"If you come home as happy as you leave, then you've had a good vacation"

And boy, did I! After months of planning, researching, and meticulously trying to control every detail, I finally had to let go and actually go on our vacation. As always, there were a number of things that didn't go according to plan, but all in all, it was absolutely fabulous.

Kudos to Nate for fitting everything that I had on my list into the car. There was concern about how we'd fit everything in the car, including the double stroller. However, Nate made it, and we were all so grateful for it.

The first day, we made our leisurely way down to Las Vegas. When we got there, we decided to take the kids to see the Dancing Fountains at the Bellagio. We parked a distance away and walked through the dust and smut to get there; at first, I thought all our efforts were in vain because Ryan seemed pretty nervous about them, but then he was really excited about them (he started calling them the "bubble bath").

After that adventure, we spent the rest of the evening at my aunt and uncle's house. We had a tasty dinner, enjoyed great conversation, and got a great night of sleep (not something we could say about every night of our trip!).

The next morning we drove to San Diego and met Mom Burt. Within the hour, we had changed into swimsuits and headed to the beach to build sand castles, fly kites, and race in the waves (sometimes all at the same time--no kidding!).
Ryan was so excited to see his Grandma:
Sofia was having a fabulous time feeling the sand, but of course, with her fingers constantly in her mouth, she ended up eating a lot of it too. The poor thing had sandpaper in her diaper the next day, but I thought this picture was priceless!


That's all for tonight (I'm already turning into a pumpkin). For tomorrow, Sea World and the San Diego Zoo!