Well after 3 long months, we finally spilled our guts and told Davis his birthday memory! We are huge fans of memories over stuff and this plan literally was perfect with no hiccups so we knew it was a must do trip for our little man! The night of his family party his uncle Jarrett and Aunt Stephanie face timed him to tell him they had a present for him but he would have to CA to get it. In Davis fashion he said "well, why don't you just come here and give it to me?" Jarrett insisted we come there because it would not fit on a plane. D turned to ask us if we could go and we of course said yes and then the excitement began. Emmy responded like I knew she would and could not wait to board the plane, D responded like his daddy..he fell out of his seat and just covered his face. He was so excited in his shy little way. We all knew what Emerson was feeling, because she was shouting it! HA! Four days later we boarded a plane and set off for our journey to the west coast!
They were perfect on the plane and even earned a set a of wings, can you tell they were so excited???
They napped like angels, maybe because we had to get up before 4am to get on the plane, nonetheless, their naps made for quick flights!!
Davis also did a lot of reading, especially the airplane manual for if we crashed!!!
We made it!!!! Emmy was so glad to be there she shouted, "WE are in California!!" Everyone erupted in laughter and it felt good to be around such joy! Davis and Emerson shared with everyone we were sitting near why we were in CA, and who lived there! Pretty sure everyone knows us from all their stories!!
It was so good to see this face!! I miss this man more than he will every know! He makes me so proud and I love his heart, his joy and his will to make life better for the oppressed!
After putting our stuff at Jarrett's house and playing at the park literally in his back yard we ended up at a bass pro for some window shopping and bowling!
The kids loved the fish bowling and the adults may have had some fun too! Walker was convinced he could throw the ball the same speed of a professional bowler!! HA!
After bowling we worked up an appetite for ice cream!!!
Check out Emerson practicing her bowling moves...
The park in J and S backyard was amazing and we loved shooting ball, playing in the sand and climbing the rock wall.
HA! Maybe daddy enjoyed these a little too much!!!
The next morning the kids were ready to explore and we headed to San Fransisco. Again the parks were amazing and this is us at the top of one of the play structures...
Here we are enjoying a trolley ride to provide some relief from all the steep hill climbing we were doing.
More parks...seriously TN needs to see all these neat play structures and slides, we are so behind!!!
The view from the top of one of the structures...
PHOTO OPP! Love these sweet souls and picture moments!
My brother, being the sweet soul he is worries that my kids won't know him or will not be as close to him since he lives so far away. Look at these pics and you will know his worries are in vain, my kids adore their uncle j. He is all hands on deck when he is around and they cherish the memories we spend with him!
One of the steep hills in SF. Whew can you see the sweat on our faces?
More parks....
Next we rewarded ourselves with some yummy ghiredelli chocolate!! Gracious it was good after all that walking!
Checking out the views of SF...
Whew all that walking and exploring wore us out so we are headed back to san jose!
My main man mean mugging and photo bombing me and my bro!
That night we ate the with the Kim family. We had LOTS of yummy seafood! I may have had too much or eaten something bad so I paid for it that night and the next day!!! Here is Walker experiencing his first oyster!
We crashed and watched a movie after our long day....
The next day we spend with Aunt Stephanie...we slept a little later, ate breakfast at a really yummy diner and then headed to see where Uncle J works. I have to take a moment to say how proud I was to see what my brother is doing. I had to hold back the tears of happiness as we toured the school, met other administrators/teachers and students. My brother is unlike no one I have ever met. He has a service driven heart and loves to help those who everyone else has given up on. He is a remarkable role model and I am one proud big sister.
We headed to San Jose's zoo next and the kids were thrilled they had SO many rides! Seriously I have never seen anything like it! They also had an incredible play place, and some pretty neat animals along with a petting zoo.
We also sat and watched a puppet show. Before the show Emmy joined some other kids and used the stage as a dance party.
Maybe he was a little tired.....this western time zone is no joke!!
MORE RIDES!!!
Emerson was pretty excited about this!!! A pink castle on our dragon ride!
THIS ONE is possibly my favorite!!! She was frighten to ride the roller coaster, but by the end of the day she was begging for more! HA! Check out the videos too! She kept saying, " This rollercoaster is going to make me throw up, or I'm going to pee in my pants!"
After the zoo fun we went to the neatest ice-cream place ever!!! You pick a cookie and ice cream then they build you a ice cream cookie sandwich!! YUMMY!!!
That evening we hung out with some of J and S's friends who have quickly became our friends after our two visits out to Ca!
They even made D a birthday cake!!!
His birthday eve night..Sweet dreams my little 7 year old who I would love to keep little forever, You keep growing little man and do big things for God!
The reveal of the birthday surprise!!!!!!
HE WAS EXCITED!!!!! He had no idea what he was getting into but boy oh boy did he have some fun!!!
Friday morning, or birthday morning we went to Oakland and visited their zoo. They had an amazing ride that took you over the entire park and allowed you too see the animals from a different view! ALL zoos should invest in this, it was AMAZING!!
The animals were all very active and out playing and eating!
They had rides too!!!
We rode a train around the zoo as well.
The kids found another petting zoo and were pumped to brush and feed the animals.
We found a mall and grabbed lunch and did a little birthday shopping as well! Davis was sure his pizza was so big because he was so much bigger! HA!
FINALLY it was game time and let me just tell you we had an adventure. Aunt Stephanie made sure we had some royal treatment and we saw and did things not many people will ever do in their life. We went through the same tunnel as the players, saw some players and their wives/families...funny story when a player was coming they would block the hallways and allow a time before anyone could walk! CELEBRITY zone!! Here are some videos/photos from our once in a lifetime evening!!
A hole in the wall where another teams player threw a chair at the wall and then came back and signed in and they made a display out of it.
A player coming through the halls...
Where all the magic happens to get the game televised...look at all those wires!!
Walking out on the court!!!!
Davis's feet on the court!!!!
The Wellington family feet photo..
Can you say excited????
Watching curry warm up is something this guy will never forget!!!
Golden state played the rockets and D likes this guy too!
After warm ups we moved to our seats....
Then we got upgraded by our amazing aunt to a suite!!! WOW!! 3 different seats in one night!!! AMAZING!
WE may have enjoyed the suite life a little too much!!!
The kids and daddy enjoyed seeing how they measured up to the players!!!
Golden State wins!!!
And a italian joint for some yummy homemade pasta!
Ready for TN, our beds, school and our family!
Well, maybe not!!!!
We had an unbelievable time, made so many incredible memories and got some CA love from J and S. IT was an amazing trip, so worth the secrets, planning and jet lag!
No comments:
Post a Comment