Thursday, August 22, 2013

Back to Mammoth we go

We headed back to Mammoth with the Shabani's.  First time I've been in the summer which meant no heavy jackets or boots.  The weather was beautiful!  On the drive up we had to stop at our favorite park to let antsy Trevin get out some energy.
We arrived in Mammoth before we were able to check into the hotel so we decided to head to the gondola on the main mountain and ride to the top.  Ry could hardly contain his excitement..ok doesn't look too thrilled in the pic but trust me..
Top of the mountain..
On the way down Ryden made us read every sign in the gondola...one of which said "no standing up."  He thought it was so funny to 'break the rules'.  Only for a second and then he calmly sat back down.
Funny faces...
Another sign said 'no alcohol'.  Jason would say "Oh man I think I'll just have a beer" to which Ryden would  yell "No Dada!  That sign says no beer!"  Trev thought that was really funny
Ry's first attempt at taking a pic of me and Jason...
Success!
That night we met up with the Shabani's and walked to the village for dinner.  Love the village so much.  It is so kid friendly.  Sand boxes everywhere.  So the adults can just hang while the kids play together.  And Ryden and Ella have such a good time together.  Oh, and so do Courtney and I. BFF's!
Creepy kid running around with this crazy hoodie on that made him look like a monster.  He hung out and entertained us for awhile.  Trevin was mesmerized 
Wooly the mammoth even stopped by for a photo.  Ryden ran for the hills screaming!  So did Mila.  Match made in heaven.  Ella and Trev were all about it!
The next day, Danny and Jason headed out to go extreme mountain biking.  Cruisin' down the mountain at top speeds...doin' sweet jumps....livin' the life
I took the boys on the gondola right by our hotel.  Once again, Ryden mentioned how excited he was on the whole walk down.  Notice the 'no matches' sign behind Trevin.  Yes that was the first thing Ryden asked me about when we got on the gondola.  "What does that say Mama?"
Keep practicing your photo taking skills Ry.  Way to cut off my head
After Jason was done being extreme, we decided to go on a "hike".  We rode a bus to the bottom of the mountain which the boys LOVED!
Then we got on another bus that took us up this curvy, winding road.  Oh dear me was that torture!  It was so crowded, no windows, so utterly hot, and took about 45 minutes.  Trev cried/whined almost the whole time!  But once we were up at the mountain it was super pretty.  The boys loved leisurely strolling and walking on every log and picking up every stick
This cool rock formation was called Devil's Postpile.  Really tried to get a cool pic but didn't work out as well as I hoped
Sliding down rocks = hours of entertainment (and way dirty clothes)
Ryden's stick collection to bring home.  We told him he could only keep five.  You should have seen him trying to decide which ones to leave behind.  And yes, those sticks made it all the way back with us to Redondo Beach
So I thought the bus ride up was horrible....boy was I in for it on the bus ride back down the mountain!  This time it took over an hour to get down!  No windows again!  I made the mistake of trying to entertain the kids with my iphone and snacks.  Yeah.....this does not help with car sickness.  Halfway in, Trev looses it.  Crying and very pale and sweaty.  I stand up to try and get him to look out the front window and am immediately barfed on (poor baby).  Jason is holding Ry who is much more conspicuous.  Quietly tells J that he needs to throw up.  We were ready with paper towels so that one wasn't as messy.  Ugh!  I felt so bad for them.  Worst ride ever!  After we finally got off the darn bus we washed the barf off and headed to dinner.  We needed a drink after that!  And the kids got to play in the sand again.  
They had a band playing again and Ry rocked out some more.  After that crazy day the boys were exhausted!  We let them sleep in the pull out bed together.  I crossed my fingers hoping they would sleep ok next to each other...
They passed out almost immediately 
Not a peep out of them the entire night and the next morning Jason and I even woke up before them!  We checked on them and found them like this:  LOVE!
And....one more quick breakfast in the village and swim in the pool before we packed up and headed home.  The boys quickly ate their pancakes so they could do some grinding with their mini skateboards. 
Brotherly love...
I made Ry stand on the stage and 'perform'.  Yeah...he didn't want to.
Pool time!
Miss Mila.  She LOVES Ryden.  Every time we hang out she is always shouting "Ryan!  Ryan!"...and won't settle for less than 10 hugs from him.  And Ry is so sweet...always giving her love and attention.  
The Shabani gang.  Our homies
And after all that excitement, Trev passed out right when we got in the car
Just had to add one last sleeping picture in.  This is what Trev takes to bed every night.  Monkey pacifier, two stuffed monkeys, and a skateboard in each hand.