Disneyland 2018 Day 3!

Day 3 was spent entirely at Disneyland and it was PACKED day! 

We started early with magic hour. We tried to get the sword from the stone. No luck again this year!

We rode as many rides as we could! Our first ride was Alice in Wonderland and then we mostly hung out in Fantasyland. The dumbo ride was under refurbishment during this trip so we had to skip that one. I'm so excited to introduce Elias to it this time! 

We also took FULL advantage of our MaxPass today with lots of photos! 

This is was time for breakfast at the Plaza with Minnie and friends. We met so many fun characters! 

This kid stayed in his high chair for the meet and greets but he was all smiles to watch from afar! 

Later in the morning the big kids did Jedi Training. This is one of Liam's favorite things and sadly, this was his last. We just found out they ended it! I'm thinking it's because of the new Star Wars Land, so I'm crossing my fingers they bring it back or something similar once it opens. 

Battling Darth Vader and the Seventh Sister! 

We also utilized the switch rider quite a bit on this trip since Elias wasn't tall enough to ride a lot of the "bigger" rides. While Will and the kids rode Thunder Mountain Railroad, Elias and I met Jesse! Then, the big kids and I rode TMR and it got stuck! We had to get off and they took us through the mountain to get out. It was actually really cool to see all the "behind the scenes" stuff inside the mountain. And we got to ride it multiple times throughout the week so we didn't miss out on anything!

We checked out Tarzan's Treehouse and rode the Jungle Cruise. 

Snacks time was always a hit! Liesl tried the dole whip but her and Elias preferred the churros. Liesl and Liam also loved the corn on the cob, of all things! 

We caught a fun Beauty and the Beast performance

And spotted Mary Poppins and Bert on the carousel! 

Liesl has loved the Carousel since her first trip. It never seems to have a very long line, so we always end up riding it 5 or 6 times (at least)! 

And then it was time for the Bippity Boppity Boutique! This was our first time to try it out, and it was so magical for Liesl! (and me) 

First we picked out a princess dress and hairstyle in the store. 

Then it was time for hair and makeup! I mostly have video of this part. 

After she was princess ready, she had a little photo shoot!

The boys had gone off while Liesl was getting dolled up, but showed back up at the end. Liam was suckered into being her prince charming. He was a little embarrassed but Liesl absolutely loved it!!

THEN we got to go to the Royal Theatre to meet the princesses! This was so fun because a cast member walked us to a side door, did a secret knock and password, and then let us skip the line and go straight to the princesses! Liesl felt like BIG STUFF and so special! 

It was SO magical for her and us all! We aren't doing it this trip, but I still have her tiara and bag, so we will probably dress up one day just for fun to meet the princesses again. 

We rode some more rides, ate dinner at Walt's favorite restaurant, Carnation Cafe, and watched the fireworks. Somehow this is the only picture I took from the rest of the night though. 

Pretty much sums up our busy day! 

Week 12 Recap!

Our week started off with a bang. I realized Monday morning while making Liam's lunch that I had thrown away his lunch box before spring break (the zipper broke) and never replaced it! He was a good sport and took Elias' lunch box that morning and after drop-off, the three of us high-tailed it to Target to grab a new one. 

Then it was gym for me, dance class for Liesl, and home for lunch and naps. Liesl had a friend over after school, we ate quick dinner, and then my MIL came over the babysit Liesl and Elias while Liam and I headed to his baseball game! Will was flying home from a business trip, came straight to ball fields from the airport, and made it just in time! Liam had a great game and the teams ended up tying. 

Tuesday was school and work. I snagged this picture of my silly boy during chapel. This was the only picture I have from the day! After school, Liam had a friend over and the kids played outside most of the afternoon. I have some great videos of Liesl performing for us but no pictures! 

On Wednesday, Elias decided to wear my shoes. At least he coordinated with his shirt! :) 

We spent the morning running a ton of errands. Both Liesl and Elias were super cooperative and we got a lot accomplished! 

Liesl had gymnastics and normally we go to the gym right after, but they were doing so well that I decided to run some more errands and get them all knocked out. (Elias is usually a bear to take to store so this was a HUGE win, haha.) 

While Elias took a nap, Liesl and I played Trash. It's a fun card game and she whooped me! 

We spent the afternoon evening tidying up and then Will took the kids to church. 

Thursday morning was a little crazy. I found out on Tuesday that we will be out of town on Picture Day at our preschool, which means Liesl would miss her cap and gown pictures. Our director is so wonderful and got in contact with the photographer about a solution. So Thursday morning we dropped Liam off at school as early as we could and drove out to another preschool for THEIR picture day! We got there early so as soon as they were set up, Liesl went first. And then we hopped right back in the car and headed back to our school for the day! 

Look at my sweet, big girl! I'm so thankful for these photos and an awesome boss! But I'm SO sad that she's about to be a preschool graduate! 

Liesl went to a friend's house after school and Liam had chess club after school, so it was just me and little man for about an hour. We did some grocery shopping....then I was a ding-dong and left my phone in the cart. I went back to look but it was gone. We had to go get Liam so I praying that someone would turn it in. I picked up Liam and his buddy who he ended up playing with at his house, then drove BACK to the grocery store and...they found it!! 

When you can't find that ONE very specific hot wheels car...

I got dinner cooked for the rest of my family, but I went out to a dinner of my own with some girl friends! There is an amazing organization in our city called Selah Creek and we went to a fundraiser for them. It was a great night of girl time, delicious food, and learning more about their big, amazing dreams to help pregnant women locally with a future maternity home. 

Friday morning was another crazy day as I had two appointments before 10am! Will was a champ and got all the kids ready and out the door on time for school while I had a 7am physical therapy session for my neck. I'll be going a couple times a week for about a month and hopefully either get my slipped disc back into place, or at the very least, learn some helpful stretches to do when the pain flares up. 

We spent the rest of the day hanging out around town and then Liam had baseball practice Friday evening. 

Saturday these two were being extra lovey in the Costco cart.  

We took the kids to Hat Creek Burger for an early dinner because the weather was gorgeous! It was cloudy because it was supposed to be raining, but the rain held off and it was the perfect evening to sit outside! We went next door for ice cream after to end the night.

Sunday morning! 

Elias showing me his craft after Sunday school. :) 

Sunday afternoon Liesl and I had a baby shower to go to! 

*Funny story, this picture is actually from Saturday. I got us all dressed up to go and we marched into our church where there was indeed a party going on. It wasn't a baby shower though. It was Doris' 100th birthday party! Yep, we crashed a 100 year old's bday party! I didn't recognize a soul in the room except our pastor's wife, so she helped us sneak out! 

I'm just over here losing my mind, it's fine! 

Anyways, the actual baby shower was really cute and it is always fun to celebrate a new baby! 

Sunday was another day spent outside. Will and I spent all day (minus a couple hours for the baby shower for me) cleaning out the garages. We got my garage cleaned out enough to move the golf cart in. The golf cart has been living in our single car garage and Will's car got booted to the curb. But he's about to get a new car and needed the space back. It was the perfect motivation though because we got rid of a lot of old junk and parted ways with some baby items we no longer needed. 

Finally a storm rolled in but it was just north of us, so we all laid outside on the driveway and watched a really cool lightening storm in the distance. It was actually a really relaxing way to end the weekend! #weathernerd 

Disneyland 2018 Day 2!

Our first day in the parks began at California Adventure! When you stay at the Grand Californian, you have your own entrance into the park. The crowd is much smaller, security is much quicker, and the employees walked us nearly to the Paradise Pier (now Pixar Pier)  before rope drop. It was awesome! Definitely a highlight of the trip on our California Adventure days. 

Killing some time with the sillies!

We beelined straight for Toy Story Mania, our favorite ride! We rode it back to back and then headed to Carsland. 

After a few more rides, we stopped for breakfast at Flo's V8 cafe. We love their breakfast and always get a table outside with a few of Radiator Springs! This upcoming trip we are going to try a lunch or dinner there. 

I have a lot of pictures waiting in line. There's always a lot to see and music playing to help pass the time. Liam was helping Elias see the cars at Luigis Rollickin' Roadsters. 

Then it was off to Bugsland! I'm SO sad that this was our last trip to Bugsland as they have closed it and are transforming it into Marvel land. But it was a great last run. We loved Flicks Flying 

While the big boys went to do Guardians of the Galaxy, Liesl met Anna and Elsa! 

The boys actually just missed waiting in line and arrived right when it was our turn. The boys weren't into meeting the princesses, but we all jumped in for a photo with Olaf! 

And then the kids suckered us into face painting. Elias wasn't into it but Liesl became a kitty and Liam was spiderman! 

We caught the cutest performance with the Toy Story soldiers! 

We rode some more rides like Ariel, the Zephyrs, Radiator Springs Racers and grabbed a quick service dinner somewhere. 

And then the best moment happened! Towards the end of the night, we decided to head over to Disneyland (we had park hopper tickets) to end the night, so we were heading to the front of the park. Liam had been asking a few weeks before the trip if the characters were "real" or just "actors." We asked him what he thought they were and just left it open for him to decide. Admittedly, I was super bummed for him to be even asking but he's getting older, blah blah blah. (Give me back my baby forEVER!) Anyways, just as we were heading out, Mickey comes walking out. Liam was the first to spot him, shouts "Mickey!!" and starts sprinting after him. Liesl follows so then I follow because hello, it's crowded. I also got the whole thing on video and it makes my heart so happy with how excited he got to see Mickey. Whether he believes they are real or not, the magic is still there! 

After our Mickey sighting, we made it over to Disney and headed to Autopia. Autopia was closed the last time we went, so this was the first time Liam had ridden since he was 2.5! He was so excited to drive! I rode with him while Will drove Liesl and Elias. 

My favorite classic -- teacups!!! Everyone thinks it's hilarious to try and make mom throw up so we were going fast! 

I *think* this was Thunder Mountain Railroad. Liesl is such a little daredevil! She was game for any and all rides she was tall enough for, and actually enjoyed  them all!

We "borrowed" someone blue Mickey balloon for a photo shoot with Elias. We took a picture with a blue Mickey balloon during our last trip to announce that he was a boy :) 

 We ended the night with ice cream, of course! It was a fantastic first day in the parks!