Day 10 - Road trip

After "living" in the hotel for 9 days I was impressed with how quickly we got packed up and on our way. It was a cooler day in CA and it felt fantastic to feel the temperatures rise as we made our way to AZ. Sarah travelled with Grandma & Grandpa Jim and the kids nodded off & on as the sunshine poured into the vehicle.

Lovely.

We stopped in Palm Springs for lunch (thank-you Costco) and then were back on the road.

We got to our house here in Goodyear around 6pm and the kids had fun running around checking it all out. It's a beautiful home and we are looking forward to our few days here!

We had a bite to eat and the guys went down to Safeway to pick up a few groceries for breakfast in the morning :)

Bathing suits were quickly put on and the kids had an evening swim and soak in the hot tub.

Once the kids were put to bed we played a round of cards before heading to bed ourselves.

Goodbye Disneyland.

Day 9 - Last day of Disney Magic

It's hard to believe today was our last day at the parks. We've had such a great time, everyone has had so much fun & Matthew has been amazing - perfect combinations!! :)

Joshua was still DETERMINED to get me ON the Screamin' so we started our day over on the California side, first stop - Screamin'. I was SHAKING in my boots as we stood in line.... and "luck" wasn't on my side this time as David & I ended up in the VERY FRONT!!!

5-4-3-2-1-SCREAM!

And... that's exactly what I did! hahahah.

It was {actually} fun and I even did it a second time :)

On the Cali side we did the Golden Zepher, Jellyfish, Hemlik the Caterpillar, Monsters Inc., Crush the talking Turtle & Toy Story Mania as well as the Screamin'.

We bought our signature Disneyland mugs and then left the park for some lunch, iced coffees & pool time at the hotel. Grandma, Grandpa & Megan went to a little bakery too :)

After a little relaxing, we packed up and went to Disneyland. Here we managed to get on Big Thunder a few times, Pirates, The Jungle Cruise, Autotopia and the highlight - FIREWORKS! It was great and this time Sarah was able to see Tinkerbell fly across the sky.

After the fireworks, there was one final ride on Big Thunder & then we took the monorail to end our time at Disneyland.

Sad to say goodbye to the happiest place on earth, but we are looking forward to our time in Arizona :)

It's a Small World.

It's a Bug's Life

Megan in the teacup, purple of course!

Lots of construction at California Adventure.... looks like some great rides are being built!

Me, freaking out!

The second time we sat behind Megan and Joshua.

Megan and a cupcake :)

Monsters Inc.

So nice to see all the pretty flowers.

We sure hope so!!

Day 8 - Magic Morning

We woke up around 6:30 this morning to get out by 7:30. We did great! We made it to Disneyland for our Magic Morning, 8am entry :)

We started the day in Fantasyland. Matthew could go on ALL these rides which was so fun. We went on Peter Pan's Flight, Pinocchio, Dumbo, teacups, Alice in Wonderland and then over to It's A Small World. Matthew is a typical BOY... this is the ONE ride he fussed on a bit ;) Hahaha. Well, not really, he was just hungry :)

We made our way to Big Thunder Mountain (Matthew fell asleep) so everyone went on and Jim & I had a bench visit while we waited for the 'wildest ride in the wilderness' to come to an end.

It was hot today and everyone started to feel the heat so Daddy bought us all a pineapple ice cream treat. YUM.

We wandered over to the California side to check out Screamin' (Mommy too!!). As "luck" would have it, it was shut down (WHEW!!) for a bit this afternoon. The boys all cooled off on the River Run. We wandered around a little and everyone was feeling that 6:30 wake up, so we left the park and walked back to the hotel for a couple hours to rest, grab a bite to eat and relax. Felt nice.

By 5 everyone was ready to get back to the park for a few more hours. We went to the California side again and made it on Soaring over California (twice) and Toy Story Mania (and and the boys did Screamin' as it was back up & running).

It was a jam-packed day of sunshine & good times!

✷

Through the castle to Fanstasyland.

The Dumbo line :)

Grandma & Sarah in the front, Megs in the middle, Matthew & me with Joshua in the back.

signature teacup photo :)

This time we went on the teacups, first for us!

Snuggle time with Grandma.

Pineapple ice-cream and floats - YUM.

The boys went on the Grizzly River Run to cool off in the afternoon.

Day 7 - Sun & Surf

We enjoyed a slower morning, had breakfast, and packed up for a day at the beach with temperatures in the high 20s. We made a quick stop at Target for a beach blanket, Starbucks for some coffee, & Chevron for slushies :)

An afternoon of sun & sand was wonderful. We had a picnic lunch, played football, searched for seashells & shark teeth, built sandcastles, & laid in the sun.

We packed up, loaded up the truck, and then took a walk along the pier. The wind picked up but it was still nice to walk along and see all the surfers out there. It's no wonder sharks mistake them for seals! There were so many of them in a big cluster waiting for waves; surfers that is, not sharks! :)

We drove back to the hotel in time for the kids to make it to the rootbeer float night. They were happy. Grandma & Grandpa went to Costco to pick up dinner (chickens and salads). After dinner we got ready for tomorrow and went to bed early. We're heading to Disneyland tomorrow with our Magic Morning, so we hope to be walking by 7:30 - That will be a challenge!

We'll see how we do.

It's due to be another high 20s day - should be fantastic!

Lunchtime on the beach.

Matthew stretching out in the shade.

Grandpa Jim's sunning spot.

The first handful (of many) seashells.

Sorting out the collection to pick the best ones.

A perfect shell :)

Megan helping Matthew test out the waters... they were FREEZING!

The shirt:

"Baby - Pee all you can pee"

☺

Our family ♥

Miss Megs enjoying the warm ocean breezes.

Joshua working on his hole...

Joshua's swagger wagon ;)

Seals? Nope - surfers!!

Day 6 - California Adventure with Grandma/pa :)

Everyone slept fantastic last night and woke up feeling well rested and on the mend. Praise the Lord! Still a few wobbly legs, noses to blow & heavy heads... but so much better than what we've all been feeling!

We all went and had breakfast, packed up and had our morning walk to the park :) We decided to head over to California Adventure as we had to get fast passes to the new presentation World of Color. We did Soaring over California and then Joshua & David did Screamin'. Once they came off of that ride we went down to the pier so that I could feed Matthew. While I fed him everyone went on a tour at the bakery (one of Megan's favorites!). Everyone stopped to snack on some of the freshly baked bread Grandpa bought and then it was off to Toy Story Mania! The boys quickly hopped on Screamin' (again) and then we went down to Bug's Life to watch the 3D show "It's a Bugs Life". Matthew didn't like that one too much - it was on the verge of being unbearably loud for us adults! Not sure why it was SO loud, but it was so David took him out for the last bit of the show. We then wandered over to watch "Aladdin". We love this one!

It was such a beautiful day - so warm! A few sunburns were noted :)

We left the park for a little trip to Costco for some supper & treats :) Nice to get out for a little break. Kids were eager to get back though so we dressed a little warmer as we knew we were going to be at the park a little later tonight with the show in the evening. We went over to Disneyland for Sarah's favorite ride, Big Thunder Mountain. Grandma & Grandpa BOTH came on this ride with us too. YAY! Although, I think Grandpa has officially volunteered to watch Matthew when we do this ride again! :)

We then made our way back to California to take in World of Color. WOW - truly spectacular (as all things Disney seem to be!).

It was late and we had a bit of a trek through the crowds and back to our hotel. Kids did awesome and Matthew had another fabulous day! Such a blessing!!

We got back to the hotel and Sarah said she wasn't sure she had the energy to pick up her toothbrush and even brush one tooth :)

We take a break from the parks tomorrow and with it being the hottest day (suppose to be 27C tomorrow) we're planning on hitting the beach for the day! :)

We're ready for a lazy day of sunshine!

All ready to head to the park!

Matthew is ready for another day of sunshine!

California Adventure - loving all the spring flowers!

The bread tour :)

Doesn't look like they're having fun does it?

I think Sarah has been glued to Grandma since their arrival!

Toy Story Mania, my favorite ride :)

Joshua & David are pretty disappointed their favorite ride, Splash Mountain, is closed... looks like Screamin' is the new favorite this time!

Squeezing in one final ride over at Disneyland, Big Thunder Mountain. Guess that flash was pretty bright.... Sarah opted to just keep those eyes CLOSED! :)

World of Color. This photo obviously does it NO justice... this was just what they had on while it ended and people were leaving. It was truly spectacular!

Day 5 - DISNEYLAND!!

Megan was feeling quite a bit better this morning, but David has taken the dive into Sneezeville! It was now his turn to have the brutal day of being attached to a box of Kleenex. We took our time getting up, having breakfast and packing up for Disneyland. We decided to skip the shuttle and enjoy a nice walk to the park, it only takes us about 20 minutes.

Of course the FIRST ride of the day HAD to be Big Thunder Mountain :) YEHAW!

The kids and I went this time and Daddy and Matthew were onlookers (apparently Matthew is too little for this ride, *smiles*)

It felt particularly odd this entrance into Disneyland. I'm not sure if it was because we were all still battling sniffles and coughs, if it seemed surreal that we were back or just simply familiar... it was wonderful though and we were ready for a fantastic day.

Next ride was Pirates and this time Matthew came too! I wasn't sure how he would do (flashbacks of the airplane danced in my head!), but he loved it. David held him and he enjoyed the drops and just looked at everything with amazement.

We enjoyed lunch and then Daddy was needing some medication so we walked back to the hotel, took an afternoon break and David went out to get some meds. Once he returned, we reloaded and walked back.

First ride was using the fastpass and getting on Space Mountain, great ride! Joshua tried it out this time, but he still prefers Screamin'. We then went over to the California side. Lots of construction going on; looks like some cool rides coming! We made it on Soaring (Matthew & I sat out this time), Toy Story Mania (my favorite and Matthew quite liked it too!), Screamin' (the boys did this one) and The Mickey's Ferris Wheel.

A full day, but so much fun. Matthew did so amazing. Totally exceeded my expectations. He loved looking about, and he'd fall asleep when he was tired.... hoping tomorrow goes just as smoothly.

By 8pm the park closed down and we made our way back to the hotel. We reached the lobby and the kids had a big surprise awaiting them.....

GRANDMA & GRANDPA JIM were here!!!!

What a fun surprise - kids are super excited (as are the grown-ups!)

We chatted for a bit and the kids actually got a game of Dutch Blitz going with G&G ... and then everyone called it a night - we have a big day tomorrow.

Sarah & Megan had a sleepover in Grandma & Grandpa's room, David downed some Night time Cold meds and hit the pillow, and everyone settled in for a good nights sleep :)

All packed up and ready for our first day back at the park :)

Matthew's first ride - Pirates of the Caribbean.

After Space Mountain, we took Matthew onto Astro Blasters - Daddy still rocks at this game!

What's a visit to Disneyland WITHOUT a cream cheese filled soft pretzel! Mmmmmm.

While Joshua & Daddy hit Screamin', the girls & Matthew took Mickey's Ferris Wheel. It was getting windy and it was a bit chilly at the top tonight!

So excited to have Grandma & Grandpa with us! Matthew didn't make strange at all and just stared at Grandma :)

Smiles for Grandma....

Looking forward to another fantastic day!

☼