California Dreamin’
How’s summer treating you?
So far it’s treating me very, very well. Thank you, Lord! It’s hot here in Dallas, yes. And my kids are underfoot and either always making a mess or always starving. But I’ve been on a vacation from writing for the past month and I’ve been glorying in sleeping in, watching movies, reading, and traveling. I needed some down time! This slower, more relaxed pace has been just what the doctor ordered.
A few weeks back, my family headed to California to visit my parents and my sister and her family. I was born and raised in Riverside, CA and I always love to return. I thought it might be fun to share a few pictures from my photo album with all of you.
We took a day trip to Newport Beach and hit some of our favorite spots….
The above is His Highness and my son, eating the king crab at The Crab Cooker. The Crab Cooker is a funky little place that’s been around forever. It’s special to me because I can remember my grandma taking me there when I was young.
This is the bridge from the mainland over to Balboa Island and these are my kids and my sister’s kids. Cousins! Notice that most are wearing long sleeves. As always, it was pleasantly cool in California in the evenings and mornings while we were there.
No trip to Balboa Island would be complete without their famous frozen bananas. They come on a stick like a popsicle. While you’re at the window, ordering your banana, they dip it in melted chocolate then let you pick your toppings. I opted for ‘everything’, extra heavy on the butter brickle. Delicious.
Because there are so many theme parks in southern California, my husband and I typically take the kids to one park for one day per trip. His Highness isn’t much of a fan of theme parks. He’d rather spend his vacation time playing golf or watching golf on TV. But I talked him into scraping together every ounce of his energy and leveraging it toward a day trip to Universal Studios Hollywood.
Right upon entering, we came upon a collection of the cars used in the Fast & Furious movies. My son, who loves cars, went straight to Vin Diesel (well…. the wax replica of him anyway) so they could pose together for a photo.
The rides were great at Universal, most notably their famous studio tour through the back lot. But their shows were terrific, too. This is us, waiting for the start of the WaterWorld show.
You can’t tell from the photo, but the transformer behind us wasn’t a statue. There’s a person inside that costume, so Megatron was slashing his arms, stalking around, and growling about how he was planning to either eat us or obliterate us outright with his weapons Thus, my face of mock-terror. I’ve no idea why the girls weren’t afraid for their lives. 🙂
Finally, back in Riverside, His Highness and I spent a luxurious day at the Mission Inn. The historic inn began as a humble boarding house in 1876. Over the next quarter century, wealthy Europeans and Easterners flocked to Riverside, attracted by the area’s profitable citrus industry and warm climate. In turn, the hotel became grander and grander. Ten presidents have visited it!
As fun as Newport Beach, Universal Studios, and the Mission Inn were, the highlight of the trip was the time spent with family.
Here we all are. Excuse the odd angle. We set a camera timer and placed the camera on the coffee table so we all look like we’re looming large.
Have any of you been to any of the places I’ve mentioned in this post? Have you been on a trip this summer? Or are you looking forward to going on one soon? Where are you headed? Please share in the comments. I’d love to hear!
Lastly, since I’m sure you’re all in need of summer reads, I wanted to tell you about a deal that LifeWay is currently running on the books pictured in the below image. Buy one of these in store and get any other one free. My Meant to Be Mine is included (which just won an INSPY Award – yay!) as well as novels by several friends of mine, including our own Jody Hedlund and Lynn Austin.
Happy reading!
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What a great vacation, Becky. I agree that time spent with family is the best vacation of all. We just had family and extended family here with us on the beach in Michigan over the 4th of July. And good friends of ours are joining us this weekend.The very best!
I love the pictures you’ve shared of your beach, Lynn! What a great place to celebrate the 4th.
What a great trip, Becky. I love the frozen bananas! I’ve had them chocolate dipped with nuts but I’ve never seen a stand offering so many different toppings. Wow!
We’ve never actually been to Universal Studios with the kids. I think we need to change that. We’ve done Disney about 3 times, but I bet the kids would love all the theme rides and shows at Universal, too.
Enjoy your book vacation. I’ll try not to be too jealous as I push toward my deadline that is only a month away. Ack!
In the past, we’d skipped over Universal Studios in favor of Disney, Lego Land, Sea World, etc. But Universal was surprisingly fun. The smaller size makes it possible to do everything in the park in a day. And the movie theme was great. I recommend it!
Grew up in Ontario, CA and have been to Riverside many times. Our family (son and family) are in Idaho Falls so spent the Fourth of Julybweekend there. Always have books with me on vacation.
I’m very familiar with Ontario, Wanda. Especially the airport. 🙂 I bet Idaho Falls was lovely and I, too, always have book with me on vacation. Reading time is one of my favorite vacation treats.
Looks like a fun time, Becky. It’s always nice to have some down time! What a lovely family!
Thanks, Lenora! I work so hard across the months leading up to my book release and deadline (which hit on top of each other every year) that I’ve found that down down time is key for me. A lot of writers believe in writing every day all year but that’s not my cup of tea. My creativity rebounds and inspiration slowly rises when I’m on vacation from writing.
Great photos, Becky! Sounds like a lovely trip. We live very close to LEGOLAND. Our daughter actually worked there for her first job :D. We mostly like to go to Disneyland, though the SD Zoo and Safari Park are really favorites, too. One of my all-time favorite vacations was a road trip following the missions up the central California coast, Big Sur, to Monterey. Oh, how I love that area, with a little side trip to see acres and acres of various crops, get some fried artichoke, pick up some garlic. All beautiful. Trying to get a little place up in Crestline (San Bernardino Mtns) where we hope to have family visit together. I do want to get to Mt. Rushmore and Yellowstone, but would also love to see the Geo W Bush Library down your way. We watch Fixer Upper all the time and just love Chip and Jo-Jo Gaines in Waco. Great prices down there! Yep, gotta have a couple books with me while on vacation. Thank you for sharing your lovely photos. God bless!
Shari,
I grew up spending time at my grandparents’ cabin in Crestline!! They had it for decades. My grandpa finally sold it when, in his old age, it’s upkeep got to be too much for him. I wish his daughters had bought it so that we could have kept it in the family. Love that area!
The trip you describe, following the missions up the coast sounds outstanding. I should do that one of these years with my family when we’re in CA. You’ve inspired me.
And we watch Fixer Upper at our house, too. Great show! My husband and I went to Baylor (as did Chip and Joanna) so it’s fun to support them and to see the sights around Waco.
We took a trip to Ithaca, New York to attend the high school graduation of our grandson. It was especially poignant because he had suffered three concussions playing lacrosse and football and had had much downtime when he couldn’t study because his equilibrium and eyesight were affected. Family members and friends have been praying for his health for three years, and he is finally seeming to get back to normal. He still must take several medications because of the concussions. He has been accepted to Rochester Institute of Technology and we are very happy for him.
We stayed for our oldest granddaughter’s 21st birthday celebration. While there we basked in the beauty of the tall trees and enjoyed the cool temperatures. We’re from South Florida and endure the stifling heat most of the year — except winter when it is cool.
God bless your grandson, Kaye! I’m glad to hear that his health is improving.
My second cousin attended Ithaca College. I’ve always heard that the town is located in a lovely part of the state. 🙂
Becky,
Great blog featuring your trip home, back in my neck of the woods…looks like a good time was had by all! Next weekend I will be attending my 40th High School Reunion weekend in Ventura, CA. The venue is the Crowne Plaza Hotel on the beach. Two of my close friends from that time (we’ve kept in touch and visited each other through the years) are coming down from where they’ve settled in Anchorage, AK. We will be rooming together at the Crowne Plaza also. We’re meeting in the San Fernando Valley (Canoga Park High School Class of 1975!) and driving to Ventura together next Friday with a stop at the Camarillo Outlet Stores to shop and possibly find some great new things for our weekend. The Anchorage girls will be stocking up to take home, limited designer access at home! Then a super fun weekend of activities…did you ever Grunion “hunt” (small silver fish that beach themselves) at midnight on the beach while a teen?? We did as high schooler’s and they are “running” Saturday night! Great late night activity after the actual reunion..SO looking forward to the time to reconnect and revisit 1975 through friends, songs and memories!
What fun you must have had! The banana looks delish! My hubby would have loved the cars!
I’m hoping we get to go see the grandchildren. 5 hours in the car on the interstate one way.. so
I’m excited to go but not so much about the drive 🙂
Yes, I have been to California’s Universal Studios’s with a choir trip, last month!!!! Loved the Studio Tour!!!!!!!! The Transformer’s ride was fantastic too!!!!!