Divisible by 11

I turned the big 33 on March 8, and to celebrate Jer whisked the fam' to Southern Cal. We were desperate to escape! Despite my nausea and misery, we figured a change of pace would do us good. We had made the decision to leave that day (normally we plan weeks ahead, but we were waiting until the last-minute to gauge how I was feeling), and things suddenly fell into place. We originally decided on San Diego, but the 5-hour drive was too sketchy for me. We headed to the O.C. instead and didn't really have a plan.

Okay, so random. Someone tried to remove one of our mudflaps (probably as we were parked overnight at the hotel), and when they were unsuccessful at getting all the screws undone, they gave up -- not before causing the mudflap to rub against our tire which created friction. So a few hours were spent driving to various tool stores looking for a part to remove it. Okay, who steals a mudflap? It was boring and plain (no profile of a curvy lady). Between carsickness and frustration, I suddenly regretted this little "vacation." Why did we travel to Irvine to go to Sears? Home Depot? Target? We have those in Vegas. I just wanted to be curled up in bed. Things took a drastic turn for the better when the mudflap was removed. We decided to head off to Newport to let the kids enjoy the beach -- and did they ever! Alyssa brought her sand toys and concentrated mightily on building a castle. Jayce was mesmerized by the waves and loved being chased by them. The best part of the trip was that I was able to participate with him. I had felt so sick that entire day, but for some reason (divine intervention, perhaps?) the nausea lightened and I was able to run around with him. I taught him about the tides and the moon, we found shells, we admired the sunset -- for the first time in weeks I finally felt like a good mom. We had a blast.

Jayce felt this total connection to the ocean (is he a Californian in disguise?). As we were leaving I saw him in an intense conversation with the waves . . . I wish I could have heard what he was saying. He then threw a big bucket of sand into the water and rushed to my side. I asked him what he was doing, and he said he was saying goodbye to the ocean and then threw the sand so the Pacific would remember him. It was quite the ritual!

Alyssa pointing out the ocean. She was in awe.


Okay, how super-cool is my son? Sporting those glasses and a hoodie -- classic beach bum!



The photo doesn't do it justice, but the sunset was fantastic.

And, because I was doing surprisingly well, we decided to spend a day at Disneyland. I sat out a lot of the rides and took it easy while the kids had a terrific time. We were done with our day around 6 and headed back home. Suddenly my nausea came crashing down and the trip back was a nightmare for me. So worth it, though! The kids had much-needed fun, Jer and I had a break from Vegas, and overall I felt okay. And I appreciate "okay" -- even now!



Since my kids are such fans of the characters (especially Alyssa), we opted for Disney Dining at the Grand Californian so we could hob-nob with them and bypass those long lines in the park. I'm not even sure who that is -- Little Bear? (I haven't seen that one).

Another bear guy -- looks like the Californian does a rustic, nature-loving motif. I was hoping for Minnie, Mickey, Donald Duck, a princess, etc. No such luck. We saw a bunch of others, but again, I didn't really recognize them. Go with another venue (Goofy's Kitchen was much better). The kids didn't mind, though. I like this picture because Jayce seems to be scowling and Alyssa is so blase.

.

Side note: Okay, does that fetus picture freak you out like it does me? It's interesting to see the development and progress, but why does it cause me to shudder? :)