Babies, the beach, and Disneyland 2012

Rather than give a totally legitimate excuse as to why it's been eons since my last post I'll just move on to the epic update. Sadly this is probably only one third- maybe even one quarter- of the total number of pictures I need to update here. Life marches on...

So the kids continue to get bigger, cuter, and wiser every day. Miles has undergone an amazing transformation in the past few months from severely separation anxiety-ridden clingy toddler to independent, confident little preschooler. There are more details to share in that regards- but they pertain to pictures I haven't uploaded yet, so I'll just stick with the pics from this post.

We visited Nana and Grandpa Salt in the city a few months ago and finally took the kids to Baker Beach. In my mind I envisioned a clear sunny day with an empty beach and a perfect photo opp of the kids in front of the ocean, with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background. But then I remembered this is San Francisco. And I was happy that it was only fog ruining the beautiful view. The kids had a blast in the sand (though I think Miles and Grandpa Salt might have had more fun digging through our beach snack bag). Miles only tried to eat sand once and was mostly content to just play and roll in it- turning into a tiny sand yeti. Savvy wanted to run in the surf and find cooler people to hang out with (a group of teenagers who humored her and tried to help her build a sand castle). The pictures speak for themselves.

We also fit in another trip to Disneyland in October, taking advantage of the ridiculously relatively cheap rates at the Disneyland Hotel during the Gay Days convention pricing each fall. While this was Savvy's third trip to the park in three years and Miles' second in two, it might as well have been everyone's first. Somewhere between last fall and this one Savvy lost her innocence and decided to ask each character at Disneyland if they were real or just wearing a costume. Totally bummed us out. But all was not lost- Miles saw the park through the eyes of a crazed toddler and LOVED it. He was patient when we would child swap with Savvy on the big kid rides and was ECSTATIC when his turn came to ride anything. I think the highlight of the whole trip for him was our first ride (the monorail) into the park from Downtown Disney. Every day now for months when we've asked him what the best part of his day was he gives the same answer: "Monorail!" He also loved the Pirates of the Caribbean and got a crazy happy face when he realized we were riding it the second time in a row. He is a total thrill seeker and wanted to put his hands up for everything- even the stroller ride. :)

Not to be outdone, Savvy was quite the thrill seeker this trip, too. She wanted to go on her favorite ride- Tower of Terror- ten times but settled for three times with me and once with D. (That's all D could handle- she's decided never to ride it again). Savvy also loved the dance parties. This year our trip included a weekend day, which meant all the nighttime entertainment was in full effect. They had a character dance party going on in California Adventure, where she got to dance with The Big Bad Wolf (she told him he was a bad man), Cruella DeVille (Savvy got down on all fours and barked at her- don't ask), and the Genie from Aladdin. It was really cute and she partied out for a good hour or so before moving on. She also loved the Mad T Party that started that night-- it's basically a Disneyfied rave party geared toward tweens in California Adventure. She pushed her way into a crowd circled around some teenage break dancers and waited for an opening before showing 50 or so people her sweet 5 year old dance moves. Thankfully there are some genetics at work, because Mommy and Mama dance more like Elaine on Seinfeld.

This was our first year doing Disney as vegans, and we were pleasantly surprised by how many options they had available for us to eat there. I think our favorite was the chimichurri tofu plate in California Adventure and our new favorite find- the little hole in the wall restaurant right across from Tarzan's Treehouse in Disneyland. The sides/garnish bar alone was worth the visit. It was also our first trip with just us and the kids- since the previous two trips included Nana and Salt and then Nona. It was actually great being just the four of us. While we loved having the grandparents along, it built up our parenting confidence that we could do this on our own and all have a good time. We went at a slower pace and took nap and swim breaks at the hotel as needed. It was great. That said, we've decided to skip Disney in 2013 for a destination we're all really excited about: Hawaii.

We decided to indulge Savvy's budding interest in geology and volcanoes as well as our desire to snorkel, lay in a hammock, and drink mai tais. We'll be renting a condo and a beach rental rather than going the hotel route and trying to make most of our own food (which means a trip to the Hilo Farmer's Market- can't wait!)... it should be an adventure come May. In the meantime-- promise to get another backlogged update on here soon. Hope all is well in your neck of the woods.