We're Back!

We took a short business trip to California so Greg could decide whether to accept a job offer there. After much deliberation, discussion, and prayer (including exploring the area and housing options), we decided it made most sense to stay put! Praise the Lord for His guidance! We appreciate everyone who prayed for us!

Since we skipped our vacation last year, we felt it would be a good opportunity to extend our trip by seven days in Anaheim. It was a welcome and refreshing break leaving behind all our responsibilities and concerns for a short time. The weather was perfect: 70’s and sunny! Made coming home to snow a little strange!

One day was devoted to Legoland, which may have been Kylen's favorite part. Here are my smart boys!

I love the apple fries with whipped cream! Granny Smith sticks are dipped in batter and fried. Tartness mixed with cinnamon and sugar! Mmmm!

This LEGO man was a great actor and fun to watch!

Greg's most anticipated part of the trip: picking out LEGOs from bins in their store! It was his favorite part of a similar trip we took three years ago, too!

Greg always insists on stopping at least a few minutes if we are anywhere near the coast. (Fine with me!) I was unable to get a good picture, as our camera doesn't do night shots well without a tripod. We found a great parking right next to the shore line (full of cars even after sundown). They removed shoes, rolled up pants and chased waves in the freezing water for about ten minutes.

My uncle recommended we eat at Knott's Berry Farm, which was about ten minutes away. We didn't go in their amusement park, but we enjoyed the famous chicken dinner and browsed shops.

Disneyland was my favorite! Three years ago, we had a good experience with the character breakfast at Goofy's Kitchen. This time we decided to try the Plaza Inn and weren't disappointed! Another fantastic buffet in a fantastic setting with a guarantee that several Disney characters will stop by your table.

That one with the weird face isn't a character; it's my husband. :-) Er, wait . . . My husband IS a weird character!

Last time we took one of Kylen's favorite storybooks, Disney Bedtime Stories and had those who came by sign on a blank page. We did the same thing this time and got three new signatures. Kylen said he wasn't as shy about seeing Pooh as the others, "because I've known him ever since I was a baby."

Kylen got over his fear of coasters!! Or so he says! We'll see! At any rate, he dreaded nearly every ride and ended up liking them all, even Splash Mountain (pictured below) with the 40 foot drop!

This garbage can was a really creative touch and caused quite a stir! It moved around on it's own, talking to people, singing, and making jokes! We think it was done by remote, as there didn't appear to be anyone inside. I actually threw garbage through the lid (by invitation), and it appeared mostly hollow. The cool part was that it carried on conversations. Whoever controlled it was able to hear people and transmit his voice directly to the can. These weren't prerecorded sentences. The funniest part was the kid's reactions, especially the little ones!

We had a memorable lunch at the Blue Bayou. Besides the food being excellent, it was neat watching boats (full of people) go past from the Pirates ride. Kylen kept wanting to wave! Though the restaurant is completely indoors, it is designed to feel like you are sitting just outside at night. That is exactly how it felt, though it was actually midday!

After several days going on rides together, I spent most of one day shopping at a relaxed pace while the boys did their own thing. Didn't buy much, but I sure had fun! Here is Kylen looking at me through one of the store windows.

A portion of California Adventure under serious construction!

Of course, we had to get a picture of me next to the big "F." That was the last thing we did before saying goodbye to "the happiest place on earth."