Adventures on the West Coast

Okay, here they are F-I-N-A-L-L-Y.  My lovely mama uploaded 226 pictures of our California trip for me.  (And my awesome dad sent me a CD of pictures from his camera; but, sadly, I can't get my computer to open any of them.)  Scroll down for a peek at our adventures on the West Coast.

We went straight from the airport to the beach (which isn't too difficult because LAX is seconds from the ocean).  My mom packed a picnic, and Em got her first real taste of the Pacific Ocean.

She was especially impressed by this "mountain".  My poor little Midwestern child.  

She had a blast doing this...

...and this, over and over and over and over again.

I love this picture of Em and my dad.  They were having so much fun together.

Later in the week, we headed to the happiest place on earth.  Em LOVES Disneyland and is getting super spoiled by her frequent visits.  This is her third time at Disney thanks to her awesome Uncle Matt who works for Disney and gets us all in for free.  Em talked for days about how she was going to visit Mickey and Uncle Matt.  She pretty much thinks that Matt lives at Disneyland.

Em was also pretty excited to see these ladies.

Here she is watching the parade.  She was so eager for each float to come down Main Street.  I always skip the parade, but it was seriously the best part of the day for Em.  I had a blast watching her excitement.

Here are Emma and Daddy on the Buzz Lightyear ride.  Em is a huge Toy Story fan, but she wasn't too sure what to think of all the lights and noise.  (Jeremy claims this is why my score on the ride KILLED his. ;)

Emma was also pretty excited to meet these guys.

Tigger and my mom - are they cute or what?

We managed to squeeze our whole family into one ship on the rocket ride.  Hopefully this will be impossible next time we're in Cali. 

My favorite part of the day was the World of Color show at California Adventure.  Lights.  Disney music.  Synchronized fountains.  What's not to love?

Our other big day trip was to the San Diego Zoo Safari Park.  We got to see a two-week-old baby elephant.  This little guy weighs in at 273 pounds!

All my hiking pictures are on my dad's camera, so I threw this one in to keep my promise to have mountain pictures.  

Here's Em goofing around with my sister.

Emma is in love with paint lately.  My sister totally scored aunt points by giving her a canvas and letting her go crazy.  (No, Em doesn't usually paint naked, but Tia let her use acrylic paint. :)

Another fun shot of Em and my dad.

Emma loves her Tia.

We had a wonderful visit.  We also got to catch up with some of my extended family, but all of those pictures are on my dad's camera.  Now we're looking forward to a visit from my mom and dad tomorrow.  So fun to see my parents twice in the same month!