California Adventures

We took a quick trip to California Adventures this week. We've always just stayed at Disneyland when we've gone before, so this time the kids were ready to try something new. We had a great time.

Seth took a 1 hour nap, but was happy all day. He had a great time in the Monsters Inc ride, which we did four times. And he loved the parade. We were buddies throughout the day because between him being less than 40 inches and me being pregnant, we weren't allowed on many of the rides.

Rachel was our dare devil and loved all the scary rides. Her favorite was the California Screamin Roller Coaster that goes upside down. She also went on the tower of terror three times--more than Danny did.

Danny was a trooper and never complained about walking everywhere. His favorite was the California Screamin Roller Coaster too. Danny and Rachel went on it together. Bob was going to go with them, but that would make one of the kids have to ride by themselves, so he just let them go together. I was a little worried about that, but they did great.

Aaron was brave too and loved everything. His favorite was Mullholland Madness, a fun roller coaster that had no wait at all; so they rode it at least 5 times. The kids also loved going in the redwood forest where they had a zipline that never had a wait, so every time we walked by they went in and rode it a few times.

Back to School

The kids all started school just fine two weeks ago. Danny has Mrs. Wolf for third grade. I think we'll both really like her. She seems like a fun, good teacher. He likes his class and knows some of the boys in there already. He settled in really quickly this year.
Rachel has Mr. Esquibel for second grade. He seems pretty good. He really likes to play the guitar, so if he brings music into the class I think Rachel will really like it. This is her first year not being with her best friend, Jaclyn. She's doing just fine. She's making new friends and having fun. She's likes to be responsible and organized about her homework. She also loves to get dressed for school. She comes out in cute outfits with her hair done. She even asked to have her hair curled one morning. She used to hate it when I'd try to spend more than two minutes on her hair.
Aaron started preschool with Miss Kathy. Rachel went there for preschool too. She's wonderful. Aaron is really liking it. She keeps the kids more active than his last teacher did and I think he needs that. He's also excited because Miss Kathy said if he does the homework program this year, he'll be reading by the end of the year. Aaron was really excited about learning to read.

Seth had a hard time when the kids left. He cried several times when they got out of the car and he didn't.

End of Summer Party

We had an End of Summer Bash this year on the last weekend before school started. We had silly string and a pinata and rain trampoline. It was a great night!

Rachel is 7

Bob and I keep telling Rachel that she can't get any older, but she isn't obeying. We sure love her. She is such a kind, fun, beautiful girl. She loves to be with her family and friends, she's always thinking of things she can create and she has such a strong testimony and sense of who she is.

Rachel had a birthday party at our house again this year. The girls had pizza and cupcakes and made bracelets. Bob loved his young audience and was cracking jokes all over the place. And the girls thought he was hilarious. Bob was in heaven! He also entertained by playing "rolling log" with them and letting all the little girls jump over him.

Rachel chose a fish theme this year. I love my girl. We went to the party store a couple of weeks ago and we went down the girl isle and there were all these pink and purple and frilly and princess-y things, but all she even noticed were the themes that included animals. She was deciding between fish and kittens because she's already done horses and dogs. Then we went to the trinket isle to get some little gifts for the treat bags for her guests. I pointed out necklaces and sparkly bracelets, but she went straight to the rubber snakes and that was it--All she wanted in the treat bags was candy and rubber snakes.

Between all her grandparents and friends, Rachel ended up raking in over $100 this year. And she is not a saver. So after her party, Rachel and I went to Target. She wasn't interested in saving any of her money, she knew exactly what she wanted: a huge hamster house for her zhu zhu hamsters. The kids have all been playing with it constantly since it was set up.

Woolley Family Reunion

We had a family reunion at Bryce canyon this year. Everyone came to our house on Thursday and then we all drove to Zions and rode the tram and did the little hike to the entrance of the Narrows. Then we continued on to Bryce. We had cabins rented the first night. We had a campfire and the kids ran around with cousins. The next day it rained and was cold most of the day. Bob and lots of the other adults tried to hike in Bryce canyon, but they got really wet. We went swimming in the indoor pool and we hung out under the pavilion with everyone and tried to stay warm. That night it cleared up and we sat around the campfire and listened to the brothers and grandma Donna share memories and watched some family movies on the projector. Sunday we got up and drove home. Everyone came back to our house Monday for Girls Day. We went shopping, had massages and went to see a show.

Mandalay Bay

This year our hotel of choice was Mandalay Bay. We had a great time. They have a wave pool, kiddie pool and lazy river. There was something for everyone. And Seth loved it too. All summer he's tolerated swimming, but never had much fun and never lasts more than 45 minutes. But he was great the whole 2 1/2 hours we were there that night. Then we went back to our room and ate PB sandwiches and got a pay per view kid movie--The Spy Next Door with Jackie Chan; the kids thought it was hilarious. The next morning we got up and ate and were back at the pool at 8:00. The second day Seth was so tired from our late night that he just laid on us while we floated around the lazy river; a couple of times we thought he was asleep, but not quite. By check out time everyone was worn out and they all fell asleep on the way home.

Lake Tahoe Vacation

Amanda and Kevin recently moved to Truckee, CA, just a few miles from Lake Tahoe. They graciously invited guests to come visit and we jumped at the chance. Bob and I went there for our honeymoon 9 years ago and it was beautiful.

We had such a great time with the Smiths'. They had a great place for us to stay and our kids had a great time with their kids. And I loved having so much time with Amanda!

We went to a couple of different beaches. The kids loved the sand and venturing out into the lake. We went to Sutter's Mill and the kids panned for gold. They thought that was so exciting until they realized it's hard to really find gold. But they still had fun and Bob was a great guide and helped them find what little flecks of gold they did get. We went to Carson City to a train museum, which all the kids liked, but Seth loved. And we went and saw the capital building and all the other important state buildings and had lunch on the lawn there.

The weather was perfect and every night Bob and Kevin took all the kids and walked around the golf course in their backyard looking for lost golf balls. They loved it and they always found several balls. Then after the kids went to bed, the adults would play games. It was such a great vacation!