We told Sawyer as we were getting ready to go back to the park one morning that Disneyland was called the Happiest Place on Earth...his response? "Yes it is. It's where Heavenly Father lives." I think that pretty much sums up how we all felt about this magical week. :)
But I guess if you want a few more details...here's the story. Last year my sister, Kristie, took the initiative to book a hotel for a week in Anaheim using my parents timeshare points (we owe Kristie major props for taking the lead with this!) We decided it was never going to happen unless we planned in advance and went for it. We told everyone that we hoped they could come, but that for sure Kristie and I and our families would be there. And miraculously my entire family ended up coming! (of course David wasn't there and unfortunately Mitch was only able to come for couple short days...but we were happy to have him nonetheless!) Let me just start by saying that we had been greatly anticipating this trip for months...and it did not disappoint. We are still talking about it 3 weeks later. Longing for it. I think most of us would turn around and do it again in a heartbeat...if only it were that easy. I can't pin point one thing that made the week so wonderful. I think it was the fact that EVERYTHING was so wonderful, that will make this an unforgettable memory for our family. The only sad thing is realizing that our kids are too young to remember this trip forever. But the rest of us won't ever forget it :).
Sydney flew into Phoenix on Friday night (her birthday!) and caravanned down to Anaheim with us the next morning. We met my parents, who had flown in from VA that morning. Saturday afternoon we checked into our rooms at the Worldmark, Anaheim...and the magic began. Sunday we visited our old hometown of Cerritos and went to church there to catch up with some old friends. Spent the afternoon at Heritage Park...the most awesome park ever. The kids loved it. Then went back to the hotel to prepare for a week of fun-filled adventures. Monday was our first day at the Park. Nathan and Dad got us all 3-day Park Hopper passes through the military (only $99!). Thanks to Dad for funding it all, unexpectedly! Monday was a rainy day, and much colder than expected. But that didn't stop anyone from having a blast. It simply made for shorter lines and a less crowded park! From day one we were all impressed with how well the kids did...they took naps (like 2 hrs long!) in their strollers in the afternoon and were nice to each other and were so wiped out by the end of the day that they just crashed when we got home. This continued on for the rest of the week! We couldn't have asked for more! We went back to the parks on Tuesday and then again on Friday when Mitch came. Wednesday we went down to Seal Beach and ate lunch at our favorite little restaurant, Ruby's, at the end of the pier. Thursday we just relaxed during the morning and then celebrated my dad's birthday (which was the Sunday after we left) at the Cheesecake Factory. The only downer that week was that I randomly broke out in hives all over my body. It actually didn't itch too bad, so the worst part was just not knowing what was going on with me and looking like a crazy person. After a day of trying cortisone creams it seemed to only be getting worse so I finally broke down at went to an urgent care on Thursday morning. The doctor put me on prednisone and told me I couldn't be breastfeeding while taking it for the next 4-5 days. Ahhh! Violet was almost 11 months anyways and I had been planning on weaning her at a year, but this was just horrible timing! Poor girl then had to quit cold turkey (while on vacation and while already sleeping poorly at nights in our hotel room). And the worst part was that she doesn't like formula so I then had to try and get her to drink some kind of milk for the next few days. She did ok. Definitely fussier than usual but we all survived and it didn't ruin our trip so I guess that's saying something. I have now started nursing her again just 2 times a day (instead of the 5-6 we were doing before). She still won't drink any type of milk for me but she'll guzzle water. Anyways...the hives cleared up over the next week and all was well. Who knows what caused it all but I'm gonna put money on either the detergent or the bath soap at the hotel. Weird. So to continue on, Friday was our last day at the parks and we lived it up! We finished up with World of Color at California Adventure. What an awesome show! Even Violet, who was passed out at that point, opened her eyes to watch. We all loved it. It was the perfect ending to a perfect week. I'm ready to go back. :)
Hope you enjoy the millions of pictures to follow!!!
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| Possibly my favorite shot of the week! |
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| Sawyer did pretty good with the rides...he was a little more scared than we would have liked him to be, but overall he enjoyed the simple ones. Jake LOVED them all...so he was a good example for Sawyer. |
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| Violey's favorite ride and one of my favorite memories from the week...the Casey Jr. Train. I can still see her standing up and holding onto those bars with a look of pure joy in her face. Priceless. |
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| This place will just wipe you out...especially if you are 2. |
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| The Mad Hatter's |
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| Omi & Opi bought them some Mickey ears (among other things!) with their names on the back. |
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| One night while walking around at Downtown Disney my dad discovered a store called Ride Makerz. You basically pick out the parts to a remote control car to build your own. Like Build-a-Bear...but way cooler for a little boy. Dad and our husbands split the cost and let the boys get their own custom RC cars. Nathan was very distraught when Sawyer insisted on putting Monster wheels on his Dodge Viper. Needless to say when a 2 yr old has their mind set on something, nothing is changing it. Sawyer is now the proud owner of a red Dodge Viper Monster Truck. (also I think the big boys may have been more excited about the cars than the little boys) |
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| (also I think the big boys may have been more excited about the cars than the little boys) |
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| These boys are just such good friends. They had a blast together all week long. |
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| We went on Small World in the very beginning to ease Sawyer into the experience. It was a hit. |
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| The Jungle Cruise...another winner. |
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| I think Dumbo was Sawyer's favorite...it's the one he has talked the most about since coming home. |
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| Jake was so excited to introduce Sawyer to his friend, Mickey (whom he had met the previous year). He actually ran in to Mickey and said, "Mickey, this is my friend, Sawyer". It was too cute! |
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| Waiting for Toon Town to open...this was as Mickey and Minnie and the gang were walking to the gate to open it. (Sawyer is obsessed with plugging his ears anytime something is loud or he is nervous/scared...at least he's still smiling) |
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| couldn't resist... |
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| This was the coffee table in our room, turned on it's side. We stood it up against the sliding glass door to the balcony. We were on the 10th floor and our kids are way to adventurous for us to be ok with them crawling around out there. |
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We saw a 'Mickey's Playhouse' show in California Adventure. The boys were SOO excited!
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| These crazies decided to do Splash Mountain at the height of the rain/cold on Monday night. Also when they inquired about buying the picture, they were told they couldn't because someone was doing something inappropriate! Ha! So this pic is one that my dad took of the screen with his Iphone. (also that is my dad sitting behind Nate, if you couldn't tell) |
Exhibit A: Nathan Exhibit B: Sabiner (sorry Syd & Dad...you're just too normal)
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