Week One of My Short Story Challenge

 A Tale of Two Lonely Birds           By: Everly

There once was a great bird, soaring through the sky. He soared high and low, in and out, everywhere. he soared as free as an arrow. But, of course, every arrow has its target. And for this bird, his target was his destination. 

The majestic bird landed on a tree so tall it lived above the clouds. On this tree was a nest, an empty nest. The bird had been happy and free when soaring, but now he remembered his deep loneliness. He had a life with no one to share it with. 

But then, just as the bird was about to spend another lonely day in his nest, he saw another bird. She was like a lantern glowing far off in the distance on a dark night. She was just as majestic as our lonely bird. She had glorious wings, a beautiful beak, and eyes like a lake in the moonlight. But in those eyes, there was also a terrible sorrow. A longing for a mate, a prayer for a partner, a hope for an eternal friend. This female bird spotted the lonely bird, and they knew that they were the perfect match. 

They soared through the sky together, but even now that they we together, there was still a trace of loneliness. They were still missing something. 

They had kids. 

It was ever so painful for our two birds to wait for the eggs to hatch. Long days of sitting on the eggs, and waiting, waiting for them to arise from their containment. 

But eventually, it happened. The eggs cracked like a human under pressure. But this was a different kind of crack, it was a joyous crack. The two birds hard days were over, and there wasn’t a single speck of loneliness in either of them. They were happy as could be. Smiling smiles brighter than the sun. They were complete. 

And this family soared together, no longer just one lonely star, but a whole constellation.

The End.

My Short Story Challenge

 Hello everybody! Are you ready to hear the challenge I have given myself for the rest of this year? Here it is, my goal is to write one short story per week, and publish them in my blog! This idea was given to me by my dad, thanks dad! And thanks to all people who have helped me with my blog! Ok, back to the challenge. I have already come up with 2 short stories. I came up with them a while ago, but I will count them as my first 2 weeks.

You will find these short stories per week, on my blog, in the home section. You are able to view the first one today, the next will come out next week, supposedly on Sunday. And if you miss a couple of weeks that’s ok. Just type in ‘Week One of Short Story Challenge’ or whatever number of week you missed. I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I loved writing them.

My Disneyland Experience Part 2

 

Hello everybody! Sorry it’s been a while, but I’m finally here! 

If you go to Disneyland, you’re not just going to Disneyland, you’re going to California Adventures! Which is what we are gonna be talking about today. 

Things you need to know before we start:

1. This is our second time in Disneyland (if you didn’t read my post in Disneyland day one, check it out!)

2. Only my brothers have bought their souvenirs

3. We went to California Adventures on Wednesday

Ok, that’s it so let’s go!

First, we parked in the Mickey and Friends Parking Structure. When we went to the Disney part of Disneyland, we parked in the Toy Story parking lot, but that was a long walk, so this time we parked closer. 

Once we get to California Adventures, my brothers and my Dad leave the rest of us do do the Tower of Terror, and all the rollercoasters. They wanted to start with those because it would work better for all of us. So, now that my Mom, my sisters, and me are alone, we head off to the Mater ride. We all love this ride. Last time that my littlest sister came to Disneyland, she really only rode this ride. Over, and over, and over… You get the point. But the annoying part is, she doesn’t even remember going on it!! All my Mom’s life, gone to waste. She rode that ride over and over with my sister, to no use.

Mater Ride:

Once we arrive at the ride, we see that the line is empty. Well, pretty empty. It was a cloudy day, and there wasn’t many people around. So we get on the ride after it’s second round. My Mom and my littlest sister are together, and my other sister and I are, once again, together (not that I mind). 

My sister and I are fully buckled, and a nice lady comes up to us and makes sure we are safely in our seats and stuff (which we are). She also asks how old we are, to make sure I’m old enough to be with my sister alone. I tell her our ages, “I’m 12, and my sister’s 10.”

“Perfect.” She says.

The ride starts. It’s starts out pretty normal, just going around, with little curves here and there. But then, it gets crazy! I’ve gone on this ride before, but I forgot how much fun it is! We are constantly going different directions, and it really gets butterflies going in your stomach. We pass my Mom and my sister, and then turn again. It is so much fun!! The ride just goes like that the whole way through, constantly turning in unexpected directions, while the ride plays some country music.

Now, I wish I could keep going, but I can’t. So, make sure you keep an eye out for more ride posts! Note: this time they will be separated into different little blog posts, instead of one ginormous post.

The Little Mermaid Ride:

We literally just walked onto the ride! There was like NO ONE there! But, of course, the ride broke down while we were in it. “It looks like Ursula’s up to her wicked schemes again.” It said. Eventually we got going again. It was a good ride, but just like all of the other classic rides. You just sit and go through the whole movie, but it’s not bad. It’s especially nice when you haven’t watched the movie and you want the short version.  Next we headed off to the Inside Out ride, which, thankfully, wasn’t to far away from us.

The Inside Out Ride:

We pick one of the balloons (I’m pretty sure ours was purple or blue). The ride starts, and we hear Fear say “Ahh…This is good, just moving in a circle.” Then we start going up (it’s like a miniature Silly Symphony Swings) “Wait, we’re going up?!!” Says Fear. I get butterflies as we go up and down. I was scared of this ride at first (silly me) but it was fun! My poor Mom and my little sister had to go backwards on the ride! It was such a fun, totally not scary, ride! 

Here’s a picture of me and my sister on the ride: (that’s me on the right, and my sister on the left)

It was a very delightful ride. You can see the smile on my face!

Jesse’s Carousel:

We get in line for Jesse’s Carousel. It only goes around twice before we get on. There’s still not many people in Disneyland. My littlest sister loved this ride, she loves all carousels. She doesn’t get to go on carousels very often. It’s just a normal carousel, we go round and round on little animals. It was cool to choose what animal we rode on. I rode on a blue snake! It was hopping on its….. uh…. Tail?? But it was not a bad ride. My sisters liked it too. 

After that we met up with my brother’s and my Dad. They got to go on the Incredacoaster TWICE! The line was that short.

But what will we do next? Wait and find out! (Hopefully you don’t have to wait that long)

Summer Activities for You and Your Family

 Mmm…. Ice cream. Looks so good doesn’t it? That pictures is a picture of me when I was little. Ok anyways, if you’re like me, then you didn’t plan anything to do this summer, so you’re bored. Even if you did plan things to do, unless you planned something to do for every day, ever hour, every minute, every SECOND, then you’re gonna run out of plans eventually. That’s just life, you can’t plan everything. So I’m here to help! I’m gonna list things that you can do this summer to keep yourself from the pit of boredom. Once you enter the pit, it is hard to climb out, the pit is made of things that you could do, but you don’t want to do. Don’t fall in the pit! Even if you do, just look at this post and try to find SOMETHING to do. Alright let’s go before you get bored.

1. Bubbles: Who doesn’t love bubbles? Ok, some people don’t, but that’s not the point. Lot’s of kids love bubbles, and even some adults! Bubbles are a fun activity, especially when you’re not alone. I love to pop bubbles as they come, making it into a fun challenge. Don’t let them escape! 

2. Chalk: Chalk is cheap and fun. If you’re an artist, or if you have kids who are artists, put them outside on the sidewalk, empty driveway, or deck. See what you can create, and what the others can create. You can even make it a game! Who can make the best cat? Or Pictionary, whoever guesses what it is first wins!

3. Board Games: Ok, I know what you’re thinking. It literally has the word ‘bored’ in the name, but trust me, board games are really fun! Let me suggest some for you:

Monopoly, a classic family favorite

Code Names, such a fun game! It helps everyone work together too!

Color Brain, really tests your memory and it’s delightful!

Life, I love this game! It gives kids the opportunity to figure out what they wanna be when they grow up, and it is so much fun!!

There are so many other fun ones! But, I don’t have time to list them all now. Sorry. Ok, moving on!

4. Make Fairy Houses: This is SO MUCH FUN! I do it all the time when I visit my Grandma. It allows you to be really creative. You can use rocks for tables, you can make leaf beds, you can have a disco ball made out of those pokey balls you find near trees, and so much more!

5. Make Tents: Whether you’re an adult breaking the largest tent record, or a kid making a cozy fantasy world, tents are amazing. Tents are super duper fun! There’s no limit to how you can make them, pillow forts, blanket forts, pillow/blanket forts, double decker tents, tents with bedrooms, etc. I love making tents of all kinds. I have recently been making maze tents, with a tent and then pillows set up inside maze form. There’s no limit!

6. Go Camping: You can go camping at a camp site, or in your backyard! Camping is a brilliant way to make kids appreciate nature. It is also a great place to play Eye Spy! You can go on hikes, play games, and enjoy family time with each other. If you want to spend more time with you family, camping is a great way to go. Just make sure you bring bug spray and a good tent!

7. Swim:  Swimming is so much fun! Whether you swim with a life vest or if you can swim on your own, swimming a great thing. You can play pool games, float along, exercise, or just swim! Summer is the perfect time to swim because, as you know, it gets HOT. I love the water!

8. Slip-N-Slide: Slip-N-Slides are crazy. They are awesome. And they are so much fun (did you notice that I’ve said the word ‘fun’ over 100 times?!!). Even if you just lay a plastic sheet on the ground and turn on the sprinklers, it’s fun. If you wanna cool down, but don’t wanna swim, Slip-N-Slides are the way to go. You slip, you slide, and you have fun!

9. Do puzzles:  Some people aren’t puzzle fans, and I get that, but puzzles always end up beautiful. And when you do them as a family, it always sends out giggles as one person’s arm reaches across another’s. Puzzles are fun (there it is again!) and pretty. They come in all different kinds, animals, landscapes, movies, big or small, easy or hard, etc. However, you do need a big space to do these puzzles. But puzzles are fun!

10. Have a picnic: Picnics are delicious! The cucumber sandwiches, the lemonade, the chips, or whatever you have on a picnic. And picnics with your friends are also really fun! It’s a great way to connect with the outdoors and with each other! 

11. Take a Hike: I’m not saying this as a way to make you leave my blog (please stay!), I’m saying it because hikes are amazing. When I was younger, I went on hikes with a friend of mine. One time we even saw a waterfall! Hikes are BEAUTIFUL. And me putting the word in large, is NOT an exaggeration. With all the trees, occasional waterfalls, birds, and other animals, it really makes a wonderful experience. I’ve also seen an owl on a hike. His head just followed me as I moved farther along the trail. I encourage you to go on a hike so you can see these things too!

12. Watch some movies: Watching movies is fun. Especially when you have your family, some popcorn, and some comfy spots to sit. But you don’t have to watch movies at a movie theater, you can watch them from the comfort of your own home! I love watching movies with my family, it gives me a way to know their opinions on some movies, and we get to experience the movie together. But I understand that not everyone likes to watch movies.

13. Put on a play: You can either put on a play yourself or watch a play. They both work. I love being in plays. As I believe I’ve said in another one of my posts, I think it’s called ‘My Thoughts on Acting and Theater’ (check it out if you haven’t already!), my sisters and I put on plays at home all the time. Sometimes they end up really silly, like the time when Cinderella was laughing when she was supposed to be crying :p. We typically do plays of movies that we know really well. But anyways, putting on a play can be a really cool experience. You can do it with family, friends, anyone! Trust me, it’s really fun! You should try it, whether this year or the next (it doesn’t even have to be in summer!).

14. Craft: I LOVE to craft. And I encourage you to craft, it helps you be more creative, and gives you a fun time in the process! There are millions of crafts in the world. You can do one from my blog, another person’s blog, or from your own imagination! Crafts are wonderful.

15. Cook/ Bake: Maybe you’re not a fan of cooking/baking, but if you are, summer is a wonderful time to do some! It is also really fun to do it with kids. Kids will learn from this project, and have some fun as well! There are so many things to cook/bake; cookies, rolls, pasta (this is a nice and simple one), waffles, parfaits, you name it! Your kids (if you have any) will enjoy this as much as you do, well… hopefully. But baking/cooking is so much fun. I love that I get to do it every now and then for my blog.

16. Raise money for charities: There are many people in the world who don’t have enough money for a home, supplies, food, and much more. That’s why I hope you will raise money to give to charities for these people. You don’t have to, but this is a great way to help. Whether you go door-to-door, have a lemonade stand, a bracelet stand, or a stand of any kind, it will work. Imagine if one of your loved ones couldn’t do something, like reach the bowls at the top of the shelf, you would want to help them, right? So think of all these people that need help. Please, help them. God created people a long time ago, and He still cares for them, so why shouldn’t we? Please, let’s make the world a better place. Raising money is a great way for you to take initiative, or for your kids. Your kids (or you) will learn from this, they’ll learn to love the people they don’t even know, they’ll care more, and they’ll have made a difference.

17. Do a book challenge: My Mom gave me and my siblings a book challenge this summer. She wanted us to read as many books as possible before summer ended. If we did this we would get a reward (not that I needed a reward, I love to read!), so we all got to work. This is a good challenge for you or your kids, say you or one of your kids doesn’t like to read. They won’t read books even if you tell them to, but if you add a reward, well that makes a difference. This will introduce you or your kids to new books, classic books, fantasy books, and so much more! This is a really cool thing you can do this summer, and remember, it’s not too late!

18. Write a short story: I love to write books, and it helps you come up with things no one will ever expect. Who knows, maybe you’re a great book writer and you just didn’t know it! But this is a great thing to do in summer, it will encourage you to think about how some people live differently, and how people are different. You can even have a short story challenge! Grab some family members/friends, and have them all write a short story. Once you’re all done, read them and see who did the best! Or just write one alone, and then read it in front of your family! See what they think about what you came up with, and if they have any tips. But writing short stories is fun, and they might even turn into a real book!

19. Go to the park: The park is amazing, whether it’s just a grassy field, or a full on playground! You can meet new friends, race each other, play on the swings, and much more! You can even make the playground an obstacle course! Just make sure you don’t ram into anyone!

20. Travel: Ok, I think we all love to travel. We like to explore new places, relax at the beach, see different cultures, or just visit family. Travel is a wondrous thing for me. I love seeing new places, learning how other people live, eating yummy food, or having fun with friends. There are millions of places you can travel, so make sure you pick one that fits you! 

Alright, when I come up with more, I’ll post them. Make sure you watch for them!

Mosaic Night-Light

 

Why have a boring old normal night light (no offense night-lights), when you can have this beautiful creation? This night-light is great for kids who don’t like the dark, but don’t want to have a bland night-light. It’s so pretty!

Supplies:

Tracing paper

Scissors

 Multiple prices of construction paper (whatever colors you want!) 

Tip: before choosing your paper, stick the paper next to a light to see what it will look like on your night light!

Tape

Glue stick

Pencil (this is just to trace the shape of your night light, so this is optional)

And, of course, a night-light

Directions:

1. Using your tracing paper, cut out a case that fits your night-light, make sure the top is extra tall so you have enough paper at the top to cover the top of your night-light!

Tip: Make your paper extra big, in case you didn’t make the size accurately

2. Tape the ends of the tracing paper that you just cut to each other creating a cylinder

3. Put the case on your night-light (make sure the tape on your case doesn’t show on the front!) and fold in the sides as if you were wrapping a present (if you don’t know how to wrap a present, just copy the picture)

4. Then pull the triangle shapes, that you now have on the top, to the back of you night light, and tape them to the back (like you can just barely see in this picture)

5. Once you have taped the top securely to the back (keep the case on the night-light) grab your construction paper, and cut out some shapes. They can be triangles or squares, big or small, it’s all your choice!

6. Now glue those pieces to your night-light case

Note: the prices can overlap each other, but don’t overlap them too much or the only color you’ll see is black!

Another note: you can add as many or as little pieces as you like

7. Plug it into the wall, and see the pretty colors!

My Disneyland Experience

 

Hello! Guess what, I recently went to….. Disneyland! I had the best time ever! And since I had such a good time, I will tell you all about it so that you go and have as much fun as I did! But I am only gonna post a couple parts of it at a time, so stay with me! (My experience was so great I have to add exclamation marks everywhere!)

Things to know before we start:

1. My Dad gave us all $20 each for souvenirs (I thought he was joking when he first told us!)                           

2. This is my little sister’s second time at Disneyland (the first time she went she was 3 and she doesn’t remember much)                                                                                                                                                 

3. It is just my family and I that went on this trip, no friends or extra people                                                    

4. I am NOT a rollercoaster person, my sister is though. She is very daring.                                                      

5. My Dad forgot his hat at where we were staying, so he bought one at Disneyland for like $30.

I think that’s all, let’s go!

Disneyland:

We will start with everything I did in Disneyland, and then go to California Adventures. (This will include the food I had on the way!) But before I describe the first ride we went on, I will describe first arriving at Disneyland.

We wake up in the morning and have a quick breakfast. Then we hop in the car after getting dressed and ready to go. It doesn’t feel like we are really going to Disneyland, due to the fact that my family is used to driving for 3 days just to get to California to get to Disneyland (we are originally from Washington, but we now live in California). So instead of the little kids bouncing up and down in their seats bursting with joy, they are simply sitting still like all of us are. To make it feel more real, Disney music is put on. It is very fun to sing along with the songs, my sister and ended up singing “Almost There  From: Princess and the Frog” while my dad parks the car in the Toy Story Parking Lot. 

We hop out of the car, it is cold. All my siblings are in shorts and t-shirts with no jackets so we are freezing. We start the relatively long walk to the bus we will take to Disneyland. It still doesn’t feel like we are going to Disneyland, more so than ever. Instead of seeing Disneyland all around you (like I expected) you see just normal parking lot and grey buildings. Definitely NOT the fun colorful Disneyland we are supposed to be right next to. We reach the bus after being checked for drugs and weapons (just like going to the airport) and we hop on. My sisters and I sit on a row of 3 seats right next to each other, they are nervous that they will fall off their seats (they are not used to being on a bus, and nor am I for that matter). The bus ride is nice, later on I will hope that I can just ride this bus everywhere in Disneyland due to all the walking we will have to do. 

We hop off the bus, and we enter the Disneyland entrance area, And if it didn’t feel like we were going to Disneyland before, it sure did as soon as we actual entered Disneyland. Once we entered, we could see a band playing with Pluto, Donald Duck, and others with the band. It is very colorful and pretty inside Disneyland, however the sky is still dark and grey.

Star Tours:

This was the first ride we went on after entering Disneyland. We decided that we would enter Tomorrow Land first, as that was what we did last time we went to Disneyland (which was over 5 years ago). Even though we have just entered Disneyland and it is only a couple minutes after the park opened, the line is relatively busy. During the inside part of the line, you can see Star Wars robots moving around touching buttons and talking to you. Some of the kids that I saw think this is very cool (which, of course, it is because how often to you get to see a robot that moves, talks, and is about as big as you??). Once we get farther into the line we are asked to grab safety airline glasses by a girl with a very loud voice (her voice may have been loud, but I liked how her voice sounded). We stand on numbers on circle on the ground as we wait for our flight. Eventually, the big red doors next to us open and we walk inside. Inside is a ship, not a boat, a space ship. We take our seats, and the girl tells us to put on our glasses, put on our put seatbelt, and pull on the yellow ribbon (which we will be told to do a LOT during our time at Disneyland). After a while the ride starts, it starts by a robot telling us there is a spy in our ship. It takes a picture of a woman who is actually on the ship! This causes all the women in front of us to laugh, as the woman is one of them. We end up being chased by the robot, we go through races, in space, and everywhere in between. I was ok at first, but all the movement in the plane was starting to make me carsick. I ended up looking down for most of the ride, looking up on occasion. It wasn’t a bad ride it was very pretty (from the little I saw) but it wasn’t the best for my stomach haha! After that ride, we went over to its souvenir section to look at some souvenirs. None of us really found anything that we liked, but my oldest brother found a Star Wars pin that he wanted to buy for a friend. It was $20 dollars. He spent all his Disneyland money on the first place we went, and bought something that wasn’t even for him. I don’t even know what to think of that. I mean, it was really nice of him to do that for a friend, but now he doesn’t have a Disneyland souvenir for himself. I have no idea what I should think ‘bout that. Oh well!

To hear more about my Disneyland adventure, stay tuned ‘till Friday when I will post the next 2 rides I went on!

Hello again! Are you ready to hear more of my adventure? Let’s go!

After doing Star Tours, my brothers and my Dad left to go ride Hyperspace Mountain (a.k.a. The Star Wars rollercoaster). So my sisters, my Mom, and me go and ride the small rides that my brothers and Dad don’t mind missing.

Autopia:

This was the first ride we went on after being split up from the rest of the family. We head over and get in line. The line is LONG. This is something we will have to get used to at Disneyland, the amount of long lines we went on for rides that were 50 times shorter than the line is crazy. One cool thing about the lines at Disneyland is that you can see people playing games with each other, and you can see little kids making friends with each other while in line! Adorable! Anyways, we are in line and there are people getting in cars below us. It smells like car fumes, not a great smell but totally worth it for the ride we are about to go on! Eventually we get to the end of the line, the line lady tells my Mom and one of my sisters (the cars seat two so we had to split up. I was teamed up with my 10 year old sister, and my Mom was with my 8 year old sister, this is the combination we did every time we went on rides without our brothers and my Dad). The line lady tells my sister and me to stay though; it is weird to be without my Mom while waiting in line. The whole time I wait, I feel like I will mess something up and I am worried that I am already doing something wrong. I don’t mess up though, and my sister and I get in a car. Here is a picture of us:

We start driving, well my sister does. She is in the driver’s seat and she controls the wheel and the speed. However, she can’t reach the pedal. We are constantly going, then stopping, then going, then stopping. Eventually, I take the gas pedal. I push and we speed up (it is very hard to push it without having to rest on occasion, it is a workout for sure!). We get to the first curve and we are ok, at first. Then we wham into the wall of the curve (as you can see in the photo, on the track there is an upper bump in the middle. You ride on that bump, but you can bump into the walls of the bump)! I eventually learn, after LOTS of curves, that my sister is a crazy driver! To be fair, the wheel is really hard to use. We hit EVERY curve wall. Soon we get to a crazy place that is full of curves, it is CRAZY FUN!! We drive past another person and we are laughing like crazy, the persons we passed had a little kid driving who was having just as much fun as my sister and were. It was SO MUCH FUN!!! We eventually get to the end of the ride, I press the pedal to go slightly forwards before ending, it was too small of a push. I push again, still to small. I push again, and we make it far enough. My sister and I get out of the car and come laughing to my Mom and my other sister. We ended up having a LOT of fun.

Finding Nemo Submarine:

My sisters, my Mom, and me head over to where this ride is located. The line is short, and we hop on a submarine after only a short while of waiting. Inside the submarine is filled with seats, we sit down and look out of the submarine’s windows. It smells odd in the submarine, I guess it is just the fact that we are underwater surrounded by water-smelling water (you know the smell) and people. Somewhere behind where we are sitting, there is a crying baby. I guess that baby was just not used to being underwater in a big vehicle it has probably never seen before, and constantly smelling weird submarine smell. The ride starts and the submarine backs up. The baby is still crying, poor thing. I hope it enjoyed all the other rides it went on. We start to move forward, all we can currently see out our windows are things growing on the walls in front of us. Eventually we can see pillars from an ancient city or something. It is very pretty. Soon we go to the darker parts of the sea, and you can see Nemo and all the people that ended looking for him. It was an ok ride, but probably better for kids that like Nemo. But it was awesome to be underwater!

We meet up with my brothers and my Dad, they waiting for like an hour for a ride that ended up being canceled. Poor them. 

To hear more, wait ‘till Monday when I will release the next 3 rides!

So sorry! I won’t be able to post today (sorry this came so late). I will post tomorrow, I promise.

It’s me!

I bet you have been waiting a long time for more of my adventure, and now the time has come!

After the Finding Nemo Submarine, we head over to Buzz Light Year Shooters.

Buzz Light Year Shooters:

My Mom texts my Dad to say that we are going on Buzz Light Year Shooters, they are STILL in line for the Star Wars Rollercoaster. And if you don’t remember, my sisters, my Mom, and me have gone on 2 rides already; so they have been in line for about 30 minutes. Anyways, we get in line for the ride. The ride isn’t so bad, we were only in line for about 5 minutes. Once again, I am paired with my 10 year old sister and my Mom is paired with my youngest sister. My sister and I hop on the ride, we start moving. How this ride works is that you have a gun that you are supposed to shoot the Z’s with, and there is a little thing you can turn to move your seat around so that you can shoot targets to the side. My sister and I grab the little white and green guns, and start shooting the Z’s. My sister doesn’t understand at first (which means I had more points than her at the start) so I tell her how it works. Once she understands we are both shooting the Z’s that are hidden about the ride. I think that I am doing way better than her, and then I look at her point tracker, she is ahead by about 1000 points. I start trying harder to get all the Z’s. When the ride ends we can see our Mom’s point tracker ahead of us, she has around 4000 points. We lost by quite a bit. It was fun, but I wish I had beat everyone ;p.

We meet up with the rest of our family. My brothers and my Dad waited in line for probably more than an hour, for a ride that ended up being canceled. So they waited in line for FOREVER for a ride they didn’t even get. 

It is still early in the morning, so we don’t stop for lunch quite yet. We head over to Jungle Cruise (one of the funniest rides EVER MADE).

Jungle Cruise:

Once we get there, we hop in line. The line looks short, but it’s not. It took us longer than 5 minutes to get out of line. The people in the line are pretty normal, just waiting in line for their ride, just like us. But one of the things in the line was very funny. We are just waiting in line, and we hear someone saying through a speaker (like what you hear at the grocery store, you know “Emily Jones to aisle 3 please”. Like that) “If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands (Everybody claps their hands). If you’re happy and you know it, stomp your feet (Everyone stomps their feet). If you’re happy and you know it, please move forward in the line (everybody laughs). Once we get near to the end of the line, we can hear our cruise leader saying “…And now to take more prisoners-I mean people.” It is very silly. We hop on and he says “Wave goodbye to all those people, because you’ll probably never see them again.” Just a while after we start moving, I see (real) baby ducklings following their mother in the water. It was SO CUTE!! The ride starts, and the whole time our driver is making silly and cheesy jokes. It was HILARIOUS!! Definitely a good ride.

Pirates of the Caribbean:

Since it was close and on our list, we naturally headed to Pirates of the Caribbean. The line was painfully long. And the sun had come out so shade was the best thing ever. We see ducks while we are in line. I have never been so close to a duck in my life. After a LONG time of waiting, we finally get on the ride. My littlest sister is worried about the drops and my Mom is reassuring her by saying they are so little that ai’m not even worried about them (I don’t like drops). It is very dark. We drop down the first drop, and it is slightly taller than my couch at home. The ride is fun and enjoyable, the last drop was about 2 1/2 times taller than my couch, and it was honestly pretty fun! My hand ended up getting slightly wet (‘cause I was death-gripping the side rail thingy. I wasn’t completely ok with the drops before we went on them, but it all worked out!).

I know, you’re probably like, what happens next?? But in order to find out you have to wait ‘till Wednesday.

Oh. My. Gosh. I forgot again!! (I have GOT to get better at this blogging thing) Ok, thank you so much for waiting. I apologize for any inconvenience.

After Pirates of the Caribbean, we were starting to get hungry, so we looked for a place to get some lunch. We found a corn dog stand, and got in line (yes, there was a line for the corn dogs). We realized that the price for the corn dogs was $10!! Per person! It was crazy overpriced, but that’s just how Disneyland works. We decided to just go with it. Once we got out corn dogs and some chip bags, we headed towards a bench to eat. The corn dogs were a very dark brown, they were a little overcooked in my opinion. But the meat inside was good. Sadly, these corn dogs do not have a kid size, so none of my siblings could finish their corn dogs (neither could I for that matter). But they were pretty good. 

(Also, I forgot to mention, but my brother bought a souvenir after the Star Tours ride. So if you go back to that section, you can see what he bought)

The Alice in Wonderland Ride:

This was one of the rides that my littles sister wanted to ride, so we went there after our corn dog lunch. We headed in line. The line looked short, but since the ride only takes 2/3 people per caterpillar, it wasn’t. The line started right next to where the ride started, so I got used to hearing the ride saying “Alice’s Adventure’s in Wonderland will now begin. ….And all of the sudden, I fell! Down, and down, and down….”. I heard that little clip of the ride over 11 times. Every time I was about to hear it again, I would say “Here goes number 9” or whatever number I was at. Eventually we got farther into the line and I couldn’t hear it any more. Instead we got to hear different sounds, like the dramatic music that plays when Alice is being chased by the Queen of Hearts. Soon we are right about to go on the next caterpillar, when, all of the sudden, the ride breaks down! (I am starting to think that my brothers and my Dad are cursed!). We wait longer, and the ride is still not fixed. After a LONG time of waiting, it is still not fixed, so we just leave and head to the Alice in Wonderland Teacup ride.

Alice in Wonderland Teacup Ride:

Thankfully, this ride is right next door to the Alice in Wonderland ride, so it is not too much walking. The line looks long, but the ride can fit so many people at a time that it actually isn’t that bad. Farther down in the line, there is a kid with a bubble wand and there are just bubble everywhere! This will been seen a lot in future rides (there was also a kid with a bubble wand in the Alice in Wonderland line), the bubble wands are very popular. We finally get to the teacups. This time, my Mom is with my brothers and my daring sister (my poor Mom, my siblings like to go very fast!), and I am with my Dad and my little sister. We hop in a purple teacup (my little sisters favorite color) and take a quick picture. Here is the picture:

The one in the middle is my Dad, my little sister is on the right, and I am on the left. You can see my other siblings in the back, waiting for the ride to start. My Dad’s head hides my Mom and my sister’s faces, but the two boys are my brothers. My Dad lets me decide how fast we go (since I get carsick). We go relatively fast, and I don’t get dizzy! It was so much fun!! I LOVED it! Apparently my other siblings (the ones with my Mom) were going as fast as possible and it was CRAZY for them (my poor Mom!). We all had a good time though!

To learn more about this exciting adventure, stay with me ‘till Friday (I will try my best to post).

What a surprise, I didn’t post, again. I’m so sorry! I REALLY need to get better at this. Tsk tsk.

Hello again! Sorry for the wait/waits. Alright let’s get started! 

We last left off at the Alice in Wonderland teacup ride. So after we left the teacup ride, we headed towards the carousel.

King Arthur Carousel:

This was another ride that my sister wanted to go on (she likes carousels) so we left towards the line. My Dad and my older brother didn’t wanna go on, so it was just me, my other brother, my sisters, and my Mom. The line was medium length/long but not actually that long. While we were in line, my brother and my Dad went to get some frozen lemonade from a near-ish stand. Thankfully, we didn’t have to stand in line in the sun (well, we did for a little section of the line), it was very nice because it was getting kinda hot and sunny. Eventually, my Dad and my brother come back with the frozen lemonade, and it is DELICIOUS! It tasted like a lemonade slurpy! Which was great for us because we love slurries and we hadn’t had any in a while. 

After an ok amount of time waiting in line (and no, I don’t think they were any kids with bubble wands this time), we finally got onto the carousel. I followed my Mom and my little sister, and got onto a horse that was behind theirs (my Mom wasn’t on a horse, she was just standing next to my sister). My brother got onto a horse to the right of mine, his was white with green reins and mine was whiter with red reins. We probably should’ve swapped (because I like green and he likes red) but I figured it was too late. The horses started going, and, even though I’m older, I still enjoyed the carousel. While I was going around, I tried looking for my Dad and my older brother. My brother (not the older one) spotted them first, and I still didn’t see them. We went around again, and I finally saw them. My brother made it a thing to do a weird pose every time we saw them. While going around, I could see kids trying to pull the sword out of the stone, but, of course, they couldn’t. 

Here is a picture of me on the carousel before we started going:

Eventually, the carousel stopped and we got off. It was a very fun ride! I love carousels.

Sadly, that’s all I will be doing for today. Stay tuned!

Hello! Sorry it’s been a while. Let’s continue!

Haunted Mansion:

After the carousel we sit down for a while. And then we head over to the Haunted Mansion ride. This was on my list of rides I wanted to do. I was excited, I love this ride. The line is SUPER DUPER long. Sadly, the whole line isn’t shaded, only some parts are shaded. Eventually, we get to the part in the line where there is a graveyard. I was kinda glad for the line, because if you don’t have the line, then you don’t pay attention to all the detail that went into the waiting area. Each grave has a funny little saying on it. It is like being on the Jungle Cruise all over again, lots of cheesy jokes. The line is super hot, so I am grateful for the umbrellas scattered throughout the line. Eventually, we make it to the part of the line where you are right on the mansion. Soon, we enter the house. Inside there is more line. But soon you get to the stretching room. We look up, and there is this terrifying scene that causes a lot of people next to us to scream really loudly. Once we exit the stretching room, we walk a hallway. It is cool to see all the portraits. Once we get on the ride (I was with my Mom and my sister), we start moving. It is a wonderful ride! But the parts where you go backwards are a little weird. As soon as we get to the glass ball area, the ride breaks down “Due to playful spirits, the ride has been stopped”. I am positive my brothers and my Dad are cursed, that’s 3 rides now! We soon start moving. And then it stops again. This time we were going down a slope, BACKWARDS. Which means we are slanted, it isn’t fun. The ride was fun, but I wish it didn’t break down.

Splash Mountain:

I chickened out. Before we went to Disneyland, I was saying that I would probably go on Splash Mountain. As soon as I saw it, I was like, no. It looked really tall, and, as I said, I’m NOT a rollercoaster person. My Dad tries to convince me that it will be fun, but he quickly sees that I’m not into it. I nearly start crying because I disappointed everyone.

Only one ride left! Wait a little and it will be posted. See you soon!

Hello one more time (before we move onto California Adventures)! 

Smugglers Run:

After not going on Splash Mountain due to my wimpy self, we decide to head to the Star Wars area. While walking over there, I can hear my Mom and Dad discussing if this will actually be a good idea, as Dad has not gone on this ride. My Dad is trying to convince me that it is NOT a rollercoaster, because I am freaking myself out like crazy. We eventually got in line, and I saw what ride it was. My Mom, my sisters, and me had watched some videos about some of the Disneyland rides, so I recognized it immediately. And the video made it look like it was a rollercoaster type thing. So as soon as I saw it, I freaked out. I wasn’t screaming, but I was trying to ask questions about the ride to make my Dad realize that it was like a rollercoaster. As we are in the line, I start crying. I really do NOT want to go on this ride. (I cried the most out of everyone in my family this Disneyland trip. Everyone else didn’t even cry once) My Dad reassured me that this is not a rollercoaster, and we stay in line. However, I am still just as scared as before. The line is a decent amount like the Star Tours line, you climb a bunch of ramps, and there are robots talking to you. The line is SUPER DUPER long. We are in line for around 30 mins before we get towards the end of the line. A lady asks us who is going to be who. Apparently, there are multiple types of people you can be. Each ship fits 6 people (meaning my oldest brother is split up from the rest of us, not that he minds), you can be a mechanic (me and my little sister were mechanics), you can be a shooter (my brother and my other sister were shooters), and there are pilots (my Mom and Dad were pilots, my Mom controlled going up, and my Dad controlled left to right). We get into the ship. My younger sister and I are in the back, my brother and my other sister are in the middle, and my parents are in the front. The ride starts; my parents start steering. Unlike the people in the video, my parents are good drivers, and they don’t crash as much. Which means it was not like a rollercoaster. The people that were not steering (my siblings and I), had to press green buttons. I pressed them whenever they lit up, and my siblings did the same. Despite being crazy worried about this ride, it turned out to be a very fun ride, and ended up near my top favorite rides.

Then, my brother got a souvenir from the Star Wars section. He got a porg that attaches to you with a magnet. (When we were leaving Disneyland, there were some girls who took a photo, and were wondering if they got the porg in it. They thought it was ADORABLE. Which it was.)

After this, we head to the Disney Princess area, where you can get their autographs. My brothers don’t join us, so it is just my sisters, my Mom, and me. My sisters were the only ones that wanted autographs (I didn’t want any this year) but I came with them anyways. There were some little kids all dressed up in dresses that kept leaving the line to get other princesses’ autographs, this was only annoying because when they were done they went back in line where they were before they left. Meaning they kept leaving the line, one of the adults staying behind, and coming back in line. The line lasted AGES. My brothers went on other rides in the process. We finally reached the end of the line, after waiting SO LONG! The princesses were very pretty, and my sisters got some photos with them. It took a while to get there, but they definitely enjoyed the experience.

Then, we say goodbye to Disneyland. I know, it’s sad. But we head to Olive Garden, and have a delicious dinner!

Next time at post, we will journey to California Adventures!

It will come…. Eventually. Sorry you have to wait so long. It will be soon, I promise.

 

Bookmarks

 

Bookmarks are very handy, especially if you don’t like doggie-earring your books. They can be especially cute, but they don’t always come exactly as you want them to. That’s why I think you should make your own! With these bookmarks you can decorate them how you want and they are nice and thick.

Supplies:

Index cards (or thick paper)

Markers, pens, crayons colored pencils, or whatever

Scissors

Directions:

1. Cut your index card (or thick paper) to the size you want your bookmark to be

2. Decorate it however you want!

3. Stick in a book and enjoy!