California or Bust: Day 1

Well... the conclusion of our recent trip to California?

A:

We want to go back!

WE WANT TO GO BACK!!!!!!  AAAAHHHH!!!

(And lemme tell ya, Tim's mom's comment on our previous post has me both scratching my head and giggling in guarded anticipation.  I love me some Disney!!)

We had such a great time!!!  Isn't it funny that whenever you return to a place where you lived, you seem to love it so much more than when you were actually living there?  I used to have very mixed feelings about our Pasadena days -- lots of pros but several cons, too. However, this vacation was 100% awesome.  It doesn't hurt that we spent three wonderful days at Disneyland (one without kids, wheeeee!), a jam-packed, fun-filled day in Pasadena, and an amazing day in Santa Barbara for a wedding.  I think this was a "Best Of" trip for us, and we made sure to do all our favorite things and visit our favorite places.  However, we left California still wishing that we'd had more time!!!  There is just SO much fun stuff to do.  I really, really miss California!!!  AHHH!  SUCH A GREAT TRIP!!!

So, here's my insanely lengthy recap of our trip.  I decided to break up the photos by day, so here we go with DAY 1!

We left on a Sunday afternoon at about 2:30 PM.  (I had to work that morning, but fortunately my coworker gave me the boot a little early, which was nice.)

Weston was really, really eager for this trip.  He readied himself beforehand by doing things like keeping me in his room at night for much too long, talking about rides at Disneyland, and constantly mentioning the "little TV" that would go in the car for the long drive.  Here he is at the get-go, ready for that beloved in-car movie-watching!  (I love that skeptical look on his face.  If only he knew at that point how often I was going to be pointing my camera at him.)

And here we are, just before we started driving.  SO EXCITED!

I didn't get a ton of pictures on that first day, just because we were pretty much just sitting in the car, heading south, watching the landscape roll by as the sun set over those high desert hills.  However, I snapped a picture at a rest stop of brave little Cole in his carseat.  (Bless his heart.  He spent a LOT of time in that carseat.  Tim and I made every effort to remove him from it whenever possible, so he didn't develop sores or something.  Haha!)

The drive south was uneventful, until we reached St. George and were forced to exit I-15 and make our way along surface roads at one point.  Apparently a tractor-trailer hauling bees (yes, BEES) had overturned, so the fire department (in their full bee-resistant netting, we heard) re-routed all the traffic off the interstate.  Ha!  Never had that happen before!  (Bees...)

Anyway, we finally reached Las Vegas around 10:30 PM, slightly exhausted but slightly exhilarated by all the lights.  First we drove up and down the strip, and then, thanks to a great deal online ($34?!), we spent the night at none other than the CIRCUS CIRCUS resort, Las Vegas Boulevard's most famous gaudy monstrosity!!!  (Tim said that he would compare it to "Denny's with a chandelier."  LOL...)

Anyway, after navigating the resort for a little while, we finally found the right entrance to the hotel lobby.  Weston had a happy little time while Tim parked the car:

As with all Vegas resorts, we had to walk through a maze of lobbies and shops and halls to find our room (which, despite the $34 price tag, really wasn't as awful as I was assuming). Lights were out by midnight, with me sharing a bed with Cole and Tim sharing a bed with Weston.  Of course, as is his habit when sharing a bed with someone, Weston spent most of the night kicking, punching, and yelling (and let me just add that his feet just happened to be lined up with Tim's crotch), so Tim and I switched around 6 AM, hahaha.  A restful night?  Heavens, no.  But we did get a little rest before our second day of driving!!


Jump to:
CA Trip Day 1
CA Trip Day 2
CA Trip Day 3
CA Trip Day 4
CA Trip Day 5
CA Trip Day 6
CA Trip Day 7
CA Trip Day 8
CA Trip Day 9
CA Trip Appendix