Then fast forward to June and we find out that I’M PREGNANT!! My doctor is really strict about Zika (as she should be) because there really isn’t a cure and it’s silly to put a pregnant woman at risk if she doesn’t HAVE to be. So, we had to cancel our cruise. It was a sad day. We had been looking forward to this for months and months. Now we had to find a new ZIKA-FREE vacation plan that wouldn’t cost more than the cruise! We decided to head to CA!!!
We flew to CA and our journey getting there was interesting. Michael and I got delayed and lost a bag. Emily and Joe were delayed and then put on a weird plane without air conditioning controls! Not good for a pregnant lady! 😃 We finally made it to LA and then we went to get our rental car and found a dirty diaper under the seat and promptly switched to another car! We ended up getting settled in a car that wasn’t usable and then we moved to ANOTHER CAR…. and it was a MINI-VAN!!!! Cheers for a MINI-VAN! Us pregnant ladies had so much LEG ROOM and we had constant access to our snack bag and our own AC controls! What a dream! (Ps. I NEVER thought I would say that about a mini-van… ever!)
We drove north for several hours (SEVERAL) and made it to BASS LAKE for the night! We stayed in a little cabin and rented a little pontoon boat for a morning cruise before heading to YOSEMITE! Michael and I had been to Yosemite but we went in March when “Glacier Point” wasn’t open! So we got to see a new view and it was UNBELIEVABLE! Just wait until you see the pictures!! Then we found out that the giant Sequoias that were most visited in Yosemite were closed for restoration! What?! NOOOOoooooo!! So we heard about a more hidden location off the beaten path and we decided the mini-van could handle it!! We were all covered in DUST by the time we made this journey to the trees but it was worth it!!!
Then we drove to the coast and stayed at a cute little beach-front hotel, Avila Lighthouse Suites, where one of Joe’s high school friend’s is a sales manager! We spent the next morning sitting by the pool and dipping in the hot tub for like 3 minutes because…. pregnancy problems. Then we had an awesome lunch (our favorite of the trip) on a pier overlooking a little harbor! And then it was time to get back on the road again! You’re probably thinking “wasn’t that a lot of road time?” Yes. It was a crazy fast-paced trip. Our NEXT trip will definitely be on a cruise ship without hours of mini-van time!
After we left lunch we hit the road for San Diego to visit some dear friends of our! We have been wanting to get down to San Diego for the longest time to visit them and we finally had a chance to make it happen!! This was probably our favorite part of the trip. Yosemite is breathtaking but hanging by your friend’s pool and just relaxing after a crazy few days is just what we needed! Cole and Nicole were the most amazing hosts in their new home. They made all FOUR of us feel like we were at home from the moment we walked in the door! They dropped everything just to hangout with us and spend some quality time together! From pool time to fireside chats, Mexican food, a beach day and finding an amazing ice cream shop… it’s easy to see why we loved these two days!! We’re so thankful for not only their willingness to have us visit but also for their sweet friendship!
They were so excited about this drink…. and then it was pretty much just straight sugar! ha!
Cute! All THREE of them! :)
Our beloved mini-van!
Bahaha! Way to go Joe!
This view tho….
Ice cream for the win! 
LOOK at the SIZE of that TREE!!!!
Eww… They were bringing in a shipload of EEL! GROSS!!!
Then we headed down to meet up with Cole and Nicole!!! 
And Michael got TAR stuck on his foot! 
Look at their POOL! Amazing! 
Sweet Chloe! She made us miss Bokeh Boy! 
