California Trip Part II: Seaworld

We drove about an hour and a half from our hotel in Santa Ana to Seaworld in San Diego on Saturday, December 29, 2012. For me it was a welcome change from Universal Studios because the crowds were not so oppressive and we didn't have to wait to do things much at all. The down side was that it rained in the afternoon and evening.

This is Preston feeding the Sea Lions. He was the only kid brave enough to pick up the little fish and throw it over into their habitat.

After experiencing the lines at Universal, we decided to do the roller coaster at Seaworld first before the lines got too long. It was called the Manta and was a pretty good ride--just a little scary for Preston. Right next to the ride, they had an area where you could touch the bat rays. 

The first show we went to was the dolphin/acrobat show. It was quite amazing, but a little hard to capture on camera. 

There were lots of divers and acrobats from the tall scaffolding you see here. In this picture, the man is on a bungee system and kept going up and down doing various tricks each time.

This most be near the end when all the acrobats and dolphins were doing their thing.

There are three Killer Whales at Seaworld. They have an area down a hill below ground level where you can see them in their tank. That's where these pictures are taken.

The Shamu Show! Shamu seems to be the name for one or all of the killer whales. In the early afternoon we went to the Shamu Show. In most shows, there is great wheelchair seating. At this show, which seats, I would guess about 5000 people all the wheelchair seating was full. I stayed with Mark in a "standing room only" section that was accessible for Mark's wheelchair (then eventually found a seat), but the rest of the family went and sat where there was room in the "Splash Zone." They were selling rain ponchos, but we weren't smart enough to buy any. And boy did those killer whales splash the audience. Some people were completely drenched--and it was not that warm and shortly after started to rain. Still the show was pretty amazing!

Kennedy and Mark with Elmo and Zoey.

Since it was raining, we went to see all the indoor attractions we could find. In this picture the people are on a moving sidewalk with a shark tank in a dome overheard.

  

Preston was a big fan of the penguins. They didn't photograph well as there was condensation on the glass/plastic that separated them from us. I was surpised how short penguins are. Most were 2 feet tall or less.

One whole exhibit was dedicated to the arctic. There were walruses, polar bears, a beluga whale and even a real wall of ice for people to touch. The whole building was set up to look like an arctic expedition. I thought this was pretty funny--flights to Moose Jaw.

The walrus was huge and just looked gross--like the fatty part of the outside of a ham.

Giant Sea Turtle

Tropical Fish

In the late afternoon we found this ride which the kids really enjoyed.

We took Mark with us and went on the Gondola over San Diego bay. My fear of heights really came into play on this one, but it was still pretty neat. As you can see, it wasn't very nice weather.

The Seal Lion and Otter show was a comedy and it was really funny--even though the Otter misses all of his cues. Our favorite part was when santa's helper asked the sea lion if he'd like some Christmas Casserole and the sea lion bends forward as if to puke and makes an extremely loud gagging sound. Some members of our family could relate!

After Seaworld, we experienced In 'N Out Burger. After walking all day and shivering from the cold/rain, i didn't even feel guilty about eating a hamburger, milkshake and fries!

California Trip Part I: Universal Studios

We left home on Wednesday, December 26th at 7 am with our whole family  and Mark's caregiver Kennedy Lowry. Our van was loaded down with the luggage carrier on top. We drove and drove. About Idaho Falls we hit snow and from Pocatello on, the roads were bad. We drove until 9:00 pm that night and found a motel in Nephi, UT. It was the Super 8 and it was a little ghetto. (I think Kennedy was wondering if she could trust us to find ok places to stay.) We had hoped to get as far as Cedar City, but this was unrealistic with the storm. The next day we drove through snow again for 2-3 hours, but somewhere between Cedar City and St. George the snow disappeared. When we stopped for lunch in Mequite it was only +6 Celsius, but we wanted to kiss the ground because there was green grass, no snow, palm trees and sun! That day we made it to Santa Ana, by suppertime. It was such a relief.  Kennedy was a hurting machine by that point. She had a car accident on the 24th and was pretty sore, especially with all that driving. 

Our hotel there, the Quality Suites John Wayne Airport was great! It had a courtyard in the middle and lots of gardens. Also, each room had 2 double beds and a sofa bed. The sofa bed was in a separate living area so it was possible to get a little privacy for Kennedy from Mark (He was in her room and the rest of us in the other room). They also had a great cook to serve breakfast in the morning.

The first park we went to was Universal Studios on Friday, December 28th. It was about an hour drive through crazy traffic from our hotel to Hollywood. We got to glimpse the Holleywood sign on the mountain but only briefly while driving. I was surprised it was on an west facing mountain.

The park was all decked out for Christmas à la Grinch Who Stole Christmas.

Just after entering the park we got our picture taken with one of the whos from the Grinch who Stole Chirstmas.

Our first activity was to go on the Studio Tour. This was my favorite part of the day. We got to see sets from lots of movies and TV shows and also had some cool interative experiences while on the tour. This is one shop from the NYC or big city set. These buildings look real, but they are just made with "foam, glue and lots of paint." There is nothing inside these buildings

This is the clocktower building from Back to the Future. After we got home be bought the movies so that the kids could see them and understand why this was cool to Rob and I.

See the water coming? They showed us how they create rain for movies, then sent a flash flood towards us. The foamy water you see is the flood coming.

This is skull island from King Kong. It is literally only about 6-10 feet high, but that is the set used in the movie

This was my most successful video I took on the trip. nenenena!

This is one of the houses from Desperate Housewives. They have a whole street with these houses, but the houses are not real--again foam, etc with no real rooms or finishing inside.

Jaws!

On the lower lot at Universal Mark and I ran into Dora while waiting for the others to go on a ride. She had a break in having kids come see her and she came over and cuddled up to Mark for about 5 minutes.

Austin getting his picture taken with Optimus Prime

  

The kids meeting Bumblebee

Austin in front of the Transformers Ride. This ride had really long lines. Eventually in the evening, Rob , Alyssa and Austin waited in line and got to go on the ride while Kennedy and I stayed back with Mark and Preston. They said it was the best ride in the park--a partly 4 D, partly roller coaster indoor ride. Apparently it was worth the wait.

Our family in front of the Universal Studios Globe outside the park as we were going for lunch.

Sorry. This isn't a good picture of Rob, but I had to include it anyway, because we had lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe, Hollywood, outside Universal Studios. The car in the background was in the middle of the restaurant.

This is outside the the entrance to Universal Studios, decked out for Christmas. We were able to go to the Grinchmas play. It was a 20-25 minute show based on the Grinch movie. It culminated in the lighting of an enormous Christmas tree. One highlight (for some people) was that they had brought in snow to put on the ground under some of the seating areas.

Christmas Surprise

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care....

As you can see there were some gifts under the tree, but it was not so overloaded as it has been some years.

On Christmas morning, our kids arose with eager anticipation to see what Santa had brought for Christmas. When all the presents were opened, they noticed that while they did get some gifts, they didn't get much that was fun....except gifts from Grandparents and Joe and Haylee's family. (Thank you for the great gifts!) There were needed shoes and boots here, a needed new coat there, a few books and so on. Then, behind the tree, there was one small gift  for each kid to open.
Inside this gift was an iTunes card and the following verse:

This card will keep you entertained
After your interest in driving has waned.
We'll settle in for a nice long drive,
Until in safety we arrive
What adventure will it be?
Follow the clues and you will see.
Want your curiosity fed?
Better go look under Mark's bed.

The kids ran like mad, and looked under Mark's bed where they found the following verse inside a wrapped gift box:

This is Alyssa reading out the clue they found under Mark's bed.

I know what you're thinking--you miss uncle Joe
And Haylee and Emma and all the kiddos.
So we're going to Vegas to stay for the night
To help the Prete family to bond to us tight.
And Preston, if you have any luck
You'll see the girl you hit with the hockey puck.
On January Second we'll show up to their place
And leave the next morning--to Utah we'll race.
For the next clue you must go
To a gift Austin got 12 Christmases ago.

It took just a moment to realize that the gift Austin got 12 Christmases ago was his little basketball net. Down at the basketball next were gifts wrapped up for each family member. Inside each gift were tickets to a BYU basketball game with the following verse:

Zeniths and Pandas, well that's all just fine,
But the BYU cougars, now that's the big time.
With Bryners and Kohrmans we'll watch the big game
Loyola Marymount will never be the same.
We won't send you hungry, bith Bryners we'll eat.
We're going to Sizzler for the buffet with meat.
We'll sleep at the Marriott in Provo that night
Their free morning breakfast will be a delight.
And why will be be in Provo on the third?
A clue by the world map will give you the word.

The Kids are cheering downstairs after they read the clue that towld them about the BYU game! 

So, down they went running to the world map which is on the wall in the laundry room. There was one wrapped gift there with the following verse inside:

You'll have to pack up today, 'cause tomorrow we go
We'll drive and drive til we escape the snow
To a place that's warm and terrific
And you can put your feet in the Pacific.
Sunny Southern California is the destination
That will fill our family with fascination.
What will we do while we are there?
Go find a suitcase. The answer is there.

So, the kids went running to the front hall closet where the suitcases are kept. Beside the suitcases on the shelf were 6 wrapped gifts, each of which said "Your final treasure" on the outside.  Under the wrapping paper was a treasure chest with a Southern California City Pass and the following verse inside.

First from a hotel in Santa Ana we'll embark
To Sea World and Universal Studios--a day at each park
Then on he Sabbath, of course, we will rest
Because keeping commandments is always best.
Then we'll pack up and go to Anaheim
Where you'll be assured a magically good time.
Three days at California Adventure and Disneyland
I hear they may even have fireworks planned.
A great family memory will be our creation
As we all go on a California vacation!

The kids were so excited, they were jumping up and down and running around like a bunch of preschoolers. It was a super busy Christmas day, getting everything packed but we were still able to enjoy a nice afternoon with Granny and Grandpa and Ken and Tracy's family. Then, early on the 26th, we embarked on our trip....

Academic Honors

Yesterday was the academic award ceremony at MHS to honor last year's students who achieved honors 80% average or better, high honors, 90% or higher and the top academic student in each grade.  It was a proud moment! First, Austin was recognized for receiving high honors (Thank you Mr. Stewart, the shop teacher for taking a late clothes pin project--I think it made the difference). As Austin has told us several times, big head means big brains.

Alyssa was also recognized as earning high honors. Then, with all the honors students standing up front, they called out the student with the highest academic average in the grade. It was my very own daughter Alyssa! I was trying to get a picture (which was hard as Alyssa seemed to be in a big rush) and I missed what everyone else noticed, which was her dad, choking up with emotion to see his daughter thus honored. Great work Alyssa! And, since she was being honored for Grade 9 achievement, this technically made her the Jr. High valedictorian (though we don't have Jr. High grad) and she received a check from the Alberta Teacher's Association for $75 as well as the plaque all the other grade winners received.

I am pleased that my kids are learning to apply themselves academically. It is fun to see them excited about learning.

The first day of school, 2012

I miss the days when all the kids went off together for their first day of school, and I could take a picture of everyone together in front of the house. This year, it was a staggered start, and as you can see, it was a cold rainy morning, which gradually improved into a nice day. This year school started on Tuesday, September 4th.

This is Mark with his bus driver, Norm, being loaded onto the bus in pouring rain. There is a new student on the special needs bus this year, so the route is longer. Mark is the first one on so he was supposed to get picked up at 8:05. I was caught off guard when the bus driver (not remembering how long it took to get to our house) showed up at 7:55.

This is Preston just sitting down in his new classroom. He is in Mrs. Coppieters Grade 2 class. He had to be at school at 8:35.

The Jr. high and high school just had orientation on the first day. Austin's grade had to be there at 9:40. What a great lookin' kid! It was still wet out, but the rain had stopped.

By the time Alyssa went to school at 10:40 it was a beautiful day. A beautiful girl to match.

Vehicle woes

People keep asking what we did this summer. We did some fun things, like going to Tally lake and to Utah, but a lot of our time at home was tied up with 'things." I read a book once that described assets (like vehicles, boats, homes, etc) as liabilities, because they consume time and money and require maintenance, storage, etc., etc. This summer I gained a greater appreciation for this concept. 

The How to Get to Utah Dilemma...The new truck

I'm sure many people who attended our family reunions encountered logistical difficulties trying to camp far from home. In our case, we also have a son with disabilities whom we needed to accommodate. Our best option was to take our trailer. However, our truck was not up to the job of pulling our family to Utah. Not only was it old, 1995 model, and too small...it only has a mini seat in the back, but also, the air conditioning didn't work. We decided to start looking for a new truck.

In the end we bought a White 2006 Ford f-150 4x4 Quad Cab truck. It is in good shape, is very roomy, has a roll top on the back and had low km. I think we went into Lethbridge 5 times shopping for trucks by the time we had this one home.

The trailer upgrades....

We invited Rob's dad to come out and help "pack the wheels" of the trailer (whatever that is). He and Rob got talking and it came to our attention that our trailer should have brakes that work in conjunction with the truck's brakes. While the trailer did initially have this system, at least one of the brakes was broken and the truck needed the corresponding part installed. So we hauled the trailer into Lethbridge. As it turned out, not only were all 4 brakes broken, all the wiring also had to be redone. Total bill, $1300. Total time in the shop, 1 1/2 weeks. 

The Car

We took the truck and trailer into the shop to fix the brakes while Rob's parents had Austin and Preston with them camping. We also took the car to Lethbridge so we could get home. We went to the driving range and rode on go-karts. Then, as we were driving home, the car started to lose power and completely died right on Mayor Magrath Drive (the main road) in Lethbridge. Rob was at the wheel so Alyssa and I got out and pushed the car to the nearest place to get off which happened to be right in front of A & W. The picture below is of us eating A & W while waiting for a ride to our friend and bishop's National Car Rental shop where they fixed the car (the next day) and lent us a rental car to get home. The next day Rob had to drive into Lethbridge again to return the rental and get the car back. $600 for a new alternator and battery.

The truck makes a noise...

On the way home from Utah, the truck started making a noise like a loud clicking. When we got home we took it in to the same shop where our car was fixed. (We bought the truck from National). After a day of waiting around Lethbridge they figured out that we had a crack in the manifold and since the manifold was in a very awkward place, it would require 8 hrs labor. So, we had to take it in again the next day to get fixed and pick it up the following day. I am so grateful that National paid for the repair because the price tag was $1000.

The car makes a noise, again...

Shortly after being fixed our car started making a noise again. (It tended to squeal as it got going, but it was getting worse). We took it in to the Magrath shop and luckily he tightened the belts for only $50.

The van takes on an odor...

On the day before our trip to Utah, there was a big funeral in our ward. I helped all afternoon, and came home feeling the pressure of a million things to do. Not until we got home 11 days later, did I realize that I left a bag of sliced watermelon on the seat of the van. It had leaked and rotted and the van absolutely reeked. Since then I have spent several hours cleaning and still haven't completely gotten rid of the smell, which now is still coming from the area under the floor where the ramp is stored. 

The boat hits a rock....

As I reported earlier, our boats windshield is shattered. I still don't know how it will get fixed. Since the glass is curved, no one local can fix it. 

The house needs a new mortgage...

Our mortgage was up for renewal this summer so we got to go to lots of appointments with banks and lawyers and mortgage brokers to get that organized.

So, how did we spend our summer? Now you know.