October 2022

Disneyland
Saturday evening, October 1, was the season’s first viewing of The Nightmare Before Christmas, and on Sunday, we were off to Disneyland! This trip was much better than the last: Early entry was back (although, frustratingly, it’s only 30 minutes instead of an hour), and we moved rooms from a crummy, far-away one to one that turned out to have much easier access to the lineup courtyard and a no-bags security screening line that R. and Lukas split off to, so we were first through the turnstile every single day. We started at DCA 3x and DL2x, but agreed based on Oogie Boogie Bash dates and what rides are open during early entry that we’ll change that next time. Lukas rode the Incredicoaster for the first time, and LOVED it. We did animation academy twice, drawing Baby Groot and Oogie Boogie, and ate at Carthay Circle’s Alfresco Terrace, fortuitously getting to see the start of the OBB; finally got to eat at a refreshed Blue Bayou (wine with my steak, wooo!) and the Fantasmic! show; enjoyed the refurbed Snow White and Nemo rides, which partly made up for no Matterhorn (which was closed for refurb). The Patels were on the Big Island doing all of our usual stuff (and some things we never bother with, lol) with the grandparents; we all kept sending each other wish-you-were-here pictures and agreeing it was weird to not be traveling together, but both happy to be where we were. 

Annika's 15th birthday
Our girl turned 15 this month, yaaaaay! On her actual birthday, which was Sunday (the day after we got back from the Mouse’s House), we had bagels for breakfast, the grandparents came to visit in the afternoon, and then we had dinner and cake; her presents this year included a lot of cool socks (kind of her thing these days), Nightmare Before Christmas stuff, a few things bought secretly from Disneyland, and tickets to see Mother Mother, a band she’s super into, in SF in November — a big surprise! She hadn’t even known they were touring. Damn, I’m good! Her birthday party with friends featured dinner out at the Cheesecake Factory, wherein she and her guests (Niamh, Raina, and Alana) sat in a booth and I stayed at the bar (my idea, again — I’m good, lol), followed by night swimming, a movie (Nightmare Before Christmas, duh!) and desserts + hot chocolate made by me.

Halloween and other Octoberness
We spent the usual amount of time at the Patels’ — dinner at their house, shared home base tent at the boys’ last Dandy Day, Manir’s birthday party. We celebrated Grandma’s 85th birthday on October 27. And this year saw the glorious return of the Los Alamitos costume parade, which had been canceled two years running because of covid, and kids-only/spectator-free last year for the same reason. It was as delightful as ever — so good to have it back! Annika was invited to the twins’ Halloween party (Lukas, R. and I stayed home and watched something she wouldn’t care for). And finally, Halloween itself was a new chapter: Instead of going to the Marshalls’, we pivoted to a Blade-Team-centric experience starting out at the Grants’ house (partly because there was Covid and other health drama at the Marshalls’, but it was time for the pivot to happen, imo). Annika went as (the world’s cutest) Howl (from Howl’s Moving Castle), and Lukas was resplendent as Alfredo Linguini Gusteau from Ratatouille (in chef’s togs, with a magnet-base stuffed Remy on his shoulder and a movie-prop frying pan in one hand). R. went as Peter B. Parker from Into the Spider-verse (one shoe and one boot, too-small Spidey costume, utility jacket, beard stubble), and I went as a roadie for Löded Diper (Axl wig & bandanna, lanyard, leather jacket, band T-shirt). There were wagonloads of beer, lots of hilarity, and pillowcases full of candy — a thrilling spooky successful night all around.