Our family vacation had a little bit of a rough start-- Stephanie got sick and bailed on the whole thing...which meant that the family vacation became a family vacation-Stephanie vacation. And let's be honest, Stephanie is the heart and soul of the crew. She's the loud and funny one. I mean, they are all loud and funny, but as the oldest, she is the ringleader.
The following is a list of things that occurred on said family vacation:
1. IT TOOK A SOLID 10 HOURS TO DRIVE FROM ST. GEORGE TO LA. This is supposed to be a 6 hour drive. The logical person might conclude that something terrible must have happened for it to have taken so incredibly long to arrive at destination b. No. Nothing happened. except my father. who was in an unusually good mood and decided to stop a total of 6 times. 3 of those stops were in LAS VEGAS. you read that right. He had also wanted to stop in Mesquite... but I was able to convince him not to. It was a miserable drive. But my father was like singing and whistling to himself the whole time, like there could not be a better drive, ever. Adorable.
2. The first day we went to the wonderful land of Lompoc. My father's dreamland (that must have been why he was so jolly the day before). My dad went to high school and left on his mission from this little California coastal town, and it holds a very special place in his heart. We had never been there before this trip-- and we were all actually very excited to visit too. We wanted to see it. And it was lovely. We loved Lompoc. We were there for the annual Flower Festival. We went to the parade (I LOVE parades) and the festival (oohhh and I love festivals), and then we drove around and he showed us his old house and everything. It really was a dream. :)
 |
| what a lovely bunch of parade goers. |
3. After much discussion and persuasion (and there might have been a pickled herring involved), my mother and I were able to convince Andrew and father that driving to Neverland Ranch was in their best interest. A difficult feat, mind you. My brother and dad are two of the most persuasive people I have ever met, so they know all the secrets and getting them to do what you want is very hard. BUT, I think my puppy dog eyes are finally what did it (at least I'd like to think so). Andrew realized that driving the extra half hour to Neverland would be a dream come true for me. And it was...even though we could only see the gate. And it wasn't even the same gate that was there when Michael was in residence. But it was still great. Pictures are below, never fear.
 |
| The new gate. |
5. Sunday was spent at a church in the LA area and at the LA temple. We walked around the grounds and then hung out at the visitor's center. We also made an appearance at this one terrifying beach... you know, just to splash around and see all the freaks and weirdos on the boardwalk. I was very uncomfortable, actually. Not that great.
 |
| my darling baby jo... who is going to be 17 next month. WHA??????? |
 |
| I told elise to get rid of that butt crack part like 12 times, just so you know. |
6. Santa Monica beach on Monday. I love the ocean. so sososososoososososo much. The beach was beautiful and warm (except kind of not really. I think I was cold for like a solid three days on this trip. California is super tricky... because you think it's supposed to be warm... and then it's SOO not.) and I went a little too far into the ocean, I think. The lifeguard got a little angry with Andrew and I. I was just annoyed because the lifeguard assumed I wasn't a good swimmer. I am, okay? I just get in that there ocean and want to go out farther and farther and farther. It feels so amazing to get swallowed up in the waves. You feel so small and insignificant-- and so in awe of the wonder of the ocean. How the waves break and then disappear. How they create chaos and then an instant calm. it's amazing. But so anyway, there was an adorable pier on the beach. We rode the ferris wheel and had amazing hamburgers. Holy cow.
 |
| yummmm they love that ice cream. my parents are more adorable than yours. |
7. The trip included a lot of bonding. We really had so much fun as a family, but I really missed Stephanie. There was definitely a hole. We love her.
8. I read a book, mostly on the road. Divergent. Not that good. Many people had recommended it... but I didn't like it well enough to even read the second one, so there.
9. My father snores, fyi.
10. My mother wore tie-dye sunglasses.
11. Andrew and Mallory were continuously adorable.
12. Moriah kept trying to take naps on me in the back seat. The back seat is mine, okay Baby jo?
13. And Elise just kept getting mad every time I tried to read. So rude.
14. An unexpectedly small amount of arguing and/or stressful decision making. We were all very chill. Unusually so. I feel like there is generally this expectation in my family that we all always have a say in everything. And we all care where we eat, every time. We each, individually, care so much, that it takes a lengthy, full one discussion about where to stop the car for lunch. It's so ridiculous. But there was very little of that on this trip. I think it's partly because I chose to keep my mouth shut (let's face it...I'm probably a large part of that problem), and because we've all matured quite a bit since the last go-around. Anyway, it was lovely.
So thank you, mom and dad, for taking us on this heavenly, peaceful, and lovely vacation. Love you tons.
No comments:
Post a Comment