The House that Built Me

As most of you know, I have lived in many places throughout my life. The longest time I have lived in one house was from when I was eight to two weeks shy of turning sixteen--in Los Ranchitos of Temecula, CA. This is the home and place I think of when I think of growing up, probably because it was the place I was familiar with the longest. It was in our home in Temecula that I carried around zucchinis from our garden, wrapped them in blankets, drew faces on them, and pretended that they were baby dolls, and when they died (in make believe), I would bury them in our pasture. Weird. I know. This was the place I went to elementary (for a while), middle, and high school (for a while). The people of Temecula were people who shaped my life for forever and became some of my family's closest friends. This past week I was able to return to Murrieta, which is right next door to Temecula (the equivalent of Provo to Orem). It was so neat to go back and see people and things that reminded me of growing up. The best part was that I was able to take my husband to see my childhood habitat :)

Right after Seth and Leslie's wedding, on Easter Sunday, we drove back to Ogden, went to church, and then got ready to fly to San Diego with family (except honeymooning Seth and Leslie, who we missed) that night. Three states on one Easter Sunday! Although crazy, it was fun to feel adventurous. We got back at 2 in the morning and took a look at the beautiful house we were able to stay in. The views from this house are incredible! In some ways, it makes me want to move back to CA. The next morning we awoke to beautiful, perfect southern CA weather--I can't even explain how much I love this! We went swimming in this beautiful pool overlooking the valley. My favorite part of our first day was driving a borrowed golf cart around the development we were staying in to look at the beautiful homes and surroundings! I then was able to drive Ben
around Temecula to show him old schools, the old house, churches I attended, and all those dear places of my heart.

The thing I found out very quickly on this trip is that trips sometimes revolve around food. Especially when we travel home, it is so exciting to be able to eat things we grew up on, even food as silly as Jack in the Box, Richie's Diner, Pat & Oscar's, etc. Oh, and of course, Ben tried the Doritos taco from Taco Bell and was smitten. The Browning and Connors affinity for Doritos is dangerous. Yikes!


The next day Ben and I went with Kim and her date, Jake, to Universal Studios! We had lots of fun with them. We went to the Crepe Cafe for breakfast--delicious!

Universal Studios was a fun, slower paced amusement park. We didn't have to rush to get to everything because, honestly, you could see the whole place with the shows in five hours :) Ben and I got camera happy as we waited out some time to avoid LA rush hour
We all decided to go see Hunger Games to further avoid rush hour. That is the kind of movie that I am STILL thinking about, and although I can't say I enjoyed it, it left me thinking of my own values under pressure.

Then to further avoid traffic, we went to London.

Just kidding! Okay, this was taken at Universal :) However, a life goal is to show Ben the sights of London from Study Abroad.

The next day we took it easy, visited Grandma and Grandpa, Dad's office, and saw our old friend, Judy Cook, who made us delicious mud pie! It was a laid back fun day, which ended by Ben and I seeing Mirror, Mirror with Mary.

By Thursday, we were ready for exotic adventures again so the whole Connors shebang went to Coronado island, off the coast of San Diego. This has always been one of my family's favorite spots. The Hotel Del Coronado has been there since 1888 and has the most beautiful architecture. You just feel elegant going inside--I love that! We walked along the beach and basked in the view!

After this lovely afternoon, we went to the zoo, which I sadly forgot to take any pictures of. I love the zoo. This is not an understatement. We didn't stay too long, but I loved watching all the lions, tigers, and polar bears, and especially the monkeys, I just loved the monkey faces and their climbing!

Apparently, we brought Utah weather with us our final day. It was a high of 50, raining and cold.
We took a morning swim while it was drizzling, watched movies, and then I sat out in the courtyard with the overhang and listened to the rain and read. This warmed my soul :) To finish off the trip, Ben and I took a trip to the San Diego Temple. I did baptisms there for four years, but had never done a session. It was the first temple I had ever attended; I even went to the dedication as a little girl. It was so neat to go and feel the sweet spirit there, which once again reminded me that there is a plan for all our lives and God knows us and our needs, and he knows what is best for us. The best part was going with Ben, and thinking that this temple I saw as a little girl, I was now standing inside with my husband. What a week filled with family, relaxation, and fun. We only wished Seth and Leslie were there, too :)