I’ve
uploaded an album of our trip to California to my Facebook account.
The
kids were out of school Thurs/Fri as October started for fall recess. Thursday
we spent packing and we headed out on Friday. Gray had purchased a package
online, and a little bit after we left we realized we had left the packet at
home. So, we did have a little extra travel time that first day, but as we
weren’t really on a tight schedule, it was ok.
We
stopped in St. George. Gray’s brother Clay was running the marathon in the
morning. Gray took a few of the boys and went to cheer him on at the finish. In
the afternoon, we went and visited with Wendy’s family. They were draining the
pool and the kids had fun playing in the shallow water. We also got to
celebrate Jenna’s 1st birthday with them.
We
headed out for California and it took most of the day in the car. The kids had
a lot to entertain them; Ipods, video games, a portable DVD and plenty of
snacks. We finally reached our hotel, just a quarter mile from the park. The
first night we walked through Downtown Disney (shops and resturants). The boys really
loved the Lego Store and the Disney Shop. I told the boys I didn’t want to
spend a lot of money, but I’d happily take their picture with whatever they
wanted :).
We
hit Disneyland the next morning. The older boys went with Maga, Rex and Olivia
on the bigger rides, while Gray and I stayed with the little boys. It was a bit
overwhelming at first. We got a few pictures with Disney characters when the
line wasn’t too long. The little boys wore out, and even Callahan and Keaton
were ready to call it a day fairly early. We went back to the hotel and went
swimming while Landon stayed with Maga and Olivia until late.
Day
two we went to the California Adventure side of the park. I went with the older
boys while Gray took the little ones, then we switched a little later on. That
way both Gray and I got to go on some of the big rides too. When I had the
little boys we played at the “puddle park” and the boys got soaked. I took them
back to the hotel and changed clothes, then we went back for the parade, which
was a highlight of the trip. The park did fireworks each night and although we
could see them from the hotel, I wanted to see them up close one night and this
was the night we stayed. Colton fell asleep, Cooper was freaked out, Keaton was
crying (can’t remember why) ... but the fireworks were great.
We
hit the Disney side again on Wednesday, called it a day fairly early and went
out to eat at Red Robin and swimming at the hotel. Thursday we had a magic
morning (get in an hour before the park regularly opens) but it was still
crowded (not as many people, but also not as many rides open). As soon as the
Adventure side opened, Gray and the bigger boys headed over to that side. It
was the last day at Disney. I gave in and bought a couple items for the kids
(Keaton had his eye on a “goofy” hat since day one). We hit the pool (and Red Robin) again. In the
early evening we took a side trip to Newport Beach. We hadn’t really planned
ahead, didn’t have sweaters (it was cool) or sandals, nothing to dig, or food,
and the camera battery died, but it was still enjoyable overall ... except for
Callahan. He had some sort of reaction to the salt water (behind his knees) and
was in quite a bit of pain. I remember this happening once before (at the Great
Salt Lake). Colton slept through the whole thing.
Friday
we packed up and headed to San Diego for Seaworld. We saw the Shamu show and
the seal and sea lion show. There was a “rapids” ride that the boys went on
(Colton was too small) and Cooper got fairly wet. I thought I had charged the
camera last night, but apparently I didn’t get it on properly and again ... the
camera battery died after a few shots.
Sea World had some nice exhibits, but I think everyone was a little worn
down.
We
headed out for the long drive home. It was a long ride home. Even just as a
passenger, I dislike driving at night ... the constant lights flashing by ...
but most of the kids fell asleep for a good portion of the time. We almost
stopped at Primm (around midnight) but the casino scene looked SO unappealing
we decided to continue on to St. George. Many of the hotels were booked, but we
got the last couple rooms at the same hotel we stayed at before. Colton was so
cute as he woke up and said “We’re back
at the first hotel” ...
In
the morning, the kids took one last swim then we started on the last leg home.
I
hope getting back into a routine and making up missed work won’t be too hard.
Many loads of laundry needing to be washed!
I
had rented the movie “Monsters vrs Aliens” from Blockbuster right before we
left, and the kids loved watching it, and the Toy Story movies over and over. I
woke the first night and realized I had forgotten the life jackets for the two
little boys to swim in. Cooper ended up doing just fine in the shallows, and
actually taking strides in his swimming. Gray did find some water wings for
Cooper and an inflatable jacket for Colton, so the swimming turned out fine.
Anyway,
that’s a little recap of our trip ...
Jen
and da boys
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