Hello from the other side. We're in California dreamin. . .
So Dave got a pass to leave work for a week because well work was hell for the last couple of months. Yay for a vacation! We decided it was time to show these girls the ocean. The real one this time. They were not disappointed!
It turns out driving on a holiday is not the best plan, or it could have been an OK plan had we left a little earlier and not stopped for lunch, but alas we are not the thinkers we thought we were. We got stuck in traffic for hours. I really hate Primm Nevada, and California drivers. Well drivers in general. ;) Another tip about driving to Laguna Beach, use the toll roads, 241 and 133. It saves you hours, it's a really nice road (which can't be said for 91) and traffic-free drive. Yes, it costs you some cash, which you can pay online before or after you use the highways, but it is soooooooo worth it.
When we woke up Monday morning to leave, Jovey asked me if we could fly on an airplane instead. I asked her why she would want to do that and she said it would be faster. What the? Yeah, she was right, we should have flown. After a grueling drive through a dried out and ugly California we finally made it to the green beauty of the coast. We immediately walked to the beach. The girls were in awe!
The next morning the girls woke us up before dawn already in their swimsuits and water shoes ready to go to the beach. I tried to convince them to go back to bed, but I was not successful.
Jo has a thing about sand. She used to be terrified of it. Now she tolerates it, but has to wipe it off of her every few minutes. After the first ten minutes all she did was add more sand to her with her wet sand filled towel. She's a weirdy. It didn't stop her from wanting to stay in the water the whole time.
Jovey's goal in visiting the beach was to find buried pirate treasure. She could not stop talking about it until we got there and she decided the waves were much cooler than digging holes.
Miley wanted to bury D in the sand up to his head. He was not so willing. I offered to let them make me into a mermaid, and they immediately wanted that for themselves instead. It was torture for Jo to hold still long enough to get her feet covered. She can't stop moving EVER, just like Miley can't stop talking EVER. Mie had no problem being buried cause she could chat my ear off the whole time.
Miley met every single person in Laguna, and she knows all the dogs by name. Everyone in Laguna has a dog. Miley is a professional greeter. This girl makes friends with EVERYONE.
Miley's goal for the trip was to find seashells, and lots of them. She did pretty well, but was sad when we wouldn't let her take them all home with us.
Miley's first experience with a wave threw her to the ground and rolled her. I even warned her about it before hand. That's my girl. ;) After that she was very careful to plant her foot and wait for the wave to recede before moving. I think you'll notice her excellent form in the video clips. ;)
Watching all the surfers was fun too, but the girls didn't seem like they wanted to try that sport just yet.
Both the girls told me the ocean tasted salty. I told them they were tasting fish poop. ;)
Dave mostly stayed in the shade with numerous layers of sunscreen. He couldn't find his really cool* hat before we left so he braved the sunshine without it. No sunburn for him this time. High five buddy. I however, burned the tops of my feet a little. Dang it. I blame the ocean. Thankfully I was the only one, cause the others tend to be big wimps. ;)
Irvine has a nice mall. I think it's called the Spectrum, or at least has Spectrum in the name somewhere. I would look it up, but ya know. . . Anyway, it was a nice afternoon activity. We rode the giant wheel and the girls loved it, but wanted to go faster on the way down. Thrill junkies. At least they think they are, if it really did as they requested my bet is they would both be
scared out of the crap. I can't say that phrase the normal way anymore. Jovey says it like that too. Look what little Miley started. ;)
It is an outdoor mall and it's pretty big. It has lots of restaurants in it, with normally priced fare. When you eat in Laguna itself, you'll spend
a lot more. The local restaurants are good, but pricey. If you go the mall to eat, you're going to pay a normal price for your food. I had a delicious salad at a cafe there. Seriously so good.
The next pic is in a local cafe by the beach, The Orange Inn. The girls liked the surfboard ceiling. The Orange Inn claims they are the originator of the smoothie. We had their smoothie. It was good, so was the food. Jovey dropped her smoothie on the floor and spilled half of it. The owner gave her another one cause she pulled out the waterworks. Oy. We like eating at these little places, but I was also very glad to have a grocery story around the corner from our beach house so our little kitchen had some supplies on hand as well.
Dave's goal on this trip was to find every bakery in Laguna and sample their goods. I think he succeeded!
We also checked out Heisler Park, which leads down to some tide pools. The tide was a little high, so we didn't get to go to all of them, but this little stretch of beach was fun to explore.
You can pout on the beach and it looks nice in a pic, but in reality not as cute. ;) She wanted to get in the ocean, but she wasn't wearing her swimming suit at the time. . . thus the pouts.
We also visited the Sea Lion Rescue and watched them get fed. Miley plied the guide with thousands of questions. She is now an expert on sea lions. Here are all the pics I took while we were there. . . .
Yeah, I was holding Jovey so that didn't happen, and you know how Dave is with technology and cameras. ;)
Back to the beach and Miley's goal was accomplished. One fully intact clam. Boom. I made her leave it there. The picture was evidence enough of her cool find.
Jovey alas came home with no pirate gold. She was thoroughly disappointed. I told her she might have better luck next time and she was mollified.
We found our little beach house on Airbnb. I highly recommend it. It's a nice app/website and this was the perfect place for us.
The little blue house has two bedrooms and one bath. It was decorated nice and beachy, clean and comfortable.
The girls slept in the attic room up these little stairs. They LOVED having the space to themselves!
It had a nice little fenced courtyard which was nice since we left to front door open to let in the nice cool breeze and the dogs could go in and out without worry. Yes, we brought our dogs. They are a part of the family. Nilla is a beach dog. She could live at the beach. Bear was less excited about all the other dogs around and at first the noise of the ocean made her nervous. She calmed down too though and by the second day was relaxed and on vacation like the rest of us.
The beach house had off the street parking, which in Laguna is a definite plus. It was walking distance to the beach, and practically anything else. We just had to walk a block and we had our toes in the sand.
In the afternoon when Jovey needed a nap, Dave and Miley would go walk around the city looking for bakeries of course, and all the little shops they could cram in before Jo woke up.
The girls seriously loved the beach house and cried when we left it. And then cried again when we waved goodbye to the ocean. Oy, the drama with my girlies. ;)
Back to reality we went. Looking forward to going back again some day.
Jovey had strong feelings about the drive home when we got to Arizona. Crossing three states is the limit to her patience. Maybe mine too. ;)
Poor baby. It's ok, she just needed to be held, and thankfully we were in Arizona which is only minutes from home.
The next day Jovey said to me, "mom, let's talk about our trip. But mom, let's not talk about the crying part." bahahahaha
