All summer long, we have been waiting for July to get
here... and once July got here then we were waiting for the 15th! Starting July 1st, we started a countdown to
vacation!! Well July 15th came, and now it is gone, which means vacation is
over and back to reality. How fast time
goes by! So here is our 10 days of fun
and a few parts of not so much fun.
Monday, July 15, 2013.
We were suppose to leave around 4 am, since we had a 14 hour drive that
day. And yes, 14 hours with SIX kids,
that is CRAZY!!!! Well I didn't sleep
much at all, actually I only slept two hours that night, so at 1:30 AM I got up
and started getting me ready and the car.
Then the kids got up and in the car, they slept in their clothes for the
day to make it easier. We left the house
at 3 AM! I love being ahead of
schedule. Our first stop was Amarillo,
Texas as the sun came up. It was pretty
cool that morning; we walked around some (took photos) and used the
bathroom. Then we had donuts and milk,
and then it was time for more driving.
Our next stop was at the state line at New Mexico. There isn't a whole lot in New Mexico, and then
we stopped at the Arizona state line. At
the Arizona state line we saw a couple from Oklahoma!! The father actually noticed us, and
apparently I went to school with his younger brother. Small world! We got rained on a few times, the
temperatures were from 60's to 80's along the way. The gas prices from Shawnee to Williams, were
about the same- $3.40-3.85 a gallon. When
we got into Williams, Arizona (AKA Hillbilly Hell) it was pouring. Which is no surprise, I think it always rains
there. Our hotel that night was in
Williams, Arizona, the only thing good was we were on the top floor like the
kids wanted. I am not a fan of small
towns, if you don't have a Wal-Mart then the town is too small for me. We made it to the hotel around 4 that
afternoon (keep in mind there is a 2 hour difference from Shawnee, Oklahoma to
Williams, Arizona). Not bad at all! The
kids did really good in the car, no screaming or fighting. We did the license plate game, which was
entertaining and interesting to see all the tags on the drive. Parker (18 months) didn't cry in the car much
at all, he slept and played in his car seat.
That evening we had Taco Bell for dinner, once again there wasn't much
in Williams; we did take some photos with the kids at a train stop. Then to bathe the kids and sleep!
Tuesday, July 16, 2013.
Well this day was suppose to start around 5-6 AM, and instead Parker
woke me up at 3 by throwing up on me, not once but twice. He seemed fine,
except for the throwing up, no fever no cough no nothing. Since I was woken up
early, everyone else got up and got ready, and we left the hotel at 6:15 that
morning and headed for California. I
have to say that drive was much more prettier!!
So many mountains and it was so pretty!
We stopped a few times to take photos, and we had In N Out for
lunch!! Yum!! In N outs are wonderful, the best hamburgers
ever. They just make their restaurants
way too small. We had to eat in the car
since there wasn't any sitting left. All
of the kids enjoy In N out also, I wish we had one in Oklahoma. We did hit some traffic once into California,
nothing too bad till we got closer to LA.
I think traffic in LA (and all around LA) is crazy, all you do is sit
and wait, then you drive like hell for a few minutes and then sitting still
again, and then repeat the cycle the whole trip. Our hotel was in Anaheim and it was so
cute!! Only 2 stories and quiet (well
quiet with 6 kids ha!). And of course we
could walk out and see palm trees!! The
best view! We were on the top floor, which was what the kids wanted. After
getting unpacked in the hotel we went to Santa Monica beach. It was around 70 degrees or so, which is WAY too
cold for me to swim in. The older five
didn't seem to mind the freezing water and were soaking wet, and played for
around an hour and a half. Parker played
in the sand. That beach was crazy busy,
and I was amazed by the number of people swimming. The drive there and back to the hotel was
long. I think it took us an extra 30-40
minutes to get there because of the traffic.
Wednesday, July 17, 2013. This day we all got up and ready
by 8 to get to Universal Studios. We left
with plenty of time before the doors opened, but traffic was crazy!!! It took us an extra 40 minutes to get there. The
older boys and even Samantha liked the Transformers 3D ride. And of course meeting the transformers. Which I have to agree the ride was cool and
the transformers were great! The boys
liked theJurassic
Park ride, which left them wet. The only ride Parker could ride with us was the
studio tours ride, which was about an hour wait time but a 45 minute tour. Overall, I think for the money for the tickets
there isn't a lot to do there. I think
Universal could easily be a half day thing, which is what we did; which is
really a waste of that much money. After
we left there we went and saw the Hollywood sign, got pizza and went swimming
at the hotel.
I had each kid keep a journal and they had to tell about their favorite
thing on each day. Today the favorites
were:
M- meeting transformers and the
ride.
C- the transformer ride.
G- he enjoyed the fire during the studio tour ride and of course the
transformers.
D- The dinosaurs and optimus prime.
S- The shrek and transformer rides.
P- He actually didn't like getting sprayed by water during the studio
tour ride.
Thursday, July 18, 2013. That
day was Legoland day! It was about an
hour drive, but some of that drive was along the ocean which was hazy but still
pretty. The traffic to San Diego wasn't
too bad at all, it was a lot worse on the way to the hotel that evening. Legoland was a lot bigger than I expected. We could of easily of spent two days
there. And they have a really cool
resort, I didn't go inside the resort but the outside was really neat. The kids would of loved to of stayed there! Parker got to ride a few things, Samantha rode
just about everything and the boys rode everything that we had time for. The food is expensive there, so we brought peanut
butter sandwiches to save some money.
The lines were pretty long, especially in the afternoon. We spent 10hours there and didn't get to ride
everything. But everyone had a great
time! They do have a water park in
Legoland, that is extra so I didn't pay for that part. But there is a boat ride there, and you will
be soaking wet!! Holy moly, I rode it with
the kids and didn't think we would get very wet while waiting in line. Once we were closer to the ride, I noticed
everyone that was getting on the ride were taking off their socks and shoes and
everyone that was getting off was wet.
So we took off our shoes like the rest of the people. On the ride, it was a quick ride. You ride up the ramp and drop down,
simple. On the way down I knew I was
going to get soaking wet so I ducked my head and you get soaked twice!! There is water coming from you at every
angle. The kids loved it!!! It was fun, I am not a fan of getting soaked
but it was fun.
Today's favorites.
M- Pirate reef which was the boat ride.
C- roller coaster
G-pirate reef and roller coaster
D- Pirate reef
S- dragon roller coaster
P- the mini city boat ride.
Friday, July 19, 2013.
California Adventure day!!!! Also
the morning that I am pretty sure I broke my foot/toe. It has been almost 3 weeks and my foot is
still hurting, it is improving but not 100% still. We walked to the park since our hotel was so
close! Our first thing to go do was Cars
land, and wow it is amazing!! It looks
pretty much like Cars the movie! Very
cool! We got there before they opened so
the morning was pretty dead, the afternoon was crazy!! Our favorite ride was Racers and we went back
later in the day to re-ride it and it was a 90 minute wait time, which means we
didn't get to re-ride it. We did get to ride a lot of rides, some as a
family and then some with me and the boys.
My only disappointment was not meeting Mickey Mouse, but we did meet
Mater, Lighting McQueen, Red, Donald, Buzz, Jessie, Pluto, and Duffy. We did eat lunch in the park, and holy Jesus
the prices are a rip off. A tiny
hamburger, about the size for a 2 year old was $6 dollars. I about had a heart attack over the
prices. For dinner we went back to the
hotel and had a sandwich. We rode a lot
of rides that day, no way we rode everything though. We even had Ghirardelli, which was wonderful! Around 9 PM they did a water show with
colors, it was pretty neat and at 9:30 Disneyland (next door) did
fireworks. We did watch fireworks from
our hotel too. But that night we got
both shows inside the park. We spent 14 1/2 hours there that day, it was a full
day but went by in the blink of an eye!
Today's favorites
M- Carsland and racers
C- characters and rides, especially the roller coaster that went up
side down (Which made mom sick)
G- upside down roller coaster
D- meeting lighting mcqueen and the racers ride
S- Racers ride
P- LOVED Lighting McQueen
Saturday, July 20, 2013.
Disneyland!! Who doesn't love
Disneyland? We once again walked to the
park since it is close to our hotel. This
was another long day at the park, it was raining when we first got there and
then pouring around 4 so we took that time to go to the hotel and rest for 30
minutes, eat McDonalds and then return to the park. On this day we did get to meet Mickey
Mouse!! Minnie was leaving so we just
missed her. :( Other characters that we
met were Cinderella, Aurora, and Ariel. I have to say Cinderella was so very
nice to all of us, the only person wanting to meet the princesses was Samantha,
but we all went with her. And Cinderella
acted like a princess should. Aurora and
Ariel were talking about us, which I found to be every rude. Ariel actually acted like she was annoyed to
take photos with Samantha. We did get to
ride a lot of rides even though the weather wasn't the best. The lines were long, the crowds were
bad. This day we got to ride a lot of
rides together, and all of us got to ride, which Parker loved riding!! And I enjoyed getting to ride with all of the
kids and not leaving a few behind.
Parker and Samantha couldn't ride every single ride, but they could most
everything. Inside this park, they have
a Jedi training show. So we decided to
let the kids watch it. While waiting on
them to start, there is a sign saying children can be called on to participate,
and Garrett and Devin were picked!!!
They loved it! Garrett battled
against Darth Maul and Devin against Darth Vader and two storm troopers. It was great!!
Today's Favorites
M- the roller coaster inside the mountain
C- Mickey's house and meeting him
G- the rides and being a Jedi
D- Mickey's house and meeting Mickey
S- meeting the princesses
P- the carousal and he loves seeing dogs (mainly service dogs are
inside the park)
A few things I have learned from experiencing both Disney World and
Disneyland. Go off peak if you are
going. September was wonderful, lines
are short, crowds are fewer. Disney
World- there are meet and greets for all the characters, and when that Mickey
needs a break he is replaced every 15-30 minutes with a new Mickey. And it is like that for all the
characters. You can meet Mickey and
Minnie in all four parks on any day of the week at World. Land- meet and greets are not as important to
them. Even the people helping with the
characters don't know when a few character will be out again. The food is expensive at both places and
inside all of their parks. The characters
are a lot nicer inside World. I have
taken 5 kids to World, so one extra kid didn't make Aurora and Ariel decided to
be rude. Florida in general is more
friendly towards larger families, California not so much. That isn't just at Disney either, that is in
general even the crowds and at and about the town. Some parts of the world just isn't tolerant
of large families. Not that it is any of
their busy. I always find it funny when
someone has something to say about a large family. With the divorce rate as high as it is, more
families are now large families because they are blended families. You would think that society would get over
the whole large versus small family thing.
Sunday, July 21, 2013. This was
our last day in California. That morning
we went to take photos of the Anaheim Angels Stadium, then on to Griffith and
saw the Hollywood sign. After that we went to Hollywood to see the stars, which
was interesting and I use that word loosely.
While there, I got onto Parker and some guy told me to take him to the
Playboy Mansion, that he would stop crying... if you know me that crap doesn't fly with
me. Then while looking at the stars some
strange dressed up chick came up to the kids and was trying to get them to take
photos with her, all while grabbing them and trying to get them too close to
her. I don't allow strangers to touch my
kids. I made my point quickly with her,
by making the kids come to me and not even look in her direction again. So Hollywood lost a lot of credit after
that. The first time I went there it was
ok, I enjoyed it, this time I would prefer to not go back. After that we went to some beaches. We first went to Malibu and took photos,
climbed a cliff, and the kids played in the water some. The other beach we went
to was Nicholas Canyon County Beach. We
did a few more photos, including one with Parker naked on the beach. He didn't seem to mind at all. After photos the kids played in the water
some more. The weather was hazy and
gloomy but the kids enjoyed playing in the sand and water. It was a great last day in California. The gas prices in California are crazy! They are around $4.- $4.20 a gallon.
Monday, July 22, 2013. This day
we left California and went through Palm Desert and then on to Phoenix. It was hot and sunny on this day. It was about a 7 hour car ride to
Phoenix. We had In N Out and MacAlisters for lunch and
dinner. Two great places to eat! That evening once in Phoenix, we went to take
some photos and the kids walked up a mountain and we swam in the hotel pool. Gas prices in Phoenix and Arizona are around
$3.89 or so. Not as bad as California.
Tuesday, July 23, 2013. We left
Phoenix and headed back to Williams, AZ to spend the night. Before we left Phoenix we did stop and took
some photos of the Arizona Diamondbacks Stadium. I am a huge baseball junkie, and I actually
want to tour all the baseball stadiums before I die, but this time we didn't
get to actually tour the stadiums, maybe next time. Along the way we went through Sedona and it
was really pretty! I wish we had planned for more time through there. We planned for an hour, but it was so very
busy that we could have spent hours there.
The kids enjoyed walking up cliffs.
We had a peanut butter sandwich for lunch (more money saved). And that evening we went to the Grand
Canyon. The older boys that it was
"big", the little ones didn't care.
We had Wendy's for dinner that evening
Wednesday, July 24, 2013. We left one Hillbilly Hell (Williams) for
another one. We stayed in Tucumcari, New
Mexico. If you haven't been to Tucumcari
let me just say there is NOTHING there.
I don't know how people live there.
They have to have a high suicide rate.
We had McDonalds on the way there
and Arby's for dinner. Arby's was in a
Loves... interesting! We drove around
that evening and took a handful of photos and that was it. Watched some TV, there was nothing else to
do.
Thursday, July 25, 2013. Left New Mexico with plans to stop at the Big
Texan and the Cadillac Ranch. But once into Amarillo it was pouring! So we didn't get to do either one. Which really stinked, but maybe next
time. The boys were wanting to graffiti
a car. We made it home around noon that day and everyone was happy to get
home. All of us missed our pup so
much! And he missed us too. He "cried" for a good 30 minutes when
we got home. Once we got home, the kids
got their souvenirs (each kid got something from each park), and Thunder got
his things too.
Overall, we all had a great time!!
And we look forward to the next vacation!
In Texas
New Mexico!
Arizona
In Williams
Saw this along the way, I am a huge Harry Potter fan so this was cool!
Mountains!
Universal
Studio Tours at Universal
Hard Rock Cafe
Legoland
Carsland
Ghirardelli
Sully
Pluto
Disneyland
Cinderella
:)
Arizona Diamondbacks
Grand Canyon