June Cali Trip

We were in California for a few days at the end of June, visiting Popi and Grandma Mac and hanging out with Aunty Grub, Zach, and Baby Kate.  We even got in a beach trip with Julia, Audrey and Aunt Cindy.  It was a blast and I have tons of great stories to tell, but I always come home from California exhausted, and getting back on Eastern Standard Time is a real bitch.  Here's a quick summary:

-Popi and Grandma Mac took the boys to Adventure City where, despite Roan and Zach living in entirely different states, they are on a first name basis with the train driver Mike.

-Grandma Mac bought Roan a tiny motorized train called The Northern Express, which, once assembled, fits on the tray table of an airplane.  Roan adores it, and won't let Ilan touch it.  What he doesn't know is that as soon as he leaves for camp in the morning, Ilan grabs it and laughs an evil genius laugh.

-Grub and I borrowed a Suburban so we could take all four kids to the beach in one car, which we did two days in a row.  We were lucky to have two perfect beach days.

-Grub and I went shopping at Loehmanns, without any children, where Grub found me the perfect bathing suit, originally $120, on sale for just $26. Grub is a tireless bargain shopper.  She even bought a skirt and a pair of shorts that she later sold to our mom.

-My dad, the three boys and I rode Amtrak to the beach.

-We dressed the children in matching shirts, provided by my mom, and had a picnic in the park where I proceeded to lose the car keys to the Suburban we borrowed.  We all had to walk home.  Roan was tired so he sat on my shoulders.  Lani insisted on walking himself.  It was a terrible combination of extremely slow walking while carrying an extremely heavy object (my 40+ pound child).

-I went jogging with Mo and Grub several times.  I also took some walks.  People in California are so healthy, and tan!  I decided to go on a diet.  I'm going to start at the end of the month.  I asked Grub for some encouragement.  I think I said: "tell me something good about my body - where do I look particularly strong?"  She looked at me and was quiet for a long time.  "Your quads seem kind of strong" she finally said.

-Zach idolizes Roan, and Roan knows it.  He said several times: "I know Zach loves me."  Zach tolerates Ilan, just barely.

Thanks to Mom, Dad, and Erica for such a fun time!