On Sunday night (26th) we went to Omaha and stayed with the Ferzelys. Our flight was leaving early in the morning on Monday, so we wanted to make sure we had plenty of time. My anxiety was abundant. I couldn't wait to go to California. I had never been there before and I knew we were going to be doing some fun things.
December 27th
On Monday morning, we got up around 3:00 am (we had Lily sleep in her clothes!). We joked about it being like Home Alone with the Elsburys and Ferzelys in a hurry to get to the airport. Who would we forget?!? Thank goodness, nobody.
Lily was so excited to ride in an airplane. On our first flight, I was separated from Matt and Lily, but it was okay. Lily loved looking out the window. We had a connecting flight in Phoenix and quickly got onto our next flight to San Diego.
Everyone did great on the flight and we were sooooo ready to see palm trees in California! When we arrived, Dad and Virgie greeted us. (Mom, Dad, and Virgie drove to San Diego. They went to Vegas on their way and had fun!) Mom was holding down the fort at our resort. We piled the kids into 'Gma Nanc' and the rest of us got a taxi. I couldn't believe my eyes as we pulled up to our resort.
Paradise Point is on an island surrounded by Mission Bay. There are a lot of properties on their land and we were in for a treat. Mom definitely knows how to find a great spot to stay! When we got there we chatted a little and let the kids stretch. Mom and Dad were in a temporary room, and we were waiting for ours to be ready. We ate at Barefoot Grill at the marina on Paradise Point. It was a great meal and there is nothing like eating with seagulls! :)
We went and played on the beach the rest of the day and found some seashells. It was so nice to sit on the beach of Mission bay with out a coat and let the kids play. The kids fed the birds, tortured the birds, touched the water, and played in the sand.
This was our room!
Matt and I took Lily swimming before we ate supper (In & Out Burger!). Matt loved sharing how wonderful In and Out Burger was. Paradise Point has about 5 heated pools with hot tubs. So, we didn't freeze too much going swimming in December! :) Lily would have swam all day if we would have let her!
December 28
The next day, we waited the arrival of John, Laurie, Mav, and Guire. They came that morning and we all enjoyed the beach again that morning. They were a little more brave with Mav and Guire this time. They actually went into the Mission Bay this time. Enjoy the pics!
Beautiful Mission Bay
The other kids were getting wet, so we took Lily and Syd's pants
I love this picture! Won't this look good on their bulletin board when they graduate from High School?!?
Brrrrrr.........
We ate breakfast at the Barefoot Grill and made a plan to go to La Jolla beach. Scott took Matt, Virgie, and I along with Lily, Mav, and Guire first. Then he went back to get the next group. We ate and then went to the beach to see the seals. It was very pretty down there.
zoom in on the sealsl!
Lily did not want to look at the camera. She was showing some attitude.
This sidewalk was built out into the ocean.
We were just arguing and Matt was far away taking the picture. He captured a good moment! :) This is when I think Lily looks like me the most. :)
Then we climbed down some rocks to get down by the water.
Trying to beat the waves.
Virgie wrote this on the rock. What a great tribute to our little man, Mullen! We miss you so much buddy.
GO HUSKERS!!!
Matt didn't warn us that the wave was coming to get us. During this picture, the water got the back of our legs all wet.
Finally, the rest of our party came. We lost Dad for awhile, but he finally found us. He just had a really good walk! :) There was a grassy area that we played on for awhile. The kids loved chasing birds, throwing the football, and racing.
The kids really enjoyed torturing the birds and trying to catch them. :)
Is it a shark
When the sun started going down, it got chilly. Mom and John took the kids back to the resort and the rest of us adults went into La Jolla to shop and get some drinks. It was a neat city. Mom and John took the kids swimming that night and it sounded like they had lots of fun.
December 29th
Thanks to all the groceries that Mom and Eliza went shopping for, we were set for breakfast. We relaxed in the morning and made plans to go to the San Diego Zoo. It was a rainy day, but our new friend "Mike" (consierge) told us the zoo would be a good place to go on a rainy day. So, with our newly purchased rental cars, we packed up and went to the zoo.
First we got on the bus ride and it took us all around the zoo. It was very pretty and neat.
Afterwards we split up into groups and walked around the zoo. My group had all the kids except Mav. We were the lucky ones! :) Grandma got a scooter to ride around, so that was nice for the little girls that got tired of walking! :)
After the zoo we went to a mall in San Diego. It was a neat mall because it was an outside mall, but it was all connected. So, the hallway was in the open, but all the buildings were connected. Mom got some much needed tennis shoes! On our way home, we ordered some pizza and enjoyed it at the resort. It was such a full day, that a lot of us crashed early that night.
December 30th! Game Day!!!!!
This morning we relaxed and got the kid ready to swim. They didn't mind it being a tad chilly for swimming weather. We looked for seashells and then we prepared for the game!
One of the lakes on the resort.
The lady behind all the fun!
These bikes were available at the Paradise Point Store. They had a full load around the island. :)
Dad, John, Laurie, Scott, Virgie, Matt, and I had a van shuttle come get us and they took us to Junior Seau's bar and grill. Mom and Eliza stayed with the kids until Sara- the nanny- came to watch them. We met them at the stadium. We had wonderful seats!!!! A nice group of men from Utah sat behind us. The Dad had lived in Lincoln at one time and still loves the Huskers. He passed on his love for the Huskers to his 4 sons. :)
Before the game, many Marines walked out a 100 yard American Flag. It was neat to see. A few soldiers then jumped out of an airplane and landed on the field. We were ready for some Football!
Nebraska played the Washington Huskies and it wasn't really a fun game. It didn't help that each beer was $9. During half time some high school bands came to perform. Then there was a cool firework show. I LOVE FIREWORKS!
The final score was Huskers 7 Huskies 19 Good thing our whole trip wasn't revovled around this game. The Huskers did not play well, hopefully it will be better next year.
When we got back to the resort, Sara said it went well. There were crafts all around the room and the kids were asleep.
December 31st - New Years Eve
We made plans to attend Sea World on this day. It was awesome.
Maguire loved trying to trap the birds. I think he got 3 or 4 of them. Poor birds! They weren't too smart though.
Sara came back again that night so us adults could go out for a New Year's Eve celebration. We went to a nice restaurant in downtown San Diego. The meal was pretty good and we had a great time in each other's company. Mom started feeling ill and we ended up calling 911. They transported her to the hospital. We were all very scared. It is not fun being out of your comfort zone and something goes wrong. We followed the ambulance and waited in the ER until we heard news. Mom ended up getting a severe case of Travelers food poison. She stayed in the hospital for a few more hours. Mom and Dad stayed with her and we went home. It wasn't a great ending to our New Year's Eve, but at least Mom got the help she needed and after a few weeks of being home, she finally felt better. :)
We go back to the resort early, so Mav was still awake and the rest of the kids were in the room watching a movie. This is how we found them.
Happy New Years!
January 1st
We were all still worried about Mom. She rested during the day and we all did things on our own that day. Matt and I really wanted to go jet skiing and once we mentioned it to the boys, they were excited also. Instead of just jet skiing, Matt also wanted to paddle board. So, Maverick and Matt went to the Marina and rode the paddle boards around the bay over to our rooms.
I was nervous, but I tried it and I didn't fall in! :) We had fun with them.
Later we went to rent two jet skis. I had never been in a wet suit, so that was an experience in itself. Matt drove on of them with Mav and Guire on the back. Virgie drove the 2nd one along with me. We had sooooo much fun! The boys had never been on a jet ski and Matt says that they were laughing the whole time. Virgie was really timid at first, so I asked to drive. I went a little faster and took sharper turns. It was great! :) Although it seemed warm to us compared to NE, we wre freezing after our ride. It was hard to walk because my feet were frozen as ice cubes. It was tons of fun!
The rest of the family went to another beach that they said was AWESOME. Urgh, if only we had another day.
We then went to the 'fire pit' swimming pool that night and roasted marshmallows and swam. It was hard to believe this was our last night. I enjoyed sitting in the hot tub, looking at palm trees, and the stars in the sky in JANUARY! :) Mom stayed in because she still wasn't up to snuff. Us Elsbury's had to fly out really early the next morning, so we said our goodbyes and packed up. Everyone else had later flights on Sunday and Mom, Dad, and Virgie were driving.
We made it safely to the airport and had two decent flights again. We got into Omaha to a cold winter day. Brrrr! I already missed California. I hope we get to go back again soon!
Now, I probably forgot to tell some details about the trip. But the pictures speak many words!!! I love my new camera!
Thank you sooooo much Mom and Dad for an absolutely wonderful trip. You two are such great, loving parents and my family and I are lucky to have you.
