Babes in Disneyland - A Quick One-day Trip!

[Jaina]

So I found out yesterday that on Thursday I will be taking an unexpected trip to Disneyland (no CA ) My husband and I are going to San Diego for a conference (with our 9-month-old in tow) and I am staying the first 1.5 days in Anaheim with two of my best friends. One of them has a little guy having his 2nd birthday on the 11th, and since they both have passes (but are less experienced with DLR than me so far) they said they'd help with my ticket (funds are tight) so I can go too and play tour guide!

The cast:
Me, almost-9-month-old little dude (DS#2),

my friend K, with her turning-2 boy, and N with her 4-year-old and 18-month-old princesses. Did I mention that they are both pregnant? (earlier, so not big and uncomfortable). It's going to be a -different- trip, but since I thought it would be years before we could afford any kind of Disney again, I'm ecstatic.
I made this yesterday, so our family now has a matched set:

We haven't told the older kids this is going down yet. Hope they aren't toooo upset!
Here's a pic from the last time I went to Disney with these "girls." (almost 10 years ago, pre-kids!)

I will do a mini trip report when we return. I've never been with a baby before, but I think he will love it! Hopefully he will sleep there... you never can tell!

 

[Cheshirecatty]

Hi Jaina…..haven't seen you around for a while!

I remember your last Trip Report!

How fun----an unexpected trip, and with your friends, as well!

Have a wonderful time!

 

[Jaina]

Thanks! I intend to!

 

[WDWJonasGirl]

Congrats on the baby!! I am actually a former VMK'er too

 

[Jaina]

I started this once, but then a few of my kids got strep, and I totally forgot that I never did it!
We drove to Anaheim (from the Phx area) Wednesday, and spent the evening with our friends. (We stayed with one of my college roommates, her husband, and their just-2-year-old). Didn't sleep well that night. We can't sleep on an air mattress together, plus DH had to get up about 5:30 because a friend was picking him up at 6:30 to give him a ride down to San Diego.

Thursday, September 11th

I am a rope-drop girl. I like to be in line a good 20 minutes before they might open the turnstiles. So it was a little challenging for me to be patient as my friends got ready to go, knowing there was no way we'd be there at opening. I was good though, and just relaxed, knowing this would not be a go-go-go trip. I had a baby, my friends were both pregnant, and it was supposed to be a hot day. Also, I knew it was early entry at Disneyland, so there would already be some crowds even if we got there early. I was determined to just go and enjoy the magic and soak up being there, especially since a few days before, it hadn't even been a possibility! I had three main objectives going into this day: Big Thunder Mountain (It had been closed on my last trip, so I hadn't been on it in about 6 years!), a corn dog, and to relax and enjoy.

My little guy, luckily took a nap from about 8 to 8:40,because he'd been up at 6, and I wasn't sure how naps were going to go in the parks. They're a little challenging at home, in his bed... We left the house about 9:15, I think, and K (my friend), B (her husband), W (their birthday boy - 2 years old that day!), Shawn (my almost-9-month-old), and I crammed into their little hatchback, because if I took my own car, well, I'd have to pay for parking, which was out of my budget after buying much of my ticket. (Thanks, friends!!)

We parked at the Toy Story lot, which I had never done before, because their little guy loves the "big blue bus!" Even wearing my "little" guy (22 lbs...), it was a little exciting packing up the stroller and grabbing my stuff. Just baby stuff alone for the day was a good bag's worth, plus snacks, and a soft-sided cooler. (He has to have ready-to-feed Alimentum, which I knew wouldn't be available at the baby center, and it has to be refrigerated. Complicated.) But we made it! I was so excited just to be there that I didn't mind all the hassle (or the sweat already trickling down my face) and was just on Cloud 9.

We had to stop at the ticket booth for my ticket. (My friends had recently purchased AP's - this was basically their 3rd ever visit!) While waiting, I took these pictures. So happy!

Finally, at about 10:20 or so, we were in! Happy, happy, happy. First stop for the pregnant lady was the restroom, since we had left home over an hour before. It was already toasty on Main Street, and while waiting we checked out the fire station and met Pluto (Which was the only character I waited in line for that day. He really wasn't that interested in the characters. Not more than anything else, anyway)

I was surprised to find that the castle was closed. Like you couldn't walk through there to Fantasyland. What the... (Later found it's because they were working on blocking off/removing the benches along the drawbridge ) So we headed around the corner next to the Matterhorn. It. was. hot. And all the lines (according to Mousewait) were kind of long. The sign said Alice in Wonderland (which they'd never been on, and I wanted to check out the changes to) was 30 minutes, but I could tell by looking that it wasn't a 30-minute line. (Ended up being right at 20) So we jumped in. Sheesh, I should have worn the carrier. Shawn was heavy! (It was a really great carrier - a Beco Gemini, that I had borrowed, but it was just too hot of a day for it! Otherwise I would have used it a lot more!) It was fun waiting in his first Disney line and riding his very first ride though! I was paying so much attention to what he thought of it and trying to get a decent selfie that I didn't get to fully appreciate the changes. But they seemed cool... I decided not to lug around our Canon. I didn't think I could be responsible for that AND a baby all day. I did bring my video camera, but didn't get it out much, and mostly just used my iPhone. I didn't want to be juggling stuff constantly, and I would have my phone anyway, so I just did that. He is a very observant baby, and LOVES to be out and about, in his stroller or wherever, and look at things. So he pretty much loved Disneyland. His face doesn't often reflect this, but I promise he liked Alice...

They had never been in Toontown, so we (I?) decided we'd better do that before it got any hotter. (In other words, we didn't end up ever getting to do Peter Pan or Dumbo, which I expected to do! But it wasn't about fulfilled expectations this trip, thankfully. ) Toontown is warm even on some nice days, and by 10:45 that place was like a happy little oven. Did I mention that it was also a muggy/humid day? I know, I'm from Arizona, but I've also lived in Iowa and Virginia, and it -was- a bit humid. Shawn and I did some relaxing in the shade and having a snack while they checked out Mickey's house. He loved watching everything!

Sorry about all the pictures. He is adorable, and it was his first Disney trip...

At this point our other friend (N, and her girls, M4.5 and M2-almost 2) had finally made it to the park, and she was trying to meet up with us. She brought her SIL, Kr, who is an AP, and was awesome to have around. We needed another adult with all those little ones, and she was a lot of fun. We decided to go on Roger Rabbit, since we were right there, and it should be cooler in there. Ha. The line was more than 20 minutes (it's one of those many hidden, deceptive ones) and the line itself was not nearly as air-conditioned as it needed to be! I worried that Shawn might be scared of RR (I remembered it being a little intense, plus he had to sit -next- to me on the seat), but I just snuggled him close and he never made a peep. Great face, huh?

Once we got out around 12:30, the crowd index was at about 65, the thermometer was over 95º, and my more-pregnant friend (K, about 14 weeks) was getting overheated and overwhelmed. Their first visit had been very uncrowded and the weather had been nice. We went towards Small World, but the line looked too hot to her, and and she and her little family decided to go find somewhere cooler to calm down.

Small World: the line looked a little long, and it WAS hot, but they had both sides running and we weren't in line more than 5-10 minutes. This was definitely Shawn's favorite ride (despite his face in the pic. Don't judge from that...) He liked how slow we were going, so he could just look and look and see everything there was to see, and he liked the singing. I loved taking him on it!

It was a touch stressful in the middle of the day there. It was W's birthday, and they had made it possible for me to be there, and I wanted them to have a good time, and at that point they weren't! It killed me, but while in line, I texted to tell her we could leave if they needed to, or they could leave and N or her husband could pick Shawn and I up later that evening), or whatever she wanted to do.

I was completely fine, (though I tend to overheat easily) because I was so happy to be there, and Shawn was happy, but would our day get cut short?

 

[WDWJonasGirl]

I love it!! I'm actually a former VMK'er too

 

[petals]

Luvin the matching shirts and your little guy is to cute

 

[Jaina]

Thanks!
WDWJonasGirl, have you found MyVMK.com? It's quite amazing what they've recreated.

 

[WDWJonasGirl]

Yes I have. I'm in love with it.

 

[Jaina]

Sorry for the delay! I kind of forgot that I never finished this! I'll try to finish getting it up over the next week or two before I forget all these details!

After Small World we trekked over to Tomorrowland to see if we could find K and Co., and to refill our waters! I had never used the filtered water at Tomorrowland Terrace, but was oh-so-grateful for it that afternoon! We got all rehydrated, and were going to go into Innoventions (we told her it had a/c, so thought they might be there) but when we realized we couldn't take the strollers in, decided it wasn't worth packing everyone and everything in there. It's been several years since I've been in there. (Like 8) Am I missing out?

We decided a surefire cure for the heat was a ride on Buzz Lightyear, as long as it wasn't too crowded. It wasn't! We were on in just a few minutes (another reason to love that ride) and we actually ran into B and the birthday boy going on the same ride. K was finding a place to cool off. I don't know if Shawn liked Buzz or not. I was too busy trying to get points... No, he seemed to enjoy it, and never fussed even a bit. Pretty much the theme for the day.

It was fun and the line was short, so we ran around and did it all over again! My score the second time was 279,000 which is close to my all-time high, I think. All while holding a baby! I love that ride. (especially since I usually win when I'm with my DH. His favorite is TSMM, especially since he almost always beats me). Oh, and Shawn vows to improve his score next time...

We went to find K, (and a bathroom) and she was loving hanging out at the Space Mountain exit (super uncrowded and calm, since Space was closed for its Ghost Galaxy overlay still). I think she stayed there for a couple hours, until the worst of the heat had passed!

I decided it was a good time to visit the famed Baby Center and nurse, wash out some bottles, change the kiddo, etc. I have been to Disneyland like 13 times, but never with a baby or a toddler, so I had never seen the Baby Center. I may have paused in Star Traders (which I was cutting through) to take a few pictures.

The Baby Center was SO cool. I loved it. So did Shawn, especially since I let him down on the floor to crawl around for a few minutes after we were all done. The ladies that ran it were so sweet and cute. And the A/C was so wonderful!

The other cool thing I had noticed on the way over was that at 2:30, the crowds had really died down. Had all the locals decided it just wasn't worth it and gone home? I looked at the MouseWait Crowd index (which had been at 65 around 11:30 or 12) and it had dropped down to like 35. What the what? The line for Star Tours said 5 minutes. !?! But I had a baby. How could I sneak a ride on Star Tours with that amazing non-wait?

 

[Jaina]

I don't think anyone is following this, but I'd like to finish it anyway, so I have a record of the little guy's first trip. (And since I'm starting to get excited, trying to figure out when to go again)
-------------------------------

I mentioned the wait to my friends when I got back, and they are wonderful, and said, "Of course, go! We'll watch him!" So Kr (the AP SIL) grabbed M4.5 (the just-newly-tall-enough-4-yo) and came with me, and we left my friends N and K with the two toddlers and their pregnant bellies and ran to Star Tours. So fun to go on that again, and it seemed like such a bonus, since I hadn't expected to go on any "big" rides at all on this trip! M4.5 was a little nervous, but seemed to enjoy it. My older kids (at home, 8, 7, and almost-5) are Star Wars fanatics, so this was one of their favorites on our family trips.

At this point the little guy was way ready for a nap (If we had been home, he would have napped like 2 hours ago), so I switched strollers with my friend (hers reclined), gave him a bottle, and started walking. He was out within like 5 minutes I think, but continued to suck his bottle dry (just 4 oz) and slept for over an hour. One cute part was when Alice and the Hatter were headed backstage (probably after their afternoon musical chairs) and made a big to do about stopping to peek into the stroller at him.
(pic of me is during my put-him-to-sleep walk)

While he was asleep, we headed over to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (the only one I really had hoped to ride, since it was closed for that long refurb the last time we came). I felt better asking someone to watch him when he was out. My friend N hadn't been on it since it reopened either, and she was interested in taking her daughter, M4.5 (the one who was newly-40-inches) but N was in her late first trimester, so she had to decide if it was a risk she was comfortable with.
She is a Labor & Delivery nurse, and had been on Big Thunder before, and heard it was actually smoother now, so she decided she wasn't worried. What a great ride! M4.5 wasn't sure if she liked it, but I LOVED it and enjoyed the new track and the new special effects. I also tried the billy goat trick this time, and it was fun and a little trippy.

When we finished the ride, Shawn was awake, and we spent a few minutes watching the Mark Twain go by. It was still hot, but that little spot by the River is nice.

The little ones were campaigning for Winnie the Pooh, so we headed on over to Critter Country, but got distracted by the short line (we thought) for Pirates. That ride is definitely wonderful to ride in the heat of the day! The line was tricky and wrapped over around the side of the building, which I hadn't seen before, so was more like 15 minutes. I know, poor us. But it was hot and we had lots of babies! Shawn actually seemed to really enjoy this one, too. He liked being able to sit still and turn his head all around to see different sights. After we finished we headed towards Winnie the Pooh. But as we passed I said something about the Mint Julep Bar and the Mickey beignets I had never gotten to try. This happened next:

Of course, we -just- missed the grand re-opening of the Haunted Mansion with its holiday overlay (that was happening the next day!)
As we passed Splash Mountain, just hoping it might work out, I grabbed a FP, and asked if B (K's husband) was interested in grabbing one, too. Apparently he had been hoping to ride it, but hadn't gotten a chance to try it yet, so he jumped at the chance. Then we proceeded to ride Winnie the Pooh (with no wait, of course) 3 times in a row. The littles were pleased. Shawn seemed to like this one too, of course.

We were ready for some dinner at this point, and the Little Red Wagon on Main Street was closed for the day ( ) so we went over to the Stagecoach something or other (I don't think I've ever been in there!) and got some amazing, delicious corn dogs. I had been craving Disneyland corn dogs since our last visit!

With only an hour or two left in the happily-awake time of the youngest ones, we had to decide what to do with our remaining time. It was so hard to choose, especially when I was hoping for a train ride around the park. (A time-eater, but I knew Shawn would enjoy it)

 

[Jaina]

Hopefully I can wrap this up.

One of the most exciting parts of our little day trip was yet to happen. After several rounds through the Hundred-Acre-Wood and a tasty corn dog sticking to my ribs, it was time to use our Splash Mountain fast passes. I enjoyed the shortish wait with B, my friend's husband. He is kind of shy, and though they've been married for like 5 years, and though I've met him several times, we've never talked much. We had a nice time chatting while he waited for his first ride on Splash Mountain though. When he wondered aloud about sitting in the front, I encouraged him, (giggling inside, knowing what can happen to the person in the front, especially an adult in a heavy log) and told him we could absolutely ask to be put there.

It was a super fun run, and I enjoyed it immensely, as did B. But the joke was on me. Though he did get super wet, (remember, it was a really hot day, and I'm sure the "splash factor" was turned up) I'M the one that didn't have an inch of dry anywhere. Not a single spot. I was completely soaked. I was so glad I had wrapped my iPhone tightly in a plastic bag, and that I was wearing my Croc flip flops and non-denim shorts!

We texted the rest of our party and found that they were in Fantasyland(!) without us, riding rides! Stinkers. On our way to meet up with them, I got another little thrill: I got to see the Halloween tree!


I was excited that I knew enough to recognize it at least, and I grabbed an in-motion picture as we headed through and cut through the new Princess area (what is that called again?) to find our families in Fantasyland. We squeezed into line with them (there wasn't much line) for Snow White's Scary Adventure, which didn't scare Shawn. (the weird truncated ending always scares me a little though)
To end our night I got to take my little guy on my "special" ride: the Carousel. Only at Disneyland can I ride on a horse two and no one looks at me sideways. By the way, it's hard to hold onto a squishy, slippery baby (that I'm getting wet just by contact) and get any kind of good or even non-blurry pictures. I still enjoyed it a lot.

I was sad that our day was over. Shawn and I might have been good to stick around another hour and soak in the atmosphere, but it was just as likely that he was going to lose it on the car ride home (though my friend only lives 15-20 minutes away) from exhaustion, and everyone else's littles were ready to sleep too. So we said goodbye to one of my very favorite places. Usually I'm kind of sad and teary-eyed, but it was such a wonderful bonus-trip that I was mostly just grateful for my good fortune and glad that the day had been so enjoyable!

 

[Karen87]

Thank you for the Trip Report! I am hopeful of taking my family to Disneyland in August, and was worried that my (then) 18 month old grandson wouldn't enjoy it / be able to ride much. Your trip report has eased my mind. He'll love it!

 

[Jaina]

Thank you for the Trip Report! I am hopeful of taking my family to Disneyland in August, and was worried that my (then) 18 month old grandson wouldn't enjoy it / be able to ride much. Your trip report has eased my mind. He'll love it!

I'm glad it was useful! Yes, there is -lots- he can do! As long as you go with the flow and he gets plenty of snacks and some rest, he will probably have a great time!

 

[Jaina]

One last post on this trip. I almost didn't post this video (I enjoyed doing video clips for my last TR) because it's a little embarrassing. Not much quality happens when you're holding a baby and trying to film at the same time, and since I was the only parent-of-Shawn there, I did most of the filming and the holding. But some of it is really funny. Mostly all of his neutral/scared faces when I pulled the camera out. It looks like I'm the only one having fun sometimes, but I promise he really liked it!
Also, I forgot to put my favorite picture in. Me and two of my very best friends (in between one of the Winnie the Pooh rides, I think):

Babes in Disneyland: Shawn's First Trip

Thanks for anyone that read or followed along. Hopefully it will be some kind of help for more people that are nervous about taking a baby! (Cake if that's all you're doing, but it would have been more complicated if I had had older kids to help have fun, too!)