Huntington Beach & Ikea

Sunday morning we packed up and spent the morning at Huntington Beach. Nick played in the sand and him and grammy let the waves crash at their feet. Meanwhile, Amy and I laid on the beach and relaxed.







Photos by Nicky

























About one o'clock we packed it in, and drove to Costa Mesa to hit Ikea. I kept Nicky busy by writing out shopping lists. Then, we hit the kitchen area and the boy was in heaven. He loves to cook, he absolutely adored his kitchen. We played there, until we had to meet my mom and Amy on the lower level. He went to the play house while we finished shopping. We loaded my mom's Blazer with all of our finds, and we hit the road for Vegas.





It was hard to resist taking 15 south, rather than 15 north, a bread run in San Diego was mighty tempting. There was no way I could go without Frank, so I behaved and headed home. We made it to the valley before we had to stop for gas. After a quick fill up at the station near M Resort, I was pulling into the drive way just after ten o'clock.

We had fun! I'm glad we were able to create these memories together. The OC beaches are a short drive from Anaheim, I suspect we'll make them a regular stop when we visit to catch the White Sox vs. The Angels.

Newport Beach

We had plans to take the whale tour Saturday afternoon. We hung out in Newport Beach beforehand. We grabbed lunch at BJ's Brewhouse. The family likes the ones in Vegas, so we thought it'd be quick and easy. Turns out they have a different menu; Amy and I weren't sure what to have. We eventually settled on pizza. It's deep dish, and supposedly Chicago-style so we thought we'd see how it measured up. It was no surprise that it wasn't even close. We agreed it was similar to Pizza Hut's pan pizza. It was edible, but I wouldn't order it again.

After lunch we walked around the boardwalk checking out the shops and art galleries. We passed time until our Whale Tour departed from Newport Harbor. We didn't see any whales on the tour, but we saw plenty of dolphins and sea lions. It was a fishing boat that took us out; it was extremely crowded. Thankfully, the seas were much calmer there than those I've experienced in San Diego. We all had an enjoyable time. It wasn't even chilly, it was the warmest temperatures I've ever experienced in California - thanks to the recent heatwave.

























After the whale tour we walked over to Newport Beach to watch the sunset. Nicky played in the sand; and we watched the surfers catch waves.













After a couple hours, we drove back to Huntington Beach. There was a taco shop, Las Barcas, that I wanted to try. Sadly, they closed too early. I drove by a Five Guys, I've been wanting to try it for ages so I was excited to finally come across one. We stopped in, but they didn't open for business until Wednesday. Bummer. We ended up at Lazy Dog Cafe across from the hotel. Cute dog theme, which my mom loved. Nicky enjoyed the open kitchen (he loves to cook), the menu sounded great and service was friendly. It all seemed promising, except none of us were thrilled by our entrees. I had chicken with gouda on foccia with cajun fries, Amy had a cheese burger, and my mom had steak.

We crashed once we returned to the hotel; all the fresh air wore us out.

Bolsa Chica Beach & Dayna Point

This past weekend we had a girls trip plus Nicky to see the Orange County Beaches. We stayed at the Comfort Suites in Huntington Beach. We left on Friday after I got off from work, we made two stops along the way; gas and dinner at Mimi's Cafe. We rolled in sometime after 9:00. We played in the hotel room until bed time. The room was comfortable and clean. It was a little tight for four people but it was a bit larger than most rooms I've had while staying in California.

Saturday we got an early start. We planned to tour the Bolsa Chica Wetlands, but we didn't make it on time. It worked out because we would've gotten rained out. We went to the Bolsa Chica Beach. It was clean and uncrowded, Nicky and my mom got their feet wet, and a couple waves caught them by surprise.

Rainbow over Bolsa Chica State Beach



















Lightening and thunder chased us off the beach. When the storms rolled in we drove down the Pacific Coast Highway until the skies cleared in Dayna Point. We stopped there, the beach was packed for some sort of paddle board competition. We walked a short trail that had pretty views of the marina.

Dayna Point













After Dayna Point, we headed back toward Newport Beach. We enjoyed the sight along the way.

A Taste of Chicago

There's a new hot dog joint in Summerlin. It brings the best from the Windy City to Sin City. Get the full scoop at Vegas Values: Windy City Classics.

The place has really awesome fries, too. They're crispy and fluffy on the inside, slightly salty and perfect with a little ketchup. I'm generally not a lover of fries, but these, these are good!

They also have a fun map for ex-Chicagoans to mark their former location. Frank and my childhood homes are represented. Fun!