Guess What Kids, We're Going to Disneyland!!!

Disneyland was one of the best things that ever happened to our family! I kept wandering around every day with a perma-smile saying, "It really is a magical place!" We had so much fun together on this trip as a family, starting in Las Vegas, where Sari was introduced to the knights of the Round Table, and a whole lot of other things that we could have very easily done without... then heading to San Diego where we spent some great beach time, went to Sea World, and even got to show the girls the home that I lived in when I was born. After that we were able to hit Universal Studios, drive through Beverly Hills (for Shawnie, of course), take a walk down Hollywood and Vine, and spend 3 glorious days in Disneyland. If I could go back to Disneyland tomorrow, I totally would. We made some pretty spectacular memories there. Sari's favorite part was the Indiana Jones ride, and of course, Shawnie, being the thrill seeker that she is, absolutely LOVED California Screamin'. She made Keith take her on it 6 times in one day. I could only do it once. Total. Keith loved the 'Soaring Over California' which I will admit, was an absolute rush. They all rolled their eyes all the way through 'Small World' just to humor me, and we drove the cars multiple times which brought back sweet memories of the last time I went, when I was Sari's age, and Rob and I drove the cars over and over and over and over. Splash Mountain was closed, but we really enjoyed Space Mountain and the other roller coasters. We were pretty lucky, Shawnie brought special privileges for us, and we were able to bump to the front of pretty much every line and probably got through more rides in three days than most people could in two weeks... The Disney characters swooned over Shawnie, except for the Mad Hatter, who was pretty much obnoxious to her which for some reason made Sari adore him?

Along the way we were also able to visit 3 beautiful temples and experience the spirit of their grounds, the Las Vegas, San Diego, and Los Angeles temples. This was a highlight of the trip for all of us, as well. It is fun to see the uniqueness of the temples and the grounds but to feel the same peace and beauty at each.

I can't even watch this video without tearing up still! It was such an incredible bonding time for us as a family. We've decided that we need to go back yearly until Sari graduates, we'll see if we ever fit it in, but we're so glad for the memories.