For Christmas this year, Wade and I decided we needed one last family vacation before Trevor leaves for two years. The fact that this would be his last Christmas at home was super sad for me, so where else would we go than the "Happiest Place on Earth." We were all excited to leave the freezing cold snow for warmer weather in California. Our journey there, however, was on both ends of the spectrum. The kids and I loaded up and left Friday evening. After filling our tires with air (not 80, not 80!!!), we headed for the airport. We got parked, cleared security and got to the gate with no issues...thank goodness. The plane ride was a first for all the kids (except Kyall). Some were excited, some scared, some in between. I had to laugh because they were fighting over who HAD to sit by the window, not who GOT to sit by the window. They did all love the fact that it only took 1 1/2 hours to get there! When we got to Long Beach, we walked out of the airport to see a limo parked at the curb. I could hear the kids behind me saying "hey our ride's here" and laughing when they said "I wish." The look on their faces when the driver called our name was priceless. Total shock, then pure excitement. Thanks to my wonderful cousin, we started our trip in some serious style. We got checked in to our poolside suite, thrilled to be on vacation.
Then there's Wade. Poor guy. Wade had to work until 4am on Saturday, so we had him scheduled for a noon flight. He got a few hours sleep before the airport shuttle picked him up. He was so excited to see that Robin was on the shuttle. They had the same flight here. That was about as long as his joy lasted. Their flight was delayed and eventually cancelled due to some navigation problem. Whilst I'm glad that nothing happened while they were in the air, we were already missing him and now he'd be even longer. Because of my big hearted cousin, Wade got the last seat out on the last flight of they day, otherwise he would have been stuck at the SLC airport until the next day. There were a lot of people at Knott's staring at me sobbing into the phone when I found out what she had done. I love my family...all of it!
The first day at Knott's was...interesting. First of all, we were missing Wade. He should have been there by early afternoon, but decided that sitting in the airport was way more fun. Not. About 10 minutes after we got there it started to rain. Not little misty precipitation but real rain. No problem...we went and had our old time photo done INSIDE. The kids dressed up as cow-people, outlaws, and a bartender. So fun! Of course Kyall was adorable. The photographer told them to look serious. Okay, what 3 year old knows how to pose serious. Trevor told her to be angry. First try made me and the workers laugh out loud, but then she had a perfect "serious" face! We spent time in the shops in Ghost Town and rode the train. Pretty much looked like drowned rats at that point. Of course, when the train robbers came and asked who had the money, we all yelled "Tucker" and they tried to shake him down. We went to Mystery Lodge and It's Christmas, Snoopy! on ice. By then the rain had stopped and Kyall needed a nap so Trevor and Ben took Ryanne and Kyall back to the hotel while I took the "Ride Warriors" on some rollercoasters. Please children, remind me if we come back to NOT ride Ghost Rider. My kidneys still hurt. After a rocky start the day ended great...except we were still missing Wade. The second day brought Wade, better weather, and more fun. We sure got our money's worth from the season passes we got for spring break!
