Arrie Jo Boss

Here are Arrie's first photos!!!! Isn't she cute! :) We went to the doctor on Friday morning and It's A GIRL!!! We are so excited! Mostly we are so excited that she is healthy. Also, you will see a picture below of her right foot, so far we only can count 5 toes, but she had her toes on her left foot curled, so maybe there are 6 toes on that one! :) It was a very cool experience - I have to say, I was relieved there was actually a baby inside of me and not something else moving around and making me sick! Most people thought it was going to be a boy, but Braden has always known since he was young that his first child would be a girl! - and it is! Oh, and last night, for the first time, Braden felt her kick! VERY COOL!

THE Happiest Place on Earth

I have always wondered why they call Disneyland the "Happiest Place on Earth." I mean, isn't it all relative to the person saying it? Well, I decided to give Disneyland a try to see if I too could gain a firm testimony of the famous phrase. Now that we have been home from there a week, and that I have had some time to really think of my experiences there, I think I have come to a conclusion.

But first, let me tell you how this all started. Oh, about a month ago or so, we were talking to my parents when they mentioned they were going to take Jerik, their oldest grandson, and their youngest son Dill to Disneyland. Jen wanted to go and so I made the mistake of saying we had the money to go and that was that. I just said that to be nice, but didn't really think she would jump at the opportunity. I thought she would have wanted to save the money. Anyways, the "Priceline Negotiator" got us the best deal (4 days 3 nights in an awesome hotel really close, and airfare for just under $240/person). We got Park Hopper passes on ebay for about $120/ea. ($20 less than at the park). Oh. We also got a full-size rental car (a van) for 4 days for $89 thanks to Jen's mom's "Entertainment Book" membership. That's the details, now to what we did.

Day 1: Thanks to Captain Kirk, we got on a great mid-day flight to Long Beach. Once there and the rental car gotten, we headed to the beach in Surf Town, USA - Huntington Beach. That was fun, hot, and salty, but fun. We then went a few miles east to the hotel, checked in, freshened up, then went and ate at Cheesecake Factory. Dang good shiz.

Day 2: Disneyland! Got there early and no waits in line. It stayed that way pretty much all day. Now, because Jen is "with child" and because my mom was a wuss today, they went and got the rest of us fast passes to things. But we really didn't have to wait that long for anything anyways. Dill and I had to wait about 40 min for Space Mountain, but that was well worth the wait. Food was expensive, so we split most everything. There was a parade in the evening which was fun. Weather was overcast and not too warm, but perfect in that we weren't miserably hot. Good day. Fun day. We were glad to go to bed. We did everything (seriously, EVERYTHING) at the park between the hours of 9 am and 6 pm. No regrets. "Happiest place on earth phrase" in question.



Day 3: California Adventure! And oh boy what an adventure it was. First, Soaring California twice! It was fun and I really thought we were flying. Next was the Rapid ride which was fun, but we all got soaked and due to the weather, which was overcast and colder, so we were all wet for most of the day. Next I was pleased to experience Screamin' California. FOUR TIMES! Loved it. Probably the best ride so far! The best experience though was getting my mom to ride it. She was terrified and it was great. She screamed frantically and was practically crying. I was laughing so hard I thought my cheeks were going to split open! Tears everywhere between the two of us, I couldn't talk for some time after wards without laughing hysterically. Best memory of my mom to date. Another really fun ride was the Tower of Terror. I loved the overall experience. Again, Jen got us all fast passes and was able to go on a few rides herself, including the Toy Story ride, which is super fun! Finished up Cal. Advent. around 7 and headed over to Space Mountain one last time, this time with my mom. That was a super long wait because someone blew chunks all over the ride. But, once again, totally awesome. Mom did a lot better. Then was Tower of Terror one last time, this time with mom. No fireworks tonight. But the bed felt better than ever.








Day 4: Last day of awesome free breakfast at the hotel. Did some free laundry at the hotel, packed up, and left. Thanks to the host of the old show "Rescue 911" we had a 4 hour wait at the airport. Smallest airport ever. We got home, ate, then went to bed.

So. One week later, after much thoughtful consideration, here are my "Best's":

Best Ride Waiting Experience: Tower of Terror
Best Ride Element: Indiana Jones
Best Ride Animatronics: Pirates of the Caribbean
Best Overall Ride Experience: California Screamin' (with my mom)
Most Suspenseful Ride: Tower of Terror & Space Mountain
Best Kids Ride: Toy Story
Stupidest Ride: Roger Rabit
Longest Wait: Space Mountain
Shortest Wait: Haunted Mansion
Best Food: Soup Bowls (California Adventure)
Best Place to take a Nap: Tiki Room
Biggest waste of time: Waiting to get autographs from characters (They always cut the line off when we got to the front)

Now that I've written all of this, here is the verdict: The combination of Disneyland and California Adventure really do make up the Happiest Place on Earth. For now. But also know this, we'll wait to take our kids when they are past the age of accountability (8). Jerik just got tired and didn't want to do a lot. But that's it. It was a great trip and nice to get out of Utah for a bit. It was much needed and again, a lot of fun.