La Jolla Shores

Palm tree lined streets. Sun, sand, waves washing on shore. Warm weather. Who can resist the call of the beach when surrounded by such temptation. But to be able to do it in January, that my friends, is truly an event to celebrate.

The weekend we spent in San Diego was unseasonably warm. It was a pleasant 79 degrees Fahrenheit, but felt more like 85 in the sun. La Jolla was a short drive up the weekend traffic-less I5 from our Airbnb. We made a picnic lunch, and jumped in the car to check out the famous beach. Right at La Jolla Shores was a parking lot and entrance to one of the more popular public beaches. The beach walkway was lined with palm trees and there was easy access to the beach. To the right and left you could see the cliffs that were near by, and how they came almost up to the shore, a sight that is rare for an east coast raised girl like me.

Excited by the beauty of the beach

The kids were excited and wanted to get in the water. I laid out a blanket and stayed behind protecting our stuff while my husband went out to take the kids in the water. The surf was calmer than expected (I had heard it was good for surfing, I was expecting bigger waves), so the kids were getting brave going further and further out in the water. At some point, it was too far for my husband the non-swimmer, so we traded places and I went out with the kids

Warm enough to enjoy water in January

Soon the kids were (and let’s be clear I was) cold and starting to get hungry. We started to head back to the blanket so we could dry off and get some lunch. Now, this is where we learn about seagulls. They were all over the beach, and we had seen them make off with some unattended bags of food. Our neighbor had suggested we keep as much in our backpack as possible, telling us that these seagulls sometimes take off with keys! But I figured they were afraid of humans. I was wrong. I told the kids to keep their food close while eating, and just wave their hands and yell if the birds got too close. That worked…for a short while. Then, I noticed a large group come up behind me.by my kids. Suddenly I hear screaming and crying. They had ganged up, swooped in, and snatched the food right out of my kids hands, then started flighting for it right in front of them. My daughter was screaming in terror. My son was crying and screaming. Every one around who saw could not contain their laughter. It took everything in me to not laugh out loud as I consoled my poor terrified children. And it took a while. My son could see sense and managed to calm down, but I actually had to carry my daughter away from the beach to the parking lot to get her to calm down. But for the rest of the trip, anytime she saw a bird she screamed and tried to get away from it. She may be scarred for life 😂

Sure one looks innocent, but in a swarm, remarkably intelligent and brave

My husband wanted to leave but my children wanted more time in the water. We agreed to a compromise, we would pack up, but walk along the water to get a closer look at the surfers. We had to take a long windy route to avoid any seagulls but we did eventually make it further north on the shore to see the surfers catch some waves and ride them in. My husband and I watched, fascinated by the coordination and strength it took to surf. My children just enjoyed running in and out of the waves, and asked if they could learn to boogie board and surf one day. My daughter, ever the dancer, made up her own dance along the water and wanted to know if there was a form of dancing in water she could do. Anyone know of a synchronized swimming class in the bay area?

Loved watching the grace of the surfers

Finally, it was time to get dressed and head out of the beach. My husband and I wanted to check out the Village of La Jolla, and the kids were starting to get darker from the day running around in the sun. We found the public showers and restrooms, and got changed and de-sanded (as much as possible) before heading to our car, and to the Village of La Jolla, in search of ice cream and more fun.