I wasn't quite sure how to organize all the zillions of pictures, so I guess I'll attempt to post it day by day.
Our travel day ended up being on Ashlyn's 3rd birthday. She definitely deserves a post of her own, so stay tuned for the details. We ended up sleeping in Primm that night. We stayed at Whiskey Pete's. My kids were so excited when we drove up. They remembered it from last time we went to Disneyland and stayed there. They said it was their favorite hotel. Ashlyn said that it was so pretty. I had to laugh that their favorite hotel was a smelly casino.
The most memorable part of that night was our whole group of 17 getting lost in the middle of the casino. We couldn't find where to go to get to our hotel room. I felt like we were a big parade following each other in a line though the casino. I wanted to do the parade wave at all the people who were staring at us. A kind security guard finally noticed us and rushed us off to the correct elevator.The next morning we headed out again on the final stretch of our drive. We ended up getting to our hotel before check in time so we walked around downtown Disney for awhile. My dad was worried that it would be hard for the kids to be right next to Disneyland and not be able to go in. I don't think the kids even thought about it... but I sure did!
That night all the guys and Leslie went to an Anaheim A's game. They had a great time. Baylen still talks about how much fun it was and how he is sad that he didn't try harder to talk Tanner into going (Tanner wanted to stay at the hotel to swim). Us girls and Tanner had a little pizza party at the hotel and then went swimming. We swam until a little boy threw up in the water. Man, it was gross. Later that night we went up to the roof of the hotel where we saw an amazing firework show being shot off from Disneyland. There were some of the most awesome fireworks I've ever seen: Mickey mouse and smiley faces were some of the favorites. Ashlyn wasn't so sure about the show. In fact, she was terrified until Baylen called the fireworks "fireflies." After that, she tolerated them.
The next day we decided to head to the beach. The weather definitely wasn't on our side. It was overcast and cold. But, we were at the ocean. How can you not have a great time at the ocean?!
Of course, the cold didn't stop the kids from trying the water out.
Baylen and Jared also decided to jump in. They had a great time jumping waves and boogie boarding. These pictures bring one word to mind... BAYWATCH :)
We had fun playing ball and frisbee and playing in the sand. Dave dug a huge hole for someone but we couldn't convince the kids to get in. So, grandpa decided to give it a try. Pretty darn funny!
After the beach we headed to the orange county swap meet. We heard that it was huge. But "huge" is definitely an understatement. We were there for several hours and didn't see it all. It was our first swap meet and was a fun experience.
Monday and Tuesday were DISNEYLAND DAYS!
Here are Raylee and Ashlyn ready to head over to their first time ever at Disneyland...
On Monday we used our Give a day, Get a day passes. We got to wear awesome "Honorary Volunteer" badges. I know lots of people who argue that you shouldn't take your kids to Disneyland until they are old enough to remember it. I totally respect that. However, the look on a little kid's face when they are face to face with a Princess, or Minnie Mouse, or Buzz Lightyear is priceless (even if they don't remember it!). Seeing Ashlyn ask each character if she could give them a high five was so cute. One of my favorite moments of the trip was when she ran up to Mickey Mouse and gave him a huge hug.
Here are a very small few of our character sightings. The day that my kids don't care to see the characters anymore is definitely going to be a very sad day. It was a highlight of our trip!
Our first sighting... Buzz. The younger girls were a little freaked out at first.
This was the little girl's first princess sighting... so fun!
Of course, we also loved the rides. There really is something for EVERYONE at Disneyland. I was really surprised how many of the rides the little babies could go on. It made it fun to be able to all go on lots of rides together! Although, you won't catch me on this ride...
I love my dad's face on this ride. He looked soooo excited to go on the Pooh Bear ride! Yes, Disneyland brings out the kid in all of us :)
Screamin on Screamin...
Some of us liked the bug show better than others...
The kids were able to dance in the Celebration parade...
Our hotel was perfect! It was right across the street from the main gate. So, people could come and go as they wanted. I am now a firm believer that one of the most important aspects of a hotel at Disneyland is location, location, location!Here are some of the favorites of Disneyland...
Baylen: Sitting with Ashlyn on the Jungle Cruise, taking Tanner on Indiana Jones. (I'd have to say that I'm pretty darn lucky to have a husband who loves Disneyland just as much as the kids and I do. I love being there with him!!!)
Alison: The musical Aladdin, watching the kids with the characters, the Peter Pan ride, being in the happiest place on earth with my ENTIRE family
Tanner: Screamin, Space Mountain, Meeting Chip
Mickell: Thunder Mountain, Screamin, Tower of Terror
Hailey: Seeing Jasmine, going on Thunder Mountain, going on the Pooh Bear ride with mommy
Ashlyn: Finding Nemo Submarine ride, the Pooh Bear ride, seeing Mickey Mouse
On Wednesday we decided to go to the beach again. We went to a fun little beach area that had lots of tide pools. It was so fun to find hermit crabs and shells.
After the tide pools, we went to Laguna Beach. One month later, I still find myself daydreaming about this beach. We had so much fun.
Kell doing cartwheels in the ocean...
The guys spent a long time in the ocean. At one point, Baylen and Jared were out boogie boarding. My dad spotted a seal right next to them (Jared could have touched it). We started yelling out to them for them to turn around and look at it. Baylen thought we were screaming because we saw a shark. He is terrified of sharks. He got up out of the water real quick :) It was pretty funny.
We spent hours walking on the beach, playing in the sand, and playing in the water. I love the feel of the water coming up on my feet and washing the sand out from under them. I was very sad when everyone decided it was time to pack up. If I ever strike it rich, I am definitely buying a beach house on Laguna Beach.
On Thursday we headed back into Disneyland again. We let each of the kids choose their three favorite rides to go on one more time. We went non stop all day. We had a blast. But, by the end of the night, everyone was beyond exhausted. We tried to do a little souvenir shopping but all the kids were crying and upset. It sure felt good to crawl into bed that night!
Baylen and I decided that we were in no hurry to get home so we thought it would be good to divide our drive over two days. Everyone else had to get home so they left early on Friday morning. It sure felt sad and lonely every time we would walk past their empty hotel rooms.
Our kids were sooo good on the drive back. We made it all the way to Cedar City and decided to stay over night there. We had fun swimming that night and hanging out together with our own little family. It was a fun end to an amazing trip.
We are so blessed to be part of such an amazing family. I'm so glad that everyone was able to go on this trip. We made memories that I WILL NEVER FORGET! My parents were so kind and were always doing all that they could to make sure that everyone was having an amazing time. They were so sweet to help with all the kids. In fact, on Tuesday night they took all the kids back to their hotel room and let all of us adults spend a few hours in Disneyland alone. What a treat! It was sooo much fun. I sure do love my family!
Well there you have it. A small portion of the 281 pictures I took on this trip. Now, to scrapbook the rest of them!
