"What Would You Give To Get Away?"

Well, we are coming up on vacation time. Soon. For those of you who don't know, we are driving to California for my family reunion. Unfortunately, with all the camping and baby gear, flying just isn't really in the cards. The whole thing has been in the works for so long that I'm a little freaked out we aren't more ready! We still need to lock down the itinerary, get some hotel reservations, buy some sunscreen and an airbed, etc. We did reserve a rental car (thank heavens!), but I don't know if everything will fit! We'd like to camp on Pismo Beach, but we're planning on sending the camping gear in the U-Haul with Dave. I should really make a better list of what exactly needs to be packed so we can figure the whole thing out. At least we'll have air conditioning and some trunk space to work with; if we were to take our Intrigue, we'd have to deal with all the tools and crap that goes along with Allen's car wherever it may roam. I'm trying to get hold of people to visit while we are on our way, like my friend Shelly in St. George, Allen's friend Dom in L.A., etc. I want this to be well organized; I learned from my study abroad in France that it is definitely better to have plans and to know exactly where you'll be staying. Sure, I found a hotel room for one near Montmartre armed only with my rental car, but I'm sure there was some divine intervention in getting me there! I have a general outline, which is subject to change depending on who we get to see when. I do want to visit the Bare Minerals store (can I just say that not all mineral makeup is created equally? Just say no to mineral makeup from China!) and do the Hollywood touristy thing and hit a beach or two before the camping. Allen isn't too excited about all that, seeing as he lived there for 30 years, but I haven't ever seen the Walk of Fame! I may have seen the Hollywood sign through the smog, but never close enough for a photograph. Allen is also worried about wildfires, because I want to drive up the PCH, and it may be closed. :o( Boo. We'll just have to see about that one. I really want to take a laptop with us. Unfortunately, we don't own one yet. I have wanted one for a long time, but those unnecessary expenses keep getting pushed back. I did look at the Used Computer Warehouse, and their cheapest notebooks were $299 and only had 256 MB and a 56K modem. Uh, I don't think so--I'm way too spoiled for that. I really want an HP with LightScribe and an Blu-Ray DVD Drive. We'll see. It would be extremely helpful for the trip, to check traffic and fire conditions and e-mails and driving directions, etc. Should I just do it? I'm thinking so! Eeek! I should have done during the last Black Friday sale!