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| Vacation is great because we see daddy all day long - a little rough for him though when they always BOTH want him at the same time! |
Part of our trip was to meet our new nephew, Jackson. Caleb was quite anxious for this sleepy little guy to wake up so he could touch him. He waited quite a while, since Jackson was only three weeks old at the time.
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| Meeting his new cousin, Jackson, for the first time. |
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| My turn! :) I was still getting over a cold when we arrived to Newport so I had to wait until day two to hold sweet baby Jackson. |
Like watching Caleb and Landon together at home starting to really have fun playing together, we saw the same when we were in Orange County and Deacon and the boys played together. Oddly enough, our time there perfectly coincided with one of the much-needed huge rainstorms that drenched California, so the boys had a lot of time indoors to play and run around together.
This place was awesome. When I did gymnastics as a kid the trampoline was always one of my favorites. This place had wall-to-wall trampolines and the adults got to jump too. :) See video below:
My brothers had a great idea for our visit: hire sitters so we could all go out for an adult dinner! It was so nice!
I loved watching Caleb interact with Delanie during our time at their house. He was so sweet with her, and wanted to play with and talk to her, tickle her toes, whatever. She of course enjoyed all the attention, too.
What to do with a faded, pastel colored play house? Paint it to look like a firestation! This is a project our friend, Mike, did for his two boys. So fun to play in.
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| Pretend City kids museum |
Mike happens to be a firefighter, so he invited us to the station to watch while he did his weekly tests on the engine he drives. Caleb, who we though would totally be into the fire station by now (especially since we were seeing a friend, not stranger fire fighters), was having a tired day and wasn't so into participating, but Landon did, and it was cool to watch all the equipment moving around.
Next we headed to San Diego to visit Uncle B(en) and Auntie A(pril). Auntie A was able to get a day off work to go to the zoo with us. The bronze (?) statues of the animals around the zoo were great - a fun way for kids to have more 'interaction' at the zoo instead of only watching the live animals.
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Bloody Mary with Octopus! Jimmy ordered it just because it was unique to this restaurant and not something you can find just anywhere.
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| Jimmy and I snuck down to the pool for a short break while the boys took their naps. There happened to be a bartenders convention staying at the hotel that day, so there was a big pool party with beach balls, cocktails, a dj, and tons of hipster bartenders hanging around. It was nice to get some sun and relax for an hour! |
We considered taking a tour of the USS Midway, but decided the boys are probably still too young to appreciate it, so we took a walk near the water next to it.
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| Can't get enough of daddy! |
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| In Landon's mind, the hole in the back of my iPhone cover must have seemed just the right place to stick his pacifier through. Good thing it was a new cover and still relatively clean! |
After San Diego we headed up to Legoland where we stayed at the Legoland Hotel. We are so glad we decided to do that - the boys loved it!
Check in, while kids are looking at all the Lego display scenes under the front desk area, right at their level, playing in the huge bin of Legos in the middle of the lobby, and running in and out of the Lego pirate ship / castle that easily reaches fifteen feet high (Very cool).
Then up to our Pirate themed room, which happened to get an upgrade since there was an error in the booking system (score!). Like walking into a storybook, only with everything pirates, and much of the decor built out of Legos, the rooms are an experience in themselves, complete with bunks and trundle bed, blackout shades, a bathroom foot stool and even built-in potty training seats on the toilet! (Excited mommy). My only suggestion would be for the kids' sleep area to have a door. Although the blackout shades make for great sound sleeping, when mom and dad aren't ready to fall asleep with their kids, day or night, it makes it hard for us to stay awake as we wait for our kids to pass out! Other than that I think they have thought of just about everything.
Day one at Legoland was a blast. We were shocked to see the clock at 7:56 am when we all finally woke up. We actually rushed to get ready, eat something and get our day of fun started earlier than the non-hotel-guests (hotel guests get Legoland slap-bracelets that allow for 30 minute earlier entrance to the park). Being here during lower season dates and on week days was perfect. There was a very managable crowd, and lines were almost all very quick, if any at all. The boys ran, literally, from one ride or activity to the next, pushed through half the afternoon before we tried to go back and take naps. They were on an absolute adrenaline high today an of course couldn't wind down enough to nap, not even after watching a short video. We decided to scratch that idea and went swimming instead! The pool was fantastic - about two-thirds of it was a wading pool no more than 2 1/2 feet deep, so kids could swim and play on their own practically. Floating around the whole pool were green, yellow, and blue rubber Lego bricks of various sizes to build, pour, and play with while swimming. The boys played more actively and more independently than we have ever seen them do, especially for being in a pool. It was great.
Here was one of Caleb's favorite rides/activities... Its a pirate ship ride where you spray and get sprayed with water. See video below or click here:
He loved spraying more than being sprayed...another video here:
Everywhere you go there are Legos to play with, including while waiting in line for rides. The adult(s) stay in line while kids play in an enclosed area next to it. Genius.
Caleb really enjoyed seeing the live Lego characters at the park and the hotel. He wasn't shy or intimidated by them.
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| Incredible that they can build this kind of stuff out of Legos! |
Something we recently discovered about Landon: He doesn't like elevators! He seems to get scared by the motion sensation it gives. One earlier in the week at a theater, and the first two elevator rides here at the hotel were rough, but this elevator experience is like no other, with the walls covered in Lego characters and scenes, a disco ball, and jivey disco music playing for the duration of the ride (10 seconds) that he doesn't seem to notice it so much now. We'll see how he does the next time we are in a regular elevator again sans fun distractions...
Our trip was a lot of fun, it was great to see and hang out with lots of family, and Caleb is frequently asking when we are going back to Legoland, and now also when we are going to Disneyland. He's ready for more fun. :)
