San Diego Vacation (Part 1)

Tim took his personal days and we took a vacation a couple weeks ago. We chose San Diego because we've never been and because we wanted to try out Legoland before our kids outgrow it. When we arrived, the kids were the most excited about their separate/partitioned room with bunkbeds and the pool. It was nice to finally upgrade and get more than just a standard room for all 6 of us. I was a little surprised how small Tim and my section was but it was worth it to have bunk beds for the kids and separate space for Tim and me.

The next day was our Legoland Day:

Little T. wasn't big enough for the real driving cars but was just as happy with these fake ones.

He also loved the boats they had that aren't on a track or anything. You actually drive them yourself. He was very proud of himself.

Little J. showing his stuff. Yes the lego statues and other decorations around the park are all truly made out of legos that have been glued together. They even had a full size car made out of legos. I think it weighed like 3,000 pounds or something even though it is completely hollow.

This was little T.'s first ride. A helicopter that went up and down and you could make it turn. It had helicopter noises and he really enjoyed it.

The older 3 boys got to go to Volvo driving school and actually drive little cars around town. They had turn stop at stop signs and watch for others when they turned. It was fun for them.

Daddy and Big T. driving the boats.

Little J.

Big J.

A fun roller coaster for the kids and just the right speed for me.

They liked it so much they went on it again with Tim.

They also had MindStorms which Big J. and Little J. were old enough for. They build a robot lego and learn how to program it to do certain tasks (go forward for a specific length, turn, etc. then shoot balls into a hoop, turn around and come back). My kids thought it was great and wanted to buy one they could take home but when I told them it was around $300.00 they quickly changed their mind.

While the older boys waited in line for a log ride (very small and not worth the wait) Little T. played in the water at one of the several puddle parks they have. He had such a great time and probably could have stayed there for hours. He figured out quickly to step on certain things to make the water shoot up near him, on him, or around him.

There was also a pirate play place with slides, rope climbs, and several other fun things to knock over, climb on, and explore around.

Knights Tournament is this ride you see Tim and Big T. on. You can choose level 1-5 (the kids all had to do 2 I think because of their height). Each level is a different ride on this robotic arm thing. The other boys went on it too but here's one shot of Little T. sideways with his dad.

There was also a giant water area and the older 3 boys played with their swimsuits and got soaked. Every few minutes a giant bucket dumped water over the entire play area. The kids loved that. They even had little "water slides" or rather slides with water.

All the boys tried to stand in the spot they would get the wettest when the giant bucket dropped.

While the older boys played, Little T. snuggled up in a towel with his dad and took a nap.

This is MiniLand USA (or actually just a small portion of it-all made of legos). There is NYC (behind the boys), Las Vegas, and many, many other cities and areas. There were working legos boats with skiers, drag racers, a trolley, etc.

The kids insisted on getting a picture with this Darth Vader.

Be watching for Part 2 - Sea World, the Beach, and the Mormon Battalion