Independence Day 2017

San Juan Capistrano. San Diego. Independence Day!


Of all my years living in San Diego I also had never stopped by San Juan Capistrano but I've always liked it for their white buildings and a huge mansion that is visible from the freeway. I remember always waiting for it to appear in the distance as we drove on the freeway nearing SJC. It sits on the top right hand side of a hill. I've always wondered who lived there. I wondered what it looked like inside. One day I hope to drive up to that mansion, hopefully it wont be a gated street.

We woke up this morning, July 3rd, at a descent time. Jacob found us a good breakfast spot called Molly's Cafe. We had to wait for about ten minutes which wasn't bad at all. We encouraged Riley to have a few bites of bacon again but he wouldn't this time. Go figure!

This is the mansion I was telling you about. That gray one in the center. Ever since I was a little girl I remember just staring at it, imagining how cool it would be to see it inside.

We had a few hours to spare so we visited the Basilica.
Sydna and Riley had noticed a butterfly. They were trying to make it land on their finger but it wouldn't.

It was a warm day so we rested under a large shady tree. This city has a conservative feel so we felt very comfortable here. It was so cool seeing all the U.S. flags all over the streets ... very patriotic. As it should be everywhere in the United States!!!

Nathan hit full blown puberty as soon as the school year ended. It seemed like his voice changed overnight. His facial features are changing constantly. He is continuing to grow ... still has that handsome look.
When it comes to Nathan, his life has definitely flowed at a normal pace. The feeling of "where has the time gone?" hasn't applied to his life and that's been a good thing because I've gotten to enjoy his every milestone thoroughly. I feel close to him and it'll be heartbreaking whenever he moves out.

The brothers. No matter the age difference siblings will argue and roughhouse. These two do and it drives me nuts. But, Riley always wants to hang out with big brother and big brother just wants his privacy .... so yeah, they've got a lot to learn about learning to not be pests and learning how to make time for one another.

Pretty

Took a few moments for prayer and to give thanks.

We drove through Lake Elsinore because I wanted to get the feel of the area, just to get an idea on how it would feel if we ever decided to move back home. I didn't like it. Neither did Jacob. It's also quite hot there and there's really nothing to do in that town, besides of course hanging out at the lake. I was disappointed because I had the impression that it was a descent place. So I gotta scratch Lake Elsinore off my list of possible places to live. I'm not saying we're moving any time soon ... just speculating, just thinking out loud that's all.


We got to Old Town in time for an early dinner. Old Town is nice, pretty but the food fair has changed significantly since the place went under new ownership over a decade ago. Now, all the restaurants serve Mexican American cuisine which is NOT authentic Mexican food. However, we mainly went because of the slush margaritas and appetizers. Our meals were just ok.
To tell you the truth, if you want authentic Mexican food in Southern CA you will have to go to taco shops, not restaurants.

Gates, doors and windows have always caught my attention especially when they're decorated with flowers and vines.

I do enjoy mariachi music. It felt good being back home ... to places we would always frequent when we lived here.

We stopped by to see my parents. We had booked a hotel for the first two nights we were in San Diego. I didn't want to overwhelm my mom with all of our belongings. It was so good to see them. Here's Nathan with my mom.

This year's 4th of July was different for us. Since our car was packed with our luggage and cooler we weren't able to bring our tarp, beach chairs and grill. Because of that I told the kids that we weren't going to spend the entire day at the beach like we normally would for 4th of July. It was a bummer but it was what was best.
We decided to stop by Phil's BBQ in Point Loma for lunch. The wait was about fifteen minutes, not too bad compared how popular this place is. Everyone was at the beach that's why.

My parents. I cannot believe my dad doesn't like bbq sauce. What in the world?!!! I was beside myself. He totally doesn't know what he's missing. I mean, how can someone not like bbq sauce? So he got chicken (lame). I'm glad he came though.

We, on the other hand totally enjoyed some delicious bbq. Oh, and their onion rings are so good and so is their ranch.

After we ate my sister took my parents back home. We headed to Coronado. My sister got there later. We thought we weren't going to find parking because Coronado gets extremely packed but we lucked out. There's an area that's close to the Del that had signs closed off to the public. The city closes this area during the parade. When we got there it was around 3:00 pm and the sign said no parking until 4:00 pm. We knew that the parade was over so we parked there. We stayed in the car for a while just to make sure no police stopped by and had our car towed, in the meantime more cars were parking behind us. Within half an hour the signs were removed by city workers. We parked close to the beach, the Del and restaurants. That was pretty awesome!

I like this next picture because I have a picture at this exact spot with the Del in the background when I was a little girl. I also have a similar picture of Nathan when he was about 2 years old.

Well, since we didn't bring our tarp I shielded myself from with sun with my umbrella. I wanted to avoid getting a tan on my face because I get very dark. I brought a book and read while Jacob and Riley splashed in the water. Sydna and Nathan went to several stores.

Decided to not have Riley wear a rash guard because I wanted him to tan evenly. His belly and back needed a tan. Sand castle building is very calming, wouldn't you agree?

It was around 6:30 pm when we packed up our beach things, changed our clothes and decided to grab some pizza.

My sister arrived shortly after we ordered our food. She also lucked out with parking. We picnicked right in front of this pretty house. I hope these people know just how blessed they are about living in Coronado right off the main street and so close to the beach. I hope they're grateful.

Once done we walked over to the front side of the Del. We walked inside. It's cool that we know where to go, sort of like sneaking in since we all worked here at one point. I think it's sad that the inside of the Del has changed so much. I'm not fond of the changes. I don't know why things have to change. Sometimes it's good to keep things as they are. That's what gives it charm and character. We also recently heard that the hotel Del had been recently bought by the same company that owns Hilton hotels. Can't believe it! I wonder how much it'll change.

My sister loves my kids, ALL of them. And Riley loves his Tia Claudia. She spoils them all. Reagan and Lincoln would have been so loved.

Had to get a picture of all of us ... and my babies (I'll share more when I feel ready) in heaven are always on my mind.
The look on Riley's face. Funny!

This time we didn't feel like walking all the way down by the golf course like we usually do so we watched the fireworks from the Del's property. We were able to see them just fine.

The firework show was just ok. In years past Coronado was known for the best fireworks in San Diego but now the firework shows haven't been as spectacular as they once were. Now fireworks are set off on the San Diego Bay which is right next door to Coronado. We were able to see them and you could just tell that those ones were bigger and louder. We're thinking that next time we visit for the 4th of July that we'll watch the fireworks in Coronado but from the Bay side.
Riley never complained about them though. Kids his age are so carefree that they don't pay attention to those things. He had fun and he thought they were "so much fun and big".

It was a fun day though. We all enjoyed ourselves and the food. I liked being back in Coronado. This city has a special place in my heart especially the Del and Coronado Beach. They've been part of my life since I was about four years old and the Del was where Jacob and I met, twenty two years ago.

God Bless America!

Road Trip - Day 14

My dad took us out for breakfast. He always takes us to Aunt Emma's in Chula Vista. They give such large portions ... I wasn't able to finish my food.

It was our last full day in San Diego and we wanted to make sure we drove to places that we had missed days before so we headed over to the Children's Pool in La Jolla. This is a popular destination because these seals took over this area years ago and it's been closed up to the public ever since. Some people were upset by it and others were in favor of the seals. I personally think it's neat that the seals have a place to hang out at. There's plenty of other beaches were people can go.

Looking back on this trip I'm glad we decided to bring Riley along. He'll have all these memories to last him forever. It'll be fun for him to share these pictures with his own kids someday, and for them to see how long and messy his hair was, lol.

Different color seals.

His face, lol!

And never before in my life had I seen a baby seagull. It's cute!

Nice cloudy sky. Looks cold but it wasn't.

Then we drove a few miles and stopped by Mission Beach. This area is geared towards the young adult crowd. Even when I was a teenager this place had never appealed to me. It was a bit too crazy for me then but now that I'm older, that lifestyle doesn't face me. I know not to get mixed up in that crazy crap. We basically just came here to buy some souvenirs to take home.

We did walk around a little. It had been a while since we've actually walked around here and I know that this water thing wasn't around when I was a teenager. Jacob thought it would be cool to try and is hoping that whenever we visit San Diego in the future that he'll convince Nathan to try it with him.

After we were done walking around we headed back to Old Town. I wanted to walk around since we didn't get the chance to do that when we were here several days earlier.

We ate at a different restaurant than last time.

You all know that Riley is a very picky eater ... well, when he began eating this black bean dip I was SO shocked. The waiter even brought a second one and he ate it all too. I don't like that stuff so I couldn't believe what I was seeing. He loved it, lol!

Our food wasn't great. Old Town has changed SO SO much throughout the years. Nothing here is authentic Mexican food anymore. It's all Mexican American fare which is NOT the kind of Mexican food that I like. We left Old Town very displeased. Good thing we do know where to get real Mexican food at. I guess for us, from now on we'll just go to Old Town for appetizers and drinks and to enjoy the scenery but that's it.
But the desserts are still decent. This fried ice cream was actually pretty good.

We spent our late afternoon at the laundry mat. I didn't want to fly back home with a suitcase full of dirty clothes. Riley complained the entire time. I don't blame him. Who wants to spend several hours at the laundry mat while on vacation. I didn't either but it had to be done.

I like to take pictures of Jacob when he dozes off because when I call him out on it he always denies it so now I have proof that he did ... although he'll argue that I really couldn't prove that he was asleep because he had sunglasses on and I couldn't see his eyes. But if you look closely you'll see his mouth is slightly open so I won!!! And Riley is totally out, lol!!!

We also stopped by the post office to drop off two boxes that contained extra stuff that we had bought throughout the trip. We just didn't have any room for them in our suitcases.

Then we drove around Coronado one last time before calling it a day. Coronado is so pretty! and it really hasn't changed much. It's looked like this for years, for as long as I can remember!

It was a warm evening so we hung out outside with my dad for a while. Riley loves to run around and I sometimes worry he'll trip and bust his lip or hit his head hard on the concrete floor. Boys are so fearless.

I think all three of us were ready to go back home. We missed Sydna and Nathan and our home and of course the cooler PNW summer weather.

My sister sent me these two pictures of Sophie. She's such a character. Cats expressions are the best. These next two pictures of her made me crack up.

When we got her back in March she weighed 10 lbs. Well, she's gotten fatter since. Now I think she weighs about fifteen pounds. She's so fat that when she walks her belly fat wiggles from side to side, lol. But she's fast. Her blubber hasn't slowed her down not one bit.

Road Trip - Days 11 & 12

Oh San Diego. Why you gotta be so hot and humid! Anyone that tells me that summer's in San Diego are mild has got to have a loose screw in their head because the weather here has gotten very gross since we left back in 2003.
Anyway, we really try our best not to let the humidity and heat get the best of us or our plans so out we went to do a bit of sightseeing.

We first stopped by Balboa Park. The architecture here is so pretty. The cream color of the buildings against the blue overcast sky looks beautiful. Riley wasn't too fond in observing the detail of the architecture, lol. He kept saying how boring it was. Maybe for him but us grown ups sure enjoyed ourselves.

This picture perfect spot is very popular, naturally.

It was sooo humid. Sure makes one feel all yucky. This is why I don't understand people that love the humid summer weather.

We stopped by our favorite Greek restaurant, got it to go and then stopped at Seaport Village and had a picnic. Seriously! This is how authentic Greek food should look like especially the salad dressing. It should be creamy and NOT a vinaigrette. We have yet to find a Greek restaurant in Seattle that sells Greek food like this one in San Diego. Really, if their salad dressing is not a creamy one we don't eat there.
This is my favorite combo. Chicken kabobs with rice, Greek salad and a pita. Superbly delicious!!!! I get this every single time we visit.

After we ate we did some shopping and took in the views. Just looking around made me feel like I never left. Some things have changed but for the most part Seaport Village looks the same. So pretty here although they have plans to make improvements in the near future.
Riley wouldn't part from his Raphael balloon he got at the fair. He carried it everywhere we went, lol.

We got some ice cream to cool off and found a table under a large shady tree. We finally found a spot where the wind blew and kept us cool. It was so fresh here I didn't want to leave. There was also a lady singing oldies and Sinatra songs which made this experience a lovely one.

We left Seaport Village and headed back to my parents. We hung out with my dad for a bit  then around 5:00 pm we headed back out and met up at Hodad's with another one of my good friends Brenda, which I've known since the 7th grade.

There's 4 restaurants that we MUST eat at whenever we're here in San Diego and this is one of them.

Their milkshakes {or malts if you like that kind of thing, not me} are soooo darn good and also their onion rings. Their burgers are decent.

This is Brenda.

We always end up taking the milkshake to go. They serve you so much. I love old fashioned vanilla, sure beats vanilla bean. Can't stand that one.

It was nice seeing Brenda {and Moira the day before}. Two great friends. Seems like I've known them forever. Sure miss them.
Me and Brenda said our goodbyes then Jacob, me and Riley headed towards the beach to breathe in some fresh ocean air ... plus we gotta keep this kid of ours happy and he wanted to run around for a bit.

We headed back to mom's and watched Frozen to end the day. Went to bed a bit early and mentally prepared myself for the following day.



Day 12
We met up with my brother and family in Old Town. There's like a million Mexican restaurants here which makes it extremely difficult where to eat. This place HAS changed a lot since we've been gone. Most restaurants serve Mexican American style food and I hate it!!! My brother picked a restaurant that we had never eaten at before. He claimed it was delicious. We took his word for it. First of all service was extremely slow. It shouldn't matter that they were super busy, they should be used to this by now. It took our waiter about 25 minutes just to get our drinks. We ordered our food and there was a lot of fat on the carne asada, another negative. I ate what I could. Wasn't satisfied ... but it was sure nice talking with my brother and his two boys and my dad. His sons are very outgoing and talkative. I sure miss my brother a lot too.
Here I am with my dad and brother, oh and it was Father's Day. So it was extra special that I got to spend time with both of them because it had been years that we hadn't celebrated this special day together.

After eating my brother, dad and his family went their own way and we went to the Whaley House. The Ghost Adventures investigated this place. Cool right? But I don't think that episode was scary at all. Another show I also watch is The Haunting Of and the host Kim Russo who's a medium also did an investigation with Regis Philbin. Now, her show was a lot more interesting than Ghost Adventures since she's a medium and finds out a lot more information. Oh, I wish I could meet Kim. I would love for her to read my aura.

Of course we didn't see or sense anything paranormal. I guess it's good because we would have freaked out. Still fun though.

Next was the San Diego Zoo.

A little nervous about riding the skyfari but we had to because there was no way I was gonna walk this huge zoo on such a hot and HUMID day. Riley's face was so red I began to worry. Whenever I would see a restroom I would go in and get wet paper towels to put on his face and head.

So we took the Skyfari because we mainly wanted to see the polar bears. Well we had to walk down the steep hill a bit in the hot sun then as soon as we got to the polar bear exhibit there was a sign that said it was closed. That's great. They should have a sign next to the skyfari so people can see it and not have to walk down that steep hill. So there we are walking back up the steep hill which is a hundred times more of an inconvenience because of how hot it was.
This picture cracked me up because of the look of exhaustion on Riley's face.

We visited with the elephants which if I remember correctly are the ones from the Woodland Park Zoo here in Seattle. There's no elephants there anymore {not sure if the Point Defiance Zoo has any, that zoo is kinda lame if I'm being honest.}

After we were done here we took the guided tour bus back to the zoo entrance. The humidity was so uncomfortable that our clothes was sticking to our bodies and no amount of water was keeping us hydrated. Even Jacob complained about how awful it felt and he's rarely sensitive about the hot and humid weather like I am.

As soon as we got in the car and turned on the a/c Riley passed out. He was just DONE!

We went back to my mom's place and took a much needed shower. Then we watched the Warriors game with my dad.
For dinner we went to Victoria's {a taco shop} and I totally pigged out on rolled tacos with lots of salsa and an ice cold horchata. SO freaking good!
I've told Jacob that if I ever become overweight it'll be because of tortillas and pasta dishes. Those are my downfall. I can live without sweets but when it comes to indulging on my favorite foods it's gotta be Italian and Mexican food. Need to constantly practice self-control, lol.