Trezise Family Vacation-Day 1

We have never been on a "real" family vacation, and since Landon is seven, Will and I thought it was high time we remedied that situation. About a year ago, we started planning and saving for a trip to California, and last Saturday morning, we set off! I am not sure who was more excited-the kids or Will and I.



Here we are, all loaded up and ready to go. (What does it take to haul 6 Trezises to Cali.? 2 giant suitcases, 1 regular sized suitcase, 1 duffel bag, 3 Pillow Pets, 2 pack-n-plays, a GPS, a portable DVD player with 2 screens, lots of DVDs, snacks galore, a Princess Tiana doll, Hippo, a stuffed snow leopard, 4 blankets, and a double jogging stroller. I am still not sure how it all fit into our van along with six people and 4 car seats!!) Whoo hoo!!! Before we got very far, we made a small detour so I could attend the Mesa temple with a good friend of mine, Amber Berner. It was her first time through, and I am so glad I was able to go with her. It was a wonderful experience.
Then we were headed out! We met my Mom and her husband Elmo in Casa Grande for lunch, and ate at one of my favorite guilty pleasures, Chick-fil-A! The kiddos had a lot of fun in the playplace, and I started my vacation off right with some nuggets, polynesian sauce, and vanilla soft serve. So much for my diet. :)

Here are Mom and Elmo sending off with a smile. :)



We went as far as Yuma, AZ the first night. Will found us an awesome hotel, where we splurged and stayed in a suite. We also treated ourselves to Olive Garden for dinner. We waited for nearly an hour to get a table. Once we were seated, they brought us some bread sticks. Landon looked at them in disgust and said, "We waited all that time for bread sticks!" Tristan grabbed his cloth napkin and said, "Why do they have rags instead of napkins here?" Cultured, aren't we? ;) Once the kids' pizza came, their opinions of the restaurant improved, and we enjoyed a lovely meal.

Here we are, waiting for our table on the lawn outside. We purchased a new camera for our trip, so we were having fun trying it out. (I have been complaining about our old camera for years. I think Will was finally tired of hearing about it.)



And here we are, enjoying our meal. Although Landon did not appreciate the bread sticks, Sawyer loved them!



Here we are, in the living room (on the pull-out couch) of our hotel room right before family scripture study. We are ready for San Diego! I just hope San Diego is ready for us!!