Hello From Sunny California!

Hello everyone! We finally have an internet connection, so it's time to catch up on our posts. We packed up and moved over the New Year's holiday. Thanks to Jason & Denise for letting our boys sleep over and for feeding us and loaning us a bed. We miss you all. We are so excited to be settling in here in Murrieta, CA. We stayed in a hotel for four days waiting to move into our home; those were long days and nights with everyone in the same room. Luckily we were able to get out and see some sites.

We had fun at the beach in Carlsbad. Matt wasn't sure what to think about the sand. We were going to go to Legoland but it was rainy in the morning and we didn't want to go for just a half day so we went to the beach that afternoon after the weather cleared up. It was still a bit chilly and we weren't planning to get wet but... The boys started running away from the waves. Then they took off their shoes and rolled their pants up to their ankles. Then up to their knees. Then they pretty much jumped into the waves head first. They didn't seem to care that the water was a little chilly. When it was time to leave they were so wet and full of sand that we had to have them take their pants and shirts off and sit on garbage bags until we could get them some new clothes. We also learned that it's not a good idea to wash sandy clothes in the washer unless you don't want your washer to drain. That was an expensive lesson. We didn't know why the washer wasn't draining but a plumber came out and found 2 cups of sand blocking the drain line.

The boys said, "this (the beach) is better than Legoland!"

On Sunday we went to see the San Diego Temple. It was beautiful! The missionaries showed us several pictures of the interior and other pictures. Did you know that there is an open-air atrium in the middle of the temple?

On Monday we went to the San Diego Wild Animal Park. The boys really enjoyed the safari train ride. They took lots of pictures, fed the ducks and saw giraffes, cheetahs, gorillas, lions, elephants and other animals up close up close. This park is only about a half hour from our house.
Looking out over the Wild Animal Park. Andrew kept asking if he could take a ride in the air balloon they had in the center of the park. This was the next best thing. The boys bought a stuffed animal to remind them of all the real animals they saw that day.