Last day

So we have managed to pack five months of our lives into 6 suitcases. We've driven through 35 states, and had the holiay of a lifetime. This time next week the kids will be back at school, and things will be working their way back to normal.

Funnily enough, I am now sitting outside a games store in Santa Monica waiting for Ken .... "just one more games store!"

It is about 3pm - 6 hours until we fly out. Pray this flight is not turbulent and that we land on solid ground back home without incident.

See you all in a few days!

Science Museum, Los Angeles CA

Spent our day between the Science Museum and the Museum of Natural History.

We fly out Tuesday 9pm, arriving home Thurs 10am. Back in Boonah 2pm.

Wayfarers Chapel CA

We had a beautiful morning this morning at church at the Wayfarers Chapel http://www.wayfarerschapel.org/
Once again it was lovely to feel at home in a New Church service. The church was designed by Lloyd Wright, Frank Lloyd Wright's son, and is just beautiful. Do go to the website to see really good images of the chapel, as my photos don't do justice to it.

Afterwards we went to a fantastic Mexican restaurant, "Acapulco" http://www.acapulcorestaurants.com/ and spent the afternoon rolling around feeling way too full! We drove to Pasadena to the markets http://www.pasadena.edu/fleamarket/ and wandered through the stalls before making our way to the last games shop of the holiday - Games Empire.

The trees seem to blend with the glass and timber walls - just beautiful

Looking into the chapel

So difficult to see the chapel - such an organic structure

And a bit of popular culture ... 2311 Los Robles Av, Pasadena where Sheldon and Leonard live  

Griffith Observatory

We had a wonderful morning at the Griffith Observatory http://www.griffithobs.org/ followed by a picnic lunch, then a visit to the Autry Museum http://theautry.org/

The sign! The kids have been dying to see this since we arrived in LA.

Kids with 'Hollywood' in the background

LA, one of the most polluted cities in the world. Today was actually a good day as far as visibility is concerned. The smog here is choking.

Amusing sign on the door to the observatory ...

Benedict can tell you what a new moon, quarter moon and full moon look like. He is very proud of this!

Using up all my quarters in the binoculars before heading home.

This meteorite fascinated Victoria.

Griffith Observatory

Then at the Autry Museum ...

We arrived on a day of festivities, with markets selling wares by local American Indian artists, and dance and singing performances.

In the 'Wild West' section of the museum, there was a display of fashion. In this case are costumes worn by Michael Jackson, and commentary about how they are inspired by the cowboy fashion of the wild west.

Benedict in a Wild West movie!

La Brea Tar Pits, CA

Spent time today at the La Brea Tar Pits.http://www.tarpits.org/  Brea is Spanish for 'tar', so I guess we went to 'The Tar Tar Pits' :) Over the centuries, the animals that were trapped in the tar have been preserved, and the millions of bones are on display in the museum.
We timed our visit well, managing to avoid a school excursion of smelly kids just as we were leaving. We wandered around Mid-Wiltshire, a groovy dining and shopping district, before heading home for a swim.

Fully preserved skeleton of a ground sloth

Getting a lesson in surface area/surface tension from museum volunteer

Cool dudes! Captain Smooth and Captain Grin

The pit was awesome! Mind you we wouldn't want to fall in -  apparently that asphalt doesn't wash out ... and a saber toothed cat might eat you whilst you are stuck in the tar!

LA Zoo

Today's plan of visiting the observatory was set aside when the sky remained in a state of thick smog until about 4pm. Instead we stopped by a game store for Oliver to purchase his Nintendo DS (secondhand) that he has been saving for, and then we visited the LA Zoo and had a fun time. The favourite part of the day was grooming the kid goats at the petting zoo. Oliver and Benedict enjoyed telling the keeper when and where they found scat, and asking them to sweep it up!

My favourite animal - prairie dogs!

Posing meerkats

Slothful boy in tree!

Upon seeing this sign next to the tortoises, we reminded Victoria about when she was two yrs old on a trip to the Dubbo Zoo. We had turned our backs momentarily to get Sophia a bottle, only to turn around to see Tori had climbed into the Galapagos tortoise enclosure and was sitting on the back of one having a lovely ride! We asked her to restrain herself on this zoo trip :)

Disneyland, Anaheim CA

Today was fabulous. It couldn't have gone more smoothly. The crowds were low, it was a bit overcast - the sun came out later, and the day was incident free (no lost hats or 'lost' lunches!)

Disneyland is an amazing place. Very well staffed, and superbly maintained (as it should be for the entry cost). Everything was clean and ran so smoothly. I am so proud of the kids and how they handled the day. We arrived at 7am to go through security, and collect pre-paid tickets, and left at 5:30pm. The 'Fast-Pass' tickets that enabled us to just turn up at a ride and not wait in line were fantastic. A superb day all round.

Waiting for entry - Halloween themed Disneyland

Oliver's face looked like this all day!

This 'Yoda' backpack was cool!

Another happy child!

Exiting 'Alice in Wonderland' - the batteries ran out after this one, and quite frankly no photo could do justice to the fun we had all day today! It is 'The Happiest Place on Earth!'

Santa Monica LA

SItting at Santa Monica Pier - 23 deg - gorgeous day.
Just donated to the Obama campaign, and am now the proud owner of several Obama badges :)
Low key day in preparation for Disneyland tomorrow.

Hurricane Sandy

Seems we have been very, very lucky.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/9639244/Hurricane-Sandy-live.html

Last day in the RV

Spent the day washing, cleaning and re-packing in readiness to return the RV tomorrow, pick up our hire car, and head to our final home in Los Angeles.
The kids were very good and tolerant of our day today, that we took them to see 'Hotel Transylvania' this afternoon. What a great little film that was. We all really enjoyed it.
So what have we learnt about living in an RV for 5 months?

• We don't need a 6 bedroom house to treat each other charitably - though, I do miss the space! 
• The kids all talk in their sleep - Ben and Oliver are best of 'frienemies' even when unconscious.  At least Tori and Phi stop fighting when they are asleep. 
• Sophia and Oliver grind their teeth - unfortunately they get that from me. 
• Give the girls a light source and a book and they are happy well into the wee hours of the night.
• We can live without tv. I knew this. This confirmed it.
• An RV is easier to keep clean than a house.
• Driving on the wrong side, and driving a heavy vehicle, both take about 1 week to get used to, then they feel as natural as breathing.
• We don't need stuff. (Let me clarify that shoes are NOT stuff ... I really missed my shoe collection and cannot wait to get home and reorganise so my many new pairs fit in the closet.)
• There are some dire campgrounds out there, but more often than not, there are some beauties. TripAdvisor and RV reviews are your best friend.
• Living in an RV teaches the kids to put things back where they belong. I hope this lesson is not forgotten too quickly upon our return.
• Make sure you remember your highschool physics - you can get a rather large rock out from between two tyres if you use leverage!
• Schooling on the road is taxing yet greatly rewarding. I know the children have seen and experienced things that conventional schooling just could not offer, and I hope those new learnings can be drawn upon, and contextualised, for the rest of their lives.
• Discretion is the better part of valour ...
• I love my kids.
• I love my husband.

Now, we just have to survive Disneyland on Wednesday, and all will be well!

Los Angeles

Just arrived at Ventura Ranch, our RV park until Monday am, when we return the RV to pick up a hire car and drive to our final homestay. A beautiful 30 degrees here. Blessedly there is a jumping pillow at this park, so we have sent the kids off to jump whilst we clean and pack up.

Joshua Tree CA

We have spent the day at Joshua Tree National Preserve. We began the day with a tour of Keys Ranch, where Mr Keys and his family spent their life in the early 1900s. What a dry, difficult life they lead. Afterwards we drove around the park to various points of interest such as Jumbo Rocks and Chollo gardens. We had a picnic lunch at Hidden Valley in the park and took a short hike there through the rock formations.

Tomorrow we head to Los Angeles. The holiday is, sadly, almost over, and we have about 10 days left until we fly home.

Ranger talk at Keys Ranch

The mountains around here are all boulders - seemingly stacked in impossible formations

On the ranch

Ranch house

Mr Keys collected anything and everything he could find

Joshua Tree

Sophia working on her Ranger Workbook

Chollo Cactus