Walt Disney's Garage at Stanley Ranch

On Sunday we paid a visit to Stanley Ranch in Garden Grove. The ranch is actually a historical district anchored by the Victorian home of Agnes Stanley, the first person born in Garden Grove. There are many historical buildings from the city that have been moved to the site, but in this post we will focus on the garage that Walt Disney began his career in California at. The garage was not originally in Garden Grove, but donated to the historical society by friends of Disney when the original location was slated for demolition. Surprisingly, the Disney studio nor Disneyland or the city of Anaheim wanted the structure. It's a simple garage from the early 1900s, that is roughly 10x25 feet, just enough to get 1 car and some extra storage room. There are cases with memorabilia from a Disney fan club inside, and they hold meetings there every so often.

A projector from the nearby Gem Theatre. Not Disney-related, but from the same era.

Walt overlooking a model of 1955 Disneyland. More from the Stanley Ranch in future posts. We had a 2-hour tour of the place and took lots of pictures.

Summer is Here!

On July 1, we headed over to the Great Park to try and ride the balloon again. Unfortunately all the reservations were taken and standby didn't look good (no standbyes got on that night).

They added a lot of landscaping, playground, and a carousel since the last time we were there. The balloon has internal illumination, so it glows at night, very pretty, though my iPod camera doesn't do night shots very well. The worker said we had to get there before the flights started in order to get a reservation.

Kites & Crafts

Recent adventures to watch kite surfing at a local beach and Earth Day crafts in Newport's Back Bay.

Tilt Shift pics

Got the Tilt Shift Generator app for my iPod and have been taking some cool pics with it. Here are the best.

At the mall:






Outside my work:


On our afternoon walk:

More Valentines

Will you be mine?

I was at the store with Leila and she saw someone with a little puppy and had to hold it. Sweetness!

OC Art Museum Kid's Days

For the months of February and March we took advantage of the free museum days for families.

Alex and Leila really enjoyed the arts and crafts.

There are so many activities for the kids, time just flew by.

Alex practicing drawing. Just trying to bring his inner artist out.

David watching the kids paint.

Leila's Valentines box for her Mommy.

The two of them making a cool bag from paper streamers.

Their smile says it all.

Alex doing very well following instructions.

I see a Van Gogh, don't you?

A little Frida in the making?

We danced the day away!

Outside the museum - the kids are alright.

Alex and Leila using their cousin super powers to hold up the pillar.

Climbing trees is fun.

Enjoying the California sunshine!

David and kids

David catching up with his niece Jasmine and new nephew Jose (aka Grove)

Alex playing Angry Birds and Jasmine organizing her cosmetics. LOL!

Oh the difference between boys and girls!