California Dreamin and Disaster in Disneyland

Last Thursday we packed our bags and ditched the cold weather for some nice California sunshine!  The first day was wonderful!  We headed to the beach in the morning and just walked along the sand and soaked in some warm rays!  The middle of January in Utah really helps you appreciate the warm sunshine.  The ocean was beautiful and we even got to see a pod of dolphins pass by and a seal!  That afternoon we went to the Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific.  We met our good friends the Murphy's there with their cute little girl Remi.  Wow what an amazing aquarium.  Liam loved getting to touch the sting rays and playing in the tide pools.  We even got to feed some beautiful birds until one landed on my head and then I was ready to be done.  ha It really was a beautiful aquarium and we really enjoyed it.

Help me

Later that night we could tell Liam wasn't feeling very well.  He kept waking up in the middle of the night and was coughing pretty bad.  This put a small damper on the rest of the trip for him because he didn't sleep well but surprisingly in the day time he was pretty happy.

The first day of Disney was interesting to watch Liam's reactions.  He has been watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse the past few weeks and absolutely loves the characters.  I was hoping he might love the characters in person too but they were a little overwhelming.  He liked to wave from a distance but once you got to close he was trying to get as far away as possible.  Maybe when he's a little older he will be more excited.

This picture captures Liam's emotions the first day perfectly!

As far as the rides go for the first day he was just in a daze.  He didn't smile but he wasn't scared.  He just sorta stared like, "what is going on?"  But by the second day he was much more excited and especially loved dancing to the music and singing along.  He even liked Pirates of the Caribbean and was singing, "Yo HO Yo Ho."  His favorite was definitely It's a Small World and he danced, sang, and clapped the entire time!  It was a blast to see him get so excited.

Beautiful California Adventure

Liam was brave enough to high five Donald

I took this picture the day after Liam's accident
and they had added these yellow Caution signs.

On Monday night Jason planned a dinner with a potential client for work.  He left for the dinner and the rest of us (my parents, aunt, Liam, and I) were going to eat in downtown Disney.  We were walking around stores waiting for our table to be ready.  My mom was looking at shoes in the Sanuk store and I was browsing.  Liam was amazed at this rock fountain they had that some water trickled down to the floor.  My dad called to let me know our table was ready and as i answer i hear a loud thud and then sharp crying.  I turn around and Liam had slipped and hit his head on the rock wall, my mom grabbed him and immediately put her hand over his head where blood was starting to gush.  I immediately felt light headed.  I do not do well when my babies in pain then add blood to the mix and I'm basically a wreck.  I started to panic and grabbed him from my mom.  she kept her hand over his cut and the store manager called the Disney nurse.  I lost it starting to cry and panicking that Jason wasn't there.  The nurse arrived and did her best to assess and clean the cut.  I couldn't stand the site of this giant gaping wound on my son's head.  I couldn't even answer her questions and was so grateful my mom and aunt were there.  All this time Liam was screaming and flailing in my arms.  It was heart breaking.   We knew we had to get to the hospital for stitches but the car seat was in Jason's car.  My aunt got a hold of him and he had just met the client at a restaurant.  He was so kind and came with Jason to meet us and take us to the hospital.  The poor man must have been exhausted he had just flown in from Egypt that day.  I was so embarrassed that this was his first introduction to us and my husband but he was so so kind and I couldn't have been more grateful.  By this time Liam had calmed down a little and was actually surprisingly happy.

In the Waiting Room

We arrived at the hospital and it was the most run down hospital I have ever been too.  The paint was peeling off the walls, the floor was cracked and the first person to approach me as I walked in was a druggie asking us for money to get to the bus.  I was starting to panic again.  Jason had to leave to take the man back to his car and my parents showed up in time to wait with me.  Jason got back and after a couple hours of waiting we finally got to see the Dr.  He determined that Liam needed stitches and he also had an ear infection (which explains why he was not sleeping at night)  and then the real drama started.  Poor Liam was already exhausted emotionally and physically and we had already restrained him a lot to try and prevent him from touching his wound.  He is a very strong boy and this is no easy task.  It took Jason, two nurses and the Dr. to strap him onto a board and he still got his arm out a few times.  I had to stand back I was so upset and was just grateful his Daddy was there to help.  I didn't see what came next just heard his terrified sobs and screams.  He eventually just passed out from exhaustion and it was probably a good thing so the Dr. could do the best he could on his stitches.  He had to get numerous shots in his forehead and then seven stitches.  I'm grateful it wasn't any more and the Dr. seemed to do a very good job.

Completely Exhausted 

The next morning we were up early getting Liam's prescription to treat his ear infection and head wound.  Our little guy is such a champ and was actually pretty peppy!  He went into Disneyland and loved the rides and a show.  He took a good nap and finished out the day strong.  I'm so proud of him and grateful it wasn't worse, although I would never wish to experience it again.  He is a pretty active boy so I'm sure it's just the beginning...

Even with all that happened it was still a wonderful trip.  Liam hopefully will continue to get over his ear infection and his head will heal quickly.  Never know what to expect in this crazy life!

Here is Liam dancing the night away with no pants, no shoes, and a giant bandage covering his stitches!  His antibiotic caused him to have a very messy blow out and I hadn't managed to get his clean pants on yet!  He's such a champ after all he had been through!