When Upon Life's Billows...

In May, our 2 year 'anniversary' of being approved by the MD to have a trailer out on Scott and Janie's property came up at the exact same time that our tenants in our house in Cochrane moved out, so Tyler and I were faced with the decision whether to remain out here, or move back to Cochrane. We have spent almost 3 years out here, and have loved and hated a lot of it. The love parts are easy: the great outdoors, quiet, a beautiful view, and being close to family. The hates: frozen pipes in the winter, dripping roof in the spring, and a house that feels like a furnace in the summer...but we've taken it all in stride, making slight improvements as the budget would allow. Now that we have the home in a fairly liveable state, we were feeling a dilemma. Since we haven't received our approval from the MD yet, this may be a moot point, but we've decided we enjoy living out here...and try to look at the bright side of every situation.
We got snowed in a number of times this winter, as the wind howls out here and drifts the snow half-ways up our front door...Scott purchased a VERY well used snow blower at the beginning of winter, and are we ever grateful he did! It was frustrating a few times to get stuck....and then stuck again...and yet again. But we had plenty of times to step outside and build snowmen, or have a family snow-fight, or let the kids practice their skiing without driving to the slopes.I spent a lot of time in the fall laying sod, planting bulbs and cedar bushes, looking forward greatly to the 'after' shot I would take of my yard in the spring. Well, one of the lows of living here, is things are a bit more 'wild' and 'frontier'-like than in town. Instead of the beautiful garden I was hoping for, I've got a lawn that is about half and half, and 10 cedar trees that would make Charlie Brown's tree look lush...thanks to the deer, who had a pretty rough winter out here in frontierland and were appreciative of the buffet I left for them.The plus side though, is that my garden (two small flowers beds, now heavily protected with chicken wire to fend off any hungry deer) is coming along nicely. My tulips are starting to open, and I planted a few more 'who-knows-what-they-are' flowers (because I like the look, but can't be bothered remembering the names). Plus, the kids and I went for a walk around the property today to check out the bird-houses that were set up last year, and discovered some tiny little homes. I'm not sure what kind of birds are responsible for these nests, but we see a lot of bluebirds flying around.
This morning grandma was working in her garden. The kids exclaimed "Grandma!" with pure joy as they ran up the hill to see her. They get plenty of time to play with their aunties and to be goofy in ways I could never come up with. I can put up with some drifting snow, deer, and questionable plumbing to give my children experiences like that. The best part? A family reunion is no more effort then opening your front door. Ah bliss.

The Elusive Snow White

Throughout our trip to Disneyland, we had made an effort to meet and great every Disney character we possibly could. We waited in long line-ups, battled screaming kids, braved the hot hot sun, and forged through turnstile after turnstile in an effort to get a picture with each and every one. But by our last day, we still had not even caught a glimpse of Snow White...and with Lucy's costume being a delicate snow-white replica, it was getting a bit disappointing. On our second last day, we headed to the park in the evening to get a few more rides in, knowing that the next morning (Friday), we would be packing up and heading to the airport. The kids wanted another turn on Pirates, Small World, and Tarzan. As we entered the park, Tyler decided to head over to the town-hall to see if he could ask anyone about the possibility of meeting Snow White while the kids and I headed to Small World. Unfortunately we were hitting the park just moments before the parade started, so getting around was a bit more difficult. There were crowds of people (not unusual) not moving (very unusual) as they were all jockeying for their spot to see the parade. Plus there were roped off sections to keep people off the parade route. For those not stopping to watch the parade, it made it very difficult. We waited and waited and waited at the entrance to Small World for Tyler to link up with us, but our time kept getting short. We saw the start of the parade and then decided to just go ahead (which I'm sure Tyler was fine with since Small World was his least favorite). As we got off the ride, we saw Tyler waiting at the gate. He had missed us only by moments. He had made arrangements at the town hall to get a "Front of the Line" pass so we could go to the Fantasy Faire (where the princesses are) to meet Snow White first thing in the morning before our flight. We finished our rides in the park for the evening and then headed to bed excited for our opportunity to finally see our last Disney Princess the next day.
We awoke early on Friday, knowing it was going to be tight, and got a tired and grumpy Lucy dressed into our Snow White costume and loaded up the car for the airport. We trucked over to the park and headed to the Fantasy Faire (which is pretty much on the exact opposite side of the park from the entrance), needless to say, Tyler and I were sweating before we got there, at 9am. We approached the line-up (already longer than we had seen it the whole time we had been there), and were grateful to have our "front of the line" passes. We showed them to the person AT said front of the line, only to be told that those passes were for attractions (meaning rides) only, and not for entertainment, which included the meet and great with the princesses. We explained our quandary to a number of people, and explained that "Jody" at City Hall said we could use these passes for this purpose. A few parents who had made it through the meet and great told us that Snow White was in fact in there at that moment. Oh, we were so close! Kyle, who worked the meet and great (and was more managerial because he wore a suit instead of a costume) was trying everything he could to give us an opportunity, without taking away from all the other kids who were waiting in line. We explained that our time was short (to say the least!) and he was working miracles. He told us to hold tight for 10 minutes and when the new princess came to switch off with Snow White, he would set up a private meeting in a separate room for Lucy. We watched our watches, sweating even more than we had trucking it across the park carrying two kids. We were getting worried that it just wasn't going to happen. We had a flight to catch in a few hours, and an hour and a half drive from Anaheim to Los Angelas still ahead of us.
Finally, we were ushered into some strange elevator and emerged into some back 'princess' staging room. We waited, and all of a sudden, Snow White appeared!
She was sweet and wonderful and so excited to see Lucy and Max. She spoke in a tiny voice and told Lucy she looked just like her and asked if she had gone through her closet this morning. They exchanged hugs, Lucy got an autograph, and took a few pictures. (You can see that Lucy still has a bit of bedhead in these pictures...proof that we literally woke her up and dragged her out there!) There was a lot of build-up to this moment and I admit I was a bit teary seeing it finally come to fruition. Max got a chance to great Snow White as well, and was happy that he called her a handsome prince. They got a few pictures as well, and then it was time to say goodbye.
We rushed off as quickly as we had arrived, but made a quick stop to thank Kyle for everything he did. Disneyland truly was magical. Every moment was fun, and they really did everything to help all of our dreams come true.
And we didn't even miss our flight. Although it was a treat for me to be in a stall in the ladies washroom at LAX and hear, "Heather Williamson, please come to gate blah blah blah, your plane is leaving!" Nice.

Sea World

On Monday we enjoyed our first full day in San Diego. It was a great experience. We headed over to Sea World first thing in the morning and hit the park full swing. We had all been pretty excited for this leg of our trip. We started out at the Dolphin show which was a good way to start. We got to watch the dolphins jump higher than I thought was possible and play lots of tricks on the audience...including soaking a good portion of the front rows. They had a family from the audience participate, but the mom was actually a sea world trainer. They had her do a lot of goofy things to make you believe she was just a regular audience member, and then she fell into the tank at one point and started screaming. The huge pilot whale swam toward her and she stood on his nose and road around the tank. It became clear that she was not just a regular mom, and she showed us a bunch more tricks. We also caught the sea lion show and visited some of the shops (I'm beginning to think this is Lucy's favorite part of all theme parks). The highlight of course was the Shamu show. It was amazing. It was short and sweet, but it was definitely amazing...and hot. We all got a little sunburned that day. San Diego is deceiving in that there is always a cool breeze, but the sun is HOT. Lucy felt the effects of that much sun the next day as she got sick at the zoo. More about that later.
We headed home for afternoon naps and then came back to the park for the last bit to be able to see all the exhibits we had missed while watching the shows. We went to the polar bear exhibit, the penguins and the shark tank. The shark tank was definitely my favorite as they had a tunnel that went right through the shark tank and you were able to look at sharks all around you. We've decided to go back on Wednesday to see a few more things. So we walked away with sunburns, memories and Lucy got a stuffed dolphin.
In the evening we drove around San Diego a bit and by pure luck fell upon this little shopping district right by the ocean front called Seaport Village. I had been there before, but had no clue what it was called or how to get there, so we were pleased that we had stumbled across it. We spent the evening checking out all the specialized shops. Lucy and Max each got some sea shells and we enjoyed looking in the stuffies shop, the surf shops, and the kids shop (where Lucy got some sunglasses). There was pretty much a shop for every theme you could think of...all centered around 'beach' fare. We got some late-night McD's for dinner, and then called it a night. Little did we know that the fun we had today which come back to haunt us the next day!

Happy Mother's Day

This morning we woke up early and got ourselves checked out of our hotel in Anaheim in preparation for leaving for San Diego. We headed off to the Anaheim 3rd ward for Sacrament Meeting. Part of the building was outside, and we truly felt like we were in California when we saw that. After church we took the quick trip to San Diego (about an hour) to check in to our new hotel. Max slept the entire way, which was nice, and we enjoyed seeing glimpses of the ocean as we drove. We checked in, got our stuff settled and then headed outside for a little pool time. It's a bit breezy today in San Diego, so the kids spent most of their time in the hot tub and playing cards with Tyler and I, poolside. When we got back to the hotel, we decided to take a quick drive to the San Diego Temple that we had passed on our way in. We were greeted there by Elder Nixon who talked to us a bit about the temple and showed us some beautiful pictures of the inside. He was also kind enough to take a family photo for us in front of the temple. The kids enjoyed walking around the grounds a looking at the beautiful flowers and landscaping. It's really quite an amazing structure right on the side of the freeway, and Elder Nixon said it draws a lot of people of different faiths to it because of it's beauty. Lucy wanted us to take a picture of her and Max in front of the temple 'pretending' to get married. Then she was also excited to take a picture of Tyler and I holding hands. I think she did a great job. Here is a picture of our shadow family. We're always competing with them. They're either right on our tails, or just a few steps in front of us ALL the time. The problem with staying in a hotel on vacation is a lack of food, so unfortunately we had to go out for dinner on the Sabbath. Across the freeway from the temple is a restaurant called Islands, which I have been to before and boasted to Tyler that they had the best burgers I had ever tasted. We decided to stop and see if my memory was as good as I thought. The whole restaurant is decorated like a large Tiki hut, which the kids really enjoyed. I had the Hawaiian burger which comes with teriyaki sauce and grilled pineapple slices (the same burger I got last time I was there) and it was even better than I remembered it. Tyler got a similar burger, only with chicken, and he really enjoyed it as well. We've decided to go back. As we walked back to the car, I told my kids that this was the best mother's day ever. Warm weather, San Diego Temple, and a delicious hamburger...I felt pretty spoilt.
Also a note to my moms...we miss you and love you a lot. I hope you have a fabulous Mother's Day too.

California Adventures

Most days we did a lot of park hopping and were back and forth between Disneyland and California Adventure, but we did have one day where we focused most of our time in the California side of the park. The California side has a few more of the fast adult rides and the newer Disney/Pixar film characters hang out there. It was cool to see the Muppets 3D show. Max didn't enjoy wearing the glasses, so I'm not sure how much he got out of the show. I'm not sure if it's because he didn't like the images coming so close to him, or if the glasses were uncomfortable.
After coming outside we had some lunch and were able to see another Minnie Mouse in her hawaiian travelware.
There is a painting on the side of a building that makes it look like the park goes on for a lot longer than it does...it really is a pretty good illusion until you get closer too it, so we took a nice family shot there. The girls, Scott, and Tyler went on the Hollywood Tower Hotel ride and came back raving about it while Janie and the kids and I headed back to the hotel for a cool down, sleep and dip in the pool. Tyler swapped me out with the kids at one point so I could take a turn on the the Tower as well. It was pretty awesome.
We also went on the California Soarin' ride while Janie watched the kids and had a great time. You literally feel like you're flying over California. They even have piped in smells so when you're over the evergreens you can smell them, as well as the Orange Orchards.
The kids were excited to take their picture next to Mater and Lightening McQueen who were parked in California Adventure. We took a picture of the kids first, and since there aren't many pictures of Tyler and I, we decided to get in the shot as well. Max didn't want Tyler to stand next to Mater, since that was his spot, so Tyler had to stand in front. Max kept pushing on Tyler's legs to get him out of the way so he could have his coveted spot next to Mater's wheel all to himself.
Lucy also had a chance to visit the Bug's Life area of the park while I was taking Max for a nap. She rode on Francis, which is like a Bug's Life version of the teacups.We also got to visit Turtle-talk with Crush, from Nemo where the audience got to interact with Crush and have a real conversation with him. We also went and saw exhibits about animation and villains and each found out which Disney Character we were most like. Lucy was "Dot" from Bug's Life and Max was "Aladdin". We rode on the Monster's Inc Ride and saw Sulley from a ways off, but the line-up to meet him was too long. The girls got drenched on the Grizzly River Run and loved the California Screamin' roller coaster. I had the lovely experience of having my rear-end poked, slapped, or fondled (not really sure) by a 10 year old boy. I was waiting in a gift shop to meet up with Tyler and Lucy and felt this 'whatever' on by butt. I assumed it was Tyler and turned around to see a very embarrassed ten-year-old. He quickly apologized and walked away. California adventures was fun, but the Disney park was magical (with less fondling) so we spent 80% of of our time over there.

Adventures in Disneyland

It's hard to describe all the magic and moments that we experienced for our 8 days in Disneyland. Everything kind of blends together, and yet at the same time it would be hard to put into words just how fun and amazing it was. Some of the best descriptions would be of the kids and their reactions to things.
Lucy would be so excited and nervous at the same time whenever she met a new character that she would put her hands on either side of her head (by her ears) and kind of rub her head and talk shyly to the character. Max was fearless for the most part and wanted to see everyone. He was particularly cute when he met Chip 'n' Dale. I don't think either of my kids had ever heard of them before, but Max walked straight up to them and cuddled up to Chip for about 3 minutes while Dale signed Lucy's autograph book. Chip was sweet and rubbed Max's back the whole time and just waited.

Max was also adorable when it came to meeting Cruela DeVille. We told him she was a bad guy and he practiced his "bad guy" face the entire time we were in line and while we were standing talking to her. She made the comment, "He's not a very happy fellow is he?" to which Janeen told her that he was practicing his 'bad guy' face and she did the same and we got a great photo. As soon as the picture was done, he smiled and said, "Thanks!"
Both kids loved the Pirates of the Carribean ride, which is probably the one we rode the most. Max was fascinated with anything pirate and Lucy was nervous at first but then got brave and loved the quick rush we felt when our boat went down the hill. She insisted that we all wave our arms every time we went down. Second to Pirates would have to be the Small World ride, which we rode nearly as many times as Pirates...to Tyler's dismay. Lucy loved the peaceful colorful displays and singing along to the song. It was quick and happy the entire time, which is right up Lucy's alley. It may have also had something to do with the gift shop that was right outside the ride as you exited. Lucy found a baby "Marie" kitty cat the first day and insisted that she HAD to get it. Grandma and Papa folded quickly and bought it for her, and she treasured it, created a bed in our hotel for her and sleeping with her every night. There was a larger version of the cat as well and she insisted even HARDER that she should have that one too, so they could be a family. On one occasion after riding Small World we discovered that there was only of these large cats left in the shop (this particular shop. There were gift shops dotting the park everywhere and I'm sure we could have found another Marie). Lucy was so worried that she was by herself and was sure that a windstorm was going to come and blow her away, so we should buy her. Tyler and I folded a little slower than Grandma and Papa, but gave in nonetheless. So now she has two little kitties.
Max loved riding on the train that went around the outside of the entire park, through tomorrowland and had displays of it's own. He especially liked it because of the trip back in time to see the dinosaurs. We all determined places that different members of our family would work if they all were employed by Disneyland, and Tyler and I both agreed that my dad would definitely work the trains. At one point, we saw a conductor named Ken who was about my dad's age who did a very good Donald Duck impersonation as we left the station, and he sealed the deal...that is where my dad belongs.
The kids also really enjoyed Tarzan's treehouse, because it was simple and there was never a line-up. It's really close the Pirates, so we usually ended up doing both, multiple times.






Lucy enjoyed visiting Toontown with her aunties and Grandma and Papa and loved being in Minnie Mouse's House. She had so many fun things to play with, including the dishwasher and a kitchen where she could get a tea-party set up. Plus, Lucy loves Minnie Mouse, so it was a happy time all around.

Max enjoyed playing in Goofy's backyard because it was a mini-playground and gave them a chance to get out of the sun for a few moments before lunch. It was nice for mom and dad because they were able to be free from our arms, and yet still in a confined space so there was no worries about them getting hurt or lost.
Of course, we went on all the classic rides, including the tea-cups, Dumbo the flying elephant and the carousel. The line-ups were average length and the adventure of seeing your favorite disney movies in ride form kept the kids motivated.
We also took a trip to the Hundred Acre Wood and went on the Pooh Bear ride. My kids are familiar from Pooh Bear and all his friends, but only from stories. They had never seen the movie before. They were excited to see Pooh Bear and Tigger when we got off the ride, and when we got home, we made sure to watch the movie. They enjoyed seeing the goofiness of tigger and have been bouncing around singing "The wonderful thing about Tiggers" and "Bears loves honey..."


I think the longest line we had to wait in was the line-up into Pixie Hollow to meet Tinkerbell and her friend Rosetta. There wasn't much shade in that line-up and it was a HOT day. We tried to distract the kids, but the 45 minutes took a long time. It was exciting to see the fairies, but I was hoping there would be more to Pixie Hollow than just the meet and greet and then goodbye.
We've had more adventures than we could possibly name. We learnt a lot and as each new day came, we got better and better at working the crowds and dealing with our kids. Max had a rough first day as it was too much excitement and not enough food. We bought some groceries to keep in our kitchenette and were able to pack lunches instead of relying on park food, and that made all the difference. It's hard to image publishing everything we did injust one post...so I'm sure there will be more. Stay tuned for California Adventures!

Bibbity Bobbity Boutique

Our first full day at Disneyland was an exciting one. Everyone was up early and in good spirits and excited to see what the park had in store for us. One of our very first stops was at one of the most magical places in Disneyland...for junior princesses. The Bibbity Bobbity Boutique, where little girls can chose a Disney Princess dress, shoes, and accessories to purchase and then get their hair and makeup done just like a princess. I was surprised that Tyler insisted on visiting the store, because usually those frilly things aren't that important to him, but he said he wanted to make Lucy's experience as magical possible. She insisted that dad stay outside the store, because she wanted to surprise him. Lucy's favorite Disney princess is Cinderella...which I think is the case for most little girls. We tried on the blue Cinderella dress first, but due to the large amounts of glitter, the sleeves were a bit scratchy on her arms, and she was not up for it. We then tried on Belle's dress, a white Disney Princess 'wedding' dress and finally Snow White's dress, which Lucy decided was the best because it was the most comfortable. I was happy, because I thought it was the cutest dress too. I'm glad my daughter still puts practicality before desire at such a young age. Dad purchased the dress, hairband and wand for her, and Grandma and Papa got her the matching gloves and apple purse. Our Princess was all decked out and ready for her day in the park. I'm not sure what kind of pixie dust or princess powers those dresses hold, but anytime she wore her dress to the park, she became a new person. Her tired legs would suddenly be full of waltzing energy and she would parade around as if she truly was Snow White. She was careful to hold her skirt up and point her pinkies like a true princess. Eventually, mom and dad had to take Max back to the hotel for a sleep and Princess Lucy continued on her adventures with Grandma, Papa, Sarah and Janeen. They waited in line for 90 minutes at the Princess Fantasy Faire to meet 3 princesses. Lucy was in good spirits the whole

time, and was excited to see Belle,Sleeping Beauty, and Pocahontas...all three who told her she looked just like their friend Snow White...and Ariel, because of her red hair. The rules at the Fantasy Faire are pretty strict, and each little girl is only allowed to meet 3 princesses, no more. Well, while Lucy was meeting with Pocahontas, Cinderella walked in to trade places with one of the other princesses Lucy had already met...Lucy, unaware of the rules, was in a daze as she saw Cinderella and walked away from Pocahontas, mid-sentance, to see her idol. Pocahontas was sweet and kind and stood out of the way so Lucy could have her moment. Cinderella signed her book, and took a picture, and then they were scooted out. It was a moment I wish I could have seen with my own eyes, but knowing my daughter, the description Grandma gave me was easy to picture. Lucy spent the rest of her princess day in toon town at Minnie Mouse's house, another favorite, and parading around the park. Each day as we would leave the park and she was wearing her princess dress, the gate workers would say, "Goodnight princess!" and Lucy was whisper in my ear, "They think I'm the REAL Snow White!" Other days, she would be in her plain jane clothes and the gate workers would still say "Goodnight princess!" and she would say, "They know I'm a princess even though I don't have my dress on!" I told her it was because she has a princess face.