Sunny San Diego...

What a great vacation we had to Southern California. We always have so much fun in San Diego--it's one of our favorite cities. We had a lot on our list of "to-do's", and accomplished almost all of them.

On Saturday we went to SeaWorld for free--thanks to Daddy being in the Navy. We knew that Logan and Carsyn's friends, Ashley and Jenna were going to be at SeaWorld that same day with there family, and we coincidentally ran into them walking up to the park. That was fun for the girls to see people they know. We saw the Shamu show and had a lot of fun seeing the penguins, dolphins, sea lions, Clydesdale's, and touching starfish. This was Maren's first visit to SeaWorld. She loved it! Her favorite was Shamu. She and Carsyn even helped dad feed dead fish to the sea lions--Logan wouldn't touch them, but she sure claimed her sticker for "being brave."

The girls after a long day @ SeaWorld... Later on we went to Old Town to meet Megan and Jonathan for dinner. It was a lot of fun seeing them again. Carsyn and Logan hadn't seen them in years and Maren had never met them. Logan and Carsyn love Megan--they can't stop talking about her.

Ready for kids yet guys? On Sunday we were just going to take it easy and go to the beach, but it rained. Who ever said it never rains in Southern California? But, it it didn't rain too hard and we still had a good time.

Daddy and Maren on a gloomy day @ the beach... Afterward we ate some pizza at the Pizza Parlor on base. It was nice because while we were waiting, Daddy won us some stuffed animals out of the claw game. Also, we got to see the Chargers beat the Colts on TV. Too bad we didn't go to Qualcomm to see it in person : ). We also went over to Megan and Jonathan's house for a visit.

Monday we had to take Nana to the train station so she could go back home for work. Then we went to the World Famous San Diego Zoo. Neither Carsyn, nor Maren had ever been. It was a beautiful day and we had so much fun. We got to see the Giant Pandas and so much more.

Check out that cute Koala...

World Famous San Diego Zoo...

Sunset on North Island...

Tuesday Daddy was back at class so we went to the beach with Mommy. It was so nice out; we were able to wear bathing suits and everything. When Dad got home we went to Seaport Village for dinner. We almost always eat at Busters when we're in San Diego, but this was the first time the wait staff came over to us to compliment our behavior. In fact, they said that we were the most well-behaved kids they'd ever seen--must have been a really good day. After dinner we walked around the shops a little. There is this Christmas shop we always go in because we like to play with (harass) the cat who lives there.

Seaport Village...

On Wednesday we went out to the beach again while Daddy was at class. We had a blast. Even Maren was helping build sand castles and dig holes. We were all covered in sand!

having a blast at the beach... After Dad's class we went to Mission Valley to visit the first of the 21 California Missions...San Diego. It was a very pretty one. Afterward we went to Fashion Valley Mall to meet Megan at...where else? CPK. We've eaten at the particular one at least five times.

The San Diego Mission...
Thursday we just hung out on the island. We went over to the Hotel del Coronado. We got there just in time for the sunset. It was a lot cooler that night so we didn't walk around for too long. We had a nice dinner and went back to the lodge early.

Day dreaming...
The Hotel del...
We spent almost all day Friday in La Jolla. It's so beautiful there. We went to the cove and saw the seals and then went over to UTC to shop. Afterward we ate dinner at--you guessed it--CPK, the one in La Jolla this time.

La Jolla Cove...

Saturday we left for home. On the way we stopped in Oceanside to go to the San Luis el Rey mission. It is the largest of the 21.

San Luis el Rey...We also went to the mall in Mission Viejo. We saw Magic Johnson signing autographs at a sporting goods store. We're home now. It's good to be home and back to school. But, there is a ton of laundry...

SD Finally...

We left Lemoore at 1pm and didn't arrive at North Island until after 8pm. LA traffic was horrible. But, we're here in San Diego now, and very happy about that. We were so excited to see Daddy. Even though it had only been about four days, it felt longer. We're staying on Coronado and super-excited to go to the beach. Tomorrow we're going to SeaWorld and hope to meet up with some of our friends from NASL. We also hope to meet up with some of Mommy and Daddy's friends from OCS. We'll be adding pictures soon...

San Diego...

Daddy had to go down to San Diego for a week-long course. Instead of saying "goodbye" to him again, we all just decided to tag along. On the drive down, we stopped at Disneyland to eat dinner at the Rainforest Cafe in Downtown Disney. The girls LOVED it! I think it may be the start of a new tradition. We got into North Island pretty late. We were able to stay at the Navy Lodge there in Coronado for only one night because they were booked the rest of the week and weekend. On Monday Daddy got out of his class early, so we went to Sea World. They offer free admission to military families one time per year--this was our one time this year. The girls like it okay, but we're all more Disney people. After checking out of the Lodge, we checked into our room at the Point Loma B.O.Q. The room was decent, but air conditioning isn't standard in San Diego because of its ideal climate. However, we were there for a week-long heat wave and extremely unusual humidity. It was no fun living without the a.c. But, we survived and had a blast. During the days while Daddy was in class, Mommy and Nana took the girls to: the Hotel del Coronado for lunch and to play on the beach, shopping and sightseeing in La Jolla, shopping in Mission Valley, and shopping in the gas lamp district. In the evenings when Daddy had finished his training we enjoyed a Padre's game at Petco Park, Mexican dinner in Old Town, and shopping, ice cream, and pizza at Buster's at Seaport Village. One night Mommy and Daddy even got to go out to a nice dinner at Ruth's Chris downtown, while Nana watched the girls in the room. It was a great vacation!

Daddy and his girls at Downtown Disney...

Logan at the Shamu show...

Carsyn and Daddy at Seaport Village...

The girls at the Hotel del...

Lunch in Coronado...

Carsyn loves the beach...

The girls at Petco Park--too bad the Cubs weren't in town...

Our family in Point Loma...

The girls in Old Town...

Mommy and Logan--matching...

Hanging out on base...

We definitely didn't get the best duty station...

Sunny San Diego...

After only being in our new apartment one week, we had to drive Daddy down to San Diego so he could fly out to the boat for a work-up. Well, actually he drove. Although we hated saying "goodbye" to him (for three weeks,) we did enjoy staying on Coronado. We stayed at the Navy Lodge at North Island. It's pretty nice, and right on the beach. The girls loved getting to play in the sand. This was Carsyn's first time in the Pacific Ocean, and first trip to San Diego.

Logan and Carsyn on the beach in Coronado...

Carsyn enjoying the perfect weather...