Disneyland 2016

Sam is officially finished with his third year of medical school, so what better way to celebrate than to take the first part of his boards? Step 2 of the Boards requires the students to travel to specific locations and have patient encounters. Good news is that it is pass/fail, no grades or scores involved. One of the locations is Los Angeles. We decided a Disneyland trip was in order. With Joey's birthday, Sam's hardest part of medical school over, and our 5 year anniversary this year, we felt the trip was justified. Sam has never been and I haven't been since the age of 5, either, so we were ready to have an adventure and see if Disneyland is worth it. 

We made it in (thanks Kristy for the matchy matchy shirts!)

Sleeping Beauty's castle

Me and my boys

Even ducks take their families to this place!

Enjoying our first Dole Whip

Life-size Lightning McQueen? Heaven!

Waving to Mater

Joey was freaked out by Red

Anywhere that Joey went that monkey was sure to go!

Tomorrowland has really become Star Wars land!

The parade and fireworks had to be the most magical part of Disneyland!

Everyday I hoped it would get less crowded
 and everyday it got more so.

Last day! Family pic and Mickey's Toon Town

Can't leave without a pic of the Mouse!

Our week might not be worth reading about if you never been to the place or hate long, detailed posts, but feel free to continue if you want!

Sunday, April 24th: 12 hour car ride with a three year old and 4 month old. Enough said. Plus traffic in California. We stayed in a Quality Inn in Anaheim 10 minutes away walking (which was one of our better ideas).

Monday, April 25th: Our first day in Disneyland. We had no idea what to do first or where anything was so there was a lot confusion and bickering. We rode a train and went on a few rides that had short lines, but eventually we split up: Sam would take Joey on rides while I got Fast Passes for Splash Mountain and Indiana Jones ride. I couldn't find Sam after doing that so I took Eli on Pirates by myself. Then I nursed Eli while Sam and Joey took a turn.

Sam took the kids while I went on Indiana Jones first. The line was still super long even with a Fast Pass and single rider. After Pirates, Indiana Jones seemed really short! I was so worried about getting a stroller pass that I forgot my phone on the ride! I ran back through the exit and luckily the cart that came in first was the one I rode, so I didn't have to wait so long. I also got the stroller pass, thank you very much. Sam rode Splash Mountain and I took Joey to eat a Dole Whip (can I say yum?). We went back to the hotel, ate lunch, then went back to swap rides and use our stroller pass.

In the late afternoon we went to go see a Disney Junior show at California Adventures. Joey doesn't watch the Disney channel, but that morning we turned it on for him while getting ready and he already recognized all the characters! We finally got to see Joey really having fun. We walked into Bugs Land for a ride and Joey played in a splash pad for a little bit. For dinner we stopped by Cars Land and ate at Flo's Cafe. The best food I had on the trip in my opinion and Joey was in heaven. While Sam took Joey to see Lightning McQueen I watched a little show starring one of the other cars. Sam said Joey kept saying "Big McQueen! Eyes!" (the eyes moved on all the cars there). He loved it until he had to say hi and he got a little shy, but you could tell he was really enjoying himself.

It was getting cold and even rainy so we headed back for the night to rest up for the next day. So many people, but my sister said this would probably be the busiest day and it would get better from there. Hahahahahaha.

Tuesday, April 26th: We decided to use our Magic Morning this day and I thought it would be less crowded. If anything it felt even more crowded! We headed off to Tomorrowland, and it felt a little different than the rest of Disneyland in terms of how it was run. Sam let me go on Space Mountain first (only a twenty minute wait) while he watched the kids. Sam went on a rocket ride with both kids in tow, and it was a lot of work for him, especially since they required socks or shoes so Sam had to put Joey's socks on Eli. Space Mountain was Star War-ized, so it was just like being part of the Rebellion in Episode 4. I asked where to get a stroller pass, went there, and found out that I was supposed to ask first thing and have Sam there to show that we did indeed have little kids. So Sam never got to go on it (the wait became 45 minutes). He decided later to get a Fast Pass but it was during the parade, so he decided against it. Sam rode the Star Tours ride instead and got a stroller pass while I ran over to California Adventures at 9am when it opened to get a Radiator Springs Fast Pass. I waited 15-20 minutes just for it, but we got it.

After Sam went on Star Tours he came over and rode on a Tractor ride with Joey. We shared a Ghirardelli milk shake and then explored the Pier for some fun stuff to do. All we really did was ride a Merry-Go-Round, but it was fun none-the-less. Sam rode Radiator Springs while I went home with the kids. After lunch I rode Star Tours while Sam went through a Star Wars museum with Joey. Star Tours made me the most sick, for sure. After I rode Star Tours we watched the Jedi Training show (really cute), got a strawberry lemonade, then went back to the hotel. At some point we rode Bug's Land rides and I rode Radiator Springs--it had to be my favorite ride! They did a really good job with it. We planned on seeing the Parade today and thought showing up a little over an hour before the show would get us decent seats. After a mix up and standing firm ground, we got Joey a front row seat to see the whole thing. We met a nice family we chatted with before the show. The parade and fireworks show is worth it! It was around this time that I realized all that Disneyland had to offer and why it was priced as much as it was. Also when it felt the most magical.

Wednesday, April 27th: Sam wanted to attend a webinar about Air Force residencies, so I went to get Fast Passes with Joey for the World of Color show at California Adventures. The Fast Pass machine was broken so the man was just handing them out. We rode the tractor ride again. Later Sam met with me at Disneyland, where I SAW HIM PUT OUR DISNEYLAND TICKETS IN HIS WALLET WITH THE WORLD OF COLOR TICKETS. He confirms this too. We rode Peter Pan (I got a Dole Whip to share in the 40 minute line), nursed Eli in the Finding Nemo line, then went back to the hotel to eat lunch.

However, when we decided to head to Disneyland, Sam reached into his wallet at the lines and our tickets were gone! The World of Color fast passes were still there, so it was so weird. Sam decided to check our hotel room while I walked through Disney Downtown District to look at souvenirs with the kids. Sam called and said he couldn't find our tickets, so after a thorough search of our bags and stroller, I found the Lost and Found to see if anyone picked up our tickets if they fell. The lady was really nice and said that was their number one lost item. We could get our tickets back if we had a receipt. Sam e-mailed me the confirmation, but it didn't count. I told her about the World of Color tickets and she said she could track our tickets (but since the guy was just handing them out our Fast Passes weren't linked to our tickets). Just when I was about to lose hope Sam said he had the Space Mountain Fast Pass he got from the day before and the lady said that would work. :D Whew, so Sam ran back with that Fast Pass, we got new tickets, and then finished off our Disneyland trip.

We toured Sleeping Beauty's Castle. I wanted to get a picture with a Princess with Eli, but when I saw the line, I was like NOPE. We also went to Mickey's Toon Town. We could have done more rides, but we felt done. Mickey's Toon Town was really fun for all of us, though. The lines for everything was just getting long, so being able to do something without waiting in line was just what we needed. We went back to Downtown District to eat dinner (not our brightest idea: it's rude to walk out of a restaurant after seeing the prices so we ended paying $40 for a pizza). After dinner we went to California Adventures to wait for the World of Color show. We met an awesome Mormon family next to us and talked about how easy it is to pick out Mormons at Disneyland (my favorite game waiting in line). The World of Color show was also amazing. Whoever choreographs these things should get a medal. It was the perfect ending to our Disneyland experience.

Thursday, April 28th: We wanted to relax this day and let Sam study for his test the next day. We did make a trip to Newport Beach. However, it was so cold we stayed for 15 minutes and called it good. We then swam in our pool...for all of 15 minutes because it too was cold. Not much else about this day...

Friday, April 29th: Sam had his test really close to where my brother lives, so I dropped Sam off, went back to the hotel to take a nap (almost crashed into another car by taking a peak at the GPS and looked up in time to see that traffic completely stopped on the freeway), went to a park and Target, then headed back to pick up Sam. He said he probably passed so that's good, right?

We went to Big 5 to pick out running shoes, went to the coolest little fruit picking park, then headed to my brother's for a dinner at Cafè Rio. LA has some good stuff and good weather, folks. We played a game of Quirkle then headed back to the hotel to pack for the ride home.

Saturday, April 30th: Poor Sam, drove 12 hours only to hop on a plane the next day. The weather was really scary and I didn't feel comfortable driving, or taking screaming Eli out of his carseat.

***

You did it! We loved the trip, but between small kids and the awful crowds, it could have been more awesome. But it couldn't have been better weather and we got to see some cool stuff, so we're happy. 

Spring 2016: Photo Dump

Even though I've been updating the blog, I haven't been updating the blog. Here is a dump of all our little activities until the end of April-ish.

Joey deemed the laundry basket a boat and Eli
his first mate (at least until Monkey came along).

Found the Toy Library and can check out toys for free! 

One of Sam's cute patients wrote this note on her door.

Jessica led us to this fun, shaded park one day.

A flamingo out of the ropes at the zoo.

Devery's cute girls on Easter Saturday:

Dyeing eggs

My family is obsessed with chickens at the moment and went from 3 during
Christmas to 13 during Easter. Although some died, we just kept getting more!

Celebrating Joey's birthday on Easter (yes it was a month before):

General Conference at the Boyacks:

Sam surprised me with a mystery date: a mystery dinner! Spoiler: Audrey did it!

The twins got baptized, but sadly we were on our way back from California on the actual date. Here are some unedited pics I took at the temple:

After our trip we decided to check out Snapshat and discovered Face Swapping!

Joey discovered how to climb into the crib,
my last defense for Eli!

 And that is all.

4 Months

ELIJAH AT 4 MONTHS

::Tall drink of water and in 6-9 month clothing::Starting to reach and grab::Loves to coo and squawk::One leaky faucet::Rolled once stomach to back::Lost a lot of hair::Had his first taste of chocolate courtesy of Joey::Almost 16 lbs::Size 3 diapers::Never slept through the night::

***

Still hard to believe that he came into our lives four months ago. Some days are better than others, but he is mostly happy and likes to be standing. Joey loves his little brother and Eli has been starting to smile at Joey, which is so fun to see. We are about to go on a long car trip and I'm a little nervous to see how we do...

We found out Eli is above the 99th percentile for height...they even measured him twice to make sure. He is my big baby and I love his rolls and cheeks and cute cute smile. Somehow I have more motivation to blog with two kids than with one. We'll see if I can keep up, I don't want to forget our little Eli babe!

Dear Joseph,

I sincerely hope I can write you a mushy letter every birthday of yours because it really helps me reflect on my love for you and the progression you’ve made each year. This is my third letter, which means you recently turned 3 years old.

Where to start! You are around 3 feet tall and weigh 28 pounds. Your eating habits change often, but right now you are an okay to good eater. Perhaps it depends on your pooping habits, and sorry I talk about your poop a lot. But I’m your mom so there. Your favorite food is cereal, particularly Life. You ask for it every morning. You also ask for chocolate milk a lot, fruit snacks, apples, pizza, hamburgers, ice cream, and a lot of other junky type stuff. You can be skeptical about food, but usually you’ll take more than one bite if we can get you to try it. The key is to get you to take a bite!

As far as things you like, you still like cars quite a bit but this year it expanded to things with motors or wheels. You liked Thomas the Train and Planes for a while, but ever since we got Netflix, you started loving the Magic School Bus, and then it became loving buses in general. You always point them out, you learned The Wheels on the Bus, and started carrying around this London Tour Bus Grandma and Grandpa Hobbs got you back when they went to England. Then it became Curious George! I really like this fetish because I enjoy watching Curious George, too. Sadly, Netflix recently took it off, but you still carry around a stuffed monkey your dad had as a kid as well. You love animals and ask to go to the zoo quite a bit. Your favorite would have to be the ducks, though it’s because you love interacting with them.

This year you finished occupational therapy, started and finished speech therapy, but you are still a little behind for your age. We put you on the list for speech again, done a hearing test to see if deafness was an issue (it isn’t), and contemplated whether or not we should test you for autism. You would be high functioning if that were a possibility, though. Despite these little issues, you still are progressing in so many ways! I hear new words you use almost every day. You are learning the alphabet and its sounds well (thanks to a Leap Frog video you loved watching). You insist you are a big boy in that you stopped taking binkies yourself, refuse naps, and found out you can leave your toddler bed without me. However, you still prefer the crib, don’t like getting dressed or undressed (so it’s hard to teach you), and, in your own words, “potty, yuck yuck!” Still in diapers, but we’re working on getting you to consider potty-training.

Major things happened this year as well. We moved, and you handled it as well as anyone could hope. You also became a big brother. I was worried because you tend to have a mean streak in you when it comes to other kids (like biting), but you love Elijah! You are such a sweet big brother, despite forgetting to be gentle. You cuddle with him, share your toys (!), feed him chocolate when mom isn’t looking, and run in to grab something for Eli to play with before we get out the door. You love giving him kisses and taking baths together. Although I have to be vigilant when you two are together, there is no denying that you love your little brother. I sincerely hope that is the case in the years to come.

I am still learning how to be your mom.  I feel I try and fail so many times to stick to a schedule, or to reward good behavior, or on how to help you better engage in the world around you. But one thing is for sure: you are very forgiving and such a sweet little boy. I love being your mom and I worry about you because I love you. I look forward to see the new things you will discover in the year to come!

Love, Mama

3 Months

ELIJAH AT 3 MONTHS

::Drooly drooly drooly::Found his little voice and laughs::Over 14 lbs::Sucks on his little hands all day::Threatening to move into 6-9 month clothes::Wakes up twice each night::Has cradle cap and a nice bald spot::Likes to be held::Still loves baths::

***

I love this baby so so much! As much as the newborn stage is nice because they sleep a lot and cuddle more, he is getting more and more fun! His happiest time of day is waking up in the morning. We get the best smiles, kicks, and laughs out of our little guy. 

One thing that happened this month was Elijah's baby blessing. It was more low key than Joey's, which was nice. We had grandparents there, Jessica's family, Shauna and her kids, Kristy and Chris, and Heidi. Eli was given a wonderful blessing and I'm grateful for all the awesome people in my family, especially these two guys (and Joey, who doesn't stay still for any photo).

Throwback...Tuesday?

I came across Joey's one year photoshoot. Crazy to think he will be three next month! He is still cute, just in different ways. I decided to blog the list of things he did at 14 months that I currently keep on the "Meet Us" tab. I want to update that soon, so this is more journaling.

I was born in April >Forever true

I love hair and prefer my mom's >Slowly got out of the hair phase, along with his binky back in December 2015

I had to have two haircuts by 14 months >Average around one every 2-3 months

I (or mommy) don't have a clue what my eye color is >They settled to a light brown more than anything

I will crawl in rocks to avoid grass >He became acquaintances with grass

I love being outside >Still true, he'll brave nearly any weather to go play

I get super excited when I see a playground >What kid doesn't?

I love staying up late >Oh my yes

I have a love/hate relationship with baths (right now I love them) >Hates getting his head wet but fine with everything else

I am very small for my age >Still true

I take my sweet time learning how to walk >Started walking at 18 months, whew!

I love anything that rolls and will push it around the house >Now it's anything with a motor

I have cute gap teeth >And a strong frenulem 

I travelled to NM, AZ, UT, CO, ID, CA, and Mexico already >Nothing new since poor thing

I claimed this random valentine stuffed puppy as my own >I forgot about puppy!

I have three cousins born the same year as me (it's fun) >Good friends, but have bitten all three at some point

I would rather have my parents' food even if it's the same as mine >He's figured out he hates all of it

I want to be a dentist with how much I love sticking my fingers in mouths >Now it's more a professional cereal eater or cartoon watcher

I have an amazing daddy who plays with me all the time >Still amazing

I love my mommy and love being by her >Now runs away from her 

Sweet, funny Joey!

Valentimes

Valentines Day is always interesting. We had a lot of fun, but you always try to make it out of the ordinary every year. This Studio C sketch is scarily accurate about Valentine's Day, haha.

Luckily for Sam, I don't expect too much from him. I was perfectly happy with some donuts and a pot of little tulips he got for me this year. In fact, any more feels excessive. I wish I could set the same standard for myself. To make it special, I decided to plan several dinner and activity ideas, associate them with a random picture, and have Sam pick one of each. That way, we both did not know what we were going to do for Valentine's Day!

Sam chose a picture of a bowling ball. I wanted to trick him. Since it is a rolling ball, we were going to eat sushi rolls. There is a restaurant called Pacific Paradise in town that has really awesome food (but we only eaten there once before). I blind folded Sam and he tried to guess based on turns where we were eating. But it didn't really matter if I blind folded him because he still would have had no idea where we were going. The food was so so good, and we loved the Fire Rolls we got (a must at this place- they even set the plate on fire for kicks).

But then Sam picked the picture that represented bowling anyway: a bowl. So it was fate we were to bowl for Valentine's Day. We brought our kids because we thought Joey would love bowling. But he got bored of it rather fast and it turned into a game for us to see if we could keep Joey away from the other lanes. Still a little too young, I guess. I am terrible at bowling and feel self-conscious every time I go, but it wasn't too bad this time. Sam felt loved, and that was the most important part! And next year we'll accept people's offer of babysitting.

And for kicks, here is Joey's art in the bath tub with color tabs. He "made" a valentine on Valentine's Day, but he ended up playing while Sam and I finished it up. We don't have a picture of it, sorry.

Hope your February was good!