So Cal trip Journal

Johnny is at a training in LA for work so us girls decided to tag along. Just for fun I want to journal our adventure for all you all.

Day 1
A tale only for the strong of stomach (and those who don't mind gross stories)

As we drove to Cali things went smooth with the car (What a blessing!) When we left the house the GPS projected our arrival at 5:18 pm. We stopped in Vegas (or more accurately North Las Vegas) at a subway. We should have just gotten back in the car and driven away once we each car at the gas station/subway had at least one window busted out. But, we didn't we kept in our pursuit for a sandwich. Then, another clue, we had to have a key on a foot long piece of pvc pipe in order to access the bathroom. (The ironic thing about this is that we were listening to a Dean Koontz book that started out with a bizarre murder at a LA gas station in a part of town that was so bad the gas station attendant had to keep the bathroom doors locked so that bums and dope heads didn't do vile things inside.) And then here I am with my three year old accessing the toilet key!

So, regardless of warnings we got and ate our sandwiches in the car, with the doors locked, and Johnny standing guard. I got the grilled chicken sandwich instead of my usual choice of roasted turkey, and had her put tomatoes on because the tomatoes I had eaten with Rachel earlier last week were so delicious. The sandwich tasted like vinegar soaked cardboard (and I hadn't put vinegar on it?) I still ate it.

I drove from Baker (after another pit stop) we were now scheduled to arrive at 6:30 pm still not bad. We had gotten on the express lane trough the Mojave which crawled up the hill at stop and go while the truck lanes zoomed past. we decided it should be named the ignorant tourist lane instead.

As I drove, by the time we hit Calico my head was reeling and my whole body was numb. I thought "crap, pig flu!" we switch and Johnny drove while I moaned in the seat next to him. we pulled off to eat in Riverside CA and found an IHOP. I told Johnny what I wanted and went to the restroom. Jorryn came with me because as a rule, mother are not aloud to go to the bathroom by themselves until their youngest child is at least four and a half.

Any way, after taking care of some business, I leaned over the toilet and hurled. Jorryn in the corner of the stall excitedly shouts, "Who mom, what is that stuff coming out of your mouth!" I hurl again and again while jorryn claps and jumps up and down next to me. Then during a pause in the action jorryn exclaims, "Mom make it come out fast again!"

We get back to the table just as Johnny finishes giving our order. the waitress asks, "Anything else." I lean in and say, "well ya, the bathroom..." I don't think that is what she meant but oh well. 15 minutes later Jorryn ask her dad to take her to the bathroom, "I need to go potty then I want to spit in it like mom!"

We finally arrived at our hotel at 8:15 pm a long 10 hours after we left our home. We saw 2 of Johns co-workers as we walked in, "we just got here did you?" they replied that they had left the same time as us and were here 3 hours ago! oh well, the extra 1-2 hours per child is worth it to me!

Day 2
Slow day

We took day 2 nice and slow. I expected to sit pool side most of the day, but the weather is cold and blustery. (mid 60's) so we tried a park up the street from the hotel that was nice. I got a suggestion from someone at work of places to eat so we tried one last night. It was a Mexican place called Baja Cantina. It was sooo good. the enchiladas were amazing. I would like to go back again before our trip is over. we walked in and I almost got us beat up. I heard the sports announcer on the television and said (out loud!) "Oh it's the JAZZ game!" whops, I am in the heart of Laker country.

We went to the beach and it was cold so Jorryn didn't want to touch the water. It was sunset and beautiful. Johnny found some shells as the waves moved in and out. we walked up to one in the "splash zone" we got a little comfortable because the waves were staying low. Then a big one came and got us. I hurried and lifted Jorryn in the air and only her shoes got wet. When we got back to the hotel that night she laughed, "I didn't want to touch the ocean but it came and got me anyways."

Day 3
Where is the Park?


I drove all around LA looking for a park. The first park I tired was called something Youth park. It was like a ball park not a playground park. Then I tried a state park, I got there and it was a hiking and trail park and you had to pay to get in. So I u-turned and tried the park we had gone to the day before. The street around it was closed for street sweepers and there was not any parking for a mile each way. So, we tried the next park on the list (number 4). It was a school playground closed during school hours. Finally, park number 5 was our ticket. We had a nice little time at this park. As we were leaving two men were talking about how the playground equipment was no longer up to code and they need to replace it. Oh well, we had fun!