San Diego Trip

What better way to spend a weekend than in San Diego? And better yet, with my first ever BFF, Erynn Ruth! She was incredible enough to even let us stay in her home, and I haven't seen the girl for over 15 years! (Yeah, she's that great of a person!) It was great catching up with her and seeing her mom and brother again after all this time. You're the best!We took this quick weekend trip because Rob attended a 1 1/2 day training seminar. When we first arrived there on Thursday, Rob and I decided ahead of time to attend the temple so we wouldn't have to make a trip to Mesa this month. The kids enjoyed walking around the grounds, enjoying the sea breeze air, and playing in the van (even after 7 hours of driving...yeah...they love playing in the car) while we took turns. Then we went to my friend's house and started to catch up.

Friday morning was a bit chilly. So after I dropped Rob off at his seminar, I took the kids to the Mormon Battalion visitor center. They really enjoyed the tour and Colden had a lot of fun digging for gold afterwards. That afternoon, we headed towards a lesser known beach on the bay side (thanks, Erynn, for the recommendation!). The only waves came in from boats. The kids had so much fun playing in the sand and the water--building sand castles, finding shells, making rivers and lakes in the sand, burying feet. Even Evelynn enjoyed getting in the water.

The next morning after we dropped Rob off, we headed for the Mission Beach, which is on the ocean side. The weather forecast said the waves would be larger than normal and I had to take the kids to see the big waves! As we pulled into the near-empty parking lot, we all decided to get out and go on the beach--in our pajamas! But it was fantastic! There were few people there so there were a bunch of birds. The kids chased gulls and pigeons. We also went close to the water to chase sand pipers. While we were there, a wave caught Evelynn by surprise and kinda knocked her down. After that, she was just afraid of the ocean.

We spent the rest of the morning at the San Diego Zoo. That place was amazing! We were there for several hours and didn't even see 1/2 of the animals. Even though they have a new Polar Bear exhibit that is really awesome, I think the kids thought the reptile house was the highlight of the zoo. Boy were they in for a treat on Sunday!


After we picked up Rob, we all headed to the beach for the afternoon. The real beach with the ocean waves. Rob, Colden, and Dylan all had a blast in the ocean. Rob body-surfed a few of those big waves. Evelynn was completely content playing in the sand near me...and I was content staying dry (I'm not a fan of cold water and cool air).

That night, Erynn stayed with our kids so we could go on a date. We chose to go running together at a park (I think I did about 3 miles! I ran for close to 40 minutes! Rob had to toughen his run up a little by sprinting behind me and running back a few times). And then we got desert at this place called Extraordinary Deserts. And the deserts live up to their name! They were fabulous! Not only were they delicious, but they were pieces of art...topped with edible gold leaves and flowers. Talk about garnishes!

Sunday morning after church, we had a yummy waffles and bacon brunch with Erynn and her family. It was so much fun spending time with them that weekend! Her younger brother also has several pet pythons. He took one out and let the kids touch it and play with it. They were in heaven!

(I just realized most of my pictures are on Rob's work camera...hopefully I'll upload some more someday for whenever I get around to turning this into a blurb book...)