Disneyland Bonanza

Thanks to Grandma and Aunt Caroline, we just enjoyed a fun and crazy trip to Disneyland with the extended May family. We had two fun-packed days in Disneyland, including a character breakfast at which Stella nearly dissolved when she met both Snow White and Jasmine. The kids loved Splash Mountain (which Stella got to ride with a little help from some rolled-up socks crammed in her shoes), the Monorail, Buzz Lightyear, Star Tours, and the Jungle Cruise. Here is where we edit out Stella's disastrous first day which included a shiner from a tumble off the hotel's bunk bed, a scratched other eye due to blowing debris, a bloody nose from rubbing said irritated eye and face, and a three-hour nap in the stroller amidst Disneyland chaos. Why did it take us several hours to request Tylenol at the first aid station and thereby return our little girl to normal? I have no excuse.

But back to the good stuff. Tied with Disneyland for cool-ness is the beach we visited thanks to Aunt Caroline's super planning. Little Corona beach was perfect -- great waves, sand, tide pools, scenic beauty, and very few people. Emerson fearlessly picked up sea snails while Stella

fearlessly dodged waves with Tad. The kids

had so much fun with their cousins and aunts and uncles that they were literally in tears as we left California for home. Shortly thereafter we parents were nearly in tears as we realized our flight home was delayed three hours and we wouldn't get home until nearly two a.m.. But traveling with Tad and Cheryll was truly a blessing and between stair-racing games and good storytelling we somehow made it through with relatively few freak-outs.