Disneyland

Each March my parents give all of us a huge birthday gift: a family trip to either Disneyland/California Adventure or to Knotts Berry Farm, alternating years. This year it's Disney time, so we'll be heading up to the Magic Kingdom early tomorrow (Sunday) morning and will meet my parents and my brother and his two kids at the Holiday Inn closest to Disneyland. If one of our rooms is ready, we'll unload our stuff, but if not, we'll lock up our cars in the lot and hop on the shuttle bus that will take us right to the gates of Disneyland. Dad has already purchased tickets for us, and the least expensive deal for three days in the parks was a limited annual pass, so we'll be able to go to the parks again as long as it's not on a holiday or weekend. (J is already pushing for a Disneyland birthday trip in June.)

Keith won't be going as he needs to work on Monday and Tuesday, plus the rides make him rather dizzy and his back hurts after walking on hard surfaces for such a long time. It just isn't fun for him anymore, but I love it -- everything except the 2.5 to 3-hour drive. But we have multiple iPods synced with U2's new CD and the Mamma Mia! soundtrack, plus Harry Potter books on tape which Keith doesn't like to listen to, but we'll enjoy them very much. We'll miss having him along, but he'll love having a quiet house for three days, all to his highly-introverted self.

The cool thing about this trip is that Keith's aunt gave me her battery-powered scooter for navigating Disneyland. Keith got the long-unused battery charged, and the boys have been running it down all week to see how long it will last. It seems to be running quite well and should last each day (and recharge overnight) just fine. I'll bring my wheelchair as a back-up measure, but the freedom of being to navigate myself around rather than being pushed by increasingly-tired family members will be such a relief! My mom may need my wheelchair anyway as her back has been bothering her a great deal lately. At least it's red and black and looks rather cool ... for a wheelchair, that is.

Although we'll be back late Tuesday night, don't expect a blog post from me until probably Saturday as I'll be coming back to a busy, busy week. I'll have one day to prepare for Class Day (teaching two writing classes) and finish grading essays (which I'll start later today and work on tonight) for Thursday. Plus we have dinner guests (our doctor and his wife, the ones who ordered the Tiffany-style stained glass window) coming on Friday night. I have an odd premonition that Friday may very well be a "home ec" day in our home school with everyone pitching in to clean the house and tidy the yard before dinner that night. Keith will be serving his fabulous Tortilla Soup (with grilled chicken and freshly-fried tortilla strips) and his mother's amazing cornbread (baked in an iron skillet for a crispy crust), and probably Keith's dark chocolate mousse for dessert. And Dr. Adema and Marcia are bringing a green salad. They are really into wine, so I'll have to find a good match for Mexican food. Any ideas?

So this is "goodbye" for about a week. I'll come back with what I hope will be some decent photos and the kids will have such a wonderful time, especially the boys who are eagerly doing yard work for Judith and myself today in order to earn a little spending money for the trip. So, we'll be off to the "Happiest Place on Earth" at approximately 7:00 AM tomorrow, after losing an hour's sleep as the clocks "spring" ahead. See you all later, and I'll go on "It's a Small World" just for YOU.