Disneyland!

Once the month of August is officially over, I'll post a photo recap of the whole month (I plan to share Stephen's Africa pictures, too!) but for now - DISNEYLAND! For Christmas 2016, my parents got the whole family a trip to Disneyland and we were finally able to make it happen! We didn't know at the time that I would be 7 months pregnant, so for me, the trip wasn't ideal (there was a lot of walking and I didn't get the reward of going on any of the rides!) but the kids loved it and I was happy to have an excuse to hang back with Ezra and Remi so everyone else could participate. It was hot, but it was fun and I already can't wait to take the kids back someday when they can enjoy even more of it (and I don't have to sit on the sidelines!) 

 ^^ We drove south on Friday and stayed at a hotel close to the airport so we could be there bright and early to pick my family up Saturday morning. The drive was long but the kids did great, with the exception of Ezra getting sick just two hours in... It was the first time they have ever shared a bed and while it was cute to look at, it was frustrating and slightly comical to get them to sleep! ^^

 ^^ We went straight from the airport to Huntington Beach! It was hot and sunny but with the perfect amount of breeze constantly blowing through. Stephen went surfing, he and Byron got tumbled around in the surf and the kids chased the waves in and out - it's not Hawaii but it's certainly warmer than the Oregon Coast! Lots of sand castles and lots of snacks and lots of sunscreen! The kids were in heaven :) ^^

 ^^ And it completely wore them OUT! We had a barbecue dinner Saturday night at our airbnb before gearing up for Disneyland Sunday morning! ^^

 ^^ We made day one our longest day and started shortly after breakfast. Uriah's favorite ride was clearly Splash Mountain ;) I was so surprised and proud at how brave and eager he was to go on the "bigger" rides. He said he would have liked Splash Mountain had he not gotten soaking wet (really, you could ring out his clothes when he got off!), Thunder Mountain Railroad was his favorite, and he even braved Space Mountain (which he said he would not do again!) Both my kids loved the Astroid ride, which was similar to the famous Dumbo ride (which we also went on!) but you're sitting in rockets and go a little faster. The Carousel was also a big hit...they're easily pleased! ;) ^^

 ^^ Day 2 we spent at California Adventure. Our little family bailed a little early that evening to have a late dinner at home and get our kiddos into bed before 9, and though we missed a couple rides doing that, it was much needed! We were still able to enjoy lots of fun before taking off - the kids favorite things being the Little Mermaid Carousel and the adventure "park" where they got to climb around on nets and go down slides and rope swings. ^^

^^ We went back to Disneyland on day 3 and were there bright and early - first in line to meet the princesses! Ezra was all talk and no action and wanted nothing to do with the princesses, but it was so cute to watch Harper and Remi swoon over them and I even got to meet my favorite one! - Dreams really do come true! We went on a few more small rides but the kids favorite, by far, was the mini roller coaster we found in ToonTown - they went on it countless times in a row (Ezra's face...!!) ^^ 

We came home for a nap and a quiet evening at our rental house with a big yummy dinner (while Ashley's family took advantage of the beach one more time!) It was our last day in SoCal but it was also sorta our last day of Stephen's vacation - we had to spend the whole next day in the car and then he took off Thursday morning for his first fellowship interview. So in my opinion, it was the perfect way to spend the evening!

We are so grateful to my parents for making this trip happen. More than Disneyland I think the kids just loved being together, and being in the happiest place on Earth certainly didn't take away from that ;) We truly enjoyed it and each other and already are looking forward to seeing Nana and Papa when this baby comes!