Christmas day was spent with Melissa's family and then we took a drive to Spokane to visit Davin's folks. It was fun to actually see some snow for Christmas! We also managed to take a quick jaunt over to Idaho to see good friends Buck and Tamara and their 8 month old baby Kai. He is a cutie and sometimes would start laughing to himself for no apparent reason. We can't wait to see our own baby!
A week ago, Gina and LeRoy took us to Zoo Lights to celebrate our baby. This was also the first outing after Davin was done with school. We had never been to Zoo Lights before, but the Lees go every year. Actually, this was their second time going this year. We had a buffet dinner before walking through all the lights, and we closed the evening by riding on the train. We didn't see many animals, but the lights were a pretty impressive display.
A few weeks back we went to the Sauvie Island Pumpkin Patch with the CB youth group. This is a tradition we usually do with the Lees, so we also met up with them. The maze was extremely muddy, and of course the kids got muddy up to their knees. 
Who can resist this adorable face?
After shopping around for anything but a Black & Decker, we settled on the Oster Fusion. This one looks really good (6 points on the reversible blade) and is pricier so it should be better and last longer, right? We immediately got it out to make smoothies. We threw in all our ingredients, pushed the pre-programmed "frozen drinks" button (oooo - fancy!), and watched. It started off great with the reversing blade to help reposition the ingredients, then it kicked into high gear, and... nothing. Everything was sitting there on top like it wasn't even in a blender. Unbelievable. We still had to get out a spatula and try to help get the food to the blades.... not once or twice, but at least 6 times before we had a smoothie. We tried it again last night just to be sure we didn't put in too much stuff at once. It had to have help just to blend a banana!
Help Us Shop:
Maybe our expectations are too high, but we want to a blender that can make a smoothie without a spatula's repeated intervention and that will last awhile... ok, and that's not $400 like Blendtec. Any suggestions?
Monday, October 15th was our last day in the park to pick up things we missed or wanted to do again. Here's a great shot the camera took of us on California Screaming. I love that roller coaster! This trip was Jeremy's first time experiencing roller coasters and he liked them, too, although you may not know it from this picture. We got a good laugh out of this one.
Late that afternoon we took one last look in Adventureland to see if Indiana Jones was open, and it was! People said it had been shut down for at least a week, and I was bummed we wouldn't get to go on it. We hopped in line, and now the trip was perfect. I got to go on my favorite ride! I like this goofy picture of Jeremy in his new Indiana Jones hat while we waited in line.
A closing shot of California decked out in candy corn. It was a great time! I'm sure this first family vacation to Disneyland won't be the last. We were happy although rubbing sore feet and longing for a long nap. It will take a few days to recuperate, but I look forward to sharing photos and watching the video to relive the memories.
Sunday, October 14th started out back in Disneyland. We caught some of the rides we missed the first time around like Space Mountain which Mom actually really liked. I didn't know if she'd enjoy a roller coaster in the dark or not. We also caught Finding Nemo which is the newly re-done submarine ride. This was our longest wait (over an hour) before boarding "Scout" and looking for Nemo.
Here's a great shot of the castle from a different vantage point than the traditional straight on view. We also caught the Parade of Dreams down Main Street. It was the same one from the 50th celebration, but it was still good. Davin and I split off for the afternoon and early evening to have some time to ourselves. We enjoyed shopping, rides, and dining at the Blue Bayou which is our special spot in Disneyland. The evening closed with nabbing front row seats for our second viewing of Fantasmic.
Saturday, October 13th was all about California Adventure! We hit most of the big sites that day. The biggest surprise for Mom and Dad was the Tower of Terror. On that ride they try to mess with your mind a bit, so it makes it even scarier. We got front row seats and Mom, Dad and Jeremy were in the middle of the row for a perfect view. Mom let out one scream and then was silent the rest of the ride. Uh, oh. That's when you know it's too much, and she's not having fun. Still, now they can say they've done the Tower of Terror even if they never do it again.
After that we calmed down by taking in the fabulous Aladdin musical. What a good show! I also enjoyed stopping in the Beauty and the Beast room. I love watching it magically transform. We really had a fun day. Oh, and the watermelon picture is the only group picture we got with everyone, so there you go. We closed the day back in Disneyland and got to watch Fantasmic which Dad thought was the best music, light, and performer show he's ever seen.
Splash Mountain was a big hit and ended up being Jeremy's favorite ride. He liked sitting in the back seat. Davin was telling Mom and Dad that we've never gotten really wet (which is true) and don't understand the "dry is not an option" phrase they use for the ride. We've always walked away dry. He took the front seat and on the first little dip... splash! He got soaked... again and again, and finally the big plunge. He was dripping wet, and we all got a pretty good laugh. Mom and I got wet too. Figures, as soon as you say it's not that bad you're proven wrong.
We stayed at Desert Inn and Suites right across the street from the east entrance to the park. What a difference it makes to stay within short walking distance! We had adjoining rooms which gave us plenty of space, and the place was clean and service was good. I'd like to stay here again.
Another fun activity was the flying carpet. It was a very wobbly platform where three teams pulled ropes to get you really high up in the air... I'd say maybe 50 feet up. I assumed what people were calling a Ninja stance to keep my balance, and the teams did awesome lifting me up and back down again without dumping me off. We didn't do as well keeping Davin on the platform, but I like this shot of him high up in the trees.
I enjoyed getting to know the staff a bit better. I'm not around for every youth activity but they welcome me in when I can come. Davin's got a great team to work with.
We also introduced my family to the Nintendo Wii. It was a big hit and even Grandpa got in on the action. He bowled 133 which beat Davin's best score so far. Then Dad got up to bowl. The Wii is so completely foreign to him, but he sure caught on fast and bowled an amazing 188, lefting us all in the dust. Watch him and Aunt Marcia in action below. (At one point you can briefly see Mom in the background. She just finished putting up her princesses for display above the door.) It was such a fun afternoon. I think I know what we'll be doing at the next family gathering.
Davin and I tested for our brown belts on September 12. We have now left the intermediate and entered advanced ranks.
Melissa going through her 6 forms - white through blue.
We got to swing our staffs around for our weapons form. Stand back!
Can I just say, Davin is amazing at his jump reverse chop kicks! He loves the jumping kicks, which will be helpful in the advanced ranks.
We had 100% on our board breaks - front kick, side kick, ax kick, and spinning heel.
Davin and I went to the Portland Street of Dreams to check out this year's mutli-million dollar home show. It's always such a treat to see these vast, beautiful houses. Our favorite was the Pinnacle, which you can see in these photos. It had a fairytale quality to it with it's stone turret and a moat-like lilly pond out front. Of course it was immaculately decorated and outfitted with all the latest technology. We loved the stunning dining/kitchen area as well as the downstairs theater room with the "wet bar" that's bigger than our condo kitchen. It's still for sale at $2,700,000, but we think we'll save our millions for something else. Still, you could have one amazing party here!
We finally got all eight expansions for Carcassonne! The last expansion we needed (the Count) was ordered on Monday from Funagain and arrived a few days later in time for our weekend game. We met up with the Lees, who introduced us to this game, and played the ultimate round of Carcassonne. It took three hours (partly because we were playing with the little known baby expansion, which adds unexpected interuptions to feed, change, and entertain the little Lee). The Dragon didn't see much action, cut-throat Towers was toned down with all the other expansions, and the King made a huge difference when the points were added up. We thought the massive 50 point city decided the game early, but not so. An affordable alternative to Catan, you should add this one to your games!
The Final Scores:
240 Melissa
222 LeRoy
144 Davin
135 Gina
