Shane, Jules, and I had such a good time on our Santa Monica trip last year that we decided to make it an annual tradition – March tends to be the time of year that I start to desperately crave a sun break, anyway.  We asked Jack and La Verne if they’d be up for joining us and they agreed with very little (no) arm-twisting. We hopped on a plane last Thursday and headed south, happily waving farewell to a particularly gray, rainy sky.
The flight went off without a hitch and by mid-afternoon we were walking through the door of our Marina del Rey rental. Â Jules and I dozed while the guys went for a run and at 5:30 we piled into our cars to make the short drive to Venice Beach. Â Ahhhh, the California Coast. Â My happy place.
I remember being surprised last year by just how much Juliette loved the ocean.  I also remember how exhausting it was, scooping her up as she darted full-speed toward the water time and again!  She has slightly better judgement now, but still couldn’t resist putting her toes in the foamy tide, laughing hysterically as we chased the waves and they chased us right back.
This picture was taken right before a wave set off a chain of toddler dominoes, at which point we wrapped our soaked kids in towels and decided to head home for dinner, bath, and bed.
Our house was just a few blocks from Abbot Kinney, so Intellegentsia coffee seemed like the perfect place to kick-start our Friday. Â These two were big fans of the pastry offerings.
Properly carbed and caffeinated, we drove over to Tongva Park for a romp on the playground. Â Juliette immediately set up shop in this big metal egg, inviting Shane and me to place an order at her restaurant window (I recommend the imaginary pizza with broccoli and watermelon on top).
Interest in the playground quickly waned when the kids heard the sound of running water. Â I’m not exaggerating when I say that they probably ran 80 laps in this shallow pool, like little ducks splish-splashing back and forth, back and forth.
Bird-watching break.
And then a little boogie.
What, now? Â A spray park? Â This just keeps getting better and better!
I remember taking Juliette down this slide last year – those rollers were a little rough on the rear. Â They still are.
Lunch at Tsujita Ramen followed by dessert at Blockhead has apparently also become something of a tradition.
That green tea shaved ice is the stuff of dreams!
Shane, Juliette, and I all piled into bed at naptime – “bed-sharing” with Juliette hasn’t worked well for us in the past, as she prefers to play rather than sleep when we’re around, but water and sun seem to be the magic ticket for a solid crash.  I came to love these afternoon snuggles.
The Chens had a dinner date with some friends Friday night, so we struck out on our own in search of margaritas and tacos.  Happy Hour at Mercado hit the spot – the carnitas tamales with green sauce were amazing.  We left the restaurant at prime sunset time and Juliette and I jogged the couple blocks to the waterfront while Shane paid the bill and got the car.  Made it!  Barely!
But jeez, was it windy!
Juliette and I took a quick walk down the Santa Monica pier and then we called it a day. Â A very, very good day.
Saturday and Sunday were also packed with sand and sun – stay tuned!