Another successful California trip

Chris had two days off for Memorial Day so we added another vacation day and took and extra, extra long weekend in California.  It was fun to stay with the Reids this time and see their newly renovated, new home.  It was gorgeous.  Peter loved all the trucks and cars that Mason has collected over the years and Jane was obsessed with the clip clop pony’s princess castle.  She was parked in front of it ALL THE TIME, and if we had to go somewhere, she was sure to bring a clip clop pony for the ride.  I loved that the kids could run around outside in the backyard whenever they wanted.  
We went out to Café Rio for lunch and then bowling.  Peter was freaking out about all the balls.  He wanted to pick them up so badly and almost pulled a 6 lbs ball off the rack.  We let Jane and Peter have some turns too and they loved pushing the ball down the ramp.  I can’t believe we have kids old enough to want to do some of these things.   

We visited a new beach this time: Salt Creek.  (I love checking out new beaches).  It had a huge grassy lawn down a long hill to the beach.  We stopped on the grass and played with a bunch of bubbles sets that Dave brought for the kids.   

The forecast wasn’t particularly favorable, so we just expected to go for a walk and play in the sand a bit, but we brought swimsuits for the kids just in case.  It ended up being our best beach day.  The weather was very pleasant and the sun was shining.  What we didn’t remember was sunscreen so we didn’t get to stay as long as we would have liked.  Still, for the time we were there, Jane loved playing in the sand far from the water and Peter loved the waves.  It was so fun to see him excitedly running for the water, splashing his feet in the water, and running back when the wave came.  To say he loved it was an understatement and Chris was just beaming the whole time.  Peter would run straight into the water if Chris didn’t nab him up and turn him around.  Peter just giggled the whole time.  It was so fun to watch.  When he finally lost his balance and went down in a little wave, he was done.  Shivering and cold, we stripped him down, got a fresh diaper, and wrapped him up in my hoodie where he promptly passed out.  

Running down this hill, freaked Jane out, but she couldn't resist climbing back up it every time.  When she got to the top, she would only come down taking baby steps holding someone's hand.

At Erik and Juliana's house, the kids took a little bit to warm up to them again, but Juliana soon won Peter over by putting him up on the pool table and gathering all the balls right in front of him.  He would rattle them around with his hands and just giggle.  Then he would pick up a couple balls and throw them on the table.  It just made me cringe every time, but Chris and I seemed way more concerned about the pool table than either Erik or Juliana.

Monday was supposed to be our nicest beach day, but it was a little cool and overcast in the morning.  We took our time in the morning, waiting for it to burn off, but eventually headed down grabbing some lunch on the way.  It wasn’t too cold (as long as you didn’t go in the water) but it was kind of gloomy.  Peter enjoyed running around in the water just as much, though.  He’s so cute; it melts my heart hearing his squeals of delight.  After inevitably getting soaked, he snuggled up in a blanket in my arms and fell fast asleep again.  I loved it. 

That evening we went to the Angel’s game.  Chris had been looking at tickets on Craigslist the night before and came across someone selling a box suite for a great price.  Chris made him a low-ball offer for it, and after a little back and forth, we got it for a great price.   We got Joe and Jacob and Brooke on board, so in the end, our luxury suite had 7 adults and 9 kids.  I don’t know if I have ever enjoyed a baseball game more than that night.  That is the only way to watch a baseball game with kids.  They were all free to roam, but contained in our box.  Peter spent most of his time going up and down the three stairs where the outside seats were.  Jane was mostly up in the indoor area, eating piles of sugar supplied by all the parents.  I swear, each parent brought enough treats for all the kids, so they had TONS; Popcorn, cotton candy, skittles, m&ms, peanuts, and so much more.  They were in heaven.  In the indoor area, there were two more tvs, so they had the Ducks game on and some other Basketball game.  By the end of the game, the adults were all sitting down in the stadium chairs and the kids were all back in the room.  Jane was asleep on my lap and Peter was still running around wired.  The game ended with a win for the Angels in the bottom of the 9^th.  Pretty perfect.  It was definitely the highlight of the trip.