Legoland birthday

My cute boy turned six! We took him to Legoland for his special day.


My mom was visiting us and my dad was on business in San Diego. So we met up with Dad on the morning of Carter's birthday and we partied all day long!

We love Harry Potter. We're stunting Lily's Harry Potter reading at book 3 for the time being. Since she isn't allowed to move on to book 4 yet, she's read book 3 five or six times.

I love this ride. The kids have free reign and can drive where ever they want. The kids felt pretty cool being able to drive on their own. Lily was dismayed at how many kids were driving on the wrong side of the road!

A look of concentration.

 

The Knight's Tournament ride was a huge hit! It whips you all around in every direction. They have gentler settings and a "head-holder" to accommodate little people. Carter and Lily loved this ride. They went on it over and over and over!

After riding with the kids, Aaron and Dad went on it at full speed. It really took them for a ride!

Hazel's favorite was a little airplane ride. It provided just the right amount of acceleration to give her a thrill. I loved watching her on this ride. Her face would light up and she'd giggle in delight!

 

Carter and I liked it too!

Oh man, look at those faces! This trip cemented a love of roller coasters in my kids' hearts. Luckily, they have a fun dad to show them how to ride coasters.

I love roller coasters!! Apparently my family does too! You'll notice the empty seat where I should be. I cried during every roller coaster ride I had to sit out on because of pregnancy. Just kidding!  Oh well, Hazel and I kept each other company and had fun together!
Grandpa loved this coaster too. Carter tricked Grandma in to riding this coaster. She hates them! But she followed through on her commitment to Carter, screaming all the way! I'm so bummed I missed the photo of them coming down the steep hill together. It was classic! Their hair was blowing back behind them, Grandma's eyes were squeezed tight shut and her mouth was open, screaming. Carter had the biggest laugh smile on his face. Go Carter and Grandma!

This one's for you, J.J.

Again, just look at the carefree delight! I think she was singing something. Just look at those feet off the ground. So fun!

I think this is where the kids were genuinely expressing how sorry they felt for me because I couldn't ride any roller coasters or zippy rides. They were sweet. 

Building with Grandpa.

More building.

It was so nice to play Duplos while we waited in a long line. Carter made a really long train. The park wasn't crowded. We only had to wait in long lines twice.

Kid Power Tower, a super fun ride. You have to use your strength to pull yourself to the top of a tower, then let go of the rope and drop. Fun!

 

This ride had a HUGE splash. Grandma, Hazel and I opted out. The others got drenched! Look at their faces again! On a side note, look at the family in the back row. Their response is hilarious!

 

We made a quick stop at the beach on our way home. We didn't plan to play in the water...but Lily and Carter went in anyway and had a great time! I love watching my kids play!

Feet in the sand. It felt so good! Until it was time to put our shoes on and leave!

I felt this little guy move for the first time on our first day at Legoland. I think he and Carter will have lots of fun playing Legos, trains, and cars together!

Carter loved digging in the sand.


Hazel loved collecting sea shells.

Lily loved playing in the waves.

 

Lily played and played and played in the waves. Her huge grin didn't leave her face the whole time.

I'm dying to take them back to the beach.

I love love love this man.

 

Our trip was so much fun. I couldn't have asked for more (except to ride the roller coasters myself). I loved having Mom and Dad with us, the date Aaron and I snuck in while the kids partied with grandparents at the hotel, and most of all I adored watching my kids have fun!

The day after we got home from our trip I started having terrible pain in my chest and upper back and breathing got rough. I ended up in the ER to rule out a blood clot in my lung. (!!!) I was incredibly relieved to find out it was pneumonia. Treatable, minimal risk to baby, and not life-threatening for me. I'll take it! The first week was horrible. Thank heaven for Mom who kept our household running. We would have crumbled without her help. Thank you, Mom! This week I'm feeling much better, but have to do almost *nothing* so I can get better. Wish me luck on that one! Ha!