This past spring we have been incredibly fortunate to welcome a steady stream of visitors to Santa Monica — the latest being our St. Louis friends Mark, Erin, Isabella Love (I-Love) and little Jonah. We enjoyed a day-trip to the beach, a visit to the Natural History museum, crepes on the Promenade, amusement park rides on the Pier and even a little BBQ courtesy of Mark.

Our evening at the Pier was a bit chilly, and therefore made for low attendance (no long lines). Probably the quietest we’ve seen it on a Friday night. Ethan and I-Love hopped on several rides — one in particular was a spinning balloon ride (similar to teacups). The ride started out full of smiles and laughter…and then Ethan’s mood quickly turned somber and his face turned a few shades of green. He stopped their balloon from spinning, told I-Love to “stop laughing” and repeatedly yelled to the ride operator “When do we stop?” I felt bad for him, but at the same time couldn’t resist catching it on video…or laughing. Ethan couldn’t help but hear my cackle. Oh boy – he was not happy with me. Erin summed it up simply with, “If looks could kill!”

Jonah was all smiles during his visit — one of the happiest babies I’ve ever met aside from my niece Lili. Ethan was fascinated with I-Love’s nickname and Max was equally fascinated by her plush purple puppy she carried with her. He always tried to take it from her when within reach. However, at the end of the weekend, Isabella noticed how much Max loved the little dog and bequeathed it to him with a smile and said, “Here, you can keep it. I’ll get a new one in St. Louis.” Wow. That little girl is more generous at age 3 than most adults I know at age 30+.

Max’s newly adopted friend (cleverly named “purple puppy” by big brother Ethan) is never far from a squeeze and a kiss. It’s the only plush toy I’ve seen Max snuggle (…well, other than his Elmo leash…and that’s a story for another day…!)

That’s the good and the bad of living so far away from those we love. While we miss seeing everyone regularly, when we DO have the luxury of overnight guests, the visits always seem to be so much more fulfilling than just getting to meet up with friends for dinner or drinks. We actually get to hang out for more than a couple hours…we get to spend much more quality time together which is definitely an upside to the distance. Albeit, it’s always hard to say goodbye since we never know when we’ll get to see our friends and family next.

On that note, St. Louis…get ready — the boys and I are headed your way at the end of July!