take the kids Archives - until suburbia!

Taste Point Reyes Cheese, Point Reyes Station

June 27, 2025Silvia

Point Reyes blue cheese is my go-to blue cheese. It was a real treat to see where the cheese comes from – the pastures and the cows.

The road towards the market is winding and narrow. You may need to pull over to let the ongoing traffic pass. On our way back, a cow was blocking traffic. But after we took her picture, she gracefully moved away.

The cheese tasting was in the little market. Note: The signage was a bit confusing – all we saw was a ‘No Access’ sign. We wandered around a bit before finding the stairs to the entrance. But the gift shop was lovely. With a warm welcome, we were educated about the cheeses and enjoyed all of them! The fennel blue cheese was my favorite!

For our picnic, we picked out a soft, ripe cheese and a passion fruit jam.

Make sure to check out the patio and the garden. All comes with a healthy portion of country air!

Point Reyes Cheese marketplace is open for free cheese tastings Mondays through Saturdays from 11 am – 3:30 pm. It is located at 14700 Highway 1, Point Reyes Station.

They celebrate their 25th year anniversary this year with a special tasting ($55 per person ) on June 13th, July 18th, August 15th, September 26th, 2025.

What is your favorite cheese?

I did not receive any compensation for this post.

If you are more into goat cheese I highly recommend Hartley’s Farm in Pescadero.

Be Grateful at the Children’s Bell Tower

May 31, 2025Silvia

When I researched things to do in Bodega Bay, the Children’s Bell Tower rose to the top of the list. I am always interested in large sculptures and local oddities. So, we absolutely had to check this one out.

It turned out that the coffee shop, Sea Flower Cafe, where we had breakfast, was a short walk away from the bell tower. The bell tower itself includes a small parking lot if you decide to skip the coffee and delicious breakfast.

Before we reached the tower, we admired the small community garden. We were fascinated by the vast number of wind chime collections hanging from two trees.

The bell tower is a very touching place. First, you see the inscription, a dedication for Nicholas Green. Nicholas, just seven years old, was shot by highway robbers in Italy. His parents donated his organs to seven Italians. In gratitude for this selfless act, Italian families donated 140 bells for the tower. The largest bell, the centerpiece, has the name of Nicholas and the seven recipients engraved on it. Pope John Paul II blessed it. This is a very peaceful place. But I’m sure kids have a good time running around and exploring, too.

The donation started a wave of organ donations in Italy known as the ‘Nicholas Effect’. The Nicholas Green Foundation is an advocacy group promoting the best gift you can make: donate your organs so others can live!

The Children’s Bell Tower is located at 2255 CA-1, Bodega Bay, CA.

This was a humble reminder that organ donation saves lives and gives hope. If you’d like to sign up to be an organ donor you can visit this website: https://www.organdonor.gov/sign-up

Get together and play! Next Level, Mountain View

May 2, 2025Silvia

Community building can be done in many ways, like meeting people in churches or at political rallies. But one activity that gets people together like no other is playing games. If you like to play board games, your next level community building can be done in Mountain View. Actually, the place is called Next Level. They have little game rooms that you can rent and hang out with your friends. There are lots of games to choose from, or bring your own. The staff is super helpful and can guide you to get started.

For $7, you get access to the game library and can hang out as long as you like. They just had their soft-opening and they are working on their food and drinks menu. If you like the game, you might be able to purchase it here, too!

I know that game stores around the Bay have been offering tournaments, especially for the card game Magic. But Next Level understands the need to spend time together in a comfortable setting. Now, more than ever, we need to enjoy ourselves with others. If you are looking to connect with other board game enthusiasts, check out the social board game meetups every Thursday at 7 pm and Sunday at 11 am, or see their event section for their monthly events.

Next Level is located on 888 Villa St, in Mountain View. They are open Tuesday and Wednesday, from 5 to 10 pm and Thursday to Sunday, from 10 am to 10 pm.

What is your favorite board game?

I am not affiliated with Next Level.

Tour the Jelly Belly Factory, Fairfield

April 18, 2025April 18, 2025Silvia

The Easter candy of my youth was chocolate eggs. So, it was surprising to me to learn that the creator of Jelly Belly was a German immigrant. I always thought of these bean-shaped candies with the most unusual flavors and bright colors as very American.

I had planned to recommend the tour of the Jelly Belly factory as a fun Easter activity. But the production is on hold for 3 weeks (until April 23rd, 2025). You might think that the Easter Holiday would be the last time of year when they would stop production to clean. We took the tour last week anyway. And even though the factory was not producing, we paid the full admission of $8. Again, you might think ….. This is a self-guided tour with videos informing you throughout the walkway. They also added some interactive stations with video games and Ronald Reagan memorabilia. Reagan is the President who brought Jelly Belly to the nation’s attention. Jelly Belly is very appreciative.

I did enjoy the factory setting as I am a fan of production line equipment – like Boichik Bagels and Cocohodo. I can also appreciate that everything got a good cleaning, for the next flavors of jelly beans. And, we were able to admire the large, shiny vats used to polish the beans – you got a very clear view of the entire factory as you walked the glassed-in walkway one story up.

The kids might enjoy the little train ride across the parking lot to the museum. The museum is included in the admission. There are a lot of photo opps here. The end is currently a big Easter blow-up art scene. I do think the artwork created out of jelly beans is impressive. We admired Harry Potter and Star Wars characters at the factory entrance.

Wishing you a Happy Easter (if you celebrate).

The Jelly Belly factory is located at 1 Jelly Belly Lane, Fairfield. Tours are $8 per person, $4 for children ages 3-17, free for under 2-year-olds. The self-guided factory lane tours and museum experience is open from 9:15 am to 4 pm daily, 7 days a week. I’d advise you to check their calendar for special events and closures before you go.

What is your favorite jelly bean flavor?

I am not affiliated with Jelly Belly.

Rolled cookie butter ice cream with fresh strawberries from Kween's in Mountain View

Roll up your Ice Cream, Kween’s in Mountain View

April 4, 2025Silvia

The trend to roll up ice cream comes from Thailand. It is sometimes known as stir-fry ice cream because the process of making it reminds you of stir frying. A liquid mixture is stirred constantly on a plate that brings down the temperature. Once frozen, it gets divided and rolled up.

Kween’s in Mountain View is a women-owned sweet treat dream. Besides the rolled ice cream, they sell scoops and freshly baked ice cream cookie sandwiches. I enjoyed a cookie butter roll with fresh strawberries. My friend let me sample her treat, Thai iced tea with crumbled up Oreos and condensed milk – also very yummy.

Kween’s has a few tables inside; we cherished being able to hang out and chat while eating the ice cream.

You can find Kween’s at 292 Castro Street in downtown Mountain View.

Have you tried rolled up ice cream?

I have no affiliation with this company.

Admire From Life at the Mare Island Art Studios

March 21, 2025March 21, 2025Silvia

The art show From Life, at the Mare Island Art Studios, curated by Jean Cherie, is open to visitors each weekend in March from 11 am to 4 pm.

The exhibit shows works of art inspired by life models. I had the pleasure to meet Jean Cherie, one of the main artists in this show and curator. She pointed out how one model was sculpted and painted by different artists. This arouses different viewpoints of this model and puts the observer in a situation detecting similarities.

Besides the exhibit, they offer quick draw and sculpture sessions. A great hands-on approach to create art from the model yourself!

Jean also took me around to see some of the artists of the Mare Island Art Studios works. There are a variety of media being displayed, from pottery to mixed media. I was especially impressed by Priscila Soares mixed media work where she used wings on the ears of a woman to illustrate her own experiences of being hard of hearing.

I also enjoyed the outside area with sculptures, a succulent garden, and a beautiful view of the Bay.

The Mare Island Art Studios are on 110 Pintado Street in Vallejo, CA. The gallery is open on weekends from 11 am to 4 pm for the art show, regular hours are Sundays from noon to 4 pm.

A bench overlooking the Bay at Point Pinole park

Visit Point Pinole Regional Shoreline Park

March 7, 2025Silvia

The first thing I noticed while hiking the Point Pinole Regional Shoreline Park was the typical Bay smell. Thankfully, it wasn’t persistent, and for me, it was an occasional whiff of offense. The smell is due to the anaerobic decomposition of organic matter in the sediment. I guess one can call it the smell of the low tide.

What struck me next were the many eucalyptus trees. Usually, you’ll find native oaks in parks, and eucalyptus is considered an invasive species. As the Oakland Side warned in an article in October of 2024, “Eucalyptus trees are simultaneously dry and filled with flammable oil. They shed long, shaggy debris, covering the ground with dry fuel for wildfires, and when they catch fire, the oil in them burns hot and fast. Their seed pods can explode in a wildfire, shooting embers across the landscape.” (https://oaklandside.org/2024/10/29/oakland-eucalyptus-trees-wildfires-history/).

But here in the park, the eucalyptus has an interesting history. They were planted as a buffer for explosions. From 1881 to 1960, this site was used as a dynamite manufacturing company, the Giant Powder Company. Dynamite, the invention of Alfred Nobel, was essential in the development of California, blowing through mountains and building roads. Nowadays, the eucalyptus are home to many wildlife species, like deer, hawks, owls, and Monarch butterflies.

The park was well attended on a weekday. Lots of people were exercising and enjoying the view of the Bay.

Point Pinole has two entrances. One is on 5551 Giant Highway, Richmond, and the other parking lot is on 3000 Atlas Road, Richmond. Parking is $5 between April and October.

Relax in a Native Garden, Martha Walker Gardens, Napa

February 21, 2025Silvia

It’s almost spring and time to think about your garden again. I always love to see other gardens to get ideas or to just relax. Martha Walker Gardens in Napa, a California Native Habitat Garden is a perfect place to relax. Part of Skyline Park in Napa, the garden, a 2.5-acre site, is a tribute to Martha Walker. She was a beloved resident and naturalist of Napa. She taught classes and even had her own radio show: “Let’s Go Into the Garden”.

The garden invites school groups, hikers, and natural lovers to explore. Almost 200 different species have been planted. I especially enjoyed the little redwood grove. Even if it is just a small part of the park, the garden has a lot of paths and benches to enjoy peace and quiet. The Napa-Solano Audubon Society donated fruit trees to attract birds.

The entrance to the garden is gated to keep the deer out. But the gates themselves are really beautifully crafted, just a little tricky to open.

Skyline Park is located at 2201 Imola Ave. Napa, CA and open 7 days a week. Parking is $6. They don’t allow dogs on trails and close the park at sunset.

What is your favorite garden to relax in?

Visit Historic Locke

February 14, 2025Silvia

Locke is the only town in the United States built by the Chinese for Chinese people. The first buildings were established in 1913. Due to California’s Alien Land Law of 1913, which prevented all foreign-born aliens from owning land, Locke’s residents rented the land from George Locke, Jr. Because the people hoped to return to China, these houses weren’t built to last, with cheap materials and metal roofs.

To experience how the people of Locke lived, you can visit the living museum town north of the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta. There are multiple museums, like the Locke Boarding House, the Chinese School, or the Dai Loy Museum, the former gambling hall. In 1990 Locke was made into a National Historic Landmark.

The boarding house offers a peek into the daily lives of the visiting farm workers. During its heyday, there were multiple restaurants, hotels, rooming houses, a grocery store, a fish market, a dentist’s office, and a Chinese school. But behind the storefronts, there were also gambling halls and opium dens. It became known as the “Monte Carlo of California”. When prohibition ended and the asparagus industry declined, Locke lost its visitors.

There are many fascinating facts about Locke. On Saturday, February 22, 2025, 12pm – 4 pm, the Locke Foundation invites you to celebrate Chinese New Year in Locke.

The Boarding House Museum is open Saturdays and Sundays 11am – 3pm, 13916 Main Street, Locke.

The Dai Loy Museum is open Friday, Saturday, and Sunday 12pm – 4pm, 13951 Main Street, Locke.

Educate yourself on African American History, AAMLO, Oakland

January 31, 2025Silvia

Oakland stands for a rich culture and history of African Americans. The African American Museum and Library (AAMLO) preserves this history with its ongoing exhibit and events.

I’ve become a fan of the Carnegie Libraries and the AAMLO is a stunning well renovated example of these philanthropic buildings. Oakland’s first Carnegie library, built in 1902, the building greets you with the slogan “Free to all” above the entrance. It was renovated after the 1989 earthquake and reopened in 2002 as the new African American Library and Museum.

Upon entering we were greeted by a friendly staff member who gave us a quick overview. The self-guided tours are for the permanent exhibit upstairs: Visions Toward Tomorrow: The African American Community in Oakland 1890 -1990.

The pompous barrel-shaped ceilings in the Beaux Arts style give the room an airy appearance. All around are information posters conveying the extensive history of people of African descent in the East Bay. Women, war heroes, and sports celebrities are next to the revolutionaries of the Black Panther Party.

The interior is set up for events. For example, you can join Zakiyyah G.E. Capehart for an afternoon of poetry on February 8, 2025, from 2 pm to 4 pm. Registration is required.

Visit the AAMLO at 659 14th Street in Oakland California. Opening hours are Monday to Thursday 10 am – 5:30 pm, Friday 12 pm – 5:30 pm, and Saturday 10 am – 5:30 pm.