We went back to our favorite campsite in Cali for spring break. This was such a different trip than we normally have. I had a really long meeting the night before we left and wasn't able to get all my stuff done so we were two hours late leaving the next day. But it was ok. I'm getting really good at breathing and realizing what's actually important. Leaving at the time I had chosen was not. It didn't affect a single thing. But it was raining all night and all morning while we were trying to get packed up. That made it a little challenging. It rained the whole way to Cali, except for when it snowed. Like a blizzard, really. We couldn't believe it. Visibility was less than a hundred yards. It was in the mountains right before we came down into San Diego. We were hoping this wasn't a hint of what our vacation was going to be like.
We arrived in the afternoon with just enough sun to let us set up our camps and get dinner started. Later in the day, Mom, Chelsey, Spencer and Whitley showed up as well. We drove here with the Garrs, Johnsons, and Rapiers. The next day the Kettrings and the Richs arrived as well. But unfortunately it didn't last. As we sat around the fire, it started to rain again. So off to bed we went. Glade and I, Mom, Whitley, Katy and Brooklyn all slept in the camper. Bo and Stephen were in a tent and Rhett and Dalin were in a different tent. Nick slept in the van. It rained so hard, our trailer was leaking. What was worse was that it was so windy that I honestly thought the dang thing was going to tip over. It was shaking and creaking so much I was totally freaked out. Mom was making fun of me because I kept turning my phone on to look around. It was super scary. I was also so worried about my boys outside. I texted Stephen and asked if they were ok. He said they were totally wet. Bo came in and and cuddled in with me and Stephen jumped in the van with Nick, but there were no dry blankets left. I asked him to check on the other boys and he said they were totally asleep. Crazy. When morning finally broke, we got up to assess the damage. I was sure all our belongings would be strewn about camp with all the wind. Lucky for us, Nick had stacked it all under wood before he went to bed. Dalin and Rhett knew there was a storm, but it hardly even rattled their tent. Dalin said every once in a while, he could feel a slight splash on his face if the wind blew just right. So grateful for that.
The clouds weren't lifting and it was still sprinkling after breakfast so we decided to drive into town for the day. We went to Seaport Village and had pizza at our favorite pizza place and did some shopping. While there, the sky opened up and it was beautiful. Once we got back to camp, the sky was blue and the kids hit the beach. It was still cold so they weren't in the water much, but we spent the rest of the day there.
Sunday morning we went to a local ward for church. Everyone was so nice and it was very enjoyable, even for the kids. We got so many compliments on how cute and nice our kids were. In trying to keep the Sabbath as Sunday as possible, we went back to camp and had lunch and then went to tour the Mormon Battalion Museum. We have been there twice, but the other couple of families hadn't. My kids still enjoyed it and loved sharing it with their friends. After, we went to the San Diego temple and walked around there. It was a really nice day.
Monday was great, spent most of the whole day on the beach. I went for a run, first time since the race. We made the decision to go to Knotts berry Farm the next day and the kids were over the moon happy. Even agreed to pitch in $20 of their own money to pay for it. Glade was away all day on a business venture in LA so I was loning it for the day. We had planned a date night that night at a Mexican restaurant down the street but I was pretty sure he wouldn't make it back in time, but he did! After carefully placing kids in different campsites with bigger responsible kids, we went to dinner. Have I ever mentioned what great friends I have?? After dinner, Jenny and I made a trip to the laundromat Two hours. Yuck. But Luckily I shared it with a good friend. ♥
Tuesday we loaded up and made the drive to the amusement park. Glade stayed behind to work and Whitley stayed behind cuz she didn't want to go. We had a great day! The weather was perfect, the kids are mostly big enough to go do stuff on their own and they all had friends to be with all day. Let me just insert here: I seriously love that my kids are friends. Like really friends. It's very sweet to watch. Katy stated as soon as we got there "I'm going to have to put my big girl pants on if I'm going to ride these rides!" Well she must have left them at home cuz she wouldn't do anything. So it was SnoopyVille for her all day. Bo went on absolutely everything. I was very shocked. I would see his face during the ride or on the pics they take and he looked terrified. I was terrified for him. But then he would come off yelling how awesome it was and go again. Crazy kid. Most of the rest of my kids will pretty much go on anything as well. Even Brooklyn who might appear to be a wuss. Dalin loves it but gets sick easily. He puked twice. Once he made it to the trash, once not so much. Lucky for us Rhett was wearing shorts under his jeans so we met up with him and he gave Dalin his jeans and I carried the puke jeans in my bag the rest of the day. They all had a great time.
On the way home, we grabbed pizza and while waiting for it to cook, Stephen located an Emazing Lights store only 4 miles away! This is a website they order all their gloving stuff from. I should do a post about that hobby. Anyway, the wanted to go so bad! So being the good mom I am, we followed the GPS and showed up 7 min after they closed. We could see someone in there so we knocked and asked if they could just step inside for a minute. She was very nice and let them in for just a minute. They were very excited!
We all slept good that night and woke up to a serious fog the next morning. Good thing it was our day to pack up and go home. The only problem is that everything was wet. It just never really got dry there. Between the rain, fog and natural wetness of the beach, it was a very wet trip. Our camper leaked every night as well. It wasn't my favorite trip for sure. But I like to think of things as an "adventure" and not get to bent out of shape about what I can't fix. We were very ready to get going though. Hot showers and warm beds were a welcome thought. The trip home was uneventful. The kids were mostly good and it was only about an hour away from home that we needed to intervene and entertain them. We played a fun song game and got silly and giggly. Love those times.
After a quick unload of the van, Whitley and I made a quick trip to Kohl's. I had a coupon expiring that day and there was a purse I really really wanted. We actually stopped in Yuma to try and buy it there, but they didn't have it. Mine didn't have the one I had originally picked out, but a super cute one nonetheless. The next day Dalin even commented "Mom, that really is a great looking purse." Love that kid. :)
My pictures are completely scrambled but right now I'm happy just to have them in a post.
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