DISNEYLAND

We went to Disneyland in July! It was everyone's first time except mine and the last time I went there I was 7 years old. What a magical experience. The boys loved it, we loved it, it was awesome. We were able to go into Disneyland for 4 days, but didn't hit California Adventure this time. We didn't have park hopper tickets and decided it wasn't worth losing a whole day at Disneyland. We rode every ride we wanted to, with the exception of "Finding Nemo" (4 hour wait) and "The Matterhorn" (2-3 hour wait). The other lines were short and crowds were sparce. The weather was beautiful and scenery was great. We couldn't have picked a better time to go, which was surprising since it was the middle of summer.

We got to see Mickey Mouse in private, both William and I really did feel like kids again. We somehow ended up in his house, not quite sure if that was where we were supposed to go to see him. We walked all the way to his farm, at the back of his house, and started watching a movie. We then realized we were minutes away from seeing Mickey Mouse, himself. What a magical experience. The boys still talk about Disneyland. In fact, tonight fireworks started going off a little ways away from the house (for some strange reason) and all the boys started saying, "It's at Disneyland!" Which was just so cute, especially when Logan started saying it, too.

Eyeore, Tigger, and Pooh Bear became very famous in the eyes of our boys. Their location was right in front of the exit of "Splash Mountain" which everyone loved but Ty, and Logan wasn't big enough to ride. With a "Switch Pass" for families with small children, there was a lot of waiting around for the other half of the family to finish up a ride. Seeing as we rode "Splash Mountain" a few times, we had a few opportunities to see these cuddly characters.

Tyler will never forget Pooh Bear taking off his hat and putting it on his own ear (meaning Pooh's ear).


"It's a Small World" was the ride that received the most riding from the Fleming Family. It was cool inside and very relaxing. From the advise of my wiser, older sister, we hit it either near closing or right after the parade in the afternoon. It was awesome! There was no line after we rode it a few times, so we just stayed on the boat and kept on riding through. The song inevitably stuck with us for a while, but that was okay since we were able to cool off a lot.

We stayed at a great hotel that had 2 queen beds and a queen hide-a-bed couch. Great space and awesome location. We walked across the street and entered the Disneyland walk, which is as close as you can get. Loved it! The pool was fun, too.

All-in-all, this was an unforgettable experience. None of us would trade it for anything. It was wonderful to be able to do something so unforgettable as a family. We haven't been able to do many things like this, and we appreciate being able to go. We grew closer and will always remember our magical time at Disneyland!

Camping in Sequoia National Park

We just returned from a wonderfully adventurous camping trip in Sequoia National Park. What a wonderful experience for all of us. We love camping! This time we were able to have Mom and Dad Scott join us. We were able to see so many beautiful things...bears, mountains, rivers, waterfalls, giant trees, chipmunks, squirrels, raccoons, deer, caves, etc.

In the Sequoias it is manditory to use bear boxes for all your food and anything that has a smell...our entire van had to fit into a box. J/K. All the car seats, food, toothpaste, deoderant, chapstick, lotion, wrappers, gum...really our car should have gone in. We were able to evade a bear intruder, but others at the camp ground were not as lucky (or i guess you could say as smart). Someone left all kinds of food items in their car and a bear broke into it. It's so sad that people who come into bear country can't be responsible and do their part, they end up ruining a bear for their laziness. It was a lot of work, but worth it.

Since we had two families, we got two camp sites and had two bear boxes...we used them both. I'm including a picture of the camp sites. It was a great camp ground. Off the beaten path, very quite, right by a river. Dad was able to filter river water for us to drink. Awesome!

Some of the things we were able to see were: Crystal Cave (WOW!), General Sherman Tree (Largest Tree in the World, most wood mass), General Grant Tree (3rd tallest tree in the world), Grizzly Falls (Beautiful!!), Tunnel Rock, some of the largest groupings of Sequoia Trees, a movie about Bears, amazing mountains and valleys, Bears, so many of God's wonderous works of art!

This is a picture from Crystal Cave, I was getting a picture of the crystal formation, but now I see a person in the formation. Wierd/Cool! Next is a picture of the boys and Grampa on a fallen branch from the General Sherman Tree...a BRANCH!!! Does that give you an idea of how massive these trees are? Dang!

This is the family in front of the General Grant Tree. I wish the picture could do justice for as huge as this tree is. General Grant also named it the National Christmas Tree in the early 1900s. Next is a picture of the 3 older boys climbing next to Grizzly Falls. Do you think they are excited?








And now we have Logan Chees'in it up with Grampa! This really is how he looks when he says, "Cheese".


Here's the boys enjoying the scenery while viewing from the van.




It's as if the boys are floating while viewing this beautiful canyon where two rivers meet in Kings Canyon National Park.


This is where you get to drive through two Sequioas on each side of the road also going both directions. It reminds you how small you really are in the scheme of things.
And a picture of our camp site the morning of our departure. Notice the big brown box to the right of the photo...that's one of the bear boxes.

Let's give this a try

Recently I've been visiting my friends' blogs and thought how great it is to have your scrapbooking done so easily. So I thought I'd give it a try. With the four boys it's been hard to keep up with all the pictures and crazy things they do, so I'm really behind with paper crafts. Since I'm on the computer so much, why not?

Life is about to get crazy again. School will be out June 14th. Kaleb (7 & 10 months old) is finishing up 1st grade and more than ready to move on to 2nd. Tyler (6 & 5 months old) is soon to be a 1st grader, also more than ready for that move. Derek (4 & 11 months old)finished up Pre-School last Thursday and is definately ready for Kindergarten. Logan (2 & 3 months old) is set for a year alone with Mommy. Our summer is going to be filled to the brim! We have 2 birthday parties with friends, camping, Disneyland, summer school, Mimi visiting for a month (Papa for a week)...and a baptism in connection with one of those birthday parties. I am looking so forward to keeping busy! I think the fun will fly by!

Until next time...