CA Trip - Days 2 & 3

We woke up the next morning ready to start a brand new day. We swam in the beautiful pool and enjoyed the waterslides. Paul and I lounged on a floatie and soaked up the sun. It was sooooo nice and relaxing. We wouldn't have minded just staying there for the rest of the trip.


This movie is a little boring in the beginning - just listen for Paul coming down the slide:




The laundry room was awesome and right across the hall, so as we were packing up I asked Paul to throw our wet swimsuits in the dryer. Maddie had taken our comforter from the car and used it that night, so I handed it to her and told her to take it back to the car. There's always so much crap to repack that I have to check every nook and cranny several times before we leave to make sure we have everything. Off to San Diego we go!

About 3 hours into our drive, Paul turns to me and says, "Did you get the swimsuits out of the dryer?" "Um, why would I do that since I asked you to do that?" "Well, I didn't get them." OH THAT IS JUST GREAT. No swimsuits on a trip to California!

"Uh, mom?" Maddie says. "Did you get the comforter from the hotel room?" "WHY WOULD I DO THAT SINCE I ASKED YOU TO DO THAT???!" "Well, I didn't." Explosive tirade by me ensues. Topic: WHY AM I EXPECTED TO DO EVERYTHING FOR YOU PEOPLE? Subtopic: Duh! Srsly.

We called the hotel and got the run-around from the security people saying they couldn't find anything, but they'd keep looking. We stopped back there on our way home and big surprise - they "never found anything." Somewhere some skanky ho....tel maid and her family are wearing our swimsuits and sleeping in our comforter. I was really mad about losing this particular "swimsuit." It's more of a swim top/swim shorts type situation. It took me a long time to find just the right combination of fat coverage/from-this-decade swimwear (without looking like I'm wearing a 1920's full-body swimsuit). Very upsetting. I was also mad about the comforter, since it's part of a matching set in the boys' room. So after we checked into our San Diego hotel, we headed to Target for swimsuits. There was very little to choose from and I was told snottily that they were "out of season," but of course they were still full price. I was not going to pay 50 bucks for a suit I hated, so I decided I just wouldn't be swimming the rest of the trip. Seventy dollars later, we had replaced everyone else's swimsuits. Sigh.

The next day we went to the San Diego zoo. I thought it would be blissfully uncrowded, but we found out that during October kids are free. So there were about a gazillion Mexican kids there in school uniforms. Bright spot: the sky ride and bus rides were FREE with our city passes! That was a happy moment.

Oliver on the sky ride

We had a good time - the kids loved the sky ride. We were getting tired of walking around, so the bus was a very nice solution. We were sitting on the bus, waiting for another tour to begin, but after talking to the driver we found out it would not be going to the place we wanted to go. So we all got off and were laughing at the meerkats, when we noticed that Alex was not among us. We realized with horror that he had stayed on the bus, and the bus was now gone. Paul tracked down two security guys, who asked for a description of the bus driver. "An Asian guy with a really gay voice?" says Paul. Blank stares. Then discussion, "Maybe Dennis?" Poor Dennis. They finally got the bus tracked down and it was confirmed that there was a lonely boy sitting in the front seat. Oh Alex. Our clueless child. Luckily we had drilled into his head what to do when you get lost, because we knew it was only a matter of time.

Alex and Maddie on the bus

After the zoo we headed to Coronado Beach. This was the best part of our trip - I think everyone would agree. It was perfect weather. I brought some floaties for the kids and they had so much fun riding the waves and playing in the sand. It was heavenly. I didn't mind not being able to swim. I just laid on the sand, watched the kids and relaxed. Aaaaaahhh. Lovely.



I love this video because Oliver didn't know I was watching him. He was in his own little world making sand handprints. And his swimming suit was falling off, so you can see his cute bum crack.



Paul enlisted the kids to turn him into a mermaid:


Dad, you have boobies! (Excited clapping)

Paul breaking free:



The kids surfing the waves on their $1 Kmart floaties:


Good times.