Where Dreams Come True

May 31st - June 2nd 

Magic happens at Disneyland!  Our kids look forward to Disneyland every May.  This year we spent two days at Disneyland and one day at the beach.  During our little vacation something crazy happened: NOT ONE meltdown from any of our 4 children then ENTIRE trip.  Now THAT is magic.  We had a truly remarkable time.  We were busy from sun-up until fireworks...

Welcome to The Magical Kingdom!

My childhood best friend (from my earliest memories until I moved from California in the 5th grade) lives in Fullerton.  She and her husband both work at Disneyland.  We were fortunate to get to spend some time with them - and meet their son born just 6 weeks before Annika. This is me and Annika with Monika and Kayden.

First up, Irelynn's choice... the Carousel.

Next: Natalya's choice. It was no surprise that she picked the Alice in Wonderland ride. She even wore her Cheshire Cat t-shirt to the park in honor of her favorite Disneyland character.  This is her excited face!

Irelynn and the White Rabbit must be about the same size!

We're wild animals in Casey Junior's train.

It's A Small World is amazing!! 
My sister, Ellen, was able to join us at Disneyland.  It was so fun having her!  Our kids love their Auntie Ellen.  And I loved reconnecting with my sister.

Off the sidewalks! Natalya doesn't have her licence yet! 

While Daddy and Auntie Ellen took Branson and Irelynn on the Toon Town go-coaster, Natalya and I visited Mickey's house.  And to our surprise, he was home!

Mickey gave Annika little baby kisses.

TNT Explosives.  Auntie Ellen helped them make a big Ka-boom!

The kids took advantage of the stroller whenever Annika was being held.  Even Branson thought he could hang off the front.  Little stink.

Annika was fantastic.  She was so content just observing.  She fussed when she got hungry - so I'd nurse her during It's A Small World or Pirates of the Caribbean.  Ha!  Then we'd keep going...

One of our family's favorite rides: Buzz Lightyear.

Irelynn even got the hang of it.

Our kids won't let us leave the park until they get to drive their own Autotopia car. 

Brian took this picture when we stopped to change Annika's diaper.  The kids waited patiently - and planned the rest of our afternoon together.

It got chilly in the evening.  I'm so glad I brought little jackets for everyone.

We couldn't have ended our first day at Disneyland any better!  We saved the Tea Cups for last.  I'm not sure if it's because it was late and we were tired, but we LAUGHED and laughed and laughed... until we were crying.  We couldn't get a hold of ourselves. 

Auntie Ellen, Natalya, Branson, and I turned that tea cup so quickly, that there was a time when I fell to the side and couldn't get back up again.  We will never forget such a fun experience.

We get to see Pixie Hollow light up as we exited Disneyland.

Good Night All!



June 1st, 2011
When we woke up, we had one excited little girl on our hands!  Not only would we return to the happiest place on earth, but it was also her birthday!  Natalya turned 7 years old.

Before leaving our hotel room for breakfast, we sang to her and she got to open presents.

GG sent her a sweet card and she was SO excited to find $7 inside!

Natalya's favorite gift was her Alice doll.  Her face says it all.  Happy Birthday, Natalya!

Disney's California Adventure
We started our second day at Disney's California Adventure where the kids enjoyed their favorite Disney Pixar attractions.  Here they are in front of the Cars 2 poster.  Branson has been counting down until opening night.

We have such dramatic kids.

A big hug for Lightning-

And Mater, too.

My niece, Lindsay, just returned home from serving a faithful mission.  The kids thoroughly enjoyed having their cousin spend the day with us. 

She encouraged us to make as many silly faces as we could.

We're just a bunch of comedians.

Irelynn was thrilled to see Boo's door in front of the Monster's Inc. ride.  Our family loves that movie.

Three little monsters waiting to enter Monstropolis.

Back to Disneyland...

Irelynn couldn't wait for us to visit Sleeping Beauty's castle.  Aurora is her favorite princess.

Speaking of which, Irelynn was thrilled at the chance to meet the princesses.  We waited in line for over an hour.  During that time I got creative to keep her busy.  We played games, danced, had a snack, and took a few pictures.  Irelynn cracked me up - when I said, "smile," I didn't realize I'd get a photo shoot of her best poses...    

What a little cutie. 

Belle was stunning.  Irelynn was so comfortable interacting with her.  Irelynn asked, "How do you do?"  because that's how a princess says Hello.

Irelynn immediately recognized Princess Tiana and crawled right up on her lap.

Annika melted Princess Tiana!  Annika kept smiling at her - and Tiana couldn't get enough of her.

When Irelynn turned the corner she gasped and said, "It's Jasmine!!"

(While we were busy visiting princesses, Auntie Ellen took Natalya to Fantasy Land, Cousin Lindsay took Branson to Toon Town, and Daddy ran around getting Fast Passes.)

When we got back together, it was time for The Matterhorn!  This was the kids' favorite roller coaster - even Irelynn had a blast. 

Next we convinced Natalya and Branson to go on Space Mountain with us. 

The line was horrendous.  But we entertained each other by being silly.   

We saw a kid lose his Mickey balloon.  Our eyes followed it as far as we could see - until it looked like a speck of pepper in the sky.

Our friends, Monika and Ben, gave Natalya a special Birthday badge.  It was such a treat because while wearing the badge, Disneyland employees would wish her a happy birthday everywhere she went.

Scary looking fish faces.  Yes, we were definitly bored.

Natalya liked Space Mountain - but thought it was a little scary.  She said that she didn't want to do it again until next year.  Haha!  But poor Branson was terrified.  For him it was too fast, too dark, too jerky, and too long.  I carried him out crying.  I told him how brave he was and that he should be proud of himself for doing the fastest ride in all of Disneyland.  His reaction surprised me because he usually likes roller coasters.  It broke my heart!

They couldn't stay awake long enough eat dinner let alone see the fireworks.  Disneyland is exhausting for a 3 month old and a 2 year old! 

I didn't expect anything less than spectacular when it came to Disneyland fireworks.  They were amazing - and the music was beautiful.

Branson was so animated!  Brian and I found ourselves more interested in his reaction than in the fireworks themselves.  He kept saying things like, "Oh My!" and, "Goodness sakes!"  We were cracking up.

Farewell, Disneyland!  We had a truly magnificent time.  Until we meet again...


June 2nd
Newport Beach
We couldn't come all the way to southern California in June and not visit the beach.  We met my sweet sister Laura and her husband Larry in Newport and spent the morning in the water and on the sand.    

They all loved running from the waves.

Auntie Laura and Daddy teamed up to make a mermaid tail for Natalya. 

Then they turned it into a merman tail and gave Branson a Triton. 

It was a little cold but the kids didn't care.  When I asked if they were ready to leave, they said, "No, we're f-f-fine.  We're not c-c-cold at all."

They dug for sand crabs...

...and found a bunch!  These must have been a new hatch because there were hundreds of little tiny sand crabs in about two square feet.

They made drippy sand castles with wet sand.  I used to love doing that when I was a kid! (I grew up just 10 minutes from Newport Beach.)

Our kids loved the beach.  It was hard to leave - but at least we came home with a few souvenir sea shells.


Home Again

Just minutes after getting on the freeway, Natalya and Branson crashed.  A busy two days at Disneyland and a day at the beach can really take the energy right out of you!

 

Regardless of how much fun we had while on vacation, it's always nice to go home.