Mariners Game August 28th

Mark and Ashton went to the Mariners game on August 28th with Auntie Christy and Uncle Bart.

At the Game, Mark Caught a foul ball and gave it to Ashton.  Unfortunately Ashton didn't know that he was supposed to keep it and he thought he was supposed to throw the ball back.  Poor Ashton after he found out.  

He did make ESPN's Sportscenter Not Top 10 this week:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVNOaGuilYo&feature=share

Photos of the trip

He is loving the mini van!  He said when he gets older he will have one. 

This is what dinner is like at the ESPN restaurant. 

We ran into Hulk at the Lego Store.

First day at Disneyland! (before all the unfortunate things happened that day)

Excited!

They crack me up!

Last day in Hot Sunny California

The temperatures reached mid 90's and extremely muggy yesterday at the park. I believe we went through 3 big cases of water this vacation plus all the extras we had to buy because the 9 or 10 we took through the gates were gone by the afternoon. We tried refilling at the water fountains but that water didn't seem to please the taste buds too well. Even through the heat, we had a pretty good last day.

We tried park hopping today. We started in California adventures to obtain our fast passes for the cars ride, then walked back to Disneyland in hopes to finally get a chance to get on the Matterhorn ride since we weren't able to last Friday. Quite a lot of walking, but we really liked the Cars racer ride, so it is worth it. 

Once again Space mountain was down for a bit and As we walked to the Matterhorn, we were starting to worry because there was no line. The employee told us that it will be closed until Friday. Geez, everyone was very disappointed! We did a few kiddie rides for Ashton and to get out of the heat. Those rides were nice and air conditioned! 

Space mountain finally opened and Ben and Ashton waited to get the very front of the coaster!  Ashton looks a bit worried in this photo, but he loves this ride!

Not much to do on The Disneyland side because of all the closures, so we left and spent the rest of the day in California adventure. 

Loved the cars ride again!

(Ashton is in the front, the kid in back was a single rider because that line is only 30minutes to an hour to wait versus the 1 1/2-2 hour wait. So his mom was in the other car behind us)

This look is supposed to be a "oh yeah" smiling look. He loved the Goofy Sky school Coaster!

Hannah talked us into the water spraying fan today, and we all loved getting some water on us, especially in those long lines!

We even tried a ride we never wanted to wait for in the past. The 3-D toy story game ride. Normally there is an hour wait and we noticed it was only 30 minutes (I know... ONLY 30, sounds like a lot, but that was pretty average and doable. 

Ashton and I waited for them to ride the big rides. He wanted to try the carousel. I was apprehensive because I do not do well on those, but we did it and I was only nauseas for a little bit afterwards. 

There were hardly any lines at some of the smaller Cars land rides. 

This one is like bumper tires, but you have to work together to move it.

The kids were trying to get us! 

Again we come back to the hotel for dinner and the famous chips and salsa! 

This lion on top of the rocks comes to life every half hour. It lifts it head and roars. I believe we sat there for quite a while and heard him a few times.

Everyone except for Ashton is looking forward to returning today. Ashton said he is sad and wants to stay. I told him he would miss his birthday party and he said they can all visit him here in California. Pretty funny! 

Here's to a good flight home!

Wonderful Disney California Adventures!

** all photos taken on the phone. Can't wait to get home and upload a few great ones from the camera!**

What a great day today! We were all so happy that today turned out great. We blamed the last two days on Hannah spilling salt at the ESPN restaurant Thursday night, and we all give Ben the credit for today's great fortune! His fortune cookie turned out to be true! 

As soon as we got to the Park, I headed to the Cars ride fast pass line and Mark and the kids went straight to the Tower o Terror. I was amazed that Ashton wanted to ride that. I waited for them at the exit of the ride and Ashton sure looked ill. He did not like that ride at all. We were proud of him for trying it. 

The lines were pretty short for California Screamin'. They rode that quite a few time and were having fun with the cameras during the ride. It goes real fast but they know exactly where the camera is and they definitely love to pose!

This just makes me laugh! I love it! Ben and Hannah are hilarious! So funny! (Ashton couldn't ride this one. He was too short. This ride goes upside Down too!)

Ashton loved the Grizzly water ride! He rode 3 times and loved getting wet!

And boy did he get wet!

Mark was so soaked the first time he rode this that he actually could ring out the water in his shorts. Kept him cool all morning.

The water did feel great. It was another hot day.

Another great ride was the Cars Racer Ride! We rode that twice today and hardly waited. We definitely got lucky with this one. It was broke down for 1 1/2 hours (but that didn't affect us) and we were close to it and decided to try hanging out a tiny bit. They happened to open it back up while we were around. We hopped in the line real quick and only waited about 15 minutes instead of an hour! (This is the most popular ride there and the lines vary from 1-1 1/2 hours)

We rode twice because of our fast pass ticket in the later afternoon. 

We did see something that we have never seen before. Not only do they have pay phones now a days that take credit cards; they have texting pay phones.  Funny!

There was one issue on a ride today. We were waiting in line for Goofy's flying school roller coaster for about 20 minutes. Then the ride broke down and they sent everyone away. Ashton was sad and cried. That was a bummer. (It was even right after I was telling Mark that we have had such a great lucky day. I can't believe I jinxed it!) we did come back and ride it later that day, but waiting for so long then having to leave is tough. 

 

We ended the day back at the hotel with our regular beverages and chips and the amazing hotel house made salsa that apparently needs to be entered into a contest (according to Mark and Ben).

One last day at the park tomorrow! We plan to hop back and forth and go on the best rides of each park! 

Raging Waters

Our adventure yesterday led us to a water park we have never been to. Apparently it is ranked #3 out of 10 nationally. We were excited to get there. It was a 30 minute drive from our hotel room and the kids kept asking us to find a radio station. We searched and searched but only found a smooth listening radio station (which I liked) and then the classic rock station (which Mark liked) the kids settled for the classic rock since it had some better beats. U2 came on and we were all pretty happy! 

We arrived at our destination and tried to drink a bunch of water before we went in. We were told by the website and by the parking permit that there was no food or drink allowed in the park. We mostly drink water, so we were disappointed that we were unable to just pack some waters. They do search the bags and we didn't want our water thrown out. As we got into the big line and slowly inched our way forward, they searched our bags and we came out clean. I glanced over and saw TONS of water in a small cooler that someone else was bringing into the park. I asked the lady who searched our bag about it and she said that water was allowed, just not soda or any other drinks. As she was saying this, I glanced up and the a big sign says "no food or drink allowed". Well strike one for us this morning! They apparently do not consider water as a drink here in California! 

We were there at opening (but so was everyone else) and all the chairs were taken. I asked an employee if there was shade anywhere and he pointed to a hill with some trees. We headed there and decided to give it a try. It wound up being the best thing of the whole park because it was far away from all the noise and the tree brought us shade for most of the day.

As everyone settled in and started putting their sunscreen on, I left in search for some water. All the food places were closed and would open later, but I was excited to spot a vending machine. It was $4.00 for a 20oz bottle of water, but I was thirsty and I knew we needed to stay hydrated! I put my $5.00 in the machine and pushed the button. Then the words "sold out" flashed. No! I then tried the Gatorade, and then was desperate enough to even try pushing the fanta button. Everything was flashing those two little evil words at me. I tried my best to keep calm and headed for customer service. They said to wait and someone will help me with the vending machine shortly. Waiting in the sun and knowing my family had no clue what is keeping me so long I was starting to break down. Finally someone headed straight for me and handed me a bottled water from the vending machine. I was so happy I didn't even care that it actually cost me $5.00 and not $4.00 since he made no reference in the $1.00 change I should have gotten. Should I Make that strike 2? Perhaps not, it ended good to me!

Next stop the water! The kids headed off to the big stuff and Mark and I took Ashton to the little kids section. Ashton wasn't too sure at first but started having fun. After a bit we all started getting hungry and met up for lunch. We decided to head off together and try a big ride that Ashton could go on. The lines were very Long and they didn't even seem to be moving very fast. After waiting 20 minutes in the same spot we got out of line and headed for the raging river. That was probably the highlight for Ashton. He was apprehensive at first but then wanted to keep going around and around! 

I had to purchase this photo they took of us in the raging river! It may be the only one of 5 of us the whole trip.

Mark and Ben headed off to do one water slide and we kept going around the river.  We met up and it looked like Ben was exhausted and done for the rest of the day. Luckily Hannah was still willing to keep going and Mark and her took off for more. Ashton, Ben and I relaxed under the shade and enjoyed some down time. Mark and Hannah returned 1 1/2 hours later and said that was only one ride, the line was so long and the slide wasn't worth it. That is a strike for Mark and he was done with the lines. Ashton finished strong and loved the other little toddler area! We had to tell him it was time to go and he was pretty disappointed. 

Upon arriving at the hotel we sat and ate our Subways and had complimentary chips salsa and beverages. I believe I heard Mark say this was the best part of the trip so far. Lets hope our day at California Adventure turns out to be a good one!

Disneyland

We arrived Thursday late afternoon. The airplane was Uneventful except for Ben being social to his neighbors, a man and his 8 year old daughter sitting besides him. They seemed to talk the whole flight.  

After the flight we picked up our first ever mini van. It is a dodge caravan. Apparently when talking with the rental service at the counter, Mark did have the option of a ford Explorer, but told the lady that his family has been looking forward to seeing him drive a mini van. Ha! Now He regrets not taking the explorer!  The luggage fits perfectly and the kids seemed pretty happy with all the room. Ashton was excited that the doors shut with only a push of a button, but poor Mark couldn't even fit in the drivers seat very well. Apparently the Dodge Caravan is one of the smallest mini vans and doesn't seem to fit taller people. (I drove it one time on the trip, and it was quite comfy for me).

 Marks poor legs were squished! 

After checking into the hotel, we drove to downtown Disney and Hannah and I were outvoted for our dinner options and we wound up at the ESPN restaurant.  The boys were in heaven! Ashton loved the TV's in the bathroom. We didn't miss the touchdown! He was exited to come back to the table and share that! So funny!  

Friday morning we were up bright and early to get to Disneyland. We were all excited and knew our first stop would be space mountain. Ashton had never rode on it before and he was tall enough this year! Unfortunately after the wait at the gate and then another short wait at the inner entrance of tomorrow land, the ride was shut down temporarily and they were hoping it would be up and running shortly. We were disappointed, but walked over to the Matterhorn. We figured that was another ride he had not been on that he would like. We arrived at the entrance and were told once again that the ride was shut down until the afternoon. Oh boy! This was turning out to be an unlucky morning. (Especially because one of their favorite rides,Thunder mountain, was shut down this trip for renovations). We decided to do a few of the smaller rides, since we didn't really have much of a choice, and then rode splash mountain. That is one of Ashton's favorites, but we were going to wait until it was warmer to ride. You wouldn't believe what happened! Just take a guess..... Well... I am sure your guess was pretty close. It wasn't shut down when we got there, it BROKE down while we were on the log boat near the top! Seriously?!!?? Oh my! I just would like to share that those seats are not made for long term sitting and my bottom feels pretty sore from sitting on it for such a long time. It seemed like eternity and I was starting to worry Ashton would say he had to go potty with all the water noises around us. After a while we got going again and finished with a fun ending down the waterfall! The breakdown didn't seem to discourage anyone and they wanted to keep riding. 

Ashton even tried riding in a spot all by himself. We were impressed that he was brave enough to try. After one time though, he decided he liked sitting with someone in the back better. 

The rides were pretty short in the morning and then we tried utilizing the fast pass system in the afternoon. The fast pass system is another negative for us this trip because in the past they would let you use them anytime after the hour listed. They have recently cracked down on that and said you can only use them during the time on the ticket. So there was a lot of walking back and forth to get to the ride. It still saves time on waiting in line, but takes a toll on the feet after a while. After 8 hours at the park the older kids were ready to go, but Ashton was up for more. That was most likely because of the luxurious stroller he was able to hop into any time he wanted. 

Boy was it hot!

Ben did make a comment that he never wants to live in California because it was too hot! We had thought that was were he wanted to go to college because of the good tennis programs here. He said there were lots of colleges not in California that had tennis! He is so funny! Such a true born and raised Washingtonian. 

We headed home and rested for the remainder of the evening to get ready for the water park today! We have no expectations today since this is a new a place to visit. Hopefully that means it will be a wonderful time!

Autumn Marie Cormier

We sure are going to miss seeing her grow up so close to home.

Such a beautiful little girl.

 It was the first time she had a peach. She loved it! 

She liked Ashton!

I can stare at the face all day long!

My favorite photo! She is so fun to make laugh!

Beautiful Happy girls!

Twin day

This was a fun day. It wasn't planned, but Mark gets a good deal on Wilson clothing so he buys Ben clothing too.  He has been doing this for years, but this day they actually wore the same thing. The most peculiar thing about it, is I have never seen Mark wear a color like this before. They both look great in it. Ashton called them twins, and we had to take a photo!

Super hero Birthday party

Ashton got invited to the coolest party ever.  It was a superhero birthday party.  His dad used to be in the military so he pretended to be a super hero trainer. They started with warm ups, which was hilarious. Push ups, jumping jacks, leg squats, ect. Then they went through an obstacle course. Leaping over tall buildings (paper blocks), Walking over hot lava (4x4 board on concrete with red paper underneath) Shooting the villians (silly foam string aimed at the villains on paper) and testing your strength like hulk (pretend weights that were super light)  They all were amazing.  At the end of the training, the received their cape and mask.

We were excited to see him dressed up and thought this was going to something he may like to do again. Unfortunately he hasn't touched is since and has no desire to pretend to be other characters. It did seem to inspire him to read more about superheros. He says he likes Marvel better then DC. Not sure where that came from, but when I tried borrowing DC books from the library he didn't want to read them. Hmmm...What is that kid thinking. And he is ALWAYS thinking.

The Boy right next to him is the birthday boy, Timothy.  It was his mom and dad that were so creative with the party. It was great!

Baby or Big Kid?

This photo was taken so I could show Ashton what he looked like in the cart. Since he was a baby, I have always put him in this to go through Costco. (And we go weekly sometimes for 4 1/2 years)  He always insists, and I normally really like it because he will get samples and I feel like he isn't getting germs all over him. I come home and throw it in the wash. Unfortunately I just found out you need to be 35lbs and under. I am sure people wonder what a big kid is doing up there in one of those, but I never minded. I finally had to tell him that he is probably the only almost 5 year old that ever sits in there. I went as far as to tell him I think there are no 3 or 4 year olds that do that either. I took the photo to show him and said this is the very last time.  Now he sits in the basket on top of a picnic blanket. Unfortunately I can not get too many things because he fills up the basket, but we go so often it doesn't matter. My next step is to tell him 5 year olds walk in Costco!

Copyright

My big thing for the night is I found out how to Copyright a photo if needed. I recently saw where someone used one of my photos for a photo contest without mentioning it. Not a huge deal, but it got me thinking that it would be nice to claim ownership. I hear that you technically have copyrights if you took the photo, but you can take extra precautions with presetting your camera or using Photoshop. I love Photoshop!




Ashton's tennis

Ashton is getting better at his back hand lately. Our neighbors boy, who is 6, is starting to take lessons at the club. Ashton is enjoying playing with him and getting to know him better. Nice kid.

This year I had time to use plant food on my flowers and they turned out beautiful and large. I think I need to take the time every year. :)

Ashton's Haircut

 Ashton saved me money and let me cut his hair. Instead of $16.00, it only cost me $5.00.  ha! He is a thinker. I buzzed his hair in the backyard and gave him $5.00 for it. So technically is saved me only $11.00.  I guess it is still a savings!  He wanted me to take his photo. He loved his haircut.  I think I need to tell him next time that it is on sale. 1/2 off at only $2.50 and see what he says. 

 Taste of Edmonds

 Ashton and I went to the Taste of Edmonds Friday. It was so much fun! Unfortunately it was a lot of walking, and after 3 weeks on my sprained ankle, it is still very swollen. The walking didn't help a bit. I am sure it is making it stronger, but didn't feel stronger.

One of Ashton's favorite things there, besides the fun bouncy houses, was the Transit bus.  He was in heaven! It was even a double decker. He keeps asking me all summer if we can ride the transit bus, so I signed up for the orca card. I just had no clue what to do from there. I was glad this booth and bus was there. I was able to get one on one instructions on how to ride a bus. Pretty silly but it just isn't something I have ever done. I had to tell Ashton that most buses that we may take in the future are not as nice looking as this one. We loved the 2nd floor. Our area doesn't offer that. Perhaps if we get adventurous, we may look for one in the BIG city some day. (maybe that is next summers adventure!)

Ashton was able to pick any dessert there. It was an extremely hot day! He choose the strawberry shortcake. He took a few bites of the whip cream and strawberries and even tasted the biscuit but decided that it was disgusting. $6.00 down the drain. I couldn't even enjoy it because it was full of everything I couldn't eat. He still looked darn cute in this photo!