Fun in the Sun - Part One

It all started back in February. We decided the boys were old enough to go to Legoland. SweetE would be big enough to enjoy it and sweetP would be confident enough to enjoy it. So we asked our friend who happens to be a travel agent to make it all happen. I was in the midst of my challenging year and didn't have time to take care of the details. My job was to approve of it.

So it was all squared away well before gas prices went through the roof and travel prices with it. But, the weekend before we left I noticed a snag. We were scheduled to go to Legoland, San Diego Zoo and Sea World. And we had transfers to all these places so we didn't need to worry. What we hadn't noticed was the pick up times. So we called the shuttle company to try to change our pick up times. And we found an even bigger snag. Not only were they totally inflexible, they also had us scheduled to be picked up from each place at about 4 or 5 in the afternoon. Which is a bit of a problem when they aren't dropping you off until noon. I had no intention of paying $200 in entrance fees to hang out for 4 or 5 hours. Especially when I have waited 13 years for a vacation.

So we called our friend (on Sunday) and decided to cancel the shuttle service and rent a car instead. I hop online and voila, one car rental, with two car seats and a navigation system. We were packed and ready to go. The boys had new rolling carry on luggage. They had been practicing pulling it up and down the hall for two weeks. Velcro was in the capable hands of the boy across the street. With the more capable eyes of his parents on him to make sure he did a good job.

Monday morning dawned, our vacation was set to start. SweetP popped out of bed the moment I kissed him. He jumped up with an enthusiasm I have rarely seen. He was throwing on clothes like he needed to be out the door in mere minutes. If only I could get him to do that on school days. The next hour was filled with bouncing boys and last minute details. A miracle occurred, we were out the door and in the car on time.

It was smooth sailing the rest of the day. We breezed through security, we had checked in online the night before. We only had carry on bags. We settled in at the gate and watched the planes. The boys made last minute bathroom breaks. I should have made a last minute bathroom break. And we boarded the plane. Both boys had a window seat. SweetE could have used a booster to fit in the seat better and see out the window better, but live and learn.

As we started to pull away from the gate, sweetE (next to me) started to cry. "I want to go home." He has rarely left home, usually only to go visit grandparents. I envisioned an inconsolable boy crying next to me about wanting to go home. But with a few gentle reminders of the adventures ahead he calmed down before we even made it to the runway. Before we knew it we were in the air and we settled in for our flight. The boys played their Nintendo DS's once electronic devices could be used.

We landed and set off to find the rental car. We got the car, got the car seats, got the seats installed, learned how to use the navigation system and headed off to find the hotel. The rest of the day was spent relaxing around the hotel, doing a little exploring, and getting to bed early. The next day was Legoland.