California Dreaming

This has not been a productive jet lag. For the first couple days in California, I kept calculating in my head what time it was in Australia. I'm hoping I'm just about over it.

I love visiting my sister. Not only is she hilarious but so are her kids. Oh my word, they just say the funniest things. And they have a mild obsession with Mexican food...

...which I love.

There are very few things I missed while I was overseas, two of these being iced tea and Mexican food. I haven't had any iced tea yet, but I've had Mexican thrice (we need to use "thrice" more often - it's great). Of course, one of those times was Pollo Loco, so that might not count, but the other two times were legit.

I missed Thanksgiving, too, which my sister deemed completely unacceptable. So what did we have on Thursday? Turkey, mashed taters, stuffing, green beans, cranberry sauce, rolls, cottage cheese, and sweet pickles (because no family meal is complete without cottage cheese and pickles - seriously). Mmmm, delicious.

Saturday we went paddleboarding! (Yes, it took me until I got back to the States to do any sort of water activity). It was wonderful. We went with a couple of friends, and though it wasn't all that warm, we had a really good time. And I didn't fall in! There were a few times when I got awfully close, but somehow I managed to not lose my balance.

One of the times I almost lost it was when a bird popped up out of nowhere. One moment there was no bird, the next BAM! Black and white bird just a couple feet away. The pelicans were also really cool. They did a lot of splashing about as they hunted fish. I was fascinated, and also a little concerned they were going to poop on me as they flew overhead.

Sunday night we walked around Balboa Island to look at all the Christmas lights. The weather was absolutely lovely and the houses are just beautiful. Well, most are beautiful. Some look like this:

This house may not be beautiful, but it was definitely impressive. The guy who owned the house came over and talked to us for a couple minutes. He even gave us a business card, which was specifically for his Christmas decorations. That's what dedication looks like, friends.

That's all for now. Good night!