California Trip

We went to California for Spring Break, mostly to see my sister who had her first child in December, but it was great to see everyone. My dad picked us up at the airport and then we went back to his place for a couple of nights. Here is Anna at a park in Torrance. My dad lives about a mile from Redondo Beach, so we went there. Prior to going out it had been so cold in DC and LA had been having very warm temps, so my kids were excited to head for warm weather, but when we got there it was a little chilly, especially on the beach. When we told Mark we were going to the beach but not to put on swim trunks he got very upset and said,'Then why are we going to the beach?" However, he had a great time playing in the sand and chasing seagulls, so he forgot to be upset once we arrived there.

The weather did get a little warmer as we visited with Alex's parents. They have a spa, so my mother-in-law got it bubbling and the kids played for hours. These are the only decent pictures I can show!

We spent a lot of time at my mom's as well which the kids love because there are so many animals and chaos. We spent Easter morning there.

Anna hanging out with our old dog, who my mom was gracious enough to take when we moved to places that wouldn't allow animals. Anna is a true animal lover and will pet any animal that allows her to.

Mark got bunny teeth for Easter and enjoyed wearing them.

Then, we had an Easter egg hunt with the family.

My kids with their cousing, Lucas and my brother, Tim.

Anna and Lucas hanging out with my brothers on Easter. It is so nice to have family around!

My sister-in-law, Samantha with my sister's baby, Hayden. I realized I never got a picture of Vicki and her baby together. It is so wonderful to have a new addition and to see what a great mom my sister is!

We got to visit with our good friends, the Kriders, and boy was it great to see them. Liz was gracious enough to have invited the craziness into her home and tolerated us all beautifully. It was great to see them!

Grandpa was terrific and treated us to a day at Disneyland. The kids lasted a long time and really had a wonderful time!

Mark and Grandpa on the dumbo ride.

Mark and Anna on It's a Small World.

Christopher on the same ride.

Grandpa and kids on the train. We were giving ourselves a little break and the kids thought it was fun at the same time.

Too worn out to go on any more!

My mom with 3 of her 4 grandsons. Samantha kindly offered to watch the kids while I packed to go home.

The trip was busy and I thought I would be tired since Alex didn't come with me, but it was rejuvenating to see everyone and we all came back with renewed energy!