Disneyland

{Yes, back to blogging and determined to catch up!!:)}

DISNEYLAND 2013
On April 19th we left on an 11-day trip to California, 5 of which we spent in the Happiest Place on Earth! Yep, I said FIVE and we loved every minute of it!

Our hotel was the Anaheim Marriot Suites & with our package came free breakfast every morning. This wasn't just some lame continental breakfast... it was  the hotel's amazing in-house restaurant and it was SO GOOD! It was a buffet of fresh blueberry pancakes, French toast, a chef stood by at the omlette bar to whip up whatever kind of omlette you wished... there was bacon, sausage, fresh fruit, bagels, toast, cereal... anything and it was SUPER DELICIOUS!! We ended up being later than we wanted to the parks most days because we were enjoying our breakfast a little too much... but it was so worth it! And it was FREE! (We did tip the waiter of course!) I have to make note of it because as silly as it sounds, it really was one of the highlights of our trip, haha!

We spent 3 days in Disneyland and 2 in CA Adventure Park.

The weather was nice, but totally bipolar! Thank goodness I threw in leggings for the girls, and had to take them on and off depending on the time of day. It made for interesting outfits during the leggings-on moments, (they were long and didn't look so hot with their skirts) but they were just glad to be warm when we needed them!

 

CA Adventure Park!

(P & I in the front row)

 

The Tower of Terror. Parker of course loved. Emmie, on the other hand, was traumatized for life by this one. I will blame it on her Father who thought she was fine to go... and myself who reluctantly let her. When she came back wide-eyed and white as a ghost I knew we were really, really bad parents. Who lets their four year old ride the Tower of Terror?! Poor thing! She didn't scream or cry but her face said it all. Needless to say, she was not a returning passenger for this one.

Emmie was big enough for the Matterhorn this year, and at P & E's request, it was the first ride we rode of our trip and the very last. They LOVE it! Emmie was so brave and it didn't even make her flinch. I was desperately trying to hold onto her from my seat right behind her but she couldn't have cared less- wasn't scared at all.  I bet they went on it 8 or 9 times. Sadly, Big Thunder and Space Mountain were closed, but they both also loved Splash Mountain! My four-year-old was WAY braver than her thirty-something Mom on that huge hill. She loved it! Another one that she loved were the tea cups.

Another favorite was the (upside down!) Mickey roller coaster in CA Adventure. Emmie was too short for it (thank goodness;) so us girls stood on stand by while the boys rode it a bunch of times. I usually love roller coasters but I find that the older I am the less brave I am. Last time I rode this I got a huge headache so I elected to just sit this one out. Sadly, we didn't make it on the much-talked about new CARS ride. Whenever we went to use our Fastpass, it was broken down. :(

On Wednesday Steven, Kylie & Jack (who live in San Diego) came up and spent the day with us at Disney. It was so fun to see them and the kids loved seeing their cute cousin again! We actually randomly arrived at the exact same time and they parked right by us in the garage so we entered and exited with them. Talk about perfect timing. :)

Lexi liked the characters from afar but once up close she would lean as far away as she could from them. P & E had fun filling their autograph books.  

This little girl was such a trooper! She did a LOT of waiting while her older sibs rode the rides ( she could actually ride a good majority of them), and I don't think she cried once, sleep deprived and all! In the bottom left pic,  she was wandering around a shop grabbing all the characters while we waited for the others on Splash Mountain. She had just begun walking a week or two before, so she definitely had the shaky-baby walk going and people kept pointing out the cute little "walking" baby, thinking that she was much younger than she is. I heard several people say how "cute it is when babies walk at such a young age". I just smiled and didn't bother telling them that the "baby" was actually 19 months old, although she looks more like a 10 month old, LOL.

The night that Steven and Kylie were there, we walked right onto "Small World" as the parade was going. I had forgotten how that ride is about three hours long! In the middle of it, Emmie had that dreaded look of panic on her face. I knew immediately she had to go to the bathroom. The ride went on and on and then of course there was a big hold up with the boats and we sat there stuck for what seemed like forever. E was about in tears and ready to pee her pants.  I seriously contemplated jumping out and pulling her through the emergency exit but FINALLY our tour of the "Small"(But Really-Long-World) was over. She and I sprinted to the nearest restroom, barely making it. As she was finishing, I heard the Cinderella chime of the clock striking midnight, indicating closing time(which in D-Land in April is 8 p.m.). I  looked at her excitedly in the stall and explained  that the familiar sound was Cinderella's clock. Her eyes widened on her cute, super sleepy, dazed face, and she gasped as she tried process what I was telling her.
 Making one of my favorite moments of the trip, she looked at me in all seriousness and drama that only Emmie can convey, & said, (eyes wide as ever),
"Is she COMING???".
I love my Emmie.
& this is why I love Disney.
The wonder and awe and believing  in something magical that ignites the imaginations of us all through this awesome place.
 

Another one of our favorites from this trip was Goofy's Kitchen. We went there in 2010 and knew we had to go back. And we didn't regret. It's pricey, but so worth it! Our kids loved it! We had dinner there on our last night and had great food, way fun character interaction...it was the perfect way to end our Disney adventure. Minnie was especially excited that us girls had coordinating outfits. She doted on Parker like crazy and made him blush a few times.
 I love that my kids think these peeps are real. I realize that it won't last forever and I'm going to relish every minute of their young innocence.
 We love you Disneyland!
We had such a wonderful time and the kids are asking when we get to go back!
Next stop? San Diego!