Officially LA Tourists

On Memorial Day weekend, my parents came down to Pasadena for some quality time with us. Not only did we give them quality time, but we all decided it was time to play "tourist" for the first real time since we've moved here.
They arrived on Saturday afternoon, and we whisked them straight from the airport up to the Griffith Park Observatory (which you've seen posted on this blog before, however, it was their first time). In the far distance, looms the Hollywood Sign.After spending a good deal of time taking in the fascinating information that is given, we headed home for dinner, coldstone ice cream and a movie. Perfect combination. :)
On Sunday, we were out the door at 9:00am, ready to be star-struck in Hollywood. The only let-down of the day was the fact that there were indeed no famous people to be seen...I guess they were all in church, unlike some of us.

We did run into this star... We walked along Hollywood's Stars of Fame, saw the famous theaters, bought some yummy chocolate as a pick-me-up treat, and even put our hands in the very place as some very famous stars (well, everyone except Brant, who was against playing along with my request for his picture).Here we are in the middle of the plaza of the Kodak Theater -very impressive.In front of one of several entrances into the Kodak Theater - for those who do not know, this is where the Academy Awards take place. That's pretty touristy!After Hollywood, we drove up Mulholland Drive to take in some pretty spectacular views. Because we were definite LA tourists for the day, we stopped at In-N-Out for lunch, which hit the spot. The rest of the day, we drove through Beverly Hills, down The Sunset Strip, up Rodeo Drive and skirted by Bel Air. We ended at Marina Del Ray, where Maddie thoroughly enjoyed playing at the playground for a bit, before we took a nice stroll by some pretty impressive yachts. We spent another nice evening at home with dinner and a movie. But before bedtime, Maddie and Grandpa were caught red-handed...Are we going to get in trouble for this, Grandpa?Okay, I'll do it if you do it!
Monday found us heading over to Anaheim, where we played all day at California Adventures. My mom has never been to this park, and my dad has only been once, about 10 years ago. So often when we have visitors, we head over to Disneyland, so it was unique and refreshing to be able to spend a day over at this park. When we arrived, we lucked out and happened upon a soft opening of the new Little Mermaid ride, which wasn't supposed to open for another week. It was great fun for me, as we rode through and I sang every last lyric. :) We rode many thrill seeking rides, lost (some) of our voices screaming, ate great food and enjoyed the warmth of the sunshine all day long. Mom and Dad, about to get soaked on the Grizzly River Run!That's right - Dad and I are the only ones with our hands in the air. My poor mom is sitting next to me holding on for dear life, with no idea what's about to happen. :)
My unbelievable parents. I love you both so much!A ride on the zephyr!Followed by a ride on the swings. Whew! Lots of spinning!The other big highlight for the day was watching World of Color, which was even better than the last 2 times we have seen it (how is this even possible? I don't know, but it was awesome!). Maybe its because we had caramel corn.Thank you, Mom and Dad for making another trip down here to spend time with us. It was unforgettable and so very special. We love you!