California Trip! Part 4

So the last part of the trip was busy and fun and beautiful!

Might I say again, I love California. I love the ocean. I love the beauty of nature.

I'm still not a huge camper/nature walker/tree hugger type, but I love to just look at the wonder of nature. And I like old stuff...hence why I love places like Monterey Bay and San Francisco!

When we were planning the trip, the coast wasn't even on the agenda at first. Then as we got thinking, why not? We may not get the chance to drive here again, and we tend to like to do different things for trips, never the same trip twice, so we decided that instead of just taking the normal I-15 home, why not make a slight side trip and enjoy the Californian coast along the way!

I loved Monterey Bay when we went a couple of years ago. Its so quaint and cute and bursting with history. It also has the cutest pier with great shops and restaurants, where we enjoyed the best clam chowder in the world!! Even Gracie agreed. She didn't want to order from the kids menu, she wanted the Chowder!

It also gave us a chance to really enjoy the power of the ocean. 

I honestly could just sit and watch and listen for hours...

We planned on going to San Francisco the next morning, but decided to enjoy a little more or the coast and beach. We walked along the beach cliffs and out to this rocky point where we did just sit and watched the waves come rolling in. 

It was fun to try and guess which ones would be the biggest ones crashing off the rocks.

Here's me in my happy place...

Dustin even tried recording the waves for me so I could take the sound with me...

Sigh...it didn't quite work out...

 

We drove down to a couple of beaches, explored the tide pools and found lots of shells...

Even a couple of starfish!! 

Then we headed of to San Fran. Just a quick stop to Pier 39, to see the Sea Lions and enjoy the Tulip Celebration. Tulips and Daffodils every where. Made me hungry for Spingtime!!

On the way to the hotel and one last shot of the bridge. it was dark, and I had to leave the shutter open for quite a while, hence the airplane lights across the picture, but still so pretty and amazing!!

We had to try something different, so we headed for Muir Woods just north of the bay. Giant Redwood Forest. So beautiful and peaceful, though I have to say I really enjoyed the Sequoias more. I think some of the Redwood forests farther north are a little more Majestic and larger. it was still pretty and more of a 'Rain Forest' feel with ferns and moss on the trees. Very, Very Green...

Still beautiful and some were still HUGE!!

We went on a hike and my little troupers did really well.

The hike was a nice change from sitting in the car for hours and hours!!

It was such a fun trip, and so sad to see it end! 

I missed my bed, but I realized how much I missed California: my friends, the activities, the ocean.

 I never realized how much a part of me it had become!

I am very much Canadian, but I think there will always be a part of me that is a California Girl!!

California Trip! Part 3

So, we finally made it back to Bakersfield.

When we first talked about moving back to Canada, I was elated and sad. I had been praying for a long time to make it back closer to family, and the day had finally come...

yet, I was really sad.

Mostly because of friends like these ladies...

They are beautiful aren't they?

Two of the best neighbors a girl could ask for. Especially when that girl tends to be a hermit that hides in her house most of the time. We spent many a hour sitting on the front lawns watching these crazy kids run around.

I miss that. It was a simpler time. I think life in Canada, in Magrath especially, life is simpler in that I don't worry about my kids as much. They can walk to school or friends' houses by themselves. I leave them to run the three blocks to the Post Office, my house may or may not be locked all day...

But life in Bakersfield had a nice simple routine.

Kids go to school, they come home, we sit and play, we have dinner, we go to bed.

Ball season was about the only interruption to that.

So I miss that time. I miss those extra kids. But I'm glad I got to see them again!

They are cute!!

And the kids were SUPER excited to play with old friends again.

I really should have taken more pictures in Bakersfield, but I was too busy enjoying the visits with old friends. It was so good to talk to them, hug them and just be with them again.

I remember thinking to myself...

"I am truly myself here. They have never known my past etc. They have never judged me or expected anything of me because of the past or where I come from or who I belong to. 

They just accept me for me."

I need to remind myself more often that I need to be myself. That is who my friends love and respect.

Look at these three. They were quite the set in Kindergarten.

Brody loved Bakersfield. He was quite teary and didn't want to leave. He had more fun here than in Disneyland. I felt so bad for taking him away so soon.

Gracie said there were too many boys...

Sorry hun, all my friends had boys!

She did enjoy going to church and seeing her old friends there though.

And these two just grew enormously!! Its amazing how when you leave, you know you have changed, you know your kids have changed, but you forget how everyone else changes too!

It was a quick visit, but a wonderful time connecting with old friends. 

I never realized how much I would miss California...

and my California family...

I hope the next visit can be a bit longer!

California Trip! Part 2

So the next big adventure was Disneyland...

I love Disneyland, I really do. Its so neat all the detail that is put into every attraction. Its fun to watch your kids' faces light up when they see a character they love.

And it was pretty fun to get to go with some cousins again!!

Look at this group of hooligans!! 

It was fun, but 8 kids at Disneyland under the age of 10, is CRAZY!!

The first day we spent at Disneyland. The kids had a hoot, and Cooper even tried a couple of scary rides. Ryder had him all excited about Space Mountain, and he even convinced Coops to sit with him instead of Mom or Dad. Which he did, though he nearly hugged Ryder's arm off! 

It was a little fast for him!!

We hit California Adventure next...And the same with The Tower of Terror, Cooper was all pumped to go on. Jumping around, "Oh ya man!" My other two BIG kids were nearly hyperventilating by the time we got on. I had made a rule before we came on the trip, that everyone had to try each ride they could measure up to at least once. So, they were trying to be brave, and not doing a very good job of showing it! After, Dad asked Cooper what he thought and he said, "That was NOT Awesome!"

The Third Day, I got to spend the day at Disneyland with just my Cooper!! It was so much fun. The big kids when with Dad and Uncle Scuba to Universal Studios. Kelsey and I decided to keep the littles with us and enjoy a Little Kid Day! It was very relaxing and we didn't rush anywhere. We spent alot of time in A Bug's Life and seen a couple of shows. It reminded me of when we would go to DLand with our passes and just go for a couple of hours and enjoy some Little time with the kids.

(And the big kids had a HOOT at Universal with their Dad!)

Gracie said her favorite ride was California Screamin', the roller coaster. We all went as a group the first time. Then on our last day, it was just our family. We got 5 fast passes. First she went with me, then her dad, then ALL BY HERSELF!! She was pretty proud. And, all three times right in a row.

Brody said his favorite ride was Soarin' over California. Cooper really liked it too. And he talked the whole time. Brody said he liked Space Mountain and Screamin', but he didn't want to try them again!

Cooper liked the Lady Bug ride in Bug's Life. I think he went on it 6 or 7 times. He also liked the bumper cars and the Catipiller ChooChoo. He was funny. Every ride was "Awesome!" 

I think my favorite was the new Cars Land. It looks just like the move when you walk around. The cars ride is sooo cute (100 minute line wait cute!!) And at night they light up the neon just like the movie. We even ate at Flo's V-8 Cafe!

It was really fun, but I do have a confession. I was really excited to go, but when we got there, I was not nearly as excited to be there as I thought I would.

 I kind of had the feeling like, "Been here, done that." 

It was fun to hear the kids talk about "Hey, remember that!" 

And fun to see the new things I hadn't seen yet, but next time I think I would only spend 2 days, 

one at each park. Just enough to get a taste again. 

And the rest of the time at the beach!!

California! Part 1

We made it to California! Oh, I didn't realize how much I missed it till I got there!It was a LONG drive through snow and ice, but my kids are sooo awesome, that they didn't complain AT ALL!!

(disclaimer: I don't count the occasional "Are we there yet?" from the four year old, because he was actually really good, and only said it about 32 times on the way down...could have been alot worse!)

I'll have to do this in a few posts, because there was so much going on. 

First stop, my favorite, the beach!!

It was a little on the cool side, though it didn't really stop the kids from playing in the water. We hit at low tide and explored the rocks and tide pools and the kids had a blast finding hermit crabs...

Once they realized they weren't going to hurt them!

Gramma had to show them they weren't so bad!

They dug in the sand, built a 'city' for the hermit crabs and played a bit in the waves. Like I said, it was a little cool, even for Canadians, but it didn't stop the Blasco brothers from swimming in the sea!

It was so nice to be back. I have always loved the ocean, the sound of it is soo peaceful to me. I could sit there for hours and just listen...

And I think the kids could have sat for hours and just played in the sand.

Note to self: next time, more beach time!!

Even little dude got a little wet! He HATES cold water, and at first wouldn't even get his toes wet without freaking out. So I was very proud to see him chasing in the waves with the other kids.

So Day one of the trip done....

Do we look like we are having fun yet?!?