Day 1 at Disneyland

Our first day at Disneyland was fantastic! We got a much later start than I thought we would, but that was okay because we weren't arriving with the masses. And, yes when I say masses I mean that Disneyland was really crowded.

We started the day getting a stroller, checking in my crutches and getting an ECV. The guy that helped us has been at Disneyland for 30 years! I loved how nicely he wrote our name on the stroller label and the ECV label. If you look closely, you can see what I mean.

Ivy didn't really want to cooperate for a photo by the flower Mickey, but we did manage to get one with Grandpa and Grandma. (By the way, Ivy has corrected us and it is "DANPA" and she can say "Grandpa" because she'll say it when she's correcting you.)

We started out the day with Dumbo. It's a easy and non-threatening ride. Melissa did some research for us and found some websites that map out how you should do your first Disneyland visit. We stuck to it pretty closely. All except "It's a Small World" because it was closed for Christmas preparation.

The next ride they recommend is Casey's Jr Circus Train. The girls wanted to ride in the "Wild Animals" car. They enjoyed seeing all of the little villages that go along with the Disney stories. We saw them up closer doing the Storybook Land Canal Boats. These rides were gentle and quickly warmed them up for the day.

This was the closest we came to a family picture, at least on the first day. The teacups were Ivy's favorite ride. If you talk to her about it, she will also share with you that "Danpa threw up on the teacups, once." I don't know that that is actually true but she likes to share it. Even a week later she will still bring up that he one time threw up. Grandpa doesn't go on the teacups, because they do make him sick, but Space Mountain is the only one that I ever remember him actually throwing up after (not on).

We went on the Merry-Go-Round, mostly for Ivy, but Jade enjoyed it as well. It's great that they don't have a bunch of different colored horses, just a few different colored saddles. It means there isn't a lot of running around and I want-ing.
Here's a picture of cute little Ivy on the Merry-Go-Round.

I love what a playful dad Scott is. He and Jade skipped along on more than one occasion.

Here I am with my ECV. I was not allowed to have any riders- which was unfortunate and a constant battle. But, Jade would walk beside me holding hands.

While we went on Roger Rabbit's ride (which was obnoxious and not a favorite storybook ride), my mom and dad played with Ivy in the Cartoon Town fountain. It was a good little break for her.

Jade really loved being at Disneyland. She was so good and rarely got in trouble.

For Halloween they have the stage at Frontier land all decorated. We went to the "Woody's Roundup show". Jade was so incredibly thrilled. She danced with them and when they were ready to do pictures with the characters, she ran to be in line. She was second and nothing but grins. After she had her picture taken with Woody and Jessie, they continued the show with two Disney performers. They were so sweet to her. She would sing along with them and they noticed that she was singing. So, they invited her up to sing with them. She was so excited and didn't shy away at all.

Once the show was over, she asked the female performer if she could have a picture with her. The girl turned around to do the picture right where she was. Jade asked her if it would be okay to move over by the stage and decorations.

During the performance, she was asking kids what they were going to be for Halloween. Jade told her that she's going to be a Vampire Princess. She loved it and kept referring back to it and asked how you dress up like a Vampire Princess. Jade was happy to share. (Ivy, on the other hand, was happy to cuddle into Daddy and avoid the spotlight).

The Haunted Mansion was all done up for Halloween. Every Halloween they transform the Haunted Mansion to Jack Skeleton and the Nightmare before Christmas. (Which has been the girls' favorite movie the whole month of October). This was one of the rides that my wheelchair really helped us out on. We entered through the main line but were diverted to the side and let right in.

Here is another picture of their decorations. I would love to find some black wreaths and cool skeletons and add them to my Halloween decor.

One of the last rides we did on our first night was Autopia. Jade and Ivy both tried to steer, but neither were strong enough. Ivy ended up sitting on my lap and we had a bumpy ride. Jade was just excited to be on the ride and tall enough to steer, some.

Jade's favorite ride was Space Mountain. For those of you who know Jade, that probably comes as no surprise at all. She is a little dare devil. When we finished the ride, her grin could not be wiped off her face. She just wanted to go again and again.

As we headed to the gate to go home, we were stuck behind the parade. Ivy was so excited to see Mickey and Minnie (it was the first time they were spotted the whole day!) She sat on Grandpa's shoulders and just pointed and waved until it was all over.

We ended the day with two very happy, very tired little girls. Sorry about the picture and Ivy being out of focus. I guess I was a little tired too.

Wouldn't this be adorable on Ivy?

I heard about this really great new online store. I'm so excited to check it out. This outfit would be adorable on Ivy. Check out Grosgrain.

Our first night in Anaheim

Sunday evening, we arrived at our hotel in Anaheim. We unloaded our many bags, pillows, stuffed animals and grandpa's water machine. The girls climbed up and we headed to our rooms. We were lucky enough to get connecting rooms.



After we checked in and got a little bit unpacked, we headed to Downtown Disney for dinner. I've been to Downtown Disney in Orlando several times, and it is a very fun, kid friendly place. There you can get candy at the Goofy Candy store, climb on large Lego's and shop at the big Disney store. The Downtown Disney in Anaheim, is not so friendly. There is only one place to park and then it is quite a walk to get to any of the stores. The Disney store was the farthest store from the parking lot. The restaurants were packed and had 45 minute waits. It was not what I had expected. Unfortunately.

The girls had a great time at dinner. Grandma let them eat sugar from the packets. Luckily, both of our girls still ate lots of salad and a healthy dinner, despite the sugar packets.

After dinner, Jade got in trouble. We're having some challenges with her lately. She tends to act like she's a teenager and throws tantrums equal to ones I only expected in 8 years. It was so cute. I know thinking it was cute is not the right response, but here's why... Once the tantrum was over, we talked about it. She said she wanted to "SQUASH that" (and she punched her fist into her other hand several times). What that meant was that the behavior was all gone and we should never talk about it again. We learned that when we brought it up the next morning. She got all teary and said, "I squashed that, it's all gone." And it really was all gone. She was great the rest of the trip.

We try really hard to learn from the girls so that we can become better parents. That tantrum and the squashing the behavior really helped me. Now, when Jade does something that we don't like, I say, "Jade, I think we need to squash that behavior." Then she says, okay and punches her hand. I love it. And it works! CRAZY.

Sunday at my brothers house

Before we headed to Disneyland, I wanted to document life with the Six in the World family.

Dax has gotten really good at the drums and the guitar- despite suffering from very painful carpel tunnel.

My nephew, McKane, didn't like that I french braided his hair. I think it's great. (I also think that I look really old- time for some skin treatments!)

Jade and Asher took turns giving each other piggy back rides. They were so cute together. Unfortunately, when the two get together, they don't really care if there is anyone else around.

Ivy and Kieran had a great time watching videos on YouTube. The rest of the week, we got to hear the gummy bear song, over and over and over again. I'm sharing it with you, so that it will go through your head- just like it has mine.

Scenes from the beach...

While the guys were surfing and the kids were playing in the water and sand, I captured several images that to me say "beach".

I love the Santa Monica Pier. When Scott and I were dating, we took Dax and McKane there. It was a lot of fun playing with them on the pier. Next time we go back to visit Tom and Anne, we will have to take the girls to the Pier.

There are always lots of birds on the beach...

Lots of seagulls...

Posing on paddle boards...

and walking along the beach. Birds are great subjects.

There was a couple next to me on the beach. The woman had this great bike. As soon as she walked away from it for a moment, I had to snap a picture.

In Utah, we don't have these really cool lifeguard shacks.

This bird kept flying by us as well.There was also a little boy flying this kite.

While we were at the beach, there was a fire in one of the nearby canyons. It closed the PCH for hours. It took us a very long time to get back to Malibu.

These shoes were left at the beach. There is probably a really good story to go with these sexy black heels. And likely some lady woke up wondering where on earth she put her date shoes.

I love beach days...

My favorite thing about being a mom is watching my girls enjoying new things and being truly happy. There are several activities that are sure things to get happy girls. I'm glad we get to add the beach to that list. Jade loved everything about it. Ivy, well, she loved playing in the sand far away from the water. The water was too cold for her.

Ivy wanted to be held most of the time. But, luckily, Asher found a beach toy. From then on, Ivy was in heaven.

This picture is my wallpaper on my computer. I absolutely love it.

I can't wait to go back to the beach with our girls.

Jade's first beach experience...

As soon as Jade saw the water, she just wanted to play in it. She loved it. She started letting the waves chase her. But one thing she didn't expect was the strength of the waves. The first picture shows her running from the waves. Then there is a picture that I missed. In that picture you would have seen Jade's legs up high above her body and her body under water. When she stood up, there was no fear on her face. There was a huge smile!

That smile continued. She loved the beach. There will be more pictures coming soon.

My Surfer Husband...

Saturday morning we headed out to the beach so Scott could try his hand at surfing. Anne's brother-in-law, Todd, used to compete. Lucky for Scott, he was able to join us and teach Scott a few pointers.

Here's the first wave that they tried to catch. Todd was the only one that caught it.

I love this picture. Todd was very impressed with Scott. He said that Scott listened to the pointers he gave him and then really went after it. He said that most beginners are very hesitant and don't really try and stand up on their first day. Next time we go down to visit Tom and family, we'll have to spend a few days just at the beach, surfing.

One of the things that happens when a beginner tries to stand up is that they fall.

After an hour and a half of practicing, Scott got up.

In this picture is Todd (with the blue board), Tom (with Ivy) and Scott (with the white board, heading back out).

Cousins...

We just returned from a fantastic trip to California. We got to spend time with my brother and his family. Jade was so excited to be with Asher again. When we parted ways Jade said that she wants Asher to come and live with us. I told her it would be great if they lived near us. She said that near us was not close enough, she wants Asher to live in our house. These cute little blondies had a great time together. Hopefully we'll see them again soon.

Thanks Tom and Anne for letting us stay with you for a couple of days. We love you and miss you!

Oh the memories....

In this picture...
Emily Clark, me, Kim Herbert, Christine Stinson, Alleen Hansen, Christine Taylor and Christine Conrad.

I loved my childhood. I want to scan all of my mom's pictures and get a great big fantastic book printed for each of us. This picture was sent to me today from an old friend, Christian. I haven't seen him for years, but we recently connected through Facebook. Again, I loved my childhood. Thanks Mom and Dad for providing us with a happy, safe and fun home.

Coffee Cake Muffins

Click here for recipe

Family fun with the cousins

On Sunday we celebrated my little sister's and my uncle's birthdays. I always enjoy getting together with my cousins. Growing up, we would get together for every birthday and almost any excuse we could come up with. As we have gotten older and the family has grown, we don't get together nearly as often. When we do, it's fun to see the little cousins bond.


Ivy loved not being the youngest one. She got to hold Anchor and give him his binky. She thought it was really neat how he'd cry and then the binky would make him stop.

She also got to read a story with my cousin Cass. Ivy loves when people focus on her.

I love living near our families.

First Field Trip...

Tuesday Jade's class went on their first field trip. They went to Wheeler Farm for the morning. Jade wanted to take her camera with her. I told her that she had to ask her teacher. Apparently her teacher said that it was okay. When she got home, I asked her if she took any pictures. She said, "No, I was having too much fun to take pictures, so Alexa's mom took pictures for me." I am so glad that she took her camera. What adorable little school kids they are.