mini vacation

We're leaving in about an hour and a half to go on a mini-vacation. Our dear friends, Gavin and Laura, are in Santa Barbara for a little over a week, and since they live in the UK, we decided we could do some traveling too and meet up with them down south. We love, love, LOVE Gavin and Laura, and don't get to see them anywhere close to often enough ('cause, you know, they live in the UK). I'm really excited for the opportunity to get to see them, for them to see our kids as it's been a couple of years and for our family to spend a long weekend in Santa Barbara.
Today, I am grateful that Landon's schedule presented an opportunity that worked within Gavin and Laura's time in the country. For a while there, things weren't looking too promising. Also, I am especially grateful that Landon's boss hooked us up big time with free accommodations in his family's beach house for the weekend (hooray!). Will be posting soon with some awesome pics of the kiddos at the beach (where Rissa has decided she will be catching a fish -- Me: "Rissa, we're going to the beach today!" Rissa: "The beach?! I'm gonna catch a FISH!").