DISNEYLAND!

At the urging of my wonderful husband I am again posting so that these sweet memories won't be lost forever. I feel them slipping away into the depths of my exhausted mind at this very moment.

We hit The Happiest Place on Earth today and it was awesome. Minus the constant reminders that crying/whining/pouting are not allowed on such hallowed ground it was a great day. Oh and despite Luc having an accident while waiting to get on Dumbo (to his credit he did say he needed to go but there was literally no way out... until he started to actually pee and then miraculously we found a way out.) And... scaring McKay on multiple rides until she has lost all trust in us and thinks we are determined to ruin her life by forcing her on rides that we promise are not in anyway scary only to realize that we are completely wrong and that to her (slightly wimpy) 6 year old little soul they are her worst nightmare. Other than those few things it was a grand day.

I don't know how people start at 8am and go 'til midnight. When I first realized the park would only be open from 10-8 I was so disappointed. Now as I sit here completely wasted I am so glad, it was really all the fun I could take.

So in an effort to get my tired body in bed I will just bullet point the rides we made it to, our favorites, not so favorites and the tidbits of happiness that sum up our day.

• Snow White - first ride of the day and gratefully there was absolutely no line - all three children exited the ride sobbing. It's not called Snow White's SCARY Adventure for nothin'!
• Dumbo - (Luc missed this due to the above mentioned accident) we redeemed ourselves and the girls started to think Disneyland might actually be fun.
• TeaCups - This was one of the first and the last. Dumbo and the Tea Cups have no lines after dark. The kids loved going back to them. Luc pleaded to go on the Tea Cups over and over again. Seth obliged, three times in a row and they were rewarded by being able to watch the fireworks show right over their heads while spinning into a nauseating stupor. It was Luc's favorite part and the only ride he asked for over and over, "Pweese mommy can we go again pweese pweese pweese?".
• Small World - Not normally my favorite ride but it was awesome. From Nov. 1 thru Jan. 1 all of Disneyland is Christmas-ed up and it was really cool. The kids loved it.
• Space Mountain - Well now that the kids are trusting us and thinking we won't lead them astray lets take them on a roller coaster in the dark. McKay never really trusted us though and then we ended up in the front car and she cried the whole time and told me I was a rude mom for doing that to her. It wouldn't take much to gain her trust back.
• Buzz Lightyear - Mostly enjoyed by all. Except Luc who wasn't so sure of it even though it was the one ride he talked about going on for weeks beforehand. He also refused to stand by Buzz.
• Lunch - PB&J's that we brought in and 2 sodas that cost $10! FYI - Even though their website says you can't bring outside food into the park they really don't care. We had a loaf of bread, PB and Jelly all in plain sight in the stroller when they checked us through and nobody said a word. It saved us so much money.
• California Adventure - we headed over for just an hour or so. I am more of a Disneyland purist but we figured there were a few things Kilian should experience.
• Soaring Over California - One of my absolute favorite rides. I love it. And it is in no way scary. Completely relaxing and fun. That's how I remembered it and that's how I explained it to McKay. Ooops. Trust gone again. How many times in one day will I break my poor daughter's heart. Kimball loved it. I tried to buy back McKay's love with cotton candy. It worked.
• Bugs Life - Lame for adults but a blast for the kids. Jenna and I took turns with the girls and Aaron while Luc and Luke slept in the strollers and the "big boys" went and rode California Screaming. Then we headed back over to Disneyland.
• Big Thunder Mountain Railroad - By this time Kimball was completely into it. She was willing to try anything. McKay and Luc and I went to go find some Mickey Ears. Kimball hated it and tried to get Seth to get them to stop the ride halfway through. Luc got the cutest Mickey Ears ever made. I will post pictures when we get back home.
• Pirates of the Carribean - The rude parents that we are we forced McKay to go on it completely against her will. She wanted to wait for us by herself. She covered her face and ears for the first half and then actually got into for a little bit and in the end decided she wanted to go on it again. Kilian declared it to be "lame." And Kimball thought it was just ok. Luc was unimpressed.
• Mickey's Toon Town - The kids mostly loved it until we took them on that little roller coaster then they hated it for a few minutes and liked it again after getting to meet Minnie.
• Dinner - $50 and we ate pretty much every last bite of it. It was mostly worth it just to sit down for a few minutes.
• Dumbo and Teacups again! (and the fireworks show)
• A little last minute shopping. Kimball had to find her Mickey Ears. She's a purist like me. Cute little original ones but pink instead of black.
• An exhausting walk back to the bus and then car.
• Back to the hotel - all of the kids were asleep and we were so tired - thank goodness for Kilian or carrying them up would have been impossible. We barely made it to the room and then of course our key cards wouldn't work. I ran back down to get that fixed and when I got back up Seth, Kilian, and all three kids were laying/sitting in the hallway unable to move. It was a great sight. Summed up the day perfectly.

Best part of it all was there were virtually no lines. I think the longest we waited was probably 15 minutes for the Dumbo ride the first time. Other than that we probably averaged about a 5 minute wait. And it was 75 and sunny. I officially declare mid-November the best time to visit Disneyland.