A day I *definitely* needed.
Day 11:
Something I'm Thankful For: A dear friend who works for the Disney family and can get friends in for free to Disneyland. :-) We had a much-needed day at the happiest place on Earth, which was absolutely fantastic.
Challenge O' The Day: To spend the day focusing on FUN and not stressing about all the work I should be doing.
Lesson Learned: Days when the kids both behave, plans go smoothly, and fun is had by all still do exist. They are blissfully wonderful and should be treated like the extra precious miracles that they are.
Daily Insight: Disneyland is a luxury that most people don’t get to experience. We have been fortunate since we moved out to LA to have a couple of friends who were able to get us in for free. This trip was the first time that we’d gone when the kids were old enough to actually appreciate it. (Previously, we’d taken Jakey when he was 4 months and 11 months, so now is the first time he’ll truly remember it, and it's Bailey's first time ever). Disney and Universal theme parks have always been a major part of my childhood. Even when my family struggled financially growing up, my parents made sure to provide so many fun memories that we almost never realized we were lacking anything. We would make our annual pilgrimage to Florida (roughly a 16 hour drive from our house in NY) to go to the parks. So for me, figuring out how to have fun during the kids' vacation time without hurting our budget is imperative. It is possible though to have high fun on a low budget - will keep looking around for more opportunities!