Santa Cruz here we come

Madi making sand "cakes"
notice the lighthouse in the background?

Daddy is so content to just watch us play. He takes good care of us.

Mommy and her sandcrabs

Riding rides at the boardwalk

Carson loved riding the cave train, probably rode 4 times.

Madi wanted to dig a hole to sit in, but the rate she was digging, we would still be there. She LOVES to dig the most of all the kids. She kept begging us to go the beach.

Mommy helped make her a hole to sit in.

Carson too!

My cousin was in town visiting from Missouri and wanted to take a trip to the beach. We decided to head over to Santa Cruz for the weekend. We were expecting rain and I really didn't think we would have much fun in the rain but thought we would give it a try. We rented a beach house, and that made a big difference. We were able to have some space and the kids could play without being cooped up in a hotel room. We were able to save some money by cooking a dinner and all of our breakfasts at the house. When we arrived the weather was nice, cloudy but not wet so we didn't waste any time and went to the beach to dig in the sand. Nice part was being able to walk and it only took us probably 2-3 minutes. We played for a short time, then decided it would be best to head back, kids were getting cold. We played around the house and then went to the pier for dinner and to hang out. The kids were just loving watching the sea lions. I was touched and actually got a little emotional watching a family of otters take care of their baby otter. It was touching to see them all helping the baby swim. The next day we went to the boardwalk, were able to walk there as well and the kids had fun. After the boardwalk = a much needed nap. We cooked dinner and relaxed in the hottub for the evening. We went to have lunch one more time on the pier, dig more in the sand and finally were able to come home and get back to our routines. Love getting away, but it sure is a lot of work getting put back together and ready for a new week.