Life Within the Cuckoo's Nest: I Left My Heart in San Clemente (PART I)

Our AMAZING beach house!

Oh my goodness, this vacation!!! It couldn't have been any more perfect and weeks later I am still daydreaming about it! We went to San Clemente, CA and stayed in a beach house for 7 days with Josh's brothers and their adorable families! Besides the two days spent at Disneyland, we did nothing but lounge on the beach in complete bliss! Take me back, I beg you!!

Day 1 (Thursday June 9, 2016):

Austin has a favorite book. It's called Beach Day and it was one of my favorite books from my own childhood. My mom had kept it and gave it to him, after which it instantly became his favorite. He made us read it over and over until we finally had to hide it for a while because we were so sick of it. From all that monotony he had memorized a good portion, especially the first page that reads:

"Good morning," Daddy says.

I open my eyes and the sun shines in.

"Remember? Today's beach day," he says.

"Hurray!" I shout.

We had been counting down the days until our own beach day and telling Austin all the fun things we were going to do. So on the morning of our trip, Josh opened the door to Austin's room and said good morning, and then just like the book, Austin opened his eyes and excitedly yelled, "Hurray! it's beach day!!" :)

We left the heat of Vegas early morning and drove to the beach! The kids did fantastic, truly, I am still amazed. It was like they knew where we were going and there was no way they were going to blow this one! Since we live closer to California than everyone else, we made it there first. So we drove straight to the beach to play while we waited for the rest of the LaFeber gang :). Austin started out not enjoying the feeling of sand, just like he did the first time he experienced the beach, but was soon over that! Eve, however, was completely in her element. She and the sand were one. We are talking about an obsession that continued throughout the entire trip. From literally sticking her face into the ground and eating it, to throwing it up in the air with squeals of delight :).

Evelyne's first day at the beach!

Getting rescued from the waves by Daddy!

Experiencing sand for the first time.

Showing me her sandy hands!

We started getting hungry so we sent Josh and Austin on a mission to find us some food.... they came back with ice cream and a snow cone.... oh boys....

Watching this beautiful girl was enchanting. She was so stunningly beautiful with her wild, curly black locks blowing in the breeze!

We found this awesome tunnel under the train tracks that all the kids were playing in! Austin thought it was pretty cool!

Eve's first experience with the ocean was a complete success! She is definitely a wild beach babe!

Hours later, we settled into the beach house with the happy chatter of kids who haven't seen each other in a while all around us. We needed food and supplies for the week so us Moms went grocery shopping while the Dads took all the kids swimming in the private pool. That first night was slightly stressful for us, trying to figure things out, I mean. You see, all 4 of us were sharing a bedroom which made sleeping very tricky since this is something we aren't use to. That, and it was getting late by the time I got back from the store, the baby was tired and crying, and I still had to bathe the kids, feed everyone, organize everything out of our suitcases for easy retrieval, pack for our early morning at Disneyland, and somehow get us all to sleep in the same bedroom at the same time.... But we did it! I had been dreaming of taking our kids to Disneyland for the first time for over a year now. I had read every helpful blog, studied maps of the park, and made lists of everything we needed to bring with us to achieve a successful day without any hiccups because this was going to be a day for the books! So now that it was only hours away I couldn't sleep! Well, that and the fact that I was surrounded by a snoring husband and two restless babies who kept talking and crying in their sleep....

Day 2 (Friday June 10, 2016):

The first "person" we ran into as we entered the park was MICKEY MOUSE!!! Talk about perfect timing! Austin LOVES Mickey and has been talking about meeting him for months now! But of course, he instantly became shy once he finally got the chance. He did, however, wave goodbye to him as we left :).

We woke up bright and early at 5:30am to hurriedly dress, load the car, and head out the door so we could be the first in line at the park! Okay, one of the firsts ;). Disney was calling!!!

There was some serious excitement in the air as we searched for a place to park the car and then walked to the park, pushing the double stroller and happily joking as we went. Austin is always telling us about how he works at Disneyland and he made us laugh so hard in the car when we stopped at a red light and he worriedly yelled, "Daddy! Hurry up! Austin's late for work!!" :).

DISNEYLAND 2016, (The year of the 60th Anniversary Diamond Celebration!)

Watching the parade go by...

Evie was NOT a fan of the flying Dumbo ride.

Austin loved it though!

Austin taking Evie out for a spin in Toon Town!

Taking a lunch break!

And actually getting to enjoy it because the A-Man fell asleep while we paid for the food!

Austin had no idea what he was missing while he was passed out in the stroller...

Sleeping beauty passed out a couple times too throughout the day....

Snack time! The smell of food all around the park was intoxicating and Austin was begging for some popcorn!

Disneyland was pure magic. The first ride we rode was Pirates of the Carribean and it was an instant favorite! We rode it 3 more times because Austin was obsessed and also because there were no lines, a huge perk in coming to the park early! I was worried about the "scary rides" like the Haunted Mansion but both kids did great on those as well!

Austin is usually a timid child who stays close by when in foreign circumstances. Well, apparently he felt right at home at Disneyland because I lost him for the first time in his life! Josh had left me alone with the kids so he could ride Indiana Jones so I took them to Tarzan's Treehouse thinking that would be the easiest place for a single Mom to keep track of them.... Wrong! As we were going down the narrow stairway of the treehouse, Austin suddenly realized we were leaving and dashed back up the stairs, easily going under legs and squeezing in between bodies. I, however, did not have such an easy time chasing after him as I pushed past the crowd with a baby on my hip. By the time I reached the top he was nowhere to be found! I panicked. My heart was thumping and I literally did not know what to do! There were people EVERYWHERE! Then, suddenly I heard someone yell, "Ashly, I've got him!" I turned around and there was a friend from our church back home in Henderson and standing next to her was Austin! I'm telling you, I would have gotten down on my knees and praised God right then and there if there would have been enough room in that busy treehouse! What are the odds?? That wasn't luck, it was a blessing straight from God. Needless to say, Josh didn't get to go on anymore rides after that....

The only thing we did wrong on that first day (besides not bring a leash for Austin) was we didn't know when to quit. We had wanted to stay until the park closed so we could watch the parade and experience the fireworks but the kids didn't get true naps and by about 3pm they were exhausted. But how often do we get to come to Disneyland? So we pushed it until 4pm and then finally gave up when we couldn't deal with Austin's naughtiness any longer. Eve fell asleep in my arms while we were in line for the Dumbo ride, and Austin got about an hour of sleep in at lunch time when we were standing in line for lunch and he passed out on the floor in the two seconds it took Josh to put him down while he reached for his wallet to pay for the food. But with all the excitement and simulation, those short siestas just weren't enough and we spent the rest of the night paying for it! We couldn't get home, bathed, and into bed fast enough! I'm serious, it was non-stop crying by both of them and we were both about to lose our minds! We were so grateful we had decided to split up our Disney days because a relaxing weekend on the beach sounded like heaven at that point.

Day 3 (Saturday June 11, 2016):

Every morning in San Clemente was overcast until about noon when the sun would come out and the clouds began to melt away, providing the most perfect weather! We were the first family up every single morning no matter how late we went to bed because of Eve. She was like an annoying little alarm clock, crying at 5:30am even though she herself was still soooo tired from the busy night before! So each morning we spent the first few hours trying to keep the kids quiet while we snuck around, getting dressed for the day, and fixing our first breakfast. After the rest of the household woke up, each family took turns making a meal. So there was always a second breakfast to enjoy later that morning. I was so jealous of the others because by the time they were slowly dragging themselves out of bed, I was putting Eve down for her first nap and we were already tired again....

We spent all of Saturday at the beach and oh it was glorious!! It was hard for the little ones to swim in the dangerous ocean waters so we also played in the pool before or after our sandy adventures. Austin was completely in his element, off building sandcastles and trying so hard to keep up with the older cousins. I had a hard time getting pictures of him throughout the trip because he got so mad every time I tried to get him to stop playing so I could take a picture! Eve stayed by my side, also enjoying the sand, but always keeping me in the corner of her eye. She freaked out each time I left to use the restroom but somehow always fell asleep in the arms of one of her aunts by the time I got back! It was awesome! :)

Isn't she perfect?!!

Playing with cousin Allie.

Whitley was so funny! She is the same size as Eve, but apparently thought she was MUCH older because she was constantly chiding Eve, saying, "No Baby!!" each time Eve would do something she didn't approve of hahaha!

We love our cousins!

Seriously, is she not the most beautiful baby in the most adorable little swim suit?!! I was OBSESSED with taking pictures of her!

Austin, the master sandcastle builder

Cousins hard at work!

Austin took this picture and I love it! It shows how truly happy we were. He's going to be quite the photographer :).

My beautiful babies :). Their striking difference in appearance still baffles me.

Josh and his brother, Tony.

Taking a short bottle break before she was back at it! No rest for the weary!

I would live and die on the beach if I could!

To say this boy loves his Daddy is an understatement. Josh is his hero. While Josh was running through the waves with him, Austin was laughing and shouting, "I trust you Daddy! I trust you!" I love seeing their relationship and wish every little boy could be so lucky.

Whenever Austin is concentrating he sticks his tongue out like this! He cracks me up :).

Just as Austin worships his Dad, Eve is madly in love with her Mom! She is my other half, always there, always watching.

We were supposed to go to an Angels baseball game that night but we were so exhausted from all that beach fun and didn't want to push it and end up with a night like the previous, so we chose to stay behind at the beach house and watch movies while we ate ham sandwiches and relaxed. Cousin Brandon wanted to stay behind with us as well which Austin was excited about! Brandon is so sweet with the kids. It was such a fun, relaxing day!

Day 4 (Sunday June 12, 2016):

We were up with the sun again with our little turkeys and church wasn't for another 5 hours.....grrrrr! So after we had gotten dressed, and ate breakfast, Austin and I had fun taking candid pictures in the bathroom while we waited for everyone else to wake up!

We went to church as a very large family but only stayed for sacrament. I was so glad we left early because both of our kids were being so crazy! They definitely did not get enough sleep.... Afterwards we went outside and took family pictures in front of the beautiful view of the ocean this chapel had!

Attempting to get everyone organized for a group photo.

And we did pretty good if I do say so myself! LaFeber Family Pictures!

All the crazy cousins!

They're holding hands! How cute is that?!!

Love my little family! Look at that amazing view! I would go to church EVERY Sunday just to look at that!

Afterwards, we headed back to the beach house to put the little ones down for a nap and start up our Sunday BBQ! We had a relaxing afternoon as the kids all did their own thing and us adults sat out on the back porch and talked for a couple hours. With so many kids around we hadn't been able to get much grown up talk in, so this was REALLY nice! Once the babes woke up, we took the party to the beach where we spent the rest of the afternoon until the sun went down :).