Road Trip

The kids in the car for the long drive

We had to make a stop in Las Vegas to get fuel at our favorite store

This year for Spring Break, Mike and I wanted to do something fun and different. We planned a trip to California and Disneyland, but wanted to surprise the kids. I packed their suitcases and the car while they were at school. Mike came home from work and we sat down to eat dinner just like any other night. After we cleaned up the kitchen and the kids were getting ready for bed, Mike suggested to them that we go for a family drive, something we do a lot as a family. Already in their pj's, they brushed their teeth and jumped in the car that was parked in the garage. They didn't even notice the luggage rack on top of the car was packed full. We set off and didn't say a word about where we were going.
It was about a hour later when Nate looked up from his book and asked, "Dad...where are you going?" We looked at each other and then turned around in our seats and shouted..."We're going to Disneyland!!!" They all stared at us and looked a little confused. Austin slowly blurted "What?" and Megan clapped her hands and Jaron shouted back "Wahoo!" It took another 30 minutes to explain our trip and everything we had arranged at home to go. Nate was sad to miss a few days of school and Austin was in shock. I was pregnant with Megan the last time we had gone, so it had been 5 years since we had last been to Disneyland and the boys were 5 and 3. They couldn't believe that we were going and excited to go somewhere warm. It was a great surprise and couldn't think of a better place to spend our Spring Break.

We left Friday night and after several stops, we arrived late afternoon on Saturday. We took the rest of the day to unpack, get settled in our hotel and went swimming. The next day was Sunday and we found a meeting house only 10 minutes away from our hotel. We went to the early ward block of meetings and loved visiting the ward. It was a great experience for the kids to see another primary and to share their testimonies to them.  

We decided to spend the rest of the day sight seeing and go for a Sunday drive. We drove into LA and set our GPS to guide us to the Hollywood sign, the Walk of Fame, Grauman's Chinese Theater, all around Beverly Hills. My favorite sight we visited was the LA Temple. It was so fun explaining to the kids that this was Uncle Jeff's temple growing up and he came here often to do Baptism's for the Dead and received his endowments here before his mission, since growing up nearby in the city of Laguna Hills. On our way home we stopped to see Venice Beach and walk around the boardwalk. It started to get windy so we jumped back in the car and headed back to the hotel. What a great day for sight seeing! 

This one was my favorite!

 We spent most of our time at the temple grounds and walked around the Visitor's Center. It is always so fun to take the kids to see the temple in every city we visit, no matter where we go. Palmyra, Portland, San Deigo, Manhattan, Las Vegas, Manti, Louisville, KY. It doesn't matter where we are, there is always the same special feeling. With all the crazy traffic, masses of people everywhere we went that day, we found serenity, peace and safety here at the temple.