California or Bust 2009

The year started out with us really wanting to make it to Orlando, but with Shayne's busy schedule and my school, we decided on California. Being a native Californian, I really do enjoy getting back to the dewy mornings, the roses and birds of paradise in everyones yards, and being close to the beach.
The trip started off late, and so we got there at 2am Thursday morning, which was a worry considering we were to got to Disneyland that day. We ended up sacking out hard and waking up ready to have fun. Getting in the gate was $350 alone, gasp. I had mentally prepared myself for an expensive day so I could enjoy it.
The next day, we went to Knotts Berry Farm. It is more for older kids as there are a lot of thrill rides, but the cool thing is we literally walked on 90% of the rides, no lines, and great weather. That night, we went to Northwoods Inn Resterant in La Mirada. An old Baxter favorite, so many memories and a great meal.

Drew is in the "scared of everything" stage", and so he opted out of Haunted Mansion, Toad's Wild Ride, Matterhorn, and we even had to talk up Small World a lot to get him on the boat...H really loved getting buried in the sand up to his neck and had a lot of fun collecting "clams" on the beach.
Kennedy is our little thrill seeker. She will ride anything! Disneyland made me all the more aware of how she is growing up....not at all enamored with Princesses anymore. Knotts Berry Farm has a ride, called Ghost Rider, a giant wooden coaster that she and Shayne rode, and she she loved it.
Jordan is a little more ride weary than Kennedy. I pressured him into riding something at Knotts that was a little out of his comfort zone, and after seeing his face, I will never do that again! He loved the beach, tried his hand at boogie boarding and had a blast jumping waves with Shayne, Kennedy and I.

Things I learned this trip...
-it take a good 9 hours to get to Anaheim from Vail, don't try to tell me otherwise.
-kids love the word 'diarrhea'. They sang about it for way too many miles...
-a $13 boogie board from walmart is worth about $3..it lasted about 30 min before it got munched. Also, kids don't need beach toys, just plastic cups.
-that little extra panel in your bathing suit bottom, is really just there to collect sand, LOTS of sand...
-paying $350 to get in Disneyland will put you in the "we will have fun whether you are tired or not" mode for 13 hours
-put a dad in a teacup, and he will view it as a personal challenge as to how fast he can get it spinning, this was not enjoyable for me, as a rider...

this and that...

Busy, Busy...the theme for October. We are at a place where Shayne emails me his itinerary, so I will know what state he is in and when. If you have seen a busty girl running on Camino Loma Alta, thats me! I am working on the Couch25K program as some of you know, with the goal of running a 5k in December for charity. I have always thought running was something that a girl like me just couldn't do, and so I am having to develop the "can-do" attitude. I am not at a place when I am running that I am "in the moment", its more like when is this leg over, where are my underwear creeping, there's another 1. ant hill 2. poop pile and so on.. I am glad when I see ya'll driving, because now I have proof that I am actually doing it!

Kennedy is back in volleyball, and just loves it! We are so lucky to have Rachel B for our coach, she is so great and knows what she is talking about. She also plays vball with us moms on Wed morning, where I am sure that her serves are atomic! She is really encouraging the girls to pass the ball, and Kennedy's serves are continuing to be more consistant

I just read Andi W's post about kids sleepwalking, and thought I would add my experiences. Poor Kennedy sleepwalks, and more recently, sleep showers. I heard someone go into my bathroom and turn the shower on, when I asked her what she was doing, she said "taking a shower" and when I asked why, she said " I don't know"

The poor thing is afraid to spend the night at friends houses because she is afraid of what she will do, so we are trying to help her with that fear and remind her that her friends love her.

I had terrible night terror's growing up, so far her episodes haven't been too frightening, just confusing. Finding her wander the hall is not uncommon, and I once found her on her dresser pounding on the wall!

Jordan has been keeping busy on break by collecting crap, er, building a fort in the backyard. I hope no one calls the cops on us , a la Phillip Garrido, the structure is getting larger by the day..

I know they are building memories, my parents backyard was one fort after another for years.

Lately, Drew has been quite the little sass, and knows exactly what will get a rise from me. All that sass must wear him out, because around 3 or 4 most days, he lays on the ground, strokes Macy's head and falls asleep.

I am halfway through my first class, Elementary Algebra, and doing okay. I must admit, I have actually scored a 47% on a quiz, luckily I can take it up to three times (yup, I had to take all three to get a decent score). Oh man, I am in for it, this is going be interesting...