Im BAAAAAACK!! ;)

We REALLY did have a great time. We drove 1400 miles from central Texas to Southern California, to a beautiful slice of heaven called Oceanside, My husband, 3 year old daughter and I. Texas is one hell of a state, half the trip is just getting out of here.

Some may think we were crazy to drive that far with a 3 year old and I have to agree but Im happy to say, she did GREAT! She really surprised me. I truly expected her to have at least a few melt downs but nope! We made plenty of stops along the way, about every 2 hours or so, for the adults to use the potty, get gas and munchies. Sophie on the other hand needed something different. You know a 3 year olds bladder is a little finicky, not to mention her fear of public toilets (pour kiddo is scared to death of the automatic flushing!) She also had decided when she started using the potty like a big girl, in no way, shape or form was a diaper or pull up to ever be placed on her again! Soo, Danny had came up with a brilliant idea for a to go toilet for her. He got on those 10 gallon buckets from Home Depot and cut out an oval shape, perfect size for her toilet seat topper. (I may or may not have had to use it myself a couple times! LOL) Set it down, put her on it and let her go. Load that masterpiece into the back and youre set to go! Absolute Brilliance! She would shout out peepee, we would pull it over and let her do her business and then it was back on the road. I believe this saved us lots of turmoil to say the least!

Once we made it there, it was heaven! We stayed at Dannys daughters house. Jessica and her husband Sean, who is a Marine, live on base. Cute little 2 story house. When we got there, it was already dark out and nearing bedtime for the kiddos. But when we opened that door, the kids came running! They are even bigger in person. Theres somethings that video chat just doesnt portray! Tysons big blue eyes and curly blonde hair and Athenas beautiful little face, shes soo much taller in person. I never thought Id be "grandma" at the age of 32 but for these two, Id be anything! To hear them call me grandma, touched me deeply! They were soo sweet, a little sassy and ohh so lovable!

We got hugs and kisses and it was time for a good nights sleep.
We got there on a Friday, so we had the whole weekend to hang out. Their place had a nice size playground right behind them. So we hung out, went to the playground, BBQed, and watched all the kids get to know and love each other. It was awesome! They were having such an amazing time and I believe they all learned a lot from each other during our visit.

Come Monday, Sean went back to work and Athena had school so the rest of us did our own things. Jessica is big on gym time. Her arms are amazing, I mean this girl is ripped! Shes absolutely beautiful. So when would go do her thing, we would do some exploring! We went and saw many things which Ill get more into on later posts. I literally have enough pictures for the rest of the year! LOL The great thing about Oceanside, is that its truly oceanside! Everytime we would leave the house we would take a drive right along the ocean. Oceanside has grown like crazy and is super busy now a days so its nice to slow down and drive along the beach for a few miles and take in the ocean air whenever possible.

We didnt get to meet up with Dannys son, Danny Jr, his wife and daughter Mavis until later on during the week, so to spend his time the only way he knows how, he decided to do a few projects! LOL Yes, he even works on vacation! But its was okay as it was for the kids! He made Jess a couple wall pieces and a blanket ladder, Danny Jrs wife Elana a wall decoration and all the kids a large wooden toy box. They came out amazing! He even made one for Sophie and we carried it all the way back here!

The next weekend, we ALL got together at the beach on base, which by the way is BEEEEEEEautiful! We rented a "cabana area". It was a great tent setup with a couch, chairs and table. The California sun has gotten a little harsh since the last time we were here, damn near close to Texas sun rays! So we HAD to get some kind of tent to hide us from the sun so our all day sunny beach day! (Plus, this whole set up was only $25! Great deal!) All the kids played in the water and the sand, building castles and burying their legs. There was a great little restaurant walking distance that served some awesome carne asada fries, great tacos and of course delicious margaritas! When the kids started getting a little pooped we ventured back to the house and had a big BBQ. A few drinks, yummy pork chops, rice and corn on the cob was on the menu and boy was it all so good!

Our last few days, we went and explored some more. We went to an aquarium, a trampoline park, La Jolla Cove, the Mission San Luis Rey, Seaport Village, had brunch on the Oceanside pier and the Oceanside Marina. We went down memory lane for Danny, driving down all his childhood streets that he roamed as a young teenager. It was wonderful to listen to all his old stories and to see how much the city really has changed.

We left on Wednesday, the goodbyes were hard to say the least. There were many tears from all of us. That week and a half went by too damn fast! But, it was time to go. We took two days to come home, staying at 2 hotels. We took a little longer way so we could see more of New Mexico instead of Texas... Theres only so much Texas desert and oil fields one can handle! We came home on 287, a small 2 lane highway that goes through many small towns. It was fun to see the different cultures, buildings and people. We finally made it home Friday at 10pm. Our bed never looked so good!

All in all, it was an amazing trip and I cant wait to see them all again. Our next voyage will be to South Carolina, which is where Jess and Sean are relocating. Yep, they have them moving to the other side of the US! Thats the Marine life for ya! Im excited to see a few more states and even more excited to see how much they have grown in a year! Until then, Face time will be busy! We definitely made some great memories this trip. Time to get back to busy life, Dannys back to work and we are back on schedule!

Until next time Steemians,

Peace, love and FAMILY! <3

(All pictures are my own and were taken with my Samsung phone!)

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