Grandma and mom take on California...

When opportunity and scheduling connect, what do you do?? You drive to California!! Last week we had a small window where Josh finished school and the other kids were off track (yuck: upper grades on traditional and elementary on tracks). So, at the last minute, I decided we'd better hurry up and enjoy our "summer break" (Besides 2 weeks in July, this is the only time the kids are all free from school!). My mom was able to come along as moral support...Grandma Extraordinaire. It was nice to break up the long drive there by a stop in St. George (thank you Cameron) and visit with Rowena. It was wonderful to see her and her beautiful girls. It just wasn't long enough! Once again, we enjoyed Tammi's generosity and used her condo. It's only 10 minutes from the beach, 25 minutes from Disneyland, and 25 minutes from "Sprinkles" cupcakes...we're talking prime real estate!I found Disneyland tickets for about 1/2 price on Ebay. Initially, I felt like I was making some unsavory deal in the back parking lot. Ultimately, I had to trust the nearly 3000 positive comments on Ebay...and it all worked out perfectly. We arrived at 8am which made for great parking, characters available for photos and quick lines. Since Jenna was an infant last time, it was so fun to see her experience "the magic" for the first time. She loved seeing Minnie, Mickey and especially Goofy. I had to laugh when she wouldn't approach Alice and the Mad Hatter...she had no idea who they were! As the day went on lines got a bit longer...thank heavens for fast passes and G'ma providing refreshments while we waited in line. Some of the favorites were: Buzz Lightyear, Small World, Space Mountain (Andrew and Sarah even went!), Thunder Mountain, Pirates of the Caribbean, Soaring Over California, Monsters and the Pixar parade (I highly recommend it!). On the "not so favorite" side would be the Haunted Mansion. In spite of it being Sarah's favorite ride 4yrs ago and Jenna begging to go, I almost had to burst out of the emergency exit with my freaked out little girls! Considering we only had one day, we were able to hit most of the rides on our list. Indiana Jones was the only on we didn't make. We ran ourselves ragged from 8am to 8pm...what a day! We loved Disneyland!
The next day we headed for Laguna Beach. Although "June Gloom" was in full swing, it was still pleasant enough to go. The lack of sun didn't stop the kids from getting wet. However, Sarah got a bottom full sand and declared she hated the beach. lol After the beach, we partook of the local culinary goodness. BJ's pizza, Sprinkles cupcakes, Gelato Paradiso and even an apple pie apple from Rocky Mtn. Chocolate Factory. Yes, we really did stop at three dessert places. :) While at the condo, the kids loved swimming, mommy hated running (training for the Wasatch Back) and we all loved playing Uno together. We also went and saw "UP." This is one of the better movies I've seen in a long time. I had no idea it would be so emotional. Three minutes in, I was wiping away tears w/ my greasy popcorn napkin. So creative, so well done, so tender. Go see it.

Friday, we headed north to see the Williams family. Along the way, we took G'ma down memory lane. It was fun to hear her reminisce about her childhood. We drove by her school, home and church. We even visited w/ the lady who lives in her house now. It was so interesting to find out the "artist spirit" of the home remained. The homeowners grandmother worked for Hanna Barbara just as G'pa Chic did!Uncle Denny has just had his surgery to get his "metal knees" and was homebound. We had fun visiting with him and Jason (congratulations Jason and Jana!!) who was there to "papa sit." Then we headed to Scott and Tera's for the night. My kids had so much fun with their "Williams cousins." Are they 2nd cousins, cousins once removed...no matter, they connected as if they see each other every weekend! Jenna couldn't get enough of Uncle Scott, Nathan and Jake. Sarah found her soul mate in Gracie. They created a special rock...each has a half with their names on it. Sarah says when they see each other again, they will put the rock back together like their secret handshake! I Grace she could come home with us and I wasn't kidding! lol Andrew had a blast playing with Grant and Spencer. Josh totally enjoyed Andi and Brooke...doing what the big kids do best...hanging out! As for me, it was so great to see my cousins. I've concluded that the Williams really are as perfect as my mom tells me they are (she gets to see them more than me). They are all so talented, giving and fun...all around great examples to me. Wendy treated me to "rock star toes." Thank you, I love my super glittery, pink toes! For dinner that night, we went to Willy's BBQ. Wow...I never knew a pulled pork and coleslaw sandwich could be so heavenly!
The kids were not happy with me as I coaxed them out of bed to hit the road...they were having too much fun! We stretched out our good byes and got on the road about 2 1/2 hrs later than we wanted to (partly, in thanks to Wendy's delicious almond blueberry bread!).What a great trip. Everything went so smoothly and we had a fabulous time!