Girls' Trip!!!

I really wanted to take my girls on a little vacation during Spring Break this year.  I felt that they were all old enough that I would be able to handle them on my own.  When I found a Groupon for a little inn in Ojai, I knew it would be perfect.  It wasn't a far drive (gas is expensive), the hotel had a pool and a continental breakfast (my two requirements), and there are lots of little things to do in Ojai.

Monday morning, I worked on my regular chores like laundry and vacuuming.  Then the girls helped me bake some fun treats to take with us.  After lunch, we packed up the suitcases and were on our way.  We had to make a few stops and one included the dollar store where I let them each pick out a toy, which ended up being perfect.  Ojai is about 20 miles from our house, so we got there quickly and checked out our room.  It wasn't too big, but had a large patio off the back.  Miriam had picked out a jump rope at the store, so they all happily played out there and we unpacked.  The hotel was having all the trees trimmed that day, so we unpacked and at some snacks while we waited for them to finish.  Then we hit the pool.  The pool was freezing cold!!!  But the hot tub was big and not too hot, so they spent most of their time in the hot tub.

 

 

For dinner, we went to a local pizza place and enjoyed a couple slices.  That night, we found Star Wars on TV and everyone was happy to watch.  Then we stayed up super late watching a movie on the Disney channel.

 

 

Rachel woke up at 6:20 or so.  I turned on the TV and tried to keep my eyes closed until about 7:30, when breakfast was served.  The girls had fun picking out their breakfast.  They had cereal, waffles, yogurt, oatmeal and toast.  They also had an orange press and Liz made fresh orange juice to go with her breakfast.

After breakfast, we got dressed and headed out for a hike.  We drove up to Rose Valley campground and hiked to the falls.  It was less than a mile in and crossed a couple streams.  The girls found hiking sticks before we left and we only suffered minimal injury from them during the hike.  The girls thought the waterfall was beautiful and were excited to see one in real life for the first time.  Then we hiked back out and enjoyed a snack in the quiet morning air before heading back to Ojai.

We stopped at Libbey park to check out the sweet playground.  By then it had warmed up quite a bit, but the girls had fun running around and playing.  We also stopped at a candy shoppe to pick out a candy and some post cards.  We went back to the hotel and ate some lunch before hitting the pool again.  They swam and played for over two hours.  I tried to be vigilant about the sunscreen, but I think we all got a little pink around the edges.  Rachel looks really red in this picture, but I swear she wasn't burned!

 

We hit McDonald's for dinner that night where the girls were all thrilled with their new toys.  (If it could only be this easy forever.) After dinner, the plan was to do a bubble bath and then pedicures.  But the drain in the tub wouldn't close all the way, so they sat in about three inches of water for awhile until I came in and showered them off.  We did paint toenails though and watched Disney channel and ate treats.  We turned off the TV at 8:30 and within 10 minutes, they were all sleeping soundly.  I played on my phone and read my books before finally drifting off.

Wednesday morning, we relaxed in bed until it was time for breakfast.  Then we packed most everything up and put on swimsuits again.  The girls played in the hot tub for another hour before it was time to head home.  It was a very fun girls' trip and I can't wait to do it again!

**I want to note that it is difficult to be the cruise director and the photographer on this kind of trip.  I am so grateful for my phone camera.  It doesn't always take the greatest pictures, but it gets the job done!