While a trip to Disneyland with Uncle Lance and Aunt Kelly has been in the works for months, we didn't tell the girls about it until a few days before. We had them guess what our surprise trip was based on a clue - they each got a fanny pack with a Minnie Mouse shirt rolled inside. The idea sort of back-fired. Eve opened hers and quickly guessed where we were going and was excited. Halle was more into the idea of clues than her actual clue. She set the shirt aside and started filling her fanny pack with "clues" for us to guess things. Abigail and Cora didn't really know what was going on.
Once we'd explained exactly what Disneyland was (and that we'd be going with their cousins), we got the reaction we were hoping for!
We left for our trip on Saturday morning, May 20th. Since we weren't going to be home for 3 1/2 weeks, the car was pretty full! It took us two days to get to California, with a stop for the night in Arizona. The girls did well in the car and the drive was mostly uneventful.
We got to our hotel, the Candy Cane Inn on Sunday evening, followed shortly by the Brunsons! Everyone was excited to see each other (and be out of the car).
We had adjoining rooms, so there was lots of running back and forth:
The next morning, we enjoyed a yummy breakfast at the hotel before heading out for our day at the beach!
The weather was mostly cool, and the water was VERY cool, so there was lots of sand play :)
All but Cora had a great time.
Twinner cousins!
Actual proof that Andrew got into the ocean!
Cora had her moments of.....at least not crying.....
It didn't last long.....
We tried to get a picture of the girls together, but a big wave came way up on the sand in the middle of the attempt and the cold water was a bit shocking to Cora :)
Eve loves the beach! Especially when she heard she wouldn't have to be on the lookout for jelly fish!
Cora was mildly interested in the sand - at least she didn't try to eat it!
Building sand castles with Uncle Lance.
Running from the waves:
Seven girlies! And this happened to be the only day on our trip when we had 1 girl per year: Eve (6), Reagan (5), Halle (4), Daryn (3), Abigail (2), Madelyn (1), and Cora (0). Quite an accomplishment! Both Daryn and Abigail had birthdays at Disneyland, so it didn't last long.
Look at Halle levitating!
Came with 7, left with 7 - but only barely. Reagan got lost as we were packing up to leave and we had a tense 15 minutes while we, the life guards, police, and kind strangers looked for it. She was found safely, about a 1/2 mile up the beach by Lance. She'd become disorientated when we took down our beach umbrella and had kept walking, trying to find her parents. So glad she was safe!
What can I say, Halle loves the beach!
That evening, after baths to get out all the sand!, we walked around Downtown Disney and had dinner.
The Lego store was a big hit!
We watched these ladies making Mickey Mouse shaped caramel apples:
Then enjoyed some ice cream!
Which Abigail dropped on the ground right after this picture....
Our last stop was the World of Disney store - talk about bulls in a tea shop! The girls went crazy in here, but we managed to get out with everything in one piece.
We tried for a semi-early night since our Disney adventures would begin bright and early the next morning!
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