Day Four – Our adventure comes to an end!
All to soon, we found ourselves facing the last day of our vacation. I had scheduled Disney California for our last day, because I figured that by then we would all want to sleep in a bit. Not too long, though, because I knew that DCa unofficially opens one half hour earlier than the stated opening time (thanks again, disboards
). The kids loved hearing the announcement that “Disney's California Adventure will be opening in twenty minutes” just as we were going through the queue for Soarin'. We got on the first flight, and enjoyed the beautiful sights and smells of California.
And now I have to interrupt this narrative to tell you about the Quest for the Bunny Ears. We had signed up for a photopass share, and up until this point, we hadn't had a lot of pictures taken, so I was determined to use photopass to the max on our last day. #4 had his own photopass agenda – to make bunny ears! This went on all day. Here you can see the bunny sneaking out:
Sneaking (note the perfect bunny head on dh's tummy):
And finally, sweet success as the photographer let him make bunny ears on himself!
I know that "Where Dreams Come True" should be technically reserved for Disneyland, but it just fits too well with how excited he was.
From Soarin', we went on Monsters, Inc. (cute!), and then to Muppet Vision 3-D (I loved the live action bits). It was then time for a journey through the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. I headed in with the four older kiddos. The cast members were fabulous – they really added to the eerie mood. We buckled up and away we went – up, down, up, down, up, down. I felt like a bug caught in jar being shaken by a little kid. Most of the people around me were laughing. I was screaming.
When the ride ended, I feared that we had finally pushed #4's bravery too far. As people began exiting, he remained in his seat, ashen faced. Finally, his little lips began moving, trying to form words. “That...was...so...cool!” And away he went, dancing off the ride.
Turtle Talk With Crush was next on our agenda. I thought it was amazing – Crush did a terrific job entertaining the children and adults. DH (aka Sourpuss Spoilsport) said it was simple video game technology and any computer programmer could do something similar. Harumph – I'd like to see him try.
For the first time the entire trip, we decided to split up the family. #1 and I went to see Aladdin again. It was a totally different cast, and still a fantastic show. I honestly couldn't say which cast I enjoyed most – they were both fantastic. And this time, the flying carpet was working!
DH took the other four offspring to see The Magic of Brother Bear, which they all proclaimed to be boring. Then they took on the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail, which they LOVED. From there, they headed over to the Mission Tortilla Factory for a tour and a tasty snack.
Once Aladdin was over, we met up with the rest of the troop for a ride through the Grizzly River Rapids. The older kids mocked me mercilessly about wearing my poncho, but at the end of the ride, I was DRY. I was also a bit disappointed. It was way to tame for my taste. Of course, you have to understand that we go body-surfing down real live rivers for fun, so I'm probably just a bit jaded. There had been some sort of ride malfunction that caused us to wait a little longer than expected in line at Grizzly, so we had to make another SPRINT to the ART stop to make it on the last ride home before their lunch break. After all of the time we spent running to the ART, we should really enter ourselves in a race now – we're ready.
Four hours later, we were headed back into the parks. We headed over to pick up some fastpasses for Screamin'. EGADS! They were out of fastpasses! We would actually have to stand in line! Aargh! DH and #2 headed for the long, long line, while I took #s 1 and 3 to the Maliboomer. I watched, they rode. I'm smart that way. DH and #2 were still in line for Screamin', so we conquered the Orange Stinger next. The little ones played on the SS Rustworthy while the girls rode. Finally, after waiting so patiently while the big kids had their fun, #4 got to ride Jumpin' Jellyfish.
We headed back over to Screamin', where DH and #2 were STILL in line. I picked up a babyswap pass and sent #s 1 and 3 to begin their long wait in line. A few minutes later, DH and #2 FINALLY finished up the ride. #2 and I used our babyswap to hop back in line, where we passed the girls. #1 was not happy about this.
And now, the time had come for the terrifying, horrifying, way too extreme It's Tough to be a Bug. We thought it was cute. Even #5 got into it. A few measly bugs can't scare us!
We were getting hungry, so we picked up a CUTE sourdough Mickey head, which we immediately tore into. Poor Mickey.
At this point, DCa was about to close. I had planned on taking the whole family back to the trailer to get ready for an early daparture the next morning, but the three oldest realized the Disneyland would still be open for the next two hours, and BEGGED me to stay in the parks with them. “What?! We can't leave yet! We love it here! We aren't ready to go!” These are the same children that spent months complaining that we were forcing them to go to stupid Disneyland on vacation. My, my, how things had changed. So DH, whose feet were covered in blisters, took the littles ones back while the rest of us were UNLEASHED in Disneyland. No strollers, no five-year-olds to lose, no plans. Ah, the freedom of it all!
I decided that we could each pick one final ride to go on. #3 chose Screamin', so back into the long line we went. That ride is murder on hair. Here is #3 just after her first ride on Screamin':
#2 then chose to ride ToT. The park was closing in about 10 minutes, so I told him that he and #1 would have to RUN to make it in time. And run they did, pell-mell right into Bug's Land. It was hilarious to see two teenagers running as fast as they could into the kiddie ride section of the park. They realized their mistake, corrected course, and went running into It's Tough to be a Bug. Oops. At this point I was laughing so hard I couldn't breathe.
They finally came back to me for directions, and I sent them on their way. #3 and I browsed some of the shops while we waited for them. DCa has some really wonderful little shops. I especially enjoyed the animation shop.
Next, #1 chose to ride Space. This time we did it without fastpasses. That's right, another line. We survived the long wait by actually – gasp - talking to one another. Once again, we loved Space.
And now it was time for my pick. Can you guess which ride I chose? Can you?? That's right – we were off to Splash! On our previous rides, I had managed to place one of my children in front of me to use as a shield against the water. This time, I took one for the team, and I got the “privilege” of riding in the front seat. We zipped, we doo-dahed, I got SOAKED! As we approached the loading area, we heard “Welcome back riders, would you like to go again?” Um, YEAH! So we were off again, without even getting out of our log. We zipped, we doo-dahed, we sang, we decided which silly pose to make for the picture, and I got drenched. This time, we were definitely getting off the ride. No matter what. Once more, we were asked if we wanted to keep riding. Hmmmm....YES! We zipped, we doo-dahed, we got in trouble for rocking the boat. We even talked to the vultures. That was when #1 noticed the real live man at the vulture station. I had forgotten that we are always being watched at Disneyland. Somewhere on you tube, there is probably a video of me making a total fool of myself on Splash Mountain. While looking like a drowned rat. Sigh. At this point, Disneyland was closing, so we were not invited to ride again. Not that we would have, anyway. I do have some self restraint. Really, I do.
So we headed out of Disneyland, having had the time of our lives. That's right, the old Disney magic won us over.
Disneyland has now officially been added to our future vacation plans, but first we have to go to the Black Hills, Texas, and Yellowstone. I'm not sure I can wait that long.
All to soon, we found ourselves facing the last day of our vacation. I had scheduled Disney California for our last day, because I figured that by then we would all want to sleep in a bit. Not too long, though, because I knew that DCa unofficially opens one half hour earlier than the stated opening time (thanks again, disboards
). The kids loved hearing the announcement that “Disney's California Adventure will be opening in twenty minutes” just as we were going through the queue for Soarin'. We got on the first flight, and enjoyed the beautiful sights and smells of California. And now I have to interrupt this narrative to tell you about the Quest for the Bunny Ears. We had signed up for a photopass share, and up until this point, we hadn't had a lot of pictures taken, so I was determined to use photopass to the max on our last day. #4 had his own photopass agenda – to make bunny ears! This went on all day. Here you can see the bunny sneaking out:
Sneaking (note the perfect bunny head on dh's tummy):
And finally, sweet success as the photographer let him make bunny ears on himself!
I know that "Where Dreams Come True" should be technically reserved for Disneyland, but it just fits too well with how excited he was.
From Soarin', we went on Monsters, Inc. (cute!), and then to Muppet Vision 3-D (I loved the live action bits). It was then time for a journey through the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. I headed in with the four older kiddos. The cast members were fabulous – they really added to the eerie mood. We buckled up and away we went – up, down, up, down, up, down. I felt like a bug caught in jar being shaken by a little kid. Most of the people around me were laughing. I was screaming.
When the ride ended, I feared that we had finally pushed #4's bravery too far. As people began exiting, he remained in his seat, ashen faced. Finally, his little lips began moving, trying to form words. “That...was...so...cool!” And away he went, dancing off the ride.Turtle Talk With Crush was next on our agenda. I thought it was amazing – Crush did a terrific job entertaining the children and adults. DH (aka Sourpuss Spoilsport) said it was simple video game technology and any computer programmer could do something similar. Harumph – I'd like to see him try.
For the first time the entire trip, we decided to split up the family. #1 and I went to see Aladdin again. It was a totally different cast, and still a fantastic show. I honestly couldn't say which cast I enjoyed most – they were both fantastic. And this time, the flying carpet was working!
DH took the other four offspring to see The Magic of Brother Bear, which they all proclaimed to be boring. Then they took on the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail, which they LOVED. From there, they headed over to the Mission Tortilla Factory for a tour and a tasty snack.
Once Aladdin was over, we met up with the rest of the troop for a ride through the Grizzly River Rapids. The older kids mocked me mercilessly about wearing my poncho, but at the end of the ride, I was DRY. I was also a bit disappointed. It was way to tame for my taste. Of course, you have to understand that we go body-surfing down real live rivers for fun, so I'm probably just a bit jaded. There had been some sort of ride malfunction that caused us to wait a little longer than expected in line at Grizzly, so we had to make another SPRINT to the ART stop to make it on the last ride home before their lunch break. After all of the time we spent running to the ART, we should really enter ourselves in a race now – we're ready.
Four hours later, we were headed back into the parks. We headed over to pick up some fastpasses for Screamin'. EGADS! They were out of fastpasses! We would actually have to stand in line! Aargh! DH and #2 headed for the long, long line, while I took #s 1 and 3 to the Maliboomer. I watched, they rode. I'm smart that way. DH and #2 were still in line for Screamin', so we conquered the Orange Stinger next. The little ones played on the SS Rustworthy while the girls rode. Finally, after waiting so patiently while the big kids had their fun, #4 got to ride Jumpin' Jellyfish.
We headed back over to Screamin', where DH and #2 were STILL in line. I picked up a babyswap pass and sent #s 1 and 3 to begin their long wait in line. A few minutes later, DH and #2 FINALLY finished up the ride. #2 and I used our babyswap to hop back in line, where we passed the girls. #1 was not happy about this.
And now, the time had come for the terrifying, horrifying, way too extreme It's Tough to be a Bug. We thought it was cute. Even #5 got into it. A few measly bugs can't scare us!
We were getting hungry, so we picked up a CUTE sourdough Mickey head, which we immediately tore into. Poor Mickey.
At this point, DCa was about to close. I had planned on taking the whole family back to the trailer to get ready for an early daparture the next morning, but the three oldest realized the Disneyland would still be open for the next two hours, and BEGGED me to stay in the parks with them. “What?! We can't leave yet! We love it here! We aren't ready to go!” These are the same children that spent months complaining that we were forcing them to go to stupid Disneyland on vacation. My, my, how things had changed. So DH, whose feet were covered in blisters, took the littles ones back while the rest of us were UNLEASHED in Disneyland. No strollers, no five-year-olds to lose, no plans. Ah, the freedom of it all!
I decided that we could each pick one final ride to go on. #3 chose Screamin', so back into the long line we went. That ride is murder on hair. Here is #3 just after her first ride on Screamin':
#2 then chose to ride ToT. The park was closing in about 10 minutes, so I told him that he and #1 would have to RUN to make it in time. And run they did, pell-mell right into Bug's Land. It was hilarious to see two teenagers running as fast as they could into the kiddie ride section of the park. They realized their mistake, corrected course, and went running into It's Tough to be a Bug. Oops. At this point I was laughing so hard I couldn't breathe.
They finally came back to me for directions, and I sent them on their way. #3 and I browsed some of the shops while we waited for them. DCa has some really wonderful little shops. I especially enjoyed the animation shop. Next, #1 chose to ride Space. This time we did it without fastpasses. That's right, another line. We survived the long wait by actually – gasp - talking to one another. Once again, we loved Space.
And now it was time for my pick. Can you guess which ride I chose? Can you?? That's right – we were off to Splash! On our previous rides, I had managed to place one of my children in front of me to use as a shield against the water. This time, I took one for the team, and I got the “privilege” of riding in the front seat. We zipped, we doo-dahed, I got SOAKED! As we approached the loading area, we heard “Welcome back riders, would you like to go again?” Um, YEAH! So we were off again, without even getting out of our log. We zipped, we doo-dahed, we sang, we decided which silly pose to make for the picture, and I got drenched. This time, we were definitely getting off the ride. No matter what. Once more, we were asked if we wanted to keep riding. Hmmmm....YES! We zipped, we doo-dahed, we got in trouble for rocking the boat. We even talked to the vultures. That was when #1 noticed the real live man at the vulture station. I had forgotten that we are always being watched at Disneyland. Somewhere on you tube, there is probably a video of me making a total fool of myself on Splash Mountain. While looking like a drowned rat. Sigh. At this point, Disneyland was closing, so we were not invited to ride again. Not that we would have, anyway. I do have some self restraint. Really, I do.
So we headed out of Disneyland, having had the time of our lives. That's right, the old Disney magic won us over.
Disneyland has now officially been added to our future vacation plans, but first we have to go to the Black Hills, Texas, and Yellowstone. I'm not sure I can wait that long.
(Don't tell anyone but I do know that nobody had better mess with his little sister unless they want to deal with him.)
are patient with ones that do not always share the grace and ease some others have. We've never done the Jedi training so your rave review sure inspires me to get my little Jedi in there! 
