Vacation Day 1....traveling

We decided that we needed a vacation, so we reserved a hotel room, packed the car and the kids, and headed for Disneyland.  Everyone was SO excited!  Troy has been to Disneyland, but I hadn't been since I was 11, and Kevin hadn't been in a while either, and the three younger kids had never been.  The trip over was so long and seemed like it took forever, but since we were all in good spirits it wasn't bad.

Miss Annie has decided that she does not like her picture taken, and she was not looking forward to the roller coasters, so to get her to smile was a fight.  Little stinker.

 Troy was raring to go (he was in the next bed over in the hotel room and wouldn't quit talking), and grinning all the way over.

 Taylor was the cause of this stop and had to "rest" so badly that he didn't take the time to put on his shoes. As a reward, he got a sock full of stickers and spent a few minutes trying to get them all out.

 Tyson did amazingly well on this trip.  Usually he's puking every 10 miles, but we didn't have one problem (thank heavens!).  He like the potty stops so he could get out and stomp in the dirt.

My sexy sweetheart coming back from seeing the monument and ready to get down the road.  I think our stops and starts annoyed him more than anyone.  :)

 I was just as excited as the kids.  When I went, Dustin was 3 and we only spent one day there, so we didn't do anything big and fun...just the little stuff (which was still fun).  I was excited to try some of the roller coasters and rides that I missed before.

 We finally made it.  A storm hit just as we got to Riverside and it poured like crazy.  There was about 5 feet of visibility with the rain and the fog, I couldn't see the lane lines, and those California drivers are flying past me at 70 (can you say NUTS?!?!?!?!?).  Kevin was navigating and encouraging me, but it was pretty scary.  By the time we made it to our hotel, my knees were shaking and my hands hurt from holding the steering wheel so tightly.  It was sure nice to get off the streets and into a nice, safe, parking lot.  :)

We got to meet up with our friends the Rareba's (I used to babysit their little girls) for dinner and had a great time chatting with them and Nia and Nana...we also got to know the newest little one, Lewa.  She's adorable, just like her sisters.  After a quick trip to see their new house, it was back to the hotel for showers, jammies, and down time.  Tyson was so up on down time that he was annoyed I was taking his picture.

 Got a smile out of my girl!  She was glad to be out of the car too.

 Mr. Taylor taking his turn at the computer and down time.  We really scored with our hotel room.  We got a two room suite with 2 big, comfy beds, an "L" shaped couch for Annie and Taylor to share, and a full kitchen....not that we did any cooking, but it was nice to have it there.  Breakfast was served every morning and it was pretty tasty.  I would definitely hit the Homewood Suites again.

 My sweet hubby is a little too excited to be out of the car, don't you think?  What a goof!

We finally got everyone settled in and comfortable, though everyone but Tyson had trouble getting to sleep. Finally, they were all snoozing, which was a good thing, because Monday was a doozy!  :)

Happy Birthday Taylor!!!

Mr. Taylor turns 9 today...can't believe how time flies!  We had his birthday dinner and cake last night with Grandma and Grandpa and it was a lot of fun.  Taylor decided on a Captain America cake, so we made the shield.  The only complaint I got was that the pink is supposed to be red.  Oh, well...can't win them all, right? :)

 Since he was sick with a cold I consider this smile a good thing...poor kid.

Tyson was able to exhibit the right amount of excitement for the cake and has since requested that I make him a cake....on an hourly basis.

Taylor and Grandma visiting...anxiously waiting for the ice cream to soften.

This kid cracks me up....he gets so shy over things.  Tyson on the other hand is completely excited for fire...the little pyro.

 I just missed him blowing out the candles...9 at once, good job Taylor!

Taylor is my sweet, giggly, goofy, adorable little man and we are so thankful he is a part of our family.  Happy Birthday Taylor!

Hair Days

Annie had a party on Saturday and since the gal was turning 12, it was a makeover party.  Miss Annie came home looking super cute with a little makeup, and a new 'do.  Daddy is already looking into boarding schools.  :)

 From the side...I don't know how those curls stayed, but they did.

 On Sunday, I had choir practice, and when I got home, all the boys were laughing and the camera was out.  Annie came to the door in her Mickey's Wizard hat.  I could not figure out what was going on until they took her hat off of her and there was Mater hanging from her head.  


Apparently, she did not learn from the last time this happened and started Mater's wheels a turnin' then ran him through her hair.  Sure enough, just like last time, he got stuck.  She was NOT a happy camper, though it is hard to tell from this picture.

 Such embarrassment!  BUT, it gets worse....

 The men of the house with their infinite amount of intelligence decided the only way to get her hair out was to cut it and they were getting ready to do that before I rescued her.

I had Troy bring me a screwdriver, and I dismantled/broke apart poor Mater...much to Tyson's dismay (sorry buddy...sister's hair is more important).  I got it down to one wheel and the gears and couldn't get her hair out.  So, a quick trip to our wonderful YW president who also happens to be our hairdresser extraordinaire and she was able to get Annie's hair out without too much damage.  Some wisps around her face fixed that.  Sadly, she was having a presidency meeting when we crashed her house, so all of Annie's future YW leaders were witnesses to our little drama.  Oh well...they have to know what's coming right?  ;)