An outing with my children

My children were out of school today being a holiday, President's Day. After sleeping in late and having a nice breakfast without having to rush, we decided to go and have a picnic at a nice park. I thought it would be fun to see one of the many national parks California has to offer. After preparing our food, we headed toward Tilden Regional Park, located by Berkeley, not more than 20 minutes away. It's a 2,079 acre wildlife preserve and park. We got lost a little bit getting there because they had closed one of the main roads, and the reason being: it was newts' migration time. The park was gigantic and we saw a lot of hikers and bikers everywhere, who I, of course, used for directions. When we finally found it, we were amazed at the many fun things it had to offer. We strolled by lake Anza, looked at the botanical gardens, rode the merry-go-round, visited the animals in the little animal village, had our picnic, and then ended our day by riding the steam train. This was a miniature steam train, called the Redwood Valley Railroad steam train. It took us on a two mile ride through the park. This was the children's favorite. I really enjoyed being so high up on top of the mountains and see the whole San Francisco Bay area from above. It was a sight to remember. I had a wonderful time being with my children and enjoying the sights. I can't wait till children are done with the school year, so we can explore this beautiful state everyday.