Pismo Vacation 2009

Rachel was just a month away from turning 2 years old the last time we went to Pismo Beach. She remembers nothing. We're hoping this trip made some lasting memories for her.

We were to leave Monday morning and head to Pismo Beach and join our family that had all arrived on Sunday. We were anxious to get out of here and get away on vacation. So Steven and I packed the car on Sunday night in anticipation of perhaps starting on the road early the next morning. We started on the road early, and made it through Los Angeles without hitting any Monday morning traffic. We put the girls in the car in their jammies and had hopes of them perhaps going back to sleep, but no such luck. In fact, we weren't even 20 minutes away from home and Rachel started jabbering. Thus a movie was put into the DVD player. LOL. We arrived to the hotel about 9:30 and surprised our family at how early we had arrived. It was great getting up there so early, it gave us a full day to enjoy our family and the hotel.

It wasn't long after arriving, that the girls wanted to go swimming. So into the pool they went. Rachel is quite the little dare devil. By the end of the week, she was jumping into the pool from the side! After a swim in the pool, we walked downtown for lunch and a stroll on the Pier. And then we walked about to our hotel via the beach. For dinner, we went to McClintoks, a favorite and must every time we're in Pismo. Out behind the restaurant, there is a little play area for the kids. I wish this picture of Rachel wasn't so blurry, she's hilarious. And the picture below is of her 3 years ago when we visited. She's changed a lot!!!Tuesday, we hung out at the hotel all day. It was fabulous! The girls played with their cousins, went swimming, played some more, swam some more, and ate lunch and dinner on the patio overlooking the ocean. It was a great day.Late Wednesday morning, we went down to the beach to build a sandcastle. The girls gave up and played in the water and buried one another instead. Rachel loved the water and has gotten used to the beach because of all our camping trips to San Elijo over the last year. It was overcast and a bit chilly, but that was okay, and it didn't stop the girls from taking off their cover ups and splashing about.We ate dinner on the patio once again that evening. And later that night, Gramma and Papa had all four of the girls in their room while we enjoyed the hot tubs that sat overlooking the Pacific Ocean. It was NICE!Thursday was supposed to be the day we all headed home, but we extended our stay until Friday, as did Uncle Robbie and Auntie due to having to have their car towed to the mechanic. Gramma and Papa headed for home that morning and it was sad to see them leave. Thursday we hung out at the hotel again. Enjoying the cool weather, despite needing jackets and tennis shoes and socks, we were enjoying it. The girls played games and swam and then we went to dinner and came back and swam one last time for this vacation. Another great day, that's for sure!Friday morning rolled around and we were up and packed and ready to hit the long road home. We enjoyed one last breakfast compliments of the hotel and then we were off. And so were the cousins and Uncle and Auntie. Rachel, as always, had a hard time saying goodbye and the first couple of minutes in the car was a tearful one. Both the girls wanted to stay longer, not understanding that we had already extended our stay. I hope that with as much fun that Rachel had, this will be a vacation that will hold many memories for her.