Knott's Afternoon

Oh hey there, summer, it's nice to see you!

I've been waiting two months to have my husband home before he deploys and I'm enjoying every minute of it. 

And the kids are having a blast; they were over-the-moon excited to see him and we've been going non-stop ever since.

Today's post is on yesterday's afternoon trip to Knott's Berry Farm (woot!). We decided to go after 4pm (because there's a discount) and honestly we never know how the kids will do, especially Caleb; he gets very overwhelmed very quickly! We showed him a few YouTube videos of roller coasters, told him he could run around and play, and he was sold.

He was so excited to watch the roller coasters, SO EXCITED. But he did not want to ride anything. ANYTHING. Nothing in Camp Snoopy, nothing on The Boardwalk, nothing! We couldn't coax him into it, he couldn't be convinced. And that's fine. We know he's so interested, yet so overwhelmed, so we really just let him take the lead. 

So this is how he "does theme parks"...a whole lot of watching...

After a few moments in Camp Snoopy we decided to fill up their tummies & headed to Ghost Town for some grub. On the way out he had a Godzilla-sized meltdown...because he heard a song he recognized (which was out of context; why am I hearing this song here and not on the tv?), and because we were dancing along to it...? Honestly it's hard to know some times, and I'm sure everyone around us thought he was throwing a fit because he didn't get any ice cream...but we just have to help him through it no matter where we are or who happens to be watching. 

When his tears finally subsided (ten minutes later) while up on daddy's shoulders, he said "I'm scared of the roller coaster..." 

Poor guy! He really did enjoy watching them, but you have to understand how loud they are, how they come rushing through so fast, and how people are screaming. There were a lot of unpredictable moments and that made him uneasy. 

So we sat in a quiet spot in Ghost Town (by the house made of glass bottles) and had some grub. 

A very slight majority of our time (mine and TJ's) is spent apart during outings like these. Lilly is a two year old and loves to roam, and Caleb goes wherever he feels best. And I could not do it or feel more at ease with anyone else than TJ; we know how our kids work, we know how autism is factored in, and we know each other. It's our club! 

Well Lilly Belle loved hanging out around Boomerang and TJ took Caleb to go play some carnival games.

A few minutes later Caleb requested that he show me this game (hello he wanted to include me; super good job, Bug). 

And now for daddy to win something for Lilly! And boy did he. He won TWO prizes! Did I mention TJ always wins? Because he does. Always.

She couldn't have been happier carrying around that giant plushy...

We took them to the arcade because hello it's cheap fun for people who aren't going to ride roller coasters, and it's easy to let Lilly think she's playing a game.

The first game Caleb picked and the first pull of the wheel got him ONE THOUSAND TICKETS. The highest prize!! He ran around shouting "fifty-five tickets! fifty-five tickets!!" We had to wait ten minutes for the tickets to dispense before we went to pick out prizes.

After the game attendant asked if my four year old son liked Sons of Anarchy (?!?!) he lit up a bright, shiny spinning toy and I said "SOLD! We'll take TWO! And candy." It was a good thing we got two because he dropped one outside and it broke instantly.

While outside enjoying our winnings, we played by the fountain (Caleb + fountains are like PB&J) and a swing band started to play. Caleb loved it. He named all of the instruments and every part of the drum set. They played so loudly but it didn't phase him. He held up his arms and shimmied them in the air at the end of every song. 

We headed back to ghost town for some FUNNEL CAKE and ice cream (and a turkey leg for TJ). 

It must be said that Lilly Belle was an absolute dream. She was hardly bothered by Caleb's meltdowns, listened when I told her to stay close, and was a joy to watch as she pranced around like she owned the place. 

Lilly and I hopped on the train and made one last stop on the merry-go-round in Fiesta Village (fasted merry-go-round I've ever been on; puke...) and then it was time to head home.

So we're taking it easy today, drinking lots of water in this heat & {very odd} humidity, and enjoying another blessed day with TJ.

Hope you all have a wonderful Independence Day!