Disneyland, repeated.

We recently took another trip to Disneyland, mostly to partake in their special Halloween festivities. I'll have more on that in another post, but this post is just about the normal Disney happenings. Right now, Disneyland is promoting their "Year of Dreams" sweepstakes, in which anyone can be a winner, if they are in the right pre-selected place at the right time. This trip, we were in the right place twice! So we won some lovely Dream mouse ear hats, and some especially lovely Dream Fastpasses, which allowed us to move closer to the front of the line on some rides. Sweeeeet. Rylann was thrilled with winning, even though she didn't really know what she won, and Tristan was just happy that everyone else was so happy, even though he didn't know why. So basically, it was win-win for everyone, and was an excellent extra for an already great trip.

Rylann wearing her special ears on the spinning ladybugs.

Various pics from Goofy's playground:

Rylann with Pluto

Tristan was very pleased to be able to climb into this seat by himself.

So much so, he kept repeating the process for almost 10 minutes.

Pluto was obviously very popular with Rylann....

and with Tristan too!

Enjoying the view of the spinning teacups. He LOVED this ride!

Attempting to visit/vandalize (ahem, Tristan) the White Rabbit's cottage.

In front of the Sun Wheel, which has now been closed permanently. :(

And the following, is a short set of pictures that shows why car keys are not regularly given to chocolate-driven, overly enthusiastic 3-year-olds:

Tristan goes boom!

While Rylie is all smiles, Tristan tends to his battle wounds.

***Rylann's license was revoked shortly after the taking of these pictures.***

Happy Birthday Tristan!

We celebrated Tristan's 1st birthday in true toddler style at a local park. It was supposed to be a construction theme, but sometime around 2:00 a.m. the night before, I abandoned most of decor plans I had. It didn't seem to matter to Tristan at all; he had a blast!

Tristan had a great time playing with his friends and family, pushing around his new birthday present from Aunt Ashley and Uncle Rodrigo, and EATING! This child loves to eat, which was why I was very surprised during the cake smashing portion of the event. At least, it was supposed to entail cake smashing. I even purchased a small cake called a smash cake, and (accidentally) pre-smashed a bit for him, to make things easier. However, Tristan wanted nothing to do with smashing. Instead, he chose to take a slice of bell pepper, and dip it into the frosting and lick it off, repeatedly. Rylann didn't smash her cake at her first birthday either. So, it looks like I am raising a new generation of non cake-smashers.

Anyway, the following is a small collection of pics from Tristan's special day.

The birthday boy.

Loving his lion.

Did I mention this toy was a favorite with everyone?

Tristan was not into hitting what he thought was his brand new toy truck.

But oddly enough, he did enjoy watching others do it.

Rylann takes her turn.

Candy, er, fruit snack coma.

Tristan being invited to play with fire.

The Artist at Work

Here are some pictures of Rylann hard at work at the Children's Museum, courtesy of her proud aunt. Thanks Auntie Loma!

Remember my name, FAME!

Rylann performed her ballet routine at her studio's annual recital. She showed not a hint of nervousness, and as you'll see in the video, had quite a bit of fun. She was so struck with awe after her adoring fans started to applaud, she forgot to dance and simply stood there, smiling at everyone. Thankfully, her dancing partner was able to bring her back to reality, to finish the dance.
After her performance, she ran backstage, jumped into my arms and squealed with joy. She was so proud of herself, almost as much as I was of her. Sniff sniff, my baby girl is growing up!

Sea World Play...Date???

We went on an outing with our new friends to Sea World. I knew they would have a good time, but I didn't realize how good. Once Rylann met Luke, the two of them were inseparable. They held hands, played, and chatted it up. They even attempted to ride in Luke's stroller together, which was both adorable and hilarious. In the car on the way home, Rylann told me, "I love Luke", and then smiled and covered her face with her hands. My crystal ball predicts more play dates for these two!

Rylann & Tristan taking time out to hug.





For now, Tristan finds Rylie HILARIOUS.





Sweet Maddie watching over Tristan.




He looks so innocent, doesn't he?





Jett and Tristan plotting to take over the baby pit.





Tristan supervises his, uh, workers, Ry and Luke.





Tristan takes note of all the work he has yet to do...




and decides he'd rather nap instead.






Rylann and Luke with Elmo...




and Big Bird!

Ry and Luke are happy to pose for pictures together.

With half of the participants asleep, the outing comes to an end.

Spirit Fingers!

Here is Rylann, hard at work in dance class. :)

Happy 4th of July!

Rylann, Tristan, Nana, and I all went to the town parade in the morning. Both kids really enjoyed it, Tristan for the moving vehicles and animals, and Rylann for the candy the parade participants threw out and the free ice cream at the end.

The parade begins!



Tristan waving at the war veterans.




Tristan is a little unsure about the sirens on the fire trucks.

Obviously, Rylann took her flag waving job very seriously.

Tristan decided that this parade was in fact, very entertaining.

Happy Tristan!

He enjoys holding sharp, patriotic objects. Go figure.

The end, and can you see which person is the happiest in this picture?