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So I am going to do my best to piece this trip together and write a decent TR....
A little back story that will come into play as I go along... the month before we left I started having kidney stone issue for the first time in six years. I was put on several medications including one that was to help a stone pass and a couple painkillers to take if things got very bad.
We were all packed and ready to go. My husband set up the taxi/shuttle to take us to the airport. We asked that they arrive just as my son would be dropped off on the bus and we would get the kids and the bags in and off we would go! Oh well, it was a good plan. The driver got "lost" and took 40 extra minutes to get to our house. I was not pleased and now worried that if there was a long line at security we might miss our flight! UGH! We did curbside check in and the guy was very nice and told us we were fine and not to worry. Hmmmm. We got inside and sure enough a tiny line at security! We whisked through and I thought we were home free......not so much! Our flight was delayed.....so all the stressful rushing was for nothing.
It was supposed to be a 615 departure and arriving at 755 (855 to us). We had to pick up our rental car and drive 45 minutes (in LA traffic which is 24/7) to our hotel with two tired boys. This was not going to be easy with things running on time so a delay was not what this mommy needed to hear!! They were guessing our delay to be an hour but of course that was not to be the case. We got the boys settled and pulled out the surprise plane toys and snacks and went and bought dinner. We ran and chased after boys on the moving walkways to wear them out. I went and bought a couple travel blankets since I knew it was very likely the boys would sleep on the plane or at the gate even, I found some soft fleece blankets that rolled up with a handle so we could "attach" them on the rolling carryon. So in the end it was a 2 hours and 10 minutes delay. We would be landing at 1015 local so 1115 to us, and that is before we deal with rental cars and getting to the hotel. They made up about 15 minutes in the air from what I remember, and both boys were out cold when we landed. So now we have a heavy sleeping child each plus a carryon bag and my hubby’s laptop bag and my purse and a diaper bag and only two adult to manage all it. We decided Kent would carry Ethan to get our gate checked stroller and try to get him in it while sleeping, then wheel it into the cabin and run back to me (we were close to the front so we would be able to see Ethan) to get the bags and I would carry Ty. THANK goodness the flight attendants saw the struggle and jumped right in. They grabbed all the bags so that I just took Ty and Kent had Ethan and helped us get them (still sleeping) into the stroller and made sure we had everything. We were the last people off the plane but with their help it took much less time.
I was running on empty at this point and I was very stressed since we were still very many difficult steps away from a warm bed. Someone up above saw I needed a boost and took pity on me...because as we got off the plane and waited for our luggage, four separate people stopped to tell me how well behaved and sweet our boys were during the long wait in Denver and the flight. One other lady said the same just as we were getting on the plane in Denver, I guess that we did something right! They were very kind and said how cute the boys were and handled the whole thing like little troopers. It really did help to hear that.
We had originally planned to all go on the rental shuttle to get the car but both boys were sound asleep. So plan B (an ongoing theme for this whole trip, poor planner girl) was that I would find a safe and busy place near one of the door to the pick up area to sit with both boys and all the luggage while Kent went to pick up the car and he would come back and get all of us. So we found a perfect spot and I bundled up the boys in a travel blanket each since it was chilly and rainy outside and they were sprawled in their stroller seats. I was so pleased I had picked them up and for not too bad a price from what I recall. It took Kent a little over an hour to get on the shuttle, get the car and then get back to us. Ty woke up just before that and was not very happy. He snuggled with me and we waited. I was very happy to see Kent with the rental. He had taken our boy's car seats with him and put them in at the agency so we just put the boys right in. Ethan was still asleep amazingly though. Ty was confused but awake and doing better. I got the address of the hotel into our GPS while Kent loaded up the back.
We made it to our hotel in about 35 minutes I think so I believe it was about 1am local at this point….
Coming up: our hotel room and a brand new day….
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Waiting to eat with Goofy - DLR May 2010
Last edited by MinnieJen; 01-13-2011 at 08:08 PM..
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Such a gloomy start but once you got to your hotel/motel I hope you ran in to a whole lot of rays of sunshine that brightened the rest of your visit to our Magical Park known world wide as DISNEYLAND/CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE.
I had no idea you had such a rough start to that trip! How sweet for those comments on your well behaved boys. (And it's a good thing you took notes because as I think back to this trip, I don't remember much about it anymore!)
__________________
Tanya
Every click helps feed .6 bowls of food to rescued animals. Give a quick click every day and help animals in shelters! www.theanimalrescuesite.com
I had no idea you had such a rough start to that trip! How sweet for those comments on your well behaved boys. (And it's a good thing you took notes because as I think back to this trip, I don't remember much about it anymore!)
This trip had me way out of my planner girl comfort zone with all of the various "issues" we came across. Luckily we were in good form the day we saw you!!
Thankfully between my notes and our photos and videos I was able to put it back together. There are a few spot with holes but for the most part it is enough to do a decent TR I think.
I still can't believe we didn't get one pic of all of us together though!
Kent had called our hotel from Denver to say we would be arriving very late and to be sure we did not lose our room. We pulled up and even in the pitch dark I could tell it was beautiful. We were quite the site I am sure.
We checked in and everyone was amazing and sweet. They assured us that we would not be disturbed so if we needed anything to please call. The bellman commented on “all of our” luggage for 3 nights. I did tell him we were in the area for nine nights and he said that made more sense. Ethan was still (amazingly) asleep and we decided to just get our PJs on and I would sleep in one bed with Ty and Kent would sleep with Ethan in the other. We would set up Ethan’s little travel blow up bed for tomorrow night. So off we went to sleep.
Now it was very nice that Ethan slept as much as he did but this also meant he was not exhausted and got up at his usual time so at 6am local time with us getting maybe 4 hours of sleep we started our day.
We quickly took some pics before I started unpacking. Kent has them on his laptop to shrink for me, as it is easier on a PC than on my Mac. I will post them separately later tonight, hopefully.
Now as I mentioned I was on several new medications in hopes of passing a very stubborn kidney stone. One of them had several side effects and I seemed to be experiencing all of them. I was dizzy to the point of almost passing out if I stood up too quickly and I was nauseous and had a headache, this all on top of the twinges of pain from the stone itself. At this point the pain was under control with Advil but that could change at a moments notice and I would have to be prepared with narcotics, which of course add other side effects. I am also sure that the lack of sleep was not helping with the dizzy nauseous yuckiness. I had meds to take for nausea but I was trying to save those in case the stone pain kicked up and usually nausea is not far behind. Needless to say I was not doing well but I was determined to try and make something of the time we had in LA.
We ordered room service so I could slowly unpack and organize us. The room service was delish! It was fast and hot and so yummy! I did not write down what we ordered but I know I got the amazing eggs with a super yummy sauce and toast. I think we got the boys pancakes and fruit but I am not sure. I know everyone loved their food and filled up. Over breakfast we decided to only try and do the Natural History Museum and skip the children’s museum since I was under the weather and we were all running on no sleep except for Ethan. We had originally planned to eat dinner at a nicer restaurant in Pasadena but I had this mommy sense that it was really asking too much of Ty to sit still at a nicer place with very little rest the night before. I agreed that we could see how the day went.
Off we went to the NHM. I have to say that it was fine, not great, but fine. I expected more I guess. We checked out lots of bones and a cool bug exhibit and a few smaller animal exhibits. Sadly, I almost passed out twice and started to really worry about this medication. Kent suggested a snack so we stopped at the museum's tiny café. We got the boys a carton of yogurt and a PB&J to split and I got a tuna salad sandwich as I really felt I needed some protein. Even though we had eaten a ton of breakfast we ate all of those things and a bunch of things out of my snack pack for the day. Hmmm…. The elevators were HUGE but crazy slow and it took us forever to get back up to the main level. At this point we felt that we had seen all that the boys would care about and we headed out. Again, in the parking lot, I almost passed out. This was becoming a real problem. Kent had asked if I wanted to do some shopping in and around Pasadena but I was not feeling well at all. I am not sure what we did at this point except that Ethan and Ty napped a little in the car. Kent really wanted to try and eat at Parkway Grill and I was too tired for a fight so we parked and went inside. I know we did several timeouts before our meal arrived and it was taking forever to get our food. Ty had a final meltdown and I had Kent take both boys out to the car and just as they left our food finally came. I had it packed up and I went out to meet the boys. please know that my boys are usually fine in a nice sit down type place once in a while but this was just asking too much. We went back to the hotel and ate and decided to order a movie and rest for the evening. I don’t remember what movie we watched or what we ate from the Parkway Grill but I know we were all asleep nice and early.
The next morning I decided to take myself off the medication that was making me so ill. It was a medication that was originally made for a mens “plumbing” issue but it can help those trying to pass a kidney stone. I just think maybe the dose was too high with how tiny I am and it was just not working for me to take it and not pass out and away from home with two small boys to care for. It would not make my stone worse it just might not pass as easily. I am kind of a medical geek and I was confident in my choice. I wish I could say this would be the last time on the trip I would have to use my “medical knowledge geekdom” but at least for the next couple days I felt so much better!
This day was our last full day in LA as the next day we would head to DLR! We decided to go to the Aquarium as planned and maybe walk around Long beach a little. We have a very nice aquarium in Denver so I was hoping it was as nice as ours. This was a Saturday and it was BUSY! It took us a while to find a parking spot in the garage and then the elevators we not all working but we finally got our tickets (with a coupon I found on the way there in a local paper) and in we went. It was a very very nice aquarium and they had some very cool exhibits. One that showed a shark egg that had been safely cut open and a clear plastic window inserted so as the baby shark grew you could see it. They had a video explaining the process playing on a loop right near the tank and it was very cool. They had a huge new sea otter tank that you could see above and below the water. Otters are so fun and playful they put on quite a show. The boys had a blast. We stopped to get a meal in their café. It was very busy but there were lots of food choices for both parents and kids. We got the boys fed and Ty started being very clinging to me and sure enough he crawled into my lap and fell asleep. Ethan was soon asleep in the stroller and I managed to get Ty into his side of the stroller too. We walked around a little more and checked out the gift shop where I got a big shark for each of the boys. We left and decided to walk over to the little harbor that was close by. The boys were soon up and playing with the sharks that we had picked up for them. It was very warm and by the time we made it to the harbor we found some shade and got some ice cream. I was very happy to not be feeling very dizzy or yucky at all today so I was pleased with my choice to stop the one medication. We looked around in the shops and found this cute pirate store and took some silly pics!
We also went into a fun hat store with every kind of hat you could imagine. Ty soon found a cowboy hat that looked just like Woody’s hat and it was so cute on him. There was also a Jesse hat and Ty insisted that mommy wear it! I have a tiny head so even though it was a large child’s size it fit perfectly. These were very very nice quality hats. Not like the plastic foam Woody hat Ty had at home. They were each about $24 so we decided to get them and wear them tomorrow at DLR. Now if you have read any of my past TRs you know I am always wearing a Disney cap or Mickey ears (I have quite the collection now) when I am in DLR or WDW so my opting to wear a Jesse hat did not even make Kent blink. In fact he was going on and on about how cute it was.
At this point we headed back to the car. We stopped at a Trader Joes to get some things for a light dinner and breakfast the next day. We also stopped at a cupcake bakery I had read about. OMG, these cupcake were good. I have had myself many many “gourmet” cupcakes and these were by far the best! If you are ever near Pasadena go to Dot’s Cupcakes. Ty and I had a little cupcake fest in the car on the way back to the hotel.
We had fruit and sandwiches and salads for dinner and I got us packed up and ready to leave the next day. We all slept well and very soundly that night. It was a much better day.
Up next: pics (hopefully) and headed to our happy place!!!
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Sorry about the lack of pics last night. I ended up finishing my packing and a bunch of last minutes things for my weekend trip to DLR this weekend. Ty and I leave late tonight we are soooo excited.
I am also just a tiny bit sad as I will be leaving Kent and my little Ethan at home. This will be the first time I have ever spent a night away from Ethan in his whole life. I am sure they will have tons of junk food and movies and fun without boring old mommy!
Ty and I will be partying with the Davids family to celebrate little Katie's belated first birthday and meet more of her extended family. Ty keeps listing all the rides he wants to go and the hugs he wants to give to our friends.
So I will get those pics up and another update once I get back. I am still deciding about writing a TR but I always say that and I always write one....
Good call to stop taking those meds. Holy cow, I can't believe how lousy they made you feel. Yuck! At least you could take your dinner back to your room and enjoy it there.
Have a wonderful trip with your little boy!! And hello to the Davids, and happy birthday to that cutie pie!
__________________
Tanya
Every click helps feed .6 bowls of food to rescued animals. Give a quick click every day and help animals in shelters! www.theanimalrescuesite.com
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We got inside and sure enough a tiny line at security! We whisked through and I thought we were home free......not so much! Our flight was delayed.....so all the stressful rushing was for nothing. 
We would be landing at 1015 local so 1115 to us, and that is before we deal with rental cars and getting to the hotel. They made up about 15 minutes in the air from what I remember, and both boys were out cold when we landed. So now we have a heavy sleeping child each plus a carryon bag and my hubby’s laptop bag and my purse and a diaper bag and only two adult to manage all it. We decided Kent would carry Ethan to get our gate checked stroller and try to get him in it while sleeping, then wheel it into the cabin and run back to me (we were close to the front so we would be able to see Ethan) to get the bags and I would carry Ty. THANK goodness the flight attendants saw the struggle and jumped right in. 
They grabbed all the bags so that I just took Ty and Kent had Ethan and helped us get them (still sleeping) into the stroller and made sure we had everything. We were the last people off the plane but with their help it took much less time. 
Waiting to eat with Goofy - DLR May 2010
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Over breakfast we decided to only try and do the Natural History Museum and skip the children’s museum since I was under the weather and we were all running on no sleep except for Ethan. 
We had originally planned to eat dinner at a nicer restaurant in Pasadena but I had this mommy sense that it was really asking too much of Ty to sit still at a nicer place with very little rest the night before. I agreed that we could see how the day went.
Kent suggested a snack so we stopped at the museum's tiny café. We got the boys a carton of yogurt and a PB&J to split and I got a tuna salad sandwich as I really felt I needed some protein. Even though we had eaten a ton of breakfast we ate all of those things and a bunch of things out of my snack pack for the day. Hmmm….
The elevators were HUGE but crazy slow and it took us forever to get back up to the main level. At this point we felt that we had seen all that the boys would care about and we headed out. Again, in the parking lot, I almost passed out. This was becoming a real problem. Kent had asked if I wanted to do some shopping in and around Pasadena but I was not feeling well at all. I am not sure what we did at this point except that Ethan and Ty napped a little in the car. Kent really wanted to try and eat at Parkway Grill and I was too tired for a fight so we parked and went inside. I know we did several timeouts before our meal arrived and it was taking forever to get our food. Ty had a final meltdown and I had Kent take both boys out to the car and just as they left our food finally came. I had it packed up and I went out to meet the boys. please know that my boys are usually fine in a nice sit down type place once in a while but this was just asking too much. We went back to the hotel and ate and decided to order a movie and rest for the evening. I don’t remember what movie we watched or what we ate from the Parkway Grill but I know we were all asleep nice and early. 
Sounds like you made the best of your time in LA! 
Have a good weekend! 
Disney Magic - Oct 2015
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