Bob’s parents are here this week and while our schedule is hectic, we have had some time to talk, laugh and stroll down memory lane. Tonight over a quick and early dinner they told stories of the times they would ski with their young kids and how those were some of the happiest family times they had. They had some great stories to tell of kids skiing off into tree areas, lift ‘incidents’ and a hysterical one about someone (who shall remain nameless) tried to stop someone else from losing control by sticking a poll between their skis. Think on that one for a minute…

That conversation left me thinking about our family trips and how I have always held them as sacred. We have had some real ups and downs on family trips, from panic attacks on the plane (me! Stupid stewardess burned the pilots dinner and I was SURE the plane was on fire) to memories that will, hopefully, last a life time (Carter taking his first steps right down the middle of Main Street, USA). Family trips have bonded us all with common experiences that we have all learned from.

Will my kids someday sit around the dinner table and laugh about when Dad fell off the ski lift, or commiserate over the day I drug them through NASA instead of taking them to Disneyworld????

I hope so….

*Sony’s Open Season 3 will be released on DVD Jan. 25. I able to review the movie early for this TravelingMom.com-sponsored post. We’ll be talking about sweet family travel memories and giving away prizes during our Jan. 24 TravelingMom Monday Twitter party. If you’d like a chance to win, please click here to get the details on how to enter. And, if you’ve still got little ones, they can get a taste of the Open Season characters Boog and his friends with online games Cannonball and Jamboree.

Ah, the mystery, the allure, the exclusivity, the food I sent back. WHAT? OK, yes, I did not like my order of monk fish and they noticed, took it back and brought me mac&cheese. Does it make me sound classier if I say it was “Truffle Mac&Cheese”?

Disney’s Club 33 is a private club inside the original part of Disneyland. There are many stories about the who, what, when, where and why’s behind Walt’s creation of Club 33. It is a legendary place among Disney fans and it is rare to get the opportunity to visit. The general consensus is that Club 33 was opened by Walt as a place to entertain the original 33 investors of Disneyland. However, it says on the menus that is named simply because of its address. Believe what you will. It is the only place within the main (old) park that serves alcohol to this day. It is said the waitlist for membership is about 15 years long. The fee’s are quite steep. Most families that I know who have had the chance to visit work for one of the companies that have a corporate membership.

So, what is a visit to Club 33 really like and what is the hype all about?

You start your day by going to guest services outside of the park. You pick up day passes for your family to the park. These don’t have your name on it and since we had park hopper tickets that came with our package, we walked up to a family that was in line to give them away. If I had known they wouldn’t have our names on them I would have totally had my friend Laura come visit. SORRY LAURA! The attendant at the ticket area saw me trying to give the tickets away and was all “you can’t sell tickets” and I told him I was “not selling, just giving them away”. He said “well, you can’t do that either”. Bob went the other way and found a family. They were so surprised. We felt all warm and gooey inside.

So, you have a reservation for Club33 that is a specific time. DO NOT attempt to get in 5 mins early. Trust me. I know. I was informed of this by the lady inside. There is a little speak easy type box inside the door frame of 33. You push it and tell them your name. Just don’t do it before your appointed time or you will get swallowed up by a big rabbit hole that transports you to Small World and makes you ride it over and over again.

If you don’t fall down the rabbit hole the lady lets you in. You have the choice to go up to this lift that they make a big deal about. It was pretty.  I am not really into stuff like that. But if you are, they say this is an amazing example. If you are in a wheelchair you get to go in a special entrance. You get the privilege of going through the Cafe kitchen across the way. You get to experience all the sights, sounds and smells of the dishwashing area of a cafeteria. Needless to say, I think access for wheelchair users needs to be improved.

Anywho, once your family gets to the second floor you are seated. We went for a late lunch. They ask you to order the entree and you get to go to the buffet for both appetizers and dessert. With the exception of the crab, shrimp and rock lobster tails all the food on the buffet we had already seen at the Paradise Pier concierge room. It is the same stuff.

At first we were all really nervous because you hear so much about how fabulous this place is. I warned the kids not to breathe wrong! Being nervous was unnecessary though. Our waitress was very sweet and very accommodating. She saw that I didn’t eat the monk fish I ordered and offered me something else. I asked for the same mac and cheese the kids had. It was yummy. I don’t know why I didn’t like the meal. There was nothing wrong with it. I just did not like it.

Bob and ordered a bottle of wine. I LOVED the balcony. It was the best part. It was a beautiful day and the views are really pretty from out there through the trees. It was a very relaxing oasis on a crazy Sat. at Disney.

Your bill has to be equal to what the tickets for the day would have cost you. So it is a pretty pricey meal ~ $404 for our family to be exact.

There is a small cabinet that sells souvenirs. Apparently the merchandise in the cabinet changes frequently. It is stuff like golf shirts, pens and rings. We didn’t get anything but now I kind of regret that.

You leave the sanctuary of Disney’s Club 33 and join the masses. The craziness is a little disorienting (or was that the wine?) of becoming one of the ‘regular people’ visiting Disney that day.

I was really glad we finally went. We have talked about going since the kids were little and we knew we had the option. But I am really glad we waited til the boys were older and had more experience eating in ‘fancier’ restaurants. I don’t think the food was any more impressive than your run of the mill upscale restaurant. There are a ton of antiques that were completely lost on the boys. If we could just order a bottle of wine and sit out on the patio I would consider going back but barring that I doubt we would. It is nice to say you have been but not necessarily something you need to do twice.

Here are some insider photos for all of you still curious

OK, the title is a little more dramatic than it actually was but we did have a hoot and hollarin time as we circled most of the great Southwest.

The trip started with some VERY d(icey) road conditions through the Rocky Mountains. From the Foothills to Vail we were on ice a good part of the way. A family in a suburban in front of us figure-eighted off the road first, they were fine but shaken up. Next came the flipped over semi truck, and then two big Ford trucks went into each other. I have never seen Bob so white knuckled. For him to actually want to get out of the car to shake it off in Vail, you know he was nervous. After Vail the ice disappeared but we were met with one more obstacle before Grand Junction: a fallen boulder smashing a concrete pillar. I swear, it was just like being in a video game from hell! From Utah on it was easy sailing though. 14 hours later we pulled into Green Valley Ranch by our old home in Vegas. PHHHHEEEWWWW! We headed straight for the bar and buffet! GVR’s buffet has really changed. $80 is soooo not worth it!

I enjoyed some yummy breakfast the next morning with Cindy at the Original Pancake House and we were off to play with the Luna’s shortly after. Connor had an absolute ball running around the old neighborhood. It felt so good to see him so happy with his friends again. We were able to go to a halloween party with our old homeschool group and I had a ball talking with Elizabeth, Tara, Darlene, Stephanie and Paula again! It was so nice to reconnect. We brought some cool science stuff from Steve Spangler to share with our friends at the party.

But, after some really fun times with friends it was time to hit the road again. We had to re-route home because of the crazy storm that hit Colorado that week. So, we left Vegas and headed to the Grand Canyon. Once there, Bob pulled a Clark Griswold and we left ASAP. Even though it was three hours out of the way, I am glad we went. Connor was really interested in the canyon statistics and the boys willing bought and watched a documentary about it during the trip home.

We crawled into Albequerqe at 9:45, with just 15 minutes to spare to get some take out from Sadies Mexican food. Next morning we were back on the road and headed home early to get some trick or treating in.

Even though it was way too short, I am so glad we went. I realized on this trip that what I have been really missing about Vegas is the sense of community we had there. The feeling of having a ‘village’ to raise our kids in. Good friends that would do anything for you at the drop of a hat. People who bought me a 12 pack of diet coke for the hotel room and people who loved my kids whole heartedly. It comes down to people who truly knew us and cared about us. But what I realized is that I am going to have to try to find that here. As much as our friends there will always be special to us, and I hope to remain friends for years, I have to try to recreate that feeling here. I think we may be on the right path, when we drove up on Sat. our driveway and walk had been shoveled for us. I went over to thank the people across the street but they told me there was no need, the whole neighborhood had pitched in because they were worried Carter wouldn’t be able to get in.

Just booked us! WOOHOO! So excited to be staying at the Grand California. I have ALWAYS wanted to. We went to this two years ago and it was by far one of our favorite homeschool experiences ever. This is the last year they plan to organize it so go if you can! My kids LOVED taking classes from the Disney staff!

Join thousands of homeschoolers at the Not Back to School Days Rally and Conference as we celebrate our freedom to homeschool, network with new friends, and be examples for the growth of homeschooling! This conference will be held September 14-17, 2009 at Disneyland in Anaheim, California.

WHAT IS THIS?

FIELD TRIP: Kids ages 8 and up can take a Y.E.S. (Youth in Education Series) class, taught in the theme parks by Disney staff. These can only be reserved in advance through a booked group, no walk up registrations for YES classes.

CONFERENCE: Exhibit hall and workshops – a carefully selected program, with something for everyone. Walk up registrations welcome, advance registration appreciated.

RALLY: Celebrate our freedom to educate our children as we feel best. Cheer with special guests who are homeschoolers and work hard to preserve your rights.

NETWORK: This is a priority with our organizers, so expect to meet new friends as you interact in scheduled group activities. Talent show, homecoming dance, more.

VACATION: You won’t find a less expensive trip to Disneyland, from the park hoppers to the hotel rooms, seriously. Your family will thank you over and over again. Send them off to the theme parks, while you soak up some conference action – it’s a win, win solution to past dilemmas of what to do with the kids. Bring the skeptical inlaws – they will get a first hand glimpse of the benefits of homeschooling.

There is so much to do, just download the updated complete conference packet and see for yourself – most of your questions can be answered in the packet: www.notbacktoschooldays.com

Walk up rates are now in effect, but we have added more vendors and more classes, so for those who have procrastinated, here’s a 5-day coupon to save 50% on your conference passes – put in code LATE3 at the bottom of the first page of registration. The coupon will expire on July 24th.

Membership in the sponsoring organization is not required to attend this conference, it is open to all home educators, and especially inquisitive and skeptical inlaws and neighbors. Bring them and show the real fruits of freedom in education!

Hope to see you!
Contact (not me!): Dianne McLean
fieldtrips@sw-home-edu.com

We just got back from participating in this event. It was arranged for homeschoolers by a new organization called SHEA.

What is the Disney Youth Education Series?

As quoted from the page on the Disney Site:
“The programs in the Youth Education Series are designed to help students get a better understanding of various school subjects through experiences and attractions of a Disney Theme Park. In the variety of programs offered, groups will learn about California history, science, physics and the arts, and do so within the inspiring backdrop of Disney’s California Adventure® Park. These Disney Y.E.S. programs can help to create a desire to learn, and encourage students to reach their potential. In addition we provide educators with a set of resources and downloads, including guidelines, California content standards, further reinforcing the educational principles learned in the park. For more information on Disney Y.E.S programs visit the Disney Youth Education Services Site ”

What was our experience like?

My two boys, ages 9 and 11, were able to take the Animator Series class. It was a three hour class held from 10-1 on a Monday. They had a blast and have been drawing characters all week. They both really enjoyed the Turtle Talk With Crush part of the class. It was neat for them to see how animation comes to life. They learned the technical terms associated with animation and were able to create their own storyboards. They also created some very simple animations using paper, pencil and string. According to my 11 year old it rates a 9/10. He is pretty hard to please so I am thrilled to get that sort of response. The only part that my younger son did not like was the character encounter. Woody rubbed his head which completely freaked him out. Most kids would probably have loved the attention, however. The 9 year old uses a wheelchair full time and I am happy to say that all area’s of the Experience were accessible to him.

Would we do it again?
Yes, I was pleased with how the SHEA (Southwest Home Educators Association) handled the complicated task of assembling homeschooling families for this event. This event is usually only for California Public Schools. Disney did an excellent job with the class itself. If the opportunity presents itself I would have my 11 year old attend the Physics classes.