Disney Day!

When we learned that our friends Patrice and her kids also have Disneyland annual passes, we were excited to plan a trip together.

Spring Break was the perfect time to make a day of it, and so we got on the road Thursday morning, Disneybound.

As we pulled off the freeway up to the parking structure, we could see by the lines of cars queued up that it would be a busy day.

We made the best of a crowded day. We couldn't do Hyperspace Mountain or Radiator Springs Racers, but we did other things and enjoyed them all.

We went up Tarzan's Treehouse, and on Pirates and Thunder Mountain. We then took a breather in the Tiki Room and got Dole Whips for a snack.

Our kids all get along so well, and it was great for Violet to have friends of her own to have fun with.

We then went over to California Adventure, where, among other things, we spent time playing in the Redwood Creek play area. Violet was very excited to do the zip line for the first time.

All thumbs up after conquering the zip line!

Then the children moved on to the rock-climbing wall.

We weren't able to ride the Radiator Springs Racers, but we could pose. I wanted to be sure to check out Carsland after our recent trip to Sedona and Williams, Arizona.

We went on a few more rides in California Adventure, and then returned to Disneyland for the Main Street Electrical Parade.






We got spots to watch the parade at the very front of the park, so that we could get going toward the car as soon as it was over.

It was our kids' first time seeing the parade, and the looks on their faces were priceless. They all loved it, even Cora, who I wasn't sure would be impressed.

"I have to come back and see it again before it's gone," she told me as we walked out. We have a couple of more months to make that happen.

What a great day! I hope we can do it together again before long

Descanso Gardens

Our Spring Break and Maya and Natalia's Spring Break coincided by just one day, so we made the most of it and got together to play and catch up.

We had lunch at their house, and then drove just a few minutes down the road to check out the beautiful Descanso Gardens. 

I've heard great things about Descanso for years, but this was our first time here. Spring is a gorgeous time to take it in!

My girls weren't eager to leave the fun at Juliana's house, but they loved the gardens, especially the water falls and big rocks to climb.

The 10-year-olds!

We had a lovely afternoon together, and it was a fantastic way to kick off Spring Break!

Ducks and Dolphins

We returned from Arizona to a short week of school, and all of them were minimum days because of parent-teacher conferences.

Because she is in the GATE program, Cora was in charge her conference with us. Her report card was excellent, and despite her recent frustration with math, she scored as well in math as in language arts, her strong suit.

Violet is doing excellent in first grade, and we didn't have a conference with her teacher.

One day this week was "twin day," and Violet planned out that she and her friend would both wear long-sleeved red shirts and black pants.

After the week of half-days, the kids are now in a two-week Spring Break.

On Saturday, Cora's team won its soccer game, with Stace in charge because the coach was on vacation.

Then we went to Sophie and Norah's birthday party, spending a nice afternoon with Adam, Morgan and other friends.

The next stop was a sleepover birthday party for Sam and Riley, Cora's friends.

After dropping her off, Stace and I took Violet to Bridgeport to take a walk and visit the ducks and turtles.
We brought along Cheerios, and Vi had a great time making new feathered friends.

It was a gorgeous night with awesome company.

The best part of Violet taking a photo of us - we look tall! After Violet was in bed, Stace and I finished off watching the end of season 1 of Poldark, which we loved.

On Sunday, after we picked up Cora from the sleepover, Grandma and Grandpa took them on a whale watch. They had a fantastic time, and saw a half-dozen whales and whole (huge) pod of dolphins. The dolphins swam along the boat, giving the passengers a show.

Grandpa, hurry up and print this! It needs to live in a frame!

Stace and I took advantage of the free time to check out a new brewery in town, just a couple of blocks from his work. Tucked into an industrial building, Pocock Brewery offers loads of brews, but no food. We bought a flight to try different varieties, and borrowed a pack of Uno cards from the stack of board games. It was fun! Then, we went to church and then enjoyed a dinner date.

Gorgeous Sedona

The grand red-striped crags of Sedona did not disappoint.

We made it up to our motel around 5 p.m. Sunday, and got checked in. Our room had a fabulous view of some of the mountains.

We then drove out to a beautiful hiking spot near the local airport, where my Dad got this family shot.

On Monday, we hit a few of Sedona's most scenic spots before getting on the road toward home.

Cathedral Rock is visible behind us, with a river just beyond the red rock ground. If we'd had more time, we could have spent hours here.


















We then drove on to Slide Rock State Park, where I remember going as a teenager. Here, the river runs over reddish rocks smoothed into a natural water slide.

Cora went down the slide three times, and Stacey twice. It was absolutely freezing, they agreed.

 

After Slide Rock, we drove on to Williams, the old-fashioned town along famous Route 66.

We then picked up fast food and got back on the (long) road home. With a couple of stops for gas and restrooms, we were finally back home around 11 p.m. It was a great weekend trip!

Dodger Springtime Fun

A couple of years ago, my dad went to Arizona to watch some Dodgers Spring Training games with friends, and he's been talking up the experience ever since.

After the fun of last fall's playoff race, I was sold on the idea of making the trip to see a couple of games ourselves.

In January, we planned to drive out on a Friday, watch games Saturday and Sunday, and then throw in an overnight up in gorgeous Sedona to round out the mini vacation.

After a long (9-hour) drive Friday afternoon/evening, we headed out to Camelback Ranch, the Dodgers training ground, in Glendale, Arizona, on Saturday morning.

The whole complex is a glorious tribute to the Dodgers. We posed with the bobblehead statue of Tommy, and admired the many well-manicured practice fields.

Here's Adrian Gonzales waiting for his turn to take batting practice. Dodgers, both major league stars and minor league hopefuls, were all over the place before the 1 p.m. game, getting in swings.










Yasiel Puig was all smiles after his turn in the cage. Across the walkway, my favorite from the 90s, Eric Karros, now coaching for the club, offered hitting pointers to shortstop Corey Seager, last year's Rookie of the Year.

We all hoped to get an autograph from the big names as they walked between practice fields. Because Arizona is so close (relatively speaking) to Los Angeles, Dodger fans were everywhere, all suited up in their best blues.

About half the league's teams train in Arizona, playing March games in the Cactus League, as it's called. The other half train in the "Grapefruit League" in Florida. 

Though we missed out on the stars, our girls did get their shiny baseballs signed by Trevor Oaks, a Dodger up-and-comer. Much to our delight, he was the starting pitcher for the game we attended Sunday. As a dutiful young player, he signed until everyone was finished asking.

One of the best parts of our weekend was spending time with Sara and Tony and their family, who have moved back to the Phoenix area after leaving Valencia in the summer. Oh, how we've missed them! After the game, we spent a lovely evening with the whole family, including Sara's parents, who were gracious hosts.

The girls really enjoyed reconnecting. Our seats Saturday were on the outfield lawn, and we chose spots overlooking the visitor bullpen.You can see a White Sox reliever under and to the left of Violet's hand.









The worst part of our trip was that Phoenix was experiencing record-setting heat this weekend, and being out in the upper 90s all day can really take it out of you. All would have been so much more enjoyable in more temperate weather!

On Sunday, we dealt with the heat better by not bothering to stay long in our seats (which were in full sun). Instead, we wandered around, taking in the game from different vantage points. I loved seeing the game from so close - at some points we sat just a row up from the dugout! 

Here's one of my favorite vantage points - with my favorite 10-year-old.

The heat was difficult, but I absolutely loved the whole Spring Training experience. I would love to do it again. And, we all loved seeing Tony and Sara and their girls! Repeating our visit with them, too, will be in our future.

Week In Review

Violet's love for Peanuts continues. We went to the library, and though she is a great reader - her latest reading score was in the 5th grade level! - she prefers comics.

One of her favorite things to do now is read the Peanuts comic book collection she checked out from the library, aloud, with her dad. They take turns reading the different characters' parts.

She also still enjoys drawing, and will decide on her own to find "how to" videos online for drawing cute animals.

Speaking of cute animals, Grandma and Grandpa were kitty-sitting this week when Melanie and Nick went away for her birthday.

Normally, I can't find my girls when they're on stage singing at Pioneer Club. They'll be behind bigger children. But on this particular Wednesday, there they were, singing together.

Violet was so excited about catching leprechauns this year. She started working on her Lego trap at Christmastime, and was thrilled that the first-graders in her split class were allowed to bring in their homemade traps, too.

She fully expected to catch one this time, and also made a cage out of popsicle sticks and hot glue, to bring it to school.

I asked why she wanted to catch a leprechaun - was she after his gold? "No, I just want to be his friend; then he will show me his gold."

As you can imagine, she was a little sad Friday morning when the leprechauns weren't fooled by her trap, and instead made a mess in the house and then broke free. They even changed the  Lego words she'd written on the base - she had spelled out "Don't Peek," and they wrote out "Ha Ha."

Speaking of Ireland, look at those green hills! This gorgeous meadow is actually the area behind our pool.

And, my friends and I took our Friday walk to Starbucks amidst the greenery and the oak trees through the Summit. So pretty!