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December 9, 2009
November 14, 2009
Early Christmas Present
I had mentioned this in a previous post but Brooke was so generous and had our family for Christmas and she gave us a trip to Disneyland (hotel and airfare included). We went for 3 days in November. She was so kind and we are thankful for her. Here is a quick run down of our trip.
This is at the airport waiting to get on the plane. The boys were so intrigued by seeing the big planes right out the window. Braden had to know everything they were doing to get the plane ready. We were all excited to be flying to Disneyland.
The boys enjoyed the plane ride. When we arrived at the airport in California we rented the sweet van and headed to the ocean. By the time we got there it was dark but we still had fun.
The boys were not sure what to think of the ocean but I didn't hesitate and went to put my feet in and turned around to wave at the boys when a big wave slapped the back of me getting me soaked! So off to the hotel we went. With no naps and a full day, we obviously wore the boys right out. This is what they looked liked from the time we got to the hotel until 6:30 the next morning! 
So Aaron headed to In-N-Out and got us some dinner and we watched Amazing Race and had a relaxing night. Little did we know that would be the last relaxing night while we were there.
DAY 1: DISNEYLAND
Aaron got up real early the next morning and headed back to the airport to pick up G&G Smith and Brooke. We ate breakfast and headed out for our first day at Disneyland. I was probably just as excited as the boys. It was a beautiful day!
The weather was perfect and the longest wait in line that day was 5 minutes. They were filiming the Christmas Day special with Ryan Seacrest and some other teen singer that morning. It was a fun time to go because they had a lot of the Christmas decorations up and they were playing Christmas music. Nothing like singing along to Christmas carols while in the hot sun! Here are some pictures of the different characters we saw. The kids LOVED seeing them. Braden was sure to give each one a hug and high five. It was so fun to see the look on their faces whever we saw someone different!
Then my favorite. They must have very petite people in those costumes. I always wished that I could have Minnie's perfect complection and smile!!
We had a full day on Monday. The boys went on ANY ride they were tall enough for. They both went on Matterhorn and Braden went on Space Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain. Now lets just see if he can do the Tower of Terror tomorrow! We had such a fun day. After the parade we went to eat at IHOP then back to the hotel. The boys were filled with excitement and it was a challenge to get them to settle down. Once they did they were gone! Braden slept with me that night and about 6:15 in the morning, he was peeking one eye open and was so wiggly. I asked him if he had to go to the bathroom to which he said no. So I asked him why all the movement and he was so cute when he whispered in my ear that he was just excited! It made it worth getting up at 6:30 even if I was tired.
DAY 2: California Adventure
As soon as we walked into the park we were headed for Playhouse Disney Live on Stage when they spotted Mickey and Minnie again. Gosh, they have quite the wardrobes.
Again, Braden was enthusiastic about going on everything he possibly could. After Playhouse Disney, we hit a few mellow rides then went straight to the Hollywood Tower of Terror. I waited with Austin (he was not tall enough) while everyone else headed up. Austin was very upset that he couldn't go. While we were waiting we saw a few characters so I think it took his mind off of being left behind. Then it was my turn. Mom and Dad didn't care to go again so they took Austin. Braden wanted to go again but he needed to go to the bathroom more so we sent him the grandparents and me, Brooke and Aaron headed up. I don't think it was fair because they knew what was happening, but I sat in the middle of them and linked up arms and held on tight. Yikes! That was a good one. After that we walked around for a bit, went on a few more rides then ate lunch.
After lunch it was rather warm so we decided to hit the water ride and cool ourselves off. The boys were not tall enough so they stayed with Grandma and the rest of us literally squished in the tube and through the rapids we went. No need for seat belts on this one! Let's just say the guy next to me kept me dry! The Toy Story ride was the favorite "mellow" ride in this park. Lot's of fun - I even beat Aaron and that doesn't happen much! Oh, but let's not forget that ferris wheel. Brooke was laying on my lap and we thought that we might have to pull out one of those little white bags on the side. It was not a stationary crate we were in. It was swinging like crazy! (Side note: Brooke and I are extremely motion sickness) It must run in the Bailey genes, because mom is like that too. 
(It really was hot that day, but the boys bought disney sweatshirts the night before and we had a hard time getting them to take them off - but by 11 or so they finally did)We wandered around for a bit after that and then went on Soarin over California. That was great! It was a bit much for Brooke to handle so she stayed with Austin and got a mini workout in. 
Don't talk to Austin when he has food - he doesn't listen. I think he thinks you might take it away or something. I still laugh about the next thing we did. It was a 3-D movie called "It's tough being a bug". I won't tell too much about it for anyone who hasn't seen it but my dad came out of the there being totally violated. It was so funny!! I don't think he wanted to stand next to anyone for the remainder of the night. Wasn't me dad - don't worry! We watched the Pixar parade then called it a night.
The boys were tired and I was exhausted. We had pizza for dinner and then the boys fell asleep. Me, Brooke and Aaron went and soaked in the hot tub for a while . . .it was so relaxing.
DAY 3: Both Parks
This day we just hit our favorite rides. We started off doing the Toy Story ride and then the Screamin California roller coaster which I had not been on yet. That dang thing did me in for the majority of the day. I was so sick after that. Ughhhh. I wish I didn't have motion sickness (I am sure Aaron does too) but I can't even turn around in the car without getting sick. But, we had fun this day still. I don't know if you could tell by any of the pictures, but on Monday and Tuesday it was not crowded at all. We pretty much just walked on everything. Well, Wednesday was a different story. We could not figure out why it was so crowded until we realized that it was Veterans Day and all the locals who had the day off were there. So we were really glad that we had full days the first 2. We got a fast pass for Indiana Jones and the line for that was still 20 minutes. We were in Adventure Land and you could barley move an then we found out that Pirates was closed that day so that explained the line for Indiana Jones. This is a picture Aaron took while he was climbing in the tree house with the boys. You can see just how crowded it was.
I can't forget to include this picture. Braden was looking forward to buying Mickey Mouse ears the entire trip. I made him wait until our last day. I thought it was funny how he only wanted the plain black ones (I think they must me the originals). But he was set on only those ones and he refused to put his name on the back of them. He was so excited after we got them. He wouldn't take them off! It was so cute! I am not sure what people love about them ears. I kind of think that he could be a little Jewish boy with them. Whatever makes them happy, right?!
It was such a good trip! The boys LOVED it and are still talking about it. Thanks so much Brooke for a wonderful trip - we love you!!!
This is at the airport waiting to get on the plane. The boys were so intrigued by seeing the big planes right out the window. Braden had to know everything they were doing to get the plane ready. We were all excited to be flying to Disneyland.
The boys enjoyed the plane ride. When we arrived at the airport in California we rented the sweet van and headed to the ocean. By the time we got there it was dark but we still had fun.
The boys were not sure what to think of the ocean but I didn't hesitate and went to put my feet in and turned around to wave at the boys when a big wave slapped the back of me getting me soaked! So off to the hotel we went. With no naps and a full day, we obviously wore the boys right out. This is what they looked liked from the time we got to the hotel until 6:30 the next morning! 
(I guess you can see that their pants got a little wet too)
So Aaron headed to In-N-Out and got us some dinner and we watched Amazing Race and had a relaxing night. Little did we know that would be the last relaxing night while we were there.DAY 1: DISNEYLAND
Aaron got up real early the next morning and headed back to the airport to pick up G&G Smith and Brooke. We ate breakfast and headed out for our first day at Disneyland. I was probably just as excited as the boys. It was a beautiful day!
The weather was perfect and the longest wait in line that day was 5 minutes. They were filiming the Christmas Day special with Ryan Seacrest and some other teen singer that morning. It was a fun time to go because they had a lot of the Christmas decorations up and they were playing Christmas music. Nothing like singing along to Christmas carols while in the hot sun! Here are some pictures of the different characters we saw. The kids LOVED seeing them. Braden was sure to give each one a hug and high five. It was so fun to see the look on their faces whever we saw someone different!
The big cheese himself. I felt tall for once in my life standing next to Mickey.
Austin kept asking to find Donald Duck. Good thing we found him!
Then my favorite. They must have very petite people in those costumes. I always wished that I could have Minnie's perfect complection and smile!!
Then who could forget this crazy nut!
We saw Mickey again, and Braden said, "wow, he changed his clothes fast!"
We had a full day on Monday. The boys went on ANY ride they were tall enough for. They both went on Matterhorn and Braden went on Space Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain. Now lets just see if he can do the Tower of Terror tomorrow! We had such a fun day. After the parade we went to eat at IHOP then back to the hotel. The boys were filled with excitement and it was a challenge to get them to settle down. Once they did they were gone! Braden slept with me that night and about 6:15 in the morning, he was peeking one eye open and was so wiggly. I asked him if he had to go to the bathroom to which he said no. So I asked him why all the movement and he was so cute when he whispered in my ear that he was just excited! It made it worth getting up at 6:30 even if I was tired.
DAY 2: California Adventure
As soon as we walked into the park we were headed for Playhouse Disney Live on Stage when they spotted Mickey and Minnie again. Gosh, they have quite the wardrobes.
Again, Braden was enthusiastic about going on everything he possibly could. After Playhouse Disney, we hit a few mellow rides then went straight to the Hollywood Tower of Terror. I waited with Austin (he was not tall enough) while everyone else headed up. Austin was very upset that he couldn't go. While we were waiting we saw a few characters so I think it took his mind off of being left behind. Then it was my turn. Mom and Dad didn't care to go again so they took Austin. Braden wanted to go again but he needed to go to the bathroom more so we sent him the grandparents and me, Brooke and Aaron headed up. I don't think it was fair because they knew what was happening, but I sat in the middle of them and linked up arms and held on tight. Yikes! That was a good one. After that we walked around for a bit, went on a few more rides then ate lunch.
After lunch it was rather warm so we decided to hit the water ride and cool ourselves off. The boys were not tall enough so they stayed with Grandma and the rest of us literally squished in the tube and through the rapids we went. No need for seat belts on this one! Let's just say the guy next to me kept me dry! The Toy Story ride was the favorite "mellow" ride in this park. Lot's of fun - I even beat Aaron and that doesn't happen much! Oh, but let's not forget that ferris wheel. Brooke was laying on my lap and we thought that we might have to pull out one of those little white bags on the side. It was not a stationary crate we were in. It was swinging like crazy! (Side note: Brooke and I are extremely motion sickness) It must run in the Bailey genes, because mom is like that too. 
(It really was hot that day, but the boys bought disney sweatshirts the night before and we had a hard time getting them to take them off - but by 11 or so they finally did)We wandered around for a bit after that and then went on Soarin over California. That was great! It was a bit much for Brooke to handle so she stayed with Austin and got a mini workout in. 
Don't talk to Austin when he has food - he doesn't listen. I think he thinks you might take it away or something. I still laugh about the next thing we did. It was a 3-D movie called "It's tough being a bug". I won't tell too much about it for anyone who hasn't seen it but my dad came out of the there being totally violated. It was so funny!! I don't think he wanted to stand next to anyone for the remainder of the night. Wasn't me dad - don't worry! We watched the Pixar parade then called it a night.
The boys were tired and I was exhausted. We had pizza for dinner and then the boys fell asleep. Me, Brooke and Aaron went and soaked in the hot tub for a while . . .it was so relaxing.
DAY 3: Both Parks
This day we just hit our favorite rides. We started off doing the Toy Story ride and then the Screamin California roller coaster which I had not been on yet. That dang thing did me in for the majority of the day. I was so sick after that. Ughhhh. I wish I didn't have motion sickness (I am sure Aaron does too) but I can't even turn around in the car without getting sick. But, we had fun this day still. I don't know if you could tell by any of the pictures, but on Monday and Tuesday it was not crowded at all. We pretty much just walked on everything. Well, Wednesday was a different story. We could not figure out why it was so crowded until we realized that it was Veterans Day and all the locals who had the day off were there. So we were really glad that we had full days the first 2. We got a fast pass for Indiana Jones and the line for that was still 20 minutes. We were in Adventure Land and you could barley move an then we found out that Pirates was closed that day so that explained the line for Indiana Jones. This is a picture Aaron took while he was climbing in the tree house with the boys. You can see just how crowded it was.
(Can you spot me? Hint: I am wearing a purple shirt)
I can't forget to include this picture. Braden was looking forward to buying Mickey Mouse ears the entire trip. I made him wait until our last day. I thought it was funny how he only wanted the plain black ones (I think they must me the originals). But he was set on only those ones and he refused to put his name on the back of them. He was so excited after we got them. He wouldn't take them off! It was so cute! I am not sure what people love about them ears. I kind of think that he could be a little Jewish boy with them. Whatever makes them happy, right?!
It was such a good trip! The boys LOVED it and are still talking about it. Thanks so much Brooke for a wonderful trip - we love you!!!
October 14, 2009
Dear Dad
Dear Dad,
First let me start off by telling you that you sure know how to grow some delicious apples! My mouth is watering just talking about them. The boys LOVE to eat them. The taste can't be beat. Lunch has been a breeze for a couple weeks because I just peel and slice and the kids just eat away. Of course, not without asking if it is from grandpas tree. So THANK YOU so much for making my lunchtime easier by growing superb apples!
But, I have a problem. And it is a HUGE problem at my house. I only have ONE apple remaining from your tree. What am I going to do at lunch time when I give them sliced apples? I can already hear them asking if it is from your tree. Should I lie? (No, you taught me better than that). Maybe you could get a greenhouse in your backyard and grow them all year long! Just a thought!
Sincerely,
Your favorite daughter
ps - thanks for all the pumpkins you grew as well that my boys laoded me up with the other day. They look lovely on our porch. I will post a picture for you later!
October 11, 2009
Getting married!
Guess who is getting married?
(this is just a random family picture, but I thought this post needed a picture)
Austin! My 2 year old informed me today that he is getting married. When I asked him to who, he said Jesus. It made me laugh.
Speaking of Jesus, Braden told me the other day that he wishes he could be Jesus. Why I asked him. "Because then I could always turn the cold off and make it warm outside all the time." He is always thinking!
(this is just a random family picture, but I thought this post needed a picture)
September 9, 2009
Sisters Forever
This is a picture of my BEST friend. 
She has been there through it ALL. She used to live with me and I have to admit, there are days when I really miss her being in the basement. I don't know if she does or not, but the boys miss her as well. She is my only sister and I LOVE her. If you know her, you know she is truly the life of the party. Always fun to be around and has a heart of GOLD. I am not writing this because she just gave my family the best Christmas gift . . . . . . . . . but because I have been thinking a lot about her today. She has had to put up with a ton of crap being the younger sister. (Those older sisters can get annoying I hear) I have very fond memories of growing up together. We still laugh at the things we did to eachother sharing a room when we were younger and the things our 2 older brothers did to us and our dolls. . . . poor things! I had my moments of picking on her and putting salt in all of her socks (dang I was smart - that was a good one!) but through it all she remains my best friend. I love how she treats my boys like her own. She loves them just as much as I do and it shows.
She has been there through it ALL. She used to live with me and I have to admit, there are days when I really miss her being in the basement. I don't know if she does or not, but the boys miss her as well. She is my only sister and I LOVE her. If you know her, you know she is truly the life of the party. Always fun to be around and has a heart of GOLD. I am not writing this because she just gave my family the best Christmas gift . . . . . . . . . but because I have been thinking a lot about her today. She has had to put up with a ton of crap being the younger sister. (Those older sisters can get annoying I hear) I have very fond memories of growing up together. We still laugh at the things we did to eachother sharing a room when we were younger and the things our 2 older brothers did to us and our dolls. . . . poor things! I had my moments of picking on her and putting salt in all of her socks (dang I was smart - that was a good one!) but through it all she remains my best friend. I love how she treats my boys like her own. She loves them just as much as I do and it shows. So while I am at it I will just share the Christmas present she got for my family. Seriously the best sister - only she would be so unselfish to do this. Are you ready for this? She is taking us to DISNEYLAND!!! She paid for our flights, hotel and Disneyland passes! Now tell me you don't want a sister like her - I am sure glad she is mine!!! We are all sooooo excited! Today me and Braden made a countdown chain for Disneyland. Only 57 more days . . . . . . .
Anyway just want to let Brooke know she is loved and has a special place in life!
August 3, 2009
To top it off
Then right before nap time this is what happened. A box of Cheese Nips and a little bike = A GIANT MESS FOR ME TO CLEAN UP!
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