San Diego

So, our kitchen needed some repairs that would put it out of commission for 3 days, plus possibly present a health/injury hazard for the 5-and-under set.  And we had some 2-for-1 Virgin America vouchers that expire in February.  What to do?  Why, go to San Diego for a few days, of course!  First stop, the USS Midway!  We had to bring Bravo (he has a very important cameo in "Planes") as he missed living on aircraft carrier.  

It was actually pretty cool.  The sheer size of the thing is kind of mind-blowing. The kids loved all the airplanes, especially the ones they could climb inside.

Tiny Starbuck

As for the adults, it was pretty much one extended opportunity to make as many "Top Gun" jokes as possible.  

Negative Ghost Rider, the pattern is full.

It's classified.  I could tell you, but then I'd have to kill you.

Highway to the Danger Zone

We stayed on Harbor Island, and through some luck scored the one room up on the suite floor, so it had a huge deck and balcony.  It was bigger than the hotel room, and it had a great view of the places we'd rather be staying (downtown/Gaslamp district for Daddy, Coronado Island for Mommy).  However, our travel companion's highest priorities were:  1) is there a pool?,  2) will we see boats?, and...

3) are we going to Sea World?



The biggest hits were watching the orcas swim around and practice with trainers in the morning, and the rides and playground at Sesame Street's Bay of Play.  Here's the part where the ride operator told me there was no photography while riding on Elmo's Flying Fish:

Less successful was the "One Ocean" show with Shamu & Co.  Turns out, the Soak Zone is no joke.  I'd actually brought the ridiculous Disney ponchos from our last SoCal theme park adventure, but no one around us was wearing them, and after a few light sprinkles from jumping orcas, I dismissed them as overkill.  Luckily, I at least left my phone & wallet in a Ziploc bag.  Because when the whales turned their flukes on us, it was sort of like having buckets of water thrown at you, except with a slow-motion "wow, I can't believe there's really a wall of water coming at us, why did I put those ponchos away" element of disbelief.  Lucie cried, screamed, and clung to me like a barnacle, Brennan sulked and hid under a poncho anytime an orca swam by, and we left before the show was over.

Of course, back at the hotel, neither one seemed to mind getting wet.

Brennan didn't seem to harbor any hard feelings.  His orca has been his constant companion since our trip.  His name is "Dusty"  (coincidentally, the name of the hero of "Planes"), and he only splashes bad people, and smokers.

Lucie, on the other hand, spent the rest of trip pointing to pictures of orcas and stating, "That whale splashed me", and muttering to herself in the back seat, "no splash Lucie, no splash Mommy, no splash Daddy, no splash Brennan!"

The next day was Legoland!  Neither Mommy or Daddy had ever mentioned the existence of such a place, but somehow the little boys' secret communication network had let the cat out of the bag.  

My childhood memories of Lego are mostly limited to painful walks across Uncle Gavin's lego-strewn floor, so I have to admit I wasn't dying to go.  But I didn't want to hear about How I Never Took Brennan to Legoland for the next 1-10 years even more.

It's definitely geared toward younger kids - there's not much that goes particularly high or fast. Despite that fact, they are weirdly strict about the age and parent-to-child ratio requirements.  Lucie, for instance, handily made the height requirements for this sedate horsey ride, but couldn't go because she's under 4 years old.  And no amount of coaching could get her to claim to be 3, much less older.  We probably spent the most time in the splash zone - no age required, no height required, no parent required - 

-and, as the little guy in the blue trunks soon demonstrated, no pants required!

We then of course had to go to the gift shop, which is about as bananas as you'd expect.  I think I lost each kid at least once.  I also encountered a very scary pirate:

I wish we would have had a little more down time - I would have loved to just relax on our ridiculously large balcony - but the kids had a fantastic time, and still love all their special San Diego souvenir toys. And, realistically, how can you possibly relax on a 12th floor deck with a kindergartener and a pre-schooler?

The kitchen was fixed & we had a good trip - Mission Accomplished, San Diego!

(...but we might be a little tired)