Carter Family Vacation 2010

We took a family vacation to California last week. We drove to Vegas, stayed the night, then drove through to Long Beach to stay with my aunt. Anda was shockingly good in the car, and even slept fine in the pack and play until the very last night when we were on our way back. Not too shabby.

My mom flew out to spend the week with us, which was great. I even got a vacation from the baby for a day.

The first evening we were there, we walked out on the pier.

This guy

came up to me and introduced himself as a Native American. He said he couldn't get past Anda

because her spirit was too strong, and that I needed to listen to it. Then he had me listen to some tribal chanting music on his headphones. I kept waiting for him to ask for money, but he didn't. He also didn't smell like anything...mind altering. He must have been legit.

We had a lot of fun spending time with Juli and her family. We listened to Julian's guitar teacher play at a restaurant and we even got to go to one of his basketball games.

Dan and I left Anda with her Nana on Monday and spent the day on Catalina Island.

Actually, we spent most of the day just off Catalina Island, since we rented a kayak and snorkel gear. The sky was overcast when we started out, so I didn't think to put on sunscreen. That was a bad decision. The weather turned beautiful by noon, and I have the wetsuit tan line to prove it.

We kayaked to Willow Cove with the wind at our backs, where we saw the best fish plus quite a few seals. When we turned around to come back, the wind was not so nice. You can thank Dan for getting us back safely, because my noodle arms were pretty much useless by the end of it. It was really fun, though, and well worth the visit.

The best pictures, of course, were from the beach. We only went one time, but I think that was enough for everyone. The sand was a big hit with Anda, and the water probably would have been too if it had waited its turn and not knocked her over while she was still busy with her buckets.

Dan took her out in the water anyway and I think she had a good time. When she was done, though, she was done, and her word is law. Dan's castle got flooded, too, so we headed home before the tantrums got out of control.

It really was a great trip. I'm sure we will go back in the future.