We ended our summer vacation with a couple days of work for me and a visit to Amy's parents before road tripping to SoCal for a few days.
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| Jad racing with Gong-Gong.. that kid thinks he's so fast :) |
We had planned to leave on Tuesday evening and night driving most of the night to get to Carlsbad for Legoland but Kegan and Alex also happened to be having their birthday dinner that night.
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| The birthday boys |
We got the kids to bed by 10p and tried valiantly to clean up and leave but gave in and decided to postpose til morning. We woke up at 5am and packed, got the kids up by 6am and were on the road.
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| Early morning drive with McD breakfast |
The drive went well and we ran into minimal (for LA) traffic. The kids did better than on previous drives.. they were up for a bit, then napped and eventually we did give them some screen time.
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| A quick stop midway for soft serve |
We had planned to meet Matt and Nicole for dinner so we had to kill a few hours so we stopped at the LA Natural History Museum.
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| We had a lot of energy after sitting in the car all morning |
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| Bear and fighting poses |
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| Sora loved the gem exhibits.. the boys not so much |
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| We met up with Matt at the playground before dinner |
We stayed at the Hyatt place next to Legoland. I think hotel amenities used to be much nicer before COVID.. the room itself was large and comfortable but the breakfast was just cold pre-packaged items, or the shuttle to Legoland wasn't operational. Unfortunately, amenities seem fated to go the way of airline perks.
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Finally made it to use our annual pass for the 3rd time ..
We Asian and gotta get our money's worth! |
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| Amy and Kai in their own fire engine.. |
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| Sora and Kai enjoyed driving around in the little go carts |
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| This was the tamest ride ever but Jad enjoyed it :) |
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| The favorite ride was the submarine and we went on it twice in a row |
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| Jad posing in the line to the Ninjago ride |
Overall, Legoland was a lot of fun but we might be ready to move on to the next level (Disney?!?) I think they did try a bit and it was mostly outdoors but most were not masked there. We're glad we didn't get into the submarine with the unmasked family of 7 that was behind us in line..
Jad had a bit of a runny nose actually on the first couple days of our trip so we were hesitant about going to visit the Halls but he did improve on the 3rd day so we decided to go for it. We made a quick stop at the beach in Carlsbad before heading inland. Kids were so anti but when they got there, they really enjoyed it
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| This ain't no cold Oregon or NorCal beach! |
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| Pretty nice family selfie! |
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| A drink to celebrate the Hall Udom reunion |
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| Sunset walk |
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| Anyone watch "Aliens".. |
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| Jad: Dad, can we get some these blue and red guns? |
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| Pool time! |
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Followed by Slip and Slide .. yes, Jad is drinking
directly from the slide .. sigh |
The visit was short and sweet. On our way back, we had planned to visit with Sabrina and family but Kari's basketball teammate tested COVID+ so they had to cancel. We still met with Theresa, Ray and their kids.
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| Ramen picnic in Monterey Park |
We finished dinner and then piled in the car. The kids watched a bit of TV as it got dark and then we let them sleep as Amy and I both drove the rest of the way home, getting in around midnight.
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| Evening drive on the 5 |
All in all, it was a great trip despite the shadow that COVID casts on everything. I feel a little sad, longing for easier times, but I know that we'll get through and things will return to normal with time. I wish that things were easier but am grateful for all that we have.
Next week: back to school!
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