry trail.
This is the nice side of hiking after so many rainy days. Less pleasant however are the drenched muddy paths. It is so slippery, I guess I’m very lucky not to fall straight into the mud. At last I decide to take a grassy but very steep cow path directly to the ridge.

The view of Mount Diablo is always nice and today the top is even sprinkled with snow.

The bay and the San Francisco skyline are good visible but unfortunately my camera is not that advanced to capture how beautiful the views from the ridge really are.

I have to go back since I don’t want to be late to pick up Maarten.

I almost step on this little guy ( I know I would feel horrible if I did). I can’t identify him but he seems very friendly and continues slow over the muddy path.
(I learn later that day that he belongs to the newt
family and if he feels threatened he would secrete a very toxic substance from his rough skin.)

'Luck of the Pot’ at Lee's

I’ve heard about potlucks before but yesterday was actually the very first time I went to one.

I wondered about the origin of the word 'potluck' since we also use a similar word in Czech, 'potlach'.
As I remember in Czech 'potlach' means a kind of tramping celebration, an evening of a good time (and a nice chat) with friends often around the campfire.
On the other hand I remember my first stay in Holland when a friend of mine organized an American Party. According to him this means everyone needs to bring his own alcohol ;-)
It looks like there is some reason why he calls 'bringing your own alcohol' to be an American Party way since I understand that the roots of the 'potlatch' (literally translated as ‘giving’) are indeed a Native American custom dating back to the 16th century. Then it used to be a complete ceremony of traditions, spirituality and also a conspicuous consumption of food.

Though some historians suggest that the true origin of 'potlatch' lies already in Medieval Europe! The etymology of the word 'potlatch' would originate from the ‘luck of the pot’. The meal leftovers were put into a pot, kept warm and were used to feed the poor.

No matter what origin this practice may have the present-day Americans adopted this custom which evolved into a meaning of bringing dishes to share and having a nice time together.

Last night we were a part of such a potluck.

It was a nice opportunity to meet all of Rob’s (expatriate) colleagues and their wive’s and children. Though there were no (Native) Americans, people from all kinds of places around the world joined the party.

The host asked all of us to bring one or two meals.
If invited to an international potluck what dish would you bring?
Of course something of your own traditional dishes! And I guess no one disliked any of the fine food we shared.

Sacrificing Open Spaces

Rob met one of our new neighbors today. Among other things he learned more about the plan for the open space area next to our home. We have already heard some rumors from other worried neighbors. Though we will probably (and hopefully) not experience the construction itself we are also quite concerned about ruining such a beautiful highlands area.

I can not imagine that the planned 800 homes and facilities will not influence the adjacent wilderness area of Las Trampas. The construction plans actually encompass grading and leveling the hills and even moving a creek.

I understand the concerns of the homeowners in the adjacent area. The construction and the future residential area may affect the quality of living in our community. Luckily for us (if we still live here then) there will be only a pedestrian access to the new neighborhood from our street so the court will probably stay calm and safe for playing children as it is at present.
According to the planning, there will also be a buffer zone between our hillside and the development area and they promise to plant a row of trees to break the view.

Though I try to understand the necessity of such residential building projects I’m never really pleased by sacrificing peaceful open spaces to ‘more utilitarian ends’.

Speaking of maintaining our open spaces there is also another issue that upsets most of the nature lovers in California. Our state needs more money and therefore proposes to shut down 48 state parks and decrease the number of seasonal lifeguards at state beaches.

The only thing I hope for is that these natural areas will not suffer under this regulation.

Walking in the Rain

With small breaks it has been raining the whole week. I don’t mind the rain but it is also quite cold. This is our third winter in California and also the coldest one.
I’m looking forward to our first CW hike on Thursday morning but unfortunately it is cancelled. Due to the rain of course. I guess the other ladies don’t own such wonderful Dutch waterproofs like I do ;-)

There is snow at the top of the Sunol hills again. Even though the weather is really not inviting, I feel I can’t stay inside anymore. I can’t stand to look at the tempting hillsides all around our place. At least for a while I have to go out.
I don’t expect anyone will join me so I plan to take a challenging hike to the mountain ridge and maybe enjoy the view of snowy Mount Diablo.
But there go my plans! The men actually decide to join me.

We end up at the running creek close to our home. Maarten soon looks like a mud ball. He is so exited to be in his favorite hills again.

No problem that he falls several times in the rain drenched mud. Due to the dirt,soon, you can’t see much of his shoes and you would understand that keeping him away from the puddles is complete impossible. Never mind as long as he is happy.

We have got the company of a lonely bull. He mooes so loudly! He watches us with an unfriendly expression that seemes to say: Keep your distance! Maarten is aware and I’m not comfortable either since I’ve learned recently that the bulls can be quite a danger to the hikers. Luckily we are not captivating enough to this big fellow and he continues to graze.

PS:...and... by the way, we have a student in the family again! No, not me unfortunately. Rob has actually started his study at Arizona State University.
And besides that he just gained a CSOC Supreme Certificate this week. We are proud of him.

'CZ Mecheche'

Some people may wait for us to be unpacked and settled in our new home. Come on, no need to wait! We are not going to unpack all of our stuff anyway. Who knows we are going to move again soon. Just kidding! Hopefully...

Our house is pretty childproof so why not to invite my Czech friends and their children to enjoy Maarten’s toys (and practice our mother tongue of course ;-)). Even though there are ‘only’ six kids, it seems like they are all over. Though I’m not that fond of playdates I believe all of us enjoyed ourselves today.
At last we all sit at our far too small table to eat lunch.
No dumplings, pork or sauerkraut?
Sorry, girls, time to meet a different culture. This is the ‘Dutch way’: bread and cheeeees!!!

Radishes - 'Grateful Mom' - Lukášek’s Birthday

I know it’s only January. But I found my old paper box with seeds in the garage lately and considering the temperature never drops bellow zero Celsius in this area I’ve decided it is warm enough to sow some radishes. Though I’m not sure the seedlings will ever come out because Maarten turned out to be an ‘eager’ gardener. He uses his rake everyday to loosen the soil in the container...


Saturday Rob and Maarten head to the nearby Lafayette Reservoir for a father and son outing. And...I become a ‘grateful mom’ for half a day!

They both return thrilled about their outdoor trip with a group hiking dad’s and children.

I guess it was a very exciting hike since Maarten is full of impressions and he keeps talking about their adventures at the lake...

...a lot of fun, but also pretty tiring as we notice around dinnertime...


On Sunday we celebrate Lukášek’s 10th birthday in the San Francisco ZOO.

I expect Maarten to be difficult today as he is still tired from Saturday’s hike. But he behaves quite well except for when we have to leave the ZOO.

It’s a good-sized gathering of Czechs and ‘Czech-alike’s’. We meet some newcomers and make new friends. We have a lot of fun together even though the weather is not very cooperative today. The ZOO is actually right next to the ocean so the freezing cold wind chills the party.

But being optimistic and even sharing the clothes, we are able to cope with that and we still get some pleasant sunshine around lunchtime.