AWOB

That's Away With Out Blogging.

Wow, I think I just reached a new high of non-Lenten non-blogging.  I feel guilty, like I'm being a poor hostess with quests waiting to be served--but I had good reason.  Well, at least for the first week of it. . . .

Funny, 'cause when I last posted, I had just told you all my goal would be to write one positive post a day for a whole week.  Then my husband reminded me that we were going to Disneyland.  Oh.  Right.

We had wanted to do this trip last Fall, but ended up going to Colorado to see our newborn preemie niece instead, and having a really good time staying with really good friends.  So when my cousin down in the LA area announced she was getting married this Fall, I was so excited that now we had the excuse to make the trip.  The best part about homeschooling is getting to travel whenever you feel like it.  Disneyland has got to be one of the best places to go when you have such flexibility--off-season, in the middle of the work-week, in the middle of the school-day, the lines to ANY ride in the park are at most 15 minutes.  Some you wait only 5 minutes. The temperatures are so much more pleasant (mild and often overcast but not rainy) too.  And Disneyland also re-decorates according to the seasons; while I am not crazy about all the Halloween decorations, the more harvest/Fall decorations were simply gorgeous, and the park has set up really beautiful displays all over the park for impromptu photo backdrops (we're talking huge, real carved pumpkins displaying Disney scenes, for example--really unique). 

Did I get any pics of such things?  Of course not.  We were too busy running ALL over Disneyland (and a little at the California Adventure too) having a great time.   In fact, I don't have that many great pics at all--but I have enough to bring back the pleasurable memories:

The new Nemo submarine ride.  DH and I loved the "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" ride when we were kids, so it was fun to see it reincarnated.  Some parts were done really well--oh, to be able to see it through my kids' eyes, and really imagine being deep in the sea!

(Those red T-shirts left over from this past summer's vacation Bible school came in handy.  Two days in a row.) 

While we did a lot of rides, we also really made the most of the hands-on, interactive areas.  The Tarzan treehouse play area is really fun--the Disney "Imagineers" did a great job on it.  You can bang on pots and pans to make music, pump bellows to stoke the "fire" and make pots rattle on the "stove," crank a wheel to run a slideshow, pull on a rope to make wild animal sounds, and more things to spur the imagination. What is so fascinating are how many kids and parents just walk on through, not thinking to touch or try things--and so missing out on all the fun.

The Mark Twain Riverboat.  I can never get tired of watching its giant paddle.

For some reason, I love Disney's two ships, and we were fortunate enough to ride both.  Here is the Columbia, which had so much fun things to see on and below deck.  Historical replicas?  Yes, please!  (School for the day, check. ; ) 

 

Complete with working cannon!

And nobody came to scold when the kids all wanted a turn ringing the bell as we were coming back into port. . . .

(Seriously, I had never analyzed quite how kid-friendly Disney is until this trip.  There are so many ways for kids to get to let off steam in safe and fun ways, esp. when they have been good about walking for miles and patiently standing around all day.  Even when ride operators had to warn kids of safety behavior, they usually did it with patience and humor appropriate to that particular ride.)

The big ball fountain.  Another feature most people never notice that kept me and Smiley entertained for at least 20 minutes while DH took the girls on Space Mountain.

Actually, Smiley and I hung out a lot together this trip, as this was the first time the three girls were old enough to do the "big kid" rides, and so I sent DH and them off to enjoy.  (The older I get the more sensitive I am to motion sickness--at this exact moment I am getting dizzy just trying to type as Smiley is excitedly waving his fingers in front of the screen while reliving the carousel ride. ; )  I did go on a few fast, such as the Matterhorn, which was my own first roller coaster, as I recall.  That one was the first we took the girls on too, and it did boast a classic moment:  I had been instructing them on how to sit and what to expect from the movement of the ride, etc., when just as we were entering the "cave," I remembered to warn them, "Oh, and there might be snow monsters, so look out!"  Thus they began their first roller-coaster ride shrieking in anticipation, which is as it should be.

DH with some kids blasting things on the Buzz Lightyear ride.  This is actually one of my favorite rides, just because it is so cleverly done and engages the kids so completely.  And you get to email photos to yourself at the end, for free!  Too cool.

Smiley got to drive. (Really!  The cars even turn from side to side with a switch.)

 My favorite part of the park this time:  Tom Sawyer's Island.  I do not remember visiting this when I was a kid--probably because when I was old enough to remember I was to busy trying to fit in as many roller-coasters and "cool" rides as possible.  But this island is so fun, with so much "scope for the imagination," as Anne of Green Gables would say.  Such a great place to let kids be kids!

.    .    .    .    .    .    .    .    .   

We drove to LA Tuesday, arrived in time to stop by and get our passes and do a couple of things at the California Adventure, went to the home of my Aunt Sharyn (one of my dad's sisters) and Uncle Don, who were so gracious to host us for the week (and who are only about 20 minutes from Disney too!), and crashed.  Weds and Thurs we did Disney again, staying until it closed at 8:00 p.m.  Friday DH hung out at the house with all the kids and our cousin Joey while I helped my aunt and uncle and others prepare the church gym for the following day's reception, and Fri. evening we got to hang out with my Aunt Lisa (another of my dad's sisters) and Uncle Rob, who had come to town for the festivities.  Saturday was the wedding, and a lovely one it was.

My lovely cousin Stacia and her new husband, Adam. 

Seeing some of my extended family again was one of the best parts of the trip, and definitely worth the drive.  But a week of family fun, esp. at a place so nostalgic for DH and me--the icing on the cake. 

So much so that we could not resist stopping by Disneyland again Sunday, on our way home. . .

and arriving back home very late at night, contentedly exhausted.


(And the VERY best part?  That we get to go back in the Spring!  Yes, homeschooling + living a half day's drive from Disneyland + hospitable relations close by = annual passes for the year!  Whoo-hoo!)