Magic at Disneyland

Inside "The World of Disney" store. This is a great store.

Outside a fun Disney store together.

This is truly an amazing place for Derek, he LOVES Legos! I was so glad we could go here.

Derek, I am your Father!

Derek and his old pal, Woody, and even better, made of LEGOS!

Outside of the Monsters Inc. ride. This is one of my favorite shows. We were able to literaly run on this ride several times in a row.

This is always a favorite of ours, very silly. We love and truly appreciate the need for silly.

Inside of the Beast's Castle. This was a new area for us to discover and enjoy together. We will definately go back.

We're so excited, Wahoo!

Outside of the big Cinderella's castle

These pictures are new pictures for our many Disney adventures. Hannah wanted to capture these little miniature homes/castels/etc for us, thank you Hannah

Pinochio's town, beautiful mounains in the back.

Darn, I put this in sideways, sorry. Cinderella's castle. This would be amazing to go and explore and get lost in.

Cinderella's first home with her terrible wicked step Mother.

What a palace! Princess Jasmine and Aladdin. Wouldn't that be fun to go and explore.

Hannah captured the famous "Rabbit Hole" that Alice went down. Thank you Hannah.

We love the Story Book Ride. It would be fun to be able to shrink ourselves down and go into all the homes they have in the ride. Just another way Disney helps our imagination to grow.

Derek in the Tea Cups, not a ride that I can do and feel Disney after. If you know what I mean.

Wow, what great luck. Our Fairy Godmother. It would sure be nice to take her with us back home!

We were so excited to get this picture with Ariel. All the times we have been to Disney we have never seen her. Such a great time.

Arrgghh Pirate Derek, Pirate Mom, and Pirate Hannah. We have a lot of fun dressing up in the Disney costumes. Hopefully another fun tradition to continue and great memores for the kids to enjoy as they need to reflect on happy moments in their lives. We all need to good memories to draw on when times are not so "Disney" I hope that my kids will be able to recall and use these memoris and many other others that we have had together when they are in times of pain and help them to get back to a better place.

Right outside of Adventure Land, let the fun begin.

One of our many traditions the kids and I enjoy together. We always try to find a fire truck in the different states/cities/places we are at. I'm so glad I can record it, so many times traditions and memories are lost as we grow up and it is so helpful to be able to remember good times and have gratitude for them.

California Adventure under construction. We are excited to come back to see what the the imangineers have come up with for us to enjoy.

Just at the beginning of our time in another place, another world, without meanness, without unkindness, with beauty, laughter, smiles, singing and endless immagination.

I love Goofy, and I love people who are like Goofy.

With one of our favorite people, Mickey. I don't think we will ever get tired of this mouse.

Derek making his very first Disney Light Saber. Although definately not his fist Light Saber. He still loves this very much. He sure is an appreciative boy. I hope this characteristic will stay with him as he gets older. i think this is a very overlooked attribute that should be cultivated MUCH more especially with our own family members.

Derek is becoming quite the photographer, he took this picture of Hannah and i with the statue of the White Rabbit.

I love Derek's pose, yet again, making it easy to love him and a joy to be around him. This is one of Hannah's heros and favorite people, Walt Disney

We just loved the topiary (sp?) of the swans. I love the topiary that is all over Disney Land grounds. The grounds are very beautiful. I once read that Disney wanted his guests to feel as though they had left the real world and entered into another. I guess if you keep your child sense of wonder and belief this is exactly what happens.

One of Hannah's all time favorite movies/books of all times. Alice in Wonderland. This was a great ride.

Infront of the Matter Horn

At the Buz Light Year ride, Astro Blaster, a big favorite with us. We were able to run on the ride quite a bit without having to wait in line. We were very lucky. Although I must say that I timed it that way. I have read books and checked to see when the least busy times are so that we can get the most "bang for our buck"

Zurg, curse you Derek will never go to the Dark side, he likes being happy too much!

Adventure Indiana Jones style

Hannah and i having fun dressing up Indiana Jones style

Derek loves to pose, he sure does have a way to enjoy things to the fullest. His enjoyment of life is so catching and makes him so much fun to be around. This was in front of the Haunted Mansion. We love the Disney was of being scared.

Hannah and her Winnie the Pooh friends.

Eeyore and the kids. My kids are definately not Eeyores.

I love this picture of Hannah and Tigger

With an old Disney friend who reminds me much of my kids.

With one of Hannah's favorite Disney friends.

With some very good friend, Jesse, and Woody. We were so lucky to see so many Disney Characters and get so so many pictures with them. We were so blessed to have so many great memories that we can keep recorded to reflect back on when ever we need help to be happy.

Right outside of the Thunder Mountain. Such a beautiful day.

On the back side of Cinderella's Castle. Right in Fantasy Land. Such a wonderful day.

In front of Small World, we sure do love this ride. It is even beautiful before you get on the ride.

In front of the Matter Horn ride.

He's breakin out!

Derek clowning around in Toon Town having loads of fun.

We are in Toon Town, just before getting on the Roger Rabbit ride. We love this ride. One time it broke down while we were on the ride. The lights turned on and we got to walk around the ride and see things without the black lights on, we were escorted of course and unfortunately were not able take pictures but it was still kind of cool to see the ride "behind the scenes."

Derek's camp out

Derek had a seriously fun time last night with his scout troop. His scout leaders sure are great. They had practiced several skits for the families that came. They also planned a fabulous dinner for us of Little Caesar's Pizza and root beer floats. Delicious! We loved the skits that they did. They got David to be a volunteer for one of the skits. They used him as a table and set the "table" with plates, glasses and filled the glasses with water and left the pitcher of water on his back and left him. It was fun to see him on all fours with all that water on his back. The boys got a real kick out of seeing the king of pranks have one pulled on him.





Derek said that he loved the camp out so much that he wanted to buy a tent TODAY! We unfortunately have not bought him one yet. This does sound fun for him to get a tent big enough for him, Koda, possibly Hannah and or his friend Sam or his Dad sleep out with him in the back yard this summer. I am glad that he enjoyed this experience.





I am certainly grateful for the scouting program, this is NOT one of the different and unique experiences that I will share with him.

Mariner's baseball game

Stuart and Kim and their family invited us to come and go to a Mariner's game with them. They knew that Derek LOVES baseball and would love to see a pro game. This was a short weekend but a lot of fun. We stayed with Stuart and Kim at their house. Gavin was very nice and let Hannah and I stay in his room. Derek had a sleep over with his good buddies, Tate, Micah, and Gavin. The night of the game we were able to get into the ball park early and participate in a parade down on the field. It was Little League that night. So these pictures are of us down on the actual field, by the teams dug out, and home plate. It was quite a great unique experience.

By the dug out. This seriously was so cool.
Right by home plate.
Looking out on to the field. Yes, we were WAY high up but that did not take away from the experience at all. Derek kept saying, "this is SO intense!" I was so glad we could share this fun new experience together and with my brother and his family. We are so blessed to be able to enjoy such a variety of experiences with each other. This is my idea of pure heaven!

Derek was so excited to get this baseball hat! It was such a great experience to live this through Derek's eyes. He was so excited for everything and had such an attitude of gratitude. We loved the experience of our first ever pro baseball game hot dog. That is just one experience every young boy should be able to have. The hot dog was truly amazing, but more than the taste, was the experience and love that we shared with each other of being together and experiencing these treasured moments together. What could have been viewed as a small moment was not treated that way and I am so glad my kids do not treat their lives this way. They are grateful for small moments even when we are at home and just sitting beside each other having dinner or talking in the car. They are not always looking for more, or something better for them to be happy or be grateful. They are happy and grateful for each moment we have together because they truly get that there are no "small" or "unworthy" moments of happiness.
This is my Hannah on Uncle Stuart's new dirt bike that he bought for his boys. She of course already knows how to ride. She is so amazing. She knows so much and has so much fun.

Goldie again riding the dirt bike.

Great family dinner

- We had a great family dinner tonight. The food was pretty darn good, we had bbq sandwiches, corn, tomatoes, home made baked beans, & home made strawberry pie. Yes, all very tasty, but it was more than that. Hannah & I made the dinner together. Yes, she has helped me before to make dinner & I love it when I can spend as much & any time I can with Derek & Hannah.

It was so heavenly to be with Hannah making dinner together. We made two dishes that two family members gave us the recipes for. I love to have those kind of recipes, it gives me great memories of times spent with family members that love us. The food is even better when the great memories are combine with great food.

Derek & David enjoyed dinner also. Traditions, spending time with family just having every day activities, but loving those times & not treating them lightly or casually. Enjoying them fully treating them with respect & reverence for they are truly fragile in so many ways. The smiles we receive, the hugs we share the dinners we eat together & so many other seemingly ordinary moments (which should not be treated as ordinary at all) are the precious jewels we are collecting while waiting for the "great"moments to wow us. Not knowing that those "wow" moments we are waiting to impress us are quietly happening all around us if we will chose to see.