More vacation pictures...

Here are some more pictures of the fun we had
during our vacation in California.

One day we rode the ferry out to Balboa
Island. It is not an actual island because
you can also drive there but the ferry is
the way to go....

It is a really cute little place with lots of fun
shops. We walked out onto the pier,
watched the waves and hung out...

They had a great playground where the kids
had a fun time climbing on this crazy
spider-webby shaped thing that must
have been about 25 feet tall!!!
Merrick of course climbed all the way to the top.

And of course the swings were super fun too!!!

The fire station was displaying
their antique fire engine so we
went in and had a look...

But...my favorite part was watching the twins walking
around in their fire hats.

Part of the time we just hung out...

One day the twins took us to a reptile store.
It must have had every kind of snake, spider or
reptile that you would ever want for a pet.
(...or not)
We bought the food so we could feed the turtles...
little did I know that the food would be alive...
and that the turtles would be soooo hungry...
There was even a huge catfish in the bottom of this
pond that loved the worms...

We also enjoyed our helium balloon ride...
We had to wait for a couple of hours until it was
our turn... but it was worth the wait.

It was dark by the time we went up
but it was a wonderful evening and the
surrounding city lights were beautiful.
We could even see Disneyland's fireworks
off in the distance.

Of course one of my favorite places to go is the zoo...
and I have always wanted to go to the San Diego Zoo.

Giraffes are always my favorite...

...but I also loved the seals....

...and the bugs!!!
You have to agree that these are the cutest
bugs you have ever seen!!!

Of course the pandas are amazing....
This is the dad.

The mom and baby were kept separately.
(but those pics didn't turn out as well)

The night before I came home,
we went to Disneyland to watch the
fireworks and hang out at
Downtown Disney
We had benets at the Jazz kitchen...

....saw the lifesize Woody in the Lego store...

...and watched this lady, who reminded us of Snow White,
make these incredible Mickey Mouse candy apples!!!



We were all pooped by the end of our trip...

....but we can't wait to go back again!!!!
Love you guys!!!
Thanks for such a fun time!!!