A 6-hour can be totally relaxing... when you aren't the one driving... and when you have no kids. Thankfully, I guess, William likes for me to not be driving so that I can climb into the back to help with whatever the kids need, which means I don't usually drive, unless he is absolutely exhausted. But this time around, the drive over to Anaheim wasn't too bad. We didn't even have to turn the DVD player on.
When we got to the hotel, we unpacked quickly and headed downtown for food because we were so hungry. Happy baby meant that we did not stop for food. Instead we ate a bunch of snacks. We decided on pizza, which was delicious, by the way. And I was happy that we ate early because they sat us down right away. By the time we left, however, there was a 45 minutes line outside the door. And as a bonus, some guy came over to our table and shaped balloons for the kids. Alexis' didn't last 2 minutes, but even the popping sound under her teeth didn't spook her. The girl has no fear! And then of course, I had to try some of those macaroons and beignets William had told me so much about. They were to die for! Oh, my, heavens. I could eat those beignets every day and not ever get sick of them. That night we went to bed before 9 pm because staying at a Disney hotel meant that we got an extra hour at the park, before it opened for everyone else.
Day 1: Arrival
William's pictures...
My pictures...
Day 2: California Adventure
Extra magic hours are worth GOLD when you got to Disneyland or California Adventure during the busiest season of the year. So when we went on the Guardians of the Galaxy (aka the old Tower of Terror), we didn't have to wait. Ha! And since Alexis was too small to ride it, we got a Parent Swap. So 2 of the 3 kids got to ride it again, with no wait. Double Ha!
We went on nearly every ride in the park, except for one, the Buzz Lightyear ride, which we got to only after they had sold out of Fast Passes, and we had a dinner reservation at the Carthay Circle, so we couldn't stay in a 45 (probably 60) minutes line. Carthay Circle was amazing, though, and super fancy. Maybe a little too fancy for our kids, honestly. But who cares? And because we ate there, we got special seats to the World of Color show that night, which was absolutely breathtaking. It makes the fountains show at the Bellagio look ridiculously amateur-ish. They even made it snow and had heart-shaped foam-looking thingies fly into the sky. It was beautiful!
William's pictures...
Day 3: Disneyland
Well, we were tired... so we woke up a little late. And then we had to get breakfast. And wait in line to get food. So instead of arriving at the park at 7 AM, we got there at 7:30. And that wasn't even into the park, that was just in the line to get into the park. So we basically got in at 7:50 and booked it to Space Mountain before the crowds. That ride can get lines as long as 3 hours, and we weren't gonna do that, so... we walk as fast as the kids' little legs could go and made it just seconds before they let people free. It was wild! And crazy!
That night we ate at the Blue Bayou. William has been raving about that place since he went with Taylor, and then again with Kendall. And I can see what the hype was all about because it is my new favorite restaurant. Looking at pictures, I thought they had eaten there at night, but it turns out the restaurant is inside of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride and the ceiling is painted to look like a night sky, with the moon, stars, and occasional shooting stars going by. The lanterns were beautiful, the food was delicious, and the whole ambiance was fabulous. And again, by eating there, we got special seats to the Fantasmic show. And just when I thought World of Color was the best show in the world, Fantasmic beat it, just barely, and became the most amazing show I have ever seen. How so? The theme of World of Color was Christmas, and although I love Christmas and Christmas music, I wanted more of the magic of Disney. And that's where Fantasmic did it right for me. They had some Christmas stuff integrated into the show, but Mickey was there, and the princesses, and the villains, and it was just magical. I loved it soooo much! Alexis slept right through the whole thing, fireworks and all, while cuddling with Logan, and it was the most adorable thing I have ever seen. It was a beautiful night for our family.
William's pictures...
My pictures...
Day 4: Free day
We needed a day to recuperate. It's all fun at Disneyland, but it is also exhausting, mostly because of the crowds and lines. So we had a nice, chill, character breakfast at the hotel, followed by some swimming time at the pool, then lunch, a much needed nap, and downtown Disney for some games at the ESPN, and dinner at Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen. That's the place that has those delicious beignets, but they also have yummy banana fosters.
William's pictures...
My pictures...
Day 5: Disneyland
We learned from our previous mistake and got to the line to get into the park before 7. Yes, we woke up super early. Yes, it was hard. But we made the most of our day and rode on many rides that we had missed on Day 3, plus some favorite ones again, including Indiana Jones, which was super spooky and fun at the same time and Splash Mountain, which was fun and wet.
Sadly that is where I stopped taking pictures because my phone's screen was insensitive to my touch. I couldn't even turn it off because I couldn't slide the power off button. I figured I'd wait until the battery died and then turn it back on, but it turns out the battery is pretty long-lasting when you don't use your phone at all. It wasn't until we got back home and went to the Apple store that I learned a new and different way to turn off your phone, one that doesn't require using the screen. Wish I would have known it before because I missed some amazing pictures, including some on the island, where Taylor was super excited about the secret passages. Taylor, Logan, Alexis, and I went there while William and Kendall went to the Haunted Mansion, which the boys had no desire to try out... until the next day... when the line was ridiculously long... so we didn't do it. Anyway... It was another fun-filled day!
Day 6: Disneyland
At this point, we could go back to California Adventure or Disneyland, since we had basically gone on almost every ride at both parks. We figured New Year's Eve at Disneyland would be worth it, so we went there. And thanks to the Extra Magic hour, Parent Swap, AND Fast Pass, we got to go on Space Mountain 4 times before all the other people not staying at a Disney hotel even got into the Park. We also rode the Matterhorn 3 times in that hour. Amazing! Unfortunately, Kendall started getting kind of sick, and she got worse and worse. Her cheeks turned red and it was obvious she had a fever. She wouldn't take medicine but still wanted to go on cool rides, so we did until about 5, and then we called it a day. We went back to the hotel, let Kendall take a nap while we watched Descendants, and then headed downtown to watch The Greatest Showman at the movie theater. It was a nice, chill night, and we were tucked in bed by 9:30 pm. So we missed the fireworks show for New Year's Eve. I'm kind of bummed about it because even though I didn't want to stay up until midnight, the shows were both at 9 and midnight. We could have stayed for the 9 pm show. But that's okay. Kendall really wasn't well, and I didn't want to push her to do more than she could handle. She needed rest. There will be many other New Year's Eves. Maybe not at Disneyland, but elsewhere, with lots of fun for our little family.
Day 7: Home
We hit up the Rainforest Cafe before our dreaded ride home. I say dreaded because at this point Kendall was really sick, and Taylor had caught the bug, too. Of course, Taylor threw up in the car, so that was fun... not. But Alexis did okay, overall.
A long time ago, while still in training, William and I talked about how we didn't want our money to go into the house; instead, we wanted to give our children opportunities and create memories. This was definitely a vacation to remember. This is why we sacrificed so much of our lives. This is why we gave up so much. I love my family. And I love to see them have fun. And I love to create memories. And I love vacations. And I love magic! But I am so glad to be home, too, with our routines, and not so many people around me all the time. Home sweet home!
