The Erekson's

We headed to the Erekson's when we were done with Knott's and were able to stay with them until Monday morning. We got to see the kids and Melissa at Disneyland so we were excited to see Andy too. My kids had a good time seeing them.

This is all we got out of Andy. Constantly skulking around the corners and giving us glares.

It was good to see them and have a few laughs.

We miss you guys!

Knott's Berry Farm

We went to Knott's Berry Farm for the first time. We saw a couple shows and the kids went on some pretty big roller coasters. I went on a couple but found I don't do as well as I would like to believe. They had a wild west stunt show that the kids sat in a covered wagon for.

This coaster was fun and very different.

The girls and Pete went on the Excelerator. I was really impressed with how daring the girls are. Connor and I are a good pair.

We saw the Peanuts gang on ice. It was a pretty good show. I like this picture of a " boy with his dog." It may find it's way into Connor's room.

It wasn't a Disney experience but definantly had the big coasters.

Last Day in Disney

Our last day we went to both parks. The kids got to choose two rides they wanted to go on again. I chose to see Aladdin and Billy Hill and the Hillbillies and everyone else chose rides. Pete had wanted to ride every single ride in both parks all in one day but we decided against it. It would have been a fun way to celebrate his birthday though. I think he took pity on me and my feet. Happy Birthday Pete!

We took the girls to see Tink in her new area. It was really cute. We drug Connor along. He was a pretty good sport about it.

We were able to sit in the stage seats to watch Billy Hill. They interacted with the kids a lot and put on a fun show.

We had a good time and were glad to see friends and family while we were there. I think it may be awhile before we go back.

Thursday

We got into Disneyland when it opened and headed for toon town. The kids rode the little roller coaster and Roger Rabbit after posing for me in front of Goofy's house.

Jake joined us for a second day so I guess we didn't scare him off. I loved having him there.

Damon came in Wednesday night and was with us for Disneyland. Here's the gang after a rousing ride of Winnie the Pooh.

We took the train around to the main gate to give our feet a rest.

Tuesday, Pete and I headed for Disneyland without the kids. Rachel kept them for us. We had a wonderful time but I didn't take any pictures because I knew I'd be taking so many in the next few days. This one of Indi is Wednesday morning on Indiana Jones. We were so close to the end but got stuck here. It was still moving while we were sitting there. It got a little creepy!

We met up with Rachel, the kids and Melissa, Grace and Clark joined us too!

Toy Story Mania is still one of my favorite rides. I do wish they had fast passes for it though!

Jake was the coolest person to be with. My kids and Adam had a ball with him around. It was so good to see him. I hope he had fun too.

Sea World

Monday was Sea World. It was a cool morning so we were able to enjoy the break from the heat for a little while.

We ended with a night dolphin show.

Celebrating Pete's Birthday

I made Pete a cheesecake under Rachel's supervision. It turned out okay. Now I won't be so nervous to make them.

You stay classy San Diego

Well, look who joined the vacation finally...

After finishing off a day of work on Thursday while Julie and the kids celebrated our friend's son Adam's birthday at the movies and pool, I have finally joined the rest of the family on vacation. Our first stop was the USS Midway, a retired aircraft carrier parked in the San Diego Bay.

They have it set up as an audio tour with each of us getting a walkman that we could type codes into as we roamed around the boat. The kids raced around finding the next audio clip.

This was one of the briefing rooms. They had dvd's set up in rooms like this that gave extended history of the ship.

This is the Midway's brig. Connor and Court took the role of the Marines standing guard over the prisoned Mallory, Adam and Lily.

A big hit with the kids was getting to not only see the fighter jets, but getting a chance to climb inside them and mess around with the controls. We successfully got out without any errant missile attacks.

Even in Southern California, I was able to find another Celtic fan.

After making the rounds on the ship, We headed out that night with our gracious hosts, our friends the Afualo's. Damon and I were able to show what thousands of business travel miles will get you....mad chopstick skillz.

Saturday was a down day at Del Mar. Turns out when you head south, it's actually warm at the beach. The kids had fun playing in the sand and

in the surf.

BYU visit

We took the kids up to the campus to see where Pete went to school.

Then we drove them by all of our homes that we lived in while going to school.This basement apartment was dubbed the "Alice in wonderland" apartment because the doors were cut off at the bottom to fit the lower ceilings making the door handles really close to the floor.

This basement apartment was where we brought Connor home when he was born. Pete loved this apartment. It had a HUGE kitchen.

This was where we brought Court home to after she was born. They cut down our favorite tree out front. I guess Pete kind of helped with that when we moved and he took out a 8 ft limb with the moving truck. Whoops.

And after a fun and long day Uncle Pete held Felicity.

On Monday and Tuesday, we visited more family and friends. We had a great BBQ at my Aunt Patty's and got to see most of my cousins. It was great to catch up with everyone and to see their growing families. On Tuesday we met our friends John and Amber for dinner and dessert before heading out of town on Wednesday.