And we're 3 weeks in

Here are just a few pictures about what I've been up to the last few weeks here in San Diego. My brother Paul, his wife Danielle, and their kids Paul Z., Ben, and Ruby were with us for a few days and we were able to go to Sea World, the Beach, Balboa park, and all that stuff I blogged about earlier. Then a few days later Kim and her family plus Kyle's wife Ashley came for a night and we got to go to the beach again and just enjoy a pretty Sunday with them. It was too short a visit for us all. Katie went back with them, and so it has just been me and the parents for about 2 weeks. It seems a little weird in ways, time seems to be going by very slowly, but it is a very pleasant kind of slowly. I have had so much time to just think and relax, completely different from what my study abroad was, yet still as much of an adventure, and as much of a 'need' for me this summer. I have been so blessed! I love my life. Okay so the pictures.

This is my favorite spot in our home here... It is just the most comfy chair, and it's under an awning type thing, so it stays cool, but I can look out at the beautiful atmosphere... Ah. Best place in the world to me right now.

This of course is the San Diego Temple!!! I went and did baptisms there with...

Anna! My close and longest time friend Anna came home from her mission to Italy while I was in Europe. She was in California for a month spending time with her family here, and took out 2 days of her time to spend with me in SD! We had the best time, and it was soooo good to catch up with her, and to just have a chat with a returned missionary best friend. Oh I missed her, and I am glad that soon we will be able to hang out in Provo and have more good times! The SD temple is beautiful... I love it. It looks almost fake on the outside... like something from a painting.

After the temple we went to Torrey Pines state park and "hiked" around while Anna listened to me talk about the Study Abroad... lucky for me (and probably not for her...) She had been to all the places I went to, and also lived in Italy for a year and a half on her mission, so we got a really good chance to break town my experience, and it was so fun to think about. The hiking trails end at this awesome beach, and we just sat here and chatted for hours about life. Am I super spoiled??? Yes. The answer is yes.

The next day we did Zumba wii (so much fun ps) and took off for some more SD fun. 1st on the agenda, Harry Potter 7.2. Oh, I loved it. It was so fun to see it, sad to see it end, and yet fulfilling all at the same time. The end of my adolescents, but the cool thing is that the books and movies will be there for my kids to watch and read, and I bet you they love them. After that we did some great shopping, and went to Seaport Village, a naval coastline town type thing... very touristy, but we had a good time. We went into a shop called "sinfulicious"... it was a make your own sent type of store, it was fun, but we just thought the name was super funny. We ended our adventures at a great Mexican restaurant called "Casa de Pico" where they play live Mexican music, and the food was delish. Thanks for the fun time Anna!

Most of my days are spent reading, helping out the parents, and just enjoying being here. The missionaries are so fun to be around, and I am learning a lot from their example. This is a picture of this lake called Lake Murray. It is the safest place I've found to run, and it is beautiful! It is about 6 miles around the lake, and there are always people around walking or riding their bikes. I am falling in love with San Diego. I may never want to come back...

In a week I'll be trying my hand at missionary work. I have been asked to be a companion to one of the sisters for 3 weeks, and I am excited for the opportunity!!! It will be a neat experience.

Also just a shout out to my mom for our fun day yesterday, and her kindness. Love you ma.

The next adventure... San Diego

This is the back yard (okay like 1/8th of it). The house my parents moved into for the summer is so beautiful! The location is great, it is on this really large mountain with a lot of greenery (as you can tell) You can see some of the city from their back windows, and can see the lights of Tiajana at night. It is really going to be a great place for them to be these next three years, and I am excited about it! 

Dad is already feeling pretty overwhelmed about this job. So is mom, but you can just see on his face that he was grateful for a little time to spend with his kids and grandkids at Sea World. We were able to go on Tuesday to Sea World and it was so much fun! I love seeing the dolphins, whales, and otter shows, along with all the other fun animals and park rides. It is a really fun place to take children, and adults, of all ages because there is always something fun to do! We had a good time. 

On the fourth of July we were able to spend the day with Paul and Danielle and their kids at Balboa Park... we rented a bike that had 6 seats (the name is escaping me...) and took it around the park to explore it. There is so much to do there! It most famously is where the Zoo is located, but it also has a natural history museum, a space museum, a lot of small arts and crafts shops, and the largest organ in the city! It is a fun place to picnic and just spend the day walking around a beautiful place. After that we went to Fashion Valley mall, the most high end mall I have been to, but it was really fun to see stores like Bloomingdales, Tiffany and Co, True Religion, Barney's, Anthropologie, Nordstroms, H & M etc. all in the same mall. We spent the night with the senior couples out at the military base by the coast. We had a barbeque and enjoyed the fireworks over the peer. It was a great fourth of July! We are so lucky to live in America. I feel that way more now than I ever did before after having spent so much time out of the country. We are so blessed to have the clean air laws that we do, to be able to spend our time together with our families so close, to be able to have all of the freedoms we do, and the ability to become very successful through hard work. Freedom is an amazing thing, and I am so grateful to all of the service men out there who through the ages have made the country of the United States of America a possibility. I am so grateful, and blessed, to be able to spend the rest of my summer in San Diego serving my parents, and serving the Lord. Their call has already become such a blessing to all of us, and I am positive that they will do well with it. Keep up with the mission here at
   californiasandiegomission.blogspot.com