california day seven

rodeo drive in beverly hills and hollywood were where we chose to spend our last day in cali. it all began with (yes, more food)...a luxorious breakfast at the beverly willshire (my fav hotel...all because of a certain movie)! after breakfast, we walked the streets for a bit, with a long stop at niketown, where the boys chose their new school shoes! we then drove through melrose on our way to hollywood, where we saw the walk of fame, the stars, the hollywood sign, the kodak theatre, and finally...the brady bunch home. hampton was dressed like cindy that day, so i couldn't resist a pic of her outside! thankfully the current owners didn't ruin the moment. another fun day, on an incredible trip to the absolutely amazing state of california! i am thankful that i have perhaps swayed my family to prefer the "other" coast. yay! we are not looking forward to the three am wakeup call to head back to kansas!

california day six

today we enjoyed breakfast at the sugar shack in huntington beach, prior to super fun beach time and bicycling. the kids had sooo much fun...hampton made several new friends, while coleman and austin boogie boarded their way to the BIG waves! awesome! the boys rented bicycles for an hour, to ride around town, while hampton and i soaked up the sun! they later surprised us with yummy beachside burgers and fries...a welcome treat, after the foot burn we both suffered upon sprinting to the bathroom! aggh! we then headed back to our villa to swim and get ready for dinner at ruth's chris (feeling a theme now...food)! isn't that what vaca's are for?

california day five

yummy day to say the least! it started with breakfast at coco's (our nickname for coleman), followed by lunch at cheesecake factory (coleman's favorite), fun at the pool, and dinner with my aunt jani (my mom's sister) and uncle gary (who live in pasadena and work in la) at the beachfront beachcomber cafe...where the patrons literally salute the martini flag at five o'clock. too funny! we enjoyed a wonderful dinner, followed by more beach time (with clothes on this time). aunt jani even joined in the fun...encouraging me to let the fact that my children (and their clothes) were soaked. i could honestly just sit back and enjoy the moment...my children soaked it up as well. what wonderful memories.

california day four

after breakfast, a trip to purchase boogie boards, and a long hike in newport coast to crystal cove beach...we finally arrived! the hills were extreme (even more so on the way back), but the beach was absolutely exquisite. the kids had an absolutely wonderful day boogie boarding, sandcastle building and just plain relaxing. ahhh! we all thorougly enjoyed our time together, on a truly picture perfect day in california.