Soccer + The Beach = Perfect

So before I do a DIY or something fun like that, I really wanted to write about a trip that I took last weekend. I went to San Diego, California! It was absolutely perfect to escape the cold weather we have been having in Park City. The only down side, other than the fact that it rained a few times, was that when we came back home, the temperatures practically doubled in coldness (this morning when I woke up it was -18 degrees...).

Oh, and there's also going to be a TON of pictures in this post, all of which were taken by me. But don't worry, they're worth it. #sorrynotsorry


I guess I'll just tell you all about my little mini vacation. My whole soccer team, Black Diamond, went all the way to San Diego for a tournament during Thanksgiving break. Most of the team flew there, but there were also a few that had to deal with the long, countless hours driving. I was one of those few who had to drive. The view was pretty much just a never-ending desert, so it would be pointless to look out the window. All I really did the whole time was listen to music, sleep, and read a few books, but I guess I somehow managed to make it all the way there (and back)!

My mom's friend's sister, Rhonda, let us stay at their house in Oceanside because they were also going to be out of town, and it was only a few minutes away from the fields my team would be playing at. The only catch was that we had to watch their four cats and feed the wild possums and raccoons that came during the night... It was surely quite the adventure... One night, a raccoon nearly came all the way inside to eat the cat food because we had the back door open!

(sorry this is the only picture I got of one of the cats, it was on Snapchat!) This cat's name is Charlie.

Once we were all settled in at our new house for the weekend, the sun was just about to set. The house was only a 10 minute drive from the beach. And come on, there can't be anyone in the world who doesn't love watching the sunset on the beach. It's absolutely gorgeous, no matter where you are! So, we drove to the beach, and right when we touched the sand the sunset seemed to be right in it's prime. It was perfect. It was just one of those moments that you never want to forget, something that you could re-live over and over again. And to add to the vibrant colors we saw in the sky, there were about five or six dolphins that started jumping in and out of the water. It was like a scene out of a movie! It was so amazing!!! After going to the beach a few more times, it was time for my tournament to start!

The sunset on the first night we went there.

I really like this picture, I took it, and that's my mom standing there.

This was the pier in Oceanside.

We saw hermit crabs, real crabs, and SO many different shells and different sea creatures. It was AWESOME!

I took this picture of a few surfers I saw on the beach.

Waking up super early for our first game, we pulled through with a win of 1-0! We got lots of rest for the next few hours (except for me, I went Black Friday shopping;) because we had a second game that day. Unfortunately, we lost 0-1 to a team from Alaska... Our third game ended with a tie of 0-0, but we still pulled through to the semi-finals! Making it that far in a tournament with mostly California teams is quite the achievement. So, even though we lost in that game and did not advance to the finals, we still have something to be proud of. We ended up finishing in 4th place overall.

This was the sunrise for the first game, with absolutely no edit at all!

Going to San Diego for Thanksgiving was such an amazing, fun, and rewarding and I can't wait to do it all over again next year! But hopefully next time, we will pull all the way through to 1st place, I know we will!