Kym, Bonnie and the grandkids all went to the San Diego Wild Animal Park one day of Bonnie’s visit. Jerry and I did not go with them because, sad to say, our unhealthy weight would have made it impossible to keep up with them. This will hopefully inspire us to really get to working on our health. It is sad to miss out on time with family because you are too obese and out of shape to keep up with the fun.
Kym buys the year passes to the Zoo and the Wild Animal Park every year. Miranda and David love going. Miranda talks about wanting to work at the zoo when she is older, or becoming a veterinarian. Bonnie and Chris enjoyed our Wild Animal park. Bonnie said there was so much walking that even she was exhausted at the end of the day and she trains to run marathons!
However, we did take Bonnie and Chris to Point Loma where our National Monument to Juan Cabrillo and our old lighthouse are. It was so foggy that morning. I wish I had taken more pictures than I did, but I was afraid they wouldn’t turn out. I did take several pictures below after the fog started lifting a bit.
These black and white pictures are from a visit to the Old Point Loma Lighthouse I made with Kym, Jeff and Bonnie when they were little on August 15,1982 (that is us sitting on the steps in the above picture. Jeff is turned around looking behind us. Bonnie is on my lap and Kym is talking to her). The lighthouse has changed as now they have built an auxiliary building next to it that holds the original light used to beacon the ships out on the sea. The lighthouse was one of the original 8 west coast lighthouses and was built in 1855. It operated for only 36 years due to the fact that it was so high up on the Point and most of the time was shrouded in fog that the ships could not see the life saving beam from the Fersnel lens. A new lighthouse was built at the base of the Point and is still in operation with the Coast Guard today.
As these pictures are black and white, you can’t really see the blue from the harbor in the background at the top of this picture (Kym and Jeff above. Kym was 6 and Jeff was 3, Bonnie was 9 months old and I was 22 years old). Another time, Jerry and I will make a trip to the lighthouse and I will get some current pictures. Back in 1982 you could take the stairs all the way to the top of the lighthouse where the lens used to be, they had a walk you could stand on and look out over the ocean on one side and the city of San Diego (clear to the Mexican border) on the other side.
Today you are still allowed to view the rooms on the first and second floors of the lighthouse, but can not go all the way to the top.
Also, years ago, you were able to park right near the lighthouse, nowadays you have to park in a lower parking lot and hike up the hill. I tell you, it is a real workout when you are out of shape. My hips sure felt it along with my legs. Jerry did not attempt the walk. There are several benches along the way up that you can stop and catch your breath at.
If you walk on past the lighthouse, there is an area where you can observe the grey whales as they migrate from mid-December through mid-March. There are also several walking/hiking trails around the Point from the tip of it to the bottom.
The above picture is looking down from the Point where we were standing to the tide pools parking lot where we ended our trip to Point Loma. Yes, those little specks in the parking lot are cars. Can you imagine having small children way back in 1855 and letting them out to play in the ‘yard’. I would worry the whole time that they would roll down the side of the mountain into the ocean!
Of course we thought it was chilly and cold that morning, but Bonnie and Chris thought the temperatures were wonderful seeing as they had just left Minneapolis where it was 38 degrees and snowing! What’s a little misty fog and a bite in the chilly wind to a couple of snowbirds?
On your way walking back down to the parking lot is an old World War 2 bunker that is opened as a little museum. It is really interesting to see the pictures of San Diego during WW2. My grandfather (my mother’s father), from Pennsylvania, was stationed here during the war.
On the parking level is the Cabrillo National Monument Visitor’s Center. Here you can learn the history of Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo’s 1542 exploration and subsequently he was the first European to set foot on the West Coast. The Visitor’s Center is filled with books you can purchase on the lighthouse, history of San Diego, books on the gray whales, the animals and plants of the region, ships and much more. There are stuffed animals native to the Point on display and the rangers are very nice and will answer any questions you may have. You can also view short films in the auditorium. While we were there, the rangers were giving a presentation to a group of homeschoolers, so we got to listen in. We learned a lot!
If you follow the above road down past the new lighthouse at the base of the Point, it will take you to the tide pools where you can get out and see ocean life in action.
After driving around the Point and looking at the wonderful old houses, we met my parents at our favorite Mexican Restaurant.
Today, Thursday the 29th, Jerry and I drove up to Kym’s and visited with her for a bit. She broke her toe the other night. A wonderful couple from their church gave them a really nice dining table and chair set. They can sit an additional 3 people around their table now. Well, Mike told Kym to leave the table alone and not move it until he was home to help her. Uh, yeah. She didn’t listen and ended up dropping a 150 pound solid wood table on her left big toe. The colors may look pretty on her foot now, but it doesn’t feel pretty at all!
And Kyle, 20 years old, had his first experience serving on a jury today. We live in a great Republic that has been the envy of the world for 233 years. Oh how we need to be on our knees praying for that continued liberty now more than ever before.
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