Bittersweet

Whew, that was a trip! It was so great to get away to be with both sides of the family, but it's always hard to leave the people we love. I promised my real journal that this would have more details so it is very very long. I tried the slide shows instead of a few pics so that it would take up less space. I'm not offended if you just read fragments.

I'll begin with California. The Robinsons have a time share with Marriott and this year they chose Newport Beach. We arrived on Saturday afternoon to a not so hot Orange County. It was in the upper 60s, lower 70s the whole time. I quite liked the weather. Better than blazing hot, in my opinion. It didn't make for very fun wave jumping at the beach, but much better for touristy type things. Anyhow, they showed us around this resort where we were staying and it was something. There were multiple pools and hot tubs, a sports court, a tot lot, a fire pit, tetherball, activities for the kids everyday, and beautiful suites to stay in. The lobby even had a choice between ice cold lemon-lime, and mixed melon water to drink. I had anticipated waking up well before anyone else so as we were walking around the wonderful Marriott property, I was making note of things I might do at 3 am when I wake up. Not only do I normally wake up earlier than most, but we were also three hours earlier than Maryland in CA. There were eight of us in the suite and we fit quite comfortably. That night we ate at the cheesecake factory until we were very full, but didn't forget to order several cheesecakes to go. We ate them after a rousing game of Hoopla.

So the next day, I did wake up hours before anyone else so I decided to take a stroll to the tetherball court and get a little exercise. I was in my pajamas and the only jacket that I brought. It was a beautiful crisp morning and I was so excited to be out instead of staring at the ceiling until the others began to stir, which is what I normally do in these situations. I actually had a lot of energy running up the stairs and straight to the tetherball court where I instantly fell into the freshly sprinkled mud surrounding it. My whole right side was coated in dark, thick, mud. I wasn't sure what to do so I kept walking and stumbled onto some sprinklers and had a nice little shower. Than I went in to the pool gates, before pool hours, to soak my feet in the hot tub after a slightly traumatizing experience as it was at 5 am. Eventually I went home and showered and whispered KC the story. Later we went to church where the Temple also was. It is a beautiful temple and we took many pictures. Then we went to LA where KC's sister Camille lives. We went to the La Brea Tar Pits and found out very fascinating things about the fossils found there. It was even better when we found out there was a dog show on the property that day. Then we then went to The Getty museum. It was massive and so much to see. It was also getting very cold. Camille took us to a great burger place where you can customize your's however you want from the meat to the sauce with many options for each component. Mine was a turkey burger on wheat, with gruyere cheese, banana peppers, grilled pineapple, sprouts, and avocado, with a horseradish mayonnaise. It was amazing and the sweet potato fries were great with it.

Monday we did some shopping and lunch at a huge mall. We went to the beach, and it was suddenly cloudy so we just played in the sand for a while. KC's cousins and a new wife don't live far so they came for dinner. We had grilled teriyaki salmon, and smores at the fire pit later on.

Tuesday was all about Disneyland. Michelle wasn't feeling well when she woke up, and the parents had recently been to Disney World, so it was Nicole, Casey, Camille, KC and I that headed to the happiest place on earth. It was silly that we could only get a reservation for 4 at Club 33. Camille was really nice about not making me feel bad for having her be the only one that didn't get to go. It was an amazing lunch of appetizers, London Sirloin, and a great dessert buffet. I'll probably never look at Disney Land the same. Since Camille is a local, I told her to bring some friends some time and I'd try to get her in. We stayed as long as we could walk, and enjoyed finding lines shorter than we thought, in some cases. The new Nemo Submarine ride was a 6 hour wait. I'm glad those people were in that line and not the ones that we were in. I had a quest to find that wonderful pickle we always get there and it was delicious.

The vacation to California was so wonderful. I feel like I’m getting to know the Robinsons so much better and they are really welcoming me in as one of the family. They are so close and I love that because mine is the same. They did so much for us including driving everywhere, providing all the food, and planning fun things to do. I’m so glad KC comes from such a loving family. I know ours will someday be that way too.

So off to Utah I went. It was nice short flight and there to meet me was Mom, Melody and little sleeping Julia. I was in tears looking at her in person for the first time. Dad was driving. I was pretty hungry so we stopped off at Crown Burger. It more than satisfied us and we didn’t even finish the two we were sharing. Amber was slaving away making all the fixings for Café Rio Salads exactly as they make them at the restaurant. Turns out it is pretty close to the recipe I had on my food photo a while ago. The slow cooked, brown sugar, salsa, chicken and tomitillo cilantro dressing that I had made into tacos. This was better and so like the real thing. We ate it after one of Katy’s baseball games where she did very well.

The next day I helped with Julia’s bath and then had a fun time with Grandma Julie who came to visit. We had to get a picture with the namesakes. We had lunch, took lots of pictures and took naps. The Pecks had more games that we watched, and then had pizza at their house. The kids wanted to sleep over at Nana and Papas so we had a slumber party. Man, the party never stops. Unless it’s forced to when you wake up with some bad stomach bug at 4 am and throw up for 12 hours straight. Mom came down with it about 5 hours after I did. We were two poor pitiful girls all day. Melody came over to see us and was nice to get a few things at the store we thought would help. I wanted to hold the baby so bad, but I could hardly open my eyes without wanting to puke. Since I went into the hospital last time, I knew what kind of great medicine they gave me to stop the nausea, so I asked my dad to take me. What is a trip to Utah without a trip to the ER? They gave me an IV again to replenish my fluids. They could barely find a vain since I was so dehydrated. I felt much better after more medication and a shot. They also gave me a prescription that mom think helped prevent her from throwing up a few more time. What a waste of a day!

We made it up the next day with shopping, black and white movies, and dinner on the deck. I didn’t forget to stop at Purple Turtle after visiting Grandmother to have a coconut dip cone that I love so much. I may have over done it eating all I did after being so sick, but I was so hungry!

It was so unreal to be with my new niece. Melody and Jonny are such patient, easy going, loving parents. They are so sweet to let all the kids constantly take their turns with the baby. (They all think the baby is their own, especially Jordan and Allyson.) I took more pictures than I really needed but I just couldn’t stop. I wish I could be more a part of her life as she grows up. Melody will have a lot to teach me by the time I have my own baby, so she better be keeping notes. I had a wonderful time spending time with everyone. Amber helped me make a beautiful watch with her beads, the kids and I had a slumber party, Melody and I were always together, mom and I were sick together, dad and I did an Ice Cream Run, and I presented Lili with a Club 33 keychain she would appreciate much more than I would. I feel like I really bonded with everyone and it makes me want to be with them even more. I also used the old BMW for my wheels the whole time and you know how I love convertibles. It was a nearly perfect trip, minus being sick and husbandless. Thanks to everyone for always making me feel so loved when I come home. I love you Julia! Check out her pictures. They are priceless.