Tate didn't get the memo about the Happiest Place on Earth

So Tate had been talking all week about how he wanted to see Mickey and how excited he was to go to disneyland. The day finally arrived and Tate woke up really early with much excitment and anticipation. Tate started getting really impatient because the park didn't even open until 10:00 and he had to wait 3 hours still. Finally we got out the door and got to the park. We asked Tate if he wanted to go on a ride and he strongly said, "NO". We practically dragged him on it. We made the big mistake of bringing him on Snow White's Scary Adventure first. I didn't notice the "Scary", in the title. Opps! He did not like it.



After that the rest of the day was a fight, trying to get him to go on any ride. He did not trust us. We did like Casey Jr. Circus Train and the Tea Cups though. Later on Austin, Tate's Cousin, joined us. That helped a little bit. Finally the time came to go theough Mickeys house and see Mickey.......Tate got scared. He wouldn't even walk near Mickey. Karen, Matt's sister, was extra nice and offered to watch Austin, Tate and Addie so that we could go on Hollywood Hotel of Terror, in California Adventures, That is one awesome ride. Good for us, by the end of the day Tate was exhausted..



The Second day went alot better luckily. We still had some scared issues, but it went much smoother. Tate especially enjoyed seeing the charactors this day. Things even worked out were Tate and Addie would be good for us so that one of us coulf leave and go on some more adult rides. Then we would swap turns. Over all though I still love Disneyland. It's just a little bit of a different experiance with kids. Well it's great for the memories, right?

Tate and the BIrds!

Tate kept chasing birds around and trying to touch them. We didn't catch this part on video, but we point out right after all the birds flew in right towards him. YOu can totally tell he was freaked out. We did catch one bird swooping right in front of him afterwards though and that REALLY freaked him out. We thought this was so funny! Here is the video below.

The Long and Winding road

The drive was not so fun for Addie. She is a really good baby, but she just couldn't keep that happy face on in the back of the car with nothing but the back of the seat to stare at. She cried most of the time. Tate on the other hand was really good. I think Matt and I both agreed at the end of the trip that things would have gone a lot smoother if we could have just strapped Tate in a car sear and a car the whole time. We ended up driving half way and then stopping in Mesquite. The next day we drove the rest of the way. On this first night we also learned Addie does not like her Pack n Play. She would not sleep in it at all. So the first night we shared a bed with her. Things did get better though. In our second hotel we got upgraded, not only did we have our two queen beds but we also got a separate room with a pull out bed. Addie was then given a comfy mattress, which she preferred. Tate was really excited to have his own room, but when we realized the glass window which separated our room from his would be such a distraction, we almost couldn't get him to sleep. He kept smashing his face through the window and making faces at us. He really thought he was funny. We would have taken a picture, but we knew better then to encourage his behavior.
We decided that we would take Tate to an aquarium the first day we arrived. We went to the Long Beach Pacific Aquarium. It was actually really fun. Tate really enjoyed the fish. Even Addie seemed to enjoy watching them swim around.

We're Back!

So I have learned something new this week. Vacations are no longer meant for relaxation! With two kids to pack and entertain in a 12 hour car ride, there is nothing relaxing in any of any sort. Was it worth is???? That is a very good question. Well for our first big family vacation I guess it was. So here are the details.........