California Family Fun

After months and months of anticipation, it finally came!  Our family vacation this year was to Southern California.  We kicked off the week with the Happiest Place on Earth.  Sam missed a week of school, so his homework assignment was to keep a journal.  Here was his first entry:

You have to appreciate his candor.  This was the first time the Sam & Austin were big enough for most of the rides.  Ryan set a rule that everyone had to try each ride at least once.  Some were automatic hits, others...not so much.  We started the day off with Splash Mountain (NOT a hit).  After that, we had to cheer everyone up with Winnie the Pooh (definitely a hit).  Eli and Austin were happy to give Tigger a hug before checking out the Haunted Mansion (NOT a hit) and Pirates of the Caribbean (mixed reviews-would have scored more points if there weren't those pesky "big slides").

Dumbo was a hit with everyone, although Eli was a bit unsure.

Hi Aunt Carly!!!  We were so lucky to spend the whole day with this gorgeous lady.  We missed (soon-to-be) Uncle Eric, who had to work, but we will get to see him soon at the wedding!

Teacups with Aunt Carly and Dad were a big hit.

The highlight of the day...finally meeting Mickey Mouse!  

The boys couldn't wait to give him a big hug.

We joke in our family that you can tell how nervous our kids are by how many fingers are in their mouth.  One or two fingers, not too bad.

One whole hand, pretty worried.  (While watching the parade)

Two whole hands...really, REALLY nervous.  

Apparently It's a Small World is a bit much for an 18 month old :)

The adventure just kept getting better once we met up with our good friends the Collins family!  Sam, Oliver, Austin, and Kate became instant best friends.  Taking a picture was basically impossible, but we did our best.  After a super long day, we hugged Aunt Carly goodbye and headed to the hotel where the kids instantly crashed. 

The next day we headed to Disney's California Adventure!  You can probably guess what everyone's favorite ride was...

We had fun getting as many stares as possible with our wheelchair/stroller train.  Zach is pushing Lisa (expecting Baby Collins #3 soon), who is pushing Eli and Austin, while the other 3 kiddos ran alongside.  It was awesome.

The kids cooled off in the sprinklers at A Bug's Land with their new best friends, while Ryan and I got to sneak in a ride on California Screamin' (my personal favorite).

Playing wolves at the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail.  After 1 1/2 crazy days at the parks, it was really nice to find a quiet place to let the kids just play.  I think this was their favorite part of the day.

Lest you think we are terrible parents, here is the back-story.  We NEVER planned on taking the boys on Tower of Terror.  The boys didn't want to do it...until they met Oliver.  Oliver told Sam that he doesn't like Tower of Terror.  He told him it was too spooky.  He told him there were big drops.  And Sam?  Well for some unknown reason this made Sam WANT to ride Tower of Terror.  (Actually I know exactly the reason...he may have inherited my contrary nature :)  He told us over and over he wanted to ride it.  He told Oliver to ride it with him.  Finally, he convinced Austin to come with us.

I will let you decide what they thought of the ride...

Afterwards, we strolled through Cars Land, met Lightning McQueen, and rode Mater's Junkyard Jamboree to lighten the mood.

See?  Happy.

Finally, to make sure we ended the day on a good note, Austin got to use his chore and birthday money to buy a Mickey Mouse.  He had been waiting for this for weeks and knew exactly which one he wanted.  This is actually one of my favorite pictures from the week.  Pure Happiness.

Day 3 was not terribly exciting.  This really does sum the day up:

How did I get so lucky?!  This is my other favorite picture from the week.  So much handsomeness in one photo...I almost can't handle it.

Next up in the queue was Legoland!  Arguably the most anticipated day of the week.  At least, it was if you were ages 3-6.

Eager to start our day, we arrived early at the gates.  Clearly, we were used to Disneyland where there are huge lines 30-60 minutes before opening.

Yeah, we were first in line.

Luckily, there were some Duplos close by to keep everyone entertained while Daddy waited in line.

Ryan and I were a little Theme-Parked-Out by this point, so while we did do several rides...

...we mostly let the kids play,

and play,

and play,

and play.

Sam and Dad rode a wild roller coaster together and had a great time!  We were so impressed that Sam was smiling that we actually bought the photo at the end of the ride.

While they were riding The Dragon, Austin got to be a Knight and ride a Lego Horse around all by himself.  He was so proud and looks so grown up in this photo.  HOW DID THIS HAPPEN!

This was Sam and Austin's favorite activity of the day.  Building with Legos at one of the stores.  So glad we paid for your admission to Legoland so you could do exactly what you do at home for free.  (Sigh)  Really though, they didn't want to leave this table.

Luckily, we could bribe them to leave with the opportunity of a lifetime...driving a car all on their own!  Sam was old enough to go to the big kid Driving School and did a great job.

Austin went to Junior Driving School and had so much fun.

Time for Sam's happy moment...purchasing a Lego set with his chore and birthday money!  He wanted to open it right there and start building.  It took some convincing to keep the set unopened until we got back the the hotel.

Friday was our last day in California, so it was fitting that we spent the day at Solana Beach.  And yes, Sam went boogie boarding and he was awesome!!!

All three kids loved the beach, which is great because it is one of my most favorite places on earth.  Austin loved playing in the sand.

Eli loved chasing the pigeons and seagulls.

Sam loved boogie boarding and "Surfin' USA", CA edition.

And, of course, everyone loved building a gigantic sand castle with Dad.  As you can see, everyone got a little red (ahem, RYAN), but I was surprised at how tan the kids got.  They definitely did not get those genes from me!

We were sad to leave, but we were all happy to be back home with our comfy beds, lots of green outside, and even a little rain!  Not be be outdone, Austin made a "journal" entry as well.  Enjoy!