Day 3, part 3 -- A Day in DCA (March 11, 2013)
This should probably wrap up the first day, unless I get really longwinded ...
We previously left off on our way back to the hotel before our Goofy's Kitchen dinner. This was to be DS8's special birthday treat -- and he wanted it ON his birthday, so dinner it is.
We arrived just before our reservation time at 5:00 and I was pleasantly surprised that it wasn't busy. I paid for our meal using my AP and they were ready right away to take our picture with Chef Goofy. Our friend Marilyn's husband, Charlie, works as a supervisor of the Photopass photographers there, so we said hi to him.
The girl who had my camera started snapping right away as we met Goofy. Points to her.
We got a good family picture and then I requested one of the birthday boy with Goofy.
It turned out really well, considering that it's hard to get a great, genuine, posed smile out of DS8 right now.
We were shown to our table, which was in the little upstairs nook to the right just as you enter the restaurant. There weren't many tables full yet and for awhile we had the nook to ourselves, which was nice as my kids traipsed back and forth to the buffet.
Our first visitor was Minnie Mouse!
I LOVE this picture of my girls in Minnie shirts with Minnie! This may make it into the "favorite photos" frame.
And here's where I learned something about fur characters that I never knew --
they can't speak, but they CAN make noises!!
Don't tell Mickey, but Minnie was smitten with DS16.
After taking photos with the younger kids, she came over to him and started making kissy smoochy sounds at him!! Once I figured out what she was doing I couldn't help laughing as she fawned all over DS. He took it in stride. It was hilarious!!
Next came Pluto in his personalized apron (which didn't stop some clueless people on our last visit from calling him "Goofy")
When Aladdin came over we told him we had just seen his show. He told us Genie keeps him up to date on all of his pop-culture references. Those are the kind of interactions I love -- spontaneous and unique.
Cinderella dropped by and she was really sweet and princess-y with DS. I was just glad he didn't snub her -- I think he was a little in awe.
I think DS8 may have had food in his mouth for this picture, which fits with the character. When DD10 asked Chip where Dale was, he pantomimed that Dale was off sleeping somewhere.
DD10 and I couldn't resist the giant strawberries at the buffet. And yes, her eyes are really that blue.
The waiters came by with a cupcake and to sing DS a happy birthday. He was so full by this point in the meal that we had to help him eat it! I'm really glad I didn't buy the treasure chest cake for $15 because it would have gone straight into the hotel fridge.
By now we had been there about an hour and we were stuffed. There didn't seem to be any more characters about to come by, and I could tell the family was starting to get antsy. We probably might have seen another character or two if we were willing to wait, but 6 was sufficient for my family.
While I really enjoyed our meal and the interactions, 5 adults and 1 child (with AP discount) came out to a staggering $241 after tax and tip. That is A LOT of money. Unless one of the kids specifically requests it, I think we will probably skip character meals for the most part and focus on regular sit-down meals -- in contrast, our Carnation Cafe lunch later in the trip was $60.
We took our printed photo package back to the hotel and used the GCH entrance to re-enter California Adventure. My AP photo still didn't show up, so I showed my drivers license again (sensing a trend here?)
We retrieved our jackets and the kids wanted to go on Screamin' before they closed it down for World of Color. At a little before 7:00 it only had a 10-minute wait!!
Screamin' at twilight is awesome!! So we rode it
twice!! I will only subject you to one set of Photopass pictures, mainly for the silly faces.
Yep, they all belong to me.
Ariel's Undersea Adventure was a walk-on, so we rode it twice too. I am glad to see Disneyland returning to its roots and creating more family-friendly dark rides. It's not the best ever, but I found plenty to like. I'm not the type to ride something over and over, but twice in a short period really allows you to get the whole picture of a ride when your head is swiveling back and forth.
With long lines at many big rides, we opted to spend some time in Bugs Land. We went to the It's Tough to Be a Bug movie. The kids saw it in October 2009 on our trip and no one was scarred for life, so I knew they would be OK. They were prepared for the bee sting in the back of their seat (although we still can't figure out how they recess it back there). But DD10 didn't remember the "bugs under your seat" effect and we got a genuine squeal/scream out of her when they ran through!
We hit Heimlich's Chew Chew Train. When DH was laughing after I took this picture I had to look at it to see why.
If he weren't so handsome ...
... I probably wouldn't claim him!
The older kids wanted to ride the bumper cars, so we waited in line. Honestly I think we waited more time for some of the Bugs Land rides than Screamin' that night. I hate slow loaders.
***This part is kind of gross, so if you don't want to read it, resume after the next set of asterisks.**
We were just about to board when the guy in front of us scoops up his little boy and runs ACROSS the surface of the ride to the exit. "Poor child," I think, "he must not be feeling well." We are starting to crowd the entrance when the CM tells everyone to step back. As my perspective changes, I see that the slick floor of the ride now has some wet patches ... all they way to the exit. Apparently the little boy couldn't hold it, so the father rushed him
through the ride to get out. This caused them to shut down the ride while they cleaned the floor.
So we had waited 15 minutes and and never got to ride. I will not repeat that evening's mental tirade against the father who thought going through was a better course of action.
*****
After our not-ride of the bumper cars, we did the Ladybug Boogie and I managed to keep down our $241 dinner by spotting on outside objects. But when the family decided that the Flik Flyers were next, I graciously excused myself -- two spinning rides in a row are one too many for me. Instead, I took a few notes on my phone and checked my e-mail.
During their ride, the fireworks started going off across the esplanade, so it must have been about 8:40. We had accomplished a lot that day, and I wanted to be there for 8:00 EMH at Disneyland in the morning, so we decided to go back to the hotel, accompanied by the sound of the fireworks.
I had to stop at the PPH front desk to get my World of Color Fastpasses that they couldn't print the day before. By the time I got up to the room, the kids were practically in bed and crashed quickly. DH and I stayed up a little longer and I got organized for the next day. But we too crashed early that night.
PHXscuba
)
We took the now-familiar shortcut through the GCH and practically skipped/bounced/ran through DTD, we were so excited.
It was totally worth waking up early for.
They actually were gone from the phone but were still in my e-mail Notes file (don't ask me how that all works). So I printed them all out superfast in case my computer eats them too. Whew!! 
) it might be nice to have. Me, I know I'd stick the CD in, copy to the computer once and never see/touch/use the CD again. So a download was perfect for me. We also have Carbonite backup for our computers since we store work-related stuff on them. It's $60 a year but my peace of mind is worth it.
The kids also dug into their bags for a snack.
Bummer but still a really good show. The kids were cracking Genie jokes for days afterward -- both boys have steel-trap brains for those jokes.
