Hey, are there leeches in rivers?

Let’s see, how can we tell we are getting closer to Mexico?  

We are actually in San Diego. 

Not sure if this little area has its own name, however since it is right on Mission Bay, that is what we shall call it. 

I can tell just passing through this town on our way to the Camp Land on Mission Bay RV Park, I would love it here. 

We’ll have to come back when we can spend more time and explore these artsy shops and cafes.

It is my favorite combo of;

beachy - surfer - boho - laid back 

atmosphere that makes my 

heart smile.

The RV Park here is really just a huge paved parking lot but it is very well organized and has a lot of trees so you don’t really notice. Every spot is a close walk to the beach. There are four pools, a well stocked Market, a restaurant, laundry facilities and a game room next to the laundry, just in case you have more quarters you’d like to throw away. 

Between the four of us, we didn't have a pair of undies to share, so it was time to hit the laundry facilities. 

        

The game room turned out to be a great distraction for the children, and was a wonderful means of squelching the whining from not coping well with the lengthiness of such a boring chore.

I, however, kept up my end of the whining until the awful chore was completely behind me.

To say it lightly, I detest Laundromats. So when discussing the aspect of full-time RV-ing, I obviously wanted the washer/dryer unit. But Mark wanted the storage. (Our RV came plumbed and ready for a washer/dryer unit, as well as set up for an outdoor entertainment center, that we have yet to acquire).

We now have plenty of storage for appliances we don’t use, and we get to go to the public laundry once a week. Hoping Mark will get sick of this routine rather quickly and I'll get that unit sooner rather than later. I would love to be fully self-contained. I guess it will also depend on how long we decide to stay full timers.

Looking forward to our first out-in-the-middle-of-nowhere trip where Mark gets to pound his clothes clean on river rocks. (Maniacal laughter...silenced only by the realization that he'll have ME doing this, not him...Hmm, thinking maybe a few leeches in the boxers will do the trick. Wait, do rivers have leeches? Drats!)

Meanwhile, back to Mission Bay…The beach has great sand for building castles, making sand friends or just digging your way to China for some good take-aways.  No waves, just fresh saltwater air.

There are also tons of noisy, bright green parrots that are very hard to capture with my phone camera. (Hint; birthday is almost here. Maybe it is time for a big girl camera???)

Can you spot the parrot in this tree?

Neither can I, but I know it is there because I watched it fly in!

With four pools all linked together, the kids could spend all day hopping between them.  

Scarlett is like a fish that only comes up long enough for air. 

She had me take a photo of her eyes so she could see how red they were. (Mum, those freckles are a mere figment of your imagination, go back to whatever you were doing).

Parker checks back every 5 minutes looking for food. Look at that little belly! Does he look underfed to you? 

I cannot imagine the cost of feeding him when he hits his teens. 

Poor parents (literally!)

They usually come out shriveled like little white raisins.

This is the only RV Park in California we have found to date that allows campfires. Not to say there aren't more, just that we've never found any. 

The kids roasted hot dogs over the fire for the first time, and later made S’mores; fun American traditions they won’t find at home in Australia. 

Just as we enjoy learning Aussie traditions while we are there, it is fun to share with the kids some of the things their daddy grew up with.

.

Scarlett is not fond of the smoke...such a little Princess.

We are right across the bay from Sea World, which every night sets off fireworks from 9:50pm to 10pm. Last night Scarlett was able to stay awake late enough to see them. (Parker, no way, ZZZzzz)

This is our last day here in Mission Bay. Next stop is Anaheim, where we will have other family members meeting us for a Disneyland Adventure the kids will never forget. 

Plus, it will be great to have the 'parents' back from their missions trip so that us grand-folks can catch our breath and enjoy not having to be the ‘enforcers’ any longer, just the spoilers, as it should be.