Quarantined: Coronavirus Day 20

Today has been hard.  I think we are all grieving in our different ways for things we have lost.  Teen girl desperately misses her friends and the mall.  Teen boy misses all the people on our block and the animals.  He misses school too.  Pre-teen girl misses her friends at school, and playing outside with her bestie on our block.  Man Cub misses Wal Mart and Great Wolf Lodge.  I am missing my support system, nail salon and hugging my mom.

I am hopeful with some nice weather heading our way this next week, that being outside and soaking in the vitamin D will help our moods improve a bit.  We do practice being thankful.  We have so much to be thankful for: a warm home, our health, food, a covered back patio and so much more.  But I know how important it is to acknowledge our feelings and feel them when they happen.  Grace upon grace...so much grace friends.

So instead of sharing all the difficult this past week...I want to share some joy.  Miss B is full of humor and comic relief when you need it.  I want to share just a few of the things she has said.  For the past several months, I have been writing down the hilarious things she says...who knows? Maybe someday I will write a book.

Without further ado here is Life According to Bella:

Getting out of the shower this week Bella says to me, "I'm becoming a real woman because I now need the hair towel."  

Mark talking to the kids about being thankful.
Mark: "I need you take what I am saying seriously."
Bella: "I can't take anything seriously."

Bella came into my bathroom this morning while I was getting ready for the day.
Bella: "Mom, Dad made breakfast again and it was better than last time.  Nothing was burnt.  He made French toast, bacon, and a side of Luke arguing about everything."

I was talking to Bella last week
Me: "Matthew seems happier now."

Bella: "That's because he's with the fun master!"

Luke and Bella talking about wanting Menchi's (frozen yogurt).  

Bella: "Oh, I haven't had Menchi's in forever!"

Luke: "I thought you can't have the dairy in the yogurt?"

Bella: "Oh well...I can power through it."

Bella announces to me, "Mom, I want to go to the Burj Khalifa."

Me: "what????"

Bella: "You know the tallest tower in the world in Dubai.  Hashtag goals."

I am so glad for the gift of my kids, even if they are difficult and drive me crazy at times.  They bring such joy and I am grateful for their companionship during this time.  Someday we will look back and see what a gift this was.

Quarantined: Coronavirus Day 10

The rules have become stricter in the last two days.  I feel we barely got through the birthdays by the skin of our teeth.  Luke, who celebrated his birthday on the 22nd of March, was able to take a fishing day with his dad.  Now, those places are closed down to fishing.  Where we were able to take a long walk in Ridgefield last week...that too is now closed.   Campgrounds and parks and the beaches all closed.  My heart is heavy...

Bella celebrated her 10th birthday yesterday.  It was definitely not the birthday I had planned for her.  Her and I had been planning her 10th birthday since January.  We had taken several trips to the craft stores and had pinned a 100+ pins on Pinterest.  She had a whole birthday planned with her little friends.  And then the Coronavirus, and social distancing and quarantine became words that we have all begun saying.  We both had a good cry last week, and I set out to make her day special.  I know I succeeded.  Bella helped me decorate and make her birthday cake/cupcakes.  We even made a special game that everyone in the family played (including dad).  It took me FOUR tries to find a restaurant that was open for us to get her a special birthday dinner to go.  She played all day with her new toys and didn’t cry at all.  She was happy and felt loved.  That is a win.

It is now the 25th of March.  Just 25 days ago, I was sitting in a pizzeria with my family, eating and talking and not even slightly considering that this would be our reality today.  I have yet to find a groove in this crazy new world of ours.  Truth...I am having a very difficult time sleeping.  The past three nights it has been after 1am before I have been able to fall asleep.  And I am not reading or watching the news.  I have began distancing myself from the news and social media more during the day and have stopped reading articles about everything Coronavirus related.  I thought that would help. But I just can’t relax, or turn my mind off, or stop wondering where Mark is at, or worrying about family and friends that have lost jobs.  I am sure it is a combination of all of it.  

There are a few moments... the moments between when you first wake up and fully are awake.  In those moments, I don’t remember that we are in a global pandemic.  Then it hits me all over again as I rub the tired out of my eyes... we are in a pandemic.  I can’t change it or control it, so...I roll out of bed to face another day with my crew at home in the comfort of our warm little house.  I am thankful for many things, even during this scary and unknown time.  I’ve been able to help a few people.  That really is my heart...to help people.  I was able to give a bottle of spray Lysol to someone in need of one, a DVD called Robots to a mama who needed it for her son, and now some paper towels to a wonderful friend of mine.  It is my way to help, to reach out, and feel like I can make a difference during a time that is uncertain.  

Week #26 & 27 @ The Dahlhouse

Summertime is in full swing at the Dahlhouse.  I am enjoying having a more relaxed schedule.  Even within the down time of summer, we continue to have a "schedule".   Monday's find us traveling to and fro from our little community library.  I finally found it!  It is the sweetest little library and perfect for my kiddos to peruse the aisles searching for the perfect book.  Bella calls it "book shopping" and cracks me up each time she says it. 

Water fills many of our hot days. 

Because this little one LOVES water sooo much, we have decided not to set up our big pool this summer.  Instead we have opted for a smaller pool that can be emptied when finished.

However, the size of the pool does not stop the big kiddos from joining in on the activities.  Pool is a pool.  LOL.  Grace is a joy!  She and Matthew have such a special bond and Grace is an excellent helper.  I can always count on her for Matthew help.  She is growing up.  Can't.even.believe.it!

Even though it is summer, the process of fighting and advocating for my kids does not take time off.  Even on a warm Monday, you can find us in the doctor's office with double appointments because this mama has a concern.  Man...I LOVE MY BOYS!  Luke is struggling...he is such a sweet, beautiful soul.  What a privilege to be his mama.  In the midst of Luke's of trials and hard stuff....I am crazy, deeply grateful for my amazing son!  He bring such joy and how I love him and the good God that brought us together.  Pray for him if you think of him.  We've had some very hard days around these parts. 

And oh Matthew...the little person I wished for that I didn't know that I needed!  Matthew is in Infant Toddler Early Intervention.  We have therapy for him for language delays.  He also is tip toe walking. I am concerned and needed the doctor to look at him.  After an exam and four xrays that left us both sweating and crying, he was referred for a pediatric therapy evaluation.  Knowledge is power.  We will be happy if he is fine, and happy to get help if he needs it. 

I finished this book in June.  Wow!  I knew it would be a hard read...and it was.   As a mama that has had both life and death within her...that has said goodbye to three little babies I never knew...my soul needed to read this.  I needed to feel it again.  I needed to grieve a bit more.  I needed to let myself go there.  And I did.  I cried the ugly cry more than once and surprised myself that even after 15, 14 and 12 years ago of losing my babies, the memories, the pain, the dreams and hopes for these little tiny humans were still there.  I allowed myself to feel it and talk about it.  And.it.was.good.  I am glad that I read this book. 

My photobook from Shutterfly arrived.  I designed one about our anniversary trip to Hawaii.  It turned out better than I expected and I highly recommend them.

My scar from my skin cancer is healing very well.  It is better than I could have imagined!  I am very happy. 

 Everyone needs a batman in their life!

 And a baby with a cat on their heads!  Thank you Facebook messenger!!!

 BBQing at Mimi and Papa's.

 Holding on to Hope while parenting on difficult days.

Bella had the opportunity to take a Mandarin lesson through a company called Lingo Bus.  It is a partner company with the one I work for VIPKID.  She loved it!  She is obsessed with Chinese culture.  She loves Panda's, Chinese food and learning people's names in Chinese.  I heart her so!

We've been selling pizza cards as a fundraiser for 4h.  This is our new mini rex rabbit.  She is super soft.

Papa and Mimi took Luke this last weekend for an overnight at their house.  They also took him golfing!  I am hoping that Luke will be able to join the high school golf team in a couple of years.  He really loves it and I think it would be very good for him.

Finally two of my kids promoted grades/classes on Sunday!  Bella moved up to the first grade class.  And Luke graduated out of children's church on Sunday mornings.  He is now going to be a helper for the younger kids classes.  Grace is excited as well because she gets to begin going to youth group.  Tonight is her first night!

Disneyland's Mickey's Halloween Party

One of the biggest highlights of our recent vacation to Disneyland, was attending Mickey's Halloween Party.  I have been wanting to attend this event since I first read about it nearly 4 years ago.  So we planned our family vacation around Halloween Time at Disneyland.

The event is heavily advertised in Southern California.  We saw multiple boards that announced the Halloween Party.  We found this one in Hunnington Beach, California.

Mickey's Halloween Party is a "special event ticket", meaning that it requires an additional ticket to attend the party and not included with regular admission.  The party is offered on 14 selected nights during September and October.  The closer the dates are to Halloween the more expensive the tickets are with Halloween night being the most expensive party ticket.  Our date in September was one of the least expensive nights.  Our tickets also came with free parking (which is a $17 value).  Also, if you happen to be an annual passholder you qualify for additional discounts on the Mickey's Halloween Party tickets (sadly we are not annual passholders).  Even with the tickets being expensive we purchased ours the first day they went on sale.  All of the Mickey's Halloween Parties for the 2014 season sold out.

When entering Disneyland on Mickey's Halloween Party night, you enter through a separate entrance labeled "Special Event Tickets". Uncle D and Aunt Katie met us there  as they had purchased their tickets to join us.  I knew it was going to be a special night and experience! The cast members at the gate took our printed computer tickets and transferred them to a "hard" ticket so we would be able to use the Fastpass system if we chose too.  For anyone wondering the cost of Mickey's Halloween Party, it was $62 per person.  No discount given to for children's tickets, but this did include a small advanced purchase discount.

We were allowed to enter the park 3 hours prior to the beginning of Mickey's Halloween Party.  Since the party was scheduled to begin at 7pm, we were able to enter at 4pm.  After we had our tickets scanned, each of us was given a special event bracelet with the date of the party on it.  I assume each additional night of the parties would be a different color with a different date printed on them.  Even Bella got her bracelet put on.  The Cast Members were dressed in festive outfits for the party!

After the bracelets were securely in place, we all picked out a trick-or-treat bag for collecting all our candy. Our party night bag focused on Maleficent.  A special park map was issued for the party night outlining all the trick or treat paths and the nights events.

This is what our bracelets looked like on Friday, September 26th.  The were sparkly green and had the party and date listed on them.  This was also the first Halloween Party of the 2014 season at Disneyland.

Since we had time before the party officially began we decided to head over to the French Market for dinner.  We enjoyed chicken, mashed potatoes, salad and even a special Halloween dessert.  We were so happy to be with Aunt Katie and Uncle D.  The kiddos were talking a mile a minute and it was so, so, so good to be in their company!

After dinner we headed over to the attraction Haunted Mansion Holiday.  It is amazing how they transform the ride into a spectacular Nightmare before Christmas extravaganza.  It is a delicate perfect balance of what it would truly look like if Halloween and Christmas collided into one holiday.  

The kids were decked out in their costumes and we also saw some amazing costumes too as this is the one time adults are allowed to wear costumes into the park. Rest assured that there are guidelines that must be followed regarding scary costumes and masks.  We saw a pretty amazing Mary Poppins and Bert.  Several wicked stepsisters and the mother, an Incredible's family and not as many Anna's as Elsa's.  As you can see, we had two Elsa's representing from the Dahl Family.  

The inside is amazing and while this picture doesn't do it justice, you can see how different the loading area is during the holiday season.

More fun decorations...you can spy the jack-o-lantern wearing a Santa Claus hat. :)

My kiddos were in heaven with Uncle D and Aunt Katie in tow.  There was much discussion about who was going to get to ride with whom?  We took advantage of some ride time before the party began.

The closer it became to 7pm, the Cast Members began setting up wristband check points.  If you had a wristband you were good, if not they pointed you in the direction of Main Street and the exit.  The crowds began to thin down at this point.  There were 10 trick-or-treating paths all throughout Disneyland park.  You were greeted by a ghost Mickey at the entrance to each trick-or-treat path.  You would walk through specially designed "paths" and along the way the Cast members were set up with candy stations.  There were 5-7 candy stations on each path.

Disney handed out great candy.  M+M's, Reeces, Kit-Kats. Skittles,etc.  I also thought it was awesome that they had non-candy and non sugar items at each path (potato chips, craisins, dried fruit). 

Our bags were filled full after just a couple of paths.  In fact we did about 4 paths, and decided to enjoy some rides (with NO lines), the small parade and some shopping.

There were many great photo opportunities.  There were also MANY characters out and about and some that were in designated areas (outlined on the park map).

This little one was VERY happy with her chocolate!

The attention to detail at Disneyland is amazing.  Nothing is too small.  The pumpkin carving is amazing and the painting was beautiful.

This was an amazing pumpkin carving!

The one request of my 4 year old was to ride Dumbo with Auntie Katie.  She got her wish!

Luke as Captain Jack Sparrow!

Gracie as Queen Elsa!

We had fun watching the cute cavalcade.  A cavalcade is a mini parade.  There were only three floats and most of the characters walked.

Cute cowboy Mickey.

Uncle D trying out a Yoda backpack in the Star Trader where we "hid" from the fireworks.  Bella rode everything and loved it, but the fireworks caused her to freak out!

Overall, Mickey's Halloween Party was amazing!  I would highly recommend it.  We enjoyed all the events, received tons of candy, and celebrated in style.  The kids are still talking about it. If you ever find yourself going to Disneyland in the fall be sure to check out Mickey's Halloween Party.

Great fun was had by all...including us big kids!

Happy Halloween!!!

XOXO

The Dahl Kids