A Real Family Vacation

Giving that our family hadn't had a true family vacation in some time, our first week in California was something special. We did our most favorite things; the beach, and of course Sea World. Then after a too short time together, we headed off to Las Vegas for a couple of nights, where Vince would leave us to return to Texas. But the short time we had together just enjoying the sun and the fun was great.

One of the first things we did was hit the beach. My friend, Alayne, lent us beach chairs, an umbrella, and a bag of sand toys for the kids. What would we do without her? La Jolla here we come. Once there I realized that it was Francesca's first beach experience. Being our shy one, I think she warmed up to the sand and the surf quite quickly. Sophia and Harrison, are fearless when it comes to the water, which just makes me that much more nervous, and even Annamaria got used to the water quickly. I think she would have spent the whole time in the waves if allowed. But her lips turned blue, and she had to come up on the sand to warm up for a while. Francesca had fun in the water, and got a little too brave, until she got toppled by a wave. Those slippery little kids get away from you fast. After calming her down from her scare, she was back in the water liked nothing happened. Until the next time. But they all had fun jumping waves, playing in the sand, and burying their big sister. On the way home we stopped at Cold Stone for some ice cream.

What could make a day better?

Not getting sunburned, that's what. I covered those kids in sunscreen. And I reapplied throughout the day. And I made them put on shirts when not in the water. But still, everyone got way too much sun. I was embarrassed they got so burnt. Someone could have called Child Protective Services on me. But who got burnt the worse? Vince. Like glow in the dark burnt. Poor guy. It had been so long since we'd all been to the beach together as a family (of course we hardly ever went when we lived in San Diego), that he was having so much fun playing with the kids, and teaching Sophia how to body surf, that he didn't pay any attention to how much sun he was getting until it was too late.