We decided that our kids were just so smart that they could skip out on the third week of school and not miss much. As a side note, it turns out you can miss a lot in 5th grade and you miss picture day. No big deal, though! That’s why they created the make-up picture day.
We stopped in Mesquite on our way to California to pick up my mom. We were able to get to California just a few hours before my cousins kid’s baptism. Calista and Ainsley are the same age and get along really well, so it was a treat to be able to share her special day with her. It turned out to be great timing so that I could see all my PLW cousins and their kids.
We ended up heading to California Adventure first thing every morning. One of my favorite rides there is Toy Story Mania. It might be because I’m super competitive.
SIDE STORY: If you look closely you’ll notice Calista isn’t wearing her glasses in any of the pictures throughout our 3-day Disneyland excursion. And in the picture above you might notice two big red sores on her nose. After Ainsley’s baptism we went over to my cousin’s house to have dinner. After the kids were done eating they went outside in the front to ride bikes and scooters. Unfortunately, Calista was riding a razor scooter at twilight and didn’t notice that the little lip of concrete going up the driveway from the asphalt was a whole lot higher than the ones she’s used to back at home. She went face first into the driveway. The poor kid was bloody all over her face. I am convinced that her glasses saved her life. They took the brunt of the fall/scrapes. Her nose instantly started to swell up and go black and blue. Mark and I were two shakes from going to the ER. My cousins convinced us to give it a little time so Mark and my awesome Priesthood-holding cousins gave Calista a blessing. Both Mark and I totally thought her nose was broken and that she’d wake up with a huge nose and two black eyes. She woke up the next morning all chipper and ready to go. All she had showing were two scrapes on her nose. She is one tough cookie.
Téa getting ready to show her shooting skills on Toy Story Mania.
After Toy Story Mania I was able to convince Téa to go on California Screamin’ with me. Her face says it all. She. Absolutely. Hated. It.
Calista and Piper were in heaven when they found this ride that was just like Ladybug Bop at Lagoon. I think Nonna even enjoyed it…a little.
This IS his smile. Men.
Unfortunately, I’m the only one who will ride the Tea Cups with the kids. I took one for the team.
So the last time we went to Disneyland Piper was 2 years old. And Mark ‘got’ to ride It’s a Small World over and over and over…you get the picture. This time Mark is happy to announce that he only rode it once! Riding this attraction once is totally doable, especially since we make the kids try and keep count of all the different countries that are represented.
Piper was super happy with her new set of ears.
Calista got a new set of ears as well…then started climbing around like a monkey.
One of the days at the park Mark, Téa and I were riding Splash Mountain and the ride shut down just after we went down the big drop. We were all escorted out of our logs and got to witness the inside of Splash Mountain from a completely different perspective. We had to wind our way through a lot of the ride to finally get to a back exit. Pretty cool to see the puppets close up. I even touched one just to say I did. Shhhhh. Don’t let Disney know.
Another day, another Tea Cup ride.
Piper LOVED Star Tours. I loved it growing up but think it’s way better now with the changes they’ve made.
If I did Christmas cards this would have been our family picture. Since my dad didn’t come with us we decided to do a little salute to him in our picture. Splash Mountain was by far the family favorite.
Just to show how competitive I am. I kept track of my scores on Toy Story Mania. This was my highest. Mark totally kills all of us on the Buzz Lightyear ride so I have to brag somehow.
My Uncle Phil and Aunt Dianne met up with us to enjoy our last fun-filled day at the park. We had a blast with them! We started out in Cars Land and Phil happened to notice the gas station. Téa was thrilled to find her name (even though it was without the accent mark).
Piper and Calista wanted to head off with Phil, Dianne and my mom for a little bit while Mark, Téa and I headed off to do two or three more rounds on Splash Mountain. They were able to find Woody. Piper was super happy!
And who doesn’t love Goofy.
At this point we were halfway through our last day.
The girls were starting to wear out but my aunt and uncle know how to keep kids going. They sugared them up and we were off again.
Funny how Piper always ends up in the middle of all the pictures.
We loved the new Cars ride. The girls wanted to go with Nonna, Dianne and Phil so Mark and I actually got to sit next to each other on a ride (but in another car).
One big, happy family.
Piper didn’t want to ride Splash Mountain so Phil took her to see Winnie the Pooh and ride that ride. The rest of us had some more fun with the camera.
We had such a great time. Having Nonna come with us was perfect. We certainly tired her out and she put up with our fast-paced days but she was a trooper. And the girls loved sharing the experience with her.
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