Disneyland!!

Eden has known about Disneyland for a while now because she has asked a lot about where all the princesses live. She talked a lot about wanting to go there so we knew she would be surprised and so happy when we told her we were going. And it was totally a surprise - in fact, she didn't know until we got to the airport and she opened a wrapped Princess Lunch Box. She was thrilled. Bentley opened his Mickey Mouse play phone, and of course didn't know where we were going, but he had fun playing with his new toy and enjoying the ride!

The day we went to Disneyland was the first day of their Halloween celebrations. Everything was decorated so cute with pumpkins and Halloween stuff.

Brad and I made a big mistake way early on in the day. The first ride we happened upon was the Snow White ride, and there wasn't really a line so we went right in excited to start our day of fun adventure. Well unfortunately, that ride was intense and Eden was so scared of the witch that kept cackling and popping out of random corners. Eden and Brad were in the seat in front of me and I kept hearing him say, "we can't get off while it's going. It's almost over." I knew that wasn't good. By the end of the ride she was in tears and completely freaked out. So unfortunately that tainted us for the rest of the day. We tried to go on Peter Pan next but she refused and was so scared. For the rest of the day, she wouldn't go on any rides she couldn't completely see. She loved the Tea Cup ride, Dumbo, the little roller coaster, and a rocket ride, but basically all the character rides that went into buildings where she couldn't see what was happening was a no go for her. It was a big bummer. But fortunately, at Disneyland there is plenty more to do than just rides!

So we spent a lot of time meeting characters, and of course the princesses, and she was absolutely thrilled! Someday the kids will be old and won't care at all about this part and will only want the rides, so we were happy to enjoy it while we can! The funny thing about Eden was that she would be so excited while we were waiting in line, and would tell me all the things she wanted to say to them, but as soon as it was her turn she was completely "star struck" and so shy and would hardly say a thing. Bentley was so curious about them but refused to get near them unless Brad or I held him - and even then he would nervously bounce around until we let him get away. Cute little kids...

Oh but before I get to all the characters we met, pretty soon after the Snow White ride disaster, we basically forced her on to "Small World" knowing there was nothing scary about it. Ok we didn't force her, she agreed to go when we told her what it was, but she was definitely nervous for the first few minutes. Check out this cute little frown.... very quickly she realized there was nothing scary and ended up liking it ok though.

Merida from Brave

Minnie Mouse

Mickey Mouse

Goofy

Cinderella

Sleeping Beauty

Ariel - which is the one she was most anxious and excited to meet -

And Woody from Toy Story

And then there's just tons of random pictures from our fun throughout the day...

The Dole Whips were amazing of course. When I eat too much of something cold, I get brain freeze. Brad gets throat freeze, and we found out that Eden gets nose freeze and squeezes her nose tight until the pain goes away. ha ha

Bentley got a couple little cat naps in the stroller which was nice for everyone involved.

Because we weren't waiting in lines for rides, we were able to watch the parades and a lot of the shows which was really fun. Some had a few intense parts, as you can tell from the kids expressions. Obviously both kids have the same nervous habit - stinking their dirty hands in their mouths. :)

In one section of the park they had a big Halloween carnival. There were all sorts of carnival games and live music, and one section was set up for the kids to color masks. At one point while Eden was coloring, Goofy actually came over and sat at the table with us. She continued working, but noticed Goofy was "helping" the little girl across the table from us color her mask. Before long he was reaching across the table to get a little in on her mask and she quickly ripped it away and said, "no please, don't color on mine" in a very firm voice. That was basically all she said to the characters all day long. She wasn't about to let anyone mess up her masterpiece. :)

And then of course, once it started getting dark, the glowing toys had to be purchased. Brad was excited to get the Mickey hats that coordinate their flashing lights with the music and fireworks show.

So we arrived at Disneyland around 9 am, and left after the fireworks ended at around 10 or 10:30. It was a long day but so incredibly fun! Basically as soon as those fireworks ended and we were walking towards the car, Eden was completely out and would not be woken again until morning. I'm so grateful we were able to go and create such great memories with our kids! Until next time...

California Trip!

As kind of a last minute trip, we decided to head out to California and have a little family vacation. It was an absolute blast. We were able to stay with Matt, Heidi and their kids which was so fun. We don't get to see them often enough, so it was really fun to have more time with them.

Our first matter of business after leaving the airport was to find an In 'n Out which is Brad's favorite. Fortunately there was one really close to the airport. Unfortunately though, Bentley got a taste of the chocolate shake before eating his lunch so that lunch was shot.

After filling up at In 'n Out, we went to the Long Beach Aquarium. Brad and I went here together years ago, pre kids, so it was fun to be back with our little family this time. The kids loved it. Eden was so excited to touch everything she could. She is so brave with that type of stuff. She touched jelly fish, sand sharks, and tons of sea anemones. Bentley didn't find it nearly as cool. He was totally entertained watching Eden do it, but when we would get him to try he would get nervous and his thumb would go right to his mouth.

They also have an area outside where you can get nectar and feed the birds. Again, Eden was way into it - Bentley just kept trying to drink or spill the nectar. At one point though, Eden was trying to get a bird to get off the fence and onto her arm and when she pushed it, it bit her wrist a little. It was a sad ending to our bird experience, but overall I'd say we all really enjoyed it.

After the aquarium we spent the rest of the day hanging out with Matt, Heidi and the kids. Eden warmed up to her cousins nicely. They were all so sweet to her, and she loved all the attention she was getting from the boys. We also got to be part of Matt's birthday celebration which was fun. He made some very yummy homemade ice cream.

Wyatt was very sweet and tucked Bentley in nicely with a blanket. Surprisingly, Bentley actually stayed like that for quite a while!

The following morning, Friday, we were up bright and early and left for Disneyland for the day. That will have to be a separate post though because there are tons of pictures!

On Saturday morning, we spent a couple hours at the harbor just around the corner from Matt and Heidi's. Bentley was sleeping back at the house while Heidi was getting ready so unfortunately he missed out. Eden didn't get into the water much, but loved playing in the mud with Ella. And Brad and the older boys entertained themselves by jumping off the bridge, completely ignoring the "no jumping" sign. :)

That afternoon, Heidi took us to Crystal Cove to hang out at the beach. The weather was so interesting. When we got there it was really foggy, then it all cleared up and got warm, and then without warning, the fog came back quickly and brought some cold wind with it! We had fun while it the weather cooperated and had plenty of time to play. Bentley took a long time to get off my lap though. It was so strange. He has played in sand boxes before, but for some reason the sand was really weird to him. He refused to walk or sit in it. I finally got him to be content sitting on a towel by me though. It took a good stick to distract him, but it worked!

So needless to say, by Sunday morning when we left town, we were all worn out and ready to get some solid rest in our own beds. Bentley didn't sleep too good while we were there and ended up in our bed around 5am before we had to get up and ready for the airport. He quickly took over my spot. I've never really had a child sleep in my bed with me, except a newborn, so that was too weird! By the time we were on the second airplane to get home, he was exhausted again. That flight was very relaxing for both of us.

These two continued to be goofballs...

Overall it was such a fun trip and I'm so glad we were able to go! Thanks Matt and Heidi for letting us come hang out!