A Little Winter Get-a-Way

To have some fun during Christmas vacation, we took off for a couple of days and went to

Knott's Berry Farm. That's not very far away, but to make a trip out of it, we stayed in a hotel for two nights - and we were glad we did - the area was fabulous!

But first, we left Sunday evening and stopped at my parents' house to see Grandma Carol while she's here for the week before heading down to the temple to see the gorgeous Christmas lights. We ended up staying for dinner, then they came to the temple with us, too!

The lights were beautiful and we had fun walking around the grounds.

We said our good-byes and headed to Long Beach to check into our hotel.

The whole gang: Grandma Carol, my parents, my family.

Me and my kids! Dom stayed with us since Christmas. We got used to having her around and the kids are going to miss having a cool teenage big-sister-cousin.

We arrived at Knott's Monday morning before it opened. I hadn't been to Knott's since I was a teen, and John even before that, so it was a new experience for all of us.

These are the things I was immediately impressed with:

The admission price is reasonable

The ticket booth lady was very nice and helpful

There are Christmas Carols playing on the speaker system everywhere

There is a large Nativity display right inside the entrance

Before the park opens, the National Anthem is played.

Pretty amazing, huh? Oh, and there was a huge "Merry Christmas" banner displayed at the entrance. It was very refreshing to see an amusement park not feeling the need to be so PC.

We had a great time and there was a nice variety of rides to keep everyone happy. We brought Domonique was able to experience her first roller coaster - it took a bit of coaxing but she did it, and then again and again.

We went to the Snoopy on Ice show and again were very impressed.

Not only was it a great show with amazing skating, but they abandoned the typical Season's Greetings that you see so much now and stuck with Christmas. Linus came out with his blanky and told the story of the Savior's birth just as he does in the Charlie Brown Christmas show. That got a near standing ovation!!!!! CHRISTmas is alive and well in Southern California.

Here we are waiting for the park to open.

I didn't get many ride pictures, but on this one, Ashlyn said, "Mommy, we're in a picnic basket!"

It was great to go back to the hotel, try and sleep in, have a huge free breakfast, and lazily leave when we were ready.

The view from our bedroom - that's the Queen Mary out there.

The view from the living room - the downtown Long Beach skyline.