This and That

We had a different Easter this year. Just me, Chuck and Beth. There were 3 services at church and I had to be there to disinfect after each one. Chuck and Beth helped this time too. Then we went out to breakfast and spent the rest of the day at home, watching movies and relaxing.

We recently bought some new blinds for our sliding door and the two big windows in the living room. They'll be delivered and then Lowes will come out and install them. These are the ones we got for the windows. The door will have vertical blinds... I'm so excited!!

Sharaya and Ally went to San Diego last weekend. They drove down with some friends and they drove straight through! It's 22 hours of driving, if I've remembered right. Chuck and I did that a few times but I remember the last time we did it. It was just too hard to keep our eyes open, too hard on our bodies without the rest we needed... oh to be young again! :)

Well anyway, Sharaya and Ally have had a blast down there! The resort they're staying at has a small water park along with the pool; they've been to the zoo, Balboa Park, the beach, they kayaked around La Jolla caves and even rode The Giant Dipper at Belmont Park!

This was built in 1925 and restored in 1993

 

Diana and Peter went camping over Easter weekend. I forgot to ask her where they went but she said they had fun! They're adjusting some wedding plans due to covid travel restrictions and make it easier for some family members to attend. I asked her if she's been shopping for dresses and she said no, but she did bring two wedding magazines on their camping trip. 😄

Well that's about it from our house. I'm getting a slow start on the yard work this year. We get a few days of rain, then sun. Then rain... I hope you're all having a wonderful start to spring!

Have you ever been camping?

Do you like roller coasters?

Aaaand Now the Ending

(I thought I posted this a couple weeks ago!)

Just a few more pics of our time in San Diego.

 We took one day and drove all over town. We saw where my grandparents are buried; I showed Chuck where my dad is interred; We saw the Unconditional Surrender statue that's right by the USS Midway (it's an aircraft carrier and that statue is 25 feet tall!) drove through my old neighborhood, by my high school... after all these years it still seems weird to have something so familiar feel so foreign.

There was a guy blowing bubbles and the kids were going crazy! It was a nice break for the parents. 😊

 

I applied for my very first job at that Wienerschnitzel! They hadn't opened yet and our training was held around piles of flooring and construction workers. Unfortunately about a week after they opened they let a bunch of us go. But a friend offered me a better job so it all worked out!
 

But the part of the trip that I relished the most was the view from the balcony in our room. I'd take my tea out there in the morning, I'd write out there, I sat out there a lot. I watched the sailboats go by, the rowing teams... it was peaceful and so beautiful. And I didn't even have to put on shoes!

Sea World was right across the bay and they still had a tree lit up, plus they had fireworks one night.

Woke up one morning to fog. Even the forecasters were surprised!

Oh you guys it was so nice! I wish everyone could take a few days now and then to just get away and do absolutely nothing.

When was the last time you had a little getaway?

Do you have one planned?

Just Beginning

I decided I was going to sit down and write about our trip so I got my phone and uploaded a few photos. Hahahaha!! More than 250 pictures later... I figured I should probably just start writing! 😂

There were so many surprises.

So many beautiful moments.

The flight down... the views were spectacular. 

 Exploring the resort was so fun and sometimes took my breath away!

 We celebrated Chuck's birthday while we were there. Restaurants were open and we found one that served steak, his favorite! Plus Diana had some cheesecake delivered to our room.

 Sunset Cliffs! We hadn't been there in forever and while I was walking around I came across this arch. It was beautiful!

There's so much more but I'm going to stop for tonight. 

As I type this the snow is falling. We're expecting anywhere from 3-8 inches tonight, it all depends on if the storm stalls over us or if the winds pick up... so I'll be awake most of the night, getting out of bed every so often to look out the window. I absolutely love the snow! As long as I don't have to drive in it. Which unfortunately is exactly what Chuck is doing right now. Driving a large city bus. Until 12:30am. 😬 Every time I look outside I pray for him. And you can bet I'm looking outside a lot!

Have you flown anywhere lately?

Do you like to fly?

Are you getting snow this weekend?

What We've Been Doing So Far

We flew into San Diego on October 3rd. For the first time in a long time we didn't have an early morning flight so we didn't have to rush to get to the airport. 

Chuck is better at directions than I am so he always goes first, then I tell Beth to "follow dad" and I follow Beth.

The airport was pretty busy but we made it through security and got to our gate with plenty of time to spare. I'd much rather be early - to anywhere! - than late so I'm a happy camper when we arrive early. 

Chuck prefers the aisle seat and Beth doesn't like to fly so I always get the window seat. She especially doesn't like it when we take off.

  
Take offs and landings aren't my favorite either but once we're in the air, my phone comes out and I'm glued to the window pane! I love aerial photography! It's a perspective you don't get every day and I've never understood how people can watch movies or play on their phones the whole flight!

Mount Rainier

 

This is Miramar, the Marine Corp air field where my dad will be interned. (Not sure why Miramar, he was in the Navy.) But anyway, when I saw this I started to cry. This trip was the first time in more than 30 years that I went to San Diego and my dad wouldn't be there. It's a hard thing to accept.

  
One of the first things we did after getting to San Diego was go to the beach! Our 2 favorites are La Jolla and Mission Beach. This time we went to Mission. We walked along the shore, played corn hole, did some shopping and even had lunch, right there at the ocean. 

For me there's no place like the beach. And I know it's that way for a lot of people. I took a deep breath and smelled that salt water as I walked across the sand and when the water hit my feet I immediately felt a sense of rest and peace. As much as my heart aches knowing my dad is gone, I just knew everything was going to be okay. What is it about the ocean that causes reflection and introspection?