I love Disneyland. We went there on our honeymoon. We went with Andrew's family and it was fun but there were so many people. I got grumpy a lot. There are a lot of pictures so here are just a few highlights of our California trip.
The Norco Audio Family History Tour
Heidi grew up in Norco, CA, and we stopped by. This is a crazy place.
First off, they don't have sidewalks. They have horse trails. WHAT THE WHAT? Maybe in Wyoming, but not what I was expecting for southern California.
Some girl on a horse in a city in southern California.
Then we stopped at the Norco cemetery to find Heidi's grandparents' grave. We found it! It was a miracle because she had never been there.
Hannah, Heidi, and Wesley at the grave.
That was cool to be there. Heidi thanked me for suggesting it, since she had never been and being there brought her a lot of peace.
The First Disney Day
Christmas at Disneyland, where the wreaths are all Mickey-shaped and the castle has snow on it (I know, snow in Anaheim? But by now, we know that Southern California is not what you expect--snow, horses, what's next?).
Love it.
We wore a lot of 3-D glasses. They kind of give me a headache.
The Family sans me (taking the picture) and Maren (on an airplane)
And no family vacation would be complete without a picture of me coming out of the bathroom!
We rode Splash Mountain. It was great. Maren is there in the front. She and Wes are engaged now and they are so disgusting.
Our Wild Ride.
This is how Andrew feels whenever I drive. ;)
Andrew and I in front of the castle at night. How romantic.
The Day We Only Went to California Adventure
Wes and Maren about to go off a huge waterfall on Grizzly Rapids.
Andrew and some light bike from Tron.
Not a lot of pictures from that day. Oh well. I traumatized Hannah by making her go on Screamin' with me. I forgot to tell her that it blasts you off. Oops.
The Day We Went to Disneyland in the Morning and the Evening But Mostly Went to Los Angeles
Wesley and Andrew cleaning their ears. What a good brother activity.
I had never been to L.A., so it was pretty exciting.
A clear day for L.A., right?
Gas costs $5 here where it costs $3 in Utah.
And we drove past the Los Angeles Temple, but we didn't get out and walk around.
I like the palm trees. That is a pretty good picture taken from the back of a Honda Pilot, if I do say so myself.
And then we went to Santa Monica beach and we had many marvelous adventures.
Like this dog in a tree. The owner was completely chill. His dog is awesome.
And we went down to the beach and it was just lovely. I kept thinking of the Sheryl Crow song "All I Wanna Do", where she says she wants to have fun until the sun comes up over Santa Monica Boulevard.
We also had another unusual sighting:
Glenn took off his shoes. Apparently this is an anomaly.
Jumping picture--me, Hannah, Elise, Maren. I didn't get the memo that we were making L shapes out of our arms.
The Day We Were the Dorky Family Wearing Matching Disney Shirts
An epic moment occurred when I became famous for screaming so loudly on Thunder Mountain Railroad. I am awesome. This guy said I was amazing and he recognized me later on, too.
And I pulled the sword out with my pinky finger.
Family picture time! You get a sneak peek at the Christmas card. Lucky you.
Aren't we cute? I like how Wes and Maren are freakishly tall in the back.
We went on Star Tours and...
I was the rebel spy and Yoda said I was vital to the rebel cause! It made my life.
Also, Andrew was a good big brother and got Hannah to ride Space Mountain--and she liked it! She even has her arms up and has a big smile on her face. Yay!
From back to front: me, Hannah, Andrew, Elise, Bryanna.
We didn't take a picture, but WE RODE SPLASH MOUNTAIN EIGHT TIMES IN A ROW WITHOUT GETTING OFF THE LOG!!! Oh yeah, we broke the family record. I'm pretty done with Splash Mountain for a little while.
The Last Disney Day and The Most Crowded One Wherein I Had A Headache.
New Years Eve was the worst day to go to Disneyland. it was way too crowded and I was grumpy. I had a headache and that was not a good thing. It was Elise's birthday, too.
I had one of the weirdest experiences of my life. We had to watch "Captain E.O." to please Glenn. Weird. So weird.
And we went on Space Mountain again!
Funny Space Mountain picture. Elise is a super hero, Hannah is pumped, Andrew is screaming and I am plugging my ears (I had a headache, remember) which is opposite of how it usually is, and Wesley is proposing to Maren (I love how she looks like she's saying, "Oh my gosh, why is it you?"
Also, we went to the Blue Bayou for dinner. Awesome. It was fun. And then I went to sleep and woke up when the huge fireworks show shook the hotel.
Then We Drove Home on New Years Day and There Was No One On The Freeway
Alison now lives in Pinedale. They had a reception there, and, as the Maid of Honor, I felt it was my duty to attend. Also, I have never been to Pinedale.
This matters because Al has two uncles who live there, and that's how she met Kendall.
All my life, I have heard about what a magical place The Ranch is, and I knew that I needed to go.
Our descent into the Bear Lake area. The lake was covered with clouds and it was so beautiful!
The view at Andy's place. This is not The Ranch. This is a view I would love to have.
Wildlife! We saw a bunch of deer. And a bunch of pronghorn.
I'm on The Ranch! That's Scott in the background. He was trying to get me to ride a "horse". But it was really a bull. I am not as stupid as Scott thinks I am. I can milk a cow.
Me feeding the critters! Take your pick of names: donkeys, burros, or asses. Scott and I both prefer the term "asses."
That little ass was a pushy little bugger. He tried to eat my coat cuz I wasn't giving him the grass fast enough.
This could be on a calendar.
Dad and Scott getting into the BMW on The Ranch.
A herd of buffalo apparently live next door to The Ranch. They made me want to eat some buffalo burgers.
And now I have been to The Ranch! It was everything that I dreamed of and more! I stepped in animal poop, petted some critters, saw wild animals, and drove in a BMW on a ranch.
I am classy. But wait, it gets better!
There was a parade, so Dad and I went into town before so we would actually be able to get to the reception. So we spent the evening on the town.
Imagine: Dad in his suit, me in my beautiful black dress, driving around in the BMW in Podunk, I mean Pinedale, Wyoming.
I told you that this evening would get even more classy.
Me in front of the Cowboy Store.
Me in front of the wall of boots at the Cowboy Store.
We joined the parade. :) I waved at the people.
Alison and Kendall--happily married for two weeks.
Table decorations. Dad and I were decorators. Those lovely vases are from my wedding.
Lucy and Ariane!
The wedding party.
So us non-Pinedale people were the most dressed up. I have never been to a wedding with so many blue jeans.
Me and Lucy. She doesn't usually like me, so I guess that I was pretty enticing because I let her take over my camera.
Lucy had to take my picture by every single tree at the reception.
Donuts.
Ariane from a four-year-old's view. Before deleting all the pictures Lucy took, I appreciated how the world looks when you are three feet tall. I'm 5 foot 2 inches. I wonder what the world looks like for people who are six feet tall?
Lucy's shoes and my shoes.
Alison and Lucy! Such a cute picture!
Me and Alison. Such a cute picture!
Dad holding Jack again. He likes holding babies or something.
Cutting the cake, round two.
Lucy getting her piece of cake.
What a great day. I had a fun time in Pinedal. I will miss Alison because she lives all the way out there!
We decided to spend our Saturday in Leavenworth. It is a little German town in the American Alps (aka the Cascades), see also Washington vs. Switzerland.
We saw a cherry stand! So we had to, of course, stop and buy some.
And they were so so good.
Don't you just want some fresh Washington cherries?
Welcome to Leavenworth! It was so festive.
Even the gas station was in German script.
The Alpen Folk playing music and yodeling! This is why I told Andrew we HAD to go. Yes, we bought the CD.
A delicious pretzel and amazingly delicious mustard. (Today was funny face day for me, FYI).
Pizza und Brats - Das ist Gut Ja? Andrew had a brat and sauerkraut--both of which he said were OK (he is really spoiled when it comes to German food) and I had a delicious hot dog (I don't like brats).
Bienenstich! This is my absolute FAVORITE German dessert, which I have loved since I first tried it at one of Andrew's family parties. It means Bee Sting Cake. It has almonds and a toffee-like thing on the top, then a light cake, some creamy filling, and more light cake. I LOVE IT SO MUCH!! And I'm so glad we bought this.
Me making a Barbara Streisand pose in front of the Hello Dolly Doll Shop.
The nutcracker store.
Andrew looking smooth and sophisticated and European in front of a painted landscape.
The human and dog drinking fountain. Humans on the upper two, and dogs at the lower one.
We really should have bought this apron for Andrew to wear. Sehr Sexy, Ja?
We went on a hike near Leavenworth, called Eight-Mile Lake. It was three miles to the first lake and one more to the second lake, so the total mileage for the round trip was eight.
The mountains.
The pretty purple wildflowers. :)
Me amongst the purple wildflowers, sticking out my tongue.
The second lake.
The first lake.
The raging river of snowmelt.
Me and this tree were the same height.
Can you see me? My shirt matches the flowers!
And we were starving so went back in to Leavenworth for a German dinner. Andrew eating Schnitzel with noodles (spaetzla). The Brot (bread) was also very good. The Sauerkraut and Rotkohl were not very good. I'm not the biggest Sauerkraut fan but I do like Rotkohl, and it was disappointing. Andrew realized how truly truly spoiled he has been growing up as a little German boy eating delicious German food.
We then got gelato and mocked the people who just bought ice cream. They had no idea what they were missing. :D
