How much can we fit into one day?

Today my dad and Cameron flew into LA for a Jazz vs. Lakers game. My dad scored some fabulous tickets nine rows back behind Jack Nicholson. After the game it was fun to hear how much they had enjoyed themselves. Cameron (nephew) was so excited that they were the first to arrive and had to wait for the gates of the Staple center to open.

We picked them up this morning in Long Beach and went straight into LA and ate breakfast at Philipe's. We ate here a couple of years ago with our friends the Arlingtons and happened upon it today. It has an old diner/cafeteria feel to it. The floor is covered in sawdust, you have to wait in long lines to order your food and the staff acts just like grumpy old lunch ladies. The food is great though! I had a delicious French Dip and Tapioca pudding. The kids ate scrambled eggs, Doritos and Frosted Mini Wheats, sounds delicious. Even better is the fact that if you go upstairs the tables are set up in small rooms, so it is easier to handle my kids and their noise.

After Philipes we went over to the Griffith Observatory. I have tried to get somebody to go here with me for awhile, but we always run out of time...suspiciously. They had no choice. We had time to kill and I am a fan of cheap entertainment. We got there in time to see the "Water is Life" show in the planetarium. My kids loved it! When the lights went down and the guide started talking I was mesmerized.She narrated the entire show, perfectly! Somebody in Hollywood needs to discover her. I am definately going back, with or without guests, I know Paige will go with me. She loved the show "Up her head."


After the observatory we thought we would head out to the Santa Monica Pier. When we got out of the car, we all breathed a sigh of relief. It had been over 100 degrees in LA. It was at least 20 degrees cooler. We walked down the pier, watched the very strange people and ate some ice cream. I think we were there for about an hour and we were done. It is one of those places that I can say I have been there, but no need to rush back. Then we dropped them off at the hotel where we had planned to swim only to find out there is no pool, seriously, no pool? So we went down to valet to get our car to find out that it is going to be $20 for 15 minutes...are you kidding me! The very nice lady at the front desk helped us out of that one, and off we went for our 3 hour heavy traffic commute home.

It was a great day with Grandpa and Cameron!