Lil Bean goes to Jelly Belly & Father's Day

This was Eric's first official Father's Day and he enjoyed some well-deserved days off from work (well, county furlough days anyway). And since I was off on Friday, we decided to go out and do something fun to kick off our weekend. We were planning to take Natalie down to Monterey to visit the aquarium- we think she'd love to look at all the exhibits!- but the weather down there wasn't terribly pleasant. And it would have been a really long drive. So, instead we opted for a fun activity a little closer to home. I suggested we drive up to Fairfield to visit the Jelly Belly factory, to which Eric excitedly replied, "Yeah, let's go!" I knew in the back of my mind that a trip up to Fairfield just wouldn't be complete without a stop at Chick-fil-a, one of Eric's favorite restaurants.

We took Natalie (our lil bean :) At one point in-utero, she was the size of a bean according to one of my pregnancy books and the nickname just kind of stuck. Especially since it also rhymes with her middle name) on the Jelly Belly factory tour and she seemed happy to look at all the sites as she bounced along in her pack. Unfortunately the factory was nonoperational on this particular day, which was a little disappointing. But we still saw all the candy making equipment and enjoyed some samples along the way. Eric took a couple pictures inside the factory, even though cameras weren't allowed on the tour...

Obviously Natalie is way too young to eat jelly beans, but one of the tour guides gave her a little bag of beans for her to enjoy when she gets older, which was nice. After the tour, while we waited in line for the sample bar, she happily gnawed on her Jelly Belly hat instead :)

Then we were off to Chick-fil-A and I must say that my chicken nuggets, waffle fries and cookies-and-cream milkshake were really good. I told Eric that I've decided it rivals my beloved Jack-in-the-Box. And I must say that I really appreciate their business philosophy of closing their stores on Sundays- I don't know of many other places that still honor the tradition. Anyway, we're all very excited for Chick-fil-a to come to Walnut Creek (on North Main, near Geary Road if anyone is wondering). Of all places in the Bay Area, they chose our own town to build a new restaurant! They must have known that Eric lives here. Now we don't have to travel all the way up to Fairfield or look forward to Texas visits just to get some good chicken!

On Saturday, we went over to Grandma and Grandpa Fleming's for a little family BBQ. It was nice to visit with everyone, since we missed out on Easter (Natalie was sick). There was a big blue bouncy ball there that Natalie just loved! Next time we're at Target, we're going to have to buy one to have at home.

It was also great to see baby Ava, who will be turning one in just over a week! She's walking all over the place now and is such a big girl! Baby Amelia was also there and we even managed to get a few pictures of the babies together. Below, Natalie and Amelia and all three babies with their Mommas (Natalie- 7 months, Amelia- about 5 months, Ava- almost 12 months).

We also took Eric to the driving range, since he wanted to hit a bucket of balls. It was hot out, but luckily Natalie and I found a nice bench to sit at in the shade. We sat and relaxed for about an hour or so as we watched Eric practiced his golf swing.

On Sunday, we headed over to my Dad and Sally's place for dinner to celebrate Father's Day and my Dad's 60th birthday on the 20th. It's hard to believe that he's 60 already!! That just sounds so old. Everyone had fun visiting with Natalie- and she was in a great mood for some reason. I think it was because cousin Stacie was there. She happily hooted and hollered for most of the night and even let a few people hold her. My Dad made barbeque chicken and then we had cake and watched as he opened a few gifts and cards. Natalie and I had fun making this custom card for my Dad: