Greetings from California! It has been a great 2 weeks here in California. We drove into California on Sunday, May 1st (HAPPY BIRTHDAY SARAH) from Yuma, Arizona. It was quite a mountainous drive on Highway 8 into San Diego - but it was beautiful. We arrived at the Campland Family RV Resort that afternoon and had a parking spot right along side the water in the Mission Bay area.
While in the area we saw Dawson's friend, Jeff Bartley and his wife, Lisa. They hosted us to a fabulous dinner in there home and we had a great time with lots of laughter. The next day we connected with my high school friend, Laura O'Conner and had dinner down by the beach. It was a fun time and so good to see Laura. On Wednesday the kids and I toured the USS Midway (Navy aircraft carrier) and then my Uncle Don came to see the RV after he got off work. It was fun to have him on the bus with us. We ventured out to dinner with Don and ended by the water again with an amazing sunset! The week in Campland was good - the kids got to explore the beach, play ping pong tournaments, swim and Q played dodge ball too. We stayed focused on school this week too as we know next week will be a light school week.
We stayed in the camp ground until Thursday, May 5th then drove up to Dawson's aunt Bonnie and Uncle Brady's house in Fallbrook. We parked the RV in their drive way on top of the hills. It is so pretty up here.....we are still here and take out tomorrow for Newport Beach. We got here around 2 so once we were all settled in - we did school and then Franki and I went to the grocery store down in town and brought home pizza for dinner. It was a good shopping with Franki and getting some alone time with her....we had fun together and had some good conversations.
Here is a run down of the rest of our adventures this past week...
Friday (5/6) we woke in the driveway of Bonnie and Brady's and Dawson worked today and spent some time with the neighbor, Eric Mattson, as he was making a shelf for our RV for our outdoor TV. It was really nice of him to do that for us and it works perfect. The kids caught lizards and did school and wanted to pass the day so they can see their cousins tomorrow. I took Q into town to get a haircut then we headed back up to the house.
Dawson's brother, Evan and his wife, Sarah and their two sweet girls Kennedy and Charlie flew into Orange County Friday nigth to spend a week in California with us. They stayed up in Orange County Friday night as they got in pretty late and on Saturday am they drove to Fallbrook to see us. It was a happy day for all the cousins to get to see one another, play and swim. We hung out at Bonnie's and Brady all day enjoying the nice weather and the pool. The kids love hanging out with each other.
Bonnie took all the kids into town on Saturday to let them buy Sarah and I a few gifts for Mother's Day. So on Sunday am we woke to a great big breakfast and gifts from the kids. So sweet - they were so excited for us to open them and make us breakfast. They were so sweet. I got some fun stuff - my kids are sweet. I love being their mom! And thanks Bonnie for making our mother's day extra special!
We took out to the beach around noon and enjoyed the afternoon on the Pacific Ocean at the beach in Oceanside. The kids did the boogie board (the water was cold). made sand castles, buried each other in the sand. There were some awesome kites on the beach as well and overall we all had a great time. It was a great day and relaxing mothers day at the beach with family. Dawson is going to take some time off work this week to enjoy this week with his brothers family. The kids and I are excited for that as well - Yay daddy will be with us on our California adventures this week.
On Monday 5/9), we went to the San Diego Zoo. It was a good day at the zoo - we all had our favorites but I loved the panda and koala bears. They were so fun to watch and see that closely. The zoo is really well done and has lots of educational things that the kids got to interact with along the journey. They really enjoyed the zoo.
On Tuesday - MAY 10th- officially 7 months ago that we left Kansas City to set out on this crazy adventure/ road trip. I can't believe it has been 7 months! I am so proud of my family and what we have seen and done this past 7 months. It has been amazing with some ups and downs along the way but such an amazing experience.
We stayed around Bonnie's house today as we knew the next 2 days were going to be nuts. Sarah and I worked out by the pool doing her band circuit routine. It was leg day and I am going to be sore for sure! But it was a fun workout. We walked Summer around the neighborhood too. It is so pretty up here in Fallbrook.
I got the school books out and we did a few school lesson's as we are getting close to finishing our curriculum. They did it reluctantly, but the cousins had some worksheets they brought from school so they all did their work together. We then sat out by the pool and the kids swam and enjoyed our day outside and catching lizards. The views up here at Bonnie and Brady's are amazing! It is relaxing and enjoyable. Dawson had a webinar scheduled today so that is why we stayed around the house.
That evening all the girls took out to Oceanside to meet one of Sarah's friends from grade school /Minnesota. We met at "Hello Betty's" very fun place. We had a good dinner, enjoyed fun stories with friends, and had some evening beach time down by the water. It was a pleasure to meet Karen, Mark and their girls.
The boys went to see a movie .... they saw "Captain America Silver War" - they enjoyed their movie. We got back to Bonnie's around 8:30 - and we all need to get some sleep tonight - big day tomorrow.
Wednesday we did DisneyLand - The kids were so excited and enjoyed deciding who was going to ride with who on each ride. My cousin, Lindsay and her sweet girl Kennedy (yes, we had 2 Kennedy's) met us there. It was little Kennedy's first visit to Disney even though they live here in Irving. We saw lots of characters and princesses. For having such a big group we did great fitting in all the activities and sticking together or reuniting when we went different directions. It was a long day but it was a spectacular one as Disney does it well .....ending the night with the light parade and fireworks and Tinkerbell flying by the castle. So fun and the kids really had a great time. We had a quite drive back as they all fell asleep on the way back to Fallbrook. I was so excited to get in bed finally around 1 pm - PST. But felt blessed getting to the family to Disney World in January and now Disney Land in May - all while on the same trip. Very surreal that we are blessed to travel the country as a family this year!
Thursday (5/12) we were crazy once again as we headed out to Legoland. It was closer to the house and is only open until 5 so made for a more manageable day. It was a fun day at Legoland - it is amazing the things they make with legos. It was not that crowded and so it was fun to let the kids roam and ride the roller coasters over and over and over again!
On our way back to Fallbrook we stopped in Vista and hung out with some relatives on Dawson's dad side of the family. We met Aunt Mary and Cousin Kathy and Jamie and Kathy's daughter Lynn. The brownies, ice cream and company was great. Loved all the stories we heard and telling them about our trip. It was great to meet them.
We got back to the house - ate some dinner and Franki did her California state presentation to everyone. It was great - she did a really good job. We then played some card games and wrapped up our night. The girls slept with us one last night on the RV....they are sad the week went so fast.
Today we woke up and enjoyed breakfast together and then said our good-byes. We will end our trip in Minneapolis this summer and get to be with our cousins before we head home. So at least they know they will see each other again soon. WE had a great time this week with Sarah, Evan and the girls. A big shout out to Brady and Bonnie for hosting us at their house and Brady - thanks for taking care of Summer - she enjoyed hanging out with you. Thank YOU so much - both of you.
We got into school again today and Mena swam while Q caught more lizards. Franki was sick today - worn out but had a small touch of the flu bug - poor girl. So a mellow down day after a crazy week. We got a fabulous sunset tonight over the pool and yard. Bonnie came back up to Fallbrook today after her work week in town and staying in San Clemente.
Hoping Franki feels better tomorrow and no one else comes down with her bug. Brady was under the weather too and Mena says her throat hurts. We will head out tomorrow around noon.
As I wrap up this blog entry - I reflect on the fact that we have been away from home for 7 months. We have seen both coast now and literally have been across the country. There is still much to do and see but Dawson and I are so grateful for all the people we have seen and hung out with on this journey. We feel like we have been in and out of the RV close to 50 -50 with staying with family and friends along the way. It has been amazing and challenging and exciting and bittersweet as we miss things about home and events going on with family and friends. Especially as May brings milestones of graduations. We live in an awesome beautiful country - there is so many amazing things to do and see and you can't fit it all in ..... we are so blessed and pray for our continued safety and well being as we roll on. We will be journeying up to northern part of California then into Tahoe. After that we are on to Nevada and Utah and then to Idaho and on to Montana. After that we will cross over to North Dakota and into Minnesota - to hang out with Dawson's family. Lots of miles yet to go!
Remember you "onlyliv1",
Tiffany
While in the area we saw Dawson's friend, Jeff Bartley and his wife, Lisa. They hosted us to a fabulous dinner in there home and we had a great time with lots of laughter. The next day we connected with my high school friend, Laura O'Conner and had dinner down by the beach. It was a fun time and so good to see Laura. On Wednesday the kids and I toured the USS Midway (Navy aircraft carrier) and then my Uncle Don came to see the RV after he got off work. It was fun to have him on the bus with us. We ventured out to dinner with Don and ended by the water again with an amazing sunset! The week in Campland was good - the kids got to explore the beach, play ping pong tournaments, swim and Q played dodge ball too. We stayed focused on school this week too as we know next week will be a light school week.
We stayed in the camp ground until Thursday, May 5th then drove up to Dawson's aunt Bonnie and Uncle Brady's house in Fallbrook. We parked the RV in their drive way on top of the hills. It is so pretty up here.....we are still here and take out tomorrow for Newport Beach. We got here around 2 so once we were all settled in - we did school and then Franki and I went to the grocery store down in town and brought home pizza for dinner. It was a good shopping with Franki and getting some alone time with her....we had fun together and had some good conversations.
Here is a run down of the rest of our adventures this past week...
Friday (5/6) we woke in the driveway of Bonnie and Brady's and Dawson worked today and spent some time with the neighbor, Eric Mattson, as he was making a shelf for our RV for our outdoor TV. It was really nice of him to do that for us and it works perfect. The kids caught lizards and did school and wanted to pass the day so they can see their cousins tomorrow. I took Q into town to get a haircut then we headed back up to the house.
Dawson's brother, Evan and his wife, Sarah and their two sweet girls Kennedy and Charlie flew into Orange County Friday nigth to spend a week in California with us. They stayed up in Orange County Friday night as they got in pretty late and on Saturday am they drove to Fallbrook to see us. It was a happy day for all the cousins to get to see one another, play and swim. We hung out at Bonnie's and Brady all day enjoying the nice weather and the pool. The kids love hanging out with each other.
Bonnie took all the kids into town on Saturday to let them buy Sarah and I a few gifts for Mother's Day. So on Sunday am we woke to a great big breakfast and gifts from the kids. So sweet - they were so excited for us to open them and make us breakfast. They were so sweet. I got some fun stuff - my kids are sweet. I love being their mom! And thanks Bonnie for making our mother's day extra special!
We took out to the beach around noon and enjoyed the afternoon on the Pacific Ocean at the beach in Oceanside. The kids did the boogie board (the water was cold). made sand castles, buried each other in the sand. There were some awesome kites on the beach as well and overall we all had a great time. It was a great day and relaxing mothers day at the beach with family. Dawson is going to take some time off work this week to enjoy this week with his brothers family. The kids and I are excited for that as well - Yay daddy will be with us on our California adventures this week.
On Monday 5/9), we went to the San Diego Zoo. It was a good day at the zoo - we all had our favorites but I loved the panda and koala bears. They were so fun to watch and see that closely. The zoo is really well done and has lots of educational things that the kids got to interact with along the journey. They really enjoyed the zoo.
On Tuesday - MAY 10th- officially 7 months ago that we left Kansas City to set out on this crazy adventure/ road trip. I can't believe it has been 7 months! I am so proud of my family and what we have seen and done this past 7 months. It has been amazing with some ups and downs along the way but such an amazing experience.
We stayed around Bonnie's house today as we knew the next 2 days were going to be nuts. Sarah and I worked out by the pool doing her band circuit routine. It was leg day and I am going to be sore for sure! But it was a fun workout. We walked Summer around the neighborhood too. It is so pretty up here in Fallbrook.
I got the school books out and we did a few school lesson's as we are getting close to finishing our curriculum. They did it reluctantly, but the cousins had some worksheets they brought from school so they all did their work together. We then sat out by the pool and the kids swam and enjoyed our day outside and catching lizards. The views up here at Bonnie and Brady's are amazing! It is relaxing and enjoyable. Dawson had a webinar scheduled today so that is why we stayed around the house.
That evening all the girls took out to Oceanside to meet one of Sarah's friends from grade school /Minnesota. We met at "Hello Betty's" very fun place. We had a good dinner, enjoyed fun stories with friends, and had some evening beach time down by the water. It was a pleasure to meet Karen, Mark and their girls.
The boys went to see a movie .... they saw "Captain America Silver War" - they enjoyed their movie. We got back to Bonnie's around 8:30 - and we all need to get some sleep tonight - big day tomorrow.
Wednesday we did DisneyLand - The kids were so excited and enjoyed deciding who was going to ride with who on each ride. My cousin, Lindsay and her sweet girl Kennedy (yes, we had 2 Kennedy's) met us there. It was little Kennedy's first visit to Disney even though they live here in Irving. We saw lots of characters and princesses. For having such a big group we did great fitting in all the activities and sticking together or reuniting when we went different directions. It was a long day but it was a spectacular one as Disney does it well .....ending the night with the light parade and fireworks and Tinkerbell flying by the castle. So fun and the kids really had a great time. We had a quite drive back as they all fell asleep on the way back to Fallbrook. I was so excited to get in bed finally around 1 pm - PST. But felt blessed getting to the family to Disney World in January and now Disney Land in May - all while on the same trip. Very surreal that we are blessed to travel the country as a family this year!
Thursday (5/12) we were crazy once again as we headed out to Legoland. It was closer to the house and is only open until 5 so made for a more manageable day. It was a fun day at Legoland - it is amazing the things they make with legos. It was not that crowded and so it was fun to let the kids roam and ride the roller coasters over and over and over again!
On our way back to Fallbrook we stopped in Vista and hung out with some relatives on Dawson's dad side of the family. We met Aunt Mary and Cousin Kathy and Jamie and Kathy's daughter Lynn. The brownies, ice cream and company was great. Loved all the stories we heard and telling them about our trip. It was great to meet them.
We got back to the house - ate some dinner and Franki did her California state presentation to everyone. It was great - she did a really good job. We then played some card games and wrapped up our night. The girls slept with us one last night on the RV....they are sad the week went so fast.
Today we woke up and enjoyed breakfast together and then said our good-byes. We will end our trip in Minneapolis this summer and get to be with our cousins before we head home. So at least they know they will see each other again soon. WE had a great time this week with Sarah, Evan and the girls. A big shout out to Brady and Bonnie for hosting us at their house and Brady - thanks for taking care of Summer - she enjoyed hanging out with you. Thank YOU so much - both of you.
We got into school again today and Mena swam while Q caught more lizards. Franki was sick today - worn out but had a small touch of the flu bug - poor girl. So a mellow down day after a crazy week. We got a fabulous sunset tonight over the pool and yard. Bonnie came back up to Fallbrook today after her work week in town and staying in San Clemente.
Hoping Franki feels better tomorrow and no one else comes down with her bug. Brady was under the weather too and Mena says her throat hurts. We will head out tomorrow around noon.
As I wrap up this blog entry - I reflect on the fact that we have been away from home for 7 months. We have seen both coast now and literally have been across the country. There is still much to do and see but Dawson and I are so grateful for all the people we have seen and hung out with on this journey. We feel like we have been in and out of the RV close to 50 -50 with staying with family and friends along the way. It has been amazing and challenging and exciting and bittersweet as we miss things about home and events going on with family and friends. Especially as May brings milestones of graduations. We live in an awesome beautiful country - there is so many amazing things to do and see and you can't fit it all in ..... we are so blessed and pray for our continued safety and well being as we roll on. We will be journeying up to northern part of California then into Tahoe. After that we are on to Nevada and Utah and then to Idaho and on to Montana. After that we will cross over to North Dakota and into Minnesota - to hang out with Dawson's family. Lots of miles yet to go!
Remember you "onlyliv1",
Tiffany