Cali!

The timing of our trip to CA was tricky. It didn't seem like the vacation was going to workout. I am so grateful it did! My grandma has been battling some health problems and with us trying to buy a new house, we weren't sure if we should flee UT. We went anyway and all is well. My grandma did okay while we were away and Jessica ended up touring a house for us. We facetimed while she walked through the house. It wasn't "the one," but I am appreciative she did that. We left for California on Thursday, May 27 and returned late Wednesday, June 2. It was a nice setup staying at my parent's condo in Seal Beach. 

Pool and Beach

We were spoiled being so close to 2 pools and a hot tub. The kids couldn't get enough. Even though our first dip into the water was piercing, we had to force the kids out of the pool when they started to shiver. Luckily the pool was much warmer other days. Both children wanted to "swim on their own" with their floaties of course. We had the pool to ourselves. We also utilized the gym in the complex which was so convenient! My mom and I went running outside together one morning which was dreamy. 4 miles flew by while we were chatting.

At the beach, Isabelle said that the sand was "slippery" and had a hard time walking on it. She got used to it though. The ocean was chilly, but that didn't stop us from having a blast. We learned our lesson after having the kids get in the water the first day. The other times we went to the beach, we just played in the sand. Isabelle was a big fan of the water. She waited for the water to run over her toes and watching her face was pure joy. The playground on the beach was a favorite and we went several times.

Then: James April 2018

Now: May 31, 2021

Hair goals

San Diego

We took a mini trip to San Diego and got to see my Aunt Heather, her husband Kade, and their kids while we were there. James and Izzy had a blast playing with my cousins. We timed our trip to San Diego to align with my Mom's birthday. We got to eat at her favorite pizza place of all time... La Bella's. We got to leave the kids with my cousins which made for a relaxing, tantrum-free dinner. Andrew has heard talk of Labella's Pizza for nearly 9 years and finally got to experience it. We were laughing hysterically because Heather tried to conspicuously tell the waiter that it was my mom's birthday. The restaurant suddenly became silent, so everyone heard her. The waiter responded in a monotone voice, "Well, happy birthday." (In an "I could care less tone.") We were bursting with laughter. The waiter did end up bringing her a free dessert, but no birthday tune for her.

We stayed the night with Heather and Kade. My abs got a good workout from all the chuckling we did. Heather tells the best stories. Heather and Kade mentioned that their neighbors have a pool and can be extremely loud. Heather was hoping they wouldn't have a big loud party that night, so we'd be able to sleep. Well, they had quite a party. Things escalated quickly and Kade had to go intervene. There was an intense fight with 2 drunk people. They were screaming profanity at the top of their lungs and throwing things. One man overturned their pool table in his anger. The argument started because one of the men wanted more to drink and knew the other guy was lying when he said, "We're all out." Kade saved the day. He had to separate the two and got shoved in the process. He then waited with one of the men (since clearly driving was out of the question) to be picked up.  Heather said, "I bet that doesn't happen in UT." 

My parent's met and grew up in San Diego, and it was neat to drive by their old houses. Growing up, we'd visit San Diego a lot because both of my grandparents lived there. It was a walk down memory lane to see where I spent many childhood vacations.

Legoland

Pronounced "Yay-Go-Yand" by Izzy. This was a highlight. None of us had ever been before. The song "Everything is Awesome" was on repeat and it was such a fun atmosphere. I'd heard this park is best for younger ages and I agree. James could do about everything. Waiting in long lines was a struggle for a 4 year old, but it was worth it. We definitely didn't get to everything. We did a flight simulator ride which kind of scared James. James got to go to "driving school" and was thrilled to steer a car. We rode in helicopters... Even Izzy was tall enough to do that. She let everyone in the park know how upset she was to get off the ride. I thought James would be terrified to ride on a roller-coaster, but he grinned from ear-to-ear. Nana and Papa took Izzy on the merry-go-round a couple of times while we were waiting in lines. She made her opinion known once more when she had to get off the carousel. Let the fun continue forever! There was a tent within the park that let you build with Legos. James was over-the-moon! The Legos were in unique colors and there was an infinite number of them. James was quite proud of the towers he created and kept showing them to a stranger. Of course, we got souvenirs and ice cream.

We love Nana and Papa

The park wasn't at full capacity due to Covid-19 which was amazing! It already felt crowded, so I can't imagine how packed it would have been. Masks were required which did not bother me at all. In fact, it made me feel comfortable bringing my kids there. We'll be first in line when the vaccine is available for children.

Aquarium

I've been wanting to take the kiddos to the aquarium in UT and haven't, so we decided to go in CA. There was lots to see. We watched a coral reef movie, touched Stingray, saw unique jellyfish, and fed Lorikeets. We were some of the first people of the day to feed the Lorikeets and man, they were viscous. Unfortunately, I don't have a picture from when we first entered the feeding area, but 10 plus birds were fighting for the food. It was a bit frightening to be honest, and I had marks all up my arm from their pecking. Izzy was sobbing and wanted to be held, but I couldn't pick her up since I was carrying the bird food. Hence, the bottom pick. If we had a re-do, we might skip this part, or buy less food. I think it was traumatic for the kids, but Nana bought them stuffed animals in the gift shop which helped gloss over the birds. James named his Sammy the Shark and Isabelle got a Mermaid. 

Clearly loving it

Pedicure

There's a story. Let me just start out by saying that this was by far the best pedicure I've ever had. It was thorough and my feet have never looked better. My color choice was spot-on too. Additionally, my ticklish feet handled the pedicure without too many freak-outs. Pictured below, you'll see that I'm engrossed in a book. I read "The Choice: Embrace the Possible" By: Edith Eger. The book has amazing reviews, but it wasn't my favorite. I spontaneously decided to get a manicure as well. After the lady finished my nails, I noticed that she missed some of the corners. I didn't want to put up a fuss, so I just grabbed the color off of the stand and touched them up myself. The problem was that I didn't have the clear top coat, so I had to track down an employee to get that for me. She ended up fixing those 3 nails for me and we headed on our way. When we were outside, I noticed that the 3 touched up nails were a different color... orange instead of pink. Oops. Lesson learned, just speak up next time, so I don't grab the wrong color while touching up my nails.

Can you spot the 3 differing nails?

Food

We ate like royalty. I finally tried my first acai bowl and will be having another. Obviously, I ordered a bowl that included peanut butter. I won't tell you every single place we indulged in because that would be embarrassing. I will say that having a Cold Stone right on the Seal Beach boardwalk is the perfect business model. I even branched out of my usual order which rarely happens. When you find something as good as "Peanut Butter Cup Perfection," (substituting the chocolate ice cream) why waver? I guess when I get ice cream a few times in one week, I'm willing to be more risky. Andrew and I spent a sunset on the beach, eating our ice cream and listening to the waves. Nana and Papa watched the kids another morning, while Andrew and I got breakfast burritos and roamed around the pier. Take me back!

Minnie Mouse Shoes

We did some shopping and I purchased Izzy Minnie Mouse shoes. She adores them! She couldn't contain her excitement when I showed them to her. She wanted to wear them right away and I could not take them off for any reason! She even slept with them on. I believe she wore them for 36 hours straight. They are sparkly, pink, and light up. What more could a girl want?

Drive

Andrew navigated the drive to CA well (I mean, he has been professionally trained as a driver) and I was content entertaining the kids. They exceeded my expectations on the drive there. Extra T.V time definitely helped. I also brought several new books which were a hit. Well, the drive home was even better. What!? We only had to stop ONE time on the nearly 10 hour drive. My dad drove which I so appreciated. Andrew flew home late Memorial Day, so he didn't have to miss more work. What did I do to deserve such well-behaved children!? I can partially thank our morning trip to the aquarium which tuckered them out. We cut it close to making it home without having to stop for more gas, but we did it. The gas light was on and everything (a first for me), but our journey could not have gone smoother. 

This was a week for the books! Vacationing with my parents was wonderful. Their hospitality and generosity was noticed! Having my mom around was like having a full-time photographer. We got so many pics thanks to her! Both my parent's were so eager to jump in and help with the kids which made traveling much easier. I'm already missing that ocean breeze, especially at night. I slept so well while we were there and we've come back to ninety plus degree temperatures! We snuck away from UT despite all the odds fighting against us, and now we're back and ready to find "the house!" We might be one step closer... We've offered on 2 homes since our return, so fingers crossed.