getaway

I have been a bit stir crazy lately, so we decided to make a trip to San Deigo- our last trip before Ben arrives, and hence our last family trip in the camry. We booked a hotel on priceline for a steal, and got zoo tickets on craigs list for another steal, and made a great little trip on a budget. Kylie didnt have school on Friday, and Daniel was able to take off half the day, so we took off friday afternoon, stopped in Jucumba to visit the desert tower and caves, then drove to the beach, grabbed some dinner and headed to the hotel. We woke up this morning, had breakfast, and went to the zoo. We stopped in Viejas on our way back to get Daniels birthday present, then headed home.
I have some great memories of this trip, and hopefully the kids do too. The kids LOVED the caves in Jacumba- Daniel had been there as a kid, but we have never stopped before cuz I hate stopping places- i want to get to the destination ASAP- but Daniel talked me into it, and the kids loved our "adventure." There are tons of enormous rocks, and several are painted into animals and monsters. Several other rocks form caves that you can explore. The kids didnt want to leave. Tyler kept exclaiming "this is AMAZING!"
We got to the beach a little before sunset, and even though it was beautiful, it was COLD! It was still fun though. Daniel got the kite up in the air, which James loved and kept pointing at. Ty and Kylie had a blast running up to the water, then running away as fast as they could as the waves crashed onto the shore. Tyler didnt get away fast enough on one attempt though, and ended up drenched in the freezing water. Daniel had been running away as well, and when he noticed Toast wasnt by him, turned around and "saved him." after that, we packed up cuz Ty was just shivering like crazy. He was pretty happy though cuz he got a new shirt out of the ordeal-(we stopped at one of the beach shops that sells souviners, and bought him a San Diego frog shirt for 4 bucks- bargain!)
The kids were pretty excited to go to the zoo. Kylie was excited to see the zebras, and Ty kept saying, " these are just AMAZING animals!" James loved the monkeys and tried talking to them for a while. Daniel ran into a guy who had served in the Japan mission while Daniel was AP. The guy had recognized Daniel while we were in line, and they started talking and had a fun stroll down memory lane.
Trips like these just make me so grateful for my life. Daniel is such an incredible father, and such a great man. I am so blessed to have him in my life. And I just really love my kids. They make me smile and appreciate the little things.