California Travels

Greetings!
First off, to all of the "Stash Family Followers" sorry for the delay in any post - the past three weeks have been a whirlwind!! Now things are slowly getting back to normal after a wonderfully fun vacation in California! (Sorry in advance- this is a VERY long post...)

Andy and I had planned this trip for about a year now. The thought was for John's 5th birthday we would celebrate by going to California and visiting Disneyland, the boys 1st visit! It was important for Andy and I to go to Disneyland instead of Disney World, because we grew up out west and all of our memories were at Disneyland in Anaheim. It was only fitting to take the boys there first. And, because we were visiting California, we were able to see all of my family and friends - which frankly, is just an added bonus!

Our adventure started Friday March 25th-We had a 5:30pm flight out of Indianapolis International airport. We were able to make it on the plane with 3 checked bags and two very excited little boys. They are really good travelers. I think it helps that they have flown since they were little babies and they know what to expect. They have no fear! It's pretty awesome. But, being the mom I am, I am always armed with DVD players, movies and snacks. Our flight was taking us from Indy to Dallas and then Dallas to Fresno. All of our flights were on time, no bumps, smooth sailing.... Our layover in Dallas was only about 20 minutes so we had to make a quick potty stop and grab some supper, that seemed to be the only challenge of the whole flight, but we managed!


At home, ready to take off to the airport

At the airport killing a few minutes before we had to head over to security

Saturday, March 26th: Today was our first full day in CA. We started off the day at my mom's house in Kerman. My brother and his family came out that morning for a visit. I had not seen my brother in about 2.5 years - I couldn't believe how big his children are. Plus I finally got to meet my newest nephew Mick! He is a little over a year old. They are all so cute!! Including my niece Naomi and nephew Nathan. They live with mom, so I was able to see them first thing. Once all of mom's seven grandchildren were in her house, the volume seemed to escalate rather quickly... BUT it was awesome!! Seven kids, ages 7 and under.... Scott, Caryn and the kids stayed until mid-morning, then they took their clan home for naps. Then we had the fortunate visit from my cousin Lesley and her husband Mario and their 1.5 year old son Noah... They drove all the way down from Carson City NV to visit. I was so excited to see them, plus finally have the opportunity to meet Noah! I was overwhelmed with seeing so much of my family - It was great and the day was only half way through! That afternoon, Scott and Caryn hosted a BBQ at their house in Fresno, so we all drove into town to devour some yummy Tri-tip and chicken, my brother has a wonderful talent at the grill. Caryn and Scott did a wonderful job with all of the food and their hospitality. The kids had fun playing and adults had fun visiting. One of my dearest friends Jade joined the festivities along with one of Andy's friends from flight school, Reece. That night Andy was able to go out with Reece, and two other friends from flight school. It sounded like he had a good time and made sure to see the wee hours of the night...I on the other hand was out by 9pm (but I was OK with that)! Great Day 2!


Uncle Scott is like a BIG kid - All the kids just gravitate to him!!

Here he is with ALL the kids!

Trying to get a picture with Boonya - Mick & Ivana were not interested!

Cousin Lesley & Noah!!

Mom with Nathan & Mick

Sunday, March 27th: Today my wonderful Aunt Vera and Cousin Natasha honored us by throwing John a 5th birthday party with all of his CA cousins! Natasha and her husband Mark hosted everyone at there house. It was a beautiful, sunny California day. Poor John had a hard time taking any pictures because of the sun-they poor kids has sensitive eyes just like his papa! But, besides that small fact we had a really nice time. Natasha and Aunt Vera did a great job. And everyone was so thoughtful and generous. It REALLY meant a lot to me for them to put this together for us. It's really hard for me to be away from my immediate family, especially during celebrations - so to be able to celebrate with everyone, even if it was a month early was fantastic- We really felt so loved!

My silly son, hiding from the sun as we all sing happy birthday to him-Natasha did a great job on the cupcakes. The theme was "Mickey" since we were going to Disney in a few days!

Monday, March 28th: Today was a pretty laid back day. My mom the boys and I went into Fresno to run a few errands. Andy stayed back and did a little work. That evening mom made her famous tacos and The Kochergen clan came over along with my girls, Kim and Jade... We all enjoyed a scrumptious dinner, then we had the opportunity to go to Naomi's first softball game of the season! She did great and we are so proud of her!!

Tuesday, March 29th: Today was also another laid back day. We ran around a lot visiting people I wanted to see and even made it out to the cemetery to put flowers on my dad's headstone. It was the anniversary of his death, 3 years ago... Time flies, but I am glad we were able to make the time to do that. I am finally at peace with that situation, so it didn't damper our day at all, it was just a part of the day. That night, Andy the boys & I went over to Scott's for pizza and to visit, since it was our last day we would be in Kerman. Caryn started her new job, so unfortunately we didn't get to see her but we had fun with Scott and the kiddos!

Scarlette & John

Playing baseball....

Scarlette trying to help William

William & Uncle Scott

John & Uncle Scott

Wednesday, March 30: Today we traveled down to Southern California - Whittier to be exact! Mom and my niece Naomi joined us! We stayed at my grandmas house. It's awesome because she is only about 15-20 minutes from Disneyland!! They drive went smoothly, it was about 4 hours with potty stops!


Nathan & John hanging out before we left


Aunt Katie with the kiddos, before we hit the road!!

Thursday, March 31st: DISNEYLAND!!!!!! This morning we were out the door by 8:15am, off to the Magic Kingdom! We were all thrilled. The boys actually had a surprise when we arrived... Their Opa (Andy's dad) surprised the boys at the gate. He drove over from Yuma, to spend the day with us. It was a great surprise and we were happy to join us. The day went rather smoothly. There were a few melt downs by the boys, I think a lot had to do with the heat. It was 93 degrees that day!! That's hot for us! But overall, it was a fun day!! John's favorite ride of the days was the Haunted House and William surprised us by liking roller coasters! He went on all of them! We only lasted till about 7:30pm that night. But we left early and met Opa for dinner. By the time we got home about 9:30 that night all the kiddos were sound asleep...Good first day!

1st Ride - Teacups!

In line at Mr. Toads wild Ride

Andy's favorite ride...

Pirates!! 1st time around

Andy & William waiting!

Three Stash men generations....

John on Donald's ship

Williams 1st Roller coaster!!!! He and Andy are in the 2nd cart from the front (mom and Naomi are in the fist cart)

Hanging out in Mickey's house...on his couch!

Meeting MICKEY!!!!

John was heaven!!

William got shy and didn't want to pose with Mickey, but Naomi & John were thrilled too!

Mom & John on the Buzz light year ride!

On Dumbo! Poor William, it was hot!

Friday, April 1st: Second, and last day at Disneyland. We started off the day at California adventures, then made our way back to Disney. Today wasn't as hot, and by the time evening fell the weather was perfect. It was another great day!!

THREE SLEEPY KIDS, after 2 very long days........

Saturday, April 2nd: Our last full day in CA. We decided to go to Seal Beach for the day! My mom had two friends she wanted to visit there, and it gave the boys and Naomi a chance to see the Pacific Ocean! It was an overcast day and a little chilly...but it didn't stop us from putting our feet in the water and playing in the sand. After all of that fun, we walked down main street and ate lunch at Walt's Warf, then after a scoop of cold stone ice cream, the boys, Andy and I took a stroll down the pier while mom and Naomi were visiting her friend. The boys were fascinated watching the surfers and we all got a kick of watch everyone fish off the pier. It was a great way to end an awesome week!

Sunday, April 3rd: The shuttle picked up us at 3:30 in the morning... It was the easiest way to get to LAX for a 6:00am flight. We were really lucky to get out with all the problems Southwest had with their planes that weekend. Once on the plane, all four of us crashed. It made the 3 hour 29 minute flight to Chicago a piece of cake. When we got in we were ready for lunch and had a little time to grab a bite to eat.... then it was back on the plane for the quick 29 minute flight into Indy. There was a HUGE wind storm going on so the take off and landing was a little rocky , but we made it! It was great to see YaYa, the dog, and happy to be home in our own beds!

Praise God for a wonderful family vacation - I am truly counting our blessings right now. And thank you to all of my wonderful family and friends who made it such a great trip!!