Reef Point - Crystal Cove

Mormor and Pa were in town so we took them to Reef Point. This is one of my very favorite beaches. It is so gorgeous!! It is located south of Corona Del Mar along Newport Coast.

I love how relaxed mormor and pa look and I love how Summer is a little clinger monkey to Pa's leg.

It was fun to relax and watch the kids play.

The water is so clear and it isn't usually too crowded because you have to walk down a steep hill to get to the beach....and back up to go home. I'm thinking that rules out some of the crowds who don't want to carry stuff down and up the steep hill.

Nothing like getting buried up to the neck in sand!!

Park Day

We had a big park day. First we went to Irvine park and played on the equipment and let the kids ride the horses. They let the horses trot which surprisingly enough Ben really loved and Summer really did NOT love.

Lots of trees at this park make it a nice place to go on a hot day!

Next we stopped at Henry's and grabbed some yummy deli sandwhiches.

And then off to Castle Park to play and eat our lunch.

Farewell to Mormor & Pa

Mormor and Pa are off to Sweden for 1 1/2 years so we all headed to Ridgecrest to say good bye.

Great opportunity for a photo op with all of the grandkids:

I love this picture of Ben, he looks so sweet....and I love the picture of Callie up to mischief.

We went on train rides, went to John's pizza and just had fun spending time together.

We ALL stayed at Mormor & Pa's. I don't know the head count but it was ALOT. And we made it work and all had fun. My kids thought it was great to have one big slumber party.

"Pa"

While everyone was busy packing up their cars I took a few quick minutes to take some pictures of Pa and the kids. We are used to seeing Mormor and Pa on a pretty regular basis so it is especially hard for us to say good bye knowing we won't see them for a year and a half!

Corona Del Mar

Above: A little group shot of Mormor and some of the grandkids.

Below: Building sandcastles and playing in the sand on a beautiful day.

Callie and Gracie have such cute personalities and were so much fun to watch.

Ben was just enjoying spending time with all of the cousins and this is also one of his favorite beaches.

Playing in the Waves:

Grand Finale: Balboa Pier, Fun Zone and El Ranchito

On our last night together we headed to Balboa. First we went to the pier and walked around: Ben loved hanging out with Ethan.

Next we headed to the Fun Zone. My little family loves the Fun Zone so it was great to be able to go there with the cousins! Awww, check out Elsa and Steve on the big ferris wheel:

We also took the kids over to the carousel. This is a FAST moving carousel. I think the fastest I've ever been on - which makes it that much more fun.

Ben is an old pro at this.

And finally, we headed to El Ranchito for a very late dinner. So late that most of the kids fell asleep at the table - halfway through the meal. It was so funny to see them all passed out. The parents finally lasted longer than the kids. Whew!!

Here's a cute picture of Ben with his boy cousins: Ethan and Cater. Ben was in heaven being around all the guys.