The Ocean...

On our final full day in California we relaxed a little. The older two kids and The Hubster went swimming in the beautiful condo pools while The Pea and I stayed back and napped, then we all went to the beach afterwards. it was amazing! Living somewhere far from the ocean means we truly appreciate it's grandness when we see it. It also helped that we got there in the evening so we got to see the sunset too. I'm really excited about some of the pictures I got while we were there but I took A TON! So instead of putting them all in one really long post I figure I will do a couple posts about the beach.

This top picture was actually kind of an accident. I wasn't worrying about my exposure in that moment and just happened to expose for the sunlight and not The Pirate. I love that he turned out in shadow! I also love that he has his jacket on because it is so him. He ALWAYS has his hooded jackets on. Rain, snow or sun. All winter he wore two hooded fleece jackets instead of a coat. *sigh* My boy is getting big... 

This was also a fun picture for me because it captures The Princess in one of her most authentic moments. She is incredibly curious about all things "nature". She is constantly researching animals, bugs, rocks and shells. She checks out books at the library about nature, she watches the Discovery Channel and Animal Planet whenever she can. She regularly digs in our back yard hoping to find a new kind of rock or fossil and she would rather spend her money on polished rocks than toys. She is one curious, smart cookie!

To be continued...

Sea World...

Ok so it's about time right? I just know you are all eagerly awaiting this post so without further adieu....

Sea World!

(click on each page to make them bigger-and in case you're wondering why I am posting scrapbook pages instead of simple pictures I figured I might as well just complete my pages for my Shutterfly book that I plan on having printed and then post them here too-kill two birds with one stone and all!)

P.S. I know that these pages mention The Pea's nickname as well as The Hubster's but I was too

 lazy to blur them out!

Disneyland!

The second day we were in CA we went to Disneyland. We were actually supposed to meet my Aunt Cyndi and Uncle Scott and their family that day to play together (they live about 10 min. from the park). When I called to get details I found out they were REALLY sick! Sad!!! So we ended up going ourselves. My sweet Auntie gave me lots of info. though that really helped that day. We had so much fun. We got there around 10am and stayed until about 10pm! LONG DAY! The poor Pea had her entire schedule turned upside down that day (and every other day for the whole vacation) so it was interesting trying to work around her nap and meal times. Unfortunately this meant splitting up as a family a lot while The Hubster and the older two waited in lines and I found meals for the baby, warmed milk for sippy cups and quiet spots for her to nap. However between fast-passes and parent-swaps we all got to ride most of the rides. Our regrets after though were that we only had one day to do it all, we didn't make it to Toon Town before it closed (shoulda' gone there first...ahh hind-sight!), and we didn't get a family picture with Mickey (the ONE THING I wanted out of that day). Oh well, there's always next year right? I gotta say, my favorite is still good ole' Space Mountain. Something about a roller coaster completely in the dark just puts a smile on my face! My kids' faves were Space Mountain, Indiana Jones, Splash Mountain...well, they pretty much loved anything fast! Buzz Lightyear was pretty darn fun too. I have to say though, my absolute favorite part of the day was the firework show. Ever since I was little I have seen the Disneyland and Disneyworld commercials where they show the fireworks over the castle and I have always wanted to see them in person. This year I finally did and it was magical! It was such a fun day and it was so great to just watch my kids experience the magic that is Disneyland!

**Disclaimer: The following pictures may not be the best quality due to a crappy point and shoot camera that we bought right before the trip. I didn't want to haul my SLR around Disneyland. I learned my lesson that day and took my 4th child (my SLR) everywhere else during our trip. The point and shoot couldn't focus worth anything! It has since been returned for a full refund and my SLR will be my one and only from here on out!**

Back from the sand and sun...LOTS OF PICS!

So I have a confession to make...the pillows haven't even been started yet. I tried to pack to much into a couple of weeks and something had to give. One of the things that kept me busy was packing. Last Thursday morning we left for sunny New Port, Beach CA! The Hubster's father has a condo there with Marriot and he gave us a certificate good for a 4 day stay for a really good rate-the catch-we had to listen to the sales pitch while there. Well, considering we have wanted to take the kids to Disneyland and Sea World for like the last 4 or 5 years and we always have a reason not to, we jumped at this chance! We flew out on Thursday on separate flights (due to a free plane ticket from a friend). The Hubster took The Pirate on a 9:50 flight and I took the girls at 12:15 that afternoon. My sweet Dad gave us girls a ride to the airport so that when we all flew home together we could ride in the same car. So, can I just say that it is such a pain to get through security with a toddler and a stroller that has multiple carry-ons stuck in and on it? Take out the bags, take off the shoes, fold up the stroller, stuff it all through the machine, get reminded by less than friendly airport attendant that baby's shoes must be removed...remove them, go through metal detector, turn around and take off belt, go back through, lug stupid heavy stroller off of conveyor belt, watch things stack up around it, put shoes on, stuff bags back in stroller, wrestle baby back into stroller while she screeches like I'm killing her, put baby's shoes back on, almost walk off without belt, grab belt and put it on, walk away sweating like I had just worked out...RIDICULOUS! All I can say is thank heavens The Princess is old enough to worry about her own things! Not to mention, The Princess was such a help with her baby sister while we waited for our flight. The flight itself wasn't too bad. It was jam packed so there wasn't much room for The Pea to stretch out when she was getting tired towards the last half-hour but she didn't cause too much of a scene. The guy next us was kind enough to reply all 10 times that the The Pea said "Hi" to him and my sister's portable DVD player with Elmo's World sure came in handy...although she pushed the buttons more than anything, but entertainment is entertainment right? Anyway, our little family was reunited at the airport, both kids having enjoyed their first airplane rides, and The Pea fell asleep within two minutes of being laid back in her stroller. We got our rental car and headed on to the land of the Rich and Richer. We had been told that the condos were 5-star but they were even better than we had imagined. When we pulled up we felt like celebrities! Palm trees, fountains, outrageously expensive cars, beautiful pools and a breathtaking view of the ocean. Ahhhh...I could totally get used to that lifestyle! I'll leave you with pictures of our condo and grounds. I'll post over this week about our other adventures...get ready for LOTS of pictures!

Honestly it was all so beautiful and amazing! It was hard to leave the beautiful surroundings and head back to the Utah cold. Next post...... Disneyland!

No pillows yet but....

No, my pillows are not done but I was really excited about how some scrapbook pages turned out and I just had to show you all! 

Cute right? That's all...