Teagan's Dream

"I dreamt that Dad was hitting the ground to get some water out. Then he got some noodles and put them together to make soup. Then all of a sudden a T-rex came and was making a square where one of his family members had died. And then it started coming after Dad. And then a guy stood in front of the T-rex and said, 'Ye Shall Go Away.' And the T-rex ran away. And then we were free. And I was happy because I ate cake and a giant chocolate turn over."

Halloween 2011

Decorating pumpkins....the non-messy guts way.
Smile! (Notice Teagan's socks. It was crazy sock day at school. Go SJE Eagles!) LOVE my happy children!
Teagan was excellent as Dracula.
Creeeepy.
Brody was Bumble Bee from Transformers. (Although, he changed his costume several times...even as I was trying to get us out the door. He was Darth Vader for a bit.)
Cutest little bumble bee I've ever seen.
And a princess, of course. (She really didn't have to dress up for this. This is her...everyday.)
Pretty scary bunch.
Holy candy! Makes me sick just thinking about all the chocolate I stole from them. Happy Halloween!!!

Kamryn's #3 Birthday!!!

Kamryn wanted a princess castle cake. This is what I came up with. I thought it turned out cute and Kamryn LOVED it...so I was happy.


We had several friends over for presents, cake, and ice cream. It made Kamryn's day to have her friends there, especially Kaitlyn. This teenage girl is a FAVORITE of Kamryn's...and pretty much worthy of her admiration. I'll be more than pleased if Kamryn turns out to be the kind of young woman that Kaitlyn is.

Happy Birthday Baby Girl! We love you oh so much...and you make our days bright and joyful!

Day 4 & 5

Our last 2 days we spent hopping back and forth between the parks, riding favorites rides multiple times, and trying REALLY hard to find Belle for Kamryn and to get Brody in the Jedi Training Academy.
We went on the Jungle Safari ride...I don't know how many times. It's great in the dark, by the way.
I look plastic...but it's just a mixture between a lot of sun, sweat, and flash.
John did all the spin-around-make-me-sick rides with the kids.
We also went on the Little Mermaid ride a ton. Kamryn and Liam loved it and the rest of us loved the cool temperatures inside.
So, we tried for 5 days to find Belle, from Beauty and the Beast...Kamryn's favorite princess.
We failed.
John would ask the character workers and nobody could seem to tell us a good time/place to find her. Needless to say, Kamryn has moved on. Sure, she still plays with her princess dolls....but since Belle didn't give her time to Kamryn, Kamryn has a new best friend, Aurora, from Sleeping Beauty.

Pretty sure I would not have cared about the princesses at her age (or really ever), but Kamryn loves her princesses and still can not get over the fact that she got to meet a bunch of them in person.

Brody almost gave up on his dream too. We tried 4 times to get him into the Jedi Training Academy. Teagan was chosen the first time...Kamryn was chosen the 2nd time, but denied because she was too young...and finally after being disappointed 3 times, Brody didn't want to try again. But, he has stubborn parents. So I made him 2 signs to hold up. "PICK ME!" and "I'M CUTE!" So, with him holding the signs and John holding Brody up in the air....he was finally chosen!!! Brody was sooo excited and I was almost on the verge of tears, because he wanted it so bad.
He really didn't need the training, however.
He received a lot of attention from the trainers, but he KNEW exactly what to do.
Brody took on Darth Vader and was triumphant.
We had so much fun during our week in California. We were exhausted and broke by the time we left, but we created a ton of memories...and the kids couldn't have been happier. So glad we were able to take this family vacation together. I think we'll try it in another 5 years...minus diapers, strollers, and me constantly scanning a gazillion people to make sure I have my little munchins nearby.

California Adventure - Day 3

Our 3rd day was spent mostly at California Adventure. We saw a few characters, which made Kamryn's day, and we also went on some fun rides. John and I each took turns taking Brody and Teagan on The Tower Of Terror....which was fun and freaky at the same time. I took Brody and his face was priceless....definitely full of terror. But then both said they loved the ride and claimed it as one of their favorites.

Seriously, Kamryn could spend all day with the characters. So fun to watch the kids' eyes sparkle at all the fun, new things.Here she is again....hugging a stranger.

Cute, cute, and cute.



We took a little break and went to a kid's show. It had a bunch of the Disney Junior characters and our kids, especially Brody, really seemed to enjoy it. It was musical, interactive, and kept us out of the heat for a bit.

Disneyland - Day 2

Teagan was extremely excited to be chosen to go through the Jedi Training Academy.
He learned some new moves and was able to try them out on Darth Maul.
Teagan defeated him, of course.

So serious. Jedi Training was definitely a highlight of our trip.
Kamryn and Tinkerbell. I think we waited in this line for over 45 minutes. But hey...Kamryn could care less about everything else....she only wanted to see the princesses.
Grandma and Kamryn on the Dumbo ride.
And you can't leave Disneyland without seeing Mickey Mouse.
Liam was so worn out every night. Anywhere will do for a little shut eye.