The Beach!

When we have gone to Disneyland before, we usually made it a quick trip to and from with little time in between.  This time we made sure to plan an extra day to spend doing whatever we wanted, and the boys requested that we go to the beach so they could see the ocean.  So Kevin went to the nearby dollar store to buy some buckets and shovels and we were on our way to Newport Beach.

The boys were ecstatic to see the ocean and to play in the sand.  They are boys, right?  So what could be better than all access to water, sand, and digging?  Absolutely nothing!

Kevin and the boys tried to make a sandcastle with a mote they filled in with water.  Andrew liked the ocean, but after he got knocked over a few times by the tide he preferred the smaller version.

 We basically had the beach all to ourselves awhile and it was heaven.  It was so relaxing to watch and listen to the waves and see the pure joy in my kids faces every time they found a seashell or "treasure".  Kevin decided he would like to have a house by the ocean someday.

After a couple of hours we were able to meet up with our friends the Weiss family who were in California at the same time.  We bumped into them at Disneyland and decided to go to the beach the same day.  The kids had a lot of fun playing together.  They stood in the water, ran away from the tide, and dug a lot.  It was a great way to round out the trip.

Here's one of our favorite pictures.  Such cute boys!  Then it was back to the hotel to have a quick rest before we went out to dinner and packed up for the trip in the morning.  Kevin made it home in record time.  It was great to get away, but it was also nice to be home again!

Our last day

The kids were very excited and also a little sad that it was our last day, but we made sure to make the best of it.  We decided to try and get on Radiator Springs Racers, the one we had missed the day before, so we got going to stand in a long line for the fast pass tickets.  After about 45 minutes and a couple of bathroom trips, we had some tickets in hand to come back later and try the ride, all dependent upon whether it would be working or not.  We then went over to Disneyland to hit a few rides we had missed and also go back on some of our favorites.

Thunder Mountain Railroad

Haunted Mansion - This is really cool during Halloween time because they convert it into the Nightmare before Christmas.  The boys were a little scared at first but once we explained the concept and kept telling them how silly things were they weren't as worried.  They liked seeing all of the Halloween and Christmas decorations together.

We didn't get our picture taken with many characters, but I was able to convince them to go by Winnie the Pooh and Tigger.  

Teacups!

Happy Halloween!

Later in the day we headed back to California Adventure. There is ride there called Grizzly Bear or Grizzly River Rapids that is like white water rafting.  Matthew and I went on it together and since we had already been in the rain a little decided we would probably be okay getting a little wet.  Of course we ended up next to the opening of the ride, so we got soaked.  Everyone else in our boat got a little wet or else had ponchos on.  When Kevin saw us come off the ride he just laughed and decided he better wear a poncho himself.  Of course he stayed perfectly dry.  Matthew and I remained pretty damp most of the day.

Kevin and Ryan then headed over to the Cars roller coaster to see if they could get on.  They were lucky enough to go and had a really fun time.  Matthew and I tried to go on but the ride shut down again.  It seemed to be having trouble in the rain.  We were a little disappointed, but then Matthew and I went on the new Star Tours together and all was well (forgot to take a picture, but it was very cool).

It started to rain again, so we ducked inside for some pizza.  Disneyland is great with allergies, so they had some awesome gluten-free options for us.  Andrew decided everything tastes better when dipped in raspberry vinaigrette.

We ended the night back at Disneyland with a parade and one last walk around the park.  I know it's cheesy and that Disney does just about everything to market their product, but there is something magical about that place at night with your family.  We had a great time and it was so nice to get away together.  I sure love my boys!

California Adventure

The next day we spent most of our time at California Adventure.  The new Cars Land had just opened a few months before and since we have major fans of all things Lightning McQueen and friends that was the first place we went.  Let me just say that place was A-mazing.  The detail in everything from the movie was fantastic and the boys kept yelling out everything they recognized.  The first thing we tried out was Luigi's tire ride.  You get on these big tires that inflate and float on a huge bed of air, almost like a giant air hockey table.  You had to lean forward, backward, and to the side in the direction you wanted to go.  It was tricky at first but once we got the hang of it it was fun to try and crash into each other.

We also liked Mater's little tractor spin.  It was mostly just spinning in a couple of figure 8 patterns with Mater singing some silly songs, but for some reason it was right up Zachary's alley.  He giggled and giggled and loved every minute of it. We were sure to go on that ride a couple of times.

The big ticket item was the Radiator Springs Racers, a roller coaster type ride where you sit in one of the Cars and race around Radiator Springs.  It was over an hour long wait and kept breaking down throughout the day, so we didn't get a chance to ride it.  It looked like a lot of fun though.

Next stop was back to the carnival area where mom went to ride the huge roller coaster.  Kevin doesn't ride most roller coasters, so while I was hanging upside down he took the boys on the huge Ferris wheel.  The boys thought it was great to be up so high and looking over the park.

We went to Toy Story Mania where you get to play carnival-type games with 3-D glasses.  Andrew was a fan of this one because it had a gun.

Here we are at the Aladdin show. It's like a smaller production Broadway musical based on the Aladdin movie that I wanted to see. The boys were nice enough to go with me and I really enjoyed it. I think the boys did too.

Later that night Kevin and Matthew tried to get on the Cars roller coaster again, so I took the little ones and we wandered around the park for awhile.  We got to see Red and see Radiator Springs at night.  It is almost cooler at night because of all of the neon.  Unfortunately the Cars ride broke down, so we met up with Kevin and Matthew and finished our walk around then headed back to the hotel to prep for our last day there.

Disneyland!!!

Well, the long awaited day had finally arrived.  We were headed to Disneyland!  We got up early to eat breakfast and be on our way so we could be ready for the bus to take us from our hotel.  Lots of other people had the same idea, but that's part of the fun.  Pretty much everyone is in a good mood when they are headed to such a happy place.

Here we are waiting for the shuttle.  The boys could hardly contain their excitement and we had to show them a line on the sidewalk that they absolutely could not cross.  Otherwise I think they would have jumped onto the road and skipped all the way there!

I have been to Disneyland a few times, but I have to say so far Halloween time is my favorite.  The park is decked out in pumpkins and fall decorations - my favorite.  I was practically doing a dance while waiting to get into the park.

Our first stop was the Town Hall to get ID stickers for the kids.  Kevin was also sweet enough to get me a birthday button to wear around for the day, although my birthday was the day before.  It was fun to walk around and hear "Happy Birthday" from everyone.  Matthew and the boys were very serious about planning where we were going to go.

Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters - I'm certain this was the ride we went on the most while we were there.  It was especially fun to see Andrew's blaster-slinging skills.  It was obvious he learned from his older brothers.

Of course we loved the carousel and all the classic rides (Peter Pan, Mr. Toad, Dumbo, etc.)

And we had to go to the Jedi Training Academy.  Matthew was lucky to be chosen the first time we went and had fun battling Darth Vader.  We tried really hard to get Ryan in, but it seemed like no matter where we sat the crew always chose the kid right next to him.  He was pretty sad and my heart was sad for him, but then Kevin said maybe we could get a special treat a little later and that made everything all better.

We were also big fans of the Winnie the Pooh ride.  Andrew loved it and couldn't stop talking the whole way through.  We couldn't understand much of what he was saying, but he was definitely very excited..

It was a fun first day and the boys couldn't get enough.  They also loved the Thunder Mountain Railroad roller coaster, Pirates of the Caribbean, Small World, and the absolute fave for Ryan and Matthew was Splash Mountain (of which we apparently had too much fun and forgot to take pictures).  It was also nice to know that we still had a couple of days to be there, so we could take our time and enjoy spending time together.  On to California Adventure the next day!