Trip to Cali

It's not everyday you get offered an all-expense-paid trip to Disneyland, and all you have to do is have your husband spend a day working with his dad and brothers while you chill in the hotel. Umm... okay! 4 days' notice... okay. So that's what we just did! We packed up and headed out Thursday morning. 

Quinn really does take after me: as we passed the last exit to a town, Quinn informed us he needed to pee. Luckily it's a bit easier for boys than it is for girls when it comes to peeing on the side of the road! It just took a little discussion about what plant to pee on lol.

Our trusty driver. Josh drove the ENTIRE time (he's kinda stubborn that way. I promise I'm not a bad driver!). He's a stud.

The boys were so good the entire way! With a few normal fussy moments before nap times and when they got hungry, it went pretty smoothly that first day.

Quinn got to play with the camera for a bit. So this is his view of the trip.

I had to spend some time in the back seat playing with and taking care of Logan. But during naps and happy times, I got to sit in the front seat (which was lovely!)

Finally around 9 pm we rolled into Anaheim and checked into our hotel. We brought our playpen for Logan, but we didn't have anywhere for Quinn to sleep. But compared to our recent camping trip, the floor of a 4-star hotel, wrapped in a super-soft blanket, resting his head on a feather pillow was awesome.

Friday while the boys worked the event, we played in the hotel. This is Edmund and Logan playing on the poker-chip littered floor (left over from the older kids playing)

What? I heard a picture being taken! MUST GET IN IT!

It was kinda fun to see Logan mauling Edmund.

Best part of a hotel stay? Jumping on the bed with cousins! 

Then after lunch, we were all very tired and it was nap time.

Quinn and I snuggled on my bed, finished our Jack-in-the-Box, and watched some tele whilst everyone else slumbered.

Aunt Nicole and Edmund came over while we waited for the boys to come back so we could go to the beach. Here she is posing for Quinn.

SUCH a pretty momma! 

A lot of the trip was spent like this (on the phone, figuring out where everyone else was):

Logan is king of the sand mountain!

I am so in love with these boys!

Eating sand - every new place must be tasted for quality assurance purposes.

Quinn and Mommy making footprints in the wet sand.

Logan got cold pretty quickly (we got there around 7, and the sun sets early there for some weird reason), and of course we forgot the jackets and towels in the hotel room. So we utilized what we could to keep my boys warm.

Logan is seriously the cutest baby boy I've ever met!

Testing out the water.

Josh kinda forced it on Quinn because he just could not hold in the excitement anymore! lol. Quinn quickly got scared of the huge waves headed straight for him.

Josh helped him jump over the waves.

When Quinn got tired of that (after about 2 minutes), they went back up to the safe, dry sand to play.

Josh was a smart daddy and helped cover Quinn in sand to keep him warm lol

They had a lot of fun burying each other.

Karen wanted to be king of the mountain while the tide moved in to see what would happen.

Snuggles by the ocean! 

 Matt and Josh found a crab digging under the waves. They caught it and showed the kids.

They all thought it was pretty cool.

Even grumpy gus Quinn lightened up a little for it.

He even held it!

Josh prepped Quinn with more sand, and sat the crab right next to him to save to show to Naomi when she showed up. It was his friend.

I call this Quinn's Crabby Picture, pun intended.

Nicole and Karen playing with their kids in the ocean.

The sun setting was awesome! Just wait, it gets better.

I hated the pictures that I kept getting in. This is the face Josh gave me about my comments.

When I told him I took a picture of his ornery "DO IT" face, he tried to copy it - to no avail.

Dan came for the beach evening.

Maddie loved playing on the beach! She was the happiest kid there despite the cold that was affecting everyone else!

  

Ammon refused to listen to Naomi's protests about meeting the ocean, and took matters into his own hands.

My kids were starving and cold, and thus grumpy and refusing to play. But everyone else had fun!

Josh decorated Quinn, since he refused to play.

He was so happy.

So I cuddled him, trying to help him have a fun time. It didn't work. (though now he tells me he wants to go back to the beach)

My heart just melts.

  The sunset getting prettier, despite my beach ugliness.

Family sunset pic!

   

After a late dinner of pizza and a night's sleep to rest up, it was time for Disneyland! I didn't realize just how much of a woose Quinn would be, or else I would have bought one of those double strollers on the yardsales I've been seeing.

But it worked out. This is us waiting for the Tiki Room show, per Matt's request.

Quinn brightened up at the water fountain!

But we got a lot of this, too. Hunger and sleep deprivation to not a happy kid make.

So we got a breakfast of pineapple spears and Josh got a pickle, dipped in chocolate (ew and double EW). At least Logan knew what food to go for!

Quinn "enjoying" his pineapple.

Then it was time for the Jungle Cruise. Quinn liked it a lot. And we had the FUNNIEST tour guide ever! I won't bore you with pictures of the fake animals, though.

Logan just chilling with his feet up lol.

After a few more rides and things, it was lunch time. We met up with Ammon and Nicole and ate some Mexican in Adventure Land. Logan was super happy and cute. Enter cuteness overload:

  

Lunch time!

 

The things we moms do to keep our kids happy!

Such a cute family.

We went on a train ride while we digested. THAT was an adventure of its own kind! Logan decided to blow out, and I failed to bring a backup pair of pants... so we changed him on the train, then he went around all classy-like in only a diaper and t-shirt the rest of the day. Can you say white trash?

My handsome men.

I love spending time with my boys!

We visited the innovation place. Quinn chose what his new world would be like. I was rather proud of many of his answers, like "Where would you rather live, city or country?" and he'd answer "country". That's my boy!

  

Logan snoozed in the cool, dark atmosphere. It was a great rest time.

 

Stark Industries had a display, much to our excitement!

Secret: I'm a total Iron Man geek.

Playing in the water - seriously his favorite little thing to do. I'm thinking i need to build a fountain in our yard somewhere.

Quinn became Iron Man (I have a video, but it's too big right now)

After a waste of time at Toon Town, I did some shopping for the boys. Josh bought Quinn a light saber that glowed, and Logan liked eating it.

Quinn got really ornery - until we ate dinner. He was really happy again, so I told Josh to hurry and snap pictures for evidence that he enjoyed himself at Disneyland!

As it got dark, we were running, trying to get in more rides. Here we are standing in line for Casey Jr. Quinn was making Sean laugh up a storm.

I don't know how this man keeps up his energy for so long! He nenver ceases to amaze me. 

  On our way out of the park after fireworks, Karen and I running to Indiana Jones (it broke just as we got in when we tried in the morning). Everyone was worn out!

Pretty momma and baby boy! We had fun!

In the end, we packed up and went home in the morning (after Josh and I took turns in the hot tub while the boys still slept, then we ate out at IHOP). We learned a few lessons (like what kind of hotel to book and how to travel with kids), and were very happy to be home! The ride home was MUCH longer than the way there, since an accident on 1-15 made us take over 2.5 hours to go 26 miles. That made us all rather grumpy. But after getting out of it and some dinner, we were in better spirits and made it home safe.

Thanks again, Dan, for inviting us and allowing us to take this amazing trip!