Analyzed by Engineers (Ben & Andrew's Blog)
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Disneyland!

June 9th, 2015. (7 years old.) by ben

Daddy and I took a trip down to visit Grandpa and Nana, and we spent a day at Disneyland!

We started out with Big Thunder Mountain, which Daddy said would be fun and not too scary.

I think he was right.

With that under my belt, it was on to Space Mountain.

We went on three times.  AWEEEEESOOOOOMEEEEEE!!!!

Then we had some popcorn (thanks again, Grandpa!), and it was off to Frontier Land.  We did some shooting and I hit two targets on my first try.

Then I was ready for another big ride, so it was Splash Mountain next.  That ended up being my favorite ride.

Next it was Indiana Jones (awesome), ice cream, Dumbo, the parade, Toontown, train ride, and Splash Mountain again.

Whew!  What a great day!

(Ed. Note: Thanks Grandpa for coming with us.  It was great to have you there!)


Skiing and Sledding!

January 2nd, 2015. (6 years, 7 months old.) by ben

First we went sledding! Awesome!

The next day I went to ski school.  It turns out that you can start and stop ski school any time, unlike regular school.  Cool!

At ski school, they have a Magic Carpet that takes you up the hill:

I learned to make a pizza so I could stop and turn.

Maybe I’ll be ready for the big slopes next time!


Wedding Trip and LegoLand!

August 13th, 2014. (6 years, 2 months old.) by ben

We went down to cousin Christine’s wedding.  Our rental car had a trunk big enough to use as a PJs changing room!

Before the wedding, we went to LegoLand where we saw lots of Legos and went on roller coasters and saw a 3D show about Clutch Powers!  They have lots of Star Wars Legos there now!

I got to be in the wedding.  I was the ring bearer.  This meant I got to go practice, which included sitting in the dugout with the groom guys.  (Ed Note: Looks more like the penalty box!)

Of course, cousin Avery was in the wedding, too.  She was a flower girl.  Doesn’t she look nice?

I had a great time at the party after the wedding.  Dancing to the music and getting chocolate from the fountain was really fun!  I can’t wait until my next wedding!  Does anybody need a ring-bearer?


Christmas

December 25th, 2013. (5 years, 6 months old.) by ben

For Christmas, I got lots of Legos.  First, my WWII airplane, which can hold two passengers, and you can make the propeller turn by pushing the tail wheel!  (And of course, I’d already gotten some great sets from Grandpa and Nana!)

Grandma and Grandpa Harris came to visit for Christmas Day, and they got me the cargo airplane set.  It has a gigantic cargo jet plane, and a cargo loader, fuel truck, fork lift, control tower, and cargo!  I have a whole airport now!

It wasn’t all presents, though.  Grandma got to do some visiting with goo-goo bear while she was here.  (Is that a Lego he’s holding?)

It was great to see you, Grandma and Grandpa!


Legoland!

November 26th, 2012. (4 years, 5 months old.) by ben

I just got back from my Thanksgiving trip to SoCal, and I wanted to share my trip to Legoland!

Even before we got into the park, we could tell we were in the right place.  As Mommy would say, “Daddy and I were in the target market”.

First up was a ride on my first roller coaster: the Coastersaurous!

I wasn’t scared at all.  It was really fun!  You go up a hill, and then down and around two circles… then you get to do it again!

We also went on the Sky Patrol helicopters.  I got to show Daddy how to make it go up and down and turn around!

Later, it was the Flight Squadron airplanes.  Daddy did a great job of going on the rides with me so we could have fun together.

We had lunch, and I got a special treat: Chocolate covered marshmallows with M&Ms stuck on. Yum.

I had a great time with Grandma Harris, Mommy, and Daddy.  I can’t wait to go back next time!


Seattle

September 22nd, 2012. (4 years, 3 months old.) by ben

M&D took me to Seattle for a visit.  Boy do they have a lot of fun things there!

On the first day, we started out with an airplane ride:

They have a really great airport where you get to walk way out and be near all of the propeller planes.  I could have stayed and watched longer, but M&D said it was time to go.

Next, it was a ride on the light rail (my first real train ride!):

Not only was the ride fun, but there was lots of great stuff to see out the window while we were riding, like these diggers!

After the train ride, Daddy and I went for a big, big ferry ride.  This ferry carried a hundred cars – and even big tractor trailer trucks!

Not only that, but it had three levels with stairs, and it had an inside with seats and tables, and snacks!

That was kinda nice because it was pretty windy “topside”.

After this big day, we stayed with Uncle John and Aunt Carol at their house by the lake where they have a dock where you can throw rocks in the water – which is the best kind.

The next day, we went to the market.  Our adventure started with my first bus ride:

And that was no ordinary bus!  It was a double bus.  Daddy said it was “articulated”.

At the market, these chocolate croissants tasted as good as they looked:

The fish were fun to look at, but we didn’t taste any.

Then it was down the big hill…

…to see the UPS truck:

Just Kidding!  It was the Seattle Aquarium!  There was lots of fun stuff to see here, like this enormous fish tank…

… and sea otters…

… up close and personal!

The next day we went to visit my friend Lauren at her house.

We worked on making a snack together, and also on puzzles and games.

Later, we went for a ride on their dock-boat.  Lauren’s Daddy Big Ben let me drive!

At the end of that day, I guess I was pretty tired.

Our last day in Seattle, my photographer apparently took the day off so I don’t have any pictures of me to share.  But we saw Aunt Jo, Uncle Don, and cousin Sarah for a yummy breakfast.  And we visited with cousins Nicole, Haley and Toby, and we even went to the Lego store where I got a recycling truck set!

What a fun trip!  I hope we get to go back soon!


Summer Vacation – Balboa Bars and More Cousins!

August 8th, 2012. (4 years, 2 months old.) by ben

It was finally time.  We had some M&D alone time and it was finally time.  To go for a ferry ride to get a Balboa Bar.  Can you see my anticipation?  I think I can see it!

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm…

And to top it off, another Ferris Wheel ride with Daddy!  Maybe this vacation stuff isn’t so bad after all.

But I do miss playing with my trucks at home.  I have to settle for the little one I have here at the beach.

Then Madeline and Lauren arrived.  The next day we were off to the big wave beach!

Boy those waves are big!  And they move fast!  They sure are fun to run away from when they come in!

While I was there, I invented sand surfing.  It’s kind of like skateboarding, but with a Boogie board on the sand.  And you don’t go anywhere.

Later, I taught sand boarding class to Mommy and Lauren.   They were very good students.  (Beginning students practice on the sidewalk.)


After all of that playing and teaching, I sure was tired.

(Note to M&D: This does NOT constitute proof that I don’t sleep with my eyes open.  I must have been blinking.)

What a fun vacation!


Summer Vacation – More Island

August 4th, 2012. (4 years, 2 months old.) by ben

Well, it was time for another day at the beach.

On this day, Ma and Avery buried my legs in the sand, just like when Curduroy goes to the beach!

Later, Ma and I saw some artists painting pictures of the boats.

Then we had a visit from Natalie, Olivia, and Addison.  They were fun to play with on the beach!

After all that hard playing on the beach, I decided to relax and do some drawing like those artists I saw earlier.


Summer Vacation – The Island

July 29th, 2012. (4 years, 1 month old.) by ben

The first order of business was to get some holes dug and sand castles built, stat!  Luckily, I had Avery there to help me.

Avery stayed over, so we got to keep having fun even after pajama time.

The next day, it was time for a ride over on the ferry.  There’s lots of things to see from the ferry…

… like… the Fun Zone!  Boy did I have my eye on that Ferris Wheel!

First, though we went for a walk out to the pier to see the big waves.

There they are!

On the way back was the big payoff!  A Ferris Wheel ride with Daddy AND Avery!  Weeeee!


Summer Vacation – Grandparent Galore!

July 28th, 2012. (4 years, 1 month old.) by ben

The first visit on our trip was at Ma and Pa’s.  As always, I like reading books with Ma.

And it’s always fun to play with my favorite LA cousin.  Daddy says she gives me a run for my money on the noise making front, and I said, “Uh huh”. Pbbbbbbbbffffttt!

This trip was special because I got to meet my newest cousin, baby Oliver!  Do babies really start out that small?  I was never that small!

After visiting at Ma and Pa’s, it was time to see Grandpa and Nana.  As always, I start with cleaning the pool.  The pool at Grandpa’s is sooo fun.

Then, some more relaxing and book reading.   I wanted to share my new Airplane book with Grandpa.  I know he likes airplanes because he has lots of papers with pictures of them on his table.

Then it was time to go to lunch where we saw some big vacuum trucks!  Very cool!

After that, it was time for a trip to the park and some exercise.  Look at how strong I am!

Thank you Ma and Pa, and Grandpa and Nana for letting us come stay and visit you!

Next – on to The Island!


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