We are going to see Mickey again! Annual Mother/Daughter Trip (July 16 - 26, 2015)

Hello Everyone and Welcome to my trip report!

A quick introduction:

Mimi (me) – a Disney fan who have passed on my love of Disney to my girls. I work outside the home in a deadline driven job so Disneyland is a place where I can just enjoy being in the moment and be a kid again!

Jillian (14) – my Disney buddy who is totally in sync with me when it comes to Disney. She enjoys Disney trivia and loves interacting with the characters. She usually brings some little friends along



We usually visit the DLR once a year on a Mother/Daughter trip and decided that we wanted to be at Disneyland during the actual day of the 60th on July 17th. Since school is out and it was pass some of my major monthly work deadlines, this seems like a perfect time for us to go. Also, we haven’t been to DL in July before. We knew that it was going to be busy and hot but that didn’t deter us from visiting our ‘second’ home.


Day 1 – Arrival Day

After a quick overnight stop in Seattle to catch the One Direction concert – Jillian is a very big fan and I guess that I am one too! LOL Our flight connected in Seattle so we just added on another night to our trip to be able to catch the concert. We landed at SNA at 9:10 am and a quick 25 minute taxi ride later, we arrived at the Best Western Park Place Inn – we usually stay here since it is right across the street from the parks. If money was no object, we would be staying at the PPH – we like the view into DCA from the room. Our room wasn’t ready yet but we checked in and left our luggage in storage and headed to the park. First stop was the ticket window where we upgraded Jillian’s Deluxe AP to a Premium AP. Then thru the gates of DL …



We felt like we were home! First thing Jillian spotted was Mickey and since she is a big character fan, we got in line. We figure that this was a good way to start off our trip ... a photo with the Big Cheese himself!



We also picked up a Find Mickey Quest map but found it kind of difficult to find all the Hidden Mickeys – some of the questions requires going onto rides to find the answers and some of the lines were pretty long. Like I mentioned before, we haven’t been to DL together in the summer time before – my first visit to DL was in the summer of ’90 with my parents. There were a lot of people around and lots of Diamond decorations around the park. We were a little overwhelmed with looking at all the 60th decorations/merchandise but we told ourselves that we have 10 days to take it all in so we just slowed down and enjoyed the sights.

Yay! I'm so thrilled to see you started this! You guys are adorable! I have to tell you I spent my adolescence and even from time to time being called Mimi. I hated it as a teenager and insisted everyone stop calling me that. Now I don't mind so much. I'm thinking that if it isn't too busy I might talk the girls into doing the Find Mickey Quest when we go if it's still there.

kaoden39 said:

Yay! I'm so thrilled to see you started this! You guys are adorable! I have to tell you I spent my adolescence and even from time to time being called Mimi. I hated it as a teenager and insisted everyone stop calling me that. Now I don't mind so much. I'm thinking that if it isn't too busy I might talk the girls into doing the Find Mickey Quest when we go if it's still there.

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Thanks! Oh gosh, it is so hard to do a trip report when work is so busy and we are getting ready to head to Hawaii on Friday. Plus I am not a big fan of Photobucket and my computer is so slow so even starting a trip report is a long drawn out process!

My mom gave me this name because she had a friend with the name and she liked it. When I was growing up, I used to get bugged all the time and it was embarassing when people couldn't pronouce my name and I hated it too. But as I get older, I don't really care about what others think anymore! LOL

We found the Find Mickey Quest harder on the DL side and easier on the DCA, we did manage to find some over there. Some of the hidden Mickeys don't look like what we expected. It was crowed and hot so we didn't really feel like doing it after we purchased the two maps but we might try again at Christmas time. We did pick up the prize already so all is good.

I mostly use my tablet because it's so much faster but, for adding pictures it is back to the tablet. I need to get the laptop out then and compared to my iPad it's a dinosaur. I feel your pain with that. How exciting about Hawaii! I would be thrilled. I hope you have a wonderful trip!

Day 1 ..... continued

After we checked out the 60th merchandise in the stores and picked up our Photopass+, we headed for our lunch reservations at Café Orleans. This was the first time that we tried this restaurant, the food and service was fine. We shared the French onion soup, chicken sandwich and Mickey beignets.




After filling our bellies, we noticed that Tiana was out in New Orleans Square. She is the only princess that Jillian haven't gotten a photo with yet. There were only 2 guests in front of us before it was our turn. We then wandered over to the Ranch area and found Jessie.




We visited Tarzan's treehouse and as we pass Pirates, there was a long line - it was probably a 30 minutes wait but we didn't feel like waiting. Then off to take a peek at Fantasyland where we rode the Carousel and Dumbo. Surprisingly, the Dumbo line was only about 20 minutes. Jillian wanted to visit the princess at the Royal Hall. We met Sleeping Beauty at the Fantasy Faire and then lined up for about 20 minutes before we met Belle, Cinderella and Snow White in the Royal Hall.






After meeting the princesses, we walked over to a Diamond Celebration Photo Spot near the Matterhorn. And then around 5pm, we decided to go check in at the hotel but we found Alice and the Mad Hatter near Coke Corner and took a quick photo before we left.




After checking in and resting for a couple of hours, we then headed park to the parks, this time to DCA. We went to Carsland - always enjoy the theming here. We had dinner at Flo's, haven't been here since they changed the menu but the ribs were good. We walked around instead of lining up for rides in this area since we will be back another day. It was nice to just wander and absorb the atmosphere without rushing around. Jillian also rode King Triton's Carousel - never a line up for this - and then we rode the Golden Zephyr.



We wanted to watch the PTN parade so we went back over to DL. There were a lot of people and the lineups for the rides were quite long and many were also claiming their spots for the first PTN parade. We went towards Fantasyland and got onto It's A Small World. After getting off the ride, we noticed that people were lining up for the fireworks. We found a nice spot to the left of IASW and waited for the fireworks to begin. It was an amazing display, we always get emotional during fireworks. LOL




After the fireworks were over, we started looking for a place to sit down to wait for the second PTN parade. We found a spot outside the bathrooms near the Alice in Wonderland ride. While we waited, a Photopass photographer was going up and down the parade route asking if anyone wanted to take a photo with the PTN sign. Of course, we had to do that.




We really enjoyed the PTN parade, having front row seating and seeing all those lights up close. Reminds me a lot of the Electric Parade from a long time ago. During our trip, we caught PTN a few more times.

While everyone was rushing to leave the park after the parade, we slowly took our time towards the exit stopping in the stores to look at all the 60th merchandise and making mental notes on what to buy later on. Then, a quick walk back to our room and Day 1 was done. Tired but happy

Day 2 - Disneyland Diamond Celebration - July 17th

This is the day that we were the most excited for ... we were up early and got dressed in our 50's attire and headed out the door by 6 am. After we went thru security check, we were handed a special 1955 Disneyland newspaper souvenir by the Red Car Trolley News Boys. We got in line which was already about 20-30 people deep. Once we got thru the ticket turnstiles - around 6:30 ish, we were also given a 'I was there July 17, 2015' pin and a special edition of the DL guidemap. There were already lots of people on Main Street and we worked our way towards the middle of the pack, staying on the right side. As we walks towards MS, there were Cast Members giving out high-fives. We can just feel the excitement among the crowds. Around 7 am, they let us into the rest of the park and off we go!



We headed towards Tomorrowland and walked onto Space Mountain and Star Tours. Then we rode Jungle Cruise and finally saw the Enchanted Tiki Room. I have seen this show many years ago but Jillian has never seen it so we thought that to get a little break from the crowds and we wanted some A/C, we went in. We decided that we wanted to see the Celebration Ceremony at 10 am but didn't want to be near the castle, too many people were crowded around this area. We found a bench (in the sun) in Towne Square where we can watch it being streamed on the screen near the Fire Hall. I sat down to wait while Jillian took off to take photos with all the characters that were in Towne Square. She was quite pleased with herself for getting the Fab 5 on this special day.






At 10 am, the ceremony began with a speech given by DL President Michael Colglazier followed by performances by Richard Sherman and Ashley Brown. It was a nice ceremony - very touching at times. After the ceremony, we decided that it was getting too warm for us and seeing that they weren't going to close the park due to capacity, we headed back to our room to get changed.

Once we got back to DL, we took more photos and walked over to Indy. We had managed to grab a FP for this before we left the park to go back to our room.




Since the cupcake lines were long in the morning, we waited until the afternoon to go get our treat. We went to one of our favorite places to do this ... the Ranch area. There lots of cupcakes left. We took ours and sat down to enjoy our cupcakes.



We visited the goats and waited around the Ranch until our late lunch reservations at The Big Thunder Ranch BBQ. I don't think that we ever get our moneys worth at this place but we really enjoy our meals here. It's a nice cozy atmosphere with some entertainment thrown in. I like the ribs while Jillian likes the coleslaw. In addition to the ribs and coleslaw, we were given unlimited corn bread, beans and chicken plus bottomless soda. We have never tried the dessert because we always get too full. On our next trip, we are planning to try the dinner menu which includes corn and sausage.




I recall that after our very full meal, we walked back to our room to freshen up. So, this is the second time that we left the park today. In the evening when we got back, we rode the Matterhorn with a 10 minute wait - this was during the first PTN parade. Then we went on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and finished off with a ride on the Mad Tea Party. It has been a long but wonderful day so we called it a night and headed out the park.

Sounds like a great trip so far!! How awesome that your daughter got Fab Five pics on the 60th!

labordefam3 said:

Sounds like a great trip so far!! How awesome that your daughter got Fab Five pics on the 60th!

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Yes, it was a great trip! Every time we go, we make more magical memories! DD loves characters more than rides, that's why we have so many photos! Our July trip seems so long ago, still trying to finish up the report. We have 55 days before our Christmas trip, DH and DD (19) will be joining us, so we are excited to show them all the 60th stuff. Made a few dining reservations since we know that the parks will be pretty busy at this time. Still can't decide on which park to spend New Year's Eve - watched youtube videos and wish we can be at both parks! LOL

Day 3 - DCA

Today, we started our day off at DCA and we had early lunch reservation at Ariel's. It has been a couple of years since we ate here so we thought that we would give it a try. Jillian Disney bounded as Ariel and I tried my best as Ursula. LOL




One of the first rides that we always do is the Little Mermaid, followed by California Screamin'. Lines were light and we didn't have to wait long. We also went on King Triton's Carousel - we usually just walk onto this ride. After a few rides, we headed over to Ariel's Grotto. We were given a pager and just waited a few minutes before they called our names. We walked down the stairs where Ariel was waiting for us to get our photo taken.




We were seated at a table near the entrance where the Princesses enters the room. A Royal Herald would announce each Princess and they would do a little dance right in front of us. Since our table was the closest to the Princess when they entered, they visited with us first. We had visits from Cinderella, Tiana, Belle and Rapunzel. They were very sweet and took the time to sign Jillian's autograph book and pose for many photos. We kind of enjoyed this type of character meal because it seems more orderly when the Princesses are announced one at a time and then goes from table to table. We knew when the Princesses would visit us and we can put down our forks!

We each started our meal with the seafood chowder. Then, Jillian had the Sautéed Shrimp and Angel Hair Pasta while I had the special of the day which was Mahi Mahi with Bok Choy. We enjoyed our food in a leisurely fashion since all the Princess had visited our table already. Our dessert consisted of chocolate covered strawberry, chocolate mouse cake, crème brulee and a chocolate cupcake with a birthday candle. Since it was my birthday, Jillian insisted that we celebrate while we were at Disney. And since Cinderella is my favorite princess, I got my photo taken with her. And Jillian tried combing her hair with a dinglehopper.




After our visit under the sea with Ariel and the Princess, we headed over to California Screamin' for a ride and then lined up for Soaring. Then we decided to grab a FP for Anna and Elsa. While we were waiting for our A&E FP return time, we went to see Olaf. The line up was pretty short since Olaf was kind of hidden in the back near the Crown Jewel Theatre. We then walked over to the Tower of Terror and got a FP. We headed into the Disney Animation building where it was much cooler and waited for our A&E FP return time. We watched the big screens filled with Disney characters. Soon, we got in line to see Anna and Elsa. It is always fun to visit with them because they are always chatting away.




Now, it was time for our Tower of Terror FP. We don't usually do this ride since Jillian does not like the feeling in her tummy but we went ahead with it anyways. I thought that it was a lot of fun but I don't think that I can get Jillian on it again! Afterwards, we headed back towards California Screamin' and wandered around Paradise Pier. Then more rides on the Silly Symphony Swings and the Golden Zephyr.




We found a spot on the curve near the Carthay Circle Restaurant for the Pixar Parade. We always enjoy this parade because we love Toy Story. After the parade, we visited Carsland. We decided that we would try Flo's V8 again - we haven't been here since they changed the menu. We both had the BBQ Pork Ribs. The portions were enough for us and we enjoyed them - we always enjoy our food!

More rides on the Little Mermaid and since it started to rain lightly, we headed back to our hotel.

I am back ... trying to finish this trip report but there is always something else to do! LOL It's been almost 7 months since we have been back and plus, we have also visited DL again during the Christmas holidays. Time goes by so fast and in 40 days or so, Jillian and I will be in Disney World! We are really looking forward to that trip because it has been 7 years since we have been there. Anyways, let's finish this trip report - as best as I could.


Day 4 - Hollywood, Santa Monica Pier and Venice Beach

Today, we decided to do do a little sight seeing. We didn't want to rent a car so we went with a Grayline tour. We have been to Hollywood Boulevard before but that was when Jillian was only 4 so this time, she wanted to see the touristy stuff when she can actually comprehend.

We were picked up at the bus stop in front of BWPPI and driven to the bus hub where we transferred onto the Hollywood tour bus. It was a fun but hot day. We drove thru LA, Beverly Hills, Sunset Strip, Rodeo Drive and stopped at Man's' Chinese Theatre and Hollywood Boulevard. We also had lunch at the Grove. In addition, we had some time to walk around the Santa Monica Pier plus a quick walk around Venice Beach. The tour was about 8 - 9 hours, it's not something that we would usually do but it was an alright tour, just a glimpse.








After we got back from our tour, we decide to head to DL for a few hours. It started to rain lightly. A quick dinner at Plaza Inn and hung around Fantasyland. We rode Snow White, Pinocchio, the Carousel and It's A Small World. By this time, it was raining steadily so we went back to our room.

Day 5 - DL and DCA

This morning, we were up bright and early since we wanted to try to ride Peter Pan. We got thru the turnstiles and lined up at the rope in front of the Partner's Statue. As soon as the park opened, we headed for Peter Pan. Lots of people were doing the same thing, we got in line and waited about 10-15 minutes. I know that there were supposed to be some new things added to the scenes but I couldn't really tell since we don't always ride PP on our trips. We just thought that it would be nice to experience it at least once this time. Before our reservations at Minnie & Friends Breakfast at 10 am, we rode King Arthur Carousel, Dumbo, Alice and Storybook Land Canal Boats.

We checked in for our breakfast and after getting our photo taken, we were seated at an outside table. We quickly got our breakfast and soon the characters arrived.











We had great interaction with all the characters. Out of all the character meals that we have tried, this was probably the best one in terms of meeting characters. If you have not noticed until now, we really like Lotso Bear. We have 9 of them and yes, we like to bring them into the parks with us. Don't judge Like Jillian said, where else can you be a kid and carry a bear around without anyone giving you a second glance. Plus, this is a place where people wear Mickey ears so we feel right at home! LOL

After our breakfast, we went on Space Mountain before we left the park. On our way out, we ran into more characters and then took a few quick photos before we left.








We went back to our room so that Jillian can change into her Elsa dress. She has an appointment at Anna & Elsa's Boutique - she wanted to be pampered and have a mini makeover. We arrived for our appointment and Jillian was promptly seated in makeover chair. It took only about half an hour since she only got her hair done. No makeup because she did her own. The last time that Jillian had a make over was when she was 8 years old in WDW. The smile on her face this time was the same as when she was 8. She loved her Elsa hair.

We went to DCA after Jillian's Elsa makeover. We ran into Minnie Mouse on Buena Vista Street and took a photo with her. Then we visited with Anna & Elsa and Olaf. Had to go to the Frozen Sing Along again too.



We decided to check out Bugsland. We rode Heimlich's Chew Chew Train and Flik's Flyers. These rides didn't have any lines at all so we though why not? After a ride back up Buena Vista Street on the Red Trolley, we went over to DL.

Over at DL, we wandered around and people watch. We also took the Disneyland Railroad around the park, it was a nice way to take a little rest. Dinner was at Galactic Grill. I can't remember what else we did but we did stick around to see PTN and the fireworks.

Day 6 - DCA

Today, we slept in a little and headed into DCA around 11 am. First, we grabbed a RSR FP. Then we went to our lunch reservation at Carthay Circle for the WOC package. This was the first time trying this restaurant and it was a nice treat. Once we checked in, we sat down in the waiting area and looked at all the photos that were on the walls.



We got seated in a little room towards the front of the restaurant and we were the only ones in there. We order some appetizers to go along with our lunch. We were really enjoying our lunch and time in there until a big noisy family came in. Luckily, we were almost finished with our dessert so we left and went back out into the sunshine. We headed towards California Screamin'.






We rode Little Mermaid a few times and used our RSR FP and then went to Downtown Disney. We did some shopping at the World of Disney and dropped off our packages at the room. We made it back to catch the Pixar Parade and went to see the Aladdin show again. We also rode Grizzly Run and luckily we did not get too wet from the ride. For the next few hours, we walked around until it was time to line up for the WOC. We both enjoyed the 60th version even though NPH was in too many scenes for our liking. LOL Afterwards, it was time to call it another day.

Day 7 - Huntington Beach

Today, we are headed to Huntington Beach - Jillian want to have some beach time and I wanted to go there because I am a big fan of Avenged Sevenfold and they are from HB . We rented a car from the Alamo Downtown Disney location thru Costco Travel. It was a really convenient location for us to just walk thru Disney downtown to pick up the car. I am willing to drive in Anaheim but not LA so off we went. It was another beautiful but hot day. It was an easy drive to Huntington Beach and soon we were parked at the city lot. They were setting up the area for the 2015 Vans US Open of Surfing competition. Lots of bleachers set up on the beach, we were glad that we visited today instead of during the competition. We walked along the beach, tried a Ruby's burger and rented a surrey bike and rode it down the beach.



After a couple of hours hanging around the beach, we left and headed to Target. Every time we are in the US, we have to stop at a Target. For some reason, we always find something to buy there - Jillian likes to buy stationary there. LOL

Day 8 - DCA and DL

Today, we were at DCA at rope drop - we wanted to ride Toy Story Mania before the lines got too long. We really wish that they had a FP for this ride, it would make thing so much easier but we can't always have what we want. LOL After our ride, we went on the Wheel of Death ... I mean Mickey's Fun Wheel. Jillian wanted the swinging one so I was hanging on for dear life as she laughed at me! Since, it was still pretty early, there were hardly any lines at all so we went on Goofy's Sky School, the Golden Zephyr and Little Mermaid. We headed over to the Frozen Sing Along again, Jillian likes to sing and I like to sit down and rest. We checked out the Diamond Mad T Party area and took a few photos.




We went back to our room for a little break before we headed over to DL. In DL, we visited Toontown, Jillian likes to play with all the interactive noisy things. We lined up for Mickey's Magical Map, we always enjoy the music in this production. Then, it was time for our early dinner at the Blue Bayou - we did the Fantasmic package. We requested a waterside table and only had to wait about 15 mins before they called our names. Our dinner was good, even thought it was dark in there and hard to see our food but we enjoyed it anyways. After dinner, we decided that we weren't going on any rides and just walked around until it was time to line up for Fantasmic. I think that we were in line at around 8:15 for the 9 pm show. We were seated in the center section right in front of the stage. We got there early enough to sit right at the railings. We were glad that we had our purple cushion to sit on, it wouldn't have been too comfortable to sit on the cobblestones for too long without the cushions. Fantasmic was fantastic! We have only seen it once before but it was on the bridge above the Pirates ride, this area was so much better. We really liked the show and we stayed put for the fireworks that started a few minutes after. We didn't take any photos because we just wanted to be in the moment and enjoy the show and fireworks.

Day 9 - DCA and DL

We started our day today at DCA - got there a couple of hours after opening. Since we have been here so many days already, we just take things more slowly as the days go by. Little Mermaid is usually a walk on so we went on that. We rode Screamin' and went to see the Aladdin show again. I can't remember what else we did, we probably went on some rides that didn't have any lines. And we probably headed back to our room for some AC and a nap too!

We did make it to DL in time to catch the Sounsational parade - we really like this parade because to us, it has a catchy tune. We got a bench in Towne Square and waited for the parade to start.





After the parade, we headed to see Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln. We really didn't have any interest in seeing this but after watching an episode of Modern Family that had a scene from this, we decided to give it a try. It was an interesting attraction - learned a few history lessons from it. We were just in time to see the Flag Retreat Ceremony when we came out. All the times that we have been to DL, we have never experience the Flag Retreat. It was a very moving moment for us to witness.

Since it was a hot day again, we went to grab dinner at Pizza Press and ate in our room. It was nice to have an early night.

Day 10 - DCA & DL

We started our day again at DCA. First up was Screamin', the lines are never too bad for this ride - it seems to move pretty fast considering that it is a popular ride. Then we went to get a FP for Tower of Terror and walked over to Little Mermaid where we rode it 2X. We also rode the Silly Symphony Swings, this ride makes me too dizzy! And Goofy's Sky School was almost a walk on too. After we rode Grizzly River, it was time for our Tower of Terror. Jillian and I are not too fond of this ride but we decided that we were going to go for it!

We wanted to have fried chicken for lunch so we went over to the Plaza Inn over at DL. After satisfying our chicken craving, we went towards Critter Country. On our way, we stopped off at the Haunted Mansion. It was a hot day so Splash Mountain was a good ride to be on.



We headed to see the Fairies at Pixie Hollow.



Since this is our last day, we hit Space Mountain and Indy again. These are probably our favorite rides at DL. We also did Buzz a couple of times and Autopia too. We went back to our room for another one of our afternoon breaks. Having a nap really helps us make it thru the evening, especially since it is so hot. The heat zaps our energy levels, at least this is the reason that I make for us taking our naps! LOL

After we went back to DL, we had our dinner at Pizza Port. More rides and then we waited for the PTN parade and fireworks one last time before we head home. In addition, we always stop in front of the fire station and say thanks to Walt and tell him that we will be back soon.

Final thoughts

Jillian and I always have a good time at Disneyland. This is our happy place, a place where we can be kids again (Jillian is actually still a kid but has an old soul) and just enjoy being in the moment. We have a very laid back touring style and don't need to hit every attraction or show. We know that we will be back so we just take it easy. There are still plenty experiences that we haven't done yet so there will always be a next time. I am very lucky to have Jillian as my Disney buddy, someone who shares my Disney love with me. The memories that we make when we are at DL will always be with us. We love looking back at our photos and re-living the good times. And we look forward to making more memories on our future trips.

Thanks for reading along.