Alex2kMommy's Little Quickie Trip!

[Alex2kMommy]

I returned from a quick little trip to Disneyland last weekend, and thought I'd share my experience with you. This was my third trip to Disneyland; the first was in September 2006, and that was so incredible we went again in October 2007.

On the second trip I realized that (at least at the time) it was more cost-effective to get APs for the adults in our party, as it saved us about $10 over the park hoppers, not to mention any discounts we'd get due to the AP. On the other hand, it would cost us about $50 per child to get them APs. We decided it was well worth $100 to plan a second trip within a year, so APs all around! :woohoo:

This is a summary of our bonus trip. :goodvibes

But first let me introduce myself and my family.


Cast of Characters:

Alex2kMommy: I have been a Disney fan since the 1960s, when I faithfully watched Tinkerbell wave her wand over the Wonderful World of Disney every Sunday night. I took my first trip to Disneyland in 2006, and I’ve been hooked on the place ever since!

(To read about our first trip to Disneyland, click here: Alex2kMommy's First Trip to DL! (http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1259348))

DH: A hard-working man who has a hard time breaking away for vacation; but once he does, he has a great time and always says, “Gee, honey, we should do this more often!” :headache:
Also a Disney fan, but more in the vein of Indiana Jones and Pirates of the Caribbean. He visited Disneyland 2 or 3 times as a child, and we’ve gone twice as a family.

DS7: Growing up on Disney movies, his favorites including Toy Story, Monsters Inc., and more recently the Pirates of the Caribbean series. We discovered on our first trip that my sweet, sensitive, mild-mannered little boy is quite the thrill ride junkie! His first amusement park ride ever was Splash Mountain, which I still haven't quite recovered from. :scared1: And he has most recently conquered California Screamin’. He has been to Disneyland twice.

DS3: Our resident Winnie the Pooh fan, my baby is a happy, outgoing boy, loves to play dress-up, and adores (and tortures) his older brother. Our last trip he was just barely tall enough to ride Splash, and he insisted. His ride photo looks a lot like this: :scared1: but naturally as soon as his feet were back on land he wanted to ride it again. Also growing up on Disney movies, his favorites parallel his brother’s (of course!), and much to my dismay include the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie. He loves “Chacken Jack!” pirate:

[Alex2kMommy]

Intro


Mid-January weather in Seattle is depressing. It’s cold, overcast and rainy. Every once in awhile the sun breaks through the clouds, and I kid you not, we rush to the window and say, “Look! It’s the sun!”

We did have an unusual stretch of several sunny days around this time, the first day of which I was out driving with the boys, and DS3 began to whine and complain from the backseat. I couldn’t see what was wrong as he got more and more annoyed, so DS7 finally spoke up: “He’s upset because the sun is in his eyes.” My poor little mole.

One evening out of the gray, DH said, “I think you should take the boys to Disneyland.” I reminded him that we are taking the boys to Disneyland, planning a trip for late April. He said, “No, no, I think you should take the boys now.”

I eyed him suspiciously. I was not sure what he meant, but my mind immediately jumped to conclusions about my workaholic husband. I gasped, “You’re trying to weasel out of the family trip in April!” He assured me he was not, he just thought it would be nice to get away for a bit now, but he could not go with his job responsibilities. I reminded him that, having taken DS7 out of school in October, and now with the April trip planned, we couldn’t take him out for any more days than that.

“OK,” and he thought for a moment. “What about if you took DS3 to Disneyland? It would be nice for just the two of you to get out and have some fun. I could get DS7 to and from school without too much trouble, we’ll make it work. It will be for just a few days. And trust me, if you’re taking DS3, I’m getting the better end of the deal!”

It’s true. DS3 is the wild child, the Houdini who can get out of darn near any locking mechanism, and has no sense about personal safety. He is the reason the front door of our house is zip-tied and a shower curtain rod bars the back door. Yes, we get funny looks from strangers as we manipulate through 3 locks to open the door, but it was a lesson learned the hard way, and at least for now, it works. So to say the idea of taking him by myself to Disneyland was daunting is an understatement. Besides, it really wouldn’t be fair for DS7 to have his brother go to Disneyland without him, would it? DH said to leave it to him, he would talk to DS7. I chuckled.

The next day as we walked home from school, DS7 said very seriously, “Mama, Daddy and I think you need a break. We think you should take DS3 to Disneyland!”

Honestly, I was stunned. I asked, “Isn’t that going to bother you, not being able to go?” and he assured me it wouldn’t. He and Daddy had big plans for a guys-only weekend, involving pizza, videogames and movies. party:

So I started to look into making a short trip. A few quick checks online revealed a great AP rate for the Paradise Pier Hotel for April 7 – 10, and a great airfare deal to Orange County and back. Before I knew it, we were booked for Disneyland in 3 weeks! (I even splurged for a park view room!) I excitedly told DS3 that we were going to Disneyland. He ran and brought me his shoes to put on. Oops, I forget how literal he is. :headache:

Counting down the weeks to the trip, I began thinking about PSes to make, shows to see, things to make sure I packed. And I also began to worry. I’ve never taken a trip by myself before, let alone a trip being solely responsible for my little one! He'd challenge an octopus! A trip with DS7 would be a breeze; he’s a good traveler, he can entertain himself, he stays with me when we’re out, he doesn’t run into traffic, and he hardly ever throws up.

I have nicknamed DS3 “Little Vesuvius”, because he erupts when he is excited or ill. The only two times we’ve vacationed with DS3 have been our Disneyland trips, and both times he has thrown up at the airport. The first time it was just a little urpage right before boarding, probably from excitement... either that or the gigantic Starbucks cinnamon roll he ate right beforehand. We were fortunately able to quickly clean him up and make the flight.

The second trip we thought his cookie-tossing was again a reaction to the excitement of the trip, but it turned out to be more serious; he threw up at the airport, several times during the plane flight, and even as we disembarked from the plane in Long Beach. We had brought 2 extra changes of clothes for him, and still he arrived at the hotel wearing his brother’s shirt and a diaper.

I was dreading a repeat performance. :scared:

[Alex2kMommy]

So remind me again why I was considering taking him on a trip by myself? Ohhhh, right. To go to Disneyland.

I’d bring the stroller, of course. There’s no way I could carry a 3yo through Downtown Disney if he was too tired from the parks. And if he’s buckled in, he can’t run away. Of course he won’t want to sit the entire time; I’d bring his little bear backpack with the attached leash (he calls it his “pappack”), which he loves. Well, he loves wearing the backpack, not so much being tethered to a parent, but it’s the only way I’d be comfortable with him walking around.

With just the two of us, we could stop and meet every character if we wanted; ride Winnie the Pooh over and over again if we wanted; maybe watch the Tiki Birds or The Aladdin and Jasmine Storytime, which we’ve never seen! Ohhhh, we could go to dinner with the princesses, whom DS3 adores! Couldn't get near that with a 10-foot pole with DS7 around! And I could get a Dole Whip. Man, I love those things! To be honest, just the idea of being in the sun for a few days sounded too good to be true.

DH finally admitted that was the real reason for suggesting the trip. Every winter I lament the loss of the sun and await the crocuses in February, our first sign that spring is truly coming. DH said this year has been especially bad for me, so he thought a quick trip to see the sun would do me some good. Love that man! :love:

As the trip neared, DIS friends began making their own plans for the same weekend. Sameyeyam, a fellow Washingtonian, decided to treat her two kids and a friend to a weekend at Disneyland. FunnyGarcia, a recent Minnesota transplant to Southern California, decided to visit Disneyland that Saturday so that we could all meet up. We agreed to have lunch at Rainforest Café on February 9th. I made a PS for dinner with the princesses at Ariel’s Grotto in DCA, and one for Carnation Café. And I packed.

DH thought we should be able to fit all of our stuff into one big checked bag, plus a few carry-ons. Since DS3 and I are probably the two with the most stuff to drag along, I was dubious. But we did it! One big rolling bag, one small rolling bag, two backpacks, plus a carseat. Not bad for me. :thumbsup2

Finally it was the night before our trip. I worried about DS7 and DH eating right and getting enough sleep while I was gone. I worried about getting stuck at the airport, losing our luggage, or losing DS3 in Disneyland. (E-ticket printout? Check. Luggage tags? Check. Stroller and “pappack”? Check. Cell phone? Check. Phone numbers? Check.) I worried about DS3 getting sick (Infant Tylenol in the checked bag? Check.) All the bases seemed to be covered.

And as it turned out, only one of these concerns came to life.


Wednesday, February 6: Seattle Temp Hi 43F :umbrella:

[kingshockey04]

Can't wait to hear the rest!:)

[Merryweather]

Enjoying your trip report thus far. I can really appreciate your sun deprivation issues. I lived in Ithaca NY for over seven years and had no clue how much I missed the sun until I was in Key West for a long weekend.

[Alex2kMommy]

Kingshockey and Merryweather, thanks for reading! :)
I'll try to get Day 1 up soon.

[MotoXPrincess99]

Can't wait to read more!

[Alex2kMommy]

Hi, Moto! Thanks for reading along! :)

[Alex2kMommy]

Even though I’d gone to bed around midnight, I was too excited to sleep well, and got up before 5:00 a.m. I showered and dressed, then began packing up my toiletries and other last-minute items. DH was up and ready in no time, and it wasn’t too much trouble to get DS7 out of bed, which is very unusual. We let DS3 sleep until about 10 minutes before leaving, as he wakes happily and is generally cooperative.

We packed everything and everyone into the SUV and headed to the airport. We made great time on the road, and arrived nearly 3 hours before our flight. DH pulled up right in front of the curbside check-in. He unloaded luggage while I unloaded DS3 and strapped him into the stroller, and said my goodbyes to DS7. I said goodbye to my lovely DH, and stepped into line with all the luggage. He drove away, and I tried to feel more exhilarated than abandoned.

Much to my surprise, curbside check-in was a breeze! What happened to the TSA labeling my 3yo an enemy of the United States??? :eek:
[We found out on our first trip two years ago that someone with a similar name is on the TSA’s No Fly list, and we get delayed on every airport check-in.] I dashed away before they could say they’d made a mistake, and made my way to the security check.

We’d worn our Crocs to get through Security without having to tie shoes and all that, but I’d forgotten to wear socks with my Crocs so had to pad around in bare feet. Ick! The Security folks were very helpful, friendly dealing with my toddler, and one gal even tried to unfold my stroller for me! In the past our trips through Security have been with grumpy, stony-faced personnel, so it was nice to see pleasant people who were actually helpful! :thumbsup2

Our gate was right at the end of the security check, how convenient! I hauled the stroller, the two backpacks and large carry-on bag over to have a seat for a few minutes. DS3 played a bit and watched planes taking off, then I realized we should probably eat something sooner rather than later. I went in search of a Starbucks, which was not to be found. I settled on a newsstand for a couple bottles of water I was sure we’d need on the flight, and dug some snacks out of DS’s backpack.

DS3 ate some peanut butter cracker sandwiches, and I broke open a bottle of water. He was still hungry after the crackers, so then ate some Scooby Snacks (bone-shaped cinnamon-flavored graham crackers), and then went on to some Bug Bites (also graham crackers, but shaped like cute bugs.) Well, he’d pretty much plowed through everything I had to eat on the flight before we’d even boarded! But he was happy, so Mama was happy.

Across the aisle from us was a little 2yo girl in a red polka-dot dress and ::MinnieMo ears, so cute! I wonder where they were headed? :rotfl:

[Alex2kMommy]

Finally it was time to board. First class and families with children aged 2 and younger were called first, so I waited. Then the frequent fliers boarded, then darn near everyone else on the plane. We were in the last group to board, then had to wriggle DS3 out of the stroller and into his backpack, so that when I got to our seat there was no overhead room to put the big bag. I managed to cram it at my feet and put both backpacks at DS3’s feet.

A youngish man came along with a seat assignment at the window next to DS3, so we got up and he stepped through all our stuff. I hoped he was patient with children, because I never really quite know what to expect from DS3!

There was some sort of “safety” or “security” issue that required the plane to delay take-off for half an hour (did Security finally find out about DS3???), but then we were zooming down the runway and up in the air. It was a windy day in Seattle, so the ride up was a bit bumpy, and DS3 began to giggle. As the bumping got bigger he began to hoot along with the giggles, and the guy next to him couldn’t stop laughing. Several passengers ahead of us turned around to see what was so funny, and laughed along when DS3 squealed, “Is juss like a wolla coasta!” :rotfl2:

We spent most of the flight filling out a Toy Story sticker book I’d brought along. I also drew on a mini Magna-doodle while he tried to guess what I’d drawn. And he’s pretty good, because I am not that good an artist! We also read some stories, and before we knew it the mountains underneath us had turned to ocean and we were heading in to Orange County airport.

Once again on the ground, I popped DS3 into the stroller and wheeled out to baggage claim. Our big suitcase rolled around and I grabbed it, the carry-on on top of it, and slowly wheeled outdoors to catch a cab. There was a big line-up of cabs, and a guy directing cabs and passengers to designated numbered spots. We were quickly assigned a cab, and when the cabbie began loading our luggage I realized I didn’t have DS’s carseat, which was still on the carousel! :headache:

I apologized, explained that I needed to go back to the carousel, and told him he didn’t have to wait, I’d catch the next one. I dashed back in (or lumbered is more accurate) with all the bags, grabbed the carseat, shot an arm through the straps in the back, and trudged back outside. The guy directing the cabbies rushed over to help me carry the bags (thank you!) and waved a cab over.

Our new cabbie, Fred, was a father of two little ones. And therefore after loading all our bags, he easily installed the carseat, which I’d been fumbling with. Fred was so sweet, asking DS3 his name, how old he was, and who he was going to visit at Disneyland. He explained to me that he had a 5yo and 3yo at home; he was just so entertaining for DS3 that it made the cab ride fly by. He even pointed out a big dinosaur (statue) along our drive that his own 3yo loves to see. :cutie:

We drove to the entrance of the Paradise Pier Hotel, and he unloaded our bags while DS3 again was put in the stroller. I paid him with a credit card, but messed up on the tip, realizing later I should have given him nearly double that. I’m still mortified! :blush:

The hotel check-in went quickly as well, and soon we were in our room, looking at a beautiful view of the California Adventure park! While DS3 bounced on one of the beds, I unpacked our bags, and re-filled the backpack with items for the park. We changed into shorts and I lubed us both up with sunscreen (which we both hate, but with our pasty skin, one does what one must.) Then we took off in search of fun, sun… and food! By then we were starving! :sunny:

[staley7580]

Cute! Great job so far!

[Alex2kMommy]

I walked across the street toward Downtown Disney, and headed to the Monorail station. After showing our APs and a peek inside my backpack, we were onto the elevator and up to the 2nd story platform. I let DS3 out of the stroller so that I could fold it up, but it took me a bit longer to do that; meanwhile he ran down to the other end of the platform and waved his arms as if to say, “Catch me if you can!” Oyyyy… :headache:

I wandered down there, dragging the folded stroller with me (which is very unwieldy, I might add) and after a few missed tries, managed to grab his hand. We walked back toward the center of the platform and waited. I was standing in front of one of the gates that open when the monorail arrives, in hopes of ensuring I could sit forward instead of backward.

When the monorail arrived and the riders disembarked, only two gates opened up, and they were at either end of the platform. A sea of bodies suddenly swarmed my direction, so I turned to head toward one of the open gates. A young woman nearby yelped, “Whoa!”, and I looked in time to see her hop over the low end of my folded stroller. “Oh, I’m so sorry!” I said, and pulled it away from her and continued on. Another woman behind me, who apparently was with this girl, said, “Wow! We’re both disabled and you almost knocked her over!” I repeated my apology and smiled at both women, and headed through the gate and toward one of the compartments.

These women had darted around me through the gate and already sat in one compartment, so I passed that one and finally found one with forward facing seats. DS3 bounced into a seat; I sat next to him and pulled the stroller in as close to my lap as possible. Soon we were on a winding tour of Disneyland, and arrived at the Tomorrowland station.

I told DS3, “Honey, we’re in Disneyland!” and he squealed in happiness. I headed out onto the platform and followed the crowd. I didn’t see a sign for an elevator before we came to a flight of stairs, so I hoisted the stroller and held tight to DS’s hand as we began down the stairs. At a brief landing partway down the steep stairs the person in front of me suddenly stopped to look over the Nemo submarines below. I mentally groaned when I realized it was one of the women from the stroller hopping incident, and she had a little girl with her, maybe 5 or 6 years old. I was so glad I hadn’t crashed into her when she stopped, and carefully stepped around her. She apparently decided to move on as I walked past, however, and as she turned she brushed my backpack. She said loudly, “There’s that damn stroller again!” This time I ignored her and just kept on walking down the stairs.

And as luck would have it, at the bottom of the stairs was stroller-hopping girl. As I wheeled past she glared and yelled, “Try to be more careful with that thing!” I gritted my teeth and said, “Thanks” and kept on walking.

I was so ticked, but kept thinking, “We just got here! Don’t let them ruin the trip!” So a few deep breaths later, I had the stroller unfolded, DS3 installed, and I headed through Tomorrowland Terrace toward Redd Rockett’s Pizza Port. It was about 3:30 p.m., and all we’d had to eat that day was a few peanut butter cracker sandwiches and some graham crackers. We needed something more substantial.

I asked DS3 what he wanted to eat, telling him they had spaghetti and pizza, fairly confident he’d choose the pizza, a new-found favorite. He did not disappoint. I grabbed a kid-sized pizza meal, and spaghetti for myself. The gal behind the counter informed me that the kid’s meal comes with a drink, which I could choose from around the corner, so I dragged the stroller and tray that way. I chose milk for the boy and a water bottle for myself, and headed to the cashier.

After paying for the meal I found a clean table that wasn’t too close to an exit, and got DS out of the stroller to eat. I opened his milk and popped the straw in it, and put the pizza plate in front of him. I realized I hadn’t grabbed any eating utensils or napkins on the way to the table, but figured I could probably run to the counter to grab those and still manage to catch him if he made a dash for the door… So I did. It wasn’t necessary, I think he was too hungry to think of escape.

He complained that his pizza was “too hot”, but I had a sore throat so didn’t want to blow on it myself. I encouraged him to blow on it, and gave him some apple slices that came with his meal to munch on. He had soon made his way through the mini-pizza (the size of half an English muffin) and apple slices, and was eyeing my spaghetti. So I got another fork and put some on his plate. He happily ate two small servings of my spaghetti, and then we were ready to hit some rides! :banana:

[Alex2kMommy]

He wanted to ride the Matterhorn, but I wasn’t sure that was a good idea with a bellyfull of spaghetti and pizza. Besides, the line was halfway around the mountain, so we passed on that.

The Buzz Lightyear ride had only a 5 minute wait, so in we went. A group of adults (mostly men) ahead of us began talking to a man behind us, and then finally at a bend in the queue the man stepped in line ahead of us. I was a bit surprised at his presumptuousness; I sort of expect that kind of behavior from kids, and had he asked, I would have encouraged him to join his friends. One of the men explained a little late, “We’re a group of school principals, we gotta stick together!” That just made it funny; even principals cut in line! :eek: :rotfl:

DS3 and I boarded our vehicle and immediately began racking up points. I will admit that my scores are not much better than his, and I didn’t miss DH’s mocking look at the end of the ride. We stopped to send our photo home to Daddy to let him know our fun had begun! :yay:

Once outside we saw that the ride’s line was still very short. DS asked if we could go again. Why not? So we did.

After Buzz, we headed into Fantasyland. DS asked if we could go on the “bug wide”, and I told him that Bug’s Land was in the other park, we could ride that tomorrow. He looked so disappointed, but the line for the Alice ride wasn’t too long, would he like to go there? “Yay, the bug wide!” he exclaimed. Ah ha. Mama clues in to the unique naming standard of the 3yo.

There was NO LINE for the Teacups, so we walked right up to the front of the gate and waited our turn. The gate opens wide so kids started running off to get their favorite teacup. We walked to the far end and lucked into a purple teacup. I snapped a few quick pictures of DS, since he was captive, and then we began to spin. The little stinker grabbed the wheel in the center and tried to spin us even faster, but of course he's not strong enough. I really don't like spinning, and have to take Bonine or some sort of anti-motion-sickness medication at Disneyland. I'd had my dose before leaving the hotel, so what the heck? We both pushed hard and really whirled and twirled, lemmee tell ya! He was laughing and screaming in pure happiness, and I was proud that I'd made that happen.

I was stunned that the line for Dumbo wasn’t bad, either! After perhaps two flights, DS had feather in hand and eagerly awaited his turn. We climbed into a purple Dumbo (my favorite color!) and he squealed in anticipation. Once we passed the feather over, we took off. I reminded him how the lever worked to make Dumbo go up and down, but he could barely reach it, so I just kept pushing it the whole ride. All the way up, then all the way down, all the way up… It’s funny how most of the Dumbos are all the way up the entire ride. :dumbo:

“Can we wide the train?” DS3 asked. DS had mentioned the train several times while I planned the trip. I mentioned to DH that I wasn’t sure if he was talking about the Disneyland railroad, or the Casey Jr. Circus Train (which he’s never been on), but I would make sure we did both. DH said that was great, but DS3 was actually meaning Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. :rolleyes:

Sure enough, he was excited to get measured for the ride, then ran happily down the queue area to stop at the end of the line. His eyes got big as he spied the large dinosaur bones, and even bigger as the train raced past. Once we were seated on a train I snuggled him tight to try to minimize the jolting a bit. It was dark by then, so I think he got a little nervous as we rode through the cave and it looked like big rocks would tumble onto us. But he threw his little hands in the air as we picked up speed for the big downhill runs, where did he learn that?! :lmao:

[Pooh_Friend#1]

I am loving your TR!!!

[Alex2kMommy]

After BTRR we wandered into New Orleans Square. DS said he wanted to see the “Kissmass House”, pointing toward the Haunted Mansion. I wasn’t sure if he really wanted to go in there, because the stretching room really scares him, but he insisted. I was eager to see it without the holiday overlay, and the line was short, so in we went. He hugged my legs once the ride narrator began to speak, so I picked him up and held him close. He startled at the big finale in the stretching room, but then was fine walking through the rest of the mansion toward the ride.

I have only been on this ride maybe 2 times with the holiday overlay, and one of those times I had only my sunglasses on, having forgotten to swap glasses before entering the mansion. So I was wishing I could remember the ride better to see what was different this time. I didn’t remember catching the storyline before, with the bride having multiple husbands, and all the photos on display with the various men and the dates of their passing.

I think my favorites parts are the floating crystal ball, and the large dining room with its ghostly dancers and the man blowing out the birthday candles on the cake. And isn’t one of the gentleman spirits seated at the table the same face as one of the pirates in the Pirates of the Caribbean? He looks so familiar!

After HM we walked into Critter Country to the Winnie the Pooh ride, the first ride DS3 ever went on, and still a favorite. We rode Pooh a couple of times and then looped back down to ride Pirates.

I just love that musty wet smell as you first walk into POTC, I don’t know why. My favorite part is the introductory bayou scene, with its twinkling fireflies, old guy on the porch, the soft banjo and crickets chirping. Even the dim view of the Blue Bayou patrons and lovely lanterns adds to the peaceful calm of that scene. For some reason there was no Davy Jones in the mist on this ride, I’m not sure what happened, we just suddenly dropped down into the thick of it after that. DS3 sang along: "Yo yo yo ho, da pirates like-a me!" :rotfl:

I wandered back up toward Autopia, thinking it would be our last ride of the night, but the line was quite long. It was nearly closing anyway, so I just continued on toward the Monorail station. Thankfully the ride back to DTD was uneventful, and after a short walk we were at the hotel. By then we were hungry, having had only one real meal that day, so I bought some chocolate milk, a mixed fruit bowl, and some orange juice at the lobby lounge.

We returned to our room to eat. We shared the fruit, and DS3 watched the Princess Storytime and a Chip & Dale cartoon while I got our clothes out and re-packed the backpack for the next day. My head was feeling stuffed up, and especially with the little sleep from the night before, I couldn’t wait to get some rest.


Thursday, February 7: Temp Hi 73F

[Alex2kMommy]

Cute! Great job so far!
Hey, you! Thanks! :hug:

[Alex2kMommy]

I am loving your TR!!!
Thank you! And congratulations on your upcoming wedding! :goodvibes

[tinkermell]

Alex,

I'm loving your TR, and waiting for more!! :cheer2:

[Pooh_Friend#1]

Thank you! And congratulations on your upcoming wedding! :goodvibes
Thanks!!! Our Honeymoon starts off at DLR so your TR has me so excited. I love the musty smell of POTC as well!

[Ferry Joy]

Your trip report is great, and what a wonderful husband!

[MATTERHORN]

Alex, Finally started reading the report and now you are going to slow!! Hyena says I need more!!! Can't wait to get to the surprise ending!!!

Andrea

[MommyWithDreams]

Loving your trip report!!!

[Alex2kMommy]

Tinkermell, Andrea and MommywithDreams, thank you so much for reading! I'm still working on Day 2, sorry it's taking so long. Darn these children anyway, for getting in the way of writing my TR! :rotfl:

[MommyWithDreams]

Tinkermell, Andrea and MommywithDreams, thank you so much for reading! I'm still working on Day 2, sorry it's taking so long. Darn these children anyway, for getting in the way of writing my TR! :rotfl:

LOL that sounds familiar. Last night my DS wanted attention so bad and I was trying to sneak in a few quiet DIS minutes. I told him "If you want to go to Disneyland on Sunday you need to let mommy read this". He sat quietly looking at a book for the next 10 minutes. Man I'm mean! lol:rotfl2:

[MotoXPrincess99]

Just looking for an update!

[Alex2kMommy]

Just looking for an update!
Your wish is granted! ;)

[Alex2kMommy]

I didn’t sleep well Thursday night. My head cold was getting the better of me, and my nose was running like a faucet. Every time I feel asleep, I woke shortly thereafter, feeling like I was drowning, and had to run to the bathroom for tissues. I soon emptied the box of tissues provided, and resorted to the toilet paper roll after that. I finally gave up trying to sleep around 6:00 a.m. and got into the shower.

When DS3 woke I got him dressed and ready to go, and he had a little chocolate milk while I guzzled orange juice. We packed up the stroller and headed out, stopping for breakfast at the La Brea Bakery in Downtown Disney. I chose a yummy-looking egg and bacon croissant with fried potatoes. Unfortunately DS3 did not care for the sandwich, nor did he want any of the scrambled eggs or bacon, both of which he normally likes. However, he did eat nearly all the potatoes. Ah, well, at least he ate something.

Does anybody else get a little creeped out by the little birdies scavenging for food around your table? I threw some bits of loose scrambled egg their way, and they gobbled it up! Isn't that like... cannibalism? :eek:

We ate quickly, and arrived at the gate at 8:30 AM. I was thinking we were half an hour past opening, but actually were early for a 9 AM opening. Finally! It pays to screw up on the time! :rotfl:

We stood with the crowd along Main St., and as opening time neared, one of the CMs appeared to be trying to pump up the crowd. I heard him yelling something at the assembled crowd, but couldn’t hear well enough to make out what he was saying. All of a sudden I heard folks ahead of me shout “Mickey!”, and after a bit the other side of the street yelled, “Minnie!” and the middle of the street shrieked another character’s name. Our side, perhaps because it was the first time, sounded pretty anemic, and each successive group was louder than the last. When it was time for our group again, I shouted loudly, “Mickey!” No one else around me participated, but they did turn around to look at me and chuckle. Geesh, that was embarrassing. :blush:

Finally we were allowed in, and we headed straight to Fantasyland. DS3 and I love the Peter Pan ride, but have only ever been on it twice due to the fact that the line is always horrendously long. DH does not like to rush to the gate first thing in the morning, so this was a real treat to be able to get in while the line was short! I parked the stroller and we walked quickly through the zig-zagging queue, the end of the line stopping just as we were under cover of the building’s roof. The ride is so charming, starting out in the Darlings’ nursery, then flying out over London and into the stars to Neverland. DS3 had recently been watching our DVD of Peter Pan, and happily pointed out all the characters he recognized, especially his favorite, Tinkerbell.

Our next stop was the Teacups, since there was almost no line at all! (I love park opening!) I told him to go on in through queue, and he excitedly began to run, with me following to keep up. Just as I was about to grab his hand to slow him down, he ran face-first into a bend in the metal railing. OUCH! He looked so surprised and rubbed his cheek, looking at me like that fence had hurt his feelings. I felt bad for not grabbing him in time. Fortunately he didn't hit too hard, and still wanted to go on the ride.

Typically I do not like rides that spin, but I find the Teacups to be such a cute setting for pictures, and my boys both seem to love the spinning. So sometimes I let DH take the boys on the ride while I take photos of them, and other times I join them and soak in some of their gleeful enthusiasm for the spinning teacups.

After whirling and twirling around there a bit, we headed to Storybook Land Canal Boats, which we’d been on only once before. DH said DS3 had been frightened on this ride the first time because of the big whale mouth at the outset, but it’s actually a quiet, sweet boat ride past story book characters’ miniature homes. I love the tiny castles and cottages, churches and village shops, but also the rolling hills and tiny trees and shrubs. I remember on our previous ride we had a young man as our tour guide, and he chattered along with a bored, nasally voice which really diminished my enjoyment of the scenery. This time we had a lovely older woman, the kind of grandma-type every kid in the world wishes for! She was a pretty blond with the sweetest smile for every child, and DS3 just beamed under her attentive care. We wanted to go back on the ride to see her again later, but of course the line got to be so long, it just didn’t happen.

We had seen the Casey Jr. Circus train pass through during our canal tour, so I took DS over to board the train. I asked if he wanted to sit in a cage or a seat, and he insisted on a cage, which is what I’d secretly hoped for! Wish I could have taken a picture of him in the cage from the outside, DH would have gotten a kick out of that! I snapped a few from inside the cage with him, and then the train began to move. The train slowly rolls around the hillside, zigging and zagging along with wonderful views of the Storybook Canal and wonderful scenes, so I took a few more pictures from up above. Even though it was just a simple little ride, I think DS3 enjoyed it a lot, and especially liked waving to the people on the canal boats and those walking by.

Up next DS chose to ride Mr.Toad, and after maybe 20 minutes in line, he was driving our horseless carriage through the library, past the village and police, careening through the court judge and on to a very warm place with funny red creatures flying around. He doesn’t really understand what that is all about and just laughs at the little devils. He laughed and pointed them out, saying, “Mama, look at da silly fairies!” :rotfl:

[Alex2kMommy]

By the end of that ride it was 10:00, and ToonTown was just opening up, so I popped DS3 into the stroller and walked on through the ToonTown gates. DS first wanted to tour Mickey’s house, and since the line was pretty short and we’d been through there before, I sort of rushed him through it and on toward Mickey’s barn.

We had a really quick meeting with Mickey. The last time we went through there they let one family in at a time, and took a picture of our boys and a picture of the whole family, and allowed the kids to chat a bit with Mickey. This time they herded several families into the small room together, and let each child approach Mickey one by one. We were at the end of our group and they were pushing the kids through fairly quickly, but before DS had his chance to meet the Mouse, another batch of families was being herded in behind us, so I just felt really rushed. We did get one photo of DS3 with Mickey, and a Photopass card from the Mickey photographer. I’d already decided to just get a Photopass CD since I knew I’d be taking fewer photos this trip, having less opportunity without another set of hands to hang onto the boy.

We then toured Minnie’s House for the first time, which was a lot of fun! So many little knobs to turn and buttons to push to animate items in the house, especially in the kitchen! We loved watching the birthday cake in the oven, and the sudsing dishwashing machine! DS played in the kitchen a bit with the other kids, then I scooted him out the kitchen door to meet… Oh! We were out of the house, and no Minnie to meet! Whoops! :confused3

As fortune would have it, Minnie was out in front of the post office, meeting and greeting lined up guests, so we got in line and (with a bit of 3yo impatience) waited our turn and finally got to give Minnie a hug.

Now, I should point out that on past meetings, DS3 and Minnie kind of had a thing for one another. It was not love at first sight when they first met at Goofy’s Kitchen when he was 2yo. She had gently touched his shoulder, and he pulled away, just a bit afraid. So she sat in the chair next to his high chair and ignored him a bit; he watched her intently as she began fiddling with a pair of sunglasses on the table. Finally she placed the sunglasses over his eyes. He beamed back at her, and that was the beginning of a great friendship. We met her again a few days later at the Lilo & Stitch breakfast, and she hugged and kissed him, then hugged and kissed him some more! He was eating it up, and she didn’t let him go for the longest time, which raised a few eyebrows in the place (ours included.)

So here we are a year and a half later, and he seemed a bit confused that she didn’t hug and squeeze him like before, just gently put an arm around his shoulders and smiled for the camera. I asked for her autograph on his behalf (and he took my momentary distraction as an opportunity to dash into the nearby post office.) Minnie heard me call his name several times, and when she handed back the autograph material, I saw she had personalized the autograph with his name. Very sweet! :goodvibes

Once I caught up with him in the post office, he asked if we could go on “da wolla coasta”, so we headed toward Gadgets Go Coaster. The line was very short, the end being just at the first bend at the edge of the small building, so we quickly were through the line and I was trying to fold my legs sideways into the seat. (How on earth did my taller husband fit in here last time?) The roller coaster is a short but thrilling toddler ride, and as we zoomed back into the loading/unloading area, he asked if we could ride it again. I replied, “Sure, honey” and began unfolding myself to climb out. He shouted, “Yay!” and took off through the exit, weaving in between others ahead of him to dash out toward the street. I couldn’t get past the crowd but kept an eye on him and calling his name...like that ever worked. :headache:

There was a fence around something in the middle of the street in front of Mickey’s house (I now know it’s a fountain behind the fence), and instead of heading to the right to get back on the ride, he jetted left and out of view around the fence.

I followed him as quickly as I could and kept calling out his name, but didn’t see him anywhere. I went all the way around the fence twice, calling him and looking for his little head bobbing along. I dashed through Minnie’s house, but he wasn’t there, nor was he in the post office or near the counter service restaurants. I didn’t see him in Goofy’s yard or house, nor on Donald’s boat, and he was not in line for Gadgets.

My heart began to beat a little faster. My greatest fear had come true! :eek:

[Alex2kMommy]

My first instinct was to call my DH. He’s got great instincts in a crisis, and I was trying not to panic, as it had been five minutes since I’d seen my baby. I realized my DH couldn’t do much from afar and I would just be panicking him unnecessarily, so I instead approached the first CM I saw and told her I'd lost my 3yo. She asked what he looked like and what his name was. I showed her a photo of him I’d taken that morning, and thank goodness he was wearing a bright orange shirt. She said she’d start looking, and directed me to Daisy’s Diner to have someone there notify Security of a missing child.

I went through all the same information with the gal at Daisy’s Diner, and was told they were “calling it in”; meanwhile I went back to the middle of the street to scan the surroundings and wait. I felt so absolutely helpless, but at least grateful that ToonTown is a fairly enclosed area (one way in and out) and I really didn’t think he’d run straight to the exit; I was fairly sure he must be close by, and that I’d contacted the CM quickly.

Sure enough, within 5 minutes of my contacting Security, the first CM I spoke with came walking up holding hands with my DS. He was as bouncy and happy as ever, squealed, “Hi, Mama!” and jumped into my arms. I hugged him tight, then asked the CM, “Where on earth did you find him?” He had been on Donald’s Boat, just in an area where he was not easily seen from the street.

She kneeled down to DS’s eye level, and asked, “Hey, buddy! What’s Mommy’s name?” I knew why she was asking and waited. (Does he even know?) He thought for a second, then said with a dramatic pause, “Her name… Mama!” and he giggled happily. She laughed and said, “OK, I guess that was asking a bit much, wasn’t it?” I thanked her profusely and got assurances from her that she would contact the Security folks and let them know the lost child was found.

DS3 was pulling on my hand and begging to go back on Gadgets, so we headed back there for another round while I tried to get my heart rate back to normal. :faint:

After that we toured Donald’s Boat, and then played at Goofy’s House. He pretended to play Goofy’s piano a bit, then headed outside to slide, crawl, follow footprints, and climb inside a large pumpkin and a big crate.

By then it was getting on toward lunchtime, and to be honest, I was wiped out! We walked toward the gates, stopping for a Photopass photo opportunity in front of the castle, and again in front of the Partners statue. I asked the photographer if he could do a Tinkerbell photo with DS3, and he said, “Sure!” He actually did two, and they are so cute! DS is beaming, with his hands cupped in front of him cradling a tiny Tinkerbell! :tinker:

We walked through Downtown Disney back to the hotel, and stopped in the lobby lounge for a bite. The waitress brought us drinks first (an iced Diet Coke for me, milk for DS3), and then I remembered that we were supposed to be eating a late lunch with the princesses in a few hours! :headache:

The boy was hungry, and I’d already promised him mini-hamburgers and fries, so I went ahead and ordered for him, reasoning that we could split the 2 teeny burgers, and maybe still eat after a nap. So I ate one burger, he nibbled at the other and ate the fries.

When we returned to the hotel room, DS3 settled into bed while I called Disney Dining. I was able to reschedule our princess meal from 2:20 to 4:40, which would hopefully allow plenty of time for a decent nap, and maybe even a dip in the pool, depending on how long we slept. :thumbsup2

[Alex2kMommy]

I was finally able to sleep for about an hour and a half, and felt much better afterward. DS3 also woke in plenty of time for us to make our princess meal. We re-dressed, exited the hotel and walked through the Grand Californian Hotel to their private entrance into California Adventure park. Since we were about 15 minutes early for our PS, I agreed with DS to head into the Redwood Creek Trail, figuring DS3 could play while I chatted with DH. I followed DS up stairs and across rope netting, trying to keep an eye on DS while I called home.

And may I say that small children scamper across that rope netting a whole lot easier than an overweight, out of shape woman in her 40s? WOW. I was huffing and puffing trying to keep up with that kid! I was trying to keep the heavy breathing to a minimum as DH answered the phone for fear he'd think it was a crank call. :rotfl:

It was good to hear DH’s voice. I confessed to him about losing DS3 in ToonTown, which is something we’d both feared when talking about taking this trip. At first it upset him, but he knows how DS3 is, so was glad that I’d gotten help so quickly and everything ended well. He actually was surprised that DS3 was doing as well as he was with being in the stroller, or walking holding my hand. DS7 and DH were having fun with movies and videogames, and I suspect barely even missing us. Too quickly our 15 minutes was nearly up, so I ended the call and collected DS3.

At the check-in for Ariel’s Grotto, I was handed a pager, which buzzed within minutes. We entered the restaurant and were shown down a curved flight of stairs. A large group had been let in together, and the line stopped on the stairs. At the bottom, children were being taken to one side to meet Ariel. The little mermaid was dressed in a lovely pale green dress with a pretty jeweled flower in her red hair. We were the last in line, and when it was our turn, DS happily ran up to meet her. I tried to hand my Photopass card to the CM photographer, but he explained that they don’t do the Photopass, they take the picture and present you with a print package during your meal. I just knew I was going to buy that package, so didn’t even bother taking a photo of my own. I'm such a sucker! :laughing:

Once seated, a lovely young man named Jonathan came over to our table. Jonathan was dressed in a prince-like outfit, complete with a big wide-brimmed hat sporting a large feather. He began chatting up DS3, asking him if he was excited to see the princesses, and giving him pointers on what to do when a princess comes through. He said to give her a big hug, then a big kiss on the cheek, “They love that!” DS beamed at Jonathan, eating up all the special attention. Jonathan stayed and chatted with DS for maybe 10 minutes. I was a little confused as to why… What is his role at Ariel’s? He was not dressed the same as the waitstaff, though he did offer to help us in any way. He did not stay at our table the whole time, I believe he did visit a few others, but then came back to our table later to ask if we were enjoying ourselves. I thought perhaps he would be escorting a princess around the room when one came through? :confused3

Someone gave DS3 a paper crown and some jeweled stickers to occupy him during the wait for food, so he happily began peeling and sticking. He insisted on wearing the crown immediately, so I figured out how to wrap it around and attach the ends together. (Gee, it was huge! On the smallest size, it still hung on his ears.) He wore it nonetheless, and looked so adorable with his wobbly, low-set crown and a grin from ear to ear. I wanted to take his picture in the crown, and turned the camera sideways for a portrait view. DS3 then cocked his head to the side the same direction I'd turned the camera, I suppose so that his face would still come out right-side up in the photo. That picture just cracks me up! :lmao:

Shortly thereafter another gentleman grandly announce Princess Belle, from Beauty and the Beast. Belle was lovely in her bright yellow dress, which DS had not seen before, as she was dressed in a simple blue dress and white apron at Goofy’s Kitchen. Just as Belle reached the far end of the dining room, Snow White was announced, and then Cinderella, and finally Aurora. The route the princesses took around the room was the same, so no chance of getting missed, and in general the children stayed in their seats until the princess came to them. We were able to chat briefly with each princess, and get a photo and autograph easily. No scintillating conversation was had, though I do remember DS telling each princess all about his “big brudder” at home, and how much he missed him. Since the food had not been served yet, we didn’t have to clean off sticky hands or face or clear space on the table for writing an autograph. Nice! :thumbsup2

The Ariel’s Grotto character interaction was so much more orderly than any other character meal we’ve attended, easier for me to manage than if we’d been trying to take photos, get autographs and collect and eat buffet food. But also it was not the most memorable, the princesses were lovely but not as warm and chatty as I’ve seen at other locations. Perhaps they must be more focused on their time, since each room is seated all at once, and the food is held until the princesses move along to the next room.

Food was served immediately after Aurora’s exit. I had ordered macaroni and cheese for DS3, and it looked so cute when it arrived! They had sprinkled goldfish crackers on top, then topped the whole thing with a hotdog ‘octopus’. Unfortunately DS was a little put off by the octopus, even after I cut it up for him to eat. I told him it was just a hotdog, but he kept calling it an octopus and wouldn’t touch it, nor was he then interested in the mac and cheese underneath. But he did eat a little fruit and some goldfish crackers, and he had already had lunch, so I wasn’t too worried about it.

I had fish and chips, which does seem a little strange to be served at Ariel’s. I kept thinking of Bruce the shark from Nemo: “Fish are not food! They are our friends!” It was tasty, but nothing to write home about. But I’m one of those people who attends a character meal more for the character interaction with the kids. You can see lots of characters and eat a meal in a relatively short time period. It's a huge time savings if you think about how long you'd spend waiting in line at the park to see that many characters, especially the princesses! So as long as the food tastes good, and the characters are friendly, we consider the money well spent.

The photographer came around with the photo packet; I forget what the cost was, I think it was around $30. It included one 5x7 and four 4x6 prints. Too much, in my opinion, but since I hadn’t taken any of my own, I couldn’t complain. ;)

The meal price includes dessert, so I ordered chocolate cake because DS saw someone else’s and wanted it. The kids’ menu had apple slices with caramel sauce for dipping, so I ordered that as well. He ate most of the cake, while I ate most of the apples. Loved the desserts! :teeth:

[staley7580]

Awww!!! How fun!

[Alex2kMommy]

After we finished our meal, we headed to the bathroom. We both loved the décor; the large mirrors above the sinks have beautiful gold painted wood frames. DS3 was happily singing away from inside our stall. I don’t know why, but he has to touch everything in a bathroom! He swings the lid on the garbage can, spins the roll of toilet paper, fiddles with the door lock. I’ve learned to just keep talking to him, try to keep him away from the door, and get my business done as quickly as possible! As we washed our hands and he continued to sing and admire himself in the mirror, another mom chuckled and said, “Hey! At least he’s happy!” Exactly! :rotfl:

It was getting dark as we headed back out onto the boardwalk, and a Photopass photographer had set up in a scenic spot overlooking the waterfront rides. We wandered down and had a nighttime photo taken, then wandered around California Adventure. We rode the Jumpin’ Jellyfish and King Triton’s Carousel before heading into Bugs Land and hitting up the rides there. We did the Tuck & Roll Drive ‘Em Buggies, which I don’t think we’ve done before. DS had a blast getting bumped into by other bumper cars. Then we went on to Heimlich’s Chew Chew Train, always a favorite of his. And then Flik’s Flyers, spinning and flying up in the air! Thank goodness for Bonine.

During our tour around the back end of the park, I was scoping out every food cart, wondering if the CM there was the famous (or is it infamous?) Albort. I knew he was moving out of the selling role and into servicing the carts with supplies, and closing them down at the end of the night. And supposedly he was working that night. I was sure I would find him this time!

I finally spied a guy near the Jumpin' Jellyfish who was shutting down a cart. Ah-ha! I walked closer, but he had his head down so I couldn't quite tell. I walked around the front of the cart, but just then he turned toward the back of the cart, darn it! I did notice dark hair, however, just like Albort's... I walked around the side of the cart and stepped a bit closer, and just then his head popped up and he looked me right in the eyes! :eek:

OH! Definitely not Albort! He looked very startled, so I gave an embarrassed smile and quickly walked away. :blush:

About fifteen minutes before the Electrical Parade was to begin, we walked back in front of the Bug’s Land entrance. I was able to get curbside in between two groups of people. I found out later that it was one large group that was trying to take up a huge chunk of the curb, but most of their group was missing, and they were getting frantic as others came up and stood near the few of them who were left. I left DS3 in the stroller curbside, but stood behind him so they had a bit more room once most of them arrived.

I noticed I had a few messages on my phone, and it took me awhile to figure out how to pick them up. (I rarely use my cell phone at home, basically it's for emergencies, or calling my mom or DH when I'm out and about. No one ever leaves me messages!) One of them was from Sameyeyam, calling to let me know her party had arrived, and that FunnyGarcia was going to be in town at 6:30. Last I'd heard, FunnyG was only going to be at DL on Saturday, so I took that to mean she would be at the DL gates at 6:30 AM, and made a mental note to keep a look-out for her if I made it to the gates for Early Entry at 7:00.

The parade seemed to take longer to begin than I expected, but I guess it’s because it’s a fairly slow-moving parade, and they start at the back of the park. As the time neared, all the lights were turned out and suddenly a glow cart burst into view, with all of its glowsticks, light sabers and other items blinking and lighting up the night. The crowd went nuts, which I thought was hilarious! :lmao:

And after perhaps five more minutes the Electrical Parade began. :yay:

If you have never seen this parade and don't want to read the description of it, please skip ahead to 'After the Parade'!

The first ‘float’ in the parade was the Blue Fairy from Pinocchio. She is quite lovely, done up in all blue and white (some purple perhaps?), with an actual human as her upper body, waving and smiling at everyone as she passes by. Behind her were several footmen looking characters in glowing costume, carrying the train of her dress. It was beautiful. :lovestruc

Next came a red train engine with Goofy in the driver’s seat. The engine pulled a car with big round sides noting “Disney’s Electrical Parade” on the side, and Mickey and Minnie atop waving at everyone. Along came an adorable turtle and snail duo, who zigzagged down the street, stopping every once in awhile to bob their heads and spin around in circles. With them came a lightning bug, a cute green centipede and some lovely toadstools, one with a beautiful electrical butterfly, the other with the glowing green caterpillar from Alice in Wonderland on top.

Then came the mice from Cinderella: Suzy, Perla, Jacques and Gus-Gus, wearing elegant outfits with light-up trim. They were followed by a beautiful pumpkin coach with Cinderella inside. There were several dancing couples behind the coach, all dressed in ballroom attire with light-up trim. And then another float carrying Prince Charming holding the glass slipper on a pillow, and Cinderella’s two wicked stepsisters bickering away.

Lovely ballgown-wearing ladies walked along under an electrical canopy carried by footmen, and then a Big Ben-type clock tower came through. Next was Captain Hook’s pirate ship, with Hook and Peter Pan swordfighting away. Smee followed the pirate ship rowing a little electrical dingy.

A lovely green hippopotamus with long eyelashes came through, followed by a circus train, dancing clowns and a big pink elephant. Bashful and the other dwarves followed in a series of glowing gem-filled ore carts, and Snow White rode in the final cart. Pete and his dragon came by, waving and telling the crowd about his wondrous adventure.

The final two floats were very patriotic, the first being a rolling flag in lights with “fireworks” in lights above and the words “To Honor America” at the front; and then a huge electrical bald eagle with his wings unfurled.

My description cannot do this parade justice, it really is such a beautiful light display, and I’m so glad we were able to see it!

After the Parade:

We (and everybody else) followed the parade toward the park entrance, and then at Condor Flats we cut across and back around toward the Grand Californian.

We exited the park through the GCH Hotel entrance. One of the CMs there smiled and said to me, “Wow, you’re not from around here, are you?” I was caught a bit off-guard, they usually just say something like, "Have a good evening!" I confessed that we were not, and she then asked where we were from. Puzzled, I said we were from Seattle, and she and her cohort chuckled. “Yeah, you just aren’t dressed like you’re from around here.” I looked down at our shorts and t-shirts and crocs, then noticed everyone else walking past was wearing coats, hats and knit scarves, and long pants and shoes. The temperature must have been still in the 60s, so I thought the warm winter wear was pretty darn funny! :rotfl:

We strolled back to our hotel, and again stopped in the lobby lounge. This time DS3 clamored for a cinnamon roll and some chocolate milk, and there was a delicious looking chocolate-filled croissant calling my name... If you eat it with orange juice, it's somewhat good for you, right? ;)

We ate the pastries and each drank half our chosen fluids. DS3 again watched the Princess story of the day, and the same Chip and Dale cartoon where they steal nuts from Donald Duck's nut processing plant. :lmao:

I took out clothes for the next day, and re-packed the backpack. I think we were in bed by 10:30, and I had wanted to hit the park at Early Entry the next day, but that looked unlikely. After so little sleep the past couple nights, I wasn't sure I could get out of bed in time for that myself, but I set the alarm for a 5:30 wake-up anyway, ever hopeful. :rolleyes:

Friday, February 8: Temp Hi 78F

[MommyWithDreams]

I loved reading about the Parade. We didn't see it last year but will FOR SURE be catching it this year. I have so many memories of it as a child. I can't wait for my son to see it.

[Alex2kMommy]

I loved reading about the Parade. We didn't see it last year but will FOR SURE be catching it this year. I have so many memories of it as a child. I can't wait for my son to see it.
I had never seen it as a child, since my first trip to DL was in 2006, but I had seen beautiful photos from it and wanted so badly to see it.

Our first trip was initially planned for April 2006, and I was looking forward to catching this parade; however, DH wound up in the hospital two days before our trip, so we had to cancel it. Fortunately we were able to reschedule for that fall, but the parade doesn't run then. :(

So to say I was excited to finally see it is an understatement! :yay: :rotfl:
As beautiful as the photos are, they just can't do justice to the sight in person, can they? I just loved everything about it, I think it's beautiful, and also so charming, with the little critters that zoom right up and say hello. :goodvibes

[Alex2kMommy]

My head cold was even worse that night. I slept fitfully, finally waking for good at 3:30 a.m. I was still exhausted, but since I couldn’t get back to sleep I finally got up around 5:30 and got in the shower and hoped it would help clear my head. :sick:

DS3, who had been sleeping soundly when I got up, suddenly popped his head into the shower and cooed at me, which was a sweet surprise. I then realized he was totally naked, and climbing into the shower with me. (Yes, he does this at home, too. Probably the only little boy on the planet who actually likes to take showers!) Ah, well, that’s fine. We showered and dressed, shared a pop tart, and he drank chocolate milk (OJ for me.) I made sure we had all our stuff for the park ready before we headed out. UFF, I felt like I needed to go to bed. But we were in Disneyland, we were actually ready in time to make EE, so off we went.

I zoomed through DTD, and we made it to the security checkpoint around 6:50. WOOHOO!!! There seemed to be some sort of problem at one of the lines, the family there had been stopped, and everyone was just standing around doing nothing. So I went to the other line. They, too, stopped me from opening up my bags and everything, just held up one hand, otherwise ignoring me and talking to one another. The other family looked over at me, so I shouted back, “What’s the deal?” and they told me they wouldn’t let us through to the gates until it was closer to EE time. I asked, “But… Isn’t that now? I thought EE was at 7:00 this morning.” They said no, it wasn’t until 8:00.

Holy cow, I’m over an HOUR early for EE? Me? I couldn’t stop laughing. DH would have got a kick out of that, too. :rotfl2:

Finally they checked my bags and waved me on through, and I reached Gate 9 at 7:10. We still had a 50 minute wait until EE. DS said he was hungry, so I pulled out some peanut butter cracker sandwiches from the backpack. He polished those off fairly quickly, but said he was still hungry, so I pulled out a banana and his water bottle. He snarfed those down as well, and said he was STILL hungry! The only food item I had left was a package of graham cracker cookies shaped like bugs. He ate all of those, too.

I remembered that Sameyeyam had left a message the day before, saying that FunnyGarcia was going to be there at 6:30 AM, so I began scanning the few others standing in front of the gates. No FunnyG in sight, but maybe they got a later start than she’d anticipated. That’s my usual M.O., anyway. As 7:00 approached, I kept looking for her, but never did spot her. We had lunch plans together, so wasn’t too disappointed.

CMs came up to the registers at the gates and fiddled with them, then walked away. Then some of them came back and fiddled some more, and walked away. The CM for Gate 9 called out to seemingly no one in particular, “It’s not working…” Oh, great! I’m at the gate that has a problem. More fiddling. Then all the gate CMs were called together for a group meeting. Park news? Pep talk? Slow torturing of overanxious guests? I don’t know, but it seemed to take forever for them to get back to the registers. :banana:

Finally the gates opened, our APs were scanned (it worked!), and I walked as quickly as I possible toward Nemo (as did nearly everyone else!) As I neared the ride, a CM directed me out of the flow of traffic to park my stroller, then changed his mind, telling me to get back in line with the stroller, they’d park it for me when I got to the sub. Cool! :yay:

We zoomed through a long and winding queue. The line for the first sub suddenly was cut off at the lady in front of me, and a CM directed us toward the second sub. Yeah! DS3 and I were near the front of the line! But we quickly realized that we’d been directed into a dead-end, what the heck? Everyone else behind us was being loaded onto the sub! We turned around and headed back out of the dead-end, and as it turned out we were the last three to get on. The woman beside me was miffed until I pointed out that we were now sitting at the front of the sub, and didn’t that mean we’d be the first to unload? Not a bad deal! :thumbsup2

DS3 loved the Nemo ride! The “Captain” made some announcements and ordered the sub to dive, then bubbles filled the little porthole windows. Each seat has its own porthole, so having a view was no problem at all. DS3 squealed in happiness when he saw all the bubbles, and then again when he began to see objects in the water. I pointed out the wicked Darla in her scuba gear, but I’m not sure if he remembers her from the story, he didn’t react.

The lady next to me was happy as well. She had lovely red hair, I’m guessing was nearish my age (early to mid-40s) and had a cool accent, I guessed a New Zealander. She admitted she was so eager to try out this ride on her trip because she had fond memories of its previous incarnation from her childhood. And yes, we were grateful to be the first ones off the slow-to-unload ride.

[Alex2kMommy]

After Nemo, we headed into Fantasyland and I parked the stroller next to the carousel, which was not operating. We slipped into the Peter Pan ride, thrilled to be able to ride it twice in one trip! Once again through the Darling nursery, into the stars and on to Neverland. DS3 noticed the mermaids this time, and Princess Tiger Lily.

He wanted to ride Pinocchio next. I remember riding this with DS7 on our first trip, but I don’t believe DS3 had been on it before. I think he’s seen the movie, though, and I hoped it wouldn’t be scary for him. He did just fine, I just snuggled him close during the carnival boys-to-donkeys part. He loved seeing the Blue Fairy and Gepetto at the end. :lovestruc

He asked again if he could ride the Bug Ride, which I now knew meant Alice in Wonderland, so we headed that way. Almost no line to speak of there (have I mentioned yet how much I love EE?), so I think we got on after only one or two cars’ worth of people. DS3 pointed out the Cheshire Cat in every location, and we’d laugh at the queen playing croquet. He likes the outside part of the ride, which is a little too much like Mulholland Madness for my taste, but I do love the heart-shaped topiary. I wanted a photo of it, but never remembered to have the camera ready for it, and there’s certainly no time once you see it.

DS3 then wanted to ride the Matterhorn, which he’d asked to ride on previous days, but the line was always long. This time the line wasn’t bad at all, so we ran around to the end, and I told him to hop out and get in line while I walked along in the stroller beside him (outside the chain fence.) Once we were toward the front of the ride I parked the stroller and joined him in line.

While we stood in line I saw something I’d only ever seen on TV before: a guy with an elaborate tattoo covering his entire neck. I couldn’t quite make out the nature of the tattoo, just that it had lots of beautiful, intricate swirling lines in it, It suddenly dawned on me as I studied the tattoo that the show I’d seen it on mentioned that these kind of tattoos were popular mainly with prison inmates and street gangs. Yikes! Just then the guy noticed me looking at him, and I smiled quickly and looked away, hoping my thoughts hadn’t been right on my face. I really need to work on that. :headache:

Soon we climbed into a car; I got myself seated and backpack settled on the floor, then got DS3 buckled in front of me. I hugged him tight as we took off. He was just oohing at the pretty glowing crystals when the Abominable Snowman growled at him and his eyes glowed in the dark! I felt DS3’s whole body shudder in fear, and felt like the worst mother in the world! I held him even tighter and talked to him until he relaxed a bit, and he was fine the rest of the ride. I guess it didn’t scar his little psyche too badly, because he wanted to go again as soon as we exited. :rolleyes:

After EE was over, I popped DS3 back into the stroller and headed toward Space Mountain. DH told me that DS3 had gone on it with him on our last trip, but he wasn’t sure if DS had really enjoyed it or not. I loved it, and at the time rode it a couple of times with DS7, so I zipped over there and hoped for the best.

Of course the CM wanted to measure DS3, who is just an inch over the height restriction, so lots of other guests streamed into the ride while we waited for the CM to finish answering another guest’s questions. Finally we got the go ahead for the ride and walked up the ramp and straight into the building. The other times I’ve ridden this one, we’ve always looped around that upper story outside before entering the building, so I was hoping our wait was not that long.

A group of 4 giggly teenage girls asked me to take their photo with one’s cell phone, so I did. Then we were in the room with the big humming, glowing-red engine (or whatever that’s supposed to be), and DS3 was fascinated by it. We walked around the upper walkway, and he loved watching the neon lighted gates letting people onto the ride, and watched those who’d just ridden excitedly exit.

Soon it was our turn. I’d forgotten DH had advised using earplugs for DS3 since the ride was so loud, but I’d forgotten them. Ah, well. It didn’t seem to bother him at all, he just looked around and was happy when we got out. We went over to the wall to see our photo, but since we were in the back seats behind a couple of big guys, you could barely see me, and him not at all. Finally an excuse NOT to buy a photo! :rotfl:

[Alex2kMommy]

DS3 asked if we could ride Splash Mountain. He’d asked on the day we arrived, but it hadn’t been warm enough, so I kept putting him off. But already it was warm, and besides, it was our last day! It was now or never!

We walked across Tomorrowland to the railroad station, and boarded the next train. DS loved seeing the dinosaur dioramas, so I’m going to have to remember to go on that again our next trip. As we stopped at the Main St. station, a very nice man offered to take my stroller off the train for me, and I thanked him but said we were going on to New Orleans Square. Another short ride, mainly outdoors this time, and we had arrived in the Big Easy.

I carried the stroller down all the steps and pulled DS along by the hand, and after reaching the bottom and stepping out of the way of others, I unfolded the stroller and put him in it for the walk up to Critter Country.

He decided to ride Winnie the Pooh first. This was his first ride ever, and I’m so happy that he still loves it, because I love it, too. We skipped out the exit and before heading toward the Splash Mountain line, we noticed Tigger nearby! I asked if he wanted to see Tigger, and DS said yes, so we dashed over for a quick hug, photo and autograph. :tigger:

Just up the walkway a bit, closer to the entrance to the Winnie the Pooh ride, was Pooh himself, and of course he wanted to meet him, too. This crowd was quite a bit bigger, so we had to wait, and there didn’t seem to be any CM controlling a line or anything. I tried to figure out when our turn would be based on who had been there when we showed up, but lots of kids kept pressing in from behind us and slipping past to meet Pooh. I kept a tight hold on DS, keeping him from doing the same, and finally let him go when I thought all those before us (and just as many others) had met Pooh. Just then a CM (or someone sounding more official) said, “OK, honey, you’ve been so patient, it’s your turn now.” A girl maybe 5yo started toward Pooh, but DS had already reached him by then, so the girl came back. The adult said, “You’ve been so good, so patient, I promise you’ll be next.”

I honestly didn’t know if this was a CM or perhaps just the child’s parent, and I didn’t see them there before us, but I felt a bit guilty just the same. I wish the CMs who help out a costumed character would be better at crowd control and forming lines so this sort of thing didn’t happen. Anyway, I was trying to get a photo of DS3 with Pooh during all this, and then gave Pooh the autograph stuff. Then the little girl was shoved up to Pooh, so I grabbed DS’s hand and pulled him away. He waved goodbye to Pooh, and Pooh waved back, so sweet! pooh:

OK! Finally, on to the ride both my boys talk about incessantly, Splash Mountain! Again he was measured and not thrown back, so he took off down the queue and I ran to keep up. We walked quite a way before reaching the end of the line, though inside the building it still felt like slower loading than normal. We used to ask to seat one of the kids in front, but I’d read on the DIS of a new height requirement of 5 feet for that seat. I’d heard that you could ask for your child to be in the 2nd seat and the front seat left empty, but DS just wanted to ride, so we took whatever we got.

DS likes the thrill of this ride, but also the singing and the character scenes. He always points out the rabbit and the silly bear and singing geese, so I can see why he loves this ride so much. We clap and sing along. Here’s his version:

Zippawee doodah, Zippawee ayyyy
My oh my, what a wunnafull day
Pentia sunshine comin’ my way
Zippawee doodah, Zippawee ayyy!
Mr. Boo bird on my show-der,
Zippawee doodah, Zippawee ayyy!

We really didn’t get terribly wet this time, and I was glad. I really didn’t want to show up for our lunch date looking like a drowned rat! A little wet on the seat of my shorts, and a few sprays on my t-shirt, nothing bad at all! :thumbsup2

[Alex2kMommy]

By this time it was 11:00, and our lunch date at the Rainforest Café was for 11:30, so we left the park and went out through the gates to DTD. We walked up to the front of Rainforest Café, and were about 15 minutes early.

I called DH to let him know we were doing fine and still having a great time. I told him that DS3 was telling everyone he met about his big brother, and he laughed. He said, “Well, he really misses you, but I think he’s enjoying not having his little brother around.” DS3 is a bit of a handful, and we do what we can to encourage them to be good to one another, but some days it’s a struggle. DH also said I sounded terrible (I had a voice several octaves lower than normal, and occasionally it went out altogether), and he told me to stop by the hotel gift shop to see if they had any meds I could take. Good idea.

I think it was around 11:40 or 11:45, just long enough that I was starting to worry, when Sameyeyam and FunnyGarcia arrived. G and I had met on my last trip to DL, and I’d been wanting to meet Sam for so long, so I was pretty excited for this lunch! I introduced my son, and Sam introduced her teenage DD and DS9, and her DD’s friend.

They were all abuzz because they had just met a couple of other hyenas, Matterhorn and Disneegrl4eva, over in California Adventure park! They were were near the Grizzly River Run heading toward DTD when they heard a familiar voice say, “I don’t know, where do you want to go first?” G whirled around and saw a familiar kid hanging off the back of a familiar looking woman’s scooter, and called out to our other friends. Man! Can you believe it?! It’s enough trouble to try to arrange to meet somewhere, but what are the odds of just bumping into someone that you know? I thought that was hilarious! :rotfl:

FunnyG has some sort of RFC membership card which gets her priority seating as well as a freebie appetizer, so we got in to be seated fairly quickly. We were directed to the upper story of the restaurant, so we all trudged up a flight of stairs. The personnel up there directed us back to the front of the restaurant downstairs, indicating some mistake had been made, so this time we took the elevator down. Since we had a fairly large party of 7, traipsing through the crowded aisles was a bit cumbersome. Thankfully after a fairly short wait, they had a large booth ready for us.

DS3 was happy looking at all the rainforest vegetation and animals, and tropical fish in a fishtank. We ordered drinks and G’s freebie appetizer, and tried to chat while we figured out what to eat. I told G I had looked for her at the gate this morning, and she looked puzzled. I said Sam left me a message that she’d be there at 6:30, and they laughed. It turns out that Sam had offered to let G stay with them overnight, so G’s husband dropped her off Friday night at 6:30! G didn’t get up for EE, instead sticking with Sam and her troop for the day. Which is good; honestly, I’d pictured poor G standing somewhere all by herself, wondering where the rest of us were!

The teenage girls with Sam had each ordered some sort of drink that came with a cute little critter attached to their straws, and offered them to the boys. Sam’s boy chose first (I think it was a tiger, perhaps?) and DS3 was thrilled to accept a cute elephant toy. After a little prodding he smiled and said “thank you” to both girls, since he wasn’t sure which one had given him the elephant.

We chatted quite a bit waiting for the food, and my head began to feel heavy. I worried I was terrible company due to my sleepiness. They made jokes and I smiled wanly, but I just wanted to lay my head on the table. I figured that would be rude; Suck it up, girl! These are your friends! Make conversation! So I managed to keep my eyes open and tried to keep up with the conversation.

[Alex2kMommy]

Once the food arrived, I ate in hopes that it would perk me up a bit. DS3 ate a bit, then started getting antsy, and at one point crawled under the table. I seriously hate it when he does this, so I pulled him up, only to have him head back under a few minutes later. Sam leaned over and said, “Shall I tell him the story of the Table Trolls?” I blinked a few times, then mumbled, “Ummm, sure.” (What?) :confused3

So she leans over so she can see DS under the table and starts to talk to him. She tells him that a long time ago she had another little boy, older than her DS9. She’d warned him about the Table Trolls that live under the table and eat little children who wander under there, but he didn’t listen. And one day he went under the table, and she never saw him again. That’s why she only has the two kids today. :sad1:

I chuckled, thinking, “Nice try, Sam.” But darn it if that kid didn’t crawl back out from under the table and sit in his seat! :rotfl:

Of course soon enough he was climbing the back of the booth seat, but I was grateful for whatever help I could get. :rolleyes:

Sam’s kids wanted to take off as soon as they were done eating, so she gave them their hotel key, and off they went. We lingered over the meal and chatted a bit more, then headed toward the exit. We got distracted by the RFC gift shop, which had all kinds of cute kids’ clothes and toys. I found a couple of embroidered t-shirts for the boys on clearance ($7 apiece!), and DS desperately wanted a tiny stuffed tiger ($6), so I got that as well. I noticed after we bought it that the tiger has a little pullstring. I asked DS what it did, and he said he didn’t know, so we pulled it. It gave a loud, lifelike growl and the tiger vibrates!

After a trip to the loo, we stepped out into the sunshine again to say our goodbyes. I insisted on getting a photo of the two of them for my scrapbook, and they reluctantly obliged me. With the angle of the sun there wasn’t really an ideal spot, so we opted for in front of a menu sign. A couple of kids had been hanging on the sign and goofing around, so Sam shooed them away (or so she says.) Actually Sam and G just wandered in front of the sign next to the kids, and when the kids saw my camera they slithered away.

The first shot is a typical vacation shot, looks like two typical suburban moms in front of a sign. On the next one I don’t know what happened, did I ask them to do something? Arms are raised, heads are thrown back with mouths open, and it’s pretty darn funny! :lmao:

They sounded like they wanted us to come and play with them some more, but I could barely see straight by then, and begged off in favor of a nap. I think DS3 would have happily stayed with them, but I wanted to make sure he had a good nap as well. I hoped to stay up late on our last night, so we both needed some good rest! So we said our goodbyes and headed toward the Paradise Pier Hotel.

On the way I got a call on my phone. Surprise! It was Matterhorn and Disneegrl4eva! They said they’d just arrived (I told them I already knew that, and how) and we laughed. I asked how they’d ended up at DL, because didn’t Disneegrl just fly out to Vegas to spend the week with Matterhorn and her kids? Yes, and apparently because of a canceled January Disney trip, they decided spur of the moment to go to DL on the weekend! :banana:

They wanted to get together, but I said we were just headed to our hotel to nap, and it was our last day at DL. As it turned out, we both had reservations for dinner at Storytellers that evening, so I said I’d call and see if we could all be together on one reservation.

I did find some DayQuil at the gift shop, and bought it before we headed to our room. I called Disney Dining, and was able to change my PS to a party of 7 at 6:10. Sweet! I let Disneegrl4eva know, took some DayQuil, and then crawled into bed. :sick:

[Alex2kMommy]

I did manage to sleep a bit, though it didn’t feel like the DayQuil had dried me out any. Still, I felt a bit refreshed, and when DS woke we quickly dressed and headed to the Grand Californian for our dinner reservation.

We got to Storytellers a bit early (5:50ish) and kept an eye out for the hyenas. They arrived pretty close to the PS time. I had never met these two in person before, and was thrilled to finally do so. Matterhorn had been through some tough times of late, and when I gave her a hug, she held it a bit longer, so I hugged her extra tight. And Disneegrl, who has a personality bigger than life, is surprisingly short of stature, which I’ll admit made me giggle a bit. :rotfl:

DS3 really took a shine to Matterhorn’s DD7, and they became fast friends. Matterhorn’s DS2 slept while his two older sisters played in the grass nearby with some other kids. I didn’t dare let DS3 loose for fear I wouldn’t be fast enough to catch him when he took off! Fortunately he was pretty good natured about being tied up in the stroller watching other kids play.

I’m not sure what was going on at the restaurant that evening, but we waited almost an hour and a half past our PS time to be seated! Finally we were offered a table around 7:30.

I had felt a bit perky until we sat for a bit, then had the urge to lay down my head again. We ordered our food, and it took awhile to arrive, but fortunately they gave us bread and drinks while we waited. DS3 filled up on bread so that when his food arrived he was too full to eat. All he wanted to do was horse around with the other kids at the table. Thankfully they have better table manners, so a little order was maintained.

I had a lovely fried chicken meal that I was crushed to discover I could not taste. I could taste earlier in the day, but now that I was eating perhaps the most yummy meal of my stay, that sense was gone. Fabulous! I nibbled a few bites just because, but I really had no interest in eating. After a bit I asked Disneegrl if she’d watch DS while I used the restroom. I blew my nose in the bathroom, and suddenly my head cleared up, it was the darndest thing!

When I returned to the table I could taste the food a bit, so managed to eat a few more bites before giving up, I just wasn’t that hungry.

Matterhorn invited us to join them in DCA to watch the Electrical Parade, and Disneegrl said she was not going to watch the parade, she wanted to go on the Tower of Terror. Matterhorn urged her to go by herself. I said I’d never been on that ride, and Disneegrl said I really needed to go on it with her! Matterhorn agreed wholeheartedly, and offered to watch DS3 with the other kids during the parade. I wasn’t sure how that would sit with DS, but it turned out he was too busy playing with Matterhorn’s DD7 to notice that I was even trying to speak with him. I finally managed to tell him the parade was starting and I’d be right back, and he nodded and turned his attention back to the kids.

[Alex2kMommy]

Disneegrl and I scooted off to the Hollywood Backlot right around 8:45, the time the parade was to start at the back of the park. Disneegrl is able to ride her scooter right on through the hotel lobby and into the elevator bay, and we waited in a shorter line. While we waited she began texting on her phone, and told me she'd just gotten a message from Albort, one of the DISer CMs. He had wanted to meet up with everyone after he got off work at 8:00, but apparently had been sending text messages “but no one answered!” Disneegrl said she’d just got his text and replied immediately, and he said he’d texted everybody else (I’m guessing Sameyeyam, FunnyGarcia, and Matterhorn?) and when he didn’t get a response, he’d gone home. Disneegrl tried to persuade him to come back to the park, but he was not in the mood.

I was a little nervous waiting for the ride to begin. There seemed to be lots of teenagers and adults waiting around with us. Was this going to be a bit too scary for me? I don’t do well with scary movies, so I was second guessing myself. Disneegrl said it wasn’t going to be spooky kind of scary, but it was going to be exciting kind of scary. I stayed, but told her if I wet my pants on the ride, I may never forgive her for talking me into it. :laughing:

The elevator doors opened up, lots of people exited, and then everyone else loaded ahead of us. A CM directed Disneegrl where to park her scooter, and we boarded the ride.

A CM made some ominous sort of speech before closing the elevator doors. A large group of teens had boarded our elevator, and one of them began to scream. Not in a scared way or even a “this is gonna be cool” way, but a mock-scared scream that was more annoying than funny. But a bunch of the kids laughed anyway, and then they all began to scream. Wow. How long is this ride? :headache:

If you have been on this ride, I suppose you learn when the photo flash and picture are going to occur, but since I hadn’t been on it, I just looked at Disneegrl curiously as she struck a pose with her hands in ‘devils horns’ and her tongue hanging out. If I didn’t know better I’d have sworn she was in with that group of teenagers. :rotfl:

Holy crap, we began to move! I think we had a huge drop down first, then rocketed up, then down and up again, and then the elevator doors open all the way to reveal… the park outdoors, from way up high! Before the doors shut we rocket down again, and I’m sure I screamed, though no sound came out. When I laughed I sounded like a sick, braying donkey, but when I screamed there was no sound at all. I laughed (and wheezed) through the whole ride, and it was awesome! That is a wicked cool ride! And DH thought I wouldn’t like it, pffffft! :rolleyes:

After the ride (during which I did not lose bladder control, thank you very much!), we headed back through the Hollywood Backlot entrance, but found it completely blocked by a thick crowd waiting for the parade to begin. It had just begun on the other side of the street where Matterhorn and the kids were, but we couldn’t get past the Hollywood Backlot sign to get around the loop and over to them.

Since we were stuck, we decided to go back and ride ToT again, but when we got to the hotel, it was already closed. Of course, it was past park hours! So back to the parade route, and we chatted while the parade came around through.

Finally the last float, the golden eagle, passed through, and the crowd slowly headed toward the park entrance. We cut across in front of the sun waterfall fountain, and saw Matterhorn waiting with the two strollers. And with her was Sameyeyam! I think they said Sam had come across Matterhorn waiting for the parade, and so stayed with them to watch it. I asked where her kids were, and she said she didn’t know. I asked where FunnyG was, and she said she didn’t know that, either.

[Alex2kMommy]

They all wanted to go into Disneyland, and I thought, “What the heck, it’s our last night! I’ll just go for a little bit.” So we followed the crowd toward the park entrance. Only the crowd stopped moving! What the heck? :headache:

The fireworks at DL had begun, so everyone stopped in Sunshine Plaza to watch it. Gosh, it took forever to get through there to exit the park, and even once we were out, there was a big crowd standing in between the two parks watching the fireworks as well.

We finally made our way through the DL gates, and I asked everyone if they’d indulge me for a Photopass photo in front of the Mickey head flower display. They said yes, so we waited for the Photopass photographer to free up. When it was our turn we all lined up, and he took three shots. I don’t know if it was by design or not, but each one shows the progression of the Tinkerbell lights lighting up. :tink:

Disneegrl insisted that she wanted to show me the Secret Bathroom. I tried to beg off, because I’d been told it’s near the queue for Small World. The Small World ride was closed for refurbishment, and there’s really nothing else out that way (ToonTown is closed by that hour), so I really didn’t want to waste the time nor my limited energy..But she insisted. And you know what? Who the heck told me it’s by Small World??? It is nowhere near it! On my last trip I wasted about 15 minutes around Small World looking for the darn thing, and I guess the joke was on me. :sad2:

Disneegrl showed me the door, so I went up to take a picture. I know that sounds really weird, but I really love all the theming in the DL bathrooms, and have photos of several of them. Just as I neared the door a couple of kids ran up from behind me and ran into the bathroom. Their mother shouted at them to let the lady go first, so I turned around and told her, “Oh, I don’t need to use it, I just want to take a photo of it.”

She laughed, and apparently so did the rest of my party, as the kids slipped out and I took a shot. Then the kids went in and the door closed, so I took a shot of the closed door, too. Proof positive that I know where the Secret Bathroom is!

But don’t ask me about the Secret Bathroom, I am sworn to secrecy. And certain pint-sized people can go ballistic in the blink of an eye! You do not want to mess with them! :scared1:

After that we tried to decide what to do first. The kids all clamored for BTMRR, so we headed that way, and somewhere between the bathroom and the ride, FunnyG joined the party. We all headed into the ride’s exit (due to Disneegrl’s scooter) and waited for a train. We all got to ride together (I think seven of us, since Matterhorn stayed behind with her DS2) and then met up again with Matterhorn. DS said he wanted to go to the Kissmass House (Haunted Mansion) and everyone agreed, so we walked up that way. Again, we had a bit of a fastpass with Disneegrl’s scooter, though it wasn’t that busy, and we practically walked right in. DS again clung to me in the stretching room, but enjoyed the rest of the ride, and this time noticed the little ghost hitching a ride in our coach. He kept turning his head around, looking to see the little guy in real life! :rotfl:

After that we had to do Pirates, and somewhere headed to that ride we were joined by Sam’s kids. Let’s see, that brought our count up to twelve, and I’m pretty sure were were all loaded into one boat. Cool! :goodvibes

I love that ride, I think I could live happily in that quiet, peaceful bayou scene. Especially if it meant eating at the Blue Bayou, yum!

The park was closed after that, so we headed to Main Street. I said goodbyes in front of the photo shop, because I needed to stop by there and buy my Photopass CD. I was so thrilled to have finally met all of these wonderful people I chat with so often, and was sad to be saying goodbye so soon.

The line at the shop wasn’t too long, but very slow. I think there were only one or two people in front of me, but we waited maybe 10 or 15 minutes in line. Finally I was able to approach the counter, and the CM pulled up all my Photopass photos. I was surprised to count 31 shots, but I think there were only 5 or 6 places we’d stopped at to have photos taken. Still, thinking you’d easily pay at least $12 for a print, I was pleased to pay $59 for the CD. The CD was burned fairly quickly while I paid for it, and then we were on our way.

I thought about stopping in one of the shops on our way out, but they looked awfully crowded, and I was too tired. We’d be coming again in April with the family, so we didn’t really need to buy something now.

We made a long, lingering walk back to the Paradise Pier Hotel through DTD. We stopped again for fluids at the lobby lounge (OJ and choc milk.) While DS3 sipped his milk and watched cartoons, I packed our stuff up for the trip home, then crawled into bed. It was after midnight, I think, and thank goodness we didn’t have to worry about an early flight. I was dog tired, but happy. :cloud9:


February 9: Anaheim Temp Hi 84F

[MotoXPrincess99]

Great update!

[staley7580]

Great job Alex!

[Alex2kMommy]

Moto and Staley, thanks for reading along. :)

The only thing left to write about was our last morning at the hotel and the trip home. It's almost over. :sad1:

[tinkermell]

Alex, what a great TR!!
It sounded like you had so much fun!
How cool to meet up with everyone!!

[momofdisaddict]

I have really enjoyed reading about your trip! We leave on April 1st and reading your report lets me feel like I am already there :)

[Alex2kMommy]

Tinkermell and Momofdisaddict, thanks for reading!

For a short trip, we really did cram a lot of fun in! I can't wait to go back in April! :yay:

[Alex2kMommy]

I had thought, since we were out so late Saturday night, that DS3 and I would just crash hard and sleep in late. I was so grateful our check-out time wasn’t until 11:00.

But as it turned out I was wide awake before 7:00. I got out of bed and wandered over to peek out the curtains at the gorgeous sunshine I’d be leaving today. The view was so pretty with the early sunlight over the park that I grabbed my camera and took a photo. Then I took a couple of my sleeping babe, who had one arm thrown above his head and his mouth open in a little “o” shape. Then I showered, which apparently woke DS3, since he again peeked into the shower curtain, giggled and hopped in with me. (I don’t even remember what it’s like to have privacy in a bathroom anymore…) :rolleyes:

So there we were, cleaned and dressed and packed, ready to head to the airport, and it wasn’t even 8:00. I didn’t have any food to eat, so we really should head out for something. But where? There was the lobby lounge, of course, but I was seriously hungry! There was the lobby restaurant, but at this time of day it’s the Lilo & Stitch character breakfast, and I was sure we wouldn’t be able to get in.

I called DH to tell him we were ready to head home, and just trying to figure out what to do for breakfast. He suggested the Lilo & Stitch breakfast, “Just call and ask, maybe you can get in!”

After ending the call, I figured we may as well go for a walk; we’d check at the character breakfast, but if they were booked up, we’d go to the lounge. Who knows, maybe they serve hot breakfast food in the lounge?

There was hardly anyone in the restaurant when I approached the check-in person. “We don’t have a PS, but is there any way we could get in for breakfast?”

She said, “Sure!” and it would be just a few minutes’ wait. Sweet! :yay:

DS3 saw a penny press machine and asked if he could press a penny, so I fumbled in the backpack for my small Ziploc bag of pennies and quarters and already-pressed coins… and couldn’t find it! Oh, man, and we’d already pressed about 9 coins, some for DS3 and some for him to give his brother. Maybe I’d already stashed it somewhere else for traveling? At least I hope so…”Sorry, buddy, I don’t have any pennies.”

[Alex2kMommy]

Just then we were called in to be seated. We each were greeted with a plastic lei, and brought in to a corner of the room to have our photo taken with one of the characters. It was Minnie Mouse! My boy loves his Minnie, so he eagerly hopped in to hug her, then smiled for the camera. The photographer coaxed me into a 2nd shot, a nice souvenir to show that DS wasn’t on the trip all by himself. (You knew I was going to buy those photos, didn’t you?) ::yes::

Once we reached our table, Daisy Duck replaced Minnie at the door, and Minnie began to tour the room. Our waiter asked for drink orders, so I requested milk for DS3 and coffee for myself. I had been four days without coffee by that point, and even though I don’t care for the coffee at Disneyland, after four days it tasted pretty darn good!

I brought DS3 through the buffet items, grabbing a bit of whatever he wanted and anything else I thought he might eat: Watermelon, strawberries, potatoes, scrambled eggs, and a sausage. I brought him back to the table and cut up his food a bit, then let him have at it while I went back for my plate.

They have these wonderful pineapple/coconut scones I’d had before, and so I hunted those down. (I don't even like cooked coconut, but these are awesome!) Unfortunately I couldn’t find the pineapple preserves they’d also had with it before, so I missed that. I also grabbed standard breakfast fare and some fruit.

Lilo stopped by our table and played with DS a bit, but to my utter frustration, my camera would not take a photo! It was giving me an "R12" error, and since I'm a point-and-click gal and didn't have my manual with me, I was completely stuck. I thanked Lilo for being patient while I tried to figure out the problem, then during a lull at the entrance, asked the photographer if she could take a look at the camera. (I know they use close to the same model of Nikon.) Turns out she didn't know much more than I did, so I thanked her for her effort, but was no further toward getting it fixed. :headache:

I monkeyed with it some more, and discovered I could take a far-away shot, and then a close-up, but then it would lock up again and give the same error code. OK, at least that was something to work with...

As we ate I spied Stitch headed our way. I grabbed my camera and got a nice shot of him surprising DS3 from behind! They had a laugh and a nice big hug before Stitch moved on. We ate our breakfast quietly until we heard someone talking into a mike and hula music playing. I encouraged DS to join a group of kids gathered nearby with Pluto and Lilo. They all learned to dance the hula together!

I managed to get DS back to the table to finish his breakfast, and then Pluto came by our table. I got some nice photos of the two of them, and an autograph of course. pluto:

DS finished eating before I did, so he was getting a bit antsy. I tried to keep him entertained, but all of a sudden he hopped up and took a stroll around the room. I let him go for a bit because he wasn’t doing anything and the room is fairly small, but when he started to run, I went after him and hauled him back.

Lilo came by and distracted him for a few minutes, thank goodness. She put his lei on him (she’s wearing one, too) and they look so cute together!

Stitch came by again, and he and DS poked each other in the nose back and forth for awhile. It’s an odd game, I’ll admit, but they both seemed to be enjoying it. :stitch2:

[Alex2kMommy]

All the kids were called back together in the room to play an island hopping game similar to musical chairs. They lay down small versions of each of the five main islands of Hawaii, and when the music stops, you need to touch at least a foot onto one of the islands. Each time they play, they take away one of the islands, so it gets harder and harder. Lilo, Stitch and Pluto were playing as well as all the kids, and I liked how nobody was out, you just had to scramble to get a toe on an island! By the end, with only the Big Island left, Pluto body-slammed into it, and all the others stuck a toe around him. It was hilarious, and the kids had a blast! :rotfl2:

DS3 lingered next to Stitch after the game, so Stitch gave him a sweet pat on the head before sending him my way.

Daisy, having replaced Minnie by the door, never did come around our table, which was disappointing. So we met only the 4 characters. Still, we had a lot more fun than sitting in the lobby lounge! I love the character meals, and I’m really going to miss them when DS3 decides he’s too old for that. :sad1:

We returned to the room and watched a little TV, then I called the lobby to check out, get a bellman, and arrange for a cab. I'd been told by the front desk to allow about half an hour for check-out, and half an hour for the cab, and allow about an hour for the trip to the airport.

When we reached the lobby, the cabbie was there already, asking who his fare was; I told him that was us, but our luggage was coming down the service elevator. Once the bellman arrived, our luggage was quickly loaded into the cab and DS3’s carseat installed, and away we went. From my phone call to the front desk to the time we were driving away was probably about ten minutes!

So… I wondered if this cabbie was from the same company as Fred, our previous driver. You know, the one I still owed $3? I was certainly going to pay the appropriate amount this time, but… I asked if he knew of another cabbie named Fred. Fred has two young children, aged 5 and 3? He said cabbies do tend to work a particular area, but he did not know a guy named Fred at his company, Fred must work for someone else. I think he wondered why I was asking, that perhaps something bad had happened, so I confessed to my poor math abilities with Fred’s tip. Darn, that was my last hope for getting Fred his money. Ah, well. I’ll have to live with it on my conscience, I guess. :guilty:

[Alex2kMommy]

Once at the airport I was weighted down with all the bags again, but managed to get in to the airline counter and get checked in. Again, no problem with DS3’s name being on the TSA No Fly list, so we got checked in pretty quickly. :thumbsup2

Since I wanted to check DS’s carseat, I started to bag it up with the plastic garbage bag and ziptie DH had given me, but the ticket agent said that I needed to take it over to the Security counter, and they would bag it for me. Really? Curious, they don’t do it that way at Sea-Tac… :confused3

The ticket agent actually came around the counter and helped me carry everything to the nearby Security counter, which was so nice of her! I turned the carseat over to the Security guy, and started to hand over the bag and ziptie, but he said he had that covered. So now I was free of the largest suitcase and the carseat, and we got in line for the Security check.

This line always moves so slow, but we were plenty early, so I didn’t really care. We’d again worn our Crocs to the airport for easy on/off (only this time I thought to wear socks!) I piled everything onto the conveyer belt, sent DS through the metal detector, and then myself. We reassembled everything quickly, and took off to find our gate.

Along the way DS spied a McDonald’s, and begged for “hambugga fies!” I told him we’d go there for lunch in a little bit, and continued on to our gate. We killed a little time reading books at the gate, but soon I was bored and so was he. “How about that hamburger now?”
“Yesssss!” he cheered. :banana:

I parked DS in the stroller near the exit of the McDonald’s line, and stood in line close by, hauling our bags. I ordered his Happy Meal, and a fruit plate for myself. There was a small seating area next to the restaurant, so I brought our food tray in there, then returned for ds3. (He was within 10 steps this whole time, it’s a very small space, but for me it was a little stressful not having him right next to me.)

He was happy as a clam to be eating his favorite meal, and was singing songs and making cute animal sounds. Fortunately the only other adults around seemed to also have children, so they didn’t seem to be bothered by a little background music. :rolleyes1

We bought a couple water bottles on the way back to the gate, then sat and waited for our flight to begin loading. The plane arrived and taxied up to the gate, and DS was thrilled to notice its sky blue skin with Minnie’s face on the side. Cool, a Disney plane!

[Alex2kMommy]

Soon the gate agents were calling for first class to board, then folks with “children aged 2 and under, or anyone needing extra time or assistance in boarding.” This time I thought, “Darn it, that’s me!” and got in line. We parked our stroller at the end of the ramp, and boarded the plane.

DS3 kept wanting to sit at every aisle along the way, and I kept telling him, “Honey, no, keep going. We’re all the way in the back.” I think we were in row 25, which is pretty close to the back of the plane. A fellow passenger saw me struggling with DS3 and all the bags, and offered to put my large carry-on in the overhead bin.

“Oh, it’s pretty heavy,” I protested, but she grabbed it anyway, and had no trouble hoisting it to stow. “Thank you so much!” Nice! Now I could stretch my legs out instead of having them cramped up against my seat.

An older gentleman had the seat next to DS3, but luckily for us, he seemed to be familiar in the ways of small children, DS didn’t faze him a bit.

We had an uneventful flight back, reading books and DS playing a bit of peek-a-boo with the little boy seated behind us. Soon were dropping altitude and banking around to hit a southbound runway at Sea-Tac. DS perked right up at the sensation, and asked, “Wha’s happeneen, Mama?”

“Honey, we’re landing. We’re almost home!”

Instead of the big “yay!” cheer I was expecting, he blurted out loudly, “Mayday! Mayday! We’re going down! We’re going down!” :scared1:

I quickly shushed him, and glanced at our seatmate, who pretended not to notice anything but had a smile on his face. DS3 was about to start in again, so I shushed him again. “Honey, you can’t say that, please stop saying that!” :eek:

He asked innocently, “But why, Mama?”

I said it was not OK to say, it might scare some people, and “where on earth did you hear that?”

He said “Me an’ my brudder watch a Yu-Gi-Oh, and dey on da plane, and dey say dat and dey layand on da ground, BOOM! Heh heh!” Uh-huh.

Thankfully we were on the ground (safely) soon enough. I called DH, who said he’d be parked nearby, to let him know to meet us at baggage claim. I grabbed our stroller at the gate, popped it open and strapped DS in, then headed down to baggage claim via the elevator.

DH wanted me to head outside to meet him first, then he’d run in and grab the heavy bags, so we walked outside and looked for him. It was dark and I was tired, but his hand sticking out the driver’s window and waving at me was a dead giveaway. He had to drive a bit before finding a curbside spot to stop, so I followed him. He ran for our bags while I unloaded DS and got him into his carseat, and loaded the carry-on bags into the back of the vehicle.

I gave DS7 a big hug and told him I missed him; he smiled and said, “I know. I missed you, too, Mama.” DH quickly returned, and we were heading for the freeway. And even though the boys’ bickering started not five minutes out of Sea-Tac, it was still good to be home again. :rolleyes:

But I can’t wait ‘til we all go to Disneyland in April… :yay:

[sameyeyam]

Great TR Alex!!!! I love the MAYDAY, MAYDAY part.:lmao:

Boy I sound like the mother of the year in this report...Sameyeyam without her kids, where are her kids, can't find the kids, here's the hotel key kids! I sure hope everyone realizes that two of them are teenagers and that I'm not just letting my little kids run around DL unsupervised.:rotfl2:

Wish you would have felt better on the trip, but oh well, you get another chance in April.

[Alex2kMommy]

Great TR Alex!!!! I love the MAYDAY, MAYDAY part.:lmao:

Boy I sound like the mother of the year in this report...Sameyeyam without her kids, where are her kids, can't find the kids, here's the hotel key kids! I sure hope everyone realizes that two of them are teenagers and that I'm not just letting my little kids run around DL unsupervised.:rotfl2:

Wish you would have felt better on the trip, but oh well, you get another chance in April.
Oh gosh no, I didn't think you sounded terrible! Really, do you think? :eek:

They are older, and I know I said DD and her friend are teenagers. Is Coop 9 or 10? I think I said 9, but I wasn't sure...

You definitely deserve the Laid Back, Go With The Flow Person of the Year award. You don't sweat the small stuff, and always have a great attitude, which I appreciate so much (and try to learn from, since apparently that is the opposite of my nature.) :hug:

BTW, my mom loved the "Mayday!" part, too, and she tells EVERYONE about it. ;)

[AZMickeyfans]

Ok here is my ds's comments on your TR. I'm writing this on another screen as we read so I dont miss anything. This is great story time alex!

He laughed when your ds was on the plane and cannot wait to go on one in October. I asked him if he thought it would be like a roller coaster ride and he said "No actually it will be like a picture frame to me" :lmao: :confused3

When I asked him to explain this he said "because i will be like in a picture frame (giggled) I love you mama!"

He said the Alice ride is not called "the bug ride" it is called "the funny ride":lmao:



His favorite character being Tinkerberll cracked Jake up. His favorite character is Peter Pan

Jake also said that the flying fairies are baby Toads.

Oh, I just want to cry reading ds was lost......:sad1: Glad he was safe and having fun.

He wants to see the paper crown from ariels

No words can describe the amout of laughter coming from Jake as I read hotdog octopus!

I love reading this. Right now we are up to the Rainforest Cafe part and its confusing the heck out of Jake. He doesnt understand how you could have eaten at Rainforest Cafe because its in AZ not in Disneyland! :rotfl: we've never eaten at the DL one because we go here so frequently and he didnt eve know there was one ove rthere. I still think he doesnt believe me. :rotfl:

Mayday Mayday!!! :rotfl2: :rotfl2: I just :love: your ds Alex. I skipped reading that part to mine....


Jake said he liked reading the story but "now can we play checkers ever?!" So I'm off to play checkers I guess.

Great TR Alex, Next time You'll feel better I'm sure.

[Alex2kMommy]

He wants to see the paper crown from ariels

No words can describe the amout of laughter coming from Jake as I read hotdog octopus!
We really must get these two together sometime, mustn't we? :teeth:

Ahhh, the paper crown. He didn't want to wear his crown after dinner, so I uncurled it so it wouldn't get squished. But it was quite long, what to do with it? The best I could do was lay it across the stroller's canopy, tucked into a fold. It slid out once, but I managed to notice and picked it up off the ground. I tucked it back into the canopy fold and put a sweatshirt on top of it. And yet somehow, by the time we got to the parade, it was gone. :sad1:

I didn't mention it to DS, thinking he'd be terribly upset. I thought about going back to the restaurant the next day to ask for another crown and set of stickers, but thought that was silly, it's only paper. Besides, had we kept it, it wouldn't have lasted terribly long with DS anyway. :rolleyes:

I hope some lucky kid found it and got some enjoyment out of it. :)

[Yakety76]

I am only on page 2 of your trip report, so I have a little more reading to do. I just wanted to say I am so glad your little one was found after just a short absence. How scary that must have been for you!! You seemed to have kept your wits about you and handled everything in the best possible way. My DD is also 3, so I definitely know how quickly they can disappear from sight.

Cannot wait to read the rest.

[Boston Tea Party]

I honestly didn’t know if this was a CM or perhaps just the child’s parent, and I didn’t see them there before us, but I felt a bit guilty just the same. I wish the CMs who help out a costumed character would be better at crowd control and forming lines so this sort of thing didn’t happen.

I'm enjoying your report and agree 100% with the above! Ugh.

[Alex2kMommy]

Yakety76 and Boston Tea Party,

Thanks for reading along, and thanks for the kind words. :goodvibes

[PoohBearFriends]

Thanks for the nice report. It sounds like the 2 of you got to do some "new" rides together and I am sure your DS 3 will have fond memories.

I understand about the cold 2 years ago that was me. I called the Dr.s office before we flew home to have an abx prescription ready for me when I got home.

I hope we are all healthy when we go this year.