Happiest Place on Earth

We have been planning a trip to Disneyland for a few years now. We were suppose to go last Fall but Lynnlee's surgery came up sooner than expected and we had to cancel all of our reservations. This year I was so paranoid that something would come up to keep us from going. Thank goodness we avoided that and were able to go.

We decided it would be best to leave in the middle of the night. That way the kids could sleep in the car for a majority of the drive and we could get a little sleep before leaving. So at 3:00 am on Saturday morning we started driving. My kids slept until we were driving through Mesquite which was about 7:30 am. Then at 11:00 we arrived at our hotel which meant only 3 and a half hours of entertaining 3 kids. It was easy peasy and I would definitely do it that way again. Betsy and I even got to sleep in the car too so thanks Marshall for sacrificing for the family!

That night we met up with my parents and Charlie's family at ESPN Zone in Downtown Disney. It was fun being there with family. We had a nice dinner and then the kids got to play games in the ESPN arcade. It was a late night and by the time we got to bed it was after 11:00 Utah time. We thought it would be no problem to have James and Lynnlee share a bed. The only problem is that James slowly moved over to Lynnlee's side every night. That first night it resulted in James waking up crying. We decided to put Lynnlee in bed with me and James in the other bed with Marshall. Right as he was almost done crying then Kaden woke up crying. Right after Kaden fell asleep Lynnlee decided to start crying because she wanted to go back in the same bed with James. Oh boy! It was a long night and all I could think was, this is not the happiest place on earth! Thankfully the rest of the nights were uneventful and everyone was so tired every night that we had no problems getting to sleep and staying a sleep.

Sunday we went to my second cousin's house for dinner. They were so great and had their patio all set up for the kids. There were toys and a picnic table for them to eat their dinner on.The adults got to enjoy a nice dinner inside in their beautiful home.

Monday morning we arrived at California Adventure. I was a little surprised by the crowds since the crowd calendar predicted lower crowds but we tried not to let it ruin the day. We used the fast passes as much as we could and we got to go on all the rides we wanted to that day.

Kaden loved Bugs Life land.

James and Lynnlee were huge fans of the Radiator Springs Racers. If it hadn't been for the 75 minute wait they would have ridden it over and over again. The line for the fast pass for this one was 60 minutes and you weren't even guaranteed a fast pass since those ran out within a few hours.

Thank goodness for the stroller pass I was able to go on the ride with James after a short wait.

California Adventure doesn't have a ton of baby rides so Kaden spent a majority of the day in the stroller. By the afternoon it was hard to keep him happy but a bag of Cheetos to himself did the trick. We are great parents. What can I say, after all the money you spend to go to Disneyland, you do what you have to do to keep kids of all ages happy.

Lynnlee and James went on every ride they were tall enough for. Lynnlee loved Toy Story Mania and Little Mermaid. She went on Tower of Terror without a fight but didn't like it. James went on it and loved is so we went on that ride a lot over the next few days.

Tuesday was spent at Disneyland. We got to have a magic morning which means you get in the park an hour before opening, an hour before everyone else expect for all of these thousands of people who also got to have a magic morning. Ha ha! I couldn't believe the long lines to get into the park on this "special" early morning. Except for the 45 minutes wait for Peter Pan, all of the other rides in Fantasy Land were quick, thank goodness.

Kaden loved the tea cups and Finding Nemo.
Notice he is wearing a leash in the pictures. He earned it after the first day. I never thought we would be those parents but anytime we let him out of the stroller the first day he would make a run for it. So we bought a leash and it worked pretty well to give him some freedom without losing him in the crowd.

James and Lynnlee both went on Space Mountain. They said they didn't like it but James wanted to keep going on it after. He told me he was going to close his eyes the whole time. It made me laugh when I saw the picture after the ride. He is opening his eyes and barely peaking over the seat ahead of him. With his fair skin he looks like a ghost.

We don't really watch Winnie the Pooh much at our house but Lynnlee was still excited to meet the characters. She loved how soft they were.

We watched the parade and I sat behind Lynnlee. I had fun watching all of the characters wave to her and see Lynnlee get really excited and wave back.

All of the kids loved Its a Small World. It was cute watching their reactions to everything.

This little boy is obsessed with Iron Man. A few months ago we saw a commercial for Disneyland. The commercial said, "Disneyland, where dreams really do come true." James turned to me and said, "I know, when we go to Disneyland dreams really do come true so I can turn into Iron Man." I was sad to tell him the truth. If only he could be the real Iron Man for the day...

I love this picture of Lynnlee and my mom with their mouse ears.

We waited in line way too long to see Mickey and Minnie but it was worth it for the kids.

My sister Betsy was a huge help the whole trip and I loved having her there with us. The kids had fun going on all the rides with her. She is a wonderful aunt!!!

The Halloween decorations were fun.

It rained on and off the last day so we all were sporting ponchos throughout the day. Even Kaden.

The poncho was so big on him that Marshall put him in a Disney bag instead. People around us kept stopping and asking which store we purchased him at.

Chilling at the hotel. Trips are so much better with cousins. During one of the times we were in line I was standing with these four blondies and Kaden. A lady old me I had a nice family. Oh how crazy that would be if I had 5 kids under the age of 6 years old.

We got to go to the beach two different days. We went to Seal Beach one day and Newport Beach another day. I liked Newport Beach best because the sand was so soft. The water was cold but it was still fun to play in the sand.

James could have played all day. He kept asking if we could have our same house and toys but move by the beach and Disneyland.

The cold didn't bother Marshall. He got in and boogie boarded.

Don't let this innocent smile fool you. She was throwing sand at the other kids and destroying their sand castles and projects. Who knew sand brings the worst out in her.

Kaden wasn't a fan of the cold water but he didn't mind the sand. He had it caked on him on every inch of his body.

 

It was a fun trip and I was sad when it ended. I can't wait for the next family vacation.