Images of a Lovely Trip

Last night I returned from a too-quick trip to visit my daughter Meghan and her boyfriend Mark (and their dogs Apple and Calvin, and cat Chief) in Long Beach, California, as I've written about in the past few blogs.  I hadn't seen them since the very end of December when they packed all they owned in a mini-van (including their pets) and left for the west coast.  They arrived in Long Beach after just four days, in time for New Year's Eve.  It's been over five months since so I was very happy to see them. 

Rather than write more about the trip, in this posting I'm sharing our visit in pictures.  It was a wonderful time, and I miss my kid, so much, already.  She and Mark were such great hosts, showing me their new city and the beautiful beaches nearby.   I can't wait to go back again.  Rather than go on and on about how much I loved the whole thing, here are photos to tell the story:

Long Beach at Night

 Meghan's North Star

The Courtyard

Calvin and Apple, Fetching at Huntington Beach

 Mark and the Queen Mary

 Lunch at the Board Walk

Cute Little Tug Boat

The Aquarium of the Pacific

 Mark and Meghan

 "This was no boating accident!"

 M&M

 Star Fish!

 Sea Lions

 At Parker's Lighthouse

The Queen Mary from our Table at Parker's Light House

 Parker's Key Lime Pie (or is it a tower?)...Delicious!

(This IS a food blog, after all!)

 View from the Plane, Headed Home

Photos by Jeannie, Mark, and Meghan
Post card image: http://www.learncalifornia.org/GoDocUserFiles/2048.97-10-01.jpg

Dog Day at the Beach

Yesterday Meghan and I took a 20-minute ride south of Long Beach to Huntington Beach where there's a special stretch devoted just to dogs and their owners.  It was amazing, really.  I've never seen so many dogs in one place, and they all got along beautifully.  There were dogs of every breed and many mixes, and all were so well-behaved!  Calvin (Chocolate Lab) and Apple (little Black Lab mix) were so happy to be there.

We had stopped at Whole Foods to pick up a couple of sandwiches and root beers to go, and were ready for our ocean-side picnic on a quilt that was once Meghan's blanket as a child.  To see it completely worn and battered made me smile.  It has been well-loved and now it is her beach blanket.  Its nautical stars on a navy-blue background somehow seemed fitting as we had lunch on the sandy beach.

Sunday proved to be a very popular day at the dog beach, and Calvin and Apple knew we were near before we even arrived.  We had to wait in line to park, and once out of the car, Calvin pulled Meghan in energetic enthusiasm to get down to the water.  We climbed down a rocky path and settled ourselves in a cove where the rising tide made it obvious we had to move or we'd be stuck in there on the rocks!  Further down the beach we found a wide-open space with lots of people and dogs.  Meghan had a "Chuck It," one of those tennis-ball-flinging wands that send the ball a good distance out into the ocean.  Calvin spent the entire two hours there retrieving his ball, often flipping over in the waves and searching in the foam for his ball.  Apple was happy to play defense but never actually went into the waves to get the ball.  She's nine now and is happy with a little less exertion. 

We had a really great day.  Before the beach excursion, Meghan and I walked all around downtown Long Beach, going in and out of shops and just having fun seeing the sights.  She said she hadn't yet discovered so much of Long Beach, and it was good to take a walking tour of her new town.  She and Mark moved here just before the new year.

We ended the day with a barbeque of grilled shimp kabobs (with red peppers, fresh pineapple, baby red onions, and grape tomatoes), a confetti rice and broccoli.  We had dinner out on the courtyard.  Love it.

Mark and I are off to see the Queen Mary while Meghan is working the lunch shift at Parker's Lighthouse.  It's going to be another beautiful day in Long Beach.