When Lori underwent foot surgery in May, she needed something to look forward to. Knowing her cast would be off in July, we planned an adventure to San Diego for August. We were blessed to have the Schows and Hendersons accompany us. As luck would have it, Dallin and Alyssa just bought a Kia Carnival, and since they had planned on driving anyway, what a way to get to know your new ride! About a week before we left, Kaylee had the thought that Avery should go with us, and I was all in! Avery and I are tight, so I was confident we could pull this trip off.
Our flight out was delayed an hour. Something about a blinking light and paperwork held us up. This put us right into Avery's nap AND lunch time. She takes both very seriously. You know what? We made do, with some assistance from Kaylee and a bag of fruit snacks I had purchased at the airport. And in the end, as the plane landed, she took a nap. We waited on the plane as long as we could!
We picked up our rental - a 2027 Chrysler Pacifica. I hate to admit it, but minivans drive nicely and are very functional. Which is good, because we loaded it up with 7 people plus some luggage. I did send two large suitcases in the Carnival, so that was a win. It was a bit of work navigating around with a car seat and Avery! We made a pit stop at Chick-Fil-A, then drove south to San Diego.
When I say south, I mean it. From the backyard of the rental, you could see the border wall and Tijuana!
Lori's foot is still very sore, so I had reserved an electric scooter for her at Sea World, our first adventure on the next day. Despite a rough start, they figured it out.
Sea World was awesome! And HOT!!! Let me give you some bullet points on this part of the trip.
- We bought the meal plan, and I got my money's worth!
- Speaking of meals, Sea World is highly inefficient.
- Avery can speak both sea lion and penguin.
- The wet zone is real. Just ask Bella.
- Bella is a great, confident dancer.
- The drone show was a highlight for me.
- Avery had to walk to get onto the rides. She CRUSHED it!
- We spent a long time in the kid jump areas, and Bella and Avery both loved them.
You know what a highlight for me was? Every morning, I was first up, followed by Logan and Phil. Always great to start the day with some Logan time.
We ate Mexican food at Murrieta's and were serenaded with $20 worth of songs. Thanks Phil!
I ended the trip with a nap.
