First trip to California as a family of 4

We decided to spend this past Thanksgiving visiting California, southern & northern. We haven't been in a while and we wanted to take the kiddos to Disneyland for the first time. It was a whirlwind, to say the least. We stayed with my sister & her kids in their new house. It was so fun to have Lucy spend time with her cousins. She absolutely loved staying there. I loved seeing my sister and her awesome new house! While we were in Orange County we visited with my BFF of 13+ years and her family. She is the most amazing best friend a girl could have and she is so incredible with Lucy and Eli. We also visited with our good friends Becka, Brian and their tenacious little guy, Wes. Lastly, we were able to visit with my cousin, Lizzie & her husband, Doug and their little one, Kennedy. She is the funniest little girl and Lucy totally took to her (and her fun toys). It was a bonus that I got to visit with my other cousin, Mimi, as well!  I really LOVE living in Utah, but I REALLY miss my wonderful friends and family. As I mentioned earlier, we took the kids to Disneyland for two days. (courtesy of my good friend, Seth. THANKS Seth!) The first day was just our little family and it was so fun. It was very laid back, we didn't have an agenda and kind of did whatever we wanted. Lucy loved all of the rides and especially the characters, which we were a little surprised by. Her favorite was Goofy, surprising again. She can't stop talking about that guy. Eli was so good and was even able to take a three hour nap! I would say that Lucy loved 'It's a Small World' and 'Gadgets Go-Coaster' the best. By the end of the day, Lucy was exhausted. We were a little bummed because she fell asleep RIGHT before the fireworks, but Scott and I loved watching them. The second day, my dad & Lei as well as my niece & nephew came with us. It was a little hectic and we didn't get to do everything, but it was super fun anyways. While everyone went on a big kid ride, I took Eli and Lucy on the little Mermaid ride. Lucy was obsessed with it. We went on it four straight times and then I dragged her off and she threw a big fit. I could not go one more time for the sake of my sanity, although it IS a really cute ride. We took a lot of pictures, but failed to get ONE decent picture of my little family. We literally tried SO many times, but it didn't happen. The ones below are a few and I find them hilarious. It was such a magical experience though and I guess that is what counts! After we were done in Orange County we drove up to Northern California with my dad & Lei. They so graciously came down, did some visiting and drove us back up. They are SO good to us. When we got to Northern California we were able to see my brother, Paul, and even more family. It was SO nice to relax and just be with the ones I love! I cherished EVERY moment of our trip, but we were glad to get home. Traveling with two kids is definitely more than we bargained for, but we'd do it all over again in a heartbeat!