Legoland, California!

On Monday, we had the opportunity to go to Legoland.  Many places, we have learned, give discounts on particular days to homeschool groups.  So, we gathered 12 people and headed to Legoland for a 1/4 of the cost that it normally is!  (No, really though, we got in for only $21 per person when it is normally  $78 for an adult ticket.  Crazy!)

Anyway, I have to say that Legoland is THE BEST amusement park for our aged kids.  They could ride EVERY single ride, and didn't get too scared on any of them.  It was great!!!!  Plus, there must be something said about the fact that visiting an amusement park where you don't just drip sweat the entire time, is lovely!  Love SoCal weather!  Have I said that before!  LOL!

Here are some pics of our trip.

The welcome sign made completely of Legos!

Starting the day with the Lego Pirate!

Bionicle!  

Pharoah out of Legos. 

Fun ride with our friends.

Everyone loved this slide!

This spider was so cool!  

Lock 'em up!

Coolest dragon ever!

Grace was hilarious on this ride.  It was for little kids, but she made the most of it!

Our crew was getting tired at this point.  Can you tell?  This was where there were no rides, but you could walk around and look at all of the amazing things made out of Legos!  Check some of it out!

Grace driving her car.  She's already a multi-tasker...having a lollipop while driving!

Go Ben and Noah!

Grace and Ashley made it up like four times!

When the kids jumped on the circles, the instruments played.  Fun!

Okay, can we say impressive!

Cute girl at the end of our day!

Lego elephant that squirted water!

Mount Legomore!

All made of Legos!

Such a fun day, and so impressive how many things can be made from Legos! 

So Much Has Happened!

Oh my goodness!  Has it really been 3 weeks since I posted anything?!  Wow!  Where did I go, what did I do?!  So much has happened in three weeks!

Let me start with...MY MOM and DAD came for a visit!!!!!  I was so excited to see them and get to spend 7 whole days with them!!!!!!  It was a really great visit.  We pretty much just hung out here on the mountain.  One day we went to the Palomar Observatory for a quick tour, one day we went to the AMAZING San Diego Zoo, and one day we went to church and then down the coast to view the ocean and see more of San Diego.  This was all fun, but more than anything I just loved my parents being here with us.  We miss our families like crazy, even though we love our new home.  Micah and I are so thankful for the families we have and how much love they show us!  Here are some pictures from the time we got to spend with my parents.

In front of the Palomar Observatory.  (This telescope has been used every clear night since the 1940's and is about 7 miles from my house!  Look it up, it's a big piece of science history.)

The meerkats!  Love these little guys.

One of several camels.

Cute kids by a cool sculpture.

Grace loves the elephants so she HAD to take a picture on this sculpture.

And then Ben HAD to climb the sloth.  

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVED the Polar Bear exhibit.  My pictures do no justice, but I cannot even explain how cool it was to watch these massive animals swim so gracefully!  

The only picture I got to come out clearly.

I did not zoom at all on this picture.  This is how close we really were.

So...the pandas are quite popular at the zoo.  I could not get a good picture because there are so many people in this exhibit that they just kind of shove you through.  Here is the sign though.

We rode the double-decker tour bus through the zoo, and loved it.  Dad said we should have started with this and then we wouldn't have had to walk all over creation!  (It's a HUGE zoo!)

Love this picture!

And...Ben was done!  Can you tell?!  (Grace was being super cute though!)

On our tour down the coast from Oceanside, CA to San Diego, CA, we made a stop in La Jolla at "The Children's Pool."  This is where the seals come on shore and there were tons of them.  Ha, Ha, literally!!!!  Get it?!

It is soon (or maybe has begun) pupping season!  These seals were stinky too!

Love these people!

This one is just so you know I still exist!  (I take all the pictures and don't make it into very many of them.)

So cool to see the seals just hanging out on the rocks!

Fun times with the fam!

On another note, please pray for my mom and dad.  My mom's car was stolen from their garage yesterday, while my mom was home.  This is extra scary because they live in a small town where the neighbors were outside in the yard at the time the car was stolen.  We are so thankful that mom was okay!  I am so glad she did not step outside while this was happening!  It just blows my mind that anyone would drive down a dead end street, past other homes where people were obviously home, and choose my parents' house.  Thank you Lord, for your hand of protection yesterday!

I love you mom and dad, and thank you so much for driving across the country to love on us for a little while!