Disneyland!

I've been putting off this post for several days because I am SO overwhelmed at the thought of trying to document this vacation in a few blog posts.  I'm working on a shutterfly book that will include more detail, but for the benefit of my friends and family (mostly my mom) I'll do my best to give the short story and pick 8-10 pictures out of 1000.  

I'll start by telling you that Todd's mom has dreamed of taking her whole family to Disneyland for 50 years, so she did.  We had nearly all expenses paid for this week long magical vacation, and we got to do it with all of Todd's siblings and their families.  We had a 3 day hopper pass for Disneyland/California Adventures, and we also went to Sea World and the ocean beach.  

(In Washington, where Todd is from,  you go to "the ocean".  In California you go to "the beach").

We had such a wonderful time.  Disneyland is not a relaxing vacation, but definitely one where you will make memories.  I can't wait to go back next year with my family!

Here we are at the front gate.  There were too many people around to get the picture with the iconic Mickey head in the background.  You start to "feel the magic" the minute you walk in.  I love the music playing everywhere you go. The staff at Disneyland have their act together. Everything is kept amazingly clean and the parades and shows are so well organized.  I went to Disney World in Florida when I was ten, but you don't notice that kind of stuff as a kid.  I think it was more magical for me this time around! By the way, this was the first time in my life that I stepped foot in California.  Really. 

Donald Duck was there to greet us on Main Street.  Before this trip, I didn't realize that you'd have to wait in a line to meet all the characters!  I think Donald's is the only autograph the older boys got.  Justin was intrigued by the characters, and you'll notice in any pictures I post that he's looking at the character...not the camera.

 We started in Tomorrowland and our first ride was Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters.  The boys LOVED it and spent the next two days asking to go back. They have never really even ridden a ride at the fair, so imagine what it was like for them when the only comparison they had was the 25 cent horse in front of Kmart.  Yeah.  Their minds were blown.
(We went to Lagoon when Brayden and Caleb were 3 and 2, but they don't remember it).


Justin couldn't take his eyes off of Buzz while we waited in line...

 Brayden asked me to take a picture of him in front of this mural.  I laughed when I got it on the computer because I had no idea it was set up so perfectly.  The aliens are giving him a medal...

 After getting a fast pass for Star Tours, we attended the Jedi Training Academy.  I'll do a separate post for this, since Grandma wasn't with us at the time and I want her to see the video clips we took.  Brayden and Caleb were chosen to "train" and then had the chance to fight Darth Maul.  They loved it.

Brayden was tall enough to drive on "Autopia", so Caleb rode with him.  Dillon and I were partners for most rides, and Justin rode with Todd.  For the rides that Justin couldn't go on, we got a special pass that allowed one parent to go on the ride with the kids, while the other stayed with Justin in the stroller.  After the ride, the kids got to go again with the other parent without waiting in line again.  It's nice that they make accommodations like that.

 As hard as they tried, the boys couldn't pull the sword from the stone...

 On our second day, we took the train from the Disneyland entrance to New Orleans station. I wish we'd have ridden it all the way around the park just to see the other lands. Even with a 3 day pass there's so much we didn't get to do.  We never even stepped foot into Toontown, and we barely scratched the surface in Fantasyland.

 Our cousins watched Justin so the rest of our family could go on Splash Mountain together (which ended up being our favorite ride).  While we were listening to zip-a-dee-doo-dah, Justin got to meet Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, and Eyeore.

I think there were 18-20 of us that met up and went on Pirates of the Caribbean together.  The staff asked how big our party was, and when we told them, they just gave us our own boat.  If Brayden hadn't stuck his hand in the air at the last minute, you'd be able to see Grandma in the pink shirt in the middle :o)  This ride has been re-done since I saw it at Disney World, and it is really fun.  I loved it. 

We waited over two hours to see Fantasmic our first night. It was fun to be together while we waited, and the show was WORTH the two hour wait.

I don't have a good picture, but Fantasmic was amazing.  I would dare say it was my favorite part of the whole trip.  I was completely caught up in the magic of it all.  When it was over, we stayed for the fireworks, which were also incredible.  After the show I said to my mother-in-law, "No wonder people pay so much money to stand in line in the hot sun all day.  It's because of this feeling right now.  No one ever told me I would actually feel the magic."

Next up?  Jedi Training and California Adventure...

PS-  Did you know that Disney is going to build a third park?  According to the bus driver who chartered our trip to SeaWorld, Disney bought out marvel comics last year, and now they're going to build "Marvel Land".  I think it's going to require a month long pass to see it all...