Trainer in Training

Jess took a picture with one of the orca trainers. I know she would have loved to have been a trainer for the day but she needs another year before she can do it.

Wrapping it Up in California

The whales came right over to us after dinner. We headed back to our hotel so that we could get a good night rest before heading home in the morning. We all loved California and I know Jim and I would move in a heartbeat. It was relaxing without being slow and the weather was perfect. I am glad we went!

Dinner with the Whales

Okay so I got a little crazy and decided at the last minute to eat with the whales. The food was good but the experience was unique. I do not know if I would go back but those whales are about ten feet from my girls.

Dolphins

Nicole and Jessica are petting and feeding the dolphins. We wanted them to experience these gentle and kind creatures before we go swimming with them on our next vacation. The girls really had a lot of fun with the dolphins.

Rays

Jess and Nicole pet the rays. Jess and I actually swam with the rays but they always make her sad now because of Steve Irwin. Hopefully, they will make her smile again!

A really big whale

This female whale is the star of the show. At almost 40, she is kind to the new trainers and other whales. All of the other trainers have learned from her. Her fin which is bent is due to genetics and not because her tank is too small as noted in the Free Willy Movie.

Sea World

For our last day in California, we went to Sea World. Jess and Nicole are in front of Shamu's Stadium though there is no longer a Shamu.

Nicole decide we needed to sit in the splash zone so I am standing at our seats taking this picture. Jim who was buying popcorn could not believe we chose these seats. But where else would any kid choose to sit?

We did not get soaked but we did have fun!

Wanted Two Cute Girls

Nicole and Jess stand for their mugshots in front of the Shrek attractions. This was one of our favorites rides at Universal and it was well done. After a long day in LA, we headed South again to San Diego for the final day of vacation.

Universal Studios

For our final day in LA, we headed to Universal Studios.

Though it was a part of our City Pass Ticket, it was not a favorite stop for any of us.

The park was split in levels and the food lines were long.

We enjoyed the Backlot Tour and Shrek but the other rides were just okay.

Walking under the Golden Gate Bridge

This is the gang heading into the park after dinner.

California Adventure

We spent our second day in California Adventures. This is Disney's version of the old fashion theme park at the beach but with Hollywood Studios thrown in for the Disney twist.

On the California Pier, they had the new ride, Toy Story Mania. Since there was no FastPass option, we headed there on the rope drop. We then proceeded to wait about 45 minutes.

But the fun we had!

Splash Mountain

This is team Choisez prior to going over the falls of Splash Mountain.

Unlike Disney World, you ride single rider for this log flume with one double seat in the rear.

The trick here is that you must be at least 5 feet to ride in the first spot. Since I was not going to volunteer, Jim got the best seat in the house.

Indy's Helper

Nicole got to help Indiana Jones with one of his adventures. Here she is helping the "assistant" solve a clue.

Disneyland

So we finally arrive in Disneyland. We leave the Comfort Inn where we stayed overnight and head to the Disneyland Hotel. We check in at 9:00 am and then walk to Disneyland.

The hotel is located on the other side of Downtown Disney. This whole area has completely changed since Jim and I were here 14 years ago.

We enter Disneyland and who do we find but Jessica's hero, Indiana Jones in Adventureland. She was so excited she got to touch him! I could not image what would have happened if it was Harrison Ford. Nicole was a part of the show and we had a great day at the park. We loved the quaintness of the park and never felt rushed to get everywhere like we do in Disney World.

We ate in one of the restaurants in the Bayou and of course I had to have the ratitoulle and the Mickey Mouse beignets.

So Jim...

So Jim took the "big" test on Monday, August 11 to get his radiographers license. He was happy he passed.

Since he passed, we got to go on vacation without much stress except getting on a flight. Thunderstorms have been bad this summer and it forced us to change where we flew into for vacation. We landed in San Diego with me flying the jumpseat. I actually helped the crew and met Billie Jean King.

This is Nicole and Jim on the bus tour of the San Diego Zoo. We arrived around 3 and had lunch. We took the bus tour and then went back to see some of our favorite animals. We loved the meerkats, giraffees, koalas and the panda bears.

It was a nice way to stretch our legs before we headed two hours north to our hotel in Anaheim for the LA portion of our trip!

Jo Bro Concert

So it is off to the Jonas Brothers Concert for the Choisez women and the honorary Choisez, Brigid.

Jim travelled all the way to Trenton by train to pick Jess up from camp at my parents.

We left for Jones Beach and what fun we had. We signed the band's tour bus and mailed them cards.

Demi Lovato opened for the boys and the boys came on at about 9:00 pm. It was about this time Jess decided she wanted to go home as she had been up since about 7:00 am that morning and spent the day in camp. However, she stuck with it.

All of us were signing and dancing and agreed that our favorite song was Burning Up and Big Rob. If they would have been selling Big Rob shirts, we would have bought four!