We left AZ around 3pm, I think. (See? Im already forgetting!) We got into Cali pretty late. John booked us a hotel room because we knew we would be too pooped to go the rest of the way. The hotel was a little older, but it had bunk beds! We were upgraded to the "Zoo Room". Side note: With Johns work, and since he travels, he gets to use any points he earns for hotels. All of our vacays we have been on, we really haven't had to pay for our rooms. When we get there, he tries to upgrade us. Sometimes it works, sometimes they don't have anything avail, but it makes hotel stays more exciting! He is technically "VIP" at Holiday Inn, so that is where we typically stay.
We slept in a little, then headed out! We wore the same clothes as the day before, which I didn't enjoy, but we really wanted to get our vacation started. First stop? Phill's BBQ! Apparently John had seen it on Man Vs. Food, so we headed on over. O.M.G. It was sooooo good! I was very impressed. We got a few of their signature items, including the beef tip ribs. They were huge and full of flavor. I literally could only finish one. So good!
When we got our fill, we realized that SeaPort Village
was on our way to our hotel.
We had been there on our Honeymoon,
so we really enjoy it.
There was a place you an rent funny bikes,
so we rented one and drove around for about an hour.
Afterward, we stopped and got cookies and lemonade!
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When we were done there, we realized we should go check into our next hotel, where we would be staying for the rest of the week. But first? We needed our Legoland tickets! We stopped off at Costco to get those. We got a few extra things: granola bars, fruit leathers, apples, etc, for snacks for the week. One thing we got? A hugs bottle of pickles! Sophie and John reeeeally wanted them. Turns out, they are maybe 1 or 2 each, then we had to haul them all the way home, but hey! Its a vacay!
We ate dinner there, Pizza, ice cream and churros, packed it all up, then went to the hotel.
This hotel we stayed at was newly renovated, but incredibly hard to get to. Our GPS didn't even know how to get there. We drove down a dead end and a guy was standing outside his house. When we turned around, he flagged us down and asked if we were trying to find the Holiday Inn. That cracked me up! It must happen a lot for him to know right off the bat where we were going. So, we followed his instruction and found the place (right behind a 99 cent store). We got a room on the bottom level on the end, basically right next to an exit, the ice machine and the gym. It worked out though, because having 2 kids its nice being right next to the exit so you don't have to haul them up and down elevators. or haul ice. or walk too far to the gym! Except one time I did get locked out and had to run all the way around the building in my pajamas to the front. Good times! That night we took a dip in the pool. Well, John Sophie and Jonny did. It was too cold for me! It was a heated pool, but not enough for this lady!
The next day we woke up and headed for Legoland. I keep getting asked how I liked Legoland...and Im just not sure. I didn't dislike it, but I didn't love it either. Jonny is still pretty young still to want to stand in a line for a half hour, so it was hard to keep him occupied and happy. The rides are pretty short, so I don't even know if it is worth waiting in the lines. Both of my kids are too small for the roller coasters. We did see a couple of shows, walked around the miniature displays of the world and Star Wars and went on a boat ride.
They have a small aquarium, which was included in our pass, so we went though there. Jonny loved that part! He ran the entire time we were in there. My favorite part was the fish that dove under a rock, and came out spitting dirt! Made me giggle.
We played in the kids area, the Duplo Villiage, and built towers. Sophie built one super high and a stinker little girl knocked it down. Made Sophie sad. We moved over to the other section and John helped her build another one.
That night we went over to Newport Beach and went to Ruby's Diner for dinner. We got $50 gift card at Costco. It is a family favorite! Its just fun eating dinner out on a Pier :) Plus, we love hamburgers!
The next day was beach day! The weather in Cali mainly hovered in the mid 60's. Which is great theme park weather, but not beach water. I couldn't handle being in my swimsuit, unless I was laying down, the kids had fun though!
At one point Jonny was just too cold after getting wet in the ocean, so I made him snuggle me and take selfies!
After...guess where we went? You guessed it! Ruby's diner! This time we sat on top and was able to see the Ocean. So much yummy food!
We were on Balboa Island. We took a Ferry over to it. They have some fun shopping, and a ferris wheel! Jonny and Soph wanted to go SO bad, so we caved. Jonny looooved it! He laughed the whole time. Me? I got super motion sick.
Ok. Only a couple of more days left, but my phone takes forever to dowload pic! Part 3 shall come shortly...
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