Family Vacation

This past week our little family was able to go to California! We road-tripped it and had a blast! Here are some highlights:

Day 1: Drive to Vegas
First day of driving, we made it as far as Primm, NV (about 30 mins past Vegas). Jane asks about every 10 mins if we are to California yet. This could be a long trip! We stopped in Vegas to walk the strip and remembered why we don't like stopping in Vegas--sleazy sleazy everywhere! But the kids liked the big fish tank at Caesar's so I guess it was worth the trip.Day 2: We made it!
Woke up in dirty Primm, lost $2 in the Casino, let the kids ride the little rides at the factory outlet mall, then headed for Cali. Jane was STILL asking about California (even though we drove in it for hours--she was looking for the beach.) Got to Grandma's house, ate dinner, then took the kids to the beach. It was Grant's first time and he loved the sand! Jane was scared of the waves but after one knocked her on her bum (fully clothed) she loosened up and had a good time.Day 3:My birthday!
Trent let me sleep in (Love that man!), I opened presents, played make-believe with Jane, went shopping, and then went to the beach. It was only like 70 degrees outside with a good breeze so I had no plans of going in the water, but Trent did. He got in his wet suit and was gone! The kids and I played on the shore digging in the sand. Not to be outdone by my husband on my birthday, I got in the water. It was take-your-breath-away cold! But I still was able to catch a good wave. Standing up in triumph with my arms pumping in the air, I got a look of disapproval/confusion from Trent on shore--turns out my swimsuit top had been disheveled by the crashing wave and there I was exposed! Ha ha, good times :) I pulled it up and swam back in to catch another wave before we left. We got dinner at Red Lobster which was wonderful, minus the two screaming kids who didn't get naps that day. Finished off the day with Avatar. Thanks for a great birthday, family!Day 4: Zoo day
Jane had been so excited to go to the zoo. She wanted to see the elephants, koalas, hippos, lions, and birds. We got to the zoo with the Hogle Zoo in mind and were blown away! The LA Zoo is HUGE!!! We stopped at every animal at first then realized that we would be here for a week if we saw everyone so we started picking and choosing. It was a beautiful park with lush gardens and amazing animal habitats. The elephants weren't up for show because of remodeling, the hippo was asleep, the lion was hiding behind bushes, and the koalas were sleeping in the trees so all we could see was their hind-sides. When we got in the car to leave we asked Jane what her favorite part of the zoo was. She responded, "The koala bums!". We then headed to Chinatown. Jane refused to fall asleep in the car, even though she was exhausted so as we were strolling down the streets of Chinatown, she passed out in her stroller. The girl was TANKED. We had a blast buying things from cloths and jewelery, to bamboo and baby turtles (we named them 'Lucky' and 'OurCar'. Bet you can't guess who named the latter. . .) All in all a fun day.Day 5: Tide-pools and Denny's
Today we went to the tide-pools up Palos Verdes Blvd. It was a beautiful day and the drive was fantastic! When we pulled into the parking lot, we saw this guy walking with a big fish tail hanging out of his backpack. We parked and jumped out the car to investigate. Turns out he's a spear-fisherman who swam out, harpooned this enormous fish, then swam back with it, and hiked up the trail (which is dang steep). It was a White Sea Bass and he let us get his pic. Check it out!!! So cool! When we got down to the tide-pools, we were able to see/touch orange and black starfish, crabs, sea cucumbers, sea urchins, and hermit crabs. The kids liked the hermit crabs to crawl on their pants. After the tide-pools and naps we met up with my Grandma's sister and brother, Fran and George. They are both in their early 90's and going strong. We had a nice dinner at Denny's then headed back to the house for several rounds of Pinnacle. We had a blast!Day 6: Huntington Beach
We wanted to try out a different beach so today we headed down the coast to Huntington Beach. We stopped along the way at a place called Le Creperie for gourmet crepes. They were to die for!!! When we got to the beach the waves were huge and the sun was hot so I laid out and Trent braved the water again. The kids once again took to the sand and dug like little sea turtles for the whole time.Day 7: Lazy Day
We took a lazy day and took turns taking naps, taking care of the kids, and running errands. Trent made it to the beach one last time while the kids and I took afternoon naps and then that evening we all went to the Redondo Beach pier to walk around and have dinner.Days 8 & 9: Returning home
We reluctantly packed up, cleaned up the house, and headed for home. The kids were kind enough to sleep for 3-4 of the 5-6 hour journey to Mesquite. We were so happy! When we got to Mequite it was 93 degrees! Awesome! We took the kids swimming and then Trent got them to bed while I ran to the casino to throw in a few bucks. (and by "few bucks" I mean $19. I got down to $8 then won $10 and finally left with $16. Not too bad. But I realized just how addictive gambling can be. yikes!). Sunday morning we ate breakfast at the hotel, then got on the road, stopping in St. George to visit Trent's brother, Chad, and his family. It was so good to see them and the weather was GORGEOUS!

Now we are home and thrying to come to grips with the rain. We are so gratful to have had such a wonderful and safe trip!