Maren:
This month truly was fantastic in so many ways. Our decorations were up super early this year because we were all so excited that we just couldn't wait! Mommy got us tickets to the Nutcracker Ballet again this year and I got to bring Amelia along. She had never seen the ballet which made it really special for both of us.
Our Christmas surprise trip came early this year and totally caught us off guard. One day while we were at school a package was delivered right to our classrooms. Inside the bag was a bunch of candy canes for our friends and a letter from Santa Clause. The letter told us very little but just enough for us to know that we were leaving on a trip the very next day and we needed to go home and pack immediately. We got home to find two brand new suitcases all packed for us, another letter and 6 more clues to open while we were gone. As you can imagine, Maddox and I were over the moon excited but mommy and daddy went into panic mode! Luckily they were both able to arrange time off from work and find a house sitter at short notice for all of our pets which helped a lot. We all went into frantic packing mode to get the rest of the things we thought we might need... all that Santa told us was to pack for the sun and board a specific flight, so we weren't quite sure what might be necessary.
Our trip started on a flight to L.A... which we only found out once mommy checked in to the exact flight number we were given on the clue. Once we landed we got to open the next clue that sent us to pick up a rental car and then gave us an address in Anaheim to drive to. It was dark by then so we couldn't really tell where we were. Once we checked into the hotel and got to our room our next clue came with tickets to Disneyland! We also got to open our first suitcase which was full of all of our Disneyland stuff... costumes, bubble wands, autograph books, and Disney themed clothes to wear! It sure was hard to get to sleep that night!
The next morning we woke up early so we could be at the park when it opened. It was pretty cold down there but thankfully Santa sent us lots of clothes to layer in. Maddox dressed as Captain America and I wore my Captain Marvel costume since we were spending the day in California Adventure. We had a fantastic day which Maddox will tell you all about below. Once we got back to the hotel we got to open another clue which had tickets to LegoLand! Both of us have really been wanting to go there so we were very excited.
Once again we started our day early since we had about an hour and a half drive up to LegoLand park. We timed it perfectly and got there right as the park was opening. The park was really quiet all day with hardly any people there. We enjoyed it and all of the cool Lego structures they had but couldn't wait to get back to Disneyland the next day cuz you just can't beat Disney Magic!
The following two days of our trip we spent in Disney Land park and totally fell in love with Disney at Christmas. We got to spend mommy's birthday at the park and it was spectacular. The day finished with breathtaking fireworks followed by gingerbread scented snow on Main Street. It was wonderful! When we got back to the hotel that night we were allowed to open our next clue which simply told us to head back to the airport the following morning. We tucked in for a good night sleep and headed back to LAX the next morning bright and early. We got all checked in for our flight but still had no idea where we were headed. While we were up waiting for our plane to board we started talking to a man that was on the same flight. It was then that we found out that we were headed to Puerto Vallarta Mexico! We couldn't believe it and were beyond excited!
Once we landed in PV, made it through customs and got our baggage we were able to open the next clue. Inside the envelope there were 300 pesos and an address to our resort. Mommy found us a cab, we loaded up and headed to the Riu Jalisco. Maddox and I could not believe our eyes! It was a resort like we had never seen! Mommy and daddy told us that it was "all inclusive" which meant we could have as much as we wanted of all of the yummy food and drinks! It didn't take us long to suit up and hit the pool.
We got to stay a wonderful 5 nights in Mexico and had an amazing time. One of my most favorite things was riding a horse with mommy on the beach. It was definitely a different experience from being at the ranch but it was beautiful! I also really enjoyed swimming with the dolphins as a family. They were so neet to watch and so interesting to feel (really slippery)! I also really liked walking on the beach with mommy and looking at all of the pretty things the beach vendors had to purchase. We bought a lot of really fun things... mommy and I got matching dresses, I got Amelia and I matching headbands and bracelets... the last morning before we left the hotel I got my hair braided by one of the ladies on the beach for a lasting souvenir that I could bring home and enjoy every day for a while. In the end, I kept the braids in for a whole month!
Maddox:
My sissy gave you the run down on our amazing Disneyland/Mexico vacation and let me tell you... Santa pulled off one epic trip for us! Literally everything we could imagine was taken care of! He had all of the right clothes packed for each place like he knew exactly what the weather would be like. Lots of layers for the cool mornings and cold nights of SoCal, all of the costumes we would need for Disneyland, perfect Mexico attire, and all of the sunblock, shades, and flip flops to keep us protected from the sun. It was definitely an amazing trip that we will never forget! And now, we totally understand why mommy and daddy always want to go back to Mexico! Let me tell you about a few of my favorite moments on our trip...
On the first morning in the park we went to California Adventure. We made a quick dash to Radiator Springs Racers to ride our favorite cars ride as the line quickly gets really long. We were able to ride it two times in a row! Then, per my request, we went straight to Avengers Land. I was all decked out in my Captain America costume and I was ready to meet myself some Superheroes! Right as we walked in to the area we looked up on a balcony and saw Captain Marvel. Just around the corner from her Iron Man was waiting to greet people. We were excited to meet him and got in line really quickly. While we were waiting, a Disney Cast Member came over and pulled us out of line. We weren't sure what was going on at first but the man walked us around the corner, pointed up and... there was Captain America himself up on the balcony. Cap spotted me and I waved. Then... he saluted me! Wow! Was I absolutely beaming! I felt a bit embarrased though because I was not wearing my helmet (if you remember, I lost it during our last Disneyland visit) and I insisted that we head straight to the costume store to buy another. I purchased the exact same costume but in a bigger size so I have plenty of room to grow into it. After working our way around other sections of the park I finally convinced Mommy and Daddy that we needed to head back to Avenger Land to try and see Cap one more time. Unfortunately, when we got back he was not there, and I was really disappointed. But, once again, a cast member came to our rescue and pointed us to a secret door. After waiting a few minutes by the door Captain America came out! I ran right up to him and shook his hand. He stopped so we could take a picture together too! Absolutely the highlight of my whole day and possibly one of the best moments of the whole trip!
Our three days in Disneyland and one day in LegoLand were a blast for sure but I was definitely in my zone when we hit Mexico! You can't imagine our surprise when we found our where our flight was headed but despite all of the stories we had heard, we had no idea how amazing it would be until we arrived at the resort. When we got to the hotel I got to open the second suitcase and found it packed with all of the things we would need while we were there. Swim suits, flip flops and swim goggles were on the top of my list and it didn't take me long to change clothes for our first dip in the pool. The resort had two amazing pools for us to swim in, a great kid play area with a dump bucket and multiple water slides, and it was right on the edge of the beach. Mommy and daddy positioned themselves in some lawn chairs so they could see the pool and the kiddo play area so sissy and I could run back and forth between the two. We also spent a few days stationed down on the beach so we could do some swimming in the ocean and playing in the sand. It didn't take us long to meet some kiddos around our age which was made things even more fun.
Overall, we spent five nights in Mexico enjoying the sun, the amazing food, all of the fun drinks we could handle (the Monkeys Lunch was my fav), and the great entertainment. One of the nights they had an amazing Michael Jackson show that absolutely blew our minds and sissy and I did some pretty mean dancing of our own when it was finished.
We flew home on Christmas Eve, leaving 88-degree weather to return to, freezing temperatures and snow. As much of a bummer that was it meant that we woke to a white Christmas the following morning. Since we landed really late on Christmas Eve night, we stayed home in our jammies and had a pretty mellow day. Nonna and Nonno came to join us for the day and shared presents and good food.
The last week of break was also pretty low key. Mommy had to work the whole week since she had been off the week before. We spent lots of time in the snow with some sledding and we wrapped up the year with a New Years party at Nonna and Nonnos house (even though mommy and I fell asleep by 10:00).
