Quote of the week

Earlier this week, we were driving by Chuck E. Cheese's and Ryan hollered, "Hey, there is Chuck E. Cheese's!" I'm not sure how he even knew what it was because we've never been there, but that's beside the fact!

Caitlin quickly jumped into the conversation and said, "No Ryan, it's not Chuck E. Cheese's; it's Chuck E. Jesus."

Nice.

Lego engineer

Ryan is happiest when he building with Legos. We're continually impressed by what he comes up with each day. Ryan told us the other day that he was going to build "Bisneyland" (AKA Disneyland) with his Legos and it appears that he's got a good start.

When we went back to Disney over the weekend, Ryan rode the rocket ride in Tomorrowland three or four times. He loved it! It's the ride that is similar to Dumbo - you get in rockets, go up in the air and go around in circles. Here's his re-creation of the Disney rocket ride:

Who knows what he'll come up with next??

Whirlwind weekend

We spent last weekend in Las Vegas and Disneyland. I carefully packed for every situation (wedding, hot and cold weather, unforeseen accidents, etc.) and thought I had it all together until halfway to Vegas I realized I forgot the camera! Bummer.

So, I'll just make a quick list of notable events:

* Watching Dave (Mike's brother) and Jessica (our new sister-in-law/aunt) get married.
* Shielding the kids' eyes from the scantily-clad dancers in the Excalibur casino.
* Picking out M&Ms at the M&M store. Caitlin chose hot pink, light pink, and purple. Ryan chose black, grey, and navy blue.
* Seeing the Bellagio fountain/light show. I could watch it all night!
* Meeting Minnie Mouse, Pluto, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, Cinderella, and a host of other characters.
* Riding with Ryan on the Toon Town roller coaster - and watching him finally start to enjoy himself at Disneyland.
* Partaking in lots of yummy food and drink!

All in all, it was a fun weekend. I'm still so disappointed that I forgot my camera. We'll just have to go back to Disneyland again before heading north!!

Only in San Diego...

...can you spend a January afternoon at the beach...in shorts and a tank top! We're enjoying some exceptionally warm weather and we're lovin' it!

Our precious beach babes!

Dreams come true

As temporary Southern California residents, we resolved to enjoy everything that the area has to enjoy: the SD Zoo and Wild Animal Park, Seaworld, Legoland, and of course, Disneyland. Mike took the day off yesterday and we headed up to Anaheim. We weren't sure what the kids would think - or how they would behave - they've had a really hard time adjusting to life away from home and they are very overtired and grouchy.

The first place we headed was the Autopia. We told Ryan about how he could drive his own car, so he'd been asking to check that one out first. He loved it, as expected!

Our kids aren't the most adventurous of souls, so we next headed to Mickey Mouse's Toontown for some kid-friendly rides. Mike and I were laughing because we've always skipped Toontown on previous visits - I guess the ride line-up changes when you're with a 4-year old and 2-year old! The kids enjoyed visiting their favorite characters' houses: Minnie, Donald, Goofy, and Mickey. We decided to meet Mickey Mouse. Ryan didn't want to have anything to do with him and Caitlin loved looking at him from a distance, but was afraid to get near him.

Next up, we headed to meet the Disney Princesses. Seeing Caitlin meet the princesses was definitely the highlight of the trip! We waited in quite a long line, not sure what we were waiting for, but when we got to the front and realized that Caitlin would have one on one time with each princess, it was all worth it! When Caitlin came around the corner and saw Ariel, she was so excited that she couldn't stop jumping up and down. At first she didn't want to get close to her, but then she went in for a hug.

We saw Belle next. Belle was especially sweet to Caitlin. Here is Caitlin telling Belle that she is two years old.
Belle asked Caitlin who her favorite princess is and Caitlin quietly answered, "Cinderella." Belle took Caitlin by the hand and walked her over to see Cinderella. It was very sweet!

All in all, the day was a success. The park was busier than we anticipated, but we still got to do a lot. I had to include this picture of Ryan on the carousel because it captures his facial expression of the day. He looked like he was having an awful time and barely cracked a smile, but when you asked him if he was having fun, he always answered "yes." We actually weren't surprised that he reacted this way - he's our serious, cautious child. I think he was a little overwhelmed and trying to process everything he was seeing and doing!


Thanks to an awesome military deal, we have two more days at Disneyland and California Adventure that we have to use within the next two weeks. We're heading back on Saturday to check out California Adventure and hit some of our favorites. Ryan is already asking when he can drive the cars again!

The year of dolls and Legos

When we awoke to snow on Christmas morning, I had to take pictures. I can remember one other snowy Christmas in Washington, but we rarely have White Christmases, so I had to record the event! Thankfully, the snow didn't interfere with our Christmas plans!

We started out Christmas morning at home with Santa presents and stockings. Santa brought Ryan the "big boy fireman Legos" he'd been asking for (since before Thanksgiving!). Caitlin got a brand-new baby doll and stroller (easy to pack for San Diego). We had a relaxing morning -- until the power went out! We got ready to head to Grandma Kay's house in Kirkland for more festivities.

The Lego and doll/princess theme continued through the day as we celebrated with both sides of our family. One of the best things about being back in Washington is being able to spend time with all of our family -- and not having to travel over the holidays! We had a really nice day (and a nice Christmas Eve with Mike's dad and stepmom).


Christmas came to an abrupt end about 6pm. Mike and I headed home to take down Christmas and get ready to leave the next morning! We left Ryan at my parents' house, but brought Caitlin home with us because she was sick (quite sick as we learned the next morning).

I'm looking forward to a more relaxed holiday season next year, although Mike won't be celebrating with us. :(

More snow pics

As promised, here are a few more pictures of our major snowfall. Here's the snow fort that Mike constructed with the kids. I hear that there are still a few remnants of it in our front yard!

And of course, I have to include the picture of Ryan getting pummeled with snow! Both of the kids really enjoyed the snow, but we were ready to say goodbye to that troublesome white stuff!