Disneyland!

Well, it's taken me a while to recover from the trip and get all of my pics organized. But we had a 'Magical' time in Disneyland. We drove down and stopped in Vegas on our way down. Phillip LOVED the M&M store. Watch out when you walk in the door ... you may spend a lot of $$ on M$M. Phillip picked out green M&Ms and they came out REALLY fast. ha!

We went to downtown LA to the Alley. It's pretty much like any china town, but with tons of stores. We found Disney towels for pretty cheap. We also got some skeleton hoodie sweatshirts which will be part of our next Halloween display. GREAT junk shopping! We spent some time with Pete's Aunt Connie and had some GREAT sushi.

We had three days at Disneyland. It was kind of nice that we had the time because the first two days we were pretty tired by 5:00 and didn't feel guilty about leaving because we could see anything we missed the next day. The best deal for lunch is in the Disneyland park called 'Plaza Inn'. (It's on the end of the street of Main Street on your right). It's cafeteria style and they serve a great 3 piece chicken meal which is plenty of food to split between two adults. You have free refills on drinks and before you leave the restaurant they give you a 'To-go' cup. We fed me, pete, his parents, & phillip, with salads desert and drinks for $50. Pretty good for in the park eating!

We stopped by Santa Monica beach. It was a little overcast which is Pete's favorite because you don't get too hot. Phillip still LOVES the beach. We were there for a little bit until Lily got sand in her eyes. We saw my brother and his family at the local Koo-ka-roo.

The drive home was a little easier because we decided to drive through the night. Pete had the hard stretch. Vegas to Bountiful from 8:30 PM to 2:30 AM.



Highlights:

• Phillip's reaction to the Monster's Inc. Ride. He thought that it was real! He went on it 5 times!
  
• Lily on It's a small world and the 'Tiki Room.' She was laughing and clapping the whole time.
• Phillip watching the Pixar Parade in California Adventure. There is a clip below that is pretty funny!
• The double stroller naps. Lily would fall asleep and Phillip would say that he wanted to lay down too. They took naps at the same time each day.
• Getting Pete's grandparent's bird bath. We stopped by their old house in San Gabriel. Pete asked the owner if he could look around the backyard. She was chinese lady that didn't speak much english. Pete somehow got her to understand that his dad and grandparents used to live there. He saw the bird bath in the corner and told her that he remembered it and asked if we could have it. She understood and helped him clean it out. Now we have a great bird bath under our pine trees. ha!
• Pete's Parents coming with us to Disneyland. It was great to get away from the kids for a little bit. We all went back to the hotel for dinner and went back to the park with the kids in the jammies to see the fireworks. IT WAS MAGICAL!!
  

Lowlights:

• Lily's warm bottles. We had to go to the espresso machines to get her milk to the right temperature. We had to listen to her scream when we were inbetween towns.
• Waiting in line. Some of the new attractions had long lines no matter what time it was.
• Lots of driving. It's a good thing we had our nice mini-van.
• A very dirty car after a long road trip. Pete and his dad detailed the car after we got home.

Phillip and Lily at Santa Monica Beach

Phillip with a "green happy" at the M&M store

Dropping like Flies

We had a fun day on Saturday with Paige's family. Phillip had a play-date with Gracie and Pete got to go snow-mobiling with Joe and Morgan. That meant I got some precious hours by myself while Lily was napping. I sometimes would wonder why I haven't been baking and cooking as much as I did in California. Now I realize that you can get a LOT done during the nap time. I got some work done, scrubbed down the bathrooms, and made enough spaghetti sauce to freeze for 4 meals. Phew! Well Phillip fell asleep on the bar stools and Pete fell asleep on the couch. It was a fun filled day and everyone was definitely ready for bed.

Phillip has been saying some funny things lately. I asked him before dinner yesterday, "What do you want?" He answered in a loud voice, "Clean Air!" Ha! I guess he's on my band wagon.

I sometimes will suggest something to eat like a banana or yogurt. Phillip will say, "How about a healthy snack instead."

Other times I will tell him to finish his chicken. Phillip has said, "I can't. It's too expensive."

Lily is starting to feel better. She had a ear infection and three teeth coming in. A perfect storm. She always has a smile even when she doesn't feel good.

This will be a busy week to get ready for our trip to California and our visit to Disneyland next week. YAY!! Phillip is really excited.