On the road again...

Completed our 2nd week after our mission ending:).  As I type this we are driving towards Las Vegas, but still in the California desert...what is most amazing to me is how far out in the desert people still live - and in cities!  California definitely has a lot of people!

After arriving in Oceanside last Friday night, finding our place in the RV park and visiting briefly with Emily & Adam and Eli, who presented me with the  painting he had saved for me  

Eli's handiwork taped to the wall of our motor home:)

  - I can’t remember for sure but I think Rose might have already have been in bed - Saturday morning they met us in Oceanside for breakfast.  First place was super crowded so we went to Don’s Country Kitchen - also crowded, but at least had seating for us:).  After the fun breakfast we went over to the Manville home, rested a bit then visited and played with kids until we went with Emily to visit Imp.  He seems to be doing wonderfully and was a very patient little kids horse as each took turns riding:).  

Emily and Eli riding in the barn's golf cart.

Imp patiently awaitng his riders:)

Eli helping lead his friend over the bars:).

In the evening we went out to dinner for Emily’s birthday at a place called Bistro West.  They DO have a lot of fine restaurants near them:).  Then - after getting home we started making spaghetti sauce.  That probably sounds a little strange at that time of night, but Em wanted our family spaghetti for her Sunday birthday dinner with family and friends and I had promised to make it - but then forgot entirely all day Saturday:(.  We ended up putting it in the oven to stay warm overnight and through our return from church on Sunday, which worked really well (despite Emily’s fears that by leaving the oven on all night we might burn their house down) and it was perfectly ready when needed for the dinner.

On Sunday we went to church in their ward - Carlsbad 4th - and enjoyed visiting with missionaries who were just standing in the hallway and then in the chapel with the ones for the ward.  Emily got called out of class - sunday school or RS - I think by a member of the bishopric and we found out later it was because he wanted to ask her to speak in Sacrament the next Sunday.  Which meant we would be able to listen:).

After church we went back to their house and prepared for the “family birthday party” which was planned for about 4.  We so much enjoyed visiting and had a good spaghetti dinner with salad and garlic bread followed up with an amazing variety of cupcakes provided by Adam’s mom:)  It was a fun party.

Monday Emily brought Eli and Rose over to the RV so they could explore our home on wheels, then we all headed out for a walk (me on my Travel Scoot) to the beach where Em suggested I might do my Tai Chi:), followed by a stop at a playground (we were really near their old oceanside apartment) which was thoroughly enjoyed.  Then we headed to a mall (travel scoot worked great here too!) for Dad to find some jeans since he had discovered that every pair he had with him had holes in them.  Of course people here consider that fashionable, but Dad not so much...so we went jean hunting.  Found me a skirt, top and sweater that I really like too:).  Then we went to the far end of the mall so that the children could ride the carousel - stopping on the way to that to buy a little ice cream from the Sub Zero stand.  Dad asked the girl if she had met Emily, but her answer was no.  So sad.

Tuesday was our day to visit Eli’s school - so Dad delivered me to Em’s house/car and we left about 8:40 I think (much later than planned), but got Eli to school just as things were starting.  While we spent time there Dad went back to the motor home and worked on a multitude of things there - sorting through all the instruction booklets and papers to organize them and various other things before coming to pick me up later:).  Our school visit was much anticipated as it is a Montessori school - only true to the fact that Maria Montessori never actually copyrighted or protected her teaching methods and theories, it was quite modified from what our family had experienced when we lived in Canby.  Eli had no knowledge of that and just enjoyed his day - which is always a delight to see:).  As the music teacher said, he just loves everything:)!  Emily and I got to help at a table where the children were coloring books about the solar system - which had been the topic of instruction in the early gathering circle for the day.  Stirred up old longings in my heart to be working with young children but I keep reminding myself that there is a time and a season for everything.  Now I need to learn how to be an RV grandma:)!  We met Adam (who had been working) at Pronto’s for lunch and then made our way home to take care of little one’s needs and rest up.

Wednesday we made our way with Emily, Eli and Rose to the Museum of Making Music - quite an interesting place showing different periods of history and the instruments developed/used in them - and particularly the electronically inspired ones.  Every period had a particular instrument for visitors to play, which Eli enjoyed immensely, and at the end there was a room with a LOT of instruments to play.  Afterwards we went to the village pie shop for lunch - called ahead to see if it was crowded and the girl said she would save a table for us.  When we got there it was not crowded at all, but 15 minutes later we were more than glad we had reserved a table:)!  Adam joined us (he’d been working) and we enjoyed our lunch together.  Home again to relax at Emily’s.

Thursday Emily had a riding lesson scheduled, so Dad and I did some things in the motor home, then went back out to the barn where Imp is and found Emily hunting for a bridle for her lesson horse.  The instructor was besieged with a multitude of phone calls and other interruptions, so the lesson began a little late, but we enjoyed watching Emily ride.  Here is just one picture - Dad took a lot of videos, but I am not so good at getting those here and it is late now - I want to go to bed.  I don’t remember for sure, but think maybe we went back to the motor home for awhile and then joined Em and Adam later.

Emily at work:).  Could the day have been more beautiful?

Friday Emily had an appointment to have her hair straightened - so we used the time to get some things done in the motor home plus we visited the Surf shop nearby and enjoyed seeing what they had there.  Then left for Em’s planning to stop and get some birthday cards on the way  (I managed to leave the ones I had at home).  Dad wanted to visit a couple of other places first and to scout out where to get gas on our way out of town Monday, so it was quite a while before we got to Em’s - but we made it.  Got to visit with the little ones and snack a little, then we adults left for a 7:30 performance at the National Comedy Theatre in San Diego - a performance which kept the audience laughing a LOT.  Afterwards we hunted for a place to get a bite to eat, but most were closed...ended up at Chili’s in Carlsbad, I think.

Saturday, I tracked down where a Target store was and we stopped there on our way to Emily’s, so I finally got my cards:).  We all left a little after 11 for the Carlsbad Flower Fields - expecting a wagon ride around the field of flowers we had passed numerous times on the road, but found there was much, much more than that.  We spent some time there - first on the wagon ride, which Eli and Rose thoroughly enjoyed, and then a little walking around the various gardens that are there.  Adam stole the Prius to go show a house (always working!) and we rode home with Emily - Dad was amazingly able to squeeze himself into the 3rd seat behind the ones with the car seats for the kids.  Would have been fun to have a video of that:).  Hope all of you got the postcards I sent which showed those flower fields - they have quite a history and are quite beautiful.   Emily put the kids down for naps, Dad went back to the motor home to install my drinking water filter, and I just enjoyed being quiet for awhile.

Emily and I went to the General Women’s Conference at the church while Dad, Adam, Eli and Rose met with another dad and kids for a diner experience at a Hawaiian food restaurant:).  We got home long before they did, but once all was settled down, we enjoyed another episode of White Collar - a favorite of Dad’s now.

Sunday Adam stayed home from his meetings so that he could be in charge of getting Eli and Rose ready for Church which allowed Emily to be on time:).  A good thing when you are one of the speakers:).  Emily did a great job and we enjoyed all the chuch meetings.  We took a short break afterwards at the motor home and then joined Emily, Adam and friends for a steak dinner - barbecued by Adam:).  A fun way to end our visit here...we said our goodbyes to the kids and got up early this morning to pack up and get on our way.  I told Emily that next time we visit she is not allowed to entertain us - just let us visit:).  She gave us a list of ideas of things we could do and restaurants to visit when we arrived - and I think we did almost 100% of them:)!  Thank you so very much to this beautiful daughter and her husband for treating us to a very special 10 days:).

Next stop Las Vegas, then St. George, and finally - Payson, Utah!