Hello Again!

Goodness!  So much fun stuff has been happening in our lives lately.  Once I was done with the school year Aaron and I decided we needed to get away for a little while.  We also knew we wanted to leave as soon as humanly possible.  So as is typical of all our vacations to date we planned the trip and were on the road within four days.  As we were discussing the many adventure filled destinations we could head to we had a really hard time making up our minds.  We discussed going to Yosemitti, the Redwoods, or Glacier National Park.  I believe there was even talk of Harry Potter world (yes, I am that dorky).  All of which sounded great but in the end Disneyland and San Diego won out.  Even though we'd been to Disneyland in January we just couldn't resist going back again and having slightly more time than we did in January.

As always, we had a fantastic time and were dead tired at the end.  Some notables from this Disneyland adventure include my first time seeing Captian Eo and my last time seeing Captian Eo.  Perhaps if I'd seen it as a child I would have bought the "saving the world through music" theme.  And since I was a child in the eighties the fantastic fruity outfits may not have weirded me out so much.  But as it stands now Captian Eo will not go down on my list of regular attractions to see at Disneyland.

I also REALLY enjoyed that Aaron was asked numerous times if he was a vampire from Twilight.  As you can see in the photo his shirt reads "Keep out of direct sunlight".  This shirt was purchased before the Twilight craze and was a reference to Aaron's extreme whiteness.  Before we left the hotel room in the morning he looked at me and said, "You don't think anyone will think this shirt has something to do with Twilight do you?"  I assured him they would not mostly because I wanted to get to the Indiana Jones ride as soon as possible and we just didn't have time for wardrobe silliness.  This is Disneyland folks!  But the first thing one of the workers at the gate said to him as we walked in was if he was a vampire.  It was priceless!

We loved our time there and the trip was only tainted by the fact that I once again could not force myself to get on the white roller coaster.  I'm such a chicken!  We ended the trip by visiting our cousins in San Diego and it never seems like we have enough time to hang out with them.  If only California was closer!

Beyond Cute

As I was getting back into blogging I realized our blog has been lacking in many things this year.  One that made me the most sad was the absence of kid stories this year.  The school year is almost over and I have yet to tell a story about one of the cute kids I work with.  So here is one for your reading pleasure.

Yesterday I was testing a student.  Typically when I give kids IQ tests it isn't exactly enjoyable.  Most of the kids I work with have trouble paying attention anyway so to ask them to sit long enough to take an IQ test is usually pretty painful to them.  Well, yesterday one of these little darlings let me know exactly how he felt about taking the IQ test.  Halfway through part of the test the little guy grabbed my stop watch which hangs from a string you can put around your neck.  He then proceeded to sway it back and forth in front of my face while chanting the following, "Mrs. Johnson you are getting very sleepy.  It's time to stop testing."  He then looked me right in the eyes and said, "Did it work.  I was trying to hypnotize you".  I laughed out loud and hard.  It was so unexpected, so funny, and exactly what I needed that day.  I think what made it even more endearing is that this child does the unexpected frequently.  Man, I really do love working with children who don't see the world the same way everyone else does.

More Time!

Do you ever sit back and think...life slow down!  That's how I feel pretty much every week.  I keep thinking,  "Life will slow down next week and then I will once again have time for blogging and cleaning the house".  I used to be good at doing these things!  Well, so far it hasn't happened so here I am making a command decision to just blog and let responsibilities go by the way side.

The Johnson's have been quite busy lately.  The school year started with a bang and Aaron and I have been running ever since.  The good news is Aaron will graduate very soon and there will be many hazzah's in his honor come August.  Seriously, I think the only person more excited about Aaron's graduation than Aaron is me.  Its so close we can taste it!

In January Aaron and I were sick of all the snow and responsibility and luckily our friends the Harmon's were feeling the same way.  When you get to feeling this way there really is only one logical step to take.  Yes, that's right......head for Disneyland.  We made the decision to go and were on the road within four days.  Some may say we are insane (including the Harmons) and to that we say, "Yes, we are and proud of it!"

It was just so nice to escape the snow, ice, and stress and just be kids for a couple days.  There was much screaming, laughing, eating of bad food, and almost some puking (of course me).  All in all it was the perfect trip to an amusement park. We are so glad our friends the Harmons chose to partake in the craziness with us.  We are also grateful to Aaron's cousins Kari and Eric for hosting us while we were there.  It was so great to see their new home and partake in the California goodness.

Just as an aside, do any of you find Splash Mountain incredibly creepy?  I absolutely hate that ride.  Its not like the drop is overly scary or anything but I totally freaked out when we went on it.  I seriously think I may still have a little PTSD as result of the ride.  Every time I think about those creepy animals and how the music becomes all freaky half way through the ride I shudder.  Yes folks you heard it here, Aubrey Johnson is afraid of Disneyland rides!  But then again those of you who have been to Disneyland with me are not surprised.  And no Keri and Traci I still didn't make it on the white roller coaster...sigh!

After we left I was feeling kind of embarrassed for being such a weenie but then I remembered I work in an Elementary school with special needs kids and that's all the tough I need.   So there all you "Roller Coaster Riders" and others who "aren't afraid of Disney characters".....eat that!