Disneyland re-cap

What can I say?  Disneyland is great.  By the end I was ready to be done with Disneyland, but that was because it got crowded towards the end of our trip.  Now I want to go back.  Everyone else does too, except Brian.  He is not a lover.  He is happy to take the kids but it is not his first suggestion for a family trip.

We went the last week of September with our Disney fanatic friends, the Walker family.  I think they did the 6 day hopper pass.  We did 4 and that was pushing it for Brian.  Kelsey's best friend is their daughter Kristina.  Kelsey wasn't happy unless she was shopping or with Kristina.  There were times our families would separate to have time as a family and she would turn into Oscar the Grouch. 

Kelsey giddy because she has a new purchase and is with her
friend.

The weather couldn't have cooperated any better.  The first 3 days at Disneyland were in the mid-70s.  When we went to the beach on Thursday and Friday the park was reaching the 90s so the beach weather was great. 

The crowds were awesome and minimal Monday and Tuesday.  The Tower of Terror had a 10 minute wait, Star Tours 15 minute, and Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters 5.  We did have a Utah family of about 40 in front of getting their entrance tickets Monday morning which caused us to wait in the longest line that day.  That didn't start our day off the happiest way, but it improved dramatically.

Wednesday's crowd was ridiculous.  It was like summer time crowds and it is supposed to be the slowest day of the week.  Come to find out it was Yom Kippur and Orange County and LA County schools were out for the day.  Disneyland didn't even catch this and wasn't prepared so they extended park closing time by an hour.  That didn't help much with the heartache of so many people.  I will never go in the summer.

We decided to try out the Halloween Block party Friday night and paid the extra $60 for each person.  We had heard wonderful things about it.  Well we thought it stunk for families with little kids.  It must have caught on because it was sold out.  You couldn't move through the streets and the lines for trick-or-treating were 20 minutes.  The candy was good but I could have bought a whole lot of the same stuff for the price paid.  We were told wait times were amazing at the rides.  Well not with a sold out crowd.  The wait times were longer than Monday and Tuesday and there was not quick moving through the streets to get to a lot of attractions.  Of course the fireworks were fantastic.

We made it to the new Radiator Springs and it was awesome.  The new Race ride was great.  Braden wasn't a fan but we made him ride it 3 times.  Luckily were smart and help from friends to make sure we didn't wait in the 2 hour line.  We made use of fast passes and ran in first thing when the park opened.  Nobody like Luigi's Flying tires.

Braden wearing Macy's purchase waiting for the racers.

We finally made it to World of Color and I want to see that again in a better viewing location.  It was amazing and fun.  Of course, I think, I had to make 2 or 3 bathroom runs with the kids during the show.

Kelsey rode everything.  She didn't like everything but was determined to be braver than her friend.  One of her favorites ended up being Tower of Terror.  Macy liked all the big ones.  I know they rode the roller coaster several times.  Kelsey may have liked that one too.  Braden always asked to go on the Ariel ride.  Not sure the fascination.  Maybe it was because you never had to wait to ride that one.  They all liked the teacups.  Braden got to ride almost every ride too.  He just barely reached 40 inches.  His head would just barely scratch the measuring arm and their were a few close calls.  We were worried the first 40 inch ride and folded maps to put in his shoes.  But he didn't need them.  Now our friend's youngest daughter who is a year older than Braden didn't quite make it.  She had to wear hand-me down 1 1/2 inch wedge flip-flops that had been through 2 sisters and many Disneyland trips (height is not a trait for their family).  New ones could not be found before the trip.  Those poor shoes had had enough and broke but she needed them to ride some of the rides so creative engineering had to take place.  It wasn't always comfortable for her nor did it always work.  Good thing she is their last.

This was the first year I have ever had to do the autograph thing.  Macy bought her own book and wanted as many as she could.  The characters she met were:  Cinderella's fairy godmother, Jack Skelington, Flick, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Goofy, Micky, Jessie, Woody, Pluto, Jake from Neverland, and Red.

Like I mentioned before the beach days were awesome.  We went to Laguna and Newport.  We played in the sand and did lots of burying.  The kids played in the waves.  Brian did some boogie boarding and the kids rode on the boogie board.  At Newport a seal came within 6 feet of the girls and I while we were playing in the water.  He was playing the waves too and didn't mind having us close.  It really startled me when I first saw him because it was the last thing I expected to see.  At Laguna we were robbed and then attacked by seagulls.  We left our backpack open thinking things would be fine because all our snacks were sealed in their packages.  Just so you know that doesn't stop seagulls.  They rummaged through the bag and stole 4 bags of chips and opened them.  I can't remember what else the grabbed, but they would not leave us alone after that and were not afraid to get too close for our comfort.

Attack of the seagulls. They want her chips.

Our seal friend

Our summer trip: Warning this is long and I did no proof-reading

I have now been back a week so I guess it is time to grab the keyboard again. We had a great time up in Utah, but it is good to be back in our own home. If only we could move our home close to our families then life would be perfect.

We stayed extremely busy while we were visiting, so if I didn't get a chance to stop by an say hi I am sorry. We will have to catch up another time.

One of the first things we did was take the kids to the movie theater for their first time. It took Macy a long time to become a movie watcher so Brian and I hadn't tried this venture yet. We went and saw Wall-E. I thought the movie was cute and funny. I was laughing out loud in some parts. The kids had a great time too and made it through the whole thing thanks to the bread sticks and Italian cream sodas Calee had brought from work. After the movie we swung by the Days of 47 float preview. That was fun and neat and so much better than watching the parade in the heat. Of course this year might not have been too bad.

The next day was the zoo for my dad's company party. I think the kids had more fun at the zoo because grandma, aunts and uncle were there.

My family loves water so our first water activity was Cherry Hill. For many years my mom's family has gone to Cherry Hill for a kind of reunion. The timing of our visit didn't allow us to be up there for the reunion (the fam is headed up there this weekend actually) so we did our own day trip. The kids had a great time. Kelsey's favorite might have been the pool or the lazy river but she also enjoyed the blue water slides and Pirates Cove. Macy loved the whole thing. She had a blast on all the water slides and loved the fact that she could touch the ground in the lazy river. Below is a picture of Macy going down the tube slide. Kelsey saw Macy do this and thought she was brave enough. She made it through the first waterfall but after the first plunge she decided it was not her thing and we had to get off the ride. Maybe next year.

Next up on our agenda was J.T.'s enormous slip and slide on Pioneer day. This was Macy's favorite. In fact we did the big slip and slide twice this trip and went to a friend's house and used their little slip and slide. After getting cleaned up from the slip and slide we did some celebrating with fireworks lit by pyromaniac Jeff (with some added help from another pyromaniac Jake).

The next day we hit the Children's Museum at the Gateway. The poor kids were losing a battle with sleep so it wasn't their best day, but I still think they had a good time. And of course we had to find some more water so we played in the fountain.

No trip to Utah would be complete without trip boating on Poppy's boat. Macy has become a tubing junkie. She could stay on them forever. My dad doesn't take her extremely slow nor does he keep the boat straight so these are not the tamest rides, but she enjoys it. Kelsey on the other hand is still not so sure about them. She saw her sister do it so of course out she went. She didn't last very long and when she go back in the boat people kept asking her if she liked it. Her reply was, "No. It's stupid."

After a week at my parents the girls and I moved over to Brian's parents. I feel like it makes it easier to see his family and besides I like them too. One afternoon we went to a nearby splash park with the girls and their cousins. Macy had a great time with Kennedy while Kelsey spent half the time sleeping. The girls also got to have a sleepover twice with their cousin Jensen.

Well Brian too eventually made it up to Utah to join us. He had missed everything up to this point, but he made sure he got his fill in. Just the two of us took a ride up in to the mountains to remind us of what green is. We went on an extremely short hike to a waterfall that neither one of knew even existed (don't laugh if you know of it but it was called Hidden Falls or Secret Falls up Big Cottonwood). Then we drove up to Silver Lake and walked around viewing the beauty up there. For dinner we had to try Alan's (Brian's dad) favorite place to eat, Zupas. I have to agree it is good. I really like the Caribbean Salad.

The next day Brian went horseback riding with his grandpa and brother. The allergy shots and medication have worked and he had no problems so of course horses have been added to his list of wants. That night we had a luau at my parents house for Brian and my cousin Garrett. This was the other time we pulled out the slip and slide. For the luau we made pina coladas and had pork for dinner. Thanks to everyone who wished him Happy Birthday. He said you really made his day.

The next day we got together with Brian's family for a BBQ. Of course more water was involved. Brian's brother has one of those big blow-up water slides and the kids had a blast hanging out with their cousins.

No trip would be complete without a little Rock Band/Guitar Hero for the kids. I also tried Wii fit and got a total of 11 min worth of exercise using it. I was a yoga master and a body builder (I can't remember the exact titles). Ticket to Ride was played many times. I won a few, but I still can't beat Brian. We also made the annual trip to the Park City Outlets and this year it treated Brian well.

The other thing to note about the trip was Kelsey and Macy's love for my family's puppies. Macy hated these dogs in St. George in May and she hated them for the first part of the trip. She spent the first week up on the couch and/or screaming when the dogs came around. I wish I had been a better photographer so I could remember the silliness of the scene. But after some time she came to love those dogs. Soon she was carrying them all over the place, putting them in boxes, placing them in the entertainment center, and making them dance. Kelsey has always loved the dogs and has tormented them from day 1. I am sure Bella and Sophie were not sad to see the girls go.

Our trip ended the same way it began. My mom drove back with me and we did the drive in one day. The kids were really great in the car, but to make it go faster next time I think I am going to skip the meals and let them eat skittles and candy for dinner. My mom stayed for a day and half and the girls made sure she went swimming with them both days.

Gearing up for the summer

This what we did on Tuesday. I have a feeling it is going to be another hot summer. My air conditioning is already coming on to keep the house at 78 degrees. I would turn it down but I am trying to prep for the summer. On another note, I went into the orthopedic doctor again today. Everything still looks good, so maybe on April 17 (3 weeks) I can have a removable soft cast instead of the big purple thing. If you see me popping calcium supplements it is so I can get rid of the cast.