Finally. The rest of Disneyland!

Entering Toon Town.  This is when Havanna really lit up.

A glimpse into the future?  Scary.

Just kicking back at Minnie's house.

Super cool kid.

It was L.O.V.E at first sight.

Check out this rock n' roll queen.

Me, showing the girls how it's done.

C'mon, Talullah!  You can do it!!!

Berlyn's turn.  Check out those muscles.

Time for brunch.

The Little Mermaid ride was a huge hit.

Again, mom!  Again!

Mickey signing the girls' autograph book.

Is this place for real?!?!

Well, I'm at least a month behind finishing up the Disneyland photos.  While this adventure was entirely exhausting, at times overwhelming, and a whole lot of walking for this pregnant mom, I am so glad that we did it.  The girls had the time of their lives and are often asking when we get to go back.  Every time they see a cartoon with a character they didn't get to see there, Talullah asks if we can back so she can meet them.  We created precious memories to cherish, and even if the little ones are too small to remember this once they're grown, Nick and I will never forget the priceless moments.  And.... we'll always have these pictures to reflect back on.
I love my little princesses.  In a couple more years when the new baby girl is old enough, I'm sure we'll be doing Disneyland once more!

Christmas is coming!

Let me tell you.  Putting up Christmas decorations while 3 little, curious girls run around is quite a challenge.  An glass angel lost her halo and a leg.  A snowman now has no carrot nose.  Several glass bulbs are missing from the tree, and something fragile is in smithereens on the floor.  But when these cuties came running to show off their new 'socks', all was forgiven.  They were enjoying every minute of going through the Christmas boxes, and we put some holiday music on Pandora to set the mood.  It's beginning to look like Christmas at the Downey's!

Veggies

It's side ways, I know.  I couldn't figure out how to fix it.  I'll get back to the Disneyland pictures later, but I just had to share this.
As many of you know, I have a fear of spiders.  A rational, reasonable fear.  They are awful, disgusting creatures that I'm almost positive are out to get me and my children.  Since Humboldt County is plagued with those GIGANTIC 'halloween spiders' from September through October, I'm nearly confined to my house for two months out of the year.  I mean, I go outside, but it's with great fear and trepidation.  I throw the front door open and peer my head outside before stepping over the threshold.  I will likely be wielding a broom or long stick to conquer any webs that might have otherwise entangled me forever.  I run like the wind until I'm safely locked inside the minivan, and I speed away from those mini monsters that might be trying to hunt me down for tearing down their homes.
The backyard?  Forget about it.  I refuse to even open the back door.  So, during the life span of these particular spiders, it becomes Talullah's job to go into the backyard and let out the chickens every morning.  We run through feed twelve times faster because I can't monitor how many bowl fulls the girls are dumping out every day.  It doesn't even matter because I'm safe behind the window, in my warm, spider free house.
Needless to say, our garden suffers greatly.  It has been at least two months since I've gone to water or pull anything from the ground.  After a week or two of close observation, I've noted that the spiders have all died (thank the Lord, in heaven), and it is once again safe to play outside.  I opened the gate to our raised beds, and what do you know?!  Underneath the dead leaves, mud, and overgrown vines, there is still some vegetables growing!

Disneyland!!!

If these girls get this excited about hotel bunk beds, we just knew they'd LOVE Disneyland.

Probably my most favorite picture from the whole 9 day trip.

Just because she is so stinking cute.

The first princess we ran into was Merida.  The girls had no idea who she was, but they played along great.  

Rapunzel showed the girls all of her beautiful wall paintings.

Berlyn could not wait to meet Aurora.  She had picked an Aurora dress to wear for the occasion.

The highlight of  Talullah's day was meeting Ariel.  She wore a matching dress.

Is it just me, or was Tinkerbell flirting with my husband...

The girls LOVED the parade.

The girls have never seen Peter Pan.  Berlyn was less than impressed and T down right refused to be in the photo.

My little fairies.

A little girl in a big, big world.

The girls loved going in the submarine!

Well here is a start on the Disneyland blog.  Considering we took about 800 pictures, let me warn you that there may be several more entries to cover our three day adventure.  Looking through all of the adorable pictures of my sweet, sweet, little ladies... it's nearly impossible to pick just a few for the post.  A few moments to cherish:

On our drive south, Talullah asked "Where ARE we going, mom?!"  "DISNEYLAND!  Remember???" With a confused look, she replied " But I thought Disneyland was up in the sky.  By Jesus."

While sitting in the Tikki Room watching the birds sing, Talullah leaned over to whisper in my ear "Mom.  Am I dreaming, or is this for real?!"

Berlyn's absolute admiration meeting each and every princess.  Talullah was a bit reserved through her excitement, but Miss Berlyn would have gladly stayed to live with Cinderella.  It was so sweet that Talullah picked each princess a flower while we were waiting in line to meet Ariel, Aurora, and Cinderella.

While Havanna couldn't have cared less about the princesses or fairies, once we entered Toon Town, this little girl came to life.  She melted into the arms of Minnie Mouse and took off running towards Goofy.

Havanna enjoyed the Ariel's Adventure  Sea Creature Carousel so much, she bawled when the ride stopped and Nick had to help me pry her fingers off the handles to get her down from the sea horse.

Berlyn is going to be an adrenaline junkie.  Nick took the big girls on a mini roller coaster, and the look on her face was priceless.

Time with Great Grandma and Grandpa Perry

Every time we travel to the southern end of California, we love taking time to spend a night with my grandparents in Sylmar, CA.  They took us to William S. Hart park, and while we were disappointed that we just missed the last mansion tour, we still enjoyed climbing the hill and walking around the beautiful home and checking out the view.  It is always such cherished time when we see my grandparents, considering we might only see them once a year.  It warmed my heart to see the girls warm right up to them both, offering hugs and kisses and collecting loose change from every corner of their home.  The big girls were especially excited when we cleared away this big closet space to make a little tent like bed area for them.  Pretty exciting stuff to a 3 and 4 year old.  As always, the time was too short, but we sure do love seeing Great Grandma and Great Grandpa Perry every chance we get.

Nice Try!

We truly did attempt to get a cute picture of all the cousins before we left Melissa's.  This was the best out of five.

Finally! Our Trip

Wow.  These took forever for me to post, but I'm finally taking a few minutes to sit at the computer and post some pictures from our trip a few weeks ago.  During our trip south, we had the opportunity to go visit Nick's cousin Melissa and her family a couple hours away from San Diego.  It was her daughter Lilliana's 7th birthday, and Melissa knows how to throw a heck of a party.  The decorations were adorable and she made these precious little hats for the girls to clip in their hair.  This party lovin' mom was completely impressed.  Our girls had so much time getting to know their cousins.  We only wish we had more time to spend with them before dashing home.

The Dulcimer

When I got home from work today I opened the front door to be greeted by what sounded like a fairy festival coming from our bedroom.  I walked in to see Nick sitting at the large instrument with all three girls twirling around to the music.  Each girl had their turn playing musician, and Havanna took to it like a pro.

L.O.V.E

It's still not completely set up, but this is the new headboard that my friend Lindsay Manson made.  I absolutely love it.  My husband needs to attach it to the bed frame, and for now it's just propped up on the mattress.  Dangerous, you may ask...?  Yes.  But I just couldn't wait.

Roaring 20's

My friend Michele just turned 30, so her husband threw her a Great Gatsby party.  I honestly have no idea what the Great Gatsby is... but apparently is has something to do with the 20's.  A dress up party for adults?!  I'm in.  Nick was all for it.  I'm pretty sure that we will never have another birthday party without having a dress up theme.  I even suggested I start making our dinners themed.  He can come home and I'll have a mariachi band playing on the radio, a huge sombrero on my head.  It's taco night, Nick!!!  Or he'll open the door and I'll be wearing a hula skirt and throw a lei around his neck.  It's Hawaiian pizza for dinner, my love!