JB – Day 1

We are finally here, in Manhattan Hermosa Beach! It’s an amazing, and strange, feeling. It’s been almost a full year since finding out my sabbatical application had been accepted at work and our family was going to move out to California for a two month adventure. The long waiting time allowed emotions of both excitement and anxiety to ebb and flow until all of a sudden we were boarding a plane with two toddlers for a 6.5 hour flight to LAX on a Friday morning instead of taking the 92 into the office. The flight actually went surprisingly well (thank you for the in-flight entertainment and endless pantry of snacks/drinks, JetBlue!), and after lugging our 3 full suitcases, 2 car seats, multiple backpacks, and kids onto the rental car shuttle, we arrived at our new temporary home in Hermosa Beach by early afternoon.

The first 48 hours in HB have been an awesome combination of fun local activities and perfect weather.

MB Takeover

When we arrived, we dumped everything into the house, took a quick little tour, and I got into the car to Target and TJs to get Owen’s crib etc. Jordan took the kids down to Hermosa to check out the area, test out the beach, and get our bearings. When we all got back, we quickly unpacked while the kids watched a show before heading back down into Hermosa for an early dinner. Sitting outside and watching the sunset was a surreal feeling after being stuck in the cold all winter – and we feel so grateful to be here! Once we built the crib, the kids were asleep after 22 long hours of being awake (for Owen, yikes) and they slept well!

Saturday, we got settled a little more before going out to watch the Hermosa Beach St. Patrick’s Day Parade! It was so good. All the little dance groups from each school, Irish dancers, cheerleaders, the Budweiser Clydesdales, police cars, fire engines, motorcycles, a million gold carts, and so much fun to watch.

Sunday was the perfect beach day! We spent all day on the beach, at least Delaney and I did while Owen napped for a while, and we played in the waves, made castles, collected “she shells”, and walked over to the swingset on the beach and Hermosa before heading in to make dinner on the deck. It’s been a great first weekend and Jordan starts his work tomorrow!