Suitcase unpacked, laundry done, looking at the snow outside with apparently more to come!
Granddaughter Rooke from California worked very hard with her rainbow loom to make a "Bapa and Grammy" ornament. Daughter Jenny said she was very focused on getting it done before we got to CA.
Our little rental house - actually 5 bedrooms, 3 baths but square footage not too big at about 1900 - heck it's California and steps from the beach so houses and tall, small and skinny! The front patio was right on the walkway.
Yoga on the Mission Beach where we walked the boardwalk at least once or twice a day. Ross and I needed a rental car as 6 of us plus luggage from MN would not fit. We never used it and walked to every lunch or dinner or with others on "outings". When we filled with gas before rental dropoff the gas station bill was 61 cents!
Another fun Duffy Boat. Until a couple years ago I had never heard of a Duffy but it is a brand and the kids love it. Speed is 6mph max and you have to stay in the bay or we'd never get back if we got lost in the ocean. Chris was Captain and Ross was Co-Captain and it worked great.
I got a new car last year and Jenny got mine and this is the sweetest license plate ever - my mom's name was Hazel!
Alex, Rooke and Lucy - almost 13, 10 and 10 years old and they never bicker or fight when together - amazing! They have ND hockey gear on as Chris took the 3 kids to a San Diego Gulls game.
San Diego Zoo - brother Brian was able to get 4 comp tickets and I got 2 discount so while Ross, Chris and Amy went on the San Diego brewery tour we did the zoo and it was awesome.
I love pandas and they always look so relaxed and at ease chomping on bamboo!
We did take two aerial trams and the 3 kids rode in one and loved it. Beautiful views of all directions over the ocean and San Diego.
While Amy had the 3 rugrats at the beach we visited Mt. Soledad and it was awesome. A few years ago there was controversy over the cross - seriously!!! - we are honoring veterans! So after lawsuits and wasted money it is now well taken care of and much appreciated to all but a few I am sure.
Sister-in-law Karen suggested the Schultz family get a plaque with my Dad and 2 brothers on it - all Navy veterans and we all agreed. There were "ordinary" people and famous people like Jimmy Stewart and Dwight Eisenhower and others.
Next stop - Cabrillo National Monument, Point Loma and the very old lighthouse at the end of the road. The whole strip of land is military with a huge National Cemetery that looked like Arlington or Omaha Beach and lots of barbed wire fencing and barracks. Kent and I were lucky to have the Senior Lifetime National Park pass that we got a few years ago for $10. If you lose the card it's now $80.
Rooke - she was so excited to find a telescope that was "broken" which meant it worked without putting in a quarter so we took advantage of it. We met a lot of people from Minnesota on this trip and it was fun to chat along the way.
Chris, Amy, Alex, Lucy
My brother Kent and wife Karen - so happy they could join us once again.
And the old lighthouse from the 1800s.
Of course my favorite thing in traveling is the signs along the way.
Next stop - tidepools. Son Chris is a nerd travel seeker like me so he has a "document" also. Eight years ago after Amy's brain tumor surgery she couldn't want and now she is climbing the rough, rocky and beautiful paths.
Sea anemones, hermit crabs, regular crabs and a bunch of other stuff to see.
I rode with Chris and the kids and we had to drive a further distance to find parking and a longer trek to the tidepools but I can still do it!
Chris leading the way around Mission Bay for a morning 3.5 mile walk and we find this heart made out of dried seaweed - perfect photo op for Grammy and the Rugrats.
Chris took all 3 on SUPs (stand up paddleboards). Rooke for the first time and Alex is a dedicated and patient teacher. She caught on in under 10 minutes. Rooke at one point had to dock to use the restroom and asked Jenny "Will that take time off my paddleboard time"??? They had it for an hour and it was a quick trip to the restroom!
When we returned my brother Kent was sitting on the patio with 2 roses.....for Lucy and Rooke and they were so smiley and happy and so was he. Rooke asked - seriously - if it would last until she went to prom and she's 10. Hmmmm...it did make it home in my suitcase but might not last that long.
Great Uncle Kent and his two charmers:
Skinniest kitchen ever in a rental but at least we could circle through the dining room to come in from the other end. We have had some "interesting" rentals all over the world.
Dining room, living room, front patio in that order:
The "kids' room" - bunk bed and they had their own space and loved it. Toward the end of the trip a bathtub/shower drain was nearly plugged so we get on the kids "We told you to rinse that sand off before you come in the house". The manager great-grandma Carolyn had told me they spent $427 dollars to root out the sand once. Well......Jenny and I found a plunger and down the drain was the biggest hairball ever and not our hair so we fixed it for them but doubt we'll get paid for it!
Last night out and a short walk to the restaurant. Lucy counted heads and we had 11 and it's was a good thing to always have reservations.
Kent's fish and chips was the biggest catch we had ever seen and it sure was good!
Boohoo - leaving San Diego at the airport and it's always a little sad but very happy at the same time since we are able to do this pretty often. Also I must admit it's always nice to get back in your own bed and also to not step on sand in every room of the house - even though I love sand and beach.
OK - back almost 18 years ago in Seal Beach - closer to LA. Family vacation, beach rental, no grandkids yet and we were both working for several more years.
2010 - Seal Beach again and Alex was five and the girls 3 and 2.
Rooke asked me how many lakes were in Minnesota since I said it's motto was Land of 10,000 Lakes - well it's 11,842 lakes plus many smaller ones not big enough to be counted like a couple within walking distance of our house. The acres matter.
So - lots of trips the rest of the year and knocking on wood that we stay healthy and in good shape to "make hay while the sun shines"!
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