Disneyland for 39

Dear Brady and Brody,
Remember last year when you and Dad forgot my birthday..... Yeah, I do too!  This year Dad tried to go all out and make my birthday the ultimate celebration by taking us all to Disneyland.  What's that you say? Why would a grown women want to go to Disney for her birthday?  Umm, I have no answer for that because the thought never really occurred to me.  But I never should have doubted your Dad.  He had a grand plan.  He though a stay at the Califonia Grand Hotel and three days watching you guys smile ear to ear in Disneyland would be a great present. And he was right!  Seeing your smiles and feeling your excitement was better than any present I could have asked for.

We had a supreme amount of fun but I think the best memory I have is watching your reaction when Darth Vader and Kylo Ren emerged onstage during the Jedi Training performance.  Brady, you got up and ran out of the viewing area.  Your Dad had to run after you.   Brody, you turned to us wide-eyed with fear and made sure we were right next to you for the rest of the performance.  Even I felt my heart accelerate with the playing of the evil Star Wars music!  After we chased you down, Brady, we held you and helped you use the force to defeat the bad guys.  I could feel your little heart pounding against my chest as I held you.  Man, this is what Disney does best, it gives you the full experience and really makes you believe!   In another location, Dad was holding you, Brady and Brody was trailing behind.  Brody looked ahead and saw Chris and Brady approaching a statue of Darth Vader (though it was clear that Brody did not know it was just a statue).  Brody, you ducked down behind a display case and peaked out to see what was going to happen when Dad and brother passed Darth Vader.  When nothing happened, you popped up and strolled on by like everything was no big deal.  It was so cute and funny to see you hide from the pretend bad guy!

I also really liked that Dad made me wear the Happy Birthday pin on my actual birthday.  I was genuinely surprised each time someone said "Happy Birthday" to me.  Each time I would think, how do they know, and then I remembered the pin.  Ahh, the fun of getting old.

Overall the trip was great and you guys were tons of fun.   I was surprised by the number of times you were afraid of things this time around.  You still did not want to go on any dark rides and roller coasters were out.  Thrill seekers you both are not!  We stayed within your boundaries and had a wonderful time!  Thanks for the memories!
Love, Mom

Labor Day Weekend 2017

Dear Boys,
Even though school started before labor day and it felt like summer was over weeks ago, we still wanted to party hearty on Labor Day weekend to send summer out with a bang.  Originally, We planned to go camping with the Walshes up near Mt. Shasta. We have never been there and I was really looking forward to exploring a new area of California. Unfortunately, we were in for a heat wave and for your safety as well as the dogs' we decided to cancel camping.  I truly hope that in 20 years when you are reading this the reality of abnormally high temperatures is not the norm......

Since we were going to be in town for record high temps in Half Moon Bay, I took advantage of our close proximity and took you to the beach for the afternoon.  It was the hottest I had ever seen it at the coast, so hot that even I wanted to get into the water!  We went with new school friends and had a great afternoon.  Honestly, it was one of the most amazing beach times I have had in California. You guys learned to bodysurf using your kickboards which was hilarious.  You got the hang of it really well and rode wave after wave onto the shore.

We had such a great time at the beach that we wanted to share it with Dad then next day.  It was going to be another record-breaking hot day at our house so we got there early and we took the dogs with us this time.  Dad bought you guys real boogie boards and of course, he got one for himself!  We found our favorite beach spot and immediately all went swimming.  It was not hard to want to get into the freezing cold water as the temps grew to over 90 degrees.  It actually felt so refreshing!  I could not let Dad have all the fun and so I grabbed to boogie board to show you my amazing bodysurfing skills.  Hilariously, Hank bodysurfed right next to me the whole time!  Can you picture it: Mom and Hank riding the waves together.  It was amazing.

We suffered through the rest of the day at home in the heat and were so excited when our friends called and asked if we wanted to take our chances on some cancellations at a campsite in Big Sur.  I guess we are both adventurous families because neither family had a problem with getting up at 5 am, packing up and driving down to Big Sur.  We were there by 8:30 and we got the last waitlist spot at the campground.  While we were waiting we went to a gorgeous Big Sur Beach and played the day away.  This beach had everything that iconic Big Sur is known for.  It had rock walls to climb, beach caves to explore, a freshwater river that ran out to the sea to swim in and huge waves to run away from.  It also had its share of wildlife.  We saw a seal come up to the shoreline to play and two whale spout in the distance.  It was nothing short of pure magic!  You guys played with your five friends and we had an absolutely wonderful day.

When we went back to the campsite to see if we were able to get off the waiting list, I felt very content.  I knew that even if we had to go home right then we had had a glorious day in much cooler temps.  I was shocked when it turned out we were able to get two campsites and that they were practically next to each other!  Our fun did not stop as we set up camp, played and played, had a campfire, cooked dinner, had smores and sang songs.  It was everything that a camping trip should be: kid-centric fun with loads of dirt!

The next day we got up, had breakfast, packed up and went on a small hike.  It was a perfect way to end such a great weekend.  We really turned this weekend into a totally fun California adventure!  I wonder what you will remember from this trip?  The caves, rock climbing, jumping rope, marbles, smores.... maybe all of it.  One can hope!

Love,
Mom