3 wks already?

I can't believe how much time has gone by since I blogged last. I didn't get to blog much while in Disneyland because Tim's computer is really slow & I couldn't upload any pics. The time we spent in CA is amazing. I loved the fact that I was able to share Schane's first time in Disneyland with Oma & Opa. Everywhere we went she was amazed. She did have one grumpy day as well as her mom. I will be sure to send her to her dad's when she is older & we are grumpy together.

Schane's favorite ride was probably CA Screamer. She still talks about it. Her eyes continue to light up, she talks a mile a minute, well she does that anyway, & everytime she talks about it makes me smile & laugh right along with her. The place she liked least was A Bug's Life. You would have thought that Opa would have learned his lesson years ago when he took Hannah & Miriam but no such luck. I told him afterwards that he couldn't even think of taking Nora because if two of his granddaughters didn't like it then I'm sure the third wouldn't either. I took many, many pics & will forever cherish the memories that we made.

Besides being busy every day, Schane' lost a tooth while eating in our hotel room. I just happened to be reading at the pool & she came running up to me & showed me her tooth. At first I didn't believe her. She will often pretend that she lost a tooth so I just thought it was just another joke, but no, she had the proof in her hand. She seemed amazed the next day that the tooth fairy was able to find her in Disneyland. No note was written this time.

We got home on a Sat & Mon was the first day of school. Schane' seemed to adjust pretty well with the new schedule. I transferred schools this summer so we are now able to walk to school in the am & pm. Many kids walk without their parents but they are always with friends. Since Schane' doesn't know anyone yet I walk with her. Even though the school is two blocks away I continue to sweat quite a bit. It's only 107 in the afternoon so I'm not sure why I'm sweating.

School seems to be going pretty good. She has a math & spelling test every Friday. The math test is timed & she seems to have a bit of trouble with that. Last week the teacher only did 45 seconds & she realized that wasn't enough time for the kids to finish. When I talked to the teacher this week she said that she will be moving it up to 1min 30sec. We worked real hard on the math this week & on the time & she still had 3 left to finish. Maybe she'll do better in the classroom.

I decided earlier in the month to take Schane' out of swimming lessons for Aug. She will start up again in Sept. Deb & I keep teasing her that if she continues to swim as well as she does then she can participate in the Olympics & we'll come watch her swim. Don't worry though I'm not one of those crazed moms that will force her to continue. Well, right now I am. I am making her take swimming lessons until I feel that she is strong enough to hold her own if something happens to her & can help other people if something happens to them. So often we hear of to many drownings or near drownings her in AZ & I want her to have the ability to be able to help others as well as herself.

As for the cheerleading, we are scoping out a different instructor on Tues night. Her last coach is moving & is going to be approx 2hrs away. As much as we love Coach Cathy, we really do not want to drive that far.

Schane' also wants to get back into volleyball. See, she can do that in the Olympics too! So that will start in Sept. Church also starts on Wed nights in Sept so we will be quite busy. I will take her out of things if I think she is getting overloaded. Which she might be anyway because she also sees her dad one eve during the week.

That's about it for now. Other things have been going on but I don't have anymore time to write. I'm not at home right now & I need to be leaving so I can get home & go walk to the school.

Who Is This Hijacked Mystery Poster?

It's Jules and Nora fixing some code on Mindi's blog. You should be good to go, Mindi! :) We love you and enjoy lots and lots of Disneyland, Schane & Tim!

New Port Beach...

We had a late night last so we didn't get up til 9:00. We then went down to eat a very non healthy b-fast in the hotel & then Tim took another nap so Schane' & I went back to Disneyland Park. We went back to the Disney Store & went into a bunch of other stores that we didn't go into last night. We ended up being gone for 2 hrs. Schane' was hungry & Tim hadn't called yet so we headed back to the hotel. He was still sleeping. Schane' woke him up & told him it was time to get up & start spending time with her.

After awhile we decided to head down to New Port Beach. None of us had been there before so we were looking forward to it. We got directions from the front office & headed on our way. Tim had me drive because he did all the driving yesterday. That was an experience I won't forget. Mainly it was driving into New Port. If you've ever experienced it you'll know what I'm talking about. I really felt like an outsider with not knowing the rules of the road. The roads are tight together, there are walkers, cyclists,& skateboarders everywhere. The best part is trying to find a parking space. I think it took us almost 20 mins to find a spot. We ended up in an Alberton's parking lot, which clearly states that your car will be towed if you're not shopping. Those weren't the exact words of course but you get the picture. Tim decided that we better go into Alberton's and buy something so we could have proof that we did shop & not just go to the beach.

Finally we had the sand & beautiful ocean in front of us. Schane' was mesmorized. She kept yelling at us to come on. We look at her & tell her that we're right beside her. She just couldn't get to the water fast enough. We spent almost 2 hrs at the beach & would have stayed longer but Tim was getting worried that the car was going to be towed so we left.

Schane' & I played in the water for quite awhile & then went exploring on the rocks. I'm glad I brought our water shoes with us because they came in handy when we decided to go on the rocks. We found a lot of crabs & even some starfish. We walked almost to the end & then I had somebody take our picture. Tim decided to stay on the beach. He doesn't like to get wet so he planted his butt & just watched from afar. At one pt Schane' was out to far so I went back in for her & fell over a rock. I received a nice scrape that hurt for sometime afterwards.

We finally dragged Schane' away from the beach stating that maybe we can come back on Tuesday. Tim was getting worried that we couldn't see the car when we finally came up on it. Then the fun really began. Tim decided to drive back to the hotel. Ummm big mistake, he got lost. We didn't have any maps with us & the more Tim drove the more frustrated he got. Finally I realized that we called the hotel yesterday so he called them & received directions. Thank goodness I was listening to him because he was repeating everything that the front desk was telling him. Everything that he said outloud he did backwards. I'm like weren't you supposed to go down that road? Don't you think that our hotel is that way on this side of the road? Yup, I was right 3 times in a row. Next time I'll be driving.

We had a pretty quiet evening. I took Schane' swimming & we watched some tv in the hotel room & then ate a very late dinner. We are all going to sit down in a bit & plan a strategy for our very first Disney experience together. If you don't know this, both Schane' & Tim have never been to Disneyland. It will be an unbelievable day tomorrow.

Happiest Place On Earth...

After 7 hrs we finally made it to Disneyland. Tim drives kind of slow & he made a lot of stops along the way. We weren't really in a hurry so it didn't matter to much. Tim managed to drive the whole way without me being sarcastic on the way he drives. I managed to almost complete a full book, just shy of 20 pgs.

After we check in Tim takes a nap & I take Schane' swimming. I really wanted to go walking around but both of them had their own plans. Finally, later in the eve we managed to leave the hotel. Schane' was so excited. I'm sure all of you still remember the first time you took your kids to Disneyland. It will sure be a memory I will not forget.

I had told Schane' beforehand that she is not getting anything tonight. The excitement of the whole aspect just sent her overboard. We were both very patient with her & told her that another day she will get something. Tonight we were just exploring the new surroundings.

The whole place was magical. You could just feel the excitement in the air. Just to walk around & look at peoples faces was priceless. We did not go into Disneyland or CA Adventure but instead walked the surrounding areas. The music was great & the smells were awesome.

Finally at 10:30 we walked into an IHOP for dinner. Schane' was beat as well as Tim. I was ready to keep going since I don't sleep well anyway. Now Tim & Schane' are watching Spider Man 3 & we are planning our day for tomorrow. Until then..