We love getting our National Parks passports stamped, and so we headed to Cabrillo National Monument after lunch. None of us were expecting anything special. We just wanted the stamp.
But holy moly, we were blown away. We learned all about Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, Spanish exploration ships, lighthouses and tide pools. We ended the day sitting on the tide pool cliffs. All of us sang “Baby Beluga” to Ammon while we watched the sun set. I don’t think I have ever watched a full sunset before. It was magical.
Abe attired in Spanish conquistador armor.
Mary thought the armor was heavy.The armor was a little bit big for Mary.In front of the Cabrillo statue.Ammon was soaked from our La Jolla adventure, so Abe kept him warm in his sweatshirt.This nice ranger told us all about life in the lighthouse. Apparently, the family in the lighthouse could go weeks without seeing anyone but each other. Sign me up!! The last member of the family to live there related that it was a most enchanting place to grow up After touring the darling rooms inside, seeing the cute garden outside and experiencing the nearby tide pools, I can hardly imagine a more magical setting for childhood.I wish I had gotten a photo of the children’s bedroom because it was the sweetest, but I didn’t. I got a picture of the kitchen, though.What a sweet garden.
The girls climbed the sides of some of the sand cliffs and found a perfect spot to play house in.
I have a million pictures of this, but I had such a wonderful experience sitting there with Ammon. We sat together holding hands for the longest time. He played with the sand with his other free hand, and I spent a long time enjoying his contentment.
The tide pool cliffs.We loved exploring the tide pools. I kept thinking of the book, How to Raise a Wild Child. I felt really good watching my kids experience the sights, sounds, and feels of nature.
On Friday morning we headed over to La Jolla shores. Abe was exhausted from our sleepless night at Circus Circus and coming down from stress at work, but even still he managed to give our children the experience of a lifetime. He and the children communicated with the ocean–and the seals swimming just yards from where they were standing. It didn’t matter to him that he got completely soaked and had to be cold for the rest of the day. He’s just the best.
Ammon wanted a turn!
After we were done communing with nature, we walked up to the restaurants and shops by La Jolla. We ate incredible Indian food and the best gelato I’ve had in a full decade.
And here’s a picture from right before this expedition. The girls played “tea party” outside of our condo while Abe and I got ready for our Friday adventures.
On Wednesday after Abe got home from work we packed the car and started on our trip. Because we got a late start, we pulled into Vegas at 1 am. We got very excited at the prospect of waking up to the carnival in Circus Circus where we were staying…and then Ammon decided not to go to sleep. He cried the ENTIRE NIGHT.
This is a picture of everyone looking out at Las Vegas excitedly. Moments later, Ammon started up his screaming act and this happy little scene vanished clean away.
Abe and I were caught completely off guard by this turn of events. Normally Ammon is a calm little baby who makes our lives as easy as possible. Wednesday night was a bizarre aberration which we will never forget. Ammon was just so confused by the long car ride and the middle-of-the-night transition to an unfamiliar room that he couldn’t calm down. Abe walked Ammon through the halls and the casino for an hour. He ended that by walking up and down two flights of stairs fifteen times because Ammon liked that.
Finally at 6am we packed everyone back and drove the rest of the way to San Diego.
We ended on a happy note! The first thing we did in San Diego was head for the beach. We there exposed ourselves as crazy tourists by swimming in the frigid ocean. (Well, Abe took the kids in. I took photos from the beach.) A San Diego native told me that we were all going to catch pneumonia. Here’s a picture of Abe celebrating our arrival to California.
After we got all cleaned up, we headed out and explored our new neighborhood. We ended up eating the best Thai food of our lives. On our way home we also stumbled into the best cinnamon bun of our lives. Abe actually took a video of the amaretto flavored icing melting off of the warm bun. It was an experience that left us quite high on life.
Thai Village in Pacific Beach was fabulous. And we couldn’t believe our ears when we walked in–they were playing K Love (the Christian radio station Abe and I love)!!!Our homely yet DELICIOUS cinnamon bun from Cinnaholic.
After the kids were down, Abe and I started working on the Captain America movies. We are slowly working through all of the Marvel movies we have missed over the years.
So basically we had the worst night of our lives (only to be compared with a night in Portland where Mary pulled the same trick Ammon did and screamed all night in our hotel) and we ended on a high note. California can cure anything, it seems!
