Universal Studios Hollywood, Now with Kids

Last weekend, my husband and I were suppose to go to Universal Studios to celebrate his birthday on a day trip while my parents watched the children.  Just our luck--my mother got sick with a cold.  So, in trying to avoid wasting the ticket I purchased for my husband, we ended up bringing the kids for their first trip to Universal, a park I really feel is more for teenagers and older.  That being said, my 6-year-old was thrilled.  He has been wanting to see the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, which I previously told him he couldn't see until he was 48 inches tall (he's currently around 46 1/2).  My 2 1/2 year old twins?  Meh, they went along for the ride.

So, Universal with kids.  Well, as I mentioned, I really feel it's for older kids, teenagers, and adults.  I went when I was around 6 and was bored the whole time.  But, that was years ago.  And, I can honestly say, while it's still definitely not completely child-friendly, Universal has made some big improvements.  The Despicable Me area entertained my twins for a period while my older son and husband went on the tram tour.  The water play area is especially cute and plenty of fun for the little ones.  There's also a little play area adjacent to Jurassic Park, which is pretty fun for the little ones.  Other than that, my twins enjoyed seeing the sights and listening to music, but not much for the little ones to do really.

My 6-year-old actually had a lot of fun.  He's kind of a wimp when it comes to rides (scared of pretty much everything that moves faster than 1 mile an hour).  But, he ended up loving the tram tour.  Seeing King Kong ended up being one of the highlights of his day, along with seeing the famous War of the Worlds set.  The Wizarding World of Harry Potter kept him especially entertained.  While my husband and I took turns riding the rides, my son went to every single spell casting site to try his hand at a spell.  He is very into magic and Harry Potter, so he was super excited.  On an earlier solo trip, I purchased an interactive wand, so we were set to play.  Warning to you, if you don't already have an interactive wand and you're kid is as obsessed as mine, they aren't cheap.  Expect to spend $50+ per wand.  But, it was worth it to see a wizard teach my son how to perform an alohomora on a small locked box and do a wingardium leviosa all on his own.  The frozen butterbeer was also a huge hit on a hot day.  All the kids loved their icy, sugary treat.


Unfortunately, I have developed a rare form of psoriasis that looks a bit like chicken pox which seems to have started up that afternoon, so our trip was cut a bit short and no pictures this time.  Yet more bad luck in the health department for us.  We're hoping my rash will be cleared up quickly so we can check out the Great Wolf Lodge in Garden Grove, CA next month.  I'm excited to see what it's all about and will report back on their Halloween festivities as well (assuming this darned illness goes away in time).

Labor Day Weekend at Legoland, California

This past weekend, my family and I took a rather impromptu trip to Legoland again.  We hadn't made any plans for Labor Day, but work has been particularly stressful, so we loaded up the van and set out for Carlsbad for 2 days and 1 night of fun.

First off, it's a bad idea to drive from the Los Angeles area to Carlsbad on any Friday afternoon, let alone a Friday that starts a 3-day weekend.  My son got out of school early, so I took a half-day at work and we all hopped in the van to leave around 1:30.  I thought, okay, it might take 4 hours in traffic since it normally takes 2.5-3 without.  Well...it took 5 hours to get there!  We stopped at the IKEA shopping center in Carson at 3:30 when my son could not hold his bladder any longer.  Ended up grabbing an early dinner there.  Glad we did since we were only about half-way there at the time.

Once we actually got to Carlsbad, Legoland, of course, was already closed for the day.  So, we checked in to our room at the Hampton Inn.  We've never stayed at a Hampton Inn before, so I wasn't sure what to expect, but the room rate was better than any other decent hotels in the area for a last minute booking.  The hotel itself wasn't fancy, but it was clean, comfortable, and got the job done.  There was a pool, a spa, fitness equipment, and a free continental breakfast including all the stuff we've come to expect from the modern continental:  fresh waffles, fruit, yogurt, breakfast meat, eggs, etc.  The room itself had 2 queen beds which were quite comfortable, a bathroom with a bathtub (a plus for the kids), a refrigerator, a microwave, a tv, and a desk.  While it wasn't a room I would typically select for a longer vacation (3+ days), it was perfect for our short stay as it was close to Legoland and many places to eat. 

Legoland, as usual, was pleasant but more fun for the kids than adults.  It was surprisingly not terribly crowded on Saturday.  We were able to ride many rides without any wait until about 2PM.  My older son especially enjoyed the water play areas while the little ones were too cold, so they hung out in the duplo area for a while.  The best highlight was seeing the replica of One World Trade Center, which was under construction when we were there in June.  It was beautifully made and an incredible work of lego art.  As an added bonus this trip, my oldest was finally old enough to go on the big kid side of the driver school ride.  He loved it!

Thankfully, the drive back was painless.  Even less traffic than normal going up the 405.  It wasn't the easiest weekend ever, but it was so nice to get away if even for one night.  This may be our last Legoland trip of the year unless we squeeze a short one in before Christmas.  Glad we got the chance to go.