(Continuing on from my previous post, and the first part of our western adventure)

…Soaking up the sun and sights around San Diego – check
…Lots of revelry with friends – check
…Mounds of ice cream consumed – check
…Bonding-time with grandparents – check
…Panicked trip to ER for child’s broken arm (refer below for the Timeworn Mischief-Maker) – CHECK

Family vacation – Accomplished

LET THE WILD RUMPUS START!

I mean party.

SURPRISE party, that is.

For these two (Aged) Jokers.

Card design by the fabulous Merrick McSwiggan

As we Wrights had been staying at the Plaxico family homestead leading up to the Weekend Of Whoopla, and attempting (feebly) to keep hush-hush about the fun that was to follow, we were tasked with the job of delivering the Birthday Boy to the party location (as the Birthday Girl, my sister, was one of our co-conspirators).  On Friday, we kicked off Pop’s birthday festivities with a perfectly normal, totally unsurprising sweet fest.

 — Sugar.  It’s what we do. —

And then we ventured out to the beach for a perfectly normal, totally unsurprising family outing.  Nena led Pops and our troops on a “walk” along the oceanwalk, near a row of beach houses.  And – to Pop’s complete and utter surprise (which is really a shock because it turns out that Yours Truly and Her Older Sister are truly terrible secret keepers when it comes to Events of Excitement and Anticipation) – one of those houses erupted with a gaggle of loved ones hopping about and hollering at the top of their lungs,

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY, POPS!”

To which the Birthday Boy stood there on the beach, mouth open and eyes wide, in complete bewilderment.

Operation Surprise the Old Guy was officially a success.

Here’s the whole crew of Merry Makers…

We had a fun celebration that day, and the Birthday Boy enjoyed himself immensely.

And everyone else didn’t fare too bad either.

But that wasn’t all.  Oh no.  There was more to come.

The following day we took Pops back to the beach house for a “quiet little family lunch.”  Except that it wasn’t quiet.  Or little.  Or just family.

More like 100+ of Pop’s and Ashley’s beloved old San Diego buddies, neighbors and co-workers.

(I wish I had a great big group photo here of all the fun, memory-laden, hilarious guests who joined us that day, but alas…the Plaxico Women were too caught up in orchestrating the party to capture one.  These few will have to suffice, along with a big dollop of your imagination.  But it must be said that we were so deeply grateful for all those who joined us that special day, and the time we spent together.)

Even Batman showed up!

With the “cat out of the bag,” and the drinks and vittles being enjoyed by all, we toasted the Man and Woman of the hour…

 

and then got down to some serious Beach Birthday Bash Business.

We ended the day in classic frenetic-Plaxico-style with a family volleyball match (trash-talk included), a splash in the ocean,

and a SECOND run to the ER.  Cause you know…

Water + Cast = Bad

Even with the most expensive cast cover on the market.  Sigh.

Then on Sunday, in honor of it being the official FORTIETH BIRTHDAY of a certain OLDER Sister of mine, we whooped it up some more.

We even enjoyed an awards ceremony, orchestrated by the fabulous Emily Garecht, for big “wins” during the weekend.  I can’t quite remember what the categories were anymore, but I’m sure they were something like:

– Most Grocery Runs Completed On Behest Of A Certain Fervent-Party-Planning-Matriarch,

– Most Cheez-its And Root Beer Ingested When Mothers Are Not Looking,

– Highest Medical Bill Accumulated From Nearby Facilities, and everyone’s favorite,

– Most Elaborate Meltdowns During A Beach Volleyball Match When In Proximity To A Certain Competitive 70-Year-Old Who Can’t Contain The Trash-talk.

Good times.

We all survived.

And even still liked each other enough to enjoy one more day together at the tide pools.

Tra la la la la.

It was an exhausting weekend.  And fun.  And totally worth it.

And so with that the Wrights bid San Diego adieu.

Till our next journey beckons us yonder.

It was September.

We were just settling into our new house, school was in full swing, fall activities were kicking off, the Hub’s workload was pumping…the family calendar was FULL.

What better time for a 3 week sojourn to San Diego?!?

Yep, that’s what we thought – GNARLY!

The timing of the trip was actually due to a very big, very fun, very SURPRISING event (as in Surprise Party) that we were planning to throw for Pops Plaxico’s 70th birthday.  A birthday which, as it so happens, occurs on September 29 every single year.  Imagine that!

But more on the party later.

So we put all of our “regular” life plans on hold, hopped a plane (with as much technology and fruit snacks as our bags could carry…just ask the poor TSA Agent-In-Training at the airport who swiped EACH FRUIT SNACK one by one by one…) and were SAN DIEGO BOUND!

Crazy eyes and all.

We arrived!

Gnarly to the MAX!

Well, maybe except for this part.

This was happening on the road outside of the Plaxico Homestead.  All.Trip.Long.

We’re talking 3 weeks of “BEEP-BEEP-BEEP-DRILLLLLL-BANG!!!!”  It was a lot.  And alarming.  And annoying.  And a-LOUD.  But the boys thought it was cool.

Before all of the rest of the Plaxicos and Garechts arrived for the big birthday shindig, our family (plus the unsuspecting Pops) had 1 1/2 weeks to kick back and enjoy all of our favorite SD haunts.  And enjoy we did!

We kicked off our vacation spending time with our sweet buds, the Mugford Family!

We may live 3,000 miles away from each other now, but our Little Jokers jumped back together as if they had never been apart.

Just at Cheech and Chong.

We even got to visit the Miramar Airshow together!

Then our family spent the rest of our time…

At Mission Bay and our Favorite Parks 

At the Beach and La Jolla Cove

This particular beach visit was somewhat frigid, so the Littles lasted for a bit…

And then came in for a cuddle.

Aren’t those freckles just scrumptious?  Well, until the owner of said freckles starts emitting his “boy smells.”  Then you want to flee from him AS FAST AS HUMANLY POSSIBLE.  But until then, he’s pretty darn sweet.

At Sea World (First Time for the Littles!)

This day was hot.

Like melt-in-your-pants hot.

But that didn’t stop us.  Polar exhibit to the rescue!

We even captured a moment of what the Mikers looks like in the morning before his coffee…

Not me.  No siree.  I’m Miss Susie Sunshine all the live long day.

Tra la la la la.

Well, that is until you stick me with a verbally contentious three-year-old on a spinning ride that makes me want to toss my cookies all over said whippersnapper and said ride.  Then, not so much.

It’s all for the kids, baby.  It’s all for the kids.

Sidenote… The Little Sir was absent from the latter half of the Sea World fun, and much of the beach fun thereafter.  This was because during our stay the Little Sir (and his Regretful Collaborator, Pops) managed to do this:

I give you The Gardening Disaster of 2017

Or, Flower Pot-calypse

Or, Little Sir Got Run Over by a Sidewalk

All amounting to 1 Urgent Care visit, 2 ER stays, 4 rounds of x-rays, 2 broken bones, 2 casts, 2 bloody teeth, and 1 fat lip.  Oh, and a lovely medical bill dolloped on the top.  It was fun.  Except the opposite.

Having another week in San Diego (the land of water and sand, which are 2 “No-Nos!” for casts) ahead of us, we whined a bit (or a lot), bought the best cast cover we could find, and then persevered.

Yay.

This was the scene of the crime…pre-injury.  When all of our thoughts were of sunshine and rainbows.  (And construction vehicles.)

Tra la la la la.  BEEP!  DRILL!!  RUMBLE!!!

But I digress.  Back to the enjoyment part.

We also had a great visit to Cabrillo National Monument

As a History Nerd and a Homeschool Mama, this outing was a particular highlight for moi.  (Just ask the Littles to sing the jingle I made up for them to remember fun facts about Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, the first European explorer to land in California…Pure child-embarrassment-inducing GOLD!)

Gnarly.

(Broken-arm-excluded.)

Next up, the Surprise Birthday Party for Pops and Aunt Ashley!