day two : disneyland and dole whips!

We scored a pretty banging deal on a Disneyland package, so Marcus and I were psyched to spend a day at Disneyland together. The hotel we got had a really nice free breakfast, so we enjoyed a little bit and then headed off to the Magic Kingdom!

The first hour or so, Marcus wasn't in the best mood. For the most part, he isn't actually a huge Disneyland fan because he feels like there's a lot of pressure to enjoy everything to the point of sensory overload due to the expensive prices. I totally get that concern--I've felt it myself--but I tried to reassure him that we didn't have to do anything if it wasn't fun for him, because what the hell is the point in that? He was sort of sullen for a few minutes, but once we got on Space Mountain, it was like night and day. He loves to laugh on roller coasters!

We both thought this picture was hilarious. He was pretty insistent that I should take off my glasses (since apparently on Space Mountain they're prone to flying off and being lost forever), so the entire thing looked especially crazy. I'm pretty blind, and without my glasses I can only see vague shapes and colors. If you've ever ridden Space Mountain, you see how this could be horrifying. (Well...mostly fun, but still fairly trippy.)

After that, we figured out the best system for him: avoid the heaviest crowds, take semi-frequent breaks to sit away from the masses of people, and occasionally find a snack. It was nice, because we got to do a lot of people-watching and enjoy our favorite rides anyway.

Trips with Marcus mean trying the food--it's one of our favorite things to do together! We ended up sampling both kinds of Dole Whip (plain and float version), some Disney Starbucks thanks to my gift cards, a Mickey Mouse pretzel, and some really delicious sourdough bread at the Pacific Wharf area of California Adventure. We didn't actually eat those candy apples, because they were $10. We wanted to, though! And I thought they were the cutest decorative apples I'd ever seen. We spent a good while browsing the candy shops--I'm always fascinated with what people can do with food!

(Marcus says his favorite was the bread bowl, but he wishes he'd tried tomato bisque soup instead of the Asian salad. I argue that had he tried the soup, he'd have wanted the salad instead.)

As I said before, we went to Disneyland over a holiday weekend, so the crowds were immense. While it's possible to navigate them okay, after a while it can get sort of tiring because everyone wants to go enjoy the same things you're trying to do. One of the things we did to sort of step away was ride my favorite attraction--the Mark Twain riverboat!

By the way, if you ask really nicely, they'll take you up to a private room and let you steer the boat.

I was essentially on cloud nine. Marcus really enjoyed watching the view from all the way up there, and I decided to share and let him ring the bell and blow the horn once or twice. ;)

We ended the day with our delicious sourdough dinner at the wharf and browsed around California Adventure for a little while. Marcus was nice enough to go on the new Little Mermaid ride with me, because last time I came it was only in the design stages and I was curious about it. We agreed that it was cute, but we both felt like some of the characters were a little too lifelike. At one point we got stuck in front of a dancing Ariel that sort of started to border on creepy. We contemplated staying for World of Color, but it seemed like the park was already getting very crowded even a few hours before the show and we opted not to this time.

Even though he said it still wasn't his top choice for a vacation, Marcus ended up having a way better time than he thought--he even said he'd go again if certain conditions were met. Mainly, we would go off-season, budget more to be able to try some of the more exciting (but pricier) park foods, and we'd stay at a closer hotel so we didn't have to drive through the city to get there. Those all sounded great to me, so I considered this a huge success.

I love Disneyland, but I feel like as an adult it's different to me than when I was younger. I still very much enjoy the colorful decor and the characters--and the food is actually a big deal to me--but I can definitely see how it's stressful for some people who feel overwhelmed by all the crowds and noise. We were talking over dinner about how, even though it's neat that they incorporate elements from all over the world into their parks, we'd still rather go to the actual places. However, the cute novelties have their own charm, and we were glad to get to experience them together! I didn't end up buying my ear hat this time, because I couldn't justify the price, but I did have a blast wearing my special pink pirate dress! :)

Next to last: our third day through more California and our stay in the tiny town of Red Bluff! :)

our trip: day one!

We made it to Seattle! It was a great time together, and I tried to take pictures whenever I could. However, there were a lot of times when it made more sense to just enjoy ourselves and not worry about documenting everything--still, I want to remember our fun trip, so here we are!

The night before we left, I stayed with my mom and brothers at a family friend's house in Phoenix. Marcus picked me up around 8 in the morning, and with that, we were off!

I was looking forward to the road trip because I enjoy watching the scenery, but unfortunately for the first day we didn't have much in the way of a view. If you've ever made the drive from Phoenix to California, it's a whole lot of nothing for several hours--and neither Marcus nor myself are huge fans of the desert landscape. We kept trying to spot areas where the spiny plants were gradually becoming more sparse. Also, he really enjoyed the environmentally-conscious windmills we passed every once in awhile.

When we got to our hotel, we were pleasantly surprised--our room was quite big, and it had a jacuzzi in it! (We didn't actually use it, but still. I've never seen that before!) We both fell asleep for a couple of hours, then woke up to go check out Downtown Disney and (of course) Disneyland!

I should have it on record that I wore the special fruit top my good friend Sasha gifted me with for my first night out on the town!

We're both big food people, and neither of us can resist a good sandwich (we both worked at Port of Subs and got sort of spoiled! We like to try other ones whenever we can to compare). We tried out the Earl of Sandwich in Downtown Disney, which was delicious! If you're ever in that area and you need a moderately inexpensive dinner, the subs are only $6.99. I had a pretty good turkey club, and Marcus decided to try their Italian combo. Both of us were impressed! We were trying to find the best deals--even though a lot of the food was more expensive than we'd usually like to pay, we figured if we were going to spend the money anyway we might at least make it worth it!

After that, we headed for Disneyland, which was nice since it was getting dark. There were still quite a few people (and of course, we didn't realize until getting there that we'd totally timed our trip to coincide with a holiday weekend) but it wasn't as overwhelming as it would've been in the daytime. We had a blast people-watching and getting on some of our favorite rides--the first stop was the Haunted Mansion, followed by Splash Mountain (which I'd never been on!). You overhear all kinds of funny things in line, plus you can see a lot of cute families. By the time we got there, most of the little kids still in the park were passed out in strollers or on their parents' laps. We were there a good couple of hours, but the entire day of driving coupled with a busy evening out sort of drained us earlier than usual. Still, it was a wonderful night and we had a lot of fun!

Next up: day two, our full day at Disneyland!

it's happening!

I'm laying down writing this as I fight the urge to fall asleep. (Seriously, the last week of school was never this overwhelming when I was a student!)

Tomorrow morning, we're leaving! The first stop is Anaheim--we were able to budget for that Disneyland trip after all! After that, we'll be driving up through the rest of California, through Oregon, then straight to Seattle where Marcus's parents are quite eagerly waiting. We've both been so psyched we could hardly stand it, because it's not really a secret that neither of us enjoys the desert. A few people have almost taken what I could almost call offense to our new destination--"What? Washington? Why? You know it rains there, right?!"

Oh, believe me, we knew. It was really helpful that we've been able to visit during summer and winter to get an accurate idea of what the seasons are like. We weren't too scared off, evidently!

I never felt like I could answer honestly when people at work who'd heard about our upcoming move through the grapevine asked me what the long-term plan is. A lot of variables are up in the air, and I don't actually know how long we're going to be there. For the first time in awhile, I guess I'm just not worried about it. I'm excited to just be there for a little bit, if that makes sense. Overseas will come, I'm sure of it. I can't say when, exactly, because that depends on what ends up panning out. In the meantime, I have a good partner who I'm ecstatic to be making such a fun road trip with. I hear the drive through Oregon in particular is beautiful!

I can't wait to get moving!

tiger stripes and high-waisted shorts

The thing I've found about animal prints is that you generally love them or hate them. Personally, I've never really been a huge fan. I'm not sure why, exactly. Maybe for the most part they seemed a little too loud for me (says the person who has a love affair with novelty prints, I guess). When I saw this tiger-striped vamp top up for sale on one of the Pinup Girl swap boards, though, I felt like I sort of had to have it. I couldn't explain why, especially since it was so different from my usual style. Still, when it arrived, I couldn't wait to try it on! 

I will say this about vamp tops: they're phenomenal. They fit pretty true to size, and, as the PUG reviews state, they do pretty great things for your bust! ;) I've actually wanted to try a real one for awhile (I have a black knockoff from Hot Topic that I love) because I was curious about the quality judging from the rave reviews. Now I'm most definitely sold! They have a lot of other colors I'd love to try out someday, including zebra and lavender. It's such a fun top for the summertime! I'm sure I'll find a way to get a lot of use out of it even though the print is pretty bold. 

As an aside, I'm really excited that my hair is finally getting long enough to experiment more with it. I'm thinking about trying rollers pretty soon--I've found some interesting tutorials on Pinterest for setting your hair, and my curiosity is piqued! 

And now, completely unrelated, but probably important: this Saturday, I'm going on a road trip! Marcus and I are going to be moving to Seattle as my mom leaves for Ohio. This is indeed different from our original plans of all moving out there together, but it's probably for the best. When I visited with Mom in February, I had a great time, but I had this feeling in my heart like it just wasn't the place for me.  When I talked to her about it, she agreed, and suggested that Marcus and I take some time to go see his parents up in Seattle and give the Northwest a try for a while. I'm very excited, because his parents and I are very close and they've already been throwing around some suggestions for international companies up there that I could look into! Honestly, I think it's much more what we're looking for at this point in life. However, we can always go out to Ohio for a visit...and there's been talk of a family trip to New York! 

We will be stopping in Disneyland along the way, too, so there's a lot to look forward to. It'll probably be a really long trip, but we've made a few together before and we always have a nice time. Plus, I hear the drive along the coastline is beautiful! We'll even get to pass through Oregon for a little bit, which is someplace I've always wanted to see.

More on that later, I guess! Now, I just have to focus on my preschoolers for one last week together. And packing, too. I should probably think about that. ;)