Labor Day Get Away

What started as my desire to surprise Lane by planning a guys' weekend away to a race in California turned into an entire family trip, but we couldn't be happier. It was a great time; we LOVE Southern California!

OK, so let me back up. Lane has always wanted to add the Pepsi 500 to his repertoire of yearly races. The Pepsi 500 is held at the California Speedway in Fontana, CA....we're talking all of 3 1/2-4 hours away. Being the nice wife I am, I tried to surprise him. It didn't work out; his friend couldn't go. I said, "well, you can always go by yourself." He hymed and ha'd, then decided he really didn't want to go alone. End result; we packed up our crap and went to SoCal.

Lane took the plan one step futher: He decided we would ALL go to the Saturday night race--the bonus--kids 12 and under were free. Trust me--the girls were really, really, excited but I'd say ten laps in, they were bored. They loved the overpriced food however, and I wish I had taken a picture of Abby sleeping on the bench with earplugs. It was precious. The Sunday plan: Lane would go alone to the race and us girls would find the coast and play in the ocean. Now this plan took some careful consideration. We had to find a place to drop off and pick up Lane, and honestly we had no idea what roads would be closed off so we had a plan A, B, & C. We had to go with plan B by the way; there were in fact road closures.

Now ya all know me and my love of food--you know I try to find a unique restaurant whenever I travel. I always want to eat at a place I DON'T have in Vegas and frankly, that is tough to do.

I did a little research and found a Mexican Restaurant (shown above, Dona Timo's) that received great reviews and claimed authenticity. Authentic Mexican? I'm there! So we mapped out the restuarant and honestly, it was a kinda scary neighborhood, but we went anyway. At the risk of sounding like a Utahn, oh my heck! It was amazing food. Lane spent two years eating authentic Mexican food and this place received his gringo stamp of approval. We were even serenaded with music. Someone needs to discover Dona Timo's musician because this man's voice was wonderful......we tipped him on our way out.

The beach: First let me say, as much as I love California, I tend to forget how populated it is; it is always a lesson in patience. Luckily, we took the Avalanche and it has GPS. Oh, let me back up. Earlier that day, before lunch, we stopped at a Kohl's so Hannah and I could get sunglasses and so Abby could get a long sleeved shirt (I predicted as it cooled, Abby would spaz). Moving on---so Hannah and I ran into Kohl's and promptly forgot what door we walked through so Lane yelling out, "Meet you back at this door" was in vain. We purchased what we needed and went right outside to wait---no Lane---went inside---no Lane---went back outside--no Lane.

Here's what was happening on Lane, Emily, and Abby's side of things. Went to Well's Fargo, came back to Kohl's. No mommy and Hannah. Walked through store--no mommy--walked the perimeter of the building--no mommy---walked back through Kohl's, paged mommy--no mommy. So you get the gist---we kept missing each other. My mind went wild with the possibilites--they were held up at the ATM, they went to another bank, Abby ran off, who knows, right? My mind is going crazy with ideas. Lane's mind went crazy as well--someone abducted Hannah and I. He was within minutes of calling the police when finally, he drives by the door we were sitting at (cuz dang, it was hot; we stayed indoors), we run out, he screeches to a stop--people look at us like something bad is happening. Why didn't he just call my cell you ask? It was charging in his truck. I hoped it was a good omen and it was--the remainder of the day for each of us went perfectly. We even, without planning on a time, arrived in perfect time to take showers, pick up Lane at the race, and eat a late dinner.

Which brings me to the next restaurant. Mel's Drive-In Diner--another fabulous place to eat. Old fashioned burgers, fries, shakes and malts. MMMMMM.....good. Sorry; no picture (and I wonder why I can't lose weight---ha!).....then we topped off the trip the next morning with a fantastic breakfast at Polly's.

So there we have it--some of the best fun is the fun that comes spontaneously!