California Dreamin'

We are back home in hot, dusty AZ after an awesome beach vacation. Why on earth did we move from So. Cal???? Oh, that's right, we couldn't afford it there, LOL. I still love it just as much though. We had an awesome time in the little town of Encinitas, our hotel was 1/2 mile from the beach and 1/2 mile from the main street full of shops and restaurants. We hardly drove at all once we were there. Our 4 day trip included lots of beach time, some (poor) surfing, eating outdoors, walks by the coast and a little bit of running. There were no theme parks or excursions, my boys were in the ocean from 9am until 6pm everyday and perfectly happy to be there. My batteries are totally recharged. We met up with some friends for lunch one day but other than that, we had no schedule at all, which is perfect as school and sports are about to start!
Our drive home was eventful as we got caught in a freak hail storm! We had to take cover with some of the other cars under a bridge. When we got the courage to get out and try driving, we were about blown sideways and worried that the hail would damage our car. However, 10 minutes later we were over the mountain and it was hot, sunny and completely dry. So weird!

Now it's back to reality. We have had a great summer. We went to Flagstaff/Utah, NYC, Pennsylvania and CA. We have spent quality time together as a family and had fun times with my parents and other family members. I know my boys have some good memories. School starts in 2 days and I am going to miss my kids so much. It;s time for me to get back to training. I have picked a couple of fall races to train for- a hilly, tough OLY in October and an International distance in November. I am still undecided about the Soma Half-Ironman in October, I am going to wait and see how my training is going. I have raced so many times in Tempe, not sure I want to again. I may throw in a local sprint in Septemeber. JT is going to start training for his 50k race (December) so I am planning on being supportive wife during that!

Here are some vacation pics: