The Vacation Blog

Yes, we are finally getting to the vacation blog.....

On June 30th we packed up our car and headed off for a 10 day road trip and vacation. Since we did spend nearly half this trip in the car, this blog wouldn't give you a true taste of the vacation without some commentary on the time spent in our minivan. Each kid presented a different worry when it came to the car ride.

For Olivia it was bathroom breaks. We knew that she would stay entertained with DVDs and the simple fact that she spends hours a day sitting and looking at books. A couple days prior to leaving it appeared that Olivia was on the verge of being completely potty trained. We weren't sure how the vacation would effect that. Lucky for us, it moved her into the completely potty trained category. She did a great job telling us when she had to go and letting us know how long she could hold it. We went the entire vacation without an accident, and haven't had one since.

With Alex, we weren't sure how he could stay entertained and if he would sleep. Alex has always used pacifiers just for sleeping and we didn't want this to be the start of a full time habit. He turned out to be a road trip stud. He kept his normal nap schedule and was entertained by books, toys and Adriane sitting in the back and talking to him.

Olivia's great sense of humor made the car trip much easier for everyone.

Our first stop was Tucson, Arizona where Adriane's brother and his family live. We all had a good time, but no one as much as Olivia. It's been 6 months since Olivia and Alanis last hung out but you never would have guessed that... within minutes of arrival they were singing songs, reading books, playing games, and pretty much attached at the hips. Alanis was also so good with Alex. She shared toys with him and gave him plenty of hugs and kisses!

The girls - catching up.

The girls - watching cartoons.

Alex enjoying the couple of minutes that Tucson fell below 90 while we were there.

The kids - after a nice dinner out.

After a couple of days in Tucson we jumped back in the car for a 6 hour drive to San Diego. While in San Diego, we tried to find a balance between relaxing and sight seeing. Unfortunately it never got warmer than 70 degrees so our plan of just sitting and relaxing on the beach never happened. We did get to spend the 4th of July having a bbq with some friends and catching up. We will let the pictures tell you about the rest.

Beach Days: Adriane sharing her favorite beach activity with Olivia - finding seashells.

Alex's first ocean crawl.

We saw an entire beach filled with Seals!

Olivia the Explorer, right before tide pooling.

Wild Animal Park

It's too bad this bird didn't have the same bladder control as Olivia... shorlty after this picture, he let loose on my shirt!

Disney Land

M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E

The princess lunch at Ariel's Groto.

Each princess autographed Olivia's crown!

This moment is still discussed daily at the Nau house.

The Nau Clan after surviving Disney Land.

After 5 days in California we headed back to Tucson for one night and then made our way home!One last story in Alanis's play house.

Overall, our first vacation as a family of four was a good one. Even if it did take us nearly a month to recover and post this blog!