On Three....We're going to Disneyland (a few months ago)!!!

Nothing like 5 kids chanting from the back of a minivan, "We're going to Disneyland" for a half an hour before you arrive at the most magical place on earth to get you mentally prepared for the day ahead. This dichotomy sums up my feelings about the place (at least with young kids) - parents paying dearly (monetarily and mentally) for everything, trying to appease, and ultimately putting up with a lot of obnoxious behavior to enjoy brief moments of tremendous joy and excitement bubbling from their little ones. It is definitely worth it, but it is an exercise in patience for even the sweetest parents and kids.

The picture below sums up the range of emotions we felt during the day, but all in all we had a great time. No major meltdowns (only me at the end of the night after trying to suffer through a terrible cold all day), and even though the lines were pretty long (just a tip to steer clear of the place during both Utah and California spring breaks), we were able to tackle some of the rides that were closed the last time we went like Pirates and Small World.

I'm a bit embarrassed that the picture below represents the first time I figured out how to take a self picture with my phone. This little feature would have come in handy in Paris. Perhaps the BK and I could have actually taken a decent picture together. My beautiful sister-in-law and niece. If you didn't already know better, you might have a hard time figuring out which child belongs to whom. As we like to say, there is a light side and a dark side in every family. In ours it is clear who belongs where.

Though we waited in line for the princesses thinking that this would be primarily of interest to the Rooster, the PoPo was enamored with the Princesses and was flashing his flirtatious smile at every turn. The Rooster was in heaven, and wasn't disappointed in the least by the new princess set up. A vast improvement I must say. Good work Disney.

A little alone time with the Rooster.

Aside from Disneyland, we had a fantastic time and are always grateful to my brother and his family for being such amazing hosts and putting up with us. We took a day trip to Descanso Gardens near Pasadena, which was an amazing place. The kids wandered around the gardens for hours, and put on numerous plays at the amphitheater, including one where the PoPo chased his siblings, cousins and strangers around growling like a bear. I would highly recommend this place if you are in the area. Unfortunately, the plays will not be available.

Lastly, we were going to go to the beach, but with traffic and spring break, we opted for staying in and eating the largest pizza in the world. Okay, probably not the world, but it took 4 kids to hold it. It was also delicious and disappeared pretty quickly. 

Southern California is definitely growing on me. Hopefully we will make it back soon.