January Trip To Newport Coast (& Disneyland!)

The last week of January, we took a spur-of-the-moment trip to Southern California with Max's parents and his brother Dave and his family (hence no posts during that time). We were toying with staying in heaven (aka Balboa Island) but ended up going with the next best thing and booked three places at Marriott's Newport Coast Villas. Max and I had stayed there before with my family and knew it would be totally ideal with each couple/family having their own place and plenty of room to spread out. And it was.

Our first day there was spent checking in, getting a late lunch at Ruby's in Newport Beach (got to have my Super Burger!), and then unpacking, grocery shopping, etc. That evening, all the men stayed at the villas while my MIL, SIL, and I went to Fashion Island for a late dinner. After eating, I took the ladies over to Balboa Island for a Balboa Bar. For those of you unfamiliar with this tasty treat, it's a vanilla ice cream bar dipped in fresh chocolate and coated with whatever toppings you want (rainbow or chocolate sprinkles, butter brickle, various nuts, Oreo, cinnamon crunch, etc. or a combination of EVERYTHING which is my favorite and the very best). Being a loving wife, I even took one back to the villa for Max. And I did so without taking so much as a single bite of his.

We attended church with Max's parents on Sunday morning, driving them over to the island, taking the ferry across to the Newport Peninsula, and then making the drive back for a yummy brunch prepared by Max's brother and his wife. Later that afternoon, we drove over to the island again, this time parking so that we could take a walk around the perimeter. We happened to find two great parking spaces at the end of Coral...just a couple of doors away from the house that my Great Grandfather owned and some of my mom's cousins still own. It's very near and dear to my heart as we spent 2 weeks of every other summer there growing up (before my grandma's branch of the extended family sold out of it). I simply had to get a shot of my children standing in front of the beachfront lamp post a few doors down from "our" house:

It was absolutely perfect weather out and Hudson had a blast running along the beach, looking for shells, and writing things in the sand. Claire was a little trouper, walking when she was up for it, riding on Max's shoulders, and contently sitting in her stroller the rest of the time. Towards the end of our jaunt, she coaxed smiles out of several passers-by as she sat in her wheeled lounger singing, saying silly things, and giggling.

On Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday, we made excursions to Disneyland (only a 20-30 minute drive from the villas). The last time I took Hudson, he was barely over 2 years old and this was Claire's 1st time going. It was so much fun to see them take it all in and watch their excitement. When we arrived in the park on Monday, Pluto had just come out for a meet-and-greet and Hudson was thrilled for the chance to meet him. We stood in line for a few minutes and when it was his turn, Hudson rushed up to the big pup and gave him a huge hug. In addition to Pluto, over the course of the three days we spent there, the kids met Mickey Mouse, Chip and Dale, and Goofy together. Claire met Pooh, Tigger, and Jessie on her own.

Prior to going on our trip, I had told Claire that she could meet Mickey Mouse and some princesses at Disneyland. I wasn't sure that she totally grasped the concept until Sunday evening when we told her we'd be going there the next day. She immediately commented (with much enthusiasm) that she would meet Mickey and the princesses. So, when the opportunity presented itself on Monday - all the boys were headed for Autotopia - I took her to meet her princesses. My MIL was great company, joining Claire and I and waiting with us in line for a good 35-40 minutes. At one point, we were in a kind of open area with an arch in the wall...Claire made herself right at home, jumping around, playing with a couple of other kids, and telling me, "Mom! Take picture of me shaking my booty!" Which I did. I was sure that being somewhat shy, she'd be timid when it came to meeting the princesses (she hadn't met any other characters at this point). Was I ever wrong! She nearly cut in line a couple of times while waiting for a princess to finish with the previous guests and when it came time for her turn, she ran up as fast as she could and eagerly gave them hugs. To top it off, she was talkative with each of them and happy to pose for photos. Success!

In addition to walking our feet off and meeting characters, there were the rides (of course). Hudson joined Max and I on Thunder Mountain Railroad for our 1st thrill of the trip on Monday. As you can see from the pre-ride picture of the two of us, he was a little bit nervous about it. He ended up enjoying most of it, though, and rode with me again on Thursday. The pics below are from (clockwise from top left) Winnie the Pooh, the carousel, Thunder Mountain, the new Toy Story ride in California Adventure, Max and kids just inside the park (okay - not a ride but I had to include it), Storybook Land Canal Boats, and the carousel.

Just as a funny note about going on rides...we found out very fast that our kids do not care for rides that are very dark, loud, or slightly scary. When we took them on Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, a petrified Hudson sat with Max and covered his face the whole time and Claire started crying for Max towards the end. I told her that I was there and she said, "No! I want Daddy!" (proceed with more wailing). We were smart enough to take them on Pinocchio's Daring Journey a while later and got a similar reaction. Oops - so sorry, kids! The kids' favorite rides of the trip were:

• Jungle Cruise (a real thrill - went on it twice!)
• Pirates of the Caribbean (another two-timer)
• Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters
• Toy Story Mania
• Finding Nemo's Submarine Voyage

Hudson also loved Gadget's Go Coaster, Splash Mountain, and a few others but I'm not going to sit here and list rides for the next hour. We were bummed out that Small World was closed while we were there (taking down the holiday decor) but other than that, everything we wanted to ride was open. And with it being off-season, lines weren't too bad and the park wasn't horribly crowded.

On the other two days that we were there, we spent some time at the villas, had lunch at The Crab Cooker one day (my swordfish was to die for!), did a little bit of shopping on Balboa Island, got Balboa Bars a couple of times, my SIL and I had a super tasty lunch at Wilma's Patio on the island on Friday (going back there for sure!), and we went swimming in the perfectly heated pool and hot tub on our last night there.

It was such a fun trip and I was so glad to have gone with some of Max's family. We don't get to vacation with them often and it was a real treat.

Next up...the most fabulous story of me taking the kids to Disneyland on my own one of those days.