California October 2010 (A.K.A. Longest post EVER)

This may be my longest post to date, but if I don't catch up now I may never get around to it and there is so much I want to remember about the past month or so.

In October we were lucky enough to go to California for a trip to visit Disneyland, see family, and enjoy the practically perfect Southern California weather.

Earlier in the year we participated in the Disney Day of Service program and earned free tickets to Disneyland by volunteering at a thrift store as a family. The service opportunity alone was a good experience, but getting to go to Disneyland was pretty wonderful too.

After months of talking about it, the kids were so excited to actually be there.

The first ride we went on was Mr. Toad's Wild Ride. About 20 seconds into the ride it got a little dark and "scary" and I discovered that Ruby was in fact old enough to be aware of "scary" and both she and Max were crying. It was the perfect start to our visit to the happiest place on earth.

Here is Ruby with tear stained cheeks recovering from her Mr. Toad experience.


Luckily, the rest of our trip was less dramatic and tear-free, especially when we met up with cousins. The kids were in heaven. The boys had both earned spending money for the trip. Max took no time at all to decide that the Buzz Lightyear Astro-Blaster gun was just the thing for him--and it really was. Reed's decision making process took a little longer, but in the end he came home with a Star Wars Light Saber.

We were doubly spoiled by our mothers' willingness to help with Ruby to make our day more enjoyable. Sam's mom came to Disneyland for part of the day to be with us and mostly hold Ruby so we could go on more rides with the boys. When Nancy left, she passed Ruby off to my mom to take her home. We are so lucky to have such loving and willing-to-help family.

It really was a nearly perfect day with great weather, plenty of rides and good kids. I was impressed that the boys were able to enjoy all of the rides including Thunder, Space and Splash Mountain. We really did hit all of the best rides pretty quickly. One of the last rides we went on was the tea cups. I just couldn't imagine a trip to Disneyland without it. It was a great way to end the day, but I must say either Sam spun us too fast or I don't like being dizzy as much as I used to. Whatever the situation, I decided to sit the second round out.


This wasn't Reed's first trip to Disneyland. When Reed was just about one year old I took him with my sister and her kids. I was thinking about that trip as we were leaving and tried to snap a quick picture of Reed at the same spot I knew I had on his first trip.

Oh where have these 5 and 1/2 years (and my baby boy!) gone????

2005


2010


Besides a great trip to Disneyland we also had a few days in both San Clemente and Long Beach, spending time with the other little people my boys love best.

We hit Irvine Park and enjoyed the fall festivities and good company. With all these boys, Ruby was definitely the oddball.




I think just about every night in San Clemente included a dance party. I don't think I'll ever hear "You think you're cooler than me" and not think of these crazy boys.


Another highlight of our time in San Clemente was going to Dana Point with the Harris boys. We went to see the tide pools, but since we arrived at high tide their wasn't much opportunity for checking out sea creatures. That didn't seem to bother the boys a bit, who were perfectly content to enjoy the waves, play in the sand and stack large interesting stones.

I can't see Reed's face in this picture, but I can certainly feel his joy.


I could have watched them play in the waves all day, and from the number of pictures I have of them you would think that I had. Max would get as close as he could to the water and then dash away at the last minute.


He kept acting like he didn't want to get wet, but then kept coming back for more.


All the boys had a great time being chased by the waves.






The boys also found some really cool smooth stones and made rock castles and towers.


Even Ruby got in on the action.


Ruby didn't get to do much playing in the waves, but I could still tell she was loving every minute of her first beach trip.




She loved the beach so much that she made sure she brought back as much souvenir sand as possible. The poor girl was covered.


Reed and Toby being serious....


...and not so serious.


After a good day at the beach we hit the pool. Ruby was so cozy in the jacuzzi that she fell right to sleep.


In Long Beach we got to spend more time with family, including my Nana and Uncle Les. Ruby is lucky to be loved so much.


Showing off his new basketball skills was also on Reed's agenda in Long Beach. He brought his ball all the way from North Carolina to do just that. After showing everyone his dribbling moves he enjoyed a good game of "Monkey in the Middle" with Luke and Grandmother.




On one of the nights in Long Beach I took Reed along with my mom, Tracey, Belle, and Luke to see a performance of Peter Pan at the Orange County Preforming Arts Center. It was a very cool show preformed on a circular stage with intimate seating. I'm not sure which Reed thought was cooler--the flying actors or the all you can eat candy bar they had.


After a week of nearly non-stop fun we had a less than graceful departure at the airport. We were running a little late and ended up having to leave one suitcase behind and race onto the airplane with THREE crying children. The other passengers seemed thrilled to see us board. Based on the picture below I'm pretty sure the person sitting in front of Max appreciated our presence the entire flight.


I always want to take pictures to document our crazy flights, but it seems a little awkward to bust out the camera in such close quarters with strangers. This is my attempt to get a photo while being discrete. It is not a great photo by any means, but there is something about it that really captures the feeling for me. Sam says just looking at this picture makes him tired.


We arrived at the airport in Raleigh close to midnight and completely exhausted. Flying across the country always wipes me out, but doing it with three little ones can definitely push my limits. Despite my exhaustion the kids seemed to still have plenty of energy--and apparently had real estate on the mind.




It was a great trip and I'm so glad we got to go. If I can't raise "California kids" I guess I'll settle for Carolina kids that love California too.