A Holiday on the Surface of the Sun!
We anticipate vacation FOREVER, every time. We look forward to it, plan it down to the day and fill it with adventures. This vacation though, if I’m being completely honest, has been really different and it all started the night before we left.
It has been a little wild, really unpredictable and we weren’t as prepared as we usually are. In the super early morning hours of our flights Brian got an email that our flights were cancelled because of an airline strike. At 12:30am Brian called them to try to get things sorted out. We were suppose to fly out from Calgary to Vegas at 3pm that day. We were stressed, exhausted and did not sleep. We had the phone on speaker on the loudest volume and were on hold the ENTIRE night! Finally, at 7:30am, Westjet answered the call. It took 2 hours with them to sort out our flight and a new plan.
We quickly pivoted and started driving to Edmonton to catch a flight to Vegas from Edmonton leaving at 5:30pm. We did catch the flight and even had an hour to “relax” and had high hopes that it would all work out from this point on despite being beyond exhausted!
We landed in Vegas around 6pm local time, grabbed our rental car and stopped at In-and-Out for a quick dinner and then continued on to San Diego. This drive was great but the last 30 minutes I was DYING of exhaustion. I don’t know how Brian did It because he hadn’t slept for 48 hours at this point.
We finally got to our little Air-bnb at 2am local time (3am calgary time). It took some time to get bed sharing sorted out and the kids settled but eventually we were in bed.
Poor Brian didn’t sleep good at all so add the sleepless hours onto his resume this holiday. It was hard. We got up Sunday morning and got out the door to have a big breakfast and try to reset.
We stopped at this cute breakfast restaurant, it was yummy!
The weather was beautiful, the streets were filled with beautiful flower trees and cool roads and our souls were filled with the love of the palm trees everywhere.
So many people we talked to about San Diego told us we just had to go to La Jolla (sounds like La Hoya). So we did! We stopped at the cove and came across SOOOO many Sea Lions. Like, TONS! But it was SOOOO crowded and too so busy!
I was proud of Bentley and Penny for getting in that water because it was FREEZING! It was cool that the sea lions were so close swimming around them.
Once we felt like we experienced it, we were pretty quickly “peopled out”. Brushing shoulders with strangers on a beach isn’t really our ideal. So we got back in the car and I searched up “The least busy beach in San Diego”… the first one.. Black’s Beach! The description sounded LOVELY! Secluded, calm, a hike to get to it. Right up our alley!
I mean.. the hike to it was so pretty. It was really steep though so we were happy to be able to hang out on the beach for a bit before walking back up… jokes on us though… THIS WAS A NUDE BEACH! HAhahahahahaha! This core memory moment was SO funny! Our kids were like “wait,.. why is that guy naked… and that guy too… WHAT?!” WE DIED laughing. LOL No wonder it was secluded and the “least busy”! There were ZERO signs for this. Not one. I re read the description online and it says nothing about it being a nude beach lol It was so funny.. Not sure the kids thought it was super funny though..
Turning around right away and hiking all the way back up was SO HARD! We were gassed and I was struggling but Carter and Penny basically ran back up so I needed to keep up! LOL Definitely something we will not forget! They didn’t trust my beach suggestions for the rest of the trip!
Brian and I are usually really good at mapping out our holiday but this time we just did to have any time. Between sports finals, end of school, P.A.T’s and exams, work and leaving the day after school finished we just had to wing it.. not our usual style and I think I'll do my very best not to do that again somehow.
We finished the night off doing family photos in Coronado on the beach. It was beautiful but we were so tired and cranky and the whole vibe kinda felt off. Next post will be special to family photos!
We all needed a treat after that. We found a homemade gelato shop and it was so good! We sat in the dark outside their shop and just took a minute to decompress. The night finished with gelato and unexpected fireworks!
Monday was Brian's birthday! We LOVEEE this guy. He turns all bad news into good adventures and we were excited to celebrate him. We decided to go back to Coronado in the morning and rent e-bikes! This was AWESOME! We biked around the whole island in an hour. The best part was that because they were pedal assist bikes, no one was tired or too hot and we all just got to enjoy the scenic views! We biked alongside the ocean, and in the beautiful communities with the prettiest houses! They were so unique, I loved every moment of house looking!
As cool as the bikes were though, all all know that the ocean has our hearts, so we grabbed some lunch and headed to Laguna Beach. This beach was so pretty! We played in the water for hours. The kids play this game where they don’t let the water touch them. They run up and down the coastline in and out of the water until they were soaked!
Something about the ocean just refills my entire being. Just being beside it, toes in the water and listening to the roar on every wave crashing the sand just grounds me. Laguna beach had little tide pools too. We caught and released some sea life and just did what we do best.. explore.
Brian, we love you so much. You really are everything to our family. Happy Birthday babe. I’m glad we got to spend it along the ocean together.
Wednesday was a busy day! We were told that you can’t go to San Diego without visiting the iconic zoo! Everyone was right. The San Diego zoo is amazing. The magnitude of it is beyond comprehension. They have free guided tour buses, a gondola to take you from one end to the other and a “kangaroo bus stop” taking you from each area if you want. Although we only used the guided tour and gondola I was impressed by how many options they had!
It was extra cool to see the animals that we don’t have at our zoo! The vegetation was unreal and they really made you feel like you were in a different part of the world with each new area of the zoo. Their attention to detail was out of this world.
The Rino was crazy. That guy was MASSIVE. Like, a literal dinosaur! SO so cool!! WE all loved it but also we really aren’t much of a “zoo” family. The kids don’t really love our zoo and we only ever go once every few years and only with friends lol so although the San Diego zoo was AMAZING, I don’t think we would go again.
We finished the day off back at Mission beach and saw the most beautiful sunset!
On Thursday morning we checked out of our little AirBnb and headed to LA! We were excited about this particular day and wanted to start it off with a treat for our little celiacs! A totally Gluten Free bakery was on our way to LA.
Spoiler alert.. it was GROSS!!! Like, we laughed at how bad it actually was. What a let down that was but it did boost my confidence in my GF baking abilities! So I guess that’s a win.
We got to LA, did a little touring around, stopped at a Nike outlet, California Pizza Kitchen (the yummiest restaurant!) and headed to the Dodgers Stadium to watch our second ever MLB game!
The game was a total blowout 4-12 loss for the dodgers but the experience was awesome. So glad we were able to make that happen!
We were only in the LA area for a day. We stayed in the cutest hotel called “The Beverly Laurel MotorHotel”. It was all retro with cute colourful finishings. The only thing… they accidentally messed up our booking and booked a room with only 1 king bed. Not idea for a family of 5. After arguing at midnight. We finally settled and went to bed. I didn’t sleep a wink. I think this holiday will be one for the books with the most unexpected sleepless nights to date!
Thursday we were up early and taking our girl to Malibu beach! With the Barbie movie recently coming out, this was a total “star struck beach” moment for her! She’s the cutest!
And while we were in LA, we did the lookout point to the iconic Hollywood sign! Again.. fighting with kids.
Man, this trip seems to have so much to biker about. It’s been hard. There have been some seriously awesome memories made but it’s like we really have to work to get them in a positive light. Not sure why but it’s been harder than usual.
We took the 5 hour drive back to Vegas. Watching the temperature go up and up and up and internally panicking that the amount of Vegas heat might actually kill me.
Little did we know, Vegas hit record high temperatures this week. Like.. it got up to 50.5 degrees celcius. Wow! Clearly we have never experienced that.. ever! It was SO hot on our faces and our eyeballs... it was a crazy sensation. Carter LOVVVEEEDDD it! Would happily just sit in the sauna that Vegas was where the rest of us were internally dying from the inside out. lol
We arrived in Vegas and got to meet up with Brian's cousin at his house for a 4th of July BBQ. We only stayed for a short time but the kids got to swim in their pool and they were so happy about it! It was the perfect way to cool off!!
Midway through the BBQ we met up with our club at a WNBA game! It was so awesome! I loved every minute in it! We had a whole section to our basketball club and it was awesome seeing everyone and being with teammates.
The Aces won and the whole vibe was so fun! We would for sure go again. We were so lucky to spend the week in Vegas staying with Brian's aunt and uncle. They were so kind and thoughtful and so awesome with the peanut/celiac allergies. We really are so lucky. The only thing was that they listed their house for sale the day we arrived so we did our very best to pack in and pack out each day and make sure we left no traces just incase! They had two showings while we were there and we're praying for a really quick sale for them!
Friday was the big tournament start! We were there first thing and were so excited to get the games going! Bentley and Carter played in the tournament. Penny's team was a year too young to do it but she was there, jersey on and ready to be the best cheerleader!
Carter played two games on Friday and Bentley played one. Both boys won all the games on Friday. A GREAT start to the tournament!
Bentley's game was a nail biter! They were down almost all of the game but somehow tired it up in the last few seconds and won in overtime! It was AWESOME!
On Carter's final game on friday.. things got SPICY! It was against a Compton team. We knew in the first half that it was going to get a little spicy because their coach was going off the rails but none of us knew why. The reffing was being called equal and we were winning by 25 so it wasn't even a close game.
In the second half of the game, the compton team was clearly heated. They started shoving boys, wanting to fight etc etc. At one point both coaches came onto the court to split kids up before a fight broke out. When our coach came onto the court, one of their players slapped him. Everything was shocking to be honest. We finished the game, won by 25 and tried to shake hands with their team. The coach came to the center alone and said his boys wouldn't be shaking our hands. So werid, but we won and moved on, so we thought. However, their entre team.. parents, coaches and kids were all waiting for us to come out of the building. This was the final game of the day so everyone was leaving. When our team tried to leave the convention centre we realized they were waiting for us shouting things like "Vegas is a small place, we will find you and you'll get what you deserve". Things like that. This felt so dramatic and unnessesary! They were threatening to hurt our coach and were so heated. Security and police were called. Our team needed to be escorted to the parking lot. Like, insanity.
It made me really worried to come back the next day knowing that they would be back too. It was crazy. We were wanting them to be kicked out of the tournament and know that we would be safe and that kind of behaviour would not be tollerated. The dust finally setteled at 11:30pm that night when we got word that the coach promised to behave and have his team and paretns under control. The rest of the weekend they had security surrounding their games. And, spoiler alert.. by Sunday, they broke out into a full fist fight with whatever team they were playing and mid game they got kicked out (actually escorted out) of the tournament. Yikes, what a disaster!
But, we survived the weekend! Bentley's team won one of their games on Saturday and lost one. Carter's team too. Bentley got player of the game on saturday and it was an awesome day of ball.
Saturday evening was spent with our friends at their hotel pool. It was awesome!
Sunday was the final day of the tournament. It was bitter sweet. Everyone played great. Carter lost his final game and his team got 4th place of 12 teams in his division. We are SOOOO proud of this kid! He has put in so much effort this season and its been fun watching his elevate his game. He's had some highs and a few lows this season but all in all has been o nthe court doing what he loves to do and that makes me so happy! We're sad his entire team wasn't able to be in vegas but these boys battled hard and it was awesome to watch them play!
We're really proud of you Carter. Way to go, Buddy!
Bentley lost in the gold game and came home with Silver! Way to go, Bentley!! Bentley's coach told us that Bentley takes all advice and puts it on the court. They were so impressed by Bentley this season and his development and so are we!
We are so proud of Bentley. He too has elevated his basketball skills by his constant commitment to the sport. It has been so awesome watching him this season and we're excited for the next! Way to go, Bentley! Congrats on silver! We're so proud of you!!
We planned on staying with friends for one night. It was pretty sponsanious and we loved it! We were invited to stay at the Excalibur Hotel right on the Vegas Stip for one night with our best friends. Of course we made that happen and it was one of the best nights!
We went for dinner, walked the strip and laughed so hard our bellies hurt. It was so good.
We divided and conqured the little kids and let the 7 big kids sleepover in two rooms. Everyone had a great time and honestly, I think Brian and I had the best sleep of the holiday yet! lol
Monday morning our friends headed back to Calgary and we headed back to Aunt Joanne's house however, on our way there we stopped at the iconic Las Vegas Sign and although it was 48 degrees and unbearable, it was totally worth it!!
We then met up with Brian's cousin, Andrea, and her kids and did an indoor trampoline park! This was way better than the one we have. The kids got to know their second cousins and had a blast in the air conditioning! Win, Win, Win!
We went back to the house and the kids swam in the pool and played cards and had THE BEST time!
Tuesday was our last actual day in Vegas. Brian and I were exhausted by this point. The heat had gotten to me and I truly could have fallen asleep for a whole day. We got a much slower start to the day, the kids went into the pool first thing while Brian and I repacked our suitcases and started getting everything put back toegther.
We all wished we could have a pool in our backyard, it was such a highlight of the week! We took a drive with Uncle Fraser to the Red Rock Canyon. It was BEAUTIFUL but there was no way we could handle a 50 degree hike so we just did the car ride loop. It was beautiful. We got out for 3 minutes to take a pic and Bentely and I felt like we were about to pass out! (Fragile little Canadians lol)
We had dinner at cousin Andrea's house and went to bed earlier than we had all week (10:30pm).
Today was our travel home day. Im excited to be home. To sleep in our own bed and just take a moment to breath. We're currently on the last leg of the trip! We flew out from vegas at 10:45am. Flew into Calgary to grab a connecting flight to Edmonton (thank you WestJet stike for making this extra long and complicated). We caught our connection at 4pm. It was the smallest little plane. Bentley and I sat together. It was great!
All things considered, its been smooth sailiing getting home. We really did have the BEST trip. This trip was much different than our usual family vacations. I did more bed making, washing dishes and packing and unpacking than every before. We were SO busy every day. We wet to bed late and woke up early every day and really is making me commit to planning a super relaxing vacation next year! All things aside though... we made some amazing memories as a family. Which really, is all Brian and I ever want on a family trip. We were spoiled with adventures and weather (although WAY too hot for real life in vegas!!) and we will remember this trip forever. I am happy we're home safe with pockets full of memories.
There is no one else in the world that I'd rather travel with than Brian and the kids. We really are the lucky ones. It was the perfect start to our summer adventures!
It has been a little wild, really unpredictable and we weren’t as prepared as we usually are. In the super early morning hours of our flights Brian got an email that our flights were cancelled because of an airline strike. At 12:30am Brian called them to try to get things sorted out. We were suppose to fly out from Calgary to Vegas at 3pm that day. We were stressed, exhausted and did not sleep. We had the phone on speaker on the loudest volume and were on hold the ENTIRE night! Finally, at 7:30am, Westjet answered the call. It took 2 hours with them to sort out our flight and a new plan.
We quickly pivoted and started driving to Edmonton to catch a flight to Vegas from Edmonton leaving at 5:30pm. We did catch the flight and even had an hour to “relax” and had high hopes that it would all work out from this point on despite being beyond exhausted!
We finally got to our little Air-bnb at 2am local time (3am calgary time). It took some time to get bed sharing sorted out and the kids settled but eventually we were in bed.
Poor Brian didn’t sleep good at all so add the sleepless hours onto his resume this holiday. It was hard. We got up Sunday morning and got out the door to have a big breakfast and try to reset.
We stopped at this cute breakfast restaurant, it was yummy!
Once we felt like we experienced it, we were pretty quickly “peopled out”. Brushing shoulders with strangers on a beach isn’t really our ideal. So we got back in the car and I searched up “The least busy beach in San Diego”… the first one.. Black’s Beach! The description sounded LOVELY! Secluded, calm, a hike to get to it. Right up our alley!
Brian and I are usually really good at mapping out our holiday but this time we just did to have any time. Between sports finals, end of school, P.A.T’s and exams, work and leaving the day after school finished we just had to wing it.. not our usual style and I think I'll do my very best not to do that again somehow.
We finished the night off doing family photos in Coronado on the beach. It was beautiful but we were so tired and cranky and the whole vibe kinda felt off. Next post will be special to family photos!
We finished the day off back at Mission beach and saw the most beautiful sunset!
We got to LA, did a little touring around, stopped at a Nike outlet, California Pizza Kitchen (the yummiest restaurant!) and headed to the Dodgers Stadium to watch our second ever MLB game!
We were only in the LA area for a day. We stayed in the cutest hotel called “The Beverly Laurel MotorHotel”. It was all retro with cute colourful finishings. The only thing… they accidentally messed up our booking and booked a room with only 1 king bed. Not idea for a family of 5. After arguing at midnight. We finally settled and went to bed. I didn’t sleep a wink. I think this holiday will be one for the books with the most unexpected sleepless nights to date!
We took the 5 hour drive back to Vegas. Watching the temperature go up and up and up and internally panicking that the amount of Vegas heat might actually kill me.
Little did we know, Vegas hit record high temperatures this week. Like.. it got up to 50.5 degrees celcius. Wow! Clearly we have never experienced that.. ever! It was SO hot on our faces and our eyeballs... it was a crazy sensation. Carter LOVVVEEEDDD it! Would happily just sit in the sauna that Vegas was where the rest of us were internally dying from the inside out. lol
We arrived in Vegas and got to meet up with Brian's cousin at his house for a 4th of July BBQ. We only stayed for a short time but the kids got to swim in their pool and they were so happy about it! It was the perfect way to cool off!!
It made me really worried to come back the next day knowing that they would be back too. It was crazy. We were wanting them to be kicked out of the tournament and know that we would be safe and that kind of behaviour would not be tollerated. The dust finally setteled at 11:30pm that night when we got word that the coach promised to behave and have his team and paretns under control. The rest of the weekend they had security surrounding their games. And, spoiler alert.. by Sunday, they broke out into a full fist fight with whatever team they were playing and mid game they got kicked out (actually escorted out) of the tournament. Yikes, what a disaster!
But, we survived the weekend! Bentley's team won one of their games on Saturday and lost one. Carter's team too. Bentley got player of the game on saturday and it was an awesome day of ball.
We went for dinner, walked the strip and laughed so hard our bellies hurt. It was so good.
Today was our travel home day. Im excited to be home. To sleep in our own bed and just take a moment to breath. We're currently on the last leg of the trip! We flew out from vegas at 10:45am. Flew into Calgary to grab a connecting flight to Edmonton (thank you WestJet stike for making this extra long and complicated). We caught our connection at 4pm. It was the smallest little plane. Bentley and I sat together. It was great!
There is no one else in the world that I'd rather travel with than Brian and the kids. We really are the lucky ones. It was the perfect start to our summer adventures!