Vacation Day 6 - San Diego Zoo

Day 6 was spent at the San Diego zoo, another place we visited on our honeymoon. The only thing that seemed different to me this time was the hilly terrain. Of course, it's probably because my health was much better back then but boy howdy I struggled at the zoo this time.
When we first arrived we took a 40-minute bus tour to get a general layout of the zoo and see some behind-the-scene places of the zoo that you can't get to on foot. We were also shown the places to get on and off the courtesy bus they have. Later in the day we took the sky ride (shown above) that goes from one end of the park to another. The boys loved it but it made me feel anxious.

It was fun to see animals that we don't have at our zoo here in Utah like the cuddly Koala's....

the peaceful Panda's....

and this adorably cute baby gorilla. He was hilarious! It was so nice to see such active animals. You can tell that they are well taken care of because of how active they were.

They had a huge new elephant exhibit that covered prehistoric animals up to modern day elephants. They even had their training and educational areas elephants open so that the public could watch the trainers interact with the elephants. It is by far the best zoo that I have ever been to.

Vacation Days 5 & 7- Sea World

We spent days 5 & 7 at Sea World San Diego. It brought back a lot of memories for Brad and me because that is one place we visited on our honeymoon. It sure has changed a lot though.

The Shamu Beetle - so cute!
The first place Tyler wanted to go was the new Atlantis ride. It is part rollercoaster part water ride and all fun. If you look closely you can see Tyler and me on the back row of the car. Trevor was too short for this ride and since he hates water he would've been miserable anyway.

We also went to the Shamu show and that is always fun. We stayed out of the splash zone for this one but....

got soaked at the dolphin show. Trevor freaked out and I got salt water in my eyes so that wasn't fun. The dolphins were adorable though.

This was right after Trevor woke up from a nap and we went into the dark shark building. I asked him if he liked sharks and snapped the picture right as he answered. Isn't he cute?

This is Tyler in front of the Manatee Rescue exhibit. All of their Manatees were rescued off the coast of Florida after being injured by boats. Each of them had scars or missing limbs and it was so sad but they were really cute and seemed happy to be there.

This was Tyler's expression after he fed a stingray. I was not about to feed one of those things. One was really aggressive and would lift it's face and half it's body over the edge of the shallow pool in search of food. I wasn't about to feed him. But it didn't bother the boys. Yikes!

Next we went to the tidepool and touched star fish. Tyler loved them but....

Trevor wasn't so sure about them. I thought they were beautiful. There were some that were huge- probably 15 inches in diameter and all sorts of colors!

Since we were there 8 years ago they have added Sesame Street Bay of Play, Atlantis, the Clydesdales exhibit, the Shipwreck Rapids (like Lagoon's Rattlesnake Rapids), the Arctic Experience, the Sky Tower and the Bay Ride. Trevor wanted to spend the whole time in the Sesame Street play area so we did that quite a bit both days. I'll post those pics on Day 7.

Vacation Day 4 - Coronado Beach

We were all tired from 2 days at Legoland so we decided to have a "rest" day and go to the beach. Brad had done some research and found that Coronado was the nicest one around so we headed there. First we had to cross this huge bridge to Coronado Island. The island was lovely and quaint and I just wanted to explore the street and window shop.

Coronado Beach Bridge
But I needed to get off these swollen ankles (they were only half their usual swollen size on this morning and I wanted to keep the swelling down for the last 3 days of the trip!). So I walked a little in the cool, wet sand then parked myself on a towel and soaked up the sunshine.

Jamie's gigantic swollen ankles and feet
Brad and Tyler searched for seashells in the ocean -they found this huge beauty!- and jumped the crashing waves. Tyler loved playing in the water and swallowed a whole bunch of salt water that day.

Tyler's prize seashell

Meanwhile Trevor and I just walked in the shallow end. He wasn't too fond of the water getting anywhere above his knees and the waves made him nervous. He did like to chase the seagulls though so he did that while I lounged on the sand.

Trevor chasing the seagulls

The boys built a huge sand castle and we also made a craft. I had brought shiny glass beads and plaster of paris so we could make molds in the sand along with the seashells we found. They turned out neat but break easy and make a mess and I'm not real big on messy things.

The family by the sand castle

After the beach we went back to the hotel and cleaned up, took a little nap & rested and then we went to Benihana for dinner. Our hotel was in a great location and all we had to do was walk through the hotel parking lot and up some stairs and we were at three different restaurants. Our service and food was wonderful and we all had a good time. We swam in the hotel pool again that night and then headed for bed.

Having fun at Benihana

Vacation Days 2 & 3 - Legoland

Entrance to Legoland

We spent two days at Legoland and could've been there longer! It was so much fun for all of us!

Legoland birthday cake

It's Legoland's 10th birthday so they had this huge cake made out of Lego's. It depicts the different rides and things they have in the park. It was very cool.

Pirate on bench

Darth Vader & Yoda

They also had these statues made out of Lego bricks scattered throughout the park that you could take pictures with. We have tons. The top pic is of the boys knocking-out a drunk pirate who was sitting on a bench outside the Tidal Wave-like ride that we had just gotten off of. Quite frankly I was the one feeling a little drunk after that ride- I am no longer a spring chicken when it comes to amusement park rides. The bottom picture is of the boys with some of their favorite Star War's characters made from Lego's. You really should click on this picture and zoom in on Trevor's face. It's classic.

One of the water rides

One of the dry rides

They also have all kinds of rides from mild rides for toddlers to wild roller coasters. We were able to ride everything once and some of our favorite rides a second time. Trevor was able to ride almost everything, there were maybe 6 rides he was too short to go on. We also chose the perfect time of year to go. It wasn't too hot, the lines were short and the crowds were minimal. I would never want to go during peak season. Tyler really liked the above water ride and Trevor's favorite was this ride that would bounce you up and down.


CAUTION: The most ridiculous thing I have ever seen in my life is up next:
At Legoland you get VIP parking if you are the owner of a Volvo. Yes, lucky you. Apparently Lego's started in Denmark and are affiliated with Volvo (all the car rides are little miniature Volvo's and there is even a full-sized Volvo made of Lego's on a car frame inside the park). Anyway, Brad and I just thought this was absolutely crazy! We'll be prepared next time.

At the end of those two days we were exhausted but having so much fun. This was a dream vacation for us. We had never done a big vacation like this and felt that our kids were the perfect age to do it this year. We all enjoyed Legoland so much that we want to go back again before the boys outgrow it. I even told Brad that if we lived in Southern California I would want a season pass.

Vacation Day 1 - On the Road

We actually went on vacation back at the end of August so I am really behind but I wanted to post a little here and then eventually I will do a slideshow with all our pictures.

Brad and I stayed up late packing and getting things ready for our long trip and then got about 3 hours of sleep before getting back up to load up the car and head out. We were able to transfer the boys from their beds to the car without too much trouble but once Tyler realized what we were doing he was wide awake with excitement. We left SLC about 3:00 a.m.

Brad did the driving while I tried to rest but my car anxiety reared it's ugly head and I was unable to sleep or even close my eyes really. We drove straight to Las Vegas and stopped at Circus Circus for the breakfast buffet. That was a lot of fun and we gorged ourselves on food.

We changed the boys from their PJ's in to clothes in the parking garage at Circus Circus. It was sweltering hot and humid even at 8 a.m. Before we went in I told the boys "stay close to Mom & Dad, this place will be unlike anything you've ever seen before" and it was. Of course they have never seen a casino! After eating we went upstairs to check out the amusement rides area. Tyler really wanted to ride the rollercoasters and other rides but I wasn't about to pay $7 a ride when we would be riding out guts out for the weeks. We just walked around and saw what was there. It was also here that we discovered that Trevor had never been on an escalator before. His eyes were wide in amazement at that moving staircase!

After eating we went upstairs to the amusement park area. Tyler really wanted to ride the rollercoaster but I wasn't about to pay $7 for one ride when we would be riding rides all week. We just walked around and saw what was there and then got back on the road.

Below is the mountain with the rollercoaster inside Circus Circus

Once on the road again we had a long. boring drive. I took a turn driving though Nevada and Arizona but turned it back over to Brad once we entered California traffic. Driving in to San Diego was a welcomed relief. We were all tired of being in the car and were hungry again (we never stopped for lunch after the huge breakfast). We went to the hotel and got settled in and then found a dine-in Pizza Hut and got some dinner. After that the boys went swimming in the hotel pool while I iced my sore, swollen feet. Apparently my body doesn't like sitting in a car for 13 hours and they were as swollen as the day I delivered Trevor! By 8 p.m. we were ready to crash and crash we did. We all slept really well during the whole trip because we were so exhausted by the end of the day.

School's back in session!

School started again for Tyler on August 24th. He started first grade in a brand new school! He's liking his teacher and it seems like this will be a great year!

Trevor started preschool this year too. He's in the 3-year-old class so he gets 2 years of preschool. He loves Tuesday & Thursdays because those are school days!
I tried really hard all summer to get Tyler into the Dual Immersion program at his school but as of today he is still #2 on the waiting list. I really wanted him in the program because I feel that he is smart enough to learn in two languages. It makes me angry that kids from outside the school boundaries get in before kids who live in boundaries but at this point there is nothing else I can do.

Ledgemere

Back in July when Mike & Ashley were visiting from Texas we went up Big Cottonwood Canyon for a dinner at Ledgemere. It's just a little picnic place about 2 miles up the canyon and it was so fun. There is a little stream and a cave to explore. But first we roasted hot dogs and cooked foil dinners.

Brad and Tyler roasting hot dog over a smokey fire. Grandpa Newman is in the background. He was the designated fire builder and tender.
Baby Chandler being his usual cute self.

Brad, Trevor, Taylor, Gavin, Lincoln, Tyler and Kaylee climbing the rocks. It made me nervous. On a side note: Trevor, Taylor, Gavin and Lincoln were all born within a year of eachother. Lots of boys!!

Jeff, Jamie, Taylor, Gavin, Kaylee in the cave (Trevor is hiding in there too)

Tyler & Trevor in the cave

Unfortunately the cave was full of graffitti, which is a testament to what this world has come to. We could only go about 50 feet in to the cave before it got too full of water.

Family Pictures

In July we did family pictures at Wheeler Farm. They were done by my sister-in-law Rachel's sister-in-law Angie. I want to have her do more of my kids. If you're ever in need of a good photographer I highly recommend her. Here's her blog: http://www.angiestevensphoto.com/

Here's the whole Newman clan:

Bankhead Reunion

Back in July we went up to Eden, UT for the long anticipated family reunion. After my grandpa died I really didn't feel like going but I knew it was important to him that we all be there so I went. It was blazing hot so we....

spent time lounging at the pool (isn't Trevor hilarious in his floatation suit and goggles?)....
lounged in the shade (this is Tyler and my niece Lilly)...

and played lots of games to keep busy! (Tyler and Jonas on stilts)

Janeen with Hailey, Kyla (her niece that came with us) & Lucy and Jeanette with Avery

Fun was had by all. Brad participated and did really well in an arm wrestling contest and also did a basketball free-throw contest and a golf game. I mostly wrangled kids, made balloons for kids and sat in the shade complaining of the heat. On the last day when we were trying to do a group picture with all 240+ people I felt really awful and it showed. By the time we got home to Salt Lake I was sick with the flu in a way I've never been sick before. Not a fun way to end an otherwise great weekend.

Funny things

A few things have struck me as funny lately. Thought I would share...

This Chinese restaurant named 'The Great Sandwich'. You may not be surprised when I say their parking lot was empty. With a name like that who knows what kind of food they serve?!?

This little beauty was spotted in the Jordan Landing parking lot of Chick-fil-A. I suspect it is a high school prank. I wish I had thought of something like this back in the day when I sought revenge on that ex-boyfriend (you know who you are!). Tyler asked me why there was tape around this car, when I told him I didn't know how said that maybe the driver did it so that no one can steal it.

This kid works at the Little Caeser's Pizza on 5400 S at about 4800 W. Every day on my way home from work he is out there rocking his cardboard guitar advertising $5 pizzas. Thing is, he has long mangled hair and he totally rocks out to his headphones. I mean, he really gets into it. I was a little bummed that he saw me taking the picture because I wanted to show you the full effect of his, well, magnificence. What you can't see very well from this picture is the area on his guitar where the print has worn off from his repetative playing. Oh, if we could just all enjoy our jobs this much.

And finally, while shopping at Walmart I came across this thermal beer bottle holder with a BYU theme. I found it a little ironic that the U of U ones were completely sold out but it appeared as if no BYU ones had sold. Now, I'm not saying that all BYU fans are mormon, or even that they live the word of wisdom, it just really struck me as funny that day. I suppose you could put your glass bottle of IBC rootbeer in there to keep it cold!

Swimsuits

In preparation for our upcoming reunions and vacation I decided to buy new swimwear for the whole family (I mean, when Old Navy has it $5 per piece how can you pass it up?). Turns out Brad wears a size SMALL. I won't even mention what size I had to buy for me.

Oh Trevor!

Someone loves his new green Incredible Hulk crocs so much he had to wear them to bed.