Wish you were there...

We made it home tired but safe and sound around midnight Saturday night. We are now all rested and recuperated and I'm ready to share the details of our wonderful vacation with you.

On Sunday morning (July 20th) the limo showed up about 8:20am to take us away on our adventure. My Dad was there to see us off. It was a dreary, rainy day but nothing could dampen our spirits.

It's time to head to the airport.

This is the goofy smile my 2 boys always give me when I take their picture (which is a shame since they both have beautiful smiles).

The lights in the roof of the limo looked like stars - Michael thinks we need these in our car.

He liked the fish lamp too. There was a wet bar with cold sodas and juice boxes set up for us.

A tender moment between a little brother and his big sister.

The ride to Syracuse was a lot of fun. We got to the airport in no time and sailed through checking in and security. Before we knew it - it was time to board our plane.

The flight attendant came into the terminal looking for a "special passenger" that she had heard was flying that day. She took Michael down to meet the pilots and check out the cockpit. They even let him push one of the buttons that sets off the announcement tones.

The flight was smooth and uneventful. It was about an hour flight to Cincinnati where we had a 45 minute layover - which was just enough time to catch our connecting flight. It's a good thing I had packed some sandwiches and a bunch of snacks or we would have been starving by the time we got to the west coast. The last leg of our trip was around 4 hours and Michael looked out the window and chattered the whole way.

When we got to LAX, we picked up a mini-van that Make-A-Wish had rented for us and headed for our hotel on Disneyland Drive. Jenny brought her GPS, named Jill, which was great to have. (By the way, Michael knows how to spell GPS - it is "G" "P" "S".) Jill can get an attitude if you don't do exactly what she says so sometimes we had fun tormenting her (hey - it kept us entertained in the car).

Our hotel - Disney's Paradise Pier. It is one of 3 hotels in the Disney complex.

Goofy was in the lobby to greet us. (BTW - Goofy's shirt may look like a peppermint candy but it doesn't taste like one - don't ask me how we know this.)

By the time we checked in, it was around 5pm but our bodies thought it was 8pm due to the 3 hour time change. We were all pretty hungry so after we took our stuff to our room, we headed to the PCH Grill (the restaurant right in our hotel) and had a nice dinner. Michael ordered a Make Your Own Pizza.

They brought all the fixings out on a Mickey Mouse shaped tray (and of course there was a chef's hat)...

Michael spread the sauce on the crust...

added a little cheese....

and some pepperoni...

Then the waiter took it to be cooked in a wood fired oven and presto - the best pizza ever according to Michael (and I have no doubt it actually was).

We wound out the evening by checking out the rooftop pool.

As usual - Michael couldn't wait to go swimming.

On the other hand - Jenny and Brian preferred the hot tub.

There was an awesome water slide next to the pool that Michael loved (and I have to admit, I did too).

The first time Michael went up the slide, Jenny went with him and was going to ride down with him. The lifeguard said everyone had to go alone so Michael hopped right in and down he went! Then he jumped out when he got to the bottom and headed straight for the stairs again (and again and again). I am sad to say that I meant to take the camera down to the pool and get some pictures of Michael on the water slide but I never did.

After the kids went back to the room and settled in for the night, Jeff & I took a walk to Downtown Disney to spend some quiet time alone for our anniversary. This is a neat area with a variety of shops, restaurants and live music. Then we turned in to get a good night's rest in anticipation of our big day at Disneyland... and that is where I will take you tomorrow.

Please keep Michael in your thoughts and prayers, JoAnne

P.S. I am sure that by now everyone has heard that there was a 5.4 earthquake in southern California today. I read that they had to evacuate Disneyland. My first thought was that if the quake had happened one week earlier, we would have been at Disneyland. I guess our guardian angel was watching out for us.