The Big Move-Packing Week

We are in Ohio! We've actually been here for a week, but with the chaos of unpacking, organizing, cleaning, painting, figuring out life...well...a lot has been happening this week.

So when I left off on our road trip adventures, we had a game plan and everything was set in place for us to move!

So how did the actual move go?

Honestly, not too shabby, I must say. There were moments I wanted to rip all my hair out, but other than that, we survived and we're here, so I'll call it a big W.

The hardest week of our trip was by far the week before we moved while we were out of our house, but still in California. The hotel we were staying in was nearby our house but other than that, I have nothing good to say about it. The neighborhood was bad so we couldn't take the kids anywhere to run around. The room was the smallest room we had our whole trip, we had A LOT of work to do, and with the kids adjusting to changes and realizing something was going on, they didn't nap or go to sleep well at all.

 We shuffled back and forth between our house to supervise movers and to clean and the hotel where the kids had toys and beds. It was a long week, a busy week, and a week I would not like to do ever again.  We checked out of our house 2 days before we hit the road and spent the next few days saying bye to friends and checking off a few last California must-do activities before hitting the road.

The hubby had a few things to do to out-process from base and we stayed busy with friends and playing.

and before we knew it, the day had come for us to hit the road! In some ways, that week went quick, but if we had some of the other hotel rooms we stayed in along the trip for that whole week, I'm sure it would have been a much more pleasant experience then it was.

Either way, our stuff was packed up and on it's way to Ohio, we were checked out of our house and the base, we did one last packing up of the van and loading up on snacks and things and we hit the road!

See you later Disneyland!

In the military, as you move from one place to another, you always say "See you Later!" instead of goodbye. It's a small Air Force. Heck, we could be back in SoCal in 4 years. Or we might have friends joining us in Ohio in a few months. We're going to be living just a few minutes from our good friends that were stationed in Florida with us. So chances are, we'll see you later. We'll have to say many "see you laters" over the next few weeks. Strangely, I'm not sure any will be as sad as our "See you later" to Disneyland we made this past week.

Our first trip to Disneyland was when the twins were only 3 months old, with oxygen tank, pulsox and a breast pump in tow (not even kidding). Since then, we've gone many, many times. We've been there for Christmas, Halloween, and Mardi Gras.

 We were there to celebrate the most pregnant I'd ever been (27 weeks and 2 days pregnant with Ben). And yes, 1 preggo, 1 adult, and 2 toddlers can fit on the Peter Pan ride all in the same ship, just FYI.

We've gone with family and friends and made so many memories along the way. It's going to be really sad to not be able to just go to Disneyland whenever we feel like it. It's been a very special and magical place for us these past 3 years and memories I will take with us no matter where the Air Force sends us.

We spent the day doing all of our favorites, including the train ride around the park...minus the grand canyon part. I hate that part of the train ride. Peter Pan and the Tea Cups were a must.

and Tom and I had to check Radiator Spring Racers off of our list of rides we haven't ridden yet.

I was super bummed the twins are still a few inches too short. They would have LOVED the ride.

Amelia requested the Ariel ride which was closed (oh no!) so we settled on spending some time with Minnie Mouse and time at the castle (boy she loves that castle).

Some water play at Bug's Land, terrifying the kids at the Haunted Mansion and shooting some aliens on Buzz and we were all pretty spent for the day.

While we waited for the parade, we took the kids shopping and let them each get one toy. We don't normally get souvenirs but since this was our last trip, we wanted them to bring home something special. Amelia scored an Elsa doll that had just been stocked that day (and probably sold out that day as well), Jackson got a train and Ben got some Cars water toys.

I may have shed a tear watching the parade, seeing the kids all light up and smile and wave at their favorite characters.

Oh Disney, your magic never ceases to amaze me. Overall, despite Ariel being close, we had another wonderful day at Disney. The kids loved every second of it and that's really all that matters. Seeing them happy is the best thing in the world.

If I'm crying as we drive away from California, 90% of the reason might be because of how much I'll miss Disneyland. We're hoping to plan a Disney World trip in a year or so, so I know it's not the end of Disney, but it's our last trip while we're stationed here in LA.

For now, see you later Disneyland. I will miss you. You really are the most magical place on earth.

Easter Events

I hope everyone who celebrates Easter had a fun one! Ours was pretty quiet but fun. We are slowly going through our moving checklist (which is still very, very long) so rather than have to worry about preparing a big meal or a lot of events, I called the weekend a no-cook weekend and we just relaxed and checked things off our list with a few Easter events thrown in there for the kids.

Saturday the base had an Easter Egg hunt and carnival type event. We went to the Easter egg hunt 2 years ago,

aww they were so tiny!

This year, things were a little different...

Ben was big enough that he really got into the egg hunt too.

Afterwards, we checked out the rides and fun, but the wind was wild and the lines were long so we didn't last long.

Then we proceeded to clean the walls of the house and start going through the kids toys...ughhh...moving....

Easter morning the kids got to wake up to some treats from the Easter bunny. Squirt guns (very popular on our street), bubbles (classic), a new toddler bible, and a little bit of candy.

 

 

 They just liked to make a mess with all of the easter grass...that is still all over my living room despite several attempts to clean it all up.

We went to church then had brunch on base. We went to the mother's day brunch there a few years ago and it was really nice. Easter was very similar, lots of good food, nice decorations, not super crowded, although we went as soon as it started to squeeze in bunch before nap time so it might have picked up later in the day. We tried to get a family picture, but it was hard enough to get a picture of all 3 kids together.

We also planned out our cross county route, booked some hotels and made plans to stay with some friends so I'm starting to feel a little bit more prepared for this cross country roadtrip! A little....now to just get the house ready, and the packing, and then figuring out the housing situation when we get there. Ok, so there's still a lot to do ;)

Happy Easter everyone!

Citrus Classic Balloon Festival

I've been itching to get out of the "city" so the other day we took a long road trip to the country to see the Citrus Classic Balloon Festival!

We were promised fair like food and fun for the whole family, and I must say, it definitely didn't disappoint.

First of all, there were balloons!

 I'm glad we got there early because of wind, the balloons were only up for a bit in the early morning and then had to come down. But luckily, that wasn't all they had going on.

There was a play place set up by the Ventura Little Gym. They twins had a blast roaming around there.

There was also a hay ride around the avocado and lemon trees! The twins had to sit like big kids on the hay bails but by the end, it turned into a hay battle between them.

 There was some food and craft booths, but by far the biggest highlight of the event was the train ride! Oh yes, a train at a balloon festival. We can find trains anywhere ;)

 One cart was left open so you could sit on benches and soak up the view. Amelia enjoyed a snack with her ride.

But the twins loved that they could move around a bit more on the real train cars.

It was a beautiful scenery on our ride to Santa Paula and back. While seeing the ocean every day is great, it's also really nice to get away and see the mountains and farms in the "country".

Oh yea, Ben was there too ;) haha poor kid gets lugged around everywhere but never any pictures taken of him since he's usually being carried by me or hanging out in the stroller. He had fun too though seeing the sites. He's such a smiley guy.

It was a beautiful day for a balloon festival and we had a great time! Definitely a must see for our California friends!