Mini trip report: fun times with DH, DD4 & DD 15 mos 5/12-5/16

[94bruin]

We arrived Tuesday night at the GCH late.

Wednesday morning: Both parks opened at 10. We decided to dedicate the AM to DCA. We entered the park around 9:40 through the GCH entrance. DH went to get FP for Soarin'. I was hoping that they'd let us in early for TSMM, but it wasn't to be. So at 10, they let in everyone. We walked really fast, even though we were strolling a baby. I am ashamed to admit that I was out of breath by the time we got to the top of the bridge to Paradise Pier. Even though we weren't at the front of the rope drop, we manage to pass a lot of people. We were probably within the first 15 groups/families on. When I looked back, there were a HOARDE of people descending on the ride! When we got to the point where we could see the line, there were a line of people beyond the entrance.

It was our first time on TSMM. DD1 loved it. I beat DH, even though I was holding the baby, lol. DH says it's because he had to help DD1... Anyways, I took everyone's advice and when the car would move on, I held the baby's head so it wouldn't whip around.

They were only running 50% of the cars. I guess there was some malfunction with half of the ride.

Afterwards, we hit the ferris wheel.

Then we saw Drawn to the Magic. DD got picked to go up on stage. She got the keep the picture of Cinderella, which Cinderella later signed. They also had Sorcerer Mickey and Woody. While DD & DH were watching the show, I strolled the baby until she fell asleep.

DD1 and I walked onto Monsters Inc. Then we saw Mr. Incredible before heading into the Animation Academy. FYI, little kids need to be careful when hugging Mr Incredible. DD bonked her head on his hard chest! DD2 woke up while DH & DD1 were in with crush. 45 minutes was all she napped (usually she naps about 1.5-2 hours in the AM)

We then ate at the wiener place right at the Backlot.

Next we hopped on over to DL and Pirates. I always read about how these little kids handle these dark, scary rides or the roller coasters. Well, I do NOT have one of those types of kids. DD1 kept saying loudly how she didn't like the ride, and how she wanted to get off. Well, that threw DH & my plan to take her on HM or Splash... We decided she needed something very benign afterwards, so we went to go see Pooh & eeyore & tigger in Critter Country.

By then, DD1 was getting a bit cranky, so we headed back the the hotel for a nap.

Well, I've got to wake up the girls for dinner at Ariel's Grotto. More later.

 

[jernysgirl]

Overall, sounds like you have had a good time so far! And I know what you mean about your DD not doing to the big rides so well. I took both DSs on Splash as their very first "big-kid" ride and that was a huge mistake! I was a bad Mommy!

 

[goldies 5]

Sounds like you are doing great. I am really curious about Ariels Grotto.

 

[slightlyvolcom]

Sounds like a fun enough trip so far with little kids!

 

[Eeee-va]

I'm interested to hear why your DD1 didn't like Pirates...I hate drops so that's what would have bothered me.

Great job getting to TSMM so quick, though!

 

[94bruin]

I'm interested to hear why your DD1 didn't like Pirates...I hate drops so that's what would have bothered me.

Great job getting to TSMM so quick, though!

Well, since it's dark in the beginning of the ride, that probably set a bad tone for her. Then there was the unexpected drops - which she hated.

I think the pirates were probably a little too scary for her. She's never been a fan of haunted houses - she was absolutely terrified of trick or treating at certain houses two Halloweens ago. This past year, she was better. So, while she probably didn't like the actual pirates, they probably weren't the deal breaker. But I think everything together: dark, drops, scary pirates - esp the skeletons did it for her.

 

[94bruin]

Wednesday night:

Well, the girls slept longer than I thought they would, so we barely made it out of the hotel by 6. That meant that we weren't able to use our Soarin' FP that we had collected in the morning. We bought some sandwiches at La Brea bakery and then headed in to DL to wait for the parade (7pm.) We entered the parks around 6:20, and most of the curb seats were taken on Main Street. We waited in front of the building that has a little porch and chairs (very cute.) DD was actually able to sit on the curb when the parade started. It's a cute parade, and DD loved going into the street and dancing with the dancers. After the parade, we decided to call it a day.

Thursday:

Magic Morning 9am. After reading everyone's advice, I left our room at about 8:10. I made it to the security line about 8:20. I was probably the 4th or 5th person in my line. At 8:30, they started letting people through. I have never noticed the entrance on the other side of the esplanade until this morning. Unfortunately, this meant that I was 2nd in line at my gate (17.) They did a cute opening ceremony a little bit before they opened the park at 9am.

Again, we walked very quickly down main street. Wow, to be one of the first people through - it was very cool. Unfortunately, we couldn't really savor the feeling since we were trying to beat everyone else, lol!

We made it to Peter Pan (within the first few cars.) Then, we rode Dumbo (2x), carousel, Pinocchio, Alice, teacups, Buzz. I think we finished all that right a little after 10.

I loved looking back on DH & DD2 ride dumbo. Seeing the wind blow through what little hair DD2 has was priceless.

We were feeling very efficient until we decided to ride Nemo. We waited about 25 mins for the ride. DH then took DD onto Autopia, while I strolled DD2 until she fell asleep in the stroller. After she fell asleep, I grabbed a Space FP, and waited in the Tomorrowland Terrace for DH & DD.

DD & DH walked through the castle, while I stopped by City Hall to inquire about characters. Then, we headed to DCA for the HSM3 show (12:00), lunch (we had wraps & breaded chicken white meat for the girls), and the Aladdin show (1:50.) After that, it was time to head back for naps. We grabbed Soarin' FP on our way back to our room.

 

[mamaso]

I love reading about little ones in Disneyland! The fun of it all!

 

[94bruin]

Thursday night:

The girls slept a long time again, so for the second night in a row, we were unable to use our Soarin' FP (because DCA closed @ 6pm.) We decided to eat at Jazz Kitchen. Despite all the rave reviews, we found the food ho-hum. DH & I both had the pasta jambalaya. FWIW, there's a Cajun/New Orleans-style restaurant in our home town, so we were comparing the food to our local restaurant. Just didn't compare. They also were supposed to have some jazz music start at 7:15, but the performance hadn't even started by the time we left at 7:45.

We decided to browse the World of Disney store. It was *very* crowded. I think it's because DL closed at 8, so we were getting the rush of people leaving the park. We call it a night since DH has to get up early the next day.

Friday morning:

DH has a conference in Costa Mesa, so I have the girls to myself this morning. DL opens at 9am today. I don't get to DL until 8:45. By then, there is mass of people on Main STreet, waiting for the rope drop. At 9, we make our way through the crowd. DD1 decides that she wants to ride Dumbo. It was perfect because we were the second family to make it to Dumbo. DD1 decides that she has the ride the carousel next. She really wants to ride the teacups, but I didn't want to go on with DD2. I tell her that DH can take her later. Then she decides she really wants to ride Buzz. I know she likes Alice, and I see that there's a small line, but she really wants Buzz.

On our way to Buzz, I see that there is no line for Pixie Hollow. I ask who is present, and Terrence, Tink & Silvermist are there. Since we haven't seen Terrence before, I convince DD that it's better to see them now and ride Buzz afterwards. It took us less than a 2 minute wait to see the characters, as there was only one family in front of us. I find out that Rosetta is due within 5-10 mins, so we ride Buzz, get two Space FP and then make our way back to Pixie Hollow. By the time we go back to Pixie Hollow, there's a small line, so we wait about 15 mins to see the fairies again.

DH is due back at the hotel around 10. Since it's just past 10, we go back to the hotel through DCA, getting two Soarin' FP on our way back to the room.

Since DD2 woke up early for the day, I decide that she needs a solid nap in the hotel room vs her 45 min stroller nap. DH stays in the room to rest while DD2 naps.

I take DD1 to the pool. We first get in the kid's pool and boy it was cold! The ambient temp is around 70, with a small breeze. After a little while, we make our way over to the big pool, and it was much warmer. DD1 loves going down the small slide. She wants to go down the big slide with me, but we learn that she has to be able to swim across the pool to be able to go down the slide. Great incentive for her swimming lessons.

 

[94bruin]

Friday (continued):

DD1 & I take a shower while we wait for DD2 to wake up from her nap. We decide to eat at Storytellers for lunch. DH had the chicken sandwich, which was pretty good. This is coming from someone who doesn't usually order chicken when dining out. I order the margherita (sp?) flatbread. It's not the greatest, but it hits the spot. The bread, esp the cornbread, is very tasty.

Afterwards, we *finally* get to ride Soarin', using the FP I got earlier in the morning. DD1 loves the ride, which is great since we also got a child swap pass. DH took her first, while I waited with DD2. Then I took her on the 2nd time. I don't know why, but my eyes always get misty when I go on that ride. Reminds me of why I love living in my adopted state of California, I suppose (yes, a bit cheesy sounding.)

DD1 then really wants to ride TSMM. We're a little unsure since we don't know what the wait will be, but we head over there anyways. As we expected, the wait was about 40 minutes. The hardest part of the wait is holding DD2 the entire time. She is a wiggle worm. If we let her down, she would just walk away, so we really just had to hold her. I beat DH again!

Since we have dinner ressies at Ariel's Grotto, we head back to the hotel for naps.

Our ressies at AG was for 6:10. I tried to change it to a little later since DD2 was napping a little later, but there wasn't any time slot available until 7:50 (and it was outside.) So, I wait until 5:50 to wake up both kiddies from their naps, get DD1 dressed in her Snow White dress & DD2 changed into clean clothes/diaper. We were out the door by 6:05.

It was pretty crowded at AG. All the tables were taken inside, and I think outside as well. The service was a bit slow, but the princesses came out soon after we were seated, so it was okay. Aside from Ariel, we saw Cinderella, Snow White, Aurora, & Mulan. I'm always advising DD on what she should say to the princesses, but I think she is always star-struck when she meets them. DD1 is a chatterbox at home & school, but when it comes to the princesses, I think she is just so in awe of them, that she doesn't say much.

She has the Disney Junior Encyclopedia of Animated Characters as her autograph book. Every single princess asks her if she likes to read (which she nods yes) and tells her how their friend Belle loves to read books as well and has a great library at her disposal. I guess this is part of the princess training regimen, lol!

Both DDs have the mac and cheese. We didn't have to pay for DD2. Our server said that she'd get to order one of the pasta dishes, but it would be a smaller portion. However, it was the same size as DD1's. DD2 loved that there were goldfish on top of her mac & cheese. DH got the fish & I got the cioppino (sp?). DH liked his dish; mine was just okay. The bread at Ariels's was kinda hard, too. The dessert tray has a molten chocolate cake-type dessert, along with some other chocolate-y items. DD1 gets a sorbet since she is allergic to egg. The food is only okay, but in my book, this beats having to wait in PFF.


After we finish dinner, we go back to the hotel to change into warmer clothes. We also bring picnic blankets, and get our spinning Minnie light toy (from our first trip last Sept) and glow in the dark bracelets that I bought at the dollar store & Michaels pre-trip. I wasn't sure if we would need the picnic blankets like we did for Fantasmic last Sept. Since we have a stroller, it was no bother to us to bring them into the park. It turns out that we did not need them. We ended up finding a place right in front of the Plaza Pavillion. It was not dead center, but a little left of center. We positioned ourselves so that the trees by the Partners statue would not be in our way. We stood the entire time, but we were able to lean against the fence, so it wasn't really that bad.

RDCT was an awesome fireworks show. I love how it's a retrospective of DL's history. Just awesome!

It was very cute: in the middle of the show, DD1 turns to us and asks us if Sleeping Beauty was okay because of all the fireworks. DH told her that she probably stepped outside of her castle to watch the fireworks as well, and that she should be okay.

Getting out of DL isn't too bad as we're already on Main Street. I remember last Sept that it was horrid trying to get out of DL after watching Fanstasmic. This was much easier.

We all get back to the hotel. We get the girls to bed. I'm itching to ride Space, so I go back into the DL alone around 11pm! It's pretty busy in Tomorrowland. There's some band playing. I use my Space FP - the standby line says that there's a 40 min wait! I loved riding Space by myself!

When I got out, I wanted to ride Haunted Mansion - partly because we didn't ride it last time, so it had been about 10 year since I've ridden it, and partly because I wanted to see if DD1 could handle it. I get to the ride at about 11:40. I'm the only one in the waiting room. OOOh, it's spooky being there alone at almost midnight! But then, a few more people come in, darn it! It's a fun ride, but I'm convinced that DD1 will hate it. We've already traumatized her enough on this trip with Pirates, lol.

I debate going on Jungle Cruise, but decide to head to the World of Disney instead, before heading back to the room. Didn't buy anything, but it's nice to go through the store alone and when it's empty. I was there until closing time, which was sometime just past midnight.

 

[94bruin]

Saturday

This is day 5 of our trip, so there is no way we would be able to get up for the 7am MM. We get up late and head into the parks around 10. We ride Buzz once, then head over to DCA to ride Soarin' & TSMM, all at DD1's request. (TSMM's wait was only about 15 mins. This was around 10:15 - the park had been open over 1 hour by this time.)

DD1 really wants to ride TSMM alone. I'm all worried, but apparently, she does fine. The CM reassures me as we're getting onto the ride. DH & I talked strategy while we were waiting in line. Since we were playing together, I think it helped our final scores. This time DH finally beats me! My arm was getting sore from firing the gun(?) so often and fast. We ride the carousel one more time. We also let DD1 choose her one souvenir for the trip - a baby SImba stuffed animal, that is wrapped in a leaf. It's very cute, although it's one more stuffed animal to add to her large collection at home!

After lunch, we head back for naps.

We head to Newport Beach for the afternoon. What is supposedly a 20 min drive takes about 40 mins. It drives me crazy! (no pun intended.) I always forget how bad traffic is in Southern California. We don't really get near the water, but the girls had enough fun just playing in the sand. It's overcast, so we just stayed in our normal clothes.

In the evening, we head to Irvine to meet with some friends.

Sunday

DH has his conference again. I try to get up early to take the girls for one more ride, but we are just too beat to get up early. When DH gets back, we go into DL just to get Silhouettes done of the girls. MIL always wanted one, but never had one done. I think this will make a nice birthday gift for her, even if it's not for another 6 months. Now we don't have to stress over what to get her, lol! On our way out, we turn and say "Goodbye Disneyland." We checkout by noon (late check-out) and head home.

If you've read this far, thanks for letting me re-live my trip! I do have some comments to make on various things that I'll add later.

 

[wdvak]

Sounds like a fun trip. I remember when my dds (now 15 and 22) were small at wdw. They are still fun, but it is so different than when you go with little ones.

Can't wait for the other info. Thanks for getting me even more excited about our trip.


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