Tuesday, June 15, 2010

A Parisian Disney

We just got home from Paris and after being cut off from the world (no internet, no real tv) for 5 days we are catching up with emails, looking at the news and sorting through hundreds of pictures so I hope you're ready for a BIG long post FULL of pictures!!

Come on, pull up a chair, and join us while I take you on a trip to Disneyland! :)



Day 1:

After a long 6hour drive and spending about 35Euros worth in tolls we finally arrived at Davy Crocket Ranch on Disneyland Resort Paris. (I regret I didnt get a picture of the outside of our cabin)



It was pretty cozy. We opted for the premium 2bedroom cabin. There was an outside deck and grill.



The kitchen, living room, eating area.



And master bedroom on one side.



With kids' room on the other.




After throwing all our bags in their rooms we took a stroll down to the "village" where there was the store, restaurant, pool, playground.

The boys played on the plaground.






Elizabeth wandered around and looked at the animals...



....until we heard someone shout "Minnie's here"



Elizabeth was SO BRAVE. She went right up to Minnie and just loved every minute! (though she kept turning her back on me so I couldnt get a good picture)



We had dinner, went swimming and then went to bed early so we could get an early start on Disney the next day

Day 2:

Disneyland!!!



It turned out to be a beautiful day at the park!





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Elizabeth and the boys met lots of Disney characters!







Elizabeth's first ride was It's a Small World.



So many bright colors!!





Ryan and dad went on the Tea Cups



And Sean went on his first roller coaster ride: Big Thunder Mountain!! His reaction afterwards: "I'm not going on that ever again!" hahaha! He was very brave! :)



Then all three boys went on the haunted mansion ride! Sean loved that one!



We also toured Sleeping Beauty's castle.



They retold the story as you walked through the castle

The stained glass windows were beautiful!



We ended the day with Disney's famous parade of characters! We loved all the floats!!



















Day 3:

We went to Walt Disney Studios!



This day was a bit cold and rainy at first but the weather cleared up by afternoon, thankfully!





We got to meet a lot of characters on this day



Mickey!



Buzz!



Sully, from Monsters Inc



The boys got to scream in the Scream machine from Monster's Inc and see if they could fill the meter.



And stand infront of Boo's door.



We ate lunch at a nice little bistro and the guest chef made his rounds to greet everyone at their tables!



It was little Chef Remy from Ratatouille!! :)




Elizabeth enjoyed watching a live show of Playhouse Disney. We also watched a live interactive show with Stitch but they wouldn't allow photography. Elizabeth REALLY enjoyed that one... she loves Stitch! :)



Day 4:

We took the train into Paris!

Unfortunately we didnt stay long. The World Cup was going on and they had a live showing right near the Eiffel tower so the amount o people was just rediculous!! We never made it to the top of the tower. BUT we did get a nice picture infront of it.



And infront of the Arc de Triumph.



We had lunch on the Champs-Élysées and then came back to the cabin.

Unfortunately Paris has lost its glamour when we have to worry about the safety of our children and not just yourself.

To top off the night, we went back to Disney to have a wild west dinner show with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show.

It was a lot of fun, a lot like the Medieval times dinners they have in the states but with cowboys and indians instead of knights. :)









Afterwards we wound down by piling in the boys' room with some popcorn and disney movies! :)



Day 5:

We got up at the crack of dawn so we could be first in line with our "get into the park an hour early pass" and hit the rides that we werent able to go on before because of the long lines.



This time we all made it onto the tea cups ride, the boys went on the Buzz Lightyear ride amoung many others and we had a great last day on the park!





We had a great trip!






Saturday, June 5, 2010

Summer Vacation

I'm sorry for the long break in between postings. We've been a little busy finishing up our school year and planning for our vacation coming up.



The Friday before last (May 28th) was the last full day of school for the boys! I say last full day because we are going to continue to do some school through the summer. Maybe a worksheet here and there, Bible study everyday of course (we don't want a vacation from God), and they have to read at least 5 days of the week if they want to play video games at the end of the week. Dont worry though, it's not all work and no play around here... there's still plenty of time for summer fun!!




Next week we are packing up the car and driving to EuroDisney!! Woo hoo! We cant wait to go. I think Dennis is more excited than all of us put together - and that's saying something! We've been watching Disney movies almost everynight. haha



We're also going to use one of our days there to take the train into Paris and climb the Eiffel Tower. Ryan has been a little bit concerned about this though. He keeps asking about the "fence" around the top and he's worried that Elizabeth might fall. LOL We've been assuring him that we will all be safe. I said, "if mommy, the scaredy cat, can go to the top there's no reason to be afraid." (I just keep my eyes closed during the glass elevator ride.) ;)

We'll have lots of pictures to share when we return!!