California Trip

In August, Shan had a 2-week Contracting Course in Los Angelos and we decided to tag along since a free vacation is always nice.Our pool was in the shade of the hotel almost all day and it was windy up there too (it was on the fourth floor). But my kids were undaunted and they swam like chattering fish as long as I would let them. Shan joined us on his lunch a few times and the kids mauled him like crazy.

We mostly spent every day on the beach. It was great to be there for so long because we were able to see lots of different beaches. And it never got old. You really can't go wrong with the beach. It is my happy place. Especially because now I don't have a crawling baby eating sand and my kids know to stay close and follow safety rules. And I loved being able to throw them in the bath at the hotel and someone else cleaned out the sand and gave us fresh, non-sandy towels. Oh, the luxury. We listened to Sheryl Crow on the way, so when we actually drove on Santa Monica Boulevard the kids thought it was hilarious. The Santa Monica Pier Carousel was a hit. As was the entire Pier. We saw lots of crazy people there and cool artists and performers. Our favorite attraction was the Trapeze school that was practicing out in the open- we were all mesmerized.

Emma couldn't get enough of the tiny sand crabs.

And Ryan looked like this most of the trip. He finished Harry Potter 5 and 6 while we were there.

When Emma wasn't playing with sand crabs, she was collecting shells. Oh, the buckets of shells. And seaweed and driftwood and garbage too. Nothing like a bag of treasures after a beach day.

We thought it was easiest to bury the kids so they couldn't move and we could take a nap.