Our Vacation

Every year around this time, we like to take a "vacation".  It really is just a weekend getaway and is usually nearby - Palm Springs, Carlsbad, San Diego - that sort of thing.  This year, we got crazy and went to Santa Cruz and Monterrey.  It was a blast.  The kids had a great time and everybody was in good moods, even Lucas traveled like a champ.  Last road trip I took with him, he cried basically the whole time he was awake.

First we stopped in Santa Cruz, and visited a place called "The Mystery Spot".  I definitely recommend it next time your up that way with some time to kill.  It is a house built on this gravitational anomaly.  I don't know how much of it is an optical illusion, and how much is actually the gravity but there is definitely something going on there.  In one room of the house, near the center of this gravitational spot, if you let go of the railing along the walls, it will literally pull you (quickly) to the other side.  As it is, while you're standing there, you stand at a 45 degree angle because of the gravitational pull and you don't fall over.  LL hung from the door way and came out to a 45 degree angle as well.  It's pretty nuts.

Next we headed to Monterrey and visited the Monterrey Bay Aquarium and a children's discovery museum called, 'My Museum'.  We also stopped at the Dennis the Menace Park and the boys rode a paddle boat, we visited the Wharf and spent a lot of time at the hotel pool. 

On the way home, we drove the 17-mile drive at Pebble Beach

and then drove to Oxnard to spend a little time with Lucas' godparents.  It was a great trip but we were happy to get home and spend one last day with Jacki before she left us. 

 
Jacki spent most of the month of July with us and she has been missed terribly and she's only been gone 2 days.  We want her back.  It was amazing how quickly she just became a part of our household.  Never once did it feel like we had house guests, we just had another member of the family here and her absence is deafening.  We loved having her and can't wait to visit her at her home in the near future.

Skeletons

I've been thinking a lot recently, about the challenges one faces in their lives, and especially my own checkered past.  My life, though I'm not especially old, has been rough.  I've seen a lot of things, a lot of them ugly, and I've had experiences that at times just made me feel old and worn.  Living like I used to, you spend a lot of time feeling exhausted, because you're constantly at war, whether it be with your own self or just fighting to stay alive.  I'm grateful not to feel that way anymore, but those are things that you carry with you forever. 

Now that time has past and I've healed, I have begun to wonder, 'Why?' Why did I have to experience those things and what purpose does it serve me in this life?  Experiences that I've had are things you just don't talk about openly, they are very personal, and you just don't go parading them around.  People look at you a little differently when they learn certain things about you, even people in your own family.  I have wondered what good can come of anyone ever knowing that about me, and often, I have no answers to that, so I just don't share it.

Then, there are days like yesterday, when I suddenly share that bit of information with a room full of virtual strangers and as the words leave my mouth I think to myself, 'Why in heaven's name did I just say that?'  But I quickly learn that perhaps it was meant to be said, not for me, because it's never easy to admit that to anyone about myself, but because someone else can benefit from my experience. 

Sadly, though, that's how it must be for everyone.  To think that no one in this world, in your inner circle,  or all the people who make up this life have not had challenges or experiences that have shaped them is foolishness.  The thing is though, no one talks about these things, because as people, human nature makes us judgemental and mean.  So to make yourself vulnerable, to admit your struggles is such a difficult thing, but in reality, people aren't as judgemental as we think (okay, some are, yes) and can really benefit from hearing we are all "human" and struggling too.

I don't know why I have been given my challenges, and I just hope that some day I can use my knowledge and experiences to help guide my boys in a positive direction and help them to grow to be good, well rounded, respectable human beings.  That, for me, would make make it all worth it.

Best Friend

My husband is LL's best friend in the whole world.  He loves his Daddy and it is so sweet to watch.  When my husband gets home each night, LL just follows him EVERY WHERE.  The best part of it though, is how happy my husband is to have him with him. 

Saturday is their day.  They spend virtually the entire day together.  They go to the gym together, then LL goes with him to run all of his errands.  They get haircuts, pick up the dry cleaning and get the car washed.  That's their thing, I am not allowed to infringe.

When my husband walks is the door at night, LL gets super excited and runs to him, calling out, "BEST FRIEND!".  And when I ask if I am his best friend, he gets this torn little look on his face.  He's afraid to offend me, but clearly, I am not his best friend.  He'll finally say something like, "No Mommy, you're a girl.  Best friends is only for boys."

I laugh, and think it is really very cute.  I love that he has a best friend.