Playing in California

The kids and I are coming to the end of a fun packed two weeks in Carlsbad, California with our friends Julia, Peter and Aiden. Nick is now safe on a mooring at St John in the US Virgin Islands, while we have two more days before catching our flight.
Although we arrived to beautiful sunshine and warm weather, and fires to the north (!), we have had a real mix of weather over here on the west coast. On the day we decided to go to the beach, the fog had rolled in and we could barely see the surf. However, it did not stop us from jumping in the waves, digging harbours and generally having a good time, as you can see. In between everything, I have been overdosing on Starbuck's eggnog lattes and other American goodies. Sadly, my waistline is very aware of this, as is my purse, sigh!




One of the great things about where Julia lives, is she is leterally 2 miles from Legoland, California. They are season pass members, and know the park inside out, which was brilliant. However, we had a bit of a rocky start, after Issie rode the Safari ride by herself (with Max and I in the jeep behind, and Julia and Aiden in front) and emerged at the end in tears. It is probably one of the mildest rides in the whole park, however, with very realistic animal noises coming from the Lego animals. This was too much for Issie, and after this we managed to work the rides a bit better. But go figure, do you know what she absolutely loved? The hairy, scary, roller coasters!!!!




Americans love their festivals, and California is no exception. All of us enjoyed walking around the Encinitas Street Fair last weekend. A colourful and lively event, with vendors selling everything from Christmas cookies to dog jackets, surf board shaped rugs to wooden carved baskets. Plenty of freebies for the taking, live music, and of course..coffee!!