Not So Long and Thanks for All the Fish

See, what did I tell you. I was back in a flash. Really, I just went on vacation, but I feel utterly ridiculous announcing to the world that my house will be free and clear of residents for a certain amount of time and those who feel so inclined should burgle on such and such dates. Then again, maybe next time I will go ahead and announce in hopes that someone will take my large, cumbersome television, which would give us a nice excuse to buy a flat screen.

Now comes the prevailing problem. We were gone for a fair amount of time and that means lots of posts and lots of pictures, most of which you may not be interested in, but which I am obligated to write about since I still claim to write this blog for posterity and not for comments. So I am warning you in advance. Feel free to scroll, or skip, or gag at how many princess pictures we took. Oh, did I mention we went to ...

We did some other things too, and don't worry, it will all get cataloged. (Probably.) But I have learned that I need to do it sooner than later, so sit back and hopefully I will deluge you with my vacation.

Let's start at the very beginning, it's a very good place to start. We opted to drive to Disneyland, versus flying, mainly for the fact that it is oodles cheaper. Plus, we wanted to brag that we survived 2500 miles in the car without a DVD player. Yes folks, we went the old fashioned way, although we did have a few books on tape. And the trip was peachy. But I attribute that to two things. 1) We left the youngest two in Idaho with family. 2) Because we left the youngest two, we had room in the van to spread out and separate children more than an arm-length apart. Who knew the kids could be civil when they aren't practically sitting in each other's laps.

We high-tailed it out of Orem on a sunny afternoon and drove like mad for Reno. Yes, any of you who are geographically savvy will notice that Reno is not the fastest way to Disneyland, but we did some site-seeing along the way. (Can you say site-seeing when you are visiting family, or does that suddenly sound like your family is a zoo that you try to avoid year-round but drop in to gawk at when you have a moment? Our family is great, so we were more site-seeing the other Californian residents.) I really wanted to stop at the Salt Flats and take some pictures, but invariably someone is asleep when we pass them. True to form, I was actually the only one awake as we drove by. (Oh well, one of these days.) We stayed in a little motel with a freezing pool, but it was nice to be together. I will give myself some props for this trip. We brought a cooler and ate in as much as possible. Here the girls are eating cereal on Sunday morning.

I must mention now that I did not get behind the camera as much as I thought. Tyler was the predominant photographer for this trip. Needless to say, I would have taken some pictures a different way or from a opposing viewpoint, but I am pretty sure Confucius would say, He who does not bother to take pictures should not complain at the pictures taken. Yep, I am just happy that he was on the ball. There were a few times he would ask me if I wanted the camera and I would say no, and then later when I looked through the pictures I could see the gaps. I have learned my lesson. (Probably.)

Like I said, the kids were fantastic. They kept themselves busy, even when we stopped at the random gas station for potty breaks.

I would like to say that all potty breaks went smoothly,  but it was more than once that we would finish up, get back on the road, only to hear, 'I need to go potty.' Really, there is not much to do besides look for the next exit, but it may have led to several conversations about getting EVERYTHING out in one stop.

In all good time we arrived at our first little stop on the map; Santa Rosa. My uncle lives there with his family and we really don't get to visit them as much as we would like. I think the last time we got there was Fete Day four years ago. Ivory was just a baby. Weird that we only took the same three kids. Don't worry, Pearl and Daisy surely had more fun playing with cousins than being stuck in the car, and Pearl's chronic diarrhea would have been disastrous for the trip. Not that it was a picnic for Aunt Kat, but we can talk about my guilt concerning that issue later.

We swam (didn't bring the camera) and then had a delicious meal brought together by many parties. Here is the gang.

We were so lucky that Tim and Jim came up to visit again. We really need to take a special trip to visit them in San Fran some time. Jim just retired as a theater producer. He was featured in a magazine, and he was so young in all the pictures. It almost makes me dread old age. Don't get me wrong, Jim has aged very gracefully; I just don't think I will do the same. My children's children will look back at this blog and say, Wow, what happened to Gramma?

We did get to drive through San Fransisco though. Recognize this bridge?

We even took the scenic route right through downtown. Oh Tim, you would be so ashamed. Even after your fabulous directions, we still missed the turn-off after the bridge. So we made the most of it, and enjoyed the scenery.

I know I have blathered on for reams now, but I may as well get us down to Anaheim, so hang in there for a few hundred miles more.

We stopped in Santa Maria to meet up with my family and see Meg and Hal. You may slap my hand twice for not bringing the camera when we saw Meg and Hal. They are two of the nicest people to walk the planet. She was roommates with my mom in college. They treated us to breakfast. I hope my mom got a picture. Look, I have stolen it from her blog.

(Yes, we stopped at Willard's Bay on the way home from Idaho.)

The evening before, we all stayed at the same hotel with adjoining rooms. Mom had gotten us a suite with three beds, but I was shocked to see the room had a kitchenette and (I kid you not) a banquet table. I'm not sure we needed to seat twelve people for dinner, but if there had been a need, we were prepared. We did play some cards before bed. Shouldn't let a table like that go to waste.

The hotel was a little too posh for my tastes. When they saw my children they warned the man next door to complain if he heard them. Then the power went out while I was in the tub. And yes, they had a hotel cat (Cleo), but I'm not sure I was impressed.

Why the picture then? Because if I didn't include it, someone in my family would ask why I left the cat out. I am sliding by my critics while I can. But I don't want to end with a picture of a cat. Let's put a sassy Ivory in here to finish this chapter.

Phew. We made it. It was a long trip, but we are down in Anaheim now, ready to take on Disneyland. Wait, first a trip to the beach, but that is a story for another day...