harrisons on holiday: californi-yay! part III

day #6

by this day we were all beyond pooped! we had to take a slower day but not snail speed. dave and kristi wanted to go see the USS midway so we went to downtown san diego. we ended up getting there a little later then i had hoped. parking was a nightmare but the actual ship was very cool. i think bigger kids might have enjoyed it more. it was GINORMOUS! so many planes inside! it was amazing how they construct and do everything in those ships. we stayed there about 2-3 hours and could have stayed longer but the food choices were sparse and the kids were starving.

we left there and went to cafe coyoto, a harrison family favorite since aunt lynsey went to school there. it's in old town san diego so after lunch [and a very horrible pooping incident with my two big boys], we visited the mormon battalion. i haven't been here in years and was expecting to just stop by and look outside for a bit. the sister missionaries convinced us they could do an abbreviated tour for us so we decided to give it a shot. we were not disappointed! they've completely rehauled the tour to make it very kid friendly and fun. you moved room to room with some characters that appear in picture frames [reminds me a lot of the haunted mansion at disneyland] and get to dress like a solider, play music at the camp site, see a lighted fire, and even take a glamorous family picture. outside you can pan for gold in water, build bricks, and climb up the tower for a gorgeous view. it was a highlight of our trip.
 

that night we visited belmont park again and spent too much money on our kids. seriously, that place is a parent trap.

day #7
our last day we were on the hunt for landon's prize. he had saved his money up for months and still couldn't find something he wanted to buy. kristi had gone to a SWAP meet a few days before with her friend so she suggested we go there. it was actually pretty cool. it was my first time at a SWAP meet and it did not disappoint. i wish we lived there because there were several things i wanted to take home. sadly, all we did were some fidget spinners and seashells. so naturally our next stop was target where landon got a giant pokemon box set. we grabbed some supplies and headed for home.

our neighbors happened to be in the san diego area at the same time as us met us at the beach after lunch for some fun in the sun. they also have 3 boys who are almost the same ages as ours. we collected so many seashells and even clams! i had high hopes of killing those suckers a la the walrus in 'alice in wonderland' but kris has a bigger heart then me and threw them back in the ocean. we BBQed together after hours of playing at the beach then spent our last night at belmont park riding rides.

day #8
we happily said sayonara to san diego and headed home towards las vegas. we stopped at the san diego temple RIGHT as griffin had fallen asleep. but luckily he woke up right as soon as we were leaving. we got stuck in a HORRIBLE accident that made our 6 hour trip into a 9 hour one. i seriously thought we were going to die of old age on that highway. then we got lost in victorville and it was terribly hot and everyone had to pee. it was the worst. every single time we go to CA, we say we'll never go back because the traffic is insane. yet we go back, every single time. we are insane.

in all we had a blast and i'm so glad we got so much grandpa and kristi time. they were so generous and helpful; we couldn't have asked for a better family vacation after the terrible 6 months that is the legislative session.