Last trip before school starts . . .

We try to do an annual trip to California.  For the most part, we have been going there for the last 12ish years.  Some years, we manage to go more than once.  

Because we often leave when my husband is done from working all day, we stop for one night on Las Vegas.  This year, there was a dental implant class my husband wanted to attend in Las Vegas, so we stayed an extra day there. While he was in class, we went to the pool.  I must say, the JW Marriott in Las Vegas is a great oasis in the desert of Las Vegas but with the temperatures in the 110-114 degree range, it was hard to fully enjoy it.  How do people live in temperatures like that?  

Below:  My kids and some of the cool parts of the pool 

 Through out the whole complex, there is a running "river" filled with Koi fish.  

After his class, we tried Sammy's Pizza.  Their pizza was great but it was the tapas that we loved.  We will go there again.  

We drove into California before we could check into our hotel, so it was time for a mandatory stop at In N Out Burger.  I even let myself get my fries "animal style".  

The place we stayed was nice enough to let us use the pool until our room was ready.  

During our trip to Costco for food (the place we stayed has a full kitchen), we found children's wet suits.  BEST thing we purchased.  (Toothsome #1 is in a wet suit we bought at Costco years ago).  Because California ocean water is not super warm, this made it so my kids could play in and enjoy the ocean much longer.   

In the evenings, we enjoyed serious games of tether ball.  

No trip to California is complete without a stop at The Crab Cooker.  

Everyone boogie boarded for hours at the beach.  

 When not in the ocean, the kids dug holes and created things in the sand.  

 After years of doing this, we have discovered salami and cream cheese sandwiches are ONLY sandwich to take to the beach.  

 Our daily beach set up.  

Again, we have been doing beach runs for years and we feel like we have it down to science now:  superbrella, one beach chair, wheeled cooler, four towels, buckets and shovels as beach toys and boogie boards.  

 One of the few pictures taken of us together.  Not very good of either of us but proof we were there together.

 Toothsome #4, who learned to swim this summer, even got really good at catching a wave and boogie boarding.  

 There can't be a trip to beach without burying people in the sand. 

 Dentist Husband invented some game with the kids that dealt with jumping on this pile of sand.  They played for hours and never tired of it.  

We all concluded it was our best trip to California yet.  

We came home and faced problems with school registration, problems with scouting, work issues, dance emails, PTA meetings, church things, a load of wet laundry that sat in the washing machine in a hot house for a week, etc.  But, for seven glorious days it was just our family, some good books (thank you Kindle for making it so I don't have to drag a ton of books on vacation) and the beach.