Bailey in California!
Oh wow, where do I start? First, thank you, CAdreaming, for all your help! James said I should have asked you to come down to Disneyland so we can buy you dinner for that. I really appreciated all the info?especially Disneyland. You?re a doll! Thanks again!

LOL this is going to be a Gracie type post?so exit now if you do not want to continue reading. Exit?ah, ?Freeways? on the brain.

Well it was -25 C when we left for the airport, stormy and blowing snow?we could barely see. We made it though and got all checked through?lucky me, the random passenger who gets a thorough check. Oh well, might as well experience the whole thing the first time out. :lol:

Well James and I were like little kids?first flight ever and did we ever enjoy it!! Landing in Minneapolis an hour later was great?it wasn?t as cold as Winnipeg. We grabbed some breakfast and made it to our next flight just in time?I believe Jesus carried us on the whole experience?things kind of just fell into place to make this the best vacation we have ever had?well actually the only one like this we?ve ever had. So we are finally off to San Diego... and to our delight we were able to see the USA landscape as we flew. We were thrilled!! We saw every thing from 39 thousand feet. Ok, keep in mind we are new at this?so everything is a thrill. LOL

We arrive in San Diego?HOT! Well for us?we wore winter clothes. We got to our luggage and there was the paparazzi waiting for us? LOL I am kidding it was an ABC weather guy interviewing people. I almost laughed when one lady complained about her 18 F weather. We had a chance to be on the evening news, but passed. We did see the broadcast later that night. We should have gone for it?I know our -40 F would have blown all their above 0 temperatures out of the water. LOL on TV the guy said they were having ?summer type? weather. James bursts out, ?What do you mean, ?Summer type? weather? Isn?t this a ?summer type? place??? LOL The weather was truly beautiful. People kept saying we chose a good week to come?we said, no, we serve a good God. I give him all the glory for the wonderful week we had, weather and all.

So now what? We knew there was a shuttle somewhere to take us to our car. We stepped outside and looked around and saw nothing, we were still in shock over this January weather?I have to say it was a first for both of us to experience weather like this in winter. This is our summer weather only.

Then James spotted the bus behind some trees. We went there?he boarded us and left right away. We got the car rental and the assigned us a car. James went and got it while I waited with our luggage. There was a big bus blocking my view?but I saw that a car had pulled up behind him because he was high off the ground and I saw the wheels of the car beneath. I knew it was probably James and went to look. I almost fainted when I saw him in a convertible. I thought surely there was a mistake!! I didn?t rent a convertible. He told me he said the same thing to the guy who gave him the car. The guy assured him that it was indeed the right car. Well, the whole trip changed for us at this point?no more saving gas on the brain. We spent most of our trip in that car! :lol: As I stood there in awe, I remembered something Gracie had said to me? ?Last time I splurged and got a convertible.? So I am extra excited to share this with her. ;)

So all the way to our hotel, we, like little kids in a candy store thanked God all the way there! We called home to put mom?s mind at ease?lol she tends to worry a lot.

We headed to the nearest liquor mart. (Well of course?it?s our first stop everywhere we go.) :lol: We got beer and brandy. Then we walked for about 2 miles, just to see our surroundings at a slower pace. It is such a beautiful city!!! We then decided to drive down to Mission Beach and watched the sun set over the ocean. How breathtaking!! I had decided I wasn?t going to take off my shoes and walk in the water. A guy offered to take a picture of us and a wave came along and made our shoes and socks all wet. Well, so much for that. We took off our shoes and socks and stepped into the ocean for the very first time. I shrieked because it was soooo cold. And I shivered at the nutty surfers out there. Once my feet started to go numb, the cold didn?t bother me, and we walked on the beach till the sun was completely set. Taking a walk on the sidewalk then, we soaked in all the sights and sounds?careful that the birds didn?t crap on us. :o

The next day, top down :D , we decided to head over to Disneyland to pick up our passes to all things fun. The Freeway!!!! Well one word describes that experience, Maniacs!! Where the hell is everyone going at 80 miles an hour??? Forget the hair! At 75 miles an hour, you don?t need a dooooo. Lots of Mercedes?, BMW?s and Toyota?s, everyone and his dog had a Toyota. :rolleyes:

We decided to try Knott?s Berry Farm first. I had never been at an amusement park, so this was an adventure for me. We decided to take the Silver Bullet first. Big mistake! After being twisted this way and that, and up and down, I stumbled off the ride, trying to figure out what was up and what was down. I decided then and there that that ride and I were parting ways forever. Ok it took me a while to get over the nausea and then we took on the Xcellerator. Oh we are brave...or stupid. LOL Well this ride excellorates 0-80 in I think he said 2.2 seconds?I might be wrong... LOL Ok? do not try to spit out your gum just as you are being shot out of a cannon. It will get plastered to your forehead!!!!!!!! :o Oh my goodness, I thought I was going to die. Then?we did it again. LOL

Feeling a bit less woozy than the Silver Bullet, I figured I could handle another?so we got on the Extreme Scream. I think that is what it?s called?it?s one that drops you 200 feet. Oh my goodness, I think at this point I was beginning to figure out me and these kinds of rides were not meant to be. It?s a good thing I have a strong bladder?.or else! We did this twice too. My husband looks at me, sweet guy, and told me I looked horrible. I believe he meant I was looking like I was about to barf. I think it was getting to be that way. I opted, wisely, not to go on any more rides. We decided to leave because we were both nauseous. We went to Fuddruckers. WOW what a huge burger. It was really good though and helped get over that nasty feeling. I couldn?t eat it all.

It was so hot. The car temp read 92 F as we drove through Los Angeles. The air was horrible?combined with the heat. Ick! How do people live there?? We drove all the way to Burbank and got off the freeway. We crossed a street called Olive Ave?I remember that cause I love olives. LOL We drove through the immediate neighborhood for a bit?really beautiful, so green for January! I am so not used to that! We got a drink and headed onto the 5 and took the 10 to West Hollywood. We saw the sign. LOL James goes, well, there, we saw it, now let?s get out of here. Well that was easier said than done?right in the middle of rush hour. Holy Cow!!!!!! I have never seen so many people trying to get where ever at once. It was clear after a while we should have rented bikes. I was amazed that they drove between cars! Nuts!!! :o

We headed south again and got to Oceanside. We had to put the top up at this point. It was getting really cold. At 8 pm we arrived in San Diego. Even though they do have smog there too, the air is definitely better? I thought anyways. After that hair rising experience?the freeway, we spent some time in the hotel?s hot tub to relax.

The next day we went shopping. An outdoor mall? That was really cool. We saw a movie and spent the day buying San Diego stuff. LOL I got a cool baseball cap. The guy at the car rental wanted to snatch it from me. :lol: funny guy!

On Friday we did a bit more shopping and then went to the Zoo. What a huge place. Lots of pigs! LOL It was tiring, but totally fun! I loved it.

Saturday we took a tour bus to Tijuana M?xico. Thank God we didn?t go on our own. Well needless to say it was a major culture shock for us. We are not used to people dragging us into their stores at the promise of 100% off. LOL which sounded great at first?till we realized it was marked at 300%!! Nuts! <_< One guy tried to sell me fake silver. I knew that silver has at least three stamps. His had only one. He tried his best. I was getting mad at him! He was relentless! <_< Later as I walked back to the bus, he tried to get me to stop again?I ran past him. LMAO at the Mexican "Zebras" donkeys. We ate dinner at a restaurant recommended by our wonderful guide. It was great! I love Mexican food, so this was a real treat. We went into this liquor store and they let us sample EVERYTHING! LOL we had a blast! That was fun! LOL We did buy Tequila from them for being so ? hick? generous. We all cheered when we got back to the USA.

Later that day, we went to Coronado to watch the sunset. A fighter jet landed at the airbase near by. It flew right over our heads. I thought I was going to be permanently deaf it was so loud. I have never, ever been that near to a jet like this before and it was a truly exciting experience.

Sunday we decided to stay in and watch football. We regretted that a bit. We wished we had gone to see more things. We did watch the first game then went down to the harbor and watched the boats and fishermen. The sunset was beautiful again! I saw a seal or sea lion, whatever you call them. It was fun to watch. We then walked a bit and headed to Anthony?s Fish Grotto to eat. A window seat right next to the water was a beautiful way to enjoy a good meal of steak and lobster.

Monday we headed down to Anaheim again. This time to Disneyland! During the fast and furious ride, I looked over to see a guy next to us picking his nose. Well that was ok, but to our horror, he then proceeded to eat it! Gross, gross, gross!!! Some people!

Disneyland was AWESOME!! We took on Jill?s wonderful advice and came with a silly sense of humor. It was great. The shops, the characters, the rides!! Jill, I think that Indiana Jones jeep driver is absolutely terrible. LOL It was such a fun ride. I loved it!! Then we took on Thunder Mountain?the mining one?I think. That was a blast as well. We stayed for 8 hours?we were wiped out. We saw the ?Billy Brothers? show?so funny!! And we wanted to take the bobsled ride, but were running out of time?.we had California Park to see yet and it was closing in an hour and a half. We had forgotten we had tickets to that too. I guess had we skipped the Winnie-the-Pooh ride we might have had time. LOL that was so cute and so not for adults?but we were kids that day and no one seemed to care. I was very impressed how organized the park was. Truly professional?you can?t even look confused without someone asking if you need help. LOL they must have lots of experience with tourists. LOL

The Hollywood Tower at California Park ? I still scream when I think of it! LOL Wonderful ride! We headed over to some Mexican place to eat. I LOVE Mexican food?so I was happy. Poor James?he went next door for a burger?we met and ate outside at some tables they had set up. He doesn?t know what he is missing!!

We drove back and headed for the hot tub! LOL That night, about three thirty am, I woke to some thumping. I was wondering what that banging was. Well I found out real soon. A woman suddenly starts to howl and the thumping got faster. They entertained us for a whole hour! We went under the covers and laughed so hard. James, he is so bad?he got a glass and held it against the wall?he only told me this the next day. He had been awake long before they woke me up. I was like?why didn?t you wake me?? He thought I might not appreciate being woken for that. I said ?are you kidding? this is a trip of firsts?I want to hear and see it all. LOL They next day we saw them come from the room. I was tempted to thank them for the entertainment?LOL

The next day we went to Sea World. We took the Rapids ride with two Chinese gentlemen?in khakis and nice shirts. One complained ?too wet? the whole time. That is all I understood. LOL it was clearly not his idea of fun. We had a blast!

The Dolphins were great and the Whales. We left the park wet. LOL Their 'Journey to Atlantis' ride was great?but you get wet! We headed back to the hotel and I grabbed a Mexican snack?again. LOL Ok, most of the time I didn?t understand a word they said?so when I asked a lady...why they had those carrots at every Mexican restaurant?she shouts to the front and immediately they placed a bag of carrots in with my order. I said ?ok, then.? I paid and left. LOL

Later that night, we went for steak at The Black Angus restaurant. They make great food!! We headed to Target to buy more luggage. We needed more for the things we bought. Nice store?but I like Wal-Mart better!

The next day we took the car back?tearfully bade it goodbye?LOL just kidding?and headed to the airport. We flew back and managed to grab food in Minneapolis before flying to Winnipeg. -25C I almost got back on the plane?almost.

My kids, they were so excited to see us. They threw themselves into our arms?I cried. Kids have a way of making grown people cry. Thank you grandma for staying with them the whole week!!

Well that was my trip, knowing me; I am sure I left out lots?and will think of them when no one cares anymore. LOL I have lots of pix, but its too much work to put them up tonight...maybe later. ;)

It was a great week, and I definately would go there again! :D