Leave You With A Smile

I know it is WWAAAYYYY late but in attempt to try to get back on the blog banwagon I need to start with finishing my drafts haha

So here it is better late then never :)

Catalina, Day 2:

We had a fun morning being lazy and playing around the room. The kids laughed, tickled, and played with toys while Steve and I played right along side of them. We watched a gorgeous sunrise and then left the slider open to let in the wonderful cool ocean breeze. I went and got yummy coffee drinks for Steve and I and hot cocoa for the Lucy and we had our homemade blueberry muffins Lucy & I made before we left for Catalina for breakfast :)

We then all got ready and went with our hotel neighbor to lunch and headed out for a day on the beach :)

It was a beautiful, sunny day that was so relaxing and perfect!

We sat outside right on the water it was beautiful and the weather was so perfect!!

Enjoying the delicious treat for eating all their lunches :)

Lucy and Makenna

After Lunch we headed to the beach to soak up the sun, build sandcastles and have fun with friends :)

Love my guys!!

Lucy, Ella, and Micah building sandcastles

How lucky am I to have this amazing hubby? VERY!!!

Jessica & I

My little Lulu LOVED the beach and sand!! She couldn't stop asking me to take her picture :)

After all that sun we walked the boardwalk and got some AMAZING ice cream in freshly made waffle cones....DELICIOUS!

Of course I got a double scoop mint n' chip and cookies and cream :)

After ice cream we did a little shopping and then went back to the room and got refreshed and ready for a fun BBQ at the Fanzo's Beach house with the whole group who made the trek to Catalina :)

The kids all played and watched movies while the grown ups hung out had some drinks and lots of laughs!

Hamburgers by Grill Master Bobby and tons of yummy treats by the Amazing Jessica :)

A wonderful 2nd day on the island. It was so nice to be woken up by the sound of the waves and pure serenity and then the sound of little giggles. A able to go through the day without a care in the world and not having to be anywhere by anytime it was wonderful to truely be on "island time" :)

For the last week all I have heard about is how many days until our trip from Lucy. She talks about it with her friends and plans our days before we have even left haha Well, she was BEYOND excited last night knowing today is the day...we set sail on our fun mini vacation for 4 days to Catalina :)

Almost too good to be true we were packed, and ready, kids ready, car loaded, and on our way to catch the ferry all at an horribly early 6:15 am ....YIKES we are not early risers...or should I say Princess Lucy is not an early riser..haha but wow we did it! We met 1 set of friends, the Woldenga Family at the Starbucks and began our caravan and adventure to Catalina :) Super excited about the trip and amazed to have actually been on time we got on the ferry and set sail to beautiful Catalina :) We left out of Newport Beach which was gorgeous sailing through the harbor. As we sailed through the harbor the boat was slowly moving through the water, the kids were excited all standing along side of the back of the boat just loosing their marbles happy about the boat ride and the trip...It was picture perfect!

Well, once we got out of the harbor and the boat floored it haha the kids all had faces of terror...almost as if qued they all began crying and wouldn't stop. They were beyond scared as the boat hit each and every wave...I can honestly quote the line from Seinfied "The seas were angry that day my friend" haha
The boat ride was HORRIBLE!! After 10 mins of crying I dreaded the other hour that was still left on the boat. I wish I could have gotten a picture of our group but the minute I even took my hand off Lucy she flipped out so I didn't dare reach for my camera!

Finally we arrived in Catalina :) It was such a beautiful sight to see as we docked in the harbor and I honestly felt as though I was in some European island somewhere and not still in California, it was wonderful!! The harbor was filled with cute sailboats and unique colorful houses lined the hillsides it was a sight to see!! We did the 5 minute walk with the kids, luagage, strollers and got to the hotel and got situated. Our room is so cute! We have a very quaint balony which over looks the Metropole Hotel marketplace courtyard filled with trees, flowers and cute little shops and a great view of the ocean in the distance. My favorite thing about our room is the cute fireplace. I will make it a point to have a fire going several nights this trip :) Our friends the Woldengas are our hotel neighbors which is really fun! The kids keep taking turns playing in each room, talking and having fun on the balconies. They're so cute!! Jessica and I would chat while enjoying our view and the fresh air. The perfect beginning to a mini vacation.

We then went and got some yummy mexican food at a local restuarant Mi Casita and OMG they had the biggest and yummiest margaritas :) Just what we needed after a crazy long morning. We then went to the local grocery store to get some snacks and went for a beautiful walk on the boardwalk. As we began our walk we ran into the Fanzo family :) The whole reason we all made the trek to Catalina for the mini trip...to celebrate their 10 year wedding anniversary :) So the whole group of us set off to walk and take in all the beauty the island had to offer. The kids played in the sand, hunted for seashells, threw rocks, played on the beach, played a local tree hook game, and just had a blast playing for hours while listening to the waves crash. While the adults watched and enjoyed some yummy margaritas :) It was a perfect afternoon!!

Day 1 of our mini vacation was WONDERFUL!! It was such a fun, laughter filled day with amazing friends. As I put Lucy to bed she even melted my heart by saying "I Love you Mommy" and "This is such a fun vacation" she's such a sweet girl! Gavin didn't tell me anything but I know he had a wonderful day too! He smiled for ear to ear all day...minus the boat ride haha The moment of the day though that melted my heart was watching Gavin and Steve walking along the beach :) I love my guys!!! I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE watching Gavin walk.. Perfect memories to end an amazing day :)