NorCal Chavis Tribe: $th of July in the OC

We had a very exciting 4th of July weekend in Orange County! It is hard to believe but it was our first time back to the OC since we moved up North last year in late October. How sad is that? But, with family & friends coming to us over the past months, we just never got down there until now. Needless to say, we were SOOOO stoked to be going back for a visit.

Since it was a quick trip, we spent most of our time with family. It was so nice to have the little indian cousins together & Miles has really taken a fondness to Milan. Morgan, being the oldest of all 4, is amazing with Miles & just loves him to pieces. He seems so proud to have a cousin & dotes on Miles with hugs & silly faces. Mase is kind of at that age where he is indifferent to MIZ, but will come & bring him a toy to show his love from time to time.

I managed to squeeze in a few hours with Shann & Amy between all the family fun. We got (affordable!) pedi's (in NorCal they are a rip off in comparison!!!) and took in happy hour at Beachfire - a former favorite. So amazing to have some girl time! I miss them so much!

Fri-DAY was spent at North Beach in San Clemente. It was a perfect day, & Miles didn't seem overjoyed by the waves, but he didn't break into hysterics either. I think he was very curious about the whole beach thing. He hadn't been since he was 5 months, so it was practically like his first time at the beach. Later, we had an awesome evening in San Clemente with the fam and after lots of sugar, Morgan & Mason came up with some names for the new baby. Among the front runners are: PooPoo Butt, Barack Obama (that was very mature of Morgan to think of - especially since it was said in complete sarcasm - a very witty 5 yr. old!) & Mr. Fluffy (my favorite). I think the naming went on for an hour & Morgan even sang the baby happy birthday just to try out the names.

Lyn & Harlis threw a big BBQ for the 4th on Saturday. It was so great to see so many faces we have missed over the past months & re-introduce everyone to Miles. We had an awesome time pigging out on all the amazing food Lyn made, swimming & chatting. Miles didn't make it to the fireworks after all the sun & fun of the day. Mike & I were bummed, but we half expected he would nod out. Mike & I had some nice "us" time while we enjoyed the show over Mission Viejo Lake in the middle of Munera Street while we kept one ear on Miles in case he woke up in a panic. Slept right through it all though! Awesome!

It was sad leaving on Sunday & I wish we could go back way more than we have been able to this past year. I wish we could stay longer too, because they are so many people that we didn't get to see. which really made me sad. So next time, stay longer, and, oh yeah - drive instead of fly! The flight to OC was unforgettable - Miles kicked & screamed & fussed for at least the last 30 minutes. I think I planned our flight at a really bad time for him, though, so that wasn't completely fair on my part. He did soooo much better on the way back, in part to better timing & to Mike & I having a solid game plan in fear of reliving the previous experience. He was so great on flights before he could walk!