Blog Address Change

I've changed blogs. I like that this new one works better with my Mac and I'm just generally happy with what it does. Hopefully I will continue to like it. I guess we'll see how long it lasts. Hopefully, this will be my permanent spot for awhile. Sorry for any confusion. I will keep this one around, I'll just be posting the new stuff here:

www.godardfam.wordpress.com

Let me know if you find any problems using the new site, posting comments, etc. :-)

Benefits of Feeling Under the Weather

Well, this week I've been sick. Maybe part of it was due to my crazy camping weekend. Whatever the reason, I didn't want to feel blah so I remembered my 100 days goal (introduced to me by a friend) and although I put some time into it daily, I thought maybe this was a chance to do a little more on the big portions I don't usually have time for.

I've been working on genealogy for years now but, since I first started seriously working on it (more than a year ago) I've had so many miracles happen.

Well, I just had to share the story that is unfolding right now. I hope it turns out how I want it to!

Many years ago, as a teenager, I went on a reenactment of a mormon pioneer trek with the Santa Monica Stake, where I lived. It was a hard trek and I learned a lot from it.

We were separated into families that had actually made the handcart trek all those years ago. Members of the Santa Monica Stake, graciously supplied the names from their own ancestor lineage.

Just a week ago I was remembering that I had made this trek. Maybe it was because I was reading the book The Price We Paid, for book club. (Thanks Eliza for the great selection!) And randomly, while I was looking for a photo of something else, I came across photos from this trek that I didn't even realize that I had.

It was fun looking at the pictures and I saw that we were the Elliker family. I had forgotten the name but was glad to see it again because I felt like I always had a special place for that family name as we reenacted what had happened to them on our trek (most of them did not reach the Salt Lake Valley). It was a moving experience for me I'll never forget.

Well, about a week later, while feeling sick, I decided to take some recent information I received from a man in England, who is directly related to Jacob, and put it in our tree and see if I could back it up with some primary sources. (It is a huge family tree that he gave me in PDF format. He also sent a way cool, very old photo of the family. I love genealogy!)

Within about 5 minutes of doing this, I came across a name of a relative I had never seen before who was born in the same area where this particular line came from (in Utah) and noticed that he had died in Santa Monica. I thought that was interesting and upon further investigation discovered that there were a lot of people from this particular family who had moved to W. Los Angeles/Santa Monica area. Researching the line further I noitced that one of them, prior to moving to W. L.A., had married an Elliker!

I had never seen this name before and then just seeing it a week ago, naturally, this peaked my curiousity. I didn't expect to find that this could be the same family but, clues just kept adding up.

Long story short, the story isn't over. I don't have hardly any proof yet. But, I have noticed so far these clues:
1. The name of the person I was representing was pinned on my skirt in all the pictures. It looks like it says Elizabeth, age 22. (wish I knew how to blow up the rest of the pictures to read what is pinned on other people, without distoring the names)
This matches the family related to Jacob.





2. I also noticed that the family we were put in to seemed to have about the right number of boys/girls for the family that Jacob is related to.

3. Also, I found the pioneer story of this family and noticed that most of them did not make it to the Valley.
This matches up with Jake's ancestors and the experience I had while I was on the trek.

4. Many of these Ellikers ended up in Santa Monica where members of our stake supplied names.

5. I remember that the mother of this family did make it to the Valley. This matches with Jake's ancestors.

Well, as you can see this isn't much to go on. But, my hunch is that they are the same family. What if that were true?!!

The latest development today, is that my best friend, who was in this Elliker family with me, said there might have been a Stake album created with information on each family. I sure hope that turns out to be true.

Keep your fingers crossed, everyone! Even if it doesn't turn out to be true, it sure has got these names into my tree awful fast :-)

Camping at Leo Carrillo

This is always a fun place to go. It had been a long time since I'd been there so it was fun to bring my family there.

There were about 11 families from church, all with young kids, so Ryan and Krista were in heaven. The pack of boys kept going off down the dry riverbed and searching for a bear cave and going on a bear hunt. Krista stayed pretty close by me but, went off every now and then exploring. She had fun roasting hot dogs and smores for the first time.

If that wasn't enough fun, they spent all day at the beach digging, finding starfish & hermit crabs, and Ryan got to go to the cave on the beach. They also got to see part of a concert one night in the amphitheatre right by our camp site.

The last night we were there, Ryan said with his eyes half closed, "Mommy when we're done camping here, can we go find another camp site?!"

I said to him, "What was your favorite thing you did?"

He said, "ALL OF IT!"

The best part for me was how well the kids slept at night! I also liked seeing the shooting stars and hearing the ocean waves while I slept.

And Jake really enjoyed spending time with Ryan & Krista. A highlight was when he got to go exploring on the beach with Ryan while Krista was taking a nap.

Jake also discovered that Ryan, who always follows the crowd, was trying really hard to listen to mommy and daddy who had told him not to go too far. Jake heard him say, several times, to the group of boys he was with, "Hey guys, I think we're going too far. Let's go back."

Here's a video of Krista's thoughts on camping.

Sayings of the Month

Here are sayings for the month of July.

1) Couch
Ryan: Mommy make room on the couch for me. I wanna lay next to you for the movie.

Me: I'm trying but it's not a very big couch.

Ryan: Mommy! But you're as wide as the couch. Why are you as wide as the couch?!


2) Taquitos
Krista: Mommy, can I have some of your chicken rollers?
(I was eating chicken taquitos)


3) Fly Swater
Ryan: Mommy, mommy, can I try to use the bug slapper?
(Fly Swater)

This is my favorite this month. Ryan has been understanding the concept that daddy goes to work to pay for our house, food, etc. Here is the quote. He really did say this word for word.

4) Things Cost Money
Ryan: Daddy, do you pay for the toilet paper, too?

Daddy: Yes

Ryan: Well, then you better go back to work and stay a little longer because Krista used it all up and put it in the toilet. It's all gone! You're going to have to stay there all night!


5) Ocean
Me: Krista do yo want to go swimming in the ocean?

Krista: No!

Me: Why not?

Krista: Because the ocean will float me away!

Ryan's First Day of Kindergarten

Amazing! I can't believe he's started kindergarten. I must admit it was hard to leave him. A plethora of parents & kindergartners stood outside the school and waited for the kindergarten teachers to come out and tell us what to do. We found out that everyday we line the kids up against the wall and wait for the teacher. She opens a gate and they walk right into the back of the classroom. So, today, with that plethora of parents, we were not allowed to go in. We just sent them with all their school supplies and backpacks in line and waved goodbye.

We've been talking about the first day of school for days now and he's been fine with it. But this morning he woke up and said, "Mommy, I'm a little nervous today." And as he walked into the gate he stopped and said, "Uh, mommy, will you come with me?"

I think that if he had not done a year of preschool this would have been much harder for me. But, as I walked away I told myself that it was ok, he's done this for a year already.

Well, success. When I picked him up he was a very happy kid. I've taken video of his response. One big milestone down. LOts more to come :-)

Crying Over Spilled Herbs

So, a few posts ago I wrote about Miracle Herbs. Well, I suppose it was bound to happen with my rambunctious kids. I heard Krista scream, like she had been hurt. Well, after I saw what happened I think she was scared, not hurt. She didn't know there were herbs inside that little pillow! Now, they didn't stay sad for long. As soon as the vacuum came out they were laughing. This is during "witching hour" (As many moms know comes towards the end of the day before dinner. They get kind of hyper and crazy and cry more easily) Doesn't it just break your heart watching Krista ask for daddy and Ryan cry over his favorite pillow?! And could they be more melodramatic? It looks like I was the director of a staged video!

Sayings of the Month

Don't kids say the darndest things? Well, and the cutest things. I've been collecting a few of the ones that have stuck with me over the past month and hope to post these once a month regularly. Here goes:

1) Okay to start with one of my all time favorites (Krista had just turned 2 last, October)
The kids had done something....I was upset. For the life of me I don't know why I asked this question.
ME: WHO DID THIS?!!
ANSWER: SHE/HE DID (as they point fingers at one another)

Why did I ask this question again?

ME: WHO DID THIS!!
ANSWER: SHE/HE DID

This went on two more times. Finally, exasperated, I asked:
WHO'S LYING?

Simultaneously:
RYAN: KRISTA
KRISTA: MEEEEEE! (With her hand up in the air)
They both started laughing and immediately I had forgotten whatever it was that she had done.

2) Let's do a sign for daddy's first day at his new job. What should it say?
KRISTA: Ta Dah!



3) Krista and I were together at Costco. She was asking about going to school like Ryan. I said you need to be potty trained first!
KRISTA: (AT THE TOP OF HER LUNGS IN COSTCO)
If I get potty trained I can go to school like Ryan? I can't wait to go to school when I grow up! Mommy, can I go to school when I grow up?!

4) We plant some tomato plants one day and after we are done, Krista sets up a chair right in front of it.
ME: What are you doing Krista?
KRISTA: I'm watching it grow.
ME: No, Krista, it takes a long time for it to grow.
KRISTA: Oh.
The next morning Krista wakes up she says,
KRISTA: Mommy! Mommy! Is it done growing? Let's go see it!
Ryan says his prayers every night and has added,
RYAN: Heavenly Father will you make the "potato" grow super fast so I can see what it will look like?



5) Grandma came to visit and watch the kids while we went to Hawaii. She discovered that everywhere the kids go (in a car) they have learned to spot the Fedex Trucks and Taxis (both because of Ryan....long story why he does this...Krista caught on, etc.) So, grandma, being the cute grandma she is, sent some diecast Fedex trucks by Fedex. (Wish I had a picture of the look on Ryan's face when that truck pulled up to our house) She also sent some Taxis. The Taxis came first.

RYAN: I'm so glad that I have these Fedex trucks because my Taxis really needed some friends!



6) MY FAVORITE THIS MONTH:
RYAN: Look, look its an ambulance! Are those nurses that work in there?

ME: No, those are E.M.T.s

RYAN: What do they do when you die?

I'm thinking, wow, where did he come up with that question and how should I answer it?
ME: They take you to the hospital.

RYAN: They take you in an ambulance?

ME: Yes. (as I shrug my shoulders....I can't very well explain all that to him, he doesn't even know what death is)

KRISTA: I've been in an "anbalence"

Ryan thinks very carefully for about a minute and then asks:

RYAN: Did Krista have to go in an ambulance when she was growed or when she was being made?

ME: No! :-)

RYAN: Krista, you didn't go in an ambulance.

KRISTA: Yeah, me either

Disneyland

We made a last hoorah trip to Disneyland last week before our passes didn't work until the end of summer. I rather like the fact that they don't work in the summer because it is too crowded! We thought about going on the new submarine Nemo ride but, decided not to do it. It was a 3+ hour wait. Blah! Anyway, they had a blast and still love Playhouse Disney. JoJo was standing right outside before the Playhouse Disney show.

Here is a video of Krista playing in the waterfall in California Adventure. She runs up to the camera and says, "I'm all wet...that was fun!"

Miracle Herbs

I was excited when we had our enrichment night to make an herbal pillow that is suppose to help the sinuses. I'd found a recipe on line for it and thought it would be fun to share with everyone. (we also made dream pillows that night)

Here is some of the history that intrigued me:
What does a sinus pillow do?
The refreshing aromatic fill of fresh Peppermint, Spearmint and Eucalyptus encourage the opening of the sinus passages and unencumbered breathing.
What is a dream pillow?
For hundreds of year people have used herb mixtures to effect their dreams. In the same way that certain fragrances (like baking bread or fresh roses) evoke a pleasant memory for you, herbs also evoke pleasant associations of memory. Our noses are said to be the most direct route to our minds and recollections. The subtle fragrances in the Dream Pillow blends are mixed to give you pleasant, interesting dreams and promote deeper sleep. Dream pillows have been around for many many years, it was common place for our grandmothers to stitch up a headache pillow to erase the pain of headaches or have a dream pillow on every bed filled with natures bountiful herbs and flowers. It was also common to see them in hospitals to help patients.

So although I was intrigued, did I really think it would work? Jacob has the worst sinus problems so, I was willing to try anything. We placed it next to him on a dresser at night while he slept. Day after day, Jacob would wake up and have no need to take all the medications he was given by the doctor. To me this was totally miraculous. (I mean how many doctors, how many medications...that weren't really working...and this simple thing helped?!) However, the reason for this post is because the story didn't stop there.

We only have one of these pillows. Ryan woke up several nights in a row, this week, and was screaming and crying. He wasn't totally awake but, he wasn't totally asleep either. This made it very difficult to talk and reason with him. After several nights and much cajoling, his chief complaints were: Eyes burning/itching, clear mucus stuck in his throat...causing choking, and not being able to breathe very well.

I was so upset watching him go through this that my first reaction was give him lots of Claritin, look into buying an air purifier, and take him to an allergist. I'm not saying that I have ruled all these things out (in fact we have a doctor's appointment) but, Jake suggested that I put the sinus pillow in his room for a couple of nights and see what happened.

Well, not only has he stopped waking up at night, he is sleeping more hours than he used to and seems generally happier during the day. Could this pillow really be helping? Well, my mind was still in doubt. However, while the pillow was out of our room at night I noticed that my nose was stuffy in the morning and I wasn't sleeping as deep for the entire time that the pillow was in Ryan's room. Is this just coincidence? Well, with a science background, I would say I have to allow for that possibillity but, does it feel like it could be helping? Yes! It feels like a miracle. I will be making more. If anyone makes them and has success please share and if anyone has had success with herbs in general let me know!

If anyone is interested in the recipes here they are:

NOTE: So that it was easier to do at enrichment night, clever girls came up with the idea of making the pillows longer so that you could fold the material down inside the bag and just tie the end shut. Also, to keep them fresh longer, keep them in a Ziploc bag when you are not using it. Also, because they were doing it for so many people they bought the ingredients online, in bulk, for very cheap. The pillows cost between $1 and $3 each.

HERBAL PILLOWS
By Karen Hegre

Sinus Headache Pillow

Cut two pieces of material 10 x 4 inches and sew together. Making a bag, leave one end open and stuff your bag with the following ingredients;

Mix together in a bowl;

1/2 cup of flax seeds
1 part crushed spearmint leaf
1 part crushed peppermint leaf
1 part lavender buds
1 part eucalyptus leaf
1 part rosemary leaf

Stuff the bag and sew the end!

Dream Pillow

Combine the following in a bowl;
1 cup mugwort
1/2 cup rose petals
1/2 cup german chamomile
1/2 cup sweet hops
1/3 cup lavender buds
1/3 cup crushed catnip
1/4 cup peppermint

Mix the ingredients together....make cloth bags from a 5 x 12 inch piece of material....fill the bag with your mixture....sew the top of the bag shut.

He Did It!

Ryan graduated from preschool today! He was so excited to see us in the front row that when he was suppose to pose for a picture with his teacher, Miss Sandy, he pointed to us and shouted his excitement to see us there.

They received a certificate, we watched a movie with pictures of all the kids throughout the year, and then they sang a song called Kindergarten Here We Come. Then there was a little party in their classroom afterwards. We learned that during chit chat club today, they came up with their own ideas about what rules would be good to have in kindergarten. The number one thing they thought of was "NO PUTTING YOUR FEET ON THE WALL" Cute :-)

I can't believe he starts kindergarten in exactly a month. We actually got to go to his kindergarten today for an assessment that they do to determine which teacher he will have and what students he will be with. (How cool is that?) He said he loved the new classrooms and had fun with the kindergartner teachers that he met. Way to go Ryan!

Congrats Godard Family!

We are so happy to hear that Ben has been accepted to Johns Hopkins for graduate school! This wiil further his career and they don't even have to move! Way to go! We're so excited for you. Happy Father's day Ben!

I Accept

Picture is of my grandfather who passed away in 1980. I wish I could have known him better. This is dedicated to him.

I will work on genealogy for the next 100 days and see how much I can do. It's hard to find time for such a time consuming thing, with two little ones at home, but I am happy for this push. My progress in this area had completely stalled.

And even though I picked an ongoing process I really think this will help because I have just started doing this work. My goal for the next 100 days is to continue organizing and documenting the information I have to make time for finding more relatives.
Thanks Amy for such an inspiring challenge.

See Amy's blog that started this and learn the story

Cubs Party

Happy end of the T-ball season! We had a blast at Pizza Hut. What a fun year we had. Coach Jake even got a plaque. Ryan went crazy with his old friend Zach and Krista was right there in the pack, as usual. She really wants to be a Cub :-)

From My Sister--See an ISS

GET OUT YOUR TELESCOPES!

"You guys also have a great view of the Space Station tomorrow (tuesday) night. Definitely something to see if you haven't seen one before."

Date/Time: Tue Jun 05/08:53 PM
Duration: 5 minutes
Max Elevation: 60 degrees
Approach (Deg-Dir): 10 above WSW
Departure (Deg-Dir): 11 above NE

Sightings this week

WHAT IS AN ISS?:
THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION (ISS) IS AN INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION INVOLVING THE EFFORTS OF 16 COUNTRIES BUILT TO MAINTAIN A LONG TERM HUMAN PRESENCE IN OUTER SPACE, PROVIDING A PLATFORM FOR MICROGRAVITY EXPERIMENTATION AND SERVING AS A 'FIRST STEP' TO FAR-REACHING SPACE EXPLORATION. (FROM NASA.GOV)

Congrats Carver!

Ryan's favorite 2nd cousin in Florida! Ryan misses you Carver! We'll post pics of Ryan's preschool graduation later this month.

Discovery Science Center, Legoland, Dodgers Game

Vacation before Hawaii

We had so much fun having Daddy home with us for so long while he was inbetween his old job and his new! We took a few pictures of some of the things we did. It's been a really long time since we've seen Jake that often! The kids really loved the Science Center & Legoland. Those two places are made for exactly their age and are so hands on for my kids who love to touch everything! Ryan's favorite thing at Legoland was the firefighter show. He was laughing so hard and running down the steps to get to the water they were spraying on the kids! Krista really liked the ride she could do by herself--Royal Joust Ride.

Daddy's favorite thing was the Cubs game, of course. (Well until they lost in a lame way at the end) We had fun with my uncle and my cousin there. I'm always surprised at how many Cubs fans there are in ANY stadium that is not Wrigleys. We definately didn't stick out. If there are any Cubs fans out there will you please commiserate with my husband?! They just aren't very good......for so many years....oh dear! Alright, they have come close a few times but, what are these games where they are ahead something like 10-0 in the 7th inning and then they lose?!!!!!! Can we say, NO GOOD PITCHERS! Okay, all this aside, because of Jake, I will always be a fan, rain or shine. Go Cubs! (I still can't believe I cheered for Cubs at a Dodger game! I'm still a Dodger fan!)

Hawaii-Oahu

Hawaii Trip

What a fantastic time we had! We still can't believe it all fell into place. Thank-you, thank-you grandma! The kids had such a great time with you. Thanks for everything. Grandma shared with us one of her favorite things the kids had said.

Ryan praying before breakfast said, "....and please don't let my Rice Chex go soggy while I am praying...." I love this age!

We spent our entire time on Oahu. We went to the spectacular Polynesian Cultural Center, the Temple, BYU-Hawaii, swam with dolphins, ate dinner by sunset at Northshore and went snorkeling in the infamous Hanauma Bay.


The weather was beautiful and I loved driving around the island. The skies looked like they were painted and the beaches were so clear and warm. It really is paradise. But, where do Hawaiians go for vacation?

I gave up trying to pronounce street names and kept reminding myself that I was in the U.S. I wished my old roomate from college was there to "translate". I suddenly understood why Utah was such a shock to her and why she spent about 2 hours on the phone one night to describe to her friends at home, on Oahu, what snow looked, felt, and tasted like.

Can we go here at least once a year?!

It's Official

Jake and I are going to Hawaii! Kids will stay with grandma and we will get our first trip to Hawaii. :-)
These are views from our hotel room. Thank you grandma!

Marvelous Memories Merenia

Happy Birthday Nia! Oh, such good memories from college days. Too bad you live so far away, now! (Geez, could you at least live in the country?! Adding Germany to the many countries you've lived in. Why is it that you have U.S. Citizenship? J/K) Can you believe we met 11 years ago?! Well, here's to the good ole days.

TOP TEN
10. Concert pianist attempts to teach me to play
9. Dancing at the Omni (need we say more?)
8. Late nights in "The Marin" (okay I really should have changed my address to your apartment)
7. Our DT freshman floor. Wow, that was quite the experience! Where would I even start with that?
That is a subject for a very long blog.
6. Setting the record for time talking (we really had some all nighters! sleep was highly over rated!)
5. Dressing up for Halloween, especially the trick or treat of freshman year. Did that guy kiss you?
4. "The Gang" Rachel, Marlise, etc. etc.
3. Conviently placing ourselves near the guys we were dating, all the time (was that a nice way to say it Nia?)
2. Hi, what's your name? Marea Mowry. Oh are you related to the Maori's (pronounced Mowrys ) from New Zeland? (what a
random question. three cheers for randomness!) No but Nia is, ask her. (what are the odds of that?!)
1. Meeting guys together. Guy: Hi what's your name? Answer: Merenia Guy: Merewhat? Answer: Merenia.
Guy: And what's your name? Answer: Marea Guy: Maria? Answer: No, Marea.
Guy: Marania & Maria? Oh, I give up!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! MISS YA! SEND ME MORE PICS OF SAM & JACK!

Good News!

We are excited to report that Jake has received an offer from the law firm we were hoping to be with! Jake will start working at Greenberg Trauig on June 4th.

We are taking a very short break between the two jobs and will hopefully spend some time relaxing in Hawaii! Yipee!!

Ryan's Birthday

Okay, so I have to now add a wonderful tale of Disneyland to counter balance the last posting.

Monday, April 30th, we went to Disneyland for Ryan's birthday. We wanted Daddy to come so we waited for him to get off work and arrived at D-land at 6pm. Now, the park was going to close at 8pm so our thought was nothing other than RUN, RUN, RUN to Buzz Lightyear as fast as we can because that's the ride he wanted to do most.

We get to the entrance gate and Jake couldn't find his pass. I told him that I would just take the kids into City Hall and get Ryan his birthday button.

NOTE: When you go through the gate at Disneyland with an annual pass it has your picture and when it's your birthday it pops up on their little screen and they say happy birthday to you.

As we went through the gate, the woman working there scanned our passes and when she scanned Ryan's she turned to him and said, "Happy Birthday Ryan!"

Ryan turned around in amazement and said, "But, how did you remember?!" It was the cutest thing I'd ever heard.

We went to City Hall and the woman there was writing Ryan's name on a b-day button. She asked Ryan if he liked Buzz Lightyear. Ryan started going crazy telling her all about how that was exactly where we were going and how much that it was his favorite ride. She said to him, "Well I must have known. I have Buzzlightyear fastpasses for you right here!"

NOTE: D-land fast passes let you not wait in line. You can, basically, just get right on the ride.

Ryan was twirling around and screaming about how happy he was. I felt like saying, this IS the happiest place on earth! They just made my boy's day! (Oh how small things make us soo happy!)

We sat down for dinner and Ryan asked me if California Adventure was closed. I said, "Yes, it closed at 6pm, why?" He asked if he could go on "the car ride". I asked him what he meant and after serveral minutes of trying to figure it out realized that he was talking about Autotopia. I said, "Ryan, turn around and look behind you." He started shouting, "There it is, there it is!!"

It was a good day at Disneyland and has kept up our family tradition of having miraculous things happen there on a birthday.

Manic Monday

KEEP IN MIND: I am the biggest Disneyland fan! (well, on non-crowded, non-hot days)

Some friends our ours, that live around Sacramento, emailed us about a week ago telling us that they would be in town to go to Disneyland and wondered if they could see us. I was very happy to hear that they would be here and informed them of the days we could go to Disneyland with them. But, we never got in touch with them after. So, I got a call on Monday asking if we could come that day. Maybe I forgot when I woke up that morning that that was the best day for me to go because I'd had a busy week since the email (or maybe it's because I'm senial before the age of 30) but, whatever the reason I got the call and thus started my crazy Monday.

The call came at 9:30am. I won't even begin to go into detail about all the things I had to get done before I could go but, I was very proud of myself for leaving the house a little after 11am! Just as I was patting myself on the back for getting so much done before I left and remembering everything I needed to have with me in a backpack to take to Disneyland, I left the house and started driving only to realize (thanks to my car instruments) that it was 95 degrees outside!! I thought the instrument must be broken. It's been in the 70's for months! Ah well, off to Disneyland anyway.

We get there and everything seems to be going well. However, after awhile the heat was really getting to me. Near the end of our time there, we stopped to watch the Star Wars show. It was very crowded around the show and there was no where left to watch it, in the shade. I stood in the sun for what seemed like an eternity, holding my 30+ pound Krista. Towards the end of the show I saw some tables and chairs where no one was sitting and I climbed over. Finally relief! We watched the end of the show and just as it was about to end the Darth Mal guy came running down the aisle near us. We were up kind of high and not too near him. I assured Krista that she was ok and that no way would he come over to her. (I mean after alll, we were the only ones sitting there....and for sure the only kid sitting there was her....no way would a scary character come over to a two year old girl)

Darth Mal passed us, went up the aisle further, and then turned around to go back to the floor of the show. Before I knew it, there he was, right in Krista's face! He was nose to nose with her. Krista turned around and screamed a shrill scream (over and over again I might add) like I had never heard. The large crowd turned around and gasped and I heard a simultaneous, "Oh, no!" I scooped her up and began telling her that she was ok, he was just a guy in a costume with make-up on. (However, all I really wanted to do was get after that guy who was in the costume for scaring a child so)

Krista was definately unhappy but, seemed capable of recovering from her traumatic experience. We even went back to Disneyland the next day. Be assured I talked with guest relations and told them that they need to inform their staff not to have scary Darth Mals go up to little two year old girls, ever again.

Amazingly, after hot Disneyland and scary Darth Mals, we still made it to Ryan's T-ball game and had fun. My kids were bouncing around the field and I wondered in amazement at how their little bodies could even move around let alone seem so full of energy. What a Monday!