Day 3: Downtown Disney

Ahhh! A day to sleep in. How nice. Our day started off with the kids discovering "surprises" left by Ariel and Mickey. They left stickers and character baseballs with a note from the characters saying they had fun meeting them (Natalie and Zander) yesterday. The kids were so excited.
After we had a bite to eat, we strolled down to the pool to sit in the sun while we waited for Dan's mom (who was staying at a nearby hotel). It was nice to lay in the sun and the kids had fun throwing the life preserver into the pool. (After looking at my pictures, it looks like I need to spend some more quality time in the sun!)
After awhile we all headed to Downtown Disney which doesn't require a ticket to get in...it's Disney's way of "helping" us spend money at the park even when we're not at Disneyland! Clever! We stopped and had lunch at the Jazz Kitchen (a New Orleans style restaurant) and topped off our meal with some delicious bread pudding.
After lunch we stopped in at the Lego store and the guys had fun "playing" with Legos and other Lego merchandise. As you can see there were Star wars characters made entirely of Legos. It was a big hit. We killed quite a lot of time here. After stopping at Build a bear (just to look) we were heading back to our hotel when we ran into our friends Brooke and Rob (who used to live across the street from us in Troutdale). We chatted for awhile and then went back to the hotel to swim. I highly recommend taking a break from Disneyland for a day. After 2 days, we (the adults) were tired as well as sore from all the walking). It was good for the kids to have a day at a slower pace too...they were on the verge of over stimulation.

Disneyland Day 2...Mickey and friends

Our second day in Disneyland started out in Toontown with a visit to Mickey Mouse's house. It took about 20-30 minutes to get through the house, so I'm glad we didn't wait until later in the day to see Mickey. Natalie really wanted to bring her Ariel doll and without thinking I said she could. Unfortunately, this is the last time we knew where Ariel was. Later that day I realized that she didn't make it back to the hotel with us...along with Natlie's Ariel back pack that was also lost/stolen. We checked lost and found 4 times during our stay, but no one turned her in. On the last day she cried all the way home. It was her favorite doll and she was so sad.

After we took a few photos we went out side where Minnie Mouse was greeting guests. Here line was short, so I quickly got all the kids over and in line to meet Minnie. Next we went on the Gadget roller coaster and them it was time for our lunch at the Blue Bayou. I went ahead and stood in line for our table. I asked for waterfront seating, but the closest they had was the second row in...unless we wanted to wait an additional hour.
I shared a Monte Cristo sandwich with my MIL and Dan ordered Crab cakes. The kids had mac and cheese. It was all very tasty. I have no complaints and because we split a meal we didn't break the bank like we did at Ariel's Grotto. It was fun to eat in the Pirates ride which we went on the day before.

After lunch we used our fastpass at Big Thunder mountain railroad...Another one of my favorites. Natalie loved it. When we got off she said "that was awesome, I want to go again"...so we did!

By now, it was time for a break, so we rested for a bit at the hotel. While the boys were napping, Natalie and I went back to Disneyland to meet Ariel at her Grotto for a photo op. This time it was a different Ariel, but Natalie must not have even noticed. She was stunning and looked just like Ariel. Natalie drew her a picture and wrote I love Ariel. She loved it and gave Natalie lots of hugs and smiles. She was on cloud 9 for sure.

After checking the lost and found again, Natalie and I rushed over to California Adventure where we were going to meet the boys and watch the Aladdin play. Unfortunately, there was a misprint in the schedule and the play wasn't showing at that time. Instead we went to the Muppet 3-D show which was great. Natalie kept reaching out trying to grab at things. It was pretty cute.

Next we went to see Turtle Talk with Crush (from Finding Nemo). This was an amazing interactive experience where a computer generated turtle would call on people from the audience and answer their questions. Everything was in real time, the voice, movements and even humorous comments. Dan and I were very impressed. Next we went to a drawing class and we all learned how to draw Goofy. Dan's drawing turned out the best. The kids were a little frustrated at how theirs turned out, but we were very proud of them for following the directions all the way through. We decided to kill some more time before we walked back to the hotel, so we rode on the Monster's Inc. ride.

Later we cruised on over for the fireworks...

Fireworks at Disneyland

Our First Morning...Early Entry

The moment I'd been waiting for was finally here. I was giddy! We chose to use our early entry because it's only offered on certain days and this was the best day for us. So we got up early and walked to Disneyland so we could get in at 8 am, an hour before the park opens. (Although, I'm not sure if there was much of a difference during spring break. There were still a lot of people there already.)

As we were walking down Main Street for the first time, it was so great, as a mom, to watch the expressions on their faces as they saw the castle for the first time. I could have cried...I'm such a sap that way.

When we got to the castle, of course we had to have our pictures taken. I'm glad we did, because the lighting was great this time of day and it was a lot less crowded. We also had a Disney photographer take our photo. Disneyland has this great system for taking photos. When you are done, they give you a card (credit card size) that has your photo information on it. Then every time you get your picture taken, you hand the photographer your card and they add the photos to the card. Then you can view them online or at the Disney photo shop and you can order prints up to 30 days.

The only section that was open for the early entry is Fantasyland (this is different from the last time we went, when the whole park was open). So for our first ride, we went on Dumbo. At first Zander wasn't sure about Dumbo, but when he got off, he wanted to go again. Instead, we decided we better get in line for Peter Pan's ride as the wait time was already 30 minutes. (unfortunately, there are no fastpasses in Fantasyland). The kids waited patiently through the line and enjoyed the ride. As it turns out, this was the longest we would have to wait in line for a ride!

By the time we were done, the rest of the park was open, so we went over to ride on Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters in Tomorrow land. As you ride through the ride, you are on a mission to destroy Zurg with your laser gun. There are targets all through out the ride and you can shoot at them and earn points. This ride was so fun we went on it again, as the wait was only 10 minutes. Our next stop was Star Tours. This is one of my all-time favorite rides. Hayden wasn't old enough, so Dan's mom watched him while we went on the ride. Star Tours simulates a space flight (from Star Wars) and makes you feel like you are actually "flying." I wasn't sure how the kids would do with all the surprises this ride has, but they absolutely loved it.

Afternoon with the Princesses

Today was our big Princess day. Beginning with the Princess Fantasy Faire, the kids got to hear stories told by some of the princesses. Then they made crowns and learned princess etiquette as well as some new dances. Zander was a real trouper and didn't mind one bit. Of course Natalie couldn't have been more excited to see the princesses.
She was a little star struck and shy at first, but she soon warmed up to everything. There was a beautiful May pole dance in addition to the other dances they learned.

As soon as the Faire was over it was off to California Adventure for our lunch at Ariel's Grotto. Our reservations were for outdoor seating, as the inside was already filled up all week. I prayed for nice weather and although it was a little breezy, the sun was out and it looked like the rain that was forecasted wasn't going to give us any trouble. By the time we got to our table, the wind picked up a bit, but fortunately, we all had jackets.

When I made the reservations, I mentioned Ariel was her favorite princess...this really paid off, as Natalie got to spend extra special time with Ariel. When she first came to our table, she took Natalie aside for a little dance. The two twirled around and I just knew Natalie was having the time of her life...again, totally could have cried...but then who would take the pictures, right? Before we left in the morning, I asked Natalie if she wanted to draw a picture for Ariel. She got right on it and as a result, got extra hugs from her favorite mermaid. Ariel told her she was going to keep it in her special treasure chest and reminded Natalie to eat all her seaweed (veggies)...after that, the green beans were gone. Every last one.
The autograph books really came in handy and we got 5 princesses autographs all in one sitting. Much better than waiting in line for them!
When I made the reservations, I also mentioned we were celebrating Natalie's birthday (even though it was really in December) They brought out a dish of ice cream w/ a candle for Natalie, but had a hard time lighting it due to the wind. Ariel helped Natalie blow it out. Just as we finished our lunch the wind really picked up, by the time we left the restaurant, it started to rain...The timing couldn't have been better. We walked back to our hotel for some much needed rest.

Later that night we returned for the parade and went on the It's a Small World ride...then we called it a night. It was truly a magical day!

We're Back...Come see our photos!

We had a great trip and I have lots to share. Every day this week, I will share a little glimpse into our Disneyland vacation. Along the way, I will pass along tips that made our trip great.

Planning
Before we left, I did extensive research. I learned that reservations for character dining as well as the major sit down restaurants (like Blue Bayou) were made a month in advance. I also went to the Disney website and found out which rides/attractions would be closed and made a list of all the different things we wanted to see/do. (just a note for those w/ small kids...expect this list to be cut significantly!!!) Dan and I made a tentative schedule of the things we wanted to do each day. This was SO helpful in getting my head around everything. Some days we had to work around show times and meal reservations, so it was invaluable to know ahead of time how to plan our flex-time at the parks. We also planned it so we spent 2 days at the parks, then took a day off and then had our last day on Friday when all the special plays and parades were running. The day off in between was a much needed break for us and the kids.

Packing
Before we left, I tried to think of everything we would need to make our trip more enjoyable. So, besides clothing...here are some things that came in handy:
Glow sticks for night time fun (Walmart sells them for .88...much cheaper than anything you will find at DL), Disney tummy ticklers juice bottles, 12 pack of colored Sharpies for autographs (colors coordinate w/each character), autograph books, crayons and paper/coloring books, fruit snacks (for the kids to chew when the plane takes off), neat sheet ground cover for sitting on during parades and fireworks, disposable cameras for the kids, extra memory card for my digital camera, quarters and pennies (for all the squished penny machines), disposable ponchos (.88 at Walmart), lots of clean socks, colorful bandanna to tie around stroller for easy identification, pretty princess dress for Natalie, Disney character clothes for the boys, small backpack for bringing snacks and stuff to the park, sun screen and lots of patience.

Snacks I packed a whole small suitcase full of snacks. This was a suggestions I heard over and over...bring snacks into Disneyland to avoid the high prices at the park. Best suggestion ever. I brought a box of cereal, 2 boxes of dried apple snacks, about 24 fruit roll ups, animal crackers, 3 boxes of granola bars, snack sizes pouches of Teddy Grahams crackers, Wheat Thins, gummy snacks (princesses and pirates), and Papa Giki cookies found in the bulk foods section at Winco (.98). They are very filling and filled with wholesome ingredients. Because we had all these snacks, we didn't waste any time sitting down for breakfast, we ate our breakfast on the way to the park each morning and got in right when it opened. They also came in handy while waiting in line or when your kids are starving, but you won't be eating for another hour or two. By the end of the trip, we ate up every last snack and so we could use the empty suitcase to bring home our souvenirs.

DAY 1: Traveling to California









First Night at the Hotel
After we got checked in, it was about 8 pm, so we decided to walk to McDonald's for dinner. This must have been the game plan for everyone else too, because McDonald's was crowded, even at this late hour. After dinner we got the kids in their pajamas and just as we got them tucked into bed we heard the fireworks start. I walked outside and wouldn't you know it...we had a spectacular view of the whole fireworks show from our room. Although I wanted the kids to be well rested, I couldn't resist getting them out of bed to watch the fireworks. They loved it and were jumping up and down and clapping. It was a great end to a long day of traveling.