60th Anniversary Weekend in Cali

This past weekend my Grandma and Grandpa Gilb celebrated their 60th anniversary!! What an amazing and inspiring milestone. My aunts and dad pulled together a surprise dinner party for them and 50 of their closest friends (and let me tell you, that is actually a pretty intimate group for them). It was a great weekend. We stayed at the beach with my parents and my sister and her family and got a lot of time in the water, outside and with family. It was a really wonderful trip ~ one of the last we're going to be taking for a while ~ and it was pretty lovely every moment (except for when Rulon whacked his head and had to go to the ER to get checked out...but I'll tell you about that a little farther down the page).

Valerie came over the first afternoon we were there, and made fast friends with Michael when she offered to take him out onto the beach in front of the beach house.


Shortly after my parents and Amy, Brian and Rulon arrived, Rulon fell in front of the fire place, whacked his head really hard and gave himself the biggest goose egg I've ever seen. They took him to the ER to make sure he didn't have a concussion, which he didn't, but he was left with a huge bruise on his noggin!


Auntie Amy on the patio


Dan, Valerie and my mom sitting on the sea wall


Michael is trying to tell me he found a starfish!!


At my grandparent's surprise dinner, we had beef and fish. The kids had chicken nuggets and french fries and were so happy! Miranda loves ketchup!


The kids all ate dinner later than they were used to, and were up later than usual, so they were a little fried, but there were lots of up moments in between the meltdowns.


We all were given little boxes of Sees chocolate as parting gifts, and the kids got Sees suckers. Michael thinks it should be licked like an ice cream cone!


The third day we were there we took the kids out to the ocean. Here's Rulon and Brian.


Here we are all heading down to the water's edge


Here are the kids after the first wave, deciding they're a little freaked out!


If you look closely, Miranda has decided she wants nothing to do with that madness - get her outta there!!! She wouldn't go back to the water for the rest of the outing.


Michael, however, was a different story. It took him a little bit to get used to the crashing waves, but then he was entranced. He wanted someone with him the whole time, but he loved it! Here he is with Grandma Gayle, getting ready to get wet.


Wheeeee!


Where's Michael? Under that big wave!


Getting warm with Grandma after a big wave


Rulon, Amy and Brian walking on the beach


We stayed one night longer than everyone else, and had a quiet evening to ourselves once the kids went to sleep. I love Newport Beach and Balboa Island!