{Camp Pendleton} Day One

It all started ten weeks ago when Justin and I made reservations to go camping at Pendleton. Then mom and dad decided to come...and of course Kendall and Travis can't leave the beach alone, so they were in too! Then about two weeks prior I realized that we had the perfect opportunity to have a surprise birthday party for my mom there, so I rallied all her friends and family to get down to the beach for the surprise of a lifetime. Now...because this beach in on base, you can't just "camp" there. You have to be military, or sponsored. So to get everyone in was A TON of work, so many many thanks to Kendall and Travis for all their help getting the rest of the camp sites we needed!

Okay, so the day finally arrived and it was time to go. We all caravaned down to the beach from Temecula. It was so much fun. Once we got all checked in and headed to our sites, Travie and Lauren took off for the water while the rest of us set up.







This...my friends, is what a private beach in Southern California looks like. PARADISE!

Soon, Auntie came to join in on the fun!


We brought lots of firewood.

The Bassetts and the LaJois setting up.

Cadence helping her Dad dig a hole for the tent tie downs.

And of course, she had to help with the strings too!

Lauren was not thrilled to be stuck inside watching a movie while we set up.

Home sweet home for the next four days!

And then...it was time for the big suprise! The Sydows were here. As we were pulling in my mom even yelled out about how much she wished the Sydows could be here...and she was about to get her dream come true. If only she had known a few hours prior that they were in their coach on their way down!

We hopped in with them and drove with them to camp...


We pulled up infront of camp and blasted the air horn...which woke my mom up from her lovely little nap on the beach...

...we jumped out and she had NO CLUE why we were in some strangers RV.

When she finally realized who was in the RV and what was going on, she was so shocked...and SO EXCITED!





"How did you crazy girls pull all this off!?!"

After a (not so quick) detour of getting the coach out of quicksand, it was officially happy hour! Yes, the coach got stuck in sand, dual axel deep, blowing sand out the exhaust. We could not even see the tires because it was so deep and the sand was around it. Blocks, bricks, shovels, hoses, and a grip of our fellow camp-mates worked for about 45 minutes and we were finally able to get it out of the quicksand. I really thought we were going to have to get a tank to dig him out. (A funny side note: A few hours later...another rig pulled in and got stuck in the exact same quicksand!)



WooHoo for Happy Hour! Why is my margarita so much bigger than the others?


Booze on the beach at sunset? Yes please. (It is legal on base)



She is so MY kid...She made me feed her potato chips WHILE she was in the bathtub tonight.

Travie was assigned dinner duty tonight and he did not disappoint. Grilled salmon, steak, shrimp, oysters, and crab legs.

While Travie made dinner, I ran around camp taking pictures because we had such a great sunset. The dogs loved their sandy version of Chateau Puppy!

Dinner is served!




We had a big bonfire and went for a long walk on the beach all the way to the jeddy but well...we put the camera away for the night at the point, so the night ends here with Trav and I enjoying all the delights of the sea.