The long-anticipated month of Spring Break has arrived. My big kids have been counting it down at least since Christmas, if not before. The reason for their excitement is that back in October I promised them a trip to the most magical place on earth, or at least in Anaheim, CA. Yup, you guessed it…..DISNEYLAND!!! I could pretend that I wasn’t excited and was only doing it for the happiness of my children, but that would be a huge lie. I love Disney, and couldn’t wait to spend a couple days with my big kids, Sulley and Mike, Tow Mater, Minnie, Mickey and of course, Chip and Dale.
(Side note: Do you know how to tell the difference between Chip and Dale? I didn’t, but quickly learned that Chip’s nose is shaped like a chocolate chip, and Dale’s is bright red. He’s probably an alcoholic).
Backing up a minute since we didn’t leave for CA until the 15th, there were a few items of note.
First up, Walter Woo’s first birthday. As is tradition in our house, we create very elaborate celebration “dinners” out of canned food and more treats than you can imagine. It’s no wonder that Walter is a little plump. But, he LOVED his cake and proceeded to throw it up in the yard after. Reminiscent of my 21st birthday…..
Secondly, because we live in Colorado where the weather changes more often than my kids change their underwear, we were treated to a few summer-like days in early March. We took full advantage by having lunch on patios and ice cream on cones. Never mind that no one can see because I made them look into the sun.
(As I write this in early May, we haven’t seen the sun in almost a week and it’s done nothing but rain…with no end in sight. We could build an ark at this point and I’d be happy to put my muddy dogs on it,. Grrrrrr.)
In the days leading up to our vacation, Malory and I spent the time shopping for new beach wear and all manner of summertime clothing items.
And now, the moment we’ve all been waiting for…….SPRING BREAK!!!! I will warn you now that there are A LOT of pictures in the remainder of this post. I simply cannot be witty enough to give a funny blurb for all of them, so you’ll just have to take the picture for what it is. I’ve given up on actual photo albums, so this serves as a memento for my kids when they are adults and cannot remember whether or not I took them to Disneyland.
I’m afraid our first night at Disney was less than magical. I was down and out with a fast and furious case of the stomach flu. So, besides the hour we spent at the pool, we were confined to our room, where the kids watched a Disney Jr. marathon and we (they) ordered room service. But, 14 hours of down time did us good, and we were up and ready for some fun come morning.
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| Breakfast with Chip….or is it Dale? |
Shortly after breakfast, our first roller coaster ride. It was a bit touch and go, and not the best post-illness choice. Thank God for the motion sickness bags they pack on the rides;-)
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Radiator Springs…..seriously, just like the movie
Next up, we decided to play some carnival games and Jackson hit the motherlode. Guess who had to carry all that s%$t around in the backpack?
Now, because a certain little lady is not as adept at Carnival Games as her brother, there were a few tears about her lack of stuffed animals. Have no fear….it was nothing that a $60 trip to the Bippity Boppity Boutique couldn’t cure. Reese requested the Queen Elsa treatment, and I promise you we got our money’s worth in hair spray alone. Pure happy.
Day 2 arrived, and with it came our favorite California citizen, Uncle Lee. He had never been to Disneyland, and to say that he was more excited than the kids is an understatement. He took a day off work, braved the terrible L.A. traffic and arrived at the park in time for breakfast at Goofy’s Kitchen. Shortly after, we made our way into the park and a beeline for the Hollywood Tower of Terror. Jackson had been wanting to ride this particular ride since we arrived, but because of the aforementioned stomach ailment, I wasn’t game the first day. Upon approach, the line was shorter than we’d seen before, so we jumped right in. We were trembling….Jackson and Lee with anticipation and excitement, me with nausea, and Reese with PURE FEAR. That poor girl was terrified, and since I am mother of the year, I told her to shake it off and get moving. The other mothers in line were glaring at me and shaking their heads. Two of them even went so far as to tell me that it probably wasn’t the best ride for her. How bad could it be? It’s Disneyland.
I have no photo evidence of what happened next, because Reese climbed into my purse and curled up into the fetal position on top of my phone, all the while screaming bloody murder.
Yeah, that wasn’t my best decision. It was SCARY. She was not amused. I bought her an ice cream cone (at 9:15 a.m.) and she promised to forgive me someday.
Next up, I left both children in the care of their capable (?) Uncle while I checked us out of our hotel room. I was gone for 30 minutes, tops. While I was gone, said Pushover bought them each Mickey Mouse ears and had their face painted. Lee sent me a picture of Jackson, and my first thought was….”Why does my son have a sperm on his face? Pointed at his mouth?”
It’s a rocket….of course.
Does anyone else think this is what it will look like when Reese gets her Driver’s License? Probably, but I may not look so amused.
Next, Reese and I took a little break from rides while Jackson and Lee rode the B-I-G roller coaster. What you see here may be my favorite picture of the whole vacation. Of course, I did not take the picture….it’s one of those that they surprise shoot during the most terrifying part of the ride. I laughed so hard when I saw it, and couldn’t resist duplicating it on my phone and immediately sending it to everyone Lee knows. He’s clearly a few chromosomes short…..while Jackson looks like it’s a walk in the park.
Maybe I shouldn’t talk….what’s up with my hair?
The day came to a close, and we still had to make the trek down to San Clemente to see our favorite 2-year-old. We’d barely left the Disneyland parking lot when this happened on both sides of the back seat, which was for the best as it spared them from having to listen to me swear at the L.A. Freeway system. What is with those lane dividers? I was sure I ran over someone each time I drove over it.
Someone was VERY happy to see us. It was so sweet….she was actually very emotional and in tears with happiness to see her brother and sister. Me? Not as much, I don’t know if she missed me at all.
For our 2-days at Disneyland, there was record-breaking heat…in the mid to high 90s. Do you think that could continue for our days at the beach? Nope. It was overcast and COLD.
The kids didn’t care, and made the best of it. There were sandcastles built, seaweed hunted, and even a few boogie board lessons courtesy of Papa.
(By the way, that is NOT Papa in the distant surf)
One last item of note in this lengthy March recap…..Jackson is an incredible artist, and his watch project was chosen to represent his school at a city-wide art show. We made a family trip to check it out, and were so proud. Maybe he’ll be the next Tag Heuer?
