At the Beach

Our first day in Anaheim was pretty relaxing. The kids were enjoying just being away from home and staying at the hotel. they haven't spent much if any time in hotels, so the hotel experience was exciting for them. We all enjoyed the novelty and convenience of eating a continental breakfast (though the kids stuck to Fruit Loops).

After trying out our pool, and testing the distance from our hotel to Disneyland, we decided to try one of the famed California beaches. Not knowing which one to pick (Laguna, Long Beach, Huntington, Santa Monica), we just headed for the closest one in Newport. This turned out to be fine. I'm sure even the cruddiest beach in California would seem "beachier" than what we have in Washington.

The kids were of course happy to take advantage of the opportunity to play in the sand and water. The girls splashed in the water and ran around looking for seashells. Then they all dug a great big pit in the sand, which John considered his pool.

Grandpa Jim and John got along quite well, even if Grandpa made him wear his hat.

John was in heaven with all the sand to play with. He even swam on it and stuck his face on it. He was not so fond of the water, to the point that if you tried to put him down in it (or near it) he would start yelling like a monkey. It was actually pretty funny when I set him down on the sand and the waves were approaching. He ran, looking over his shoulder and yelling. I was tempted to do it again but I felt bad.

I got to have my fun too, burying Beth in the sand and giving her a mermaid tail. The girls of course wanted tails of their own...

After we cleaned off the sand of (most of it) we had dinner in Newport at Original Pizza and took a walk on pier.