At the beginning of this month we got to take the boys down to Southern California for a little family vacation. My family from Japan, who I haven't seen in about six years, and my immediate family met us down there. It was a blast from start to finish! I was completely wiped out by the time we got home a week later, but it was worth it.
The trip started out with us waking up and leaving our house around 5:00am. Our car was in desperate need of new tires, but we didn't have time to get them changed. So instead we enjoyed an 11 hour massage while we were driving. I am sure we looked ridiculous. I guess we were just getting the kids ready for all the rides :) Honestly though, the kids were champs, they did great in the car!
We got to Anaheim around 4:00pm or so, unpacked and took the boys swimming while we waited for my family. They ended up not getting to the hotel until around midnight because they had to stop so much (Yushin, my cousin's little four year old, got sick from all the greasy American food and was having some stomach issues... poor kid).
That night we each slept with one kid. I got to sleep with Lincoln who nearly pushed me off the bed by the morning, and Megan got Koby who moves more than any other person I know while he sleeps. At one point in the middle of the night he got off the bed and was sleeping in the middle of the hotel room curled up in a ball under his blanket. Needless to say that was the last night we did that.
The next day we got up and hung out with everyone for awhile before heading to Disneyland. It was great seeing everyone. I can't believe it had been so long. It kind of makes me sad that I have only seen them twice in the last 16 years or so. Hopefully Megan and I can plan a trip to go back there sometime.
Later that morning after the little reunion, we all headed to Disneyland. Koby and Lincoln had a blast going on all the rides. It was hard with such a big group, so for the most part we were all split up, but we did get to go on a few rides together. I think Pirates of the Caribbean was Koby's favorite. It definitely was mine and Megan's :)
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| Lincoln was completely intrigued by the ever so slightly creepy dolls of the "It's a Small World" ride. |
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| Out after only a few hours. This is the best stroller ever. |
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| Out again. |
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| Koby and his new best friend Yumi. |
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| The fam waiting for Pirates. |
That evening after the kids fell asleep, my mom so kindly took the boys for us so we could have some fun! We ran around with Dave and Lisa and went on as many roller coasters as we could. On every ride I would try and scream as loud as I could. Megan was disgusted with my behavior and would slap me until I stopped. Dave would just scream out the name of the ride... "The Matterhorn! The Matterhorn!" I am sure you had to have been there, but I couldn't stop laughing.
The next day we went back to Disneyland and California Adventure for some more fun. Lincoln loved the Merry-go-round. We went on it about 5 times in a row!
Later that day, Yushin got to hang out with us while Chika (my cousin, his mom) went on some adult rides. Koby and Yushin had a ton of fun together. It's funny watching kids that can't speak the same language interact. By the end of the trip, Yushin was pretty good at saying "Koby, come on!"
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| Just telling each other what their favorite rides were. |
That night, we left Koby with my mom at Disneyland and went to a Dodger's game with my dad, Dave, My aunt and uncle, Rieko and Kazuo, and Lincoln (who we thought would sleep through the game, but decided to do the exact opposite). It was fun visiting, watching the game, and eating grossly overpriced hot dogs and garlic fries. The garlic fries were pretty amazing, although I don't think Megan kissed me for awhile after that.
The next day we were planning on going to Universal Studios. Dave and Lisa who moved down to LA not too long ago, only live a few minutes away from the park, so we stopped by to check out their place. The boys were getting pretty restless, so we decided to head over to the park before everyone else. We got there, paid way too much for parking, walked into the park, realized that there really wasn't anything there for kids, and ten minutes later turned around and left. The rest of my family had a ton of fun. They said the Transformers ride was really cool, but there was no way we could have lasted. So instead, we head back down towards our hotel in Anaheim looking for food and maybe a beach to go to. We ended up at a Denny's by a ghetto train station in the middle of Commerce, California. We ate dinner as a family and as we were leaving smelled a little something. Megan took Lincoln to the bathroom and I got Koby in the car. A few minutes later Megan and Hillbilly Lincy come out and Lincoln is only wearing overalls. He ended up having a blowout and Megan had to throw away his onesie.
That night we took the kids back to Disneyland and California Adventure and end up having a really fun, relaxing night with them. We even got to watch a colorful water show...World of Color. It was a good night.
The next day we woke up and head down to San Diego to go to the Zoo. It was a little slower paced than the theme parks, so we got to hang out with everyone a bit more, that was nice. Koby and Lincoln had fun running around and looking at all the animals. It was a lot of fun, but I was a little disappointed that we didn't get to see the chimps. Oh well, next time.
Thursday, our last full day, we went to Sea World. It was a lot of fun, but I think by then our kids were pretty wiped out from not taking naps, traveling, and going to bed late. We got to see a lot, the Cirque de Soleil show was amazing, but by about 6:00pm our kids were done. We went and got some dinner and put them to bed. Megan fell asleep pretty quick after the boys too (Lincoln was completely attached to her all week, so I am sure she was exhausted). I wasn't tired yet, so when my family got back, I went over to my parent's hotel room for the most random meal ever: burritos, cup-a-noodles, and rice balls. Dave, Lisa, and I stayed up till about 1:30am just talking. It was fun visiting with them. We sure miss having them in Utah.
The next morning we got up and said our goodbyes. It was sad, but it was really good seeing them all. I hope it's not another six year before we see them again. They all went off to my aunt's house a few hours away to get ready to go to Yosemite, and we head up north a little bit to go to spend the day at the beach with Rachel, Sean, and Charlie, who happened to be down there at the same time as us. It was great seeing them. I wish we lived closer, because it was really fun just hanging out with them.
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| Eating pizza at Costco. We had about five people ask if Charlie and Linc were twins. |
Anyway, I love the beach, it's my favorite place in the world hands down. We were there for a long time. We got to dig holes, build sand castles, swim in the waves, look for crabs, and get sand in every nook and cranny. It was so much fun, and I think the boys enjoyed it too! We stayed in a hotel that night with Rachel and Sean. We actually got upgraded to a huge room because the first one smelled like smoke. After getting the kids to bed, we watched a little bit of the Olympics and went to bed.
The next morning, we woke up around 4:00am and headed home, back to reality. After another 11 hour car massage, we made it home. It was nice to be back and get the kids back into a routine, but we were sad not to be with family anymore. We had so much fun going to all the different parks, but the best thing was getting to be with family. I know Lincoln and Koby had so much fun with everyone. I hope we get to see them all again soon!
