Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Legoland

This is the last of our wonderful trip to San Diego that I'll be sharing. Mom and Dad rented a condo on Mission beach. The beach was literally a stone's throw away. Did my husband and I get pictures of our excited children digging in the sand, chasing the waves, or searching for seashells? No. Sniff. So instead, I bring you Legoland.


New York City built with Lego blocks, impressive! The tallest building is the Freedom Tower. This is the first time I had seen a model of it. Absolutely striking, it makes one stop and remember.


Legoland pleasantly surprised me. It was the perfect amusement park for our three year old and nineteen month old. I'm guessing from three to six years old are the ideal ages for kids to enjoy what Legoland has to offer.

When we arrived, they had two different parking fees: regular for 10 dollars, and "preferred" for 20. We went ahead and paid the extra 10 dollars since Dad was needing a wheelchair and we forgot to bring the handicap parking sign to hang on our rearview mirror. Spending the extra money was worth it, we parked right next to the entrance, whoo-hoo!

We purchased our tickets at Costco, saving us some money. I figured we would also save some time by not having to wait in line to buy tickets, but the lines were only three people long, not busy at all. Once inside, we slathered on the sunblock and headed for the sights, sounds, smells, and rides.


Uncle David takes in the sights with Laurel. Isn't Laurel's harness cute? It gives her freedom from a stroller and yet keeps her from running away and falling into water sources or into other people or vehicles. It's so soft and cute, that she loves it and even snuggles up to it when it's off.







Ian was tall enough to ride their Coastersaurus. Once upon a time, Paul and I were coaster enthusiasts. That past-time has been put on hold since Ian's conception. We were more than happy to share the adrenaline rush with Ian. After waiting in line a few minutes, we looked up and were surprised to see Paul's dad already loaded in the front car of the train. He took advantage of his wheelchair status and got to enter the loading area via the exit and didn't have to wait. Smooth move, Dad!



Ian loved the rollercoaster! Another ride he enjoyed was driving his own car. This totally cracked us up. He knew exactly how to buckle himself in, but had no clue how to drive. He'd continually over correct his steering and end up crashing into another car or the edge of the track. Ian also drove me around in a boat. His steering improved dramatically, but we still experienced a few bumps along the river.





This is the storybook boat ride. You can see Grandma Ann, Uncle Jason and Ian in the first boat. Uncle David and Laurel are in the following boat. They're all looking at the Prince on the horse made out of Lego blocks. It's hard to see, but he's holding a cell phone up to his ear.







Ian loved the Thomas the Tank Engine built out of Legos!






The miniature cities built out of Legos were quite impressive. Ian was extremely excited by the moving garbage trucks that were also made from Legos.





Laurel creates her own amusement: pick up leaves and run around a tree. Whee!

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Absolutely the most fun I have had in many, many years. Ian driving the car was hilarious.
Dad has some beach pictures for you if he ever gets around to it

Laurel had a ball just running around, Thanks Tina

David Wylie said...

Don't tell Ian I said this, but he is probably the worst driver I've ever seen. If it were me at the Legoland MVD, I would have never given him a license.
Also, "Run Around Tree" was the greatest ride there.
Here's a video from the trip: Funtown Chronicles
I've got a ton of shots, I just need to get them from Grandma/Auntie Ann.

Lady M said...

We're totally going to Legoland!

Do they still have that giant dinosaur in the pond?

Kelly said...

OMG that looks like so much fun!! Great Pictures!!

mamashine said...

That looks like a great time! Wish it was close enough to take my kids. :)

Anonymous said...

I've been wanting to go to LegoLand for YEARS...I can't wait to plan a trip out!!

Rachel (Crazy-Is) said...

Oh, I just love the pics!! They are so cute! Alyssa would have seriously rebelled if we put a harness on her. Or put her in a stroller. Or tried to hold her hand. Or if we breath wrong.

Anonymous said...

I have heard that Legoland is neat. Maybe we will check it out next time we visit my parents in CA. We have the same harness! We are going to use it at Disney next week!

Jennifer Swanepoel said...

Hubby and I had the privilege of going to the Legoland in England. It was so cool! They had an area with miniatures of all different countries. For the US, they had a lego Mount Rushmore. It was very impressive!

Damselfly said...

That Thomas Lego is so fun! Friends of mine visited the Legoland in England. I'll have to send them to this post.