So We Left

The boys were booked to go camping.

With two friends.  Without parental supervision.

It was beginning to plague my mind ~ what were we thinking?

To allow two of our young men to travel right across the province

with two other young men ~ alone.  Craziness.

Yes, crazy.  But, also necessary.  And, good.

(Lest you think we've totally lost our minds,
one of those young men is an experienced outdoorsman
and the oldest in a family of ten children ~ he's very responsible.)

We cannot keep our young people from flying.

We just need to give them wings.  So, we do.

At least, we are seeking to ~ by God's grace alone.

Howie and I were walking on the beach awhile back,

and I got the idea that maybe I should run away with Emma.

Just for a week.  To my sister's house.  While the boys would be away.

What did he think?  He said yes.  So, I looked up flights.

They were on sale ~ of course!  Who goes to the desert in summer?

Hmmm...that would be us, I guess.  More craziness.  :)

So we left ~ just me and my girl.

We were high above Nevada in this shot, I think.
See how the clouds made shadows on the land below?

We landed in Palm Springs late in the afternoon and picked up our car.
It was HOT!  Note all the open doors.  I was inside trying to figure it all out.
We were given a Toyota Prius ~ a hybrid electric car.
What an interesting experience it was to drive that thing!

We drove up through the desert right past a wind farm ~
the windmills are lined up in rows and rows, and go for miles.

When we landed in the desert, the temperature was 110 F ~
as we drove it rose to 112 F.  It felt like standing over an open oven door.
By the time we arrived at my sister's home, after about 40 minutes
of driving, it was 91 F.  She had the A/C on for the Canadians
who were in danger of melting ~ what a relief!  

On Saturday, we drove over to Newport Beach.
Below, you can see Emma following her cousin and a friend
along the path.  See the line of path just in front of the clump 
of palm trees?  That was where we were heading.

The kids are at the end of the paved pathway in the photo below.
We were heading toward the white covered area at the top left.

Emma with her cousin ~ my sister and I each have one girl.

"Let's go fly a kite!"
What a great beach to fly kites at!  :)

Not quite brave enough to go all the way in ~ the shore seemed safest.

My sister's car was out of commission, so I drove.
The highways in CA are crazy!  
Here we are in the far left lane of a possible six or seven
(fyi...someone else took the photo...I'm not that crazy) ~ 
all of which were travelling in the same direction.

We met up with the men of the family for dinner ~
In-N-Out is a *must-do* when in California.

On the way to church on Sunday morning, Emma snapped this photo
of the crisscrossing overpasses as we drove under them.

We zipped over to Disneyland for one day.
Emma and I stayed two nights in a hotel since my sister
lives too far away for us to do it all in one day.

We had one meal out at a Mexican restaurant.
We had packed up a cooler full of food to keep us going for
the rest of the time.  It also helped that our hotel included breakfast.

A self-timer is a good thing to have on a camera.  :)

Emma talked me into going on the swinging ride.
I closed my eyes the entire time which worked out really well.
I was able to avoid motion sickness that way ~ yippee!

This photo is for my Dad ~ it's his all-time favourite thing to see at Disney.
The birds all come to life and sing.  It really is an amazing show.

Mid-day we took a break and went swimming and took a nap.
It's the only way to survive in the California heat!

I sat in the shade while Emma swam and swam and swam.

We went back into the parks for the evening.
See the roller coaster in the background?  We rode it five times.
Yes, my girl...she is crazy!  I was ready to be done after four.  ;-)

The castle is magical all lit up at night.
This photo was taken from the back end of the castle 
on our way out of the park.

We strolled out of the park slowly in order to enjoy
the sights and sounds of Main Street ~ so pretty!

As we left Disneyland, we walked toward the entrance

of California Adventure ~ everything was lit up beautifully.

The day we flew out, we connected with Howie's brother and family at In-N-Out...

it was our second meal at one of these restaurants on this trip.

We don't have In-N-Out in Canada, so it's a rare treat for us.  Yum!

The airport at Palm Springs is absolutely adorable!
Once through security, there is a pretty walkway that leads you to the gates.
It's such a tiny and friendly airport ~ what a wonderful experience.

Another self-timed shot.  :)

We watched our plane land, unload and load baggage,
and fuel up prior to our boarding.
Everything is so up-close and personal at this little airport.

See the round canopied building just ahead of the wing in this shot?
That's the airport we just left...too cute.

Coming in for a landing in Vancouver.
It's fun to go away, but, it's always good to be home.
We missed our family of men ~ it just wasn't the same without them.

So, our adventure came to an end.
Now, we just need to get our boys home safely and we will
all breathe a collective sigh of relief.

How about you?  Have you gone on any adventures
this summer?  Do tell...inquiring minds want to know.

Many Blessings,
Camille

**Photos in this post courtesy of both of us with
Emma's little point and shoot that's been dropped a few too many times.