Disneyland Part 3

We left off at the end of day 2. You can catch up on day 1 (here) and day 2 (here).

Day 3 started off in California Adventure. We headed right over to the Radiator Springs Cars ride and only had to wait about 15 minutes. We LOVED that ride and rode it several times that day.

The girls had Minnie Mouse outfits to wear that were capris and short sleeves, but it wasn't as warm as they forecasted, so they opted for these outfits instead.

We spent the morning in California Adventure riding our favorite rides and then had lunch on the Pier at the soup place, Pacific Wharf Cafe. The soup was really good. Then we headed into Ghirardelli's Soda and Chocolate Shop for some treats.

We then headed back into Disneyland. We went straight to Thunder Mountain since we didn't go on that one the first day.

 The girls waiting in the Thunder Mountain line.

We met up with my parents after this and went back over to FantasyLand. We rode the carousel and a few other rides in there and I talked the girls out of riding the Tea Cups as I was worried about Sutton getting sick on them.

We then headed over to Toon Town to meet Minnie and Mickey again.

Minnie's House was up next.

Then we went over to the Gadget's Go Coaster. After the rollercoaster, the girls played in Chip 'n Dale's Treehouse.

After that, my parents took the girls to the Star Wars Land, so Rory and I could go grab some Fast Passes for later in the day. We took the girls tickets and go some on their accounts too.

We were going to get one for the Matterhorn, but the wait was short, so Rory and I just rode it.

Then we headed over to Hyper Space Mountain and grabbed a Fast Pass. Then we headed over to Indian Jones Adventure and grabbed another Fast Pass. We checked on the girls and my parents and they were still waiting in line, so Rory and I went over to Splash Mountain. We got pretty soaked!

 The Haunted Mansion

We met up with my parents and the girls again and my parents rode Indian Jones Adventure as their Fast Pass was in effect at that time. We took the girls on the Jungle Cruise. After the Jungle Cruise, we met up with my parents and they took the girls back to the hotel for dinner and to rest. This was around 5:30 pm. We said our goodbyes near the Main Street tree and then we had the rest of the evening together.

We had dinner in Disneyland in the French Quarter area and then went over to Star Wars Land and rode the Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run.

Then we headed back to the Tiki Juice Bar for Dole Whip. Rory had a churro, so I enjoyed this all to myself. I did give him a bite though. So worth it.

Then we walked over to Indiana Jones to use our Fast Pass, but saw this beauty again.

After Indiana Jones, we went over to Hyper Space Mountain and used that Fast Pass. Rory loved that ride and wished we had the chance to ride it more. I told him it was one of my favorite rides...and next time to listen to me when I say we need to go on it.

 I love Rory's face in this one and the people in front of us knew exactly where the camera was and to pose.

We made it over to Sleeping Beauty's Castle in time for the "show" at 8:30 pm. They lit up the sides the buildings with snowflakes and shot out snow over everyone. It was so beautiful!

Rory and I then headed back over to California Adventure for the World of Color show and some rides over there. We grabbed some beers and people watched for awhile. Then we went back to the Radiator Springs Cars ride and the fireworks were going off in Disneyland at that time.

We found a spot to watch the World of Color Show and within 5 minutes, they let a bunch of us in the VIP area, so we had great seats to watch the rest of the show.

The show was really beautiful and they played Christmas music to it. So worth it. After the show, we made our way back to our shuttle and took a picture with this guy.

At this time, it was setting in that our trip was coming to an end. Rory had told me on our way down to LA that he wasn't looking forward to actual Disneyland. He was excited to see the excitement through the girls eyes. But after spending 3 days in the parks, he LOVED it and said we are definitely going back. What a change of tune.

We made it back to the hotel and my mom left our room and went back to theirs. The girls didn't make it to watch the fireworks from my parents hotel room and were exhausted.

We got up, packed and headed to the airport only to be delayed due to major fog. We had a three hour delay from Orange County to Las Vegas, so we hung out at the airport. We ended up getting home just after 4 pm. We were supposed to be home around 1 pm. We picked up our dog, headed home and started unpacking. It was the end of our amazing trip. I can't wait to go back!

The girls got Anna and Elsa dolls the last day. They also got other items, but the dolls were their favorite.

So what else do you want to know about our trip? Tricks and tips? Places to eat?

Disneyland Part 2

If you missed Part 1 of our Disneyland trip, you can check it out here.

We left off at the end of day 1. Day 2 started the same way. We got up, got ready, had breakfast at the hotel and then took the shuttle to Disneyland. Day 2 was spent in California Adventure. The last time I went to Disneyland, California Adventure had just opened up. It was sooooo different from the last time. Many more rides and a total different feel.

We walked in and should have gone over to the Radiator Spring Racers ride, but we didn't. We never got to ride that ride that second day. But we did ride it a bunch the third day.

We first went on Ariel's Undersea Adventure, then the Golden Zephyr and then Toy Story Midway Mania. We loved Toy Story Midway Mania because it is a video game and ride all in one. We all competed against each other and had a great time. The girls wanted to go on it again, so we grabbed a Fast Pass for later. Mistake #1. We should have gotten one for the Cars ride. Oh well. Next, we rode Jessie's Critter Carousel. We rode this several times throughout the trip as well.

Then, we started walking towards Cars Land and we saw a few of our friends who were also in Disney for the week. We also saw some friends near the carousel.

 Only Sutton would take photos with us.

We rode Luigi's Rollickin Roadsters which was a choreographed cars ride to Christmas music. My parents rode the Radiator Springs Cars ride in the singles line.

We were going to go on the Monster's Inc. ride, but the Frozen show was going to start soon, so we headed over there. The girls LOVED the Frozen play. It was beautifully done and we even enjoyed it. It was an hour long, but didn't feel like it.

After the show, we went on the Jessie's carousel again.

And then we went back over to the Monster's Inc. Mike and Sulley to the Rescue ride. We then wandered the Animation Academy to see Turtle Talk with Crush and then to meet Anna and Elsa. This was the highlight of the girls trip!!!

We walked around and rode many of the rides again, but also did Soarin' Around the World, Goofy's Sky School and others.

Then we made our way over to the restaurant that we had made reservations for, so we could watch the World of Colors Show. Turns out the show wasn't until 10 pm and there was no way the girls would make it that long without a nap or break. So we still ate dinner there, but didn't do the whole package. Dinner was really good. The food in California Adventure is way better than the food in Disneyland. We also had Starbucks each day in the parks. 

We left around 8:30 pm and headed back to the hotel to go to bed and get ready for day 3. But first, we stopped at Joe's Italian Ice. I wasn't going to get anything, but then I saw Dole Whip on the menu and I wasn't sure if I would get any in the park. It was soooo good.

Stay tuned for Part 3 - Day 3.

Disneyland Part 1

I am finally getting around to writing about our Disneyland trip. Between the holidays and many scheduled posts, I never wrote about our magical time in Disneyland. It truly was the best time. And going during the Christmas season was even more magical.

Let me start this by saying that I have been to Disneyland many times, but I haven't been in 21 years. Rory and the girls have never been and my parents have been many times as well. But I have never been during the Christmas season and it has to be my favorite. I don't know how any other time can compete. Maybe Halloween? Probably not.

If you remember, we didn't tell the girls about our trip until the morning of. We got the girls up and ready as if they were going to school that morning, but when they saw some luggage and some backpacks, they asked where Rory and I were going. We told them to Disneyland and they cried thinking they were not going, but they were. We also didn't tell them that my parents were coming until we got to the airport and they saw my parents. Two big surprises for them.

We flew to Orange County with a stop in Oakland first.

That afternoon, we unpacked, walked to Target for some supplies and then went to an early dinner. We had an early night since we knew we were going to have a long next day.

Tuesday morning we got up bright and early, had breakfast at the hotel and then took the shuttle to Disneyland. We spent the entire first day in Disneyland. We were there from 8 am to 5:30 pm. We left the park and went to dinner near our hotel. But here is our day. I will let the photos do most of the talking and I will interject in between.

We took a photo right inside of the park. As you can tell, it was a little sunny and we had a hard time seeing. The girls wore their Frozen costumes that we got from Target after Halloween.

Right after you walk into the actual park, there was a tree at the beginning of Main Street.

We also snagged a photo with Goofy.

By this time, we had already been in one of the main Disney stores and the girls wanted everything.

 Sleeping Beauty's Castle during Christmas time

We headed right over to Pirates of the Caribbean. I took a few photos, but it was pretty dark in the ride. We had no wait.

Then we headed over to the Haunted Mansion. This has always been a favorite of mine and with it done up in The Nightmare Before Christmas style, it was even more fun.

We only had about a 5 minute wait. The rest of the time, it was about 40 minutes or more to ride this ride.

From there, we headed over to FantasyLand. The girls spotted the carousel and wanted to ride that. We rode that about 4 different times between the first day and the last day.

From there, we went on the Snow White ride, Mr. Toad's Adventure and Pinocchio's Daring Journey.

The girls were begging to see the princesses, so we went over to the Royal Hall. This is where we had to wait about 30 minutes to get in. We saw Belle on the way, but they closed her line, so we just went to the Hall. The girls got to meet three princesses and they were beyond happy. Though, they were hoping Anna and Elsa were in there, which we later learned that they were in California Adventure. I would have had them wear their Rapunzel dresses the first day had I known.

 Cinderella

 Ariel

 Snow White

After our meet and greet, we came out to the Rapunzel show almost starting. We grabbed a seat up from with the girls and watched that which was really cute.

Then we headed over to have a quick lunch and then were off again to TomorrowLand.

We went on Autopia, the Monorail and Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters.

Her face makes me laugh every time. I had about 4 different selfies that we took and each had the best face.

It was almost 3 pm and we had to make it over to watch the Christmas parade. We got there 20 minutes ahead of time and got front row seats and enjoyed a churro.

Of course the girls were waiting for Anna and Elsa and Anna just happened to blow kisses and wave to the girls.

The girls also LOVED the princess float. They now know that Aurora is my favorite princess and kept pointing her out every day.

The girls are very much into Toy Story, so they were beyond thrilled when their floats came out.

And the big man, Santa!

After the parade was finished, we went back on the Toy Story ride and then headed back into FantasyLand for the Dumbo ride.

We rode several rides many times and I have forgotten many of them I am sure. We didn't go into FrontierLand until the third day. Same with Star Wars Land and Toon Town.

And that caps off our first day at Disneyland!