First Time to Disneyland

Eric and I went to Disneyland a couple months ago and when we heard his mom was coming to California we decided to tag along--all five of us. Kinsey made us promise we wouldn't go to Disneyland again without her. But in all fairness, I asked a million times if she wanted to come with us and she always said no.

We arrived around the time the park opened because, hey, we have kids and are awake anyway. They were all ready to go in their strollers. Kinsey had her autograph book and the twins had their pacis attached to a string (my genius idea). 

Each adult was unofficially assigned a child at all times since we had a 1:1 ratio. It worked out pretty well. When one kiddo would go to a different adult then we would just grab the one closest to us. 

They spotted Chip 'n Dale!

The first stop was meeting Chip 'n Dale on main street. The kids were a little unsure what was going on. I think all the characters in general creeped Shayla out. Kinsey liked most of them, though I don't think she had any idea who Chip 'n Dale were. But she got their autograph anyway!

We headed to Fantasyland, stopping to take a few pictures in front of the castle. It was all decked out for Disneyland's 60th Anniversary. 

No time for posing. The kids were ready to have some fun. 

After a couple "scary" rides in Fantasyland (because most rides at Disneyland are creepy for a 2 year old) we hit up this kid pleaser!! All three of them loved the Cinderella Carousel. 

The lines weren't too bad and when they got a little long Kinsey found a way to entertain herself. 

She was so happy Daddy took off work to come with us! Of course Eric said if we went without him he would just happen to be there the same day. 

Another one Kinsey loved was Dumbo the Flying Elephant. I wanted to move the lever up and down but Little K just wanted to be as high in the sky as possible. 

Shayla had a blast on Dumbo with Grandma and Scarlett was with Daddy. 

Maybe it's time to show Kinsey who Dumbo actually is? 

Then we spotted Ariel!! This was the only princess Kinsey was able to meet up close and it was her favorite autograph. Probably because Ariel is a princess and all that jazz. 

Grandma actually recognized Ariel from when she lived in Utah once upon a time!! 

Scarlett had to keep an eye on Hook to make sure there was no funny business going on. I'd be a little worried too. I was actually surprised Shayla looked away from him for the picture. 

The twins entertained themselves in lines too. Whether it was pulling on chains...

or climbing gates. 

After a boat ride we headed to a character breakfast to get more autographs and pictures!! We had no idea a parade was about to start so most of the good characters were in the parade. Oh well. We got some classic reactions from the girls. With each character Scarlett and Shayla just stared up at them like, "What the heck are you doing right here?" 

Rafiki was a little scary. Even Kinsey was unsure about him. 

Kinsey loved most of the characters. After warming up a bit, Scarlett started kissing them!! So stinkin' cute. And Shayla remained freaked out by them. I love how different their personalities are. 

Scarlett kissing Eeyore. 

Kinsey was so so SO excited to finally meet Minnie Mouse!! She was floating on cloud nine afterward. 

See? She seriously had such a good time. I wish we could have gone for more than a day. 

Shortly after our early lunch the babies passed out. Grandma found some AC for them while Eric and I took Kinsey on another ride.

After nap time at the house, which the twins didn't sleep for because of their stroller nap, we headed back to Disneyland! All three girls were mesmerized by the Tiki Room. Then we went on Pirates of the Caribbean which Kinsey covered her eyes until the "yo ho yo ho" song started up. She recognized it from Eric singing it to her and joined in. She still remained a little freaked out so we decided to take her on the Winnie the Pooh ride next. She LOVED it so much she wanted to get back in line for another round. 

Then we went on Kinsey's other favorite ride: It's a Small World.

Selfie in line for "It's a Small World"

Eric prepped Kinsey with this song too and she was loving the ride. She told me this and Winnie the Pooh were her favorites. 

Kinsey and I on "It's a Small World"

The twins were getting tired so I decided to take them home to get some sleep. Eric stayed with Kinsey and they watched the big parade and firework show, which people were saving seats 4 hours early for!! It was an awesome show because of the 60th anniversary. Eric said Kinsey had so much fun watching all the floats and the princesses. She was in heaven. 

I'm not big on seeing the shows, but I'm kind of sad I didn't after hearing Eric rave about it. Oh well. Sacrifices must be made as a mom!! 

We had such a good trip. As long as you're organized it's not too bad taking young kids. I'm actually okay with going every year now, which Eric is thrilled about but he insists we fly next time. The girls were even great in the car. We're so glad we could steal Grandma away and go on a mini vacation to California.  

A Day at the Beach

We took a spontaneous trip to California the other week with Eric's mom. During the entire "planning" stage Eric thought I was joking about going on the trip but I was really excited to take the family on a mini vacation. Eric and I had so much fun at Disneyland the other month we wanted to take the kids with us--even though it would be a very different kind of fun. The first full day in Cali we went to the beach (one of my favorite places). All the kids have been before, but the twins were too young to enjoy it last year. 

We discovered Kinsey is still afraid of the ocean... 

 but she also still loves playing in the sand. 

 Shayla was petrified of the ocean and the sand so she had to sit with Grandma for a while...

but she eventually warmed up to the idea of playing in the sand and had a good time.

 Scarlett loved the sand from the get-go...

so much that she ate a lot of it which gave her a lovely sand beard. 

Eric, Kinsey, and I built a sand castle and moat. It was going pretty well until Kinsey decided to step on the side of the castle. 

Kinsey was very proud of the sea shells she found but was mostly just happy playing with the sand and buckets. 

It was a great day to play at the beach in the perfect Californian weather. 

 The twins had a lot of fun playing with Grandma, too. 

And I was just happy to be with my beautiful family. 

 I'm so glad my kids love the beach just as much as I do!! We might have to make a few more spur of the moment trips to California!

Celebrating Disney Style

Happy 6 years to us (on May 1st)!! They said we'd never make it...just kidding. Eric needed to take a trip to California to take his CCSP (Certified Chiropractic Sports Physician) test and asked me to tag along so we could head to Disneyland afterward. How could I pass up an offer like that? I did actually have to think about it because I'd be leaving the twins for the first time and I was nursing and yada yada yada. But I bit the bullet and went without the kiddos. I didn't even miss them too much, but I'm pretty sure the hectic week of crying children before the trip played a big part. 

Can I just tell you how amazing it was going to Disneyland without kids?! We kept looking at people pushing strollers and thinking, "Suckers! Why would you take them with you?" However, on the second day I saw so many things that I wanted to share with Kinsey. We kept her involved by sending lots of pictures. 

I had to watch Eric drool over all the legos at the Lego Store. 

 I was pretty stoked about hitting up all the Frozen stuff we could because I'm a big Frozen fan. Eric and I were able to visit Arendelle and play in the ice rink. That was a disaster waiting to happen. I wonder how many kids hurt themselves by slipping on the ice. There was also a little hill to sled down and a picture opp with Olaf. 

I even dragged Eric to a sing-a-long. He was a little embarrassed to sing his heart out, but I could tell he wanted to. 

 It's always a happy day when I remember where the cameras are on the rides. 

 We ate at an Italian restaurant in California Adventure and they gave us free dessert for our anniversary! How cute is that?

 Goofy was begging us to come say hi so we had to make time for him. 

 Eric was able to eat his favorite Disney treat. This is his staple picture from EVERY Disneyland trip we take. We even had our first turkey leg!

We got completely drenched on the second day!! I happened to be waiting in a long line outside for ice cream on the day I chose NOT to bring my sweater. Eric didn't bring a jacket to California, period. I think he did it on purpose so he could buy a new Disney jacket. Being the gentleman he is, he offered me his new coat on the walk back to the hotel. 

After drying off our soaked clothes back at the hotel we returned to Disneyland and jumped from ride to ride until midnight. Nighttime is the greatest. We barely waited in any lines and walked straight onto Splash Mountain (getting drenched again). It was worth it. 

Gangstas

 We had so much fun that we decided to go back to Disneyland next week with the kids and Grandma!!

Happy Anniversary Eric!! I think I'll keep you.