She was well behaved and giggled, giggled, giggled most of the time she was awake. I don't know what she thought was so funny!
The mountains are always rough heading into California and Dave's misters worked great on the way down. The thermostat hardly went over the half way point. That was a big relief for me!! (The mister system is something Dave rigged up to keep the radiator cool. It consists of a cat litter jug filled with water that sits in the back of the van, there is a a motor and tubing then that runs up under the carpet, through the dash and out to the front of the van. There, 4 spouts mist water onto the radiator to keep it cooled down. It plugs into the lighter and has a little switch that Dave wants to make permanent in the van.) Without this device we would have overheated for sure along with the many other cars and vans pulled over!!
There farther we got into CA the crazier the driving became. It's not an overly tricky route but man, the drivers are absolutely pyschotic and we had several near misses! The reason it's so unsafe to drive here in Vegas is because all the CA nutters that are up here reaking havoc on our roadways!!! We did almost miss a 215 split that we weren't expecting but we got where we needed to be and thankfully Noelle slept so I could navigate for Dave. By the time we got to the hotel I was in serious need of a Xanax!!! Good grief!
We stayed at the Best Western in Mission Bay. Not the classiest of places but it worked. Noelle didn't seem to mind her digs at all!
At least for a while, then she wanted out!
We thought we were going to need some time to rest once at the hotel, but decided to head down to the beach and check it out. We ended up in Belmont Park. They have an old roller coaster from the 1920s and several other rides and attractions. Their funnel cake is tasty! :)
We walked down the boardwalk a ways and people watched. The air was salty and holy humidity Batman! My hair was out of control! I started to look like a cross between a haggard mermaid and seaweed!
We debated and finally decided on dragging Noelle's stroller down to the water. This was not an easy feat. We were loaded down and that stroller was not really made for off roading through the sand! Dave is already talking modification!
At least it was overcast so we didn't have to break out the sunscreen!
"You want me to put my feet where?" She wasn't convinced this was a good idea.
Starting out in the sand...
Daddy helping her take her first dip in the COLD Pacific!
It got cold fast so we had to bundle up! The desert dweller in us couldn't take the low 70s, high 60s!
Thinking about the mischief she can cause in San Diego...
We ate dinner on the beach and they had a surfing simulator right there for us to watch as we dined!
Ready to get daddy and his camera!
Then she settled in for some serious bubble blowing.
We headed back to the hotel and let crazy loose in her play pen! She was going bats not being able to crawl around and explore. I had a feeling it was going to be 2 more long days of keeping her contained!
It had been a good day and then I was cold, Dave was hot, the bed was lumpy, Noelle had nightmares and woke up screaming...Calgon take me away!
