trip from hell

Sorry, N, but you know what I mean!!! Anyways, we're back from CA. Finally. I'm not really sure why I thought driving from Utah to California with a 1 year old was a good idea. Because it's really not. Paisley had just gotten over her stomach bug when we threw her in the car and drove to Vegas. As we were leaving I could tell she was getting a cold, but she was still in good spirits.



My friend N and her daughter A and P and myself drove to Vegas, saw my aunt and uncle, stayed the night there, then got up the next day and drove to Hesperia, where my friend's parents live. Stayed there for a night, then headed on to Carpenteria and the beach. We weren't sure if we wanted to camp, and I didn't know if P would do it or not, so we looked into getting a motel for the night (we already had access to one for the other nights) and got one for a good deal. The motel we were already staying at, Motel 6, had good rates so we just stayed there, but I had to take a picture of the bedspread and it's wonderful tackiness. They made these specifically for the hotel, because the sign is on the spread. I hope they fired that designer.




I have never been more thankful for anything in my life than that hotel room. Well, except for the epidural. Why? Because I woke up that night around 12:30 and puked and pooed for the next 12 hours or so. And if we had been camping? I don't even want to think about it. So as I lay ill in bed that first morning at the beach, N took Paisley with her to the campsite. Besides throwing up, I cried and cried and cried that I wouldn't be there to see my baby's first time on sand, or the first time to go in the ocean. Luckily, they ended up not going to the water and I was still able to experience that with her. Which she HATED. Not disliked, but HATED. Would not touch the sand, screamed when I put her in the water. See her face? That's pure terror.

By the last day, she finally decided the sand wasn't so bad and walked around on it, but still wouldn't go near the water.

The whole trip she seemed a little grumpier than usual, but I thought it was just being out of her element, new places, too much McDonalds, but I noticed today that both of her bottom eyeteeth have broken through. That probably explains why she was up for 2 hours in the middle of the night last night, and a few nights ago.

We still have a few days before we go home, and I've got more to update on, but I wanted N to know that we had a great time on this trip, thank you SO MUCH, and I apologize for the grumpy/whininess/crying. From P too. We're really excited to get home to Charles and our animals and our house and our beds and our car and all those little things that get so taken for granted but that we miss so so much.