We (along with Grandma Mary Kay and Grandpa Larry) started dreaming of a Disney vacation again, back in the fall. I took it a step further though- I had been wanting to go Disneyland again, since we hadn't been there since Daniel was 4 and Annabel was 2 (we're talking February 2013, ages ago! the kids were SO little then!), so we started pricing that out and deciding which weekend to go. I ended up deciding that if I was going to take the kids out of school for two days, I might as well add a third day and take our trip whenever we wanted (namely, January), rather than around long weekends in February (which tend to be busier and pricier anyway). Plus- I found flights home for us for $62, which is unheard of. We grabbed that flight first, funnily enough, and then found really decent flights going out to California as well. A nice good five day trip planned for the last weekend in January- perfect! And Aunt Wendy would be joining us, too! Grandma Mary Kay made the trip reveal a fun Christmas present and we were all really excited for our trip! This was going to be a blast!
And it was. It just never ended (that's not a bad thing, though). So begins our story...
We left on Saturday, January 26th in the afternoon (which was a beautiful day to be flying- Annabel and I LOVED looking out the window at all the landscape changes, from snow-dusted farm fields to red canyons and snow-topped mountains- we kept tapping each other and saying, "Look!!") and got into Disneyland right about dinner time. As we walked up to the Disneyland Hotel (which I've never stayed at; Grandma Cheryl told the kids stories about landing on the top of the hotel in a helicopter as a child...a story that had the kids wild with jealousy!), the kids exclaimed, "Wow. We've never stayed at a hotel THIS nice!" It was too funny. Already off to a great start with first impressions I guess. So cute.
We checked in, headed to our rooms, and then promptly left to go find dinner in Downtown Disney. Earl of Sandwich (which we're familiar with from Disney World, a family fave) came to the rescue and we all enjoyed some good sandwiches. After that we browsed Downtown Disney, finding a few fun things. We made it back to the room in time to watch the fireworks from Disneyland in our hotel rooms, before heading to bed, with fireworks literally above our heads (in the headboard- very cool!).
Sunday, we got up bright and early so we could take advantage of the "Magic Hour" (where hotel guests can enjoy earlier admission to a given park) at California Adventure. We found delicious breakfast at a bakery in Downtown Disney and then headed to the park. Now, if you know me, and you know my family, you know we're not exactly morning people- so I was pretty darn proud that we made it for the Magic Hour. It was actually really fun to be there so early and I'm glad we made the effort to do that. (In fact, we managed this all three Disney days! one day- we were so early they hadn't even let guests in yet! THAT was fun! It feels special to be among the first walking in.)
Before we even left for the trip, my resident trip planner and researcher, Annabel, asked everybody what their top three rides were. Radiator Racers was THE top ride for just about all of us. Last time, the kids were too young (read: too short) and the ride was too new (read: three hour lines) so we missed this ride and I was bummed then. I was determined that this time we'd catch that ride. And AM I GLAD we did! This was easily my favorite ride. And I'm such a sap- I cried on the ride! Carsland itself is amazing and this ride was just as awesome. It felt like you were taking a ride through the movie with McQueen and Sally and Mater as your buddies. I cried almost from the start and the best part- watching Daniel's face LIGHT up as we rode all through it. All I could think was 4 year old Daniel would have LOVED this ride (although 10 year old Daniel loved it, too!) and how it was a shame that the younger kids who so love this movie are too little to ride, because this- it's just like being in the movie. Anyway- coolest ride! I think we did this ride twice in a row and found out that there are two different paths you can take at one point, which we thought was really cool.
We also did the other rides in Carsland (ho hum; AND they changed one of the rides from when we were there before- it's not tires anymore, it's just little cars and they don't do a whole lot, pfft). We made sure to get to the IncrediCoaster pretty early on, too, as that is also popular and was high on Annabel's list, thrill-seeker that she is. (Daniel and Ben went on a different ride.)
This is where my heart broke. You're on this true roller coaster, speeding off, looping the loops, and all, and only at the end could I look over at my little girl, my brave speed-loving girl. And then I saw that she was sobbing so hard, and my heart broke. We got off and I scooped her up and walked her out, with her clinging to me so hard. I hated that the ride scared her so bad. I later learned that at one point her nose was pressed down to the bar, an extremely awful feeling if you don't know that, and she also did NOT like the way her head was shaking and hitting the harness (which was one of those pull down over your head harnesses, as with most roller coasters; upon reflection- I think this was her first true upside-down roller coaster). She just made the height cut-off and I just didn't think about the harness-bumping enough to prepare her, and all things considered, this was maybe not the time for her to try this ride, though she very much wanted to. I just hope it didn't ruin roller coasters for her. She'll get bigger and that might help. I sure hope so. It took a long time for Annabel to calm down. Deconstructing it and naming the things that freaked her out helped her, too. She was all of a sudden very objective about it and very grown up about it. She did well. I'm proud of her.
In any case, we did the Ferris Wheel, Toy Story Mania, and some other tamer rides to calm Annabel down. Lunch was at the very adorable Flo's V8 Cafe, high on our list of places to try. We also took a hotel and swimming break mid-afternoon, which was the best thing. This was our hottest day there, so it was a good thing we took advantage of this day because it was really the only day warm enough to swim in the pool. We went back to California Adventure that evening and enjoyed the Frozen show and the Radiator Racers ride (which is even more awesome at night, all lit up). We strolled Carsland, also all lit up and very cool. We split up at some point that evening, so Daniel and Grandma Mary Kay, Grandpa Larry, and Aunt Wendy could head back to the room, while Annabel, Ben and I stayed for some more rides Daniel didn't want to do. It was really nice to have this time with just Annabel- she could pick the rides without negotiating with everybody else. We did Goofy's Sky School several times, as she'd discovered she loves that ride at some point that day, too- she really wanted to do it some more. That was fun at night, too. We also did the Ariel ride, as well. And on the way back to the hotel, we were able to watch Disneyland's fireworks again- so fun to see up-close but without the crowds.
Monday (the third day of our 5 day vacation) was the day that panic set in, thanks to an airline text long about mid-day. It started out gloriously, once again taking advantage of the Magic Hour, getting to Radiator Racers early enough to do that ride even twice before the line got long. So fun! Ben and Aunt Wendy headed straight towards the Guardians of the Galaxy ride first thing, since that's also popular and gets to be a long line later in the day and that was number one on their list. They also did Soarin' (and Guardians again) before meeting back up with all of us. After Radiators twice, we did Toy Story Mania. Then Grandpa and Daniel went back to Carsland while Annabel, Grandma, and I went to Goofy's Sky School and rode that SIX times straight (no line for that, clearly!). We had a great time!
Then we decided to hop over to Disneyland (I love how it's just a short walk across the way, no buses to ride every time you want to go somewhere here!) and enjoy the many rides on our list there for the rest of the day. We walked in and there in front of us was a Main Street Jitney waiting, it seemed, to transport us right to the front of the castle. None of us had ever been on that! We felt rather special. That was a fun treat. Space Mountain was Annabel's first choice of ride. Daniel went with Grandpa to enjoy Buzz Lightyear. And of course Disney has made waiting in line a piece of cake now, with in-line game apps for a few of their rides. Heaven forbid we have to just stand and wait like old times. Anyway- Annabel had a ball with these games! She had to enter codes found all over the walls in line, she and Ben had to work together directing/pointing and tilting the phone which is on one person's forehead to do some game, and so on. So the line felt fast. I guess there's that. We got a great photo of Annabel loving the ride at the end, too! We headed toward the Pirates ride and that side of the park. We grabbed fast passes for the Indiana Jones ride and decided to come back to that and hopefully some of the other busier rides later. So then we headed to the train to ride that to Toon Town, which Daniel wanted to see.
It was here our trip fell apart, through nobody's fault, lest you worry.
Just as we were getting on the train, we got a text from our airline, saying our Wednesday (remember, it's Monday now) flight home was already cancelled and the airport would be shutdown through Friday. The earliest we could get home was now Saturday. Saturday. Say what?!?!! What was going on, you ask, that the airline would already know this and that would shut down an airport?? The Polar Vortex of 2019. We were officially stuck on vacation. Right about this time, I also learned that, obviously, there would also be no school Tuesday and Wednesday because of said vortex. The kids were very excited that our vacation would continue (and that there was no school, nevermind they weren't even going to be attending anyway, but still, this worked out very nicely- they wouldn't be missing school after all, for these two days at least), the adults not so much, merely because of logistics and panic (what would we do? where do we go? where do we stay? we need clean clothes, could Grandpa Gary keep taking care of our cats? and on and on, the logistics of this exciting-but-not-really news sank in).
This news distracted us all for a bit as we panicked, but we wandered Toon Town and found the one thing Annabel had been looking for on this trip- Stitch earrings!! She was ecstatic! We got some cotton candy for a treat and then got back on the train to head back toward the Indiana Jones ride with our Fast Passes. Most of us rode the one time, then Ben and Annabel rode that a second time (we had two unused passes), while Daniel, Grandma, and I went through Tarzan's Treehouse, which I personally think is cute. It's a nice and quick meander, something to pass the time.
At some point, Grandma, Grandpa and Aunt Wendy went back to the hotel since we did need to figure out what was going on and what our options were now that our trip would be (forcibly) extended. The rest of us had a delightful night of rides- Space Mountain for Annabel and me, Nemo's Submarine Ride, Autopia, and more. We enjoyed a later dinner meal at the Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe, which I remembered having good food and a nice place to sit outside and people watch. I also knew this spot would be perfect for watching the after-dark Main Street entertainment going on that night, in just a few moments by the time we sat down. Beats standing in a crowd! It was the perfect end to our night and I was glad for the time for just us.
We grabbed Tuesday by the horns and made the most of our last Disney day (we were after all still on vacation! the kids needed us to be "us" and fun), since we decided that yes, three Disney days was enough and Wednesday would need a change in scenery to put some spice and fun back in our now much longer vacation. We'd learned that we would now be stuck in California until Saturday. Not a bad place to be stuck, I know, and I don't think anybody felt bad for us, but, it did put a different unexpected spin on our trip, that's for sure. It was still stressful, and our "original" trip was still not even over. It was still only Tuesday.
So! First up were the two rides Annabel most wanted to do (besides Space Mountain, which was a given) at Disneyland that we didn't get to the day before (because of really long lines)- Matterhorn and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. We got there early enough to ride Matterhorn a few times in a row! That was a lot of fun! Then we did Big Thunder Mountain Railroad- even Daniel rode with us, just once! And of course Annabel wanted to ride that again, so we did, though Daniel did not join us this time having been there done that. So the morning started out super fun!
We also caught a lot of other rides that day- Haunted Mansion, Pirates, just about all the rides in Fantasyland (except Small World- that was closed for refurbishment to my dismay, though I knew that going into the trip), the Monorail, and of course Space Mountain (which we thankfully caught a couple times before it closed for the rest of the day, and incidentally the rest of the week we later learned- phew!) and Buzz Lightyear, the faves. Annabel and I split from the group briefly that evening to ride Big Thunder in the dark- that was a lot of fun! I loved my time with just her, riding a fave ride, just before our Disney adventure was done. It was pretty special to me, to make that happen.
We did dinner at the same place as the night before so we could show Grandma, Grandpa, and Wendy the show, too! And of course we wandered Main Street shops, picking up the kids' final/most desired wishes that they patiently waited for- a nice big Stitch stuffed animal and an adorable Mickey complete with spiffy outfit marked with 2019. Perfect finds for my kids! Daniel had also found an Indiana Jones Mickey to add to his collection (Annabel had the Stitch earrings already, too). A great end to our Disneyland days!
After all that fun, we strolled back through Downtown Disney, shopping a little more on the way, too, and ended back at the hotel. There were had to muddle through all our things, shuffle belongings around, finalize our plans for the next few days (car rental, hotel reservation, things to do, etc. etc.- last minute planning is stressful!), get some laundry ready to wash in the morning (we had only packed six days worth of clothing for our five day trip, we would need some more clean clothes to last us till Saturday!), and so on. All day, I kept thinking of more people we needed to contact since we wouldn't be back to attend this or that, or help with this and that (soccer, birthday parties, a school event, art lessons, and so on). The list kept getting longer for what we would be missing- we actually missed a lot. Alas.
But- San Diego was our next destination and we were all very excited to add some new exciting adventures to our trip! Ironically enough, when I was dreaming of this California trip a couple years ago, I had actually really wanted to do both Disneyland and San Diego in one trip, since they aren't that far apart and taking the kids to San Diego was high on my list. We just didn't plan that this time because it does mean a longer week's trip, which isn't ideal mid-school year, heh. Funny, eh? Guess I ended up getting this wish after all!
