The Best {Beach} Day Ever
Isaac and I took the week after Thanksgiving off to spend eleven straight days with our girls. After Thanksgiving (which you can read about in the next weekly update), we spent Friday and Saturday finishing up our Christmas shopping and relaxing with the girls. We packed our bags Saturday night, so we could wake up early to drive to California. We knew there would be a lot of traffic on a Sunday following a holiday weekend, and we were determined to beat it.
Luckily, we only ran into a little slow traffic near state line. The rest of the drive was a breeze. It started raining and got worse and worse as we got closer to Newport, where we had plans to meet the Unertls for lunch. We started questioning whether or not we should still go. We could always go to our hotel and check in and hang out in Downtown Disney instead.
I talked to Kasie, and she said the rain wasn't as bad near their place, so we decided to chance it. I'm SO glad we did, because of all the summers we've spent "beachin'" (as Grace calls it), we had the best beach day ever. The sun was peaking through the clouds just enough that it wasn't cold and the rain stopped and just drizzled here and there. We were so happy to be in our favorite place all together.
I had plans to get a picture for our Christmas card while we were there, so we made sure to bring the tripod. We found a spot and set it up, but we had to keep moving, because there was a man with a metal detector and headphones practically following us around. Once we were situated, the wind picked up a bit. That made for some pretty awesome outtakes.
Since it was hard for me to run back to place without my hair blowing all over, Isaac decided to try setting the camera up, and we got some more great outtakes.
Finally, we got the perfect picture for our card, and Mom was happy.
We spent some time watching the waves roll in while we waited for Kasie, Jeremy, and Jakson to arrive.
The girls were jumping with excitement and had a blast running from the water.
When Kasie called to tell me they were close, we made our way to the Balboa Pier to have lunch at Ruby's Diner.
The girls were so excited to see Jakson, and Grace decided to take the camera when he arrived to snap some pictures.
We had a great lunch catching up and laughing with some of our best friends. Soon, it was time to say "good-bye". As we walked down the pier, the girls were so silly, and Jakson was all smiles.
The girls weren't quite ready to leave the beach yet, so we played a little more.
After a while, we decided to check out underneath the pier before we left. I don't know why we've never thought of going under there before. It was such an awesome sight to watch the water crash into the posts.
Gracie took a picture of Daddy and Mommy, and did a great job. She even warned us to run when the tide came up high and saved us from getting soaked.
We got ready to leave, and Char wanted to go say "bye bye" to the ocean.
The girls ended up spotting a sea shell, and we spent another hour or so hunting for them. We ended up with a ton to bring home for their seashell jar in their room.
When they thought they had found enough seashells, they ran for the lifeguard tower.
We jumped off a few times before sitting down to enjoy the gorgeous view.
Charley has no fear. Like, none at all. When she saw Daddy walking by, she decided to jump to him with no warning. Luckily, he's used to her wild ways and caught her, but it turned into a game with the girls jumping off the lifeguard stand into Daddy's waiting arms. They had such a blast, and there is nothing better than those huge grins.
Grace then decided to try to jump to Daddy while looking at the camera. She's so silly.
After hours at the beach, and what was one of the most fun times we've had as a family of four just enjoying one another, we checked into our hotel in Anaheim and met Grammy and Papa Rick in Downtown Disney. While we waited for our table at Naples Ristorante, we checked out the new Anna & Elsa's Boutique, which the girls obviously loved. We also stopped at Marceline's Confectionery to get our traditional chocolate, caramel covered marshmallows. The girls opted for Olaf cake pops instead. This place seriously has the best desserts ever. Try it if you're ever in Downtown Disney.
After a long day, the girls got dressed in their matching Sprinkle Toes pajamas (how fitting for my little ballerinas) and passed out rather quickly. We were all exhausted but so ready for our adventures to come at Disneyland the following day.
Stay tuned for more vacation fun...
