One SWEET trip.

School ended on the 20th and the girls and I headed down for a quick trip to California to play with my sister Carrie and her sons while her husband was out of town.

My siblings were gracious enough to venture down a ways to go out to dinner with me, and to entertain me, and most likely the other customers, with kitty masks.

We are quite obnoxious I'll admit it.

Most of the cousins stayed back at Carries for Nerf Gun wars and basketball games, while we dined at a scrumptuous Italian Eatery.

Day two landed the girls and I at the beach. Along with 4 cousins cool enough to ditch school for us.

Aunt Carrie gathered all around to explain rip tides and how to survive them since she and I are, unfortunately, such horrible swimmers. Look how attentive they all were to her instructions.

Rainier had a delightful time digging and pouring sand every where, or my rightly 'throwing' it every where.

His bird friends appeared and kept him busy for quite some time and I enjoyed dropping crackers all around my sister while she was tanning to see how close they would come to her without her knowing. Amazingly enough they would come quite close. She wasn't too impressed by my new found information.

The girls enjoyed the boogie boarding.

My sister and I enjoyed being dorks as usual,

and Claire enjoyed being the cute kid that she is and rocked the surfer look in the body suit she borrowed from her cousin.

Unfortunately my sisters oldest son broke his hand early on in our beach trip, and after about an hour or two of  "waiting it out" we decided that it was probably definitely broken and she should take him to the doctors.  Poor kid was such a good sport about it all, so the rest of us stayed at the beach and dug holes, while he and my sister went to the doctors.

Rainier enjoyed his mediations and walks.

And the rest of the kids went to search for shells. Talmage found this massive conk shell complete with a living creature inside,

and by the end of the day thye had found quite a treasure full of  shells including a few sand dollars. I was a bit jealous.

The next day, while my poor sister again took her oldest son to the doctors, I was able to take my kids and my sweet nephews to this fun park close by.

It did make me envious of Califonians a bit. Green grass and trees.

Pleasant temperatures at the end of May,

and unique parks to play in.

This trip made me willing to move back, well maybe.

It was such a pleasant trip for me, besides the broken hand part that is, and by the end it was hard to go home. The kids played so well together, and my sister and I did too. In the end it was off  home to Arizona and my sister went in the other direction to Utah to visit her husband.

Thanks Kee Kee for the great trip you are truly the Hostess with the Mostess.