Look at these four beautiful freckled faces! Katie has some special buddies & they all got to hang out together (along with their moms) morning & night for the last 4 days. Meet (from top to bottom) Meredith, Sydney, Katie, & Meredith -2 blondes & 2 brunettes - 3 blue-eyed beauties & one brown-eyed beauty - all eight-year-olds & all adorable. The girls were great & there was not even one little spat among them, which is a big deal when that many girls get together for that long! I am sure that Katie will always remember the last 4 days that we have spent together. It has been a whirlwind of activities & eating, learning & laughing. I already know that we are blessed to go to such an amazing school, but when they plan something like this for our children, it enforces that knowledge even more. The San Diego area has been one of my favorite places to visit ever since I was a girl. I have so many memories of family vacations to the beach & other fun spots like Sea World, the Zoo, & the Wild Animal Park. I am so glad that I get to now share those places with my own children. Our trip started at the San Diego Wild Animal Park. We had a late afternoon tour of the park (the girls were all armed with binoculars & cameras), dinner, & some evening activities. We slept in tents in the park and attempted to fall asleep to the very loud sounds of crickets & toads, elephants & lions - quite an experience. My favorite part of the overnight experience was the early-morning walk up to Condor Ridge before the park opened. We then spent the morning & early afternoon doing whatever we wanted in the park. My favorites include going 400 feet in the air in a hot air balloon to get a view of the park from up above & feeding the lorikeets. All you have to do is hold a little container of nectar & the lorikeets will flock to you. One of Katie's friends had no less than 4 birds on her at one time. Katie was perfectly fine to feed one lorikeet for about 30 seconds & then she was done!
After the park, we headed to the beach for a little "wiggle our toes in the sand & smell the ocean air" time. We didn't expect the girls to get in the 59 degree ocean water, but they did!
After the beach we got dinner, let the girls swim in the hotel pool for a while then truly enjoyed sleeping in our comfy beds & cozy hotel rooms - especially after a night with the lions!
The next day it was off to Sea World where we were sure to see almost every show & catch every ride. Katie was not in the mood to get wet this trip, so we didn't go on Atlantis or the rapids ride - but we stood along the sidelines cheering our friends on & watching them get soaked to their underwear! Katie thought the Wild Arctic motion ride was great & enjoyed her simulated helicopter ride through the Arctic. She also says that Shamu is the best - I have to agree with her! Not only do I now have a crush on Shamu, but I am also very taken with all the beautiful flowers at Sea World. The grounds are more than impressive. I couldn't get the kids to appreciate the flowers like I did, but they found the tide pool to be intriguing & all took their turn at touching the sea cucumbers & picking up sea stars.
The day flew by & we once again found ourselves at the hotel pool then off to our comfy beds & cozy hotel rooms. I am always a late-night girl, but found myself falling asleep every night by 10:30. So much for reading the book I brought along - oh well!
That brings us to today - where we got up and found a delicious breakfast spot - Le Peep (if you ever find one - there are several throughout the country - be sure to stop by!) They have this thing called a gooey bun, which is an english muffin covered with butter & brown sugar & slivered almonds, broiled & served with hot apples & cream cheese - talk about yum! I got that with some oatmeal - so so good! After breakfast, it was time to leave beautiful La Jolla & head home. What a wonderful trip we had with good friends, good times, good food, & special memories that will last a lifetime. I especially loved the opportunity to spend such a concentrated amount of one-on-one time with Katie. She was a perfect angel & a great roommate & traveling buddy. I think we should do it again one day - Katie!
Everett Andrew Duncan, Jr. 9/26/1958-01/02/2015
9 years ago
6 comments:
Those pictures are adorable!! I really like the one of the very brave girls in the ocean - that's priceless! And Shamu looks great, too.
When you said you'd be sleeping with the rhinos, lions, hippos & giraffes, you weren't kidding. I didn't know you could do that.
I was thinking about you this past week knowing you were in my neck of the woods. It sure looks like you girls had a great time.
Aren't you glad we have digital cameras? Don't you wish our parents had digital cameras?
The trips I took with just my mom are the trips that I loved and remember the most. This will be something Katie will remember for a long time. Shes very lucky to have such a fun a loving mom, just like I did. And im totally jealous you got to sleep with all the animals, that sounds so fun. Looks like you ladies had a fabulous time!
What a great time you guys had! I love all the pictures. We are so lucky to have digital cameras! (I am glad you finally decided to join the club) I am glad you and Katie got to have that one on one time together. I would love to do that with all my girls...maybe someday. :)
I am a little jealous...that sounds like such a cool experience. You guys are so lucky to have these experiences from you school! Glad everyone came home safe and sound with no lion eating mishaps...hehe
That sounds like such a fun trip! Thank you for sharing it with us.
I love that you and Katie got to go to the most beautiful place on earth - THE BEACH! Also, I loved that she was modest in her 1 piece swimsuit....FUN times!
Post a Comment