California 1994

Our first family vacation finally happened in June 1994. We went for the annual Butler family reunion in Fresno, CA (I think it was actually held in Visalia) and then extended it a few extra days.
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Sadly, I have no photos of the reunion, but I took loads of home videos! Not that it helps, since I still don't know how to convert them to digital. But we saw plenty of family while in town.

We went to see my grandmother, Myrtle Butler, at her nursing home. She was just 2 months away from her 99th birthday. I'm not sure how well she remembered me, but she loved my children!

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It was Sarah and Jacob's first and only time to meet their Great Grandma Butler. She died a year and a half later, a few months after her 100th birthday!

We saw my mom's oldest sibling and only sister, Aunt Eva Haley. She was 71 and had recently fallen and broken her arm. I never appreciated until now how much Eva and my mom resembled each other.

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Eva never married, so I think she looked on us as the children she never had. She was always sweet and generous with us, always kind and patient. Her life was difficult on many levels, yet she was always willing to reach out in love.
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She passed away a few years after this visit, so I never saw her again. Her birthday was 2 weeks ago, on May 13th. Happy belated birthday, Aunt Eva!

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We also spent time with my dad's oldest sister, Aunt Twila, and her childhood sweetheart/husband, Uncle Clem Kester. Twila was almost 80 and Clem was almost 84.

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They were quiet, friendly people with a peaceful feeling in their home. Clem always seemed to know how to make me feel better when I was struggling. He'd lost his right hand in an accident before I was born, but he was always upbeat and smiling.

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Clem and Twila died within months of each other several years after this. Twila went first, and I'm sure when she decided it was time for Clem to join her, he quickly heeded her call!

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After 2 days in Fresno, we drove to our motel in Anaheim and spent the next day at Disneyland.

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Neither Mark nor our children had ever been to California, let alone Disneyland! I was a 9-month-old in my parents' arms at Disneyland in June 1955 when it had newly opened to the public. I practically grew up there, and since it's one of my favorite places in the world, I just had to share it with my family!

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This was 12 days before Jacob's 3rd birthday, and he wanted nothing to do with these big, scary characters. On the other hand, 4-year-old Sarah was in love! To her, Mickey and Minnie were just oversized animals for her to adore.

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One of the first things Mark did at Disneyland was take Sarah on Splash Mountain. She had no idea what he was getting her into, and she was pretty freaked out for awhile.

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It didn't do any permanent damage, however. Jacob hates roller coasters and Dylan is cautious about them, but Sarah takes great delight in every thrill ride she meets.

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Our vacation budget was so tight I couldn't afford to buy the picture Splash Mountain offered, so I just took a picture of their picture on the monitor screen. Not great, but I think the terror on Sarah's face comes through just fine!

This was in Toon Town, a brand new area of Disneyland at that time. Featuring small-child-friendly attractions, it was more to Jacob's liking.

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Sarah's first experience behind the wheel was pretty scary, what with crashing into Goofy's mailbox and all, but she is a much better driver now, I promise!

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Originally we planned to return to Arizona the day after Disneyland, but my cousin Rick and his sweet new wife Leslie were at the reunion and invited us to spend a few days at their home in San Diego.

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We drove straight from Disneyland to their house late that night and took them up on their offer!

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The next day Rick and Leslie took us to Scripp's Institute of Oceanography. Sarah and Jacob were totally fascinated by the huge tanks of fish and other water life.

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Later that day we went to play on the beach. Mark had been to the Atlantic Ocean, but it was his first time in the Pacific. He was wowed!

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Jacob was careful to stay back from the waves rolling up on shore, but a rogue wave came in and rushed past him, sweeping him off his feet. I happened to be filming him when it happened.

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Mark, who was standing several feet from Jacob, rushed over to pluck him out of the water, but Jacob was still crying. "Daddy pushed me!" he kept insisting. "Daddy pushed me!" It still makes us laugh! He just couldn't understand the weird sensation of having the sand swept from under his feet.

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Both kids really enjoyed playing in the sand, attempting their very first sand castles.
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On our final day in California, Rick drove us over to see the brand new San Diego Temple. As we drove along the freeway, it seemed to float into view on a cloud like a fairytale castle. I literally gasped in delight.

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To this day, I consider the San Diego Temple to be the most beautiful temple ever built. If I ever become the princess in a fairytale, my castle will look just like it!

We visited on the temple grounds for awhile (that's Rick with the kids and me). Then we returned for one last look at the sparkling Pacific.

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Finally, we bid farewell to our perfect hosts, Rick and Leslie, and headed back home to Arizona.

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We only had 5 days to spend in the state of my birth, but it was pure pleasure!