We just got back from a couple of days in San Diego. As one of my Christmas gifts my dad got us a room at the Hyatt. It's right on the water and on the 28th floor the view was AMAZING!

The girls had Monday off so we decided to take them down and tour the USS Midway. If you have never done this it really is worth the time. My brother served in the gulf on an air craft carrier for a year so we were lucky enough to go aboard for a family cruise when they came home. It is amazing how big these ships are; like floating cities.

Going aboard one really gives you a whole new respect for these men and women who CHOOSE to join the military and serve away from their families for great lengths. And it's not like it's luxury sailing either. I mean each man gets about 6 cubic feet to live in. 6! If that doesn't make you tougher I don't know what will.

The girls and I decided we liked the command center. See Ryannes leaf frog game on the table behind her? Uh huh ya, she walked away and left it there. It has a camera on it and she was walking around taking pictures and then forgot to pick it up. We didn't realize for some time and when we went back it was gone. She was so upset and crying like crazy. We checked in lost and found where they said they had not seen it but would call us if someone turned it in.
Sure enough about 20 minutes on the freeway and guess who called and said a game had been turned in? Yup' and guess who was getting off the freeway and back tracking so their 7 year old would quit crying? Yup' the joys of parenthood. Ha!

Ready for take off Maverick? Goose is patiently waiting behind her for her turn in the fighter jet. :)

So many planes to climb into so little time. Seriously, you could not see the whole place in one trip. It was just to big! We got the walking tour head set which was so fun to listen to. They even have a kids program so it's more at their level of understanding all the fun facts about the carrier.

Poor Dan woke up fighting a horrible cold but was a trooper and went along with us all day. He felt so bad. Poor guy.

Did you know the USS Midway was one of the longest active carrier's in the Navy? Serving for nearly 47 years the Midway served in Vietnam and the Gulf War. Over 200,000 veterans served on the Midway calling her their home for many battles.

If you don't walk along the harbor you are really missing out. There is this really great statue of Bob Hope entertaining the troops and it has a recording of some of his jokes playing so it's really a treat to sit and listen to. Did you know Bob Hopes first performance during war time was on the Queen Mary in Sept. 1939 when World War II began? He then proceeded to entertain the troops in the Korean, Vietnam and Persian Gulf war.

Want some more trivia? Sorry I can't help myself. This statue which I have always loved is a copy of a real photo taken of a soldier kissing a nurse in Time Square after the announcement that World War II had ended. The original picture was taken on Aug. 14, 1945. This statue stands at 25 feet.

If you take the time to walk around all the war memorabilia you may even be lucky enough to pass people holding a flag chanting,"USA! USA! USA!"

I love all the fishing boats and military planes flying over. It's just a fun place and reminds me how thankful I am to live here. :)

It's a great place for kids to run and learn about their history at the same time.

So all in all a really fun weekend. I would highly recommend a visit to the USS Midway and the surrounding harbor. Also if you love good food head over the Sammy's Wood Fire Pizza or Nicky Rottens in the Gas Lamp district. Yummy Pizza and Sweet potato fries!