Summer Life

Now that the Disneyland dissertation is done, I can start blogging again. LOL!

Well, summer is here and it's time to slow down. :) I have been having a hard time going to sleep at night because of all the daylight and the FREAKING chirping birds. Nothing like hearing birds chirp all freaking night long. LOL... 2 am, 3 am, 4 am... do they sleep? I've only been sleeping for about 3 or 4 hours a night and it's taking a toll on me. I might have to cover the windows in tin foil to block the light if I don't start falling asleep!

Even though I can't sleep, I can't muster any energy up either, lately. I get home from work about 5:30 or so and am so tired because the area of our office that work in is like 80 some degrees all day long. I have fans on me but it doesn't help because there's no air movement. It's so stale. Our cheap AC stand up units aren't doing the trick at all. Anyway, I get home and make some dinner for the kids, etc. and i'm just all burned out. It's hot in the upstairs part of our house, too. That's where we hang out mostly but I am thinking of moving the couches and tv downstairs where it's a good 15 degrees cooler. Can't afford any air conditioning right now although I saw one at Walmart for like $300 something.

So what do i do with all this daylight... beautiful missed daylight... all night long? I've been hooked watching the Nip Tuck series. LOL! Man, that show is so gross I can't believe I watch it but dang... it's an addicting little soap. I'm in the middle of season 2. Twisted stuff but interesting. I close my eyes during the surgeries. Can't do all that bleeding and cutting.

The kids are restless already this summer. I am thinking we need to get involved with something because they are getting into trouble everyday. I keep catching Orion on the roof and I even caught him up there with a friend the other day! Just what I need... an 8 year old with a broken neck and a lawsuit because the friend broke their neck, too. Grrr! He's been grounded all week which doesn't help the restlessness but I am not allowing him to do whatever he thinks he wants to do!

Ok, I can't take the heat from the laptop anymore. Time to call it quits for computer time. :)

Disneyland Ending

My final Disneyland installation. *sob*

Part I
Part II
Part III

Monday, May 7, 2007
Last Day at the Parks & Libby Lu

Monday was to be our final day at the parks. We got there for early entry and rode many rides in Fantasyland. Finally, we got the whole early entry thing down right! Yay! I totally felt the difference in wait times and the number of things accomplished and understand what all the hype is about getting to the parks early. And the fun thing is that we didn’t really have to hurry through anything. First, the kids wanted to do the teacups again. Second, we did Snow White but the ride broke down in the scary forest toward the end. This was the only breakdown we experienced our entire trip. Then we went on Alice in Wonderland. Kurt and Orion went on the Storybook Land Canal Boats ride while I took Gia to the bathroom.

It was time for Mickey’s Toontown Morning Madness so we went and did that. The show was short but cute. We had a hard time seeing everything since there was a fairly large crowd there. After, Kurt and the kids went and rode Gadget’s Go Coaster and went to Chip ‘n Dale’s Treehouse. They also went on Donald’s Boat. I wanted to do Roger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin but the kids chickened out for some reason. They thought it might be one of those “dark rides.” LOL! We then went over to Space Mountain again as Kurt wanted to try it out. The kids and I sat in the entrance area to cool off while he rode.



Everyone was hungry so we tried to go to the Carnation Café again for breakfast but it was packed. We stepped over to the Blue Ribbon Bakery instead. I got a cinnamon roll for Kurt, a chocolate croissant for myself, and 2 rice krispie Mickey treats for the kids. It was good but only enough to tide us over for a little while. I felt a little crazed when the register rang up over $30 for 3 drinks and 4 snack items. Eek! I’d definitely rather have a sit down eat for a few more dollars but we enjoyed our breakfast/treats nonetheless.

Kurt decided he wanted to do Pirates of the Caribbean again so I went shopping at Le Baton Rouge and a few other shops while he rode again. It was extremely hot outside and we were feeling miserable so we decided to go back to the hotel for a swim. On the way out, we grabbed some ice cream from Gibson Girl. After a few hours at the pool, we went into Downtown Disneyland again for a late lunch. We finally got to try the Rainforest Café. It was pretty cool. Kurt got a huge plate with a steak, ribs and shrimp kabobs and I ordered a burger. I think Gia had the chicken strips and Orion ordered mini hot dogs. The food was good and I loved the rainforest theme.

As promised, we then took Gia to Libby Lu for a makeover. Why didn’t we do this earlier in the trip??!! She was in heaven! She got the Rockstar Princess hairdo with the headset, painted nails and makeup. It was well worth the $26 to see her so happy. She strutted her stuff the rest of the day and loved the attention she got from people. We did a little more shopping in Downtown Disneyland and then headed into California Adventure.



We had to stop at the toy store and I bought Orion one of those fat, funny little plush beanie type Plutos. He had been begging for one since day one. I also got a skull and filled it with all the fun eyeballs and worms.

We then went to the Animation building to check out the Animation Academy. We learned to draw Jack Skellington. Orion kept wanting to start over because he said he messed up but I made him stick with what he started. This event was pretty cool and I will definitely do this again if we get back to Disneyland.

Afterward, we went back to Disneyland and rode some final rides—the carrousel again and Casey Jr. Circus Train. We wandered around and took some miscellaneous photos around the park. Finally, it was time to call it a night. I wanted to avoid the parade crowd so we stopped at the Tiki Bar for the highly rated Dole Whip. I waited in line for about 20 minutes and then gave up when I had not moved an inch. *sigh* I’m not sure what was going on at the counter. It was a shame because I really wanted to try one but this just gives me a reason to come back to Disneyland later. Hehee. We headed out and said our goodbyes to the happiest place on earth. *sigh*



We ate dinner back at the hotel and Gia fell asleep on the table before the food arrived 10 minutes later. It had been a long, hot day and we were all exhausted. We went back to our room to pack.


Tuesday, May 8, 2007
Goodbye Disneyland

The next morning, we finished packing everything up and did the express check-out. I advised the kids to give their balloons to some other kids that were at Disneyland because we couldn’t take them on the airplane. We went to the lobby and gave them away and then I stopped at the gift shop for some last minute gifts we had forgotten. We bid the hotel goodbye and drove ourselves to the Block at Orange to find an extra bag for all of the toys Kurt had won from the claw machine in the arcade. LOL! I bought some tops from Hollister, a Dickie’s bag, and some stuff from Victoria’s Secret. Kurt was in search for new shoes but didn’t find any. It was another scalding hot day so we hightailed it out of there and got to the airport at about 3:00 pm.

Our flight left at 6:40 to Seattle. We were sad to leave California but happy to be going home to milder weather. Kurt managed to miss the flight from Seattle to Fairbanks… long story. It was partly my fault because I handed him the wrong boarding pass and he couldn’t get back through security without going back to the ticketing counter. It was partly his fault for thinking he had lots of time so he was just casually strolling about. He missed the flight by four minutes. The sad thing is that the plane was grounded for an extra 40—45 minutes due to some confusion with the luggage loading but the doors were shut. The Alaska Airlines folks were their typical helpful selves and he ended up catching a flight to Anchorage a few minutes later. However, he had to layover in Anchorage for six hours before he could get a flight home. I picked him up from the airport at 8:00 am. He was a little miffed at me… muttering something about me trying to lose him…. heehee. All’s well that ends well.


Tidbits/Observations
A few other comments about our wonderful Disneyland vacation (I seriously can’t wait to go back):

We never got dreamed or saw any dream squads for the YOAMD promotion— phooey! I was really hoping we’d win something.

We also had a bit of a time finding PhotoPass photographers. I stopped photographers only twice and got 5 or 6 pictures on my PhotoPass card. However, there were a few times I bypassed the PhotoPass photographers because we were in a hurry or whatever but it seemed there really weren’t very many other than at the entrances to the park, mainly. We took a lot of pictures with our own camera, though… I think about 500 and would have taken more but I was so excited about everything I would forget sometimes. Next time, I will make a better effort at doing the PhotoPass photos!

Character meals. Loved them and an easy way to see characters. We did the PPH Lilo & Stitch and next time we will order off of the menu rather than do the buffet for the kids because they hardly ate their $12 worth. We also did Ariel’s Grotto and I thought it was fantastic. I would like to try Goofy’s Kitchen and Minnie’s at the Plaza Inn next time. At Lilo & Stitch, we didn’t get to see ALL the characters that were there but I felt meeting three was nice. I didn’t stress that some of them didn’t make it to our table because honestly, the ones that didn’t come, appeared to be on their way out the door within a few minutes. It was plenty of excitement.

Stroller was a godsend. We purchased the Sit ‘n Stand to bring with us and the 5 year old used it often. Even my 8 year old had a few moments in it but I made him get out a few times because it was harder to push with his 60+ lbs. in the front. LOL! Staying at the PPH, we used it all the way to the parks. I couldn’t imagine carrying a 23 lb. one year old walking to the parks and then renting a stroller there. It’s just too far for that. If a big stroller is not an option, at least bring your own umbrella stroller to get you to Disneyland where you can rent one. Back to the Sit ‘n Stand… I am not a stroller person and after 3 kids, have never owned more than an umbrella stroller which has been used maybe five or six times TOTAL. This stroller was great! I can’t remember the ratings (40 lbs in the front?) but I know that my 5 and 8 year old were actually too heavy (individually) for the ratings but I had absolutely no issues with them riding in it. I’m not sure I’d recommend it for folks wanting to use it with say a 3 year old and 5 year old combination but if you have a small toddler (say 1-2) and a 3-6 year old, I give it a thumbs up. Not sure about small infants still needing the infant carrier/car seat option as we just used it as is since my one year old can’t fit in an infant carrier anymore. It held up quite well and we beat it down pretty good. It was super easy to operate which is essential since I’m not mechanically inclined. LOL! The folding was easy to learn… all you have to do is make sure the canopy is down and that the front wheels are straight forward and it goes right down. It’s super durable and I liked the little drink holders by the handle. They came in handy. I really thought by the end of the trip that we’d have a broke down stroller but nope… it’s still good to go and I’m keeping it for the next trip. With it’s ease and durability, it was a steal for $119… plus I never had to wait in any stroller lines. I only had one stroller catastrophe and I apologize to the poor man I hit in the legs. LOL! I was leaving during closing I believe and it was crowded. Gia dropped something and as I was pushing the stroller at a fast pace, I bent down to grab it still walking and the poor guy walked in front of me to cross over and I smacked him good while I was looking down. He was in a hurry apparently and only shot me a little look as he kept going so I didn’t get the chance to apologize. So sorry if you are reading… my bad. Other than that, smooth sailing. It was easy to steer and I tied a bright pink scarf thing on it to make it stand out. This helped finding it much more than I ever thought it would. Glad I used that tip.

Footwear– Crocs! After reading so many positive reviews on these shoes, I took the plunge and bought everyone a pair except the baby who doesn’t walk. Hehehe… I would have gotten her a pair, too but they don’t seem to make them that small. My first order through Crocs.com, I had purchased the kids the Disney Cayman ones and got the Endeavor for Kurt and regular Cayman’s for me. They all seemed to be too large and even though I’d read that they were supposed to be big, the adult sizes mainly seemed to be way too big (falling off big). I returned the entire order and ordered a size down for the kids (same style) and then ordered a size down on the Disney Caymans for myself (I couldn’t help it, they were too cute in person) and a size down for Kurt—the Professionals Crocs this time. It was only a few weeks before we were to leave for our trip and the order time is 10 days shipping to Alaska. Unfortunately, when I got the box, it only had my pair and Orion’s pair in it. They were out of stock on the others. I was a little peeved that they didn’t notify me when they filled the order so that I could have time to research other options but what can you do? They did send an apology note and some kind of discount on shipping on the next order in the box. Grrr! Luckily, I found the Disney Cayman’s locally at a Cold Spot Feed store. Strange to be shopping for shoes at the pet store but I needed me some Disney shoes! I ended up getting Gia the same size I originally ordered and for some reason, they fit just fine. Maybe her feet grew in 2 weeks? LOL… or maybe I had just gotten used to the way they look bigger. I got Kurt some black Disney Caymans… it was the only decent color (i.e. black) Crocs they had in his size. I had an inkling that he would refuse to wear them because of the cute Mickey heads. I was right. He wore them at home for a few days and declared they just didn’t look right on him. LOL! I brought them to Disneyland with us just in case he changed his mind but he never did. The kids broke their Crocs in at home the week or two before we left. They love them and still are wearing them. I didn’t break mine in and also did not wear socks with them for the first 4 days at the parks. My feet loved them inasmuch that my feet never got tired or sore but I did get some hot spots on top of my feet where the straps join the shoe. I was wearing them barefoot as clogs. On day 4, I also got a nicely sized blister. Nothing a few band-aids couldn’t fix but I will definitely recommend socks to wear with these if you are doing a lot of walking like at Disneyland. I am certain that’s where I went wrong. I wore socks the rest of the trip and no further blisters or hot spots. On another note, I got a ton of comments on my shoes! I think it was because they were the pearl colored Disney ones which apparently they don’t sell in the parks. A lot of people asked me where I got mine from and I had to respond “online.” I think they only sell the black, red and yellow adult Disney Crocs in Disneyland… as far as the ones I saw, anyway.

The parks were beautifully maintained. I think it’s awesome how everything is pristine. At one point, in downtown Disneyland, there were some napkins laying on the walkway and I told the kids to pick them up and throw them away. They did so happily and it wasn’t even “THEIR” mess! Amazing! Typically, I can’t get them to wipe their own behinds without them blaming “the mess” on one another. LOL! One of the CM’s gave them some stickers for their do-gooder attitudes.

Food! By far I have to say Ralph Brennan’s Jazz Kitchen (DTD) and Blue Bayou (NOS) were my favorites! I loved the food; I loved the atmosphere; I loved the experience. Honorary mentions go out to the Carnation Café (Main St.), Rainforest Café (DTD) and PCH Grill (PP Hotel). All of the sit-down restaurants we went to had great service! I was impressed. My mouth is watering thinking about all of the great food. After reading reviews, I was certain we’d starve in Disneyland because it seemed like there were a lot of negative food reviews. I am glad that we got to experience great dining. True, the options are somewhat limited (especially if you are only wanting to eat IN the parks rather than venturing out to DTD and nearby restaurants) but I had no problem finding good stuff to eat in the 8 days we spent there.

Fastpass is such a cool option. We only actually used it once (on Soarin’) but now that I know my way around Disneyland a bit better and have a better feel for the flow, I will surely be doing this next time a bit more to make sure I get to ride all the good stuff with little wait.


Final Thoughts

Now that we are home, we can’t wait to go back. I have so many things I never got a chance to do. I want to ride the Matterhorn, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Splash Mountain. I want to catch Fantasmic! and try the fireworks show again. I want to try that big ol’ Screamin’ roller coaster and the Grizzly River Run! Also, all of the rides coming out soon and the shows I missed! I am hoping that we can go back in about 18 months. Maybe try November’s weather and next time, I might bring an extra adult like grandma so Kurt and I can also go on some rides together. That’s another thing that surprised me… he actually really enjoyed Disneyland and didn’t want to leave California! We joked around about moving there a lot. He’d like to come sans kids but I just couldn’t imagine not having them there, too. As much as they slowed things down, the little moments of happiness made up for it. Seeing their smiles and hearing their laughter far outweighed the cranky moments. Our five days in the parks were enjoyed at a slower pace and I would definitely spend even more time there if I could.

Disneyland Part III

In the middle of my report here about Disneyland. If you want to read from the beginning, links are here. :)

Part I
Part II


Saturday, May 5, 2007
Aladdin & the Sun Wheel

Saturday, we ran out of clothes and baby formula. Instead of doing laundry at the Disneyland Hotel (I had read somewhere that there were limited washers/dryers), I decided we could go to a nearby laundromat and get the laundry done faster. Also, we could stop at a store to get the baby formula. We stopped at Food For Less on Katella for the formula and found a Coin-Op Laundromat close by. The laundry took about an hour or so and the kids entertained themselves playing in the parking lot. LOL!

After taking the laundry back to the hotel, we headed out for another day at Disneyland. We started out in Downtown Disneyland and made some purchases at the Lego store. The kids had been begging since we first saw it. Also, took some pictures of yet more Lego cool stuff. :) The parks were a little busier since it was a Saturday. We were hungry so we went to the Bengal Barbecue in Adventureland for some skewers. I liked the beef skewers over the chicken ones. Also, we bought a Mickey Pretzel and some Tigger Tails (breadsticks). Since it was busy and hot, we decided to go to Big Thunder Ranch and the kids got to pet some animals. I wanted to do Big Thunder Mountain Railroad but the line was pretty long and I wasn’t even sure where the entrance was. LOL!



We went over to California Adventure at that point as the heat was killing us and California Adventure just seemed less hot. We went to the Aladdin show first. I forgot that I had priority seating tickets so we waited in line for awhile with a ton of other people. The show was really great, though (and the air conditioning)! We couldn’t stay for the whole thing because the baby started fussing but I definitely would love to see it again in its entirety.

We were hungry again so we went and had an early dinner at Taste Pilot’s Grill. Ordering from the touch screens was neat but it was kind of hard to get access to a touch screen. The food was pretty good and I liked that you could add your own toppings from the topping bar.

We then went to A Bug’s Land to get some kind of ride fix. First up was Tuck and Roll’s Drive ‘Em Buggies. The line took forever but it was a cute bumper cars style ride. Next, we did Heimlich’s Chew Chew Train. This one was kind of boring but it gave Kurt something to annoyingly repeat for the next week… “Mmmmm… candy corn! My favorite! Here we go!!!” LOL! We then went to the Princess Dot Puddle Park and everyone cooled off. The last ride we did here was Francis Ladybug Boogie. Much like the teacups but not quite as fun. The wait for this ride was ridiculously long. A Bug's Land was a cute area and I'm glad we spent a little time there even though the line waiting was pretty crazy... especially for rides of this type.



We headed over to the Games of the Boardwalk and had a good time playing skeet ball and some other carnival type games. The kids got a little frustrated as they weren’t very good at the games. Sore losers! :p I kept eyeing the Screamin’ roller coaster but couldn’t bring myself to do it… especially seeing it up so close. I was in awe everytime I looked up. Instead, we went on the Sun Wheel. We went on a non-swinging cage, thankyouverymuch. LOL! Orion was afraid at first but after he realized that it was slow, he eased up a bit. It was pretty cool riding this at night.

Tired, we went back to the hotel and rested up. I thought it was just as windy as yesterday so thought there was a likely chance that the fireworks show would be cancelled again and did not want to camp out in front of the castle for over an hour and then end up having it cancelled… but what if?!? Unfortunately, the kids were falling asleep. My fireworks show would be missed. We decided to try to watch the fireworks from the pool area on the third floor. However, the fireworks show wasn’t cancelled that night. It was a nice view from the hotel but I wish I could have seen the lights show and the castle. The sound was piped in late so we didn’t hear much until about halfway through. I was a little sad that we weren’t down in the park but there’s always next time! We headed back to our room and I ordered some room service for dinner and we all passed out from exhaustion.




Sunday, May 6, 2007
Lilo & Stitch Breakfast and Huntington Beach or Bust

Sunday, we decided we’d take a break from the parks and go to a character breakfast instead. I had heard great things about the PCH Lilo & Stitch and since it was right there in the hotel, that’s where we went. We apparently weren’t hungry enough to make the buffet worth the price but the food was really good and there were lots of characters. We should have ordered the a la carte for the kids at least because they only ate a little bit… they were so caught up in seeing the characters. Minnie and Stitch taught the kids a little dance during the breakfast and Gia had fun with that. We got photos with Lilo, Stitch and Daisy Duck. We also saw Minnie and caught a peek of Pluto. It was very casual and a much needed break.



Afterwards, we got in the rental car and drove to Huntington Beach. It was pretty nice out but there was a breeze. The water was still cold, as well. We sat down by the shore and then realized that we didn’t bring any baby bottles. Oops! We let the kids play for a little while in the sand and then decided to pack it up and go back to the hotel. I think we just weren’t in the beach-y mood enough to enjoy this and it didn’t help that the baby was a little fussy from being hungry. I really would have enjoyed it more but I think it was too early for everyone.

It was hot outside again so I took the kids to the water slide at the hotel for the first time. They totally loved it! The kiddie pool was extremely shallow. I think it was a foot deep. They still enjoyed playing in that, too, though. I put my feet in and let Marissa splash her feet in there, too. It must have been in the 90’s! The hottest it gets in interior Alaska is like the high 70’s so I couldn’t take the heat after about an hour. LOL! I felt like my skin was scorching. I really couldn’t imagine coming to Disneyland during the hotter times of the year. I’m glad we went in early May and next time, I think we’ll plan an even “cooler” time of year.

We went back to our room and got dressed and went to Downtown Disneyland for dinner. I wanted to go to the Rainforest Café but there was a huge walk-in line. We heard someone say that it was an hour wait AFTER you got to the front to get your name on the list. We went to ESPN Zone instead. We were told it was about a 20 minute wait and to go ahead upstairs to the games and wait for our page. By the time we started a game of air hockey, the pager went off. I took the baby downstairs and went to our table. Kurt and the kids came down about 5 minutes later. The food was pretty good… your standard sports bar fare. Afterward, I went and did some shopping with the baby while Kurt and the kids played more games at ESPN Zone to use up the credit on the game card I bought.

Back at the hotel, we got to watch the Electrical Light Parade from the window in our room. I had no idea it was such a long parade! I hope to see it up close in the future. The kids were tired so Kurt went down to the pool area by himself to watch the fireworks show again. They piped in all of the sound this time. I was asleep before he got back to the room.

Next: Last day at the parks...

Part IV

Disneyland cont'd...

On with the trip report... see below link for the beginning part. :)

Part I


Thursday, May 3, 2007
Pirates of the Caribbean & Build-a-Bear

We awoke early on Thursday as we wanted to make it to Early Entry. I think we got there right about 8:00 am and didn’t have to wait very long at all. We wandered around in Fantasyland and rode the King Arthur Carrousel first. Orion didn’t want to get on a horse so he rode on one of the seats. Kurt manned Gia on a horse and I put Marissa on one right next to her. It was the baby’s first time on a carrousel and she loved it. We then rode Dumbo. The kids were apprehensive at first but didn’t put up too big of a fight. Gia and the baby rode with Dad and Orion and I rode together. I went with the kids again to ride the Mad Tea Party teacups and took the baby with us. We then headed over to Tomorrowland to ride Autopia. There was some confusion getting in line and for some reason, Gia got sent back to wait with me. She was pretty mad as she wanted to go as well. We waited for what seemed like eternity… by the way, the line for Autopia always seemed crazy long. And then I saw Kurt and Orion *still* way up in the queue not even near boarding the ride.




Gia was being a royal pain with all the pouting. I took her to the bathrooms by the castle and then we went and rode the teacups again. I thought it might cheer her up. It did… slightly for a little while anyway. We went inside Mad Hatter in Fantasyland and I bought Gia and Marissa matching pink Mickey ears. I had their names embroidered on while we were there. At this point, I’m thinking Kurt and Orion are probably done with Autopia and looking for us so we head back over. Not even! We waited another 5 minutes and finally they came off the ride. They stopped in the booths for their driver’s licenses.

Everyone started to get a bit cranky and hungry so we went to the Carnation Café for breakfast. I loved eating outdoors and the food was yummy! I got the Cinnamon Roll French Toast and Kurt had a Mickey Waffle. I only ate half of my food so Kurt took care of the other half. The kids also had the little Mickey Waffles.

Then, we went over to Frontierland and saw Woody and Jessie! The woman ahead of us was taking a photo of her children and kept messing it up or something because she was cutting off Woody’s head. He pretended to be frightened to be beheaded and it was a funny moment. Other kids kept just walking up even though we were next in line and it was obvious that the characters were trying to leave. The escort told everyone that we were next and would be the last family. The kids walked up and I snapped a few photos. Gia asked Jessie for her autograph but after, I told her that they were leaving and we’d have to get Woody’s autograph later. Woody patted me on the head as he skipped off and then high-fived Kurt. LOL! Fun!



Afterward, we went onto the Sailing Ship Columbia. It was not sailing that day but we got to look around onboard and the nice cast member took a photo of us. Gia couldn’t hear us calling her over for a photo so we just told him to take the photo anyway.



We then went on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. Awesome ride! Unfortunately, Gia didn’t think so. She sobbed through most of the ride. It was the dark, scary beginning that did it. I kept reassuring her that it was all just pretend but whenever she’d peek her head up, she’d cry and put her head back down.

Then Kurt said he was hungry so we looked for someplace to eat in a hurry. We ended up at Tomorrowland and at the Tomorrowland Terrace. Bleh! The counter service was pretty shoddy and the burgers were pretty lame. The fries were okay. I told Kurt he’d be “paying” for this later. Muhahaha!

We were getting a little irritable with the heat so we headed out of the park and into Downtown Disneyland to spend some money. First we hit Fossil to get a watch for Kurt. None of us had a watch up until now so we were using the cell phone clock to see what time it was. LOL! My excuse? In Alaska, you never really need to know what time it is… in the winter, it’s dark all the time so we just pretend it’s midnight when it’s actually 3:00 pm and in the summer, it’s always light so we just pretend it’s 3:00 pm when it’s actually midnight. We then went and dropped a Benjamin on the Build-a-Bear Workshop. The kids had a blast! The employees there were very nice and upbeat. They helped the kids outfit their stuffed animals in style (as well as squeeze my wallet, LOL!) Orion got a cow with a full outfit and shoes and a beach umbrella to go with it. Gia got a Hello Kitty complete with Mickey outfit with the ears, purse, shoes, and carrier.



After taking the purchases back to the hotel, we came back and decided to take the monorail in. It was a nice ride. Once in the parks, we ventured over to Adventureland so that Kurt could try out the Indiana Jones ride. We hit the bathrooms while we waited and the kids played with the little waterfalls. Kurt came off the ride and said it was probably a good thing that the kids didn’t go with him because they probably would have been afraid. He loved it, though! We went over to the Frontierland Shootin’ Exposition and Kurt and the kids did that for a little while. I went back to the bathrooms to change the baby. We then decided that we’d go and do the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh ride in Critter Country. Gia was frightened at first for some reason. She saw that it was a dark ride and it took some convincing to get her to calm down… it’s just Pooh bear! We stopped at Pooh Corner and bought some candy and light spinner toys. I got Marissa the cutest little Pooh plush, too.

We did a little more shopping and I picked up a scrapbook in one of the shops. After I bought it, I realized that it was 12x12 format and I had planned on doing our Disneyland album in 8.5x11. Oh well. Maybe I’ll do both sized albums. I also got Orion some light up Mickey Ears and Kurt got personalized leather bracelets for Orion and himself.

It was then time for our priority seating at the Blue Bayou restaurant. This was the only reservation I made ahead of time. We had to wait about 10 minutes but it was worth the wait. The atmosphere is awesome!!! To be able to sit there and watch the boats from the POTC ride was so cool! And it was surprisingly quiet, too. All you hear is the crickets. The food was quite good. Kurt and I both ordered the Prime Rib. He got salad for an appetizer and I got the gumbo. The bread they serve beforehand is wonderful. Marissa practically ate a whole roll by herself. I can’t remember what the kids ordered but they ate most whatever it was. Unfortunately, the kids started acting up about midway through dinner so we didn’t get to enjoy the full experience. Whenever we get back to Disneyland, I will be going to the Blue Bayou again for sure!

We went back to the hotel after dinner as the park was closing. I couldn’t wait to go back the next day. There was just so much left to do!!!


Friday, May 4, 2007
Ariel’s Grotto & the “Almost” Fireworks Show

We woke up late the next day and didn’t get to the park until 10:00 am. We rode Peter Pan’s Flight and Pinnochio’s Daring Journey first. The park started to get a little crowded so we decided to go to California Adventure for awhile and see if we could catch the Visa Character Meet and Greet… time was short but it was worth a shot. As we entered the park, we saw some of the High School Musical Pep Rally performance. We headed back toward Paradise Pier and stopped at Ariel’s Grotto but didn’t see any kind of characters. Shucks! Kurt was hungry but I wasn’t sure if we could eat at Ariel’s without reservations. I went inside and after a short wait, was put on the walk-in list.

We were told to wait about 20-25 minutes but actually got called in like maybe 10-15. Kurt had wandered off to a designated smoking area but we went ahead and allowed them to seat us. Once downstairs, we saw Ariel. I told Gia to go say hi to her and that’s just what she did… and came right back. LOL! I said “Go and meet her and let me take your picture, silly!” It was cute. There was a photographer there who also took a photo of them. I figured this must be the $30 photo everyone was talking about. As I was still waiting to be seated (I think they were confused about whether I was already seated or not), I asked if we could sit outside. The hostess kind of gave me a half answer so I wasn’t sure where we were going to be seated. Turns out it was outside. Yay! It was a little breezy that day but nothing too bothersome. Kurt finally joined us and then we ordered. I ordered the Salmon BLT with Onion Soup and Chocolate Cake. Kurt ordered the Under the Boardwalk Burger with a salad and Chocolate Cake. The kids both got The Captain’s Swell-Sketti with the Apples with Caramel for desert. It also came with the usual celery/carrot sticks with ranch. The food was pretty good. I wasn’t impressed with the Salmon BLT because of the sandwich aspect. I removed the salmon from the bread and ate it by itself as it was good salmon… just not good as a sandwich. I’m love seafood but bread and unbreaded fish just don’t seem to hit me quite right. LOL! The onion soup was yummy and so was the chocolate cake. The kids ate almost all of their spaghetti and preferred their apples with caramel over my chocolate cake. I thought it a bit of a strange desert as the apples were not cooked but they seemed to enjoy it.



During our meal at Ariel’s Grotto, the kids met the Belle, Cinderella, Snow White and Sleeping Beauty. All of the princesses were very nice and spent a good few minutes each at our table. It was a pleasant lunch experience. Gia was the only one involved at first, but quickly Orion decided it would be okay to talk to the girly princesses, too. He refused to wear the button, though. LOL! Also, during the beginning of the meal, the photo folks stopped by with a large copy of the photo they took of Gia and Ariel. It was in a holographic portfolio and included some extra 4x6’s. I think the cost was something like $37… we ended up buying it. It just seems weird to not buy a photo that is already printed out and ready to go, know what I mean? What do they do with the unpurchased photos… throw them away? I’ve always wondered. It was a pretty nice little souvenir anyway.

We then went over to Soarin’ to get fastpasses. It was an easier process than I anticipated! The parks weren’t that busy so that was the only fastpass we got the entire trip. Then, we took the kids over to the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail to play. They had a blast running around there and it was hard to get them to come out. While we were waiting for them to show back up to the front, we saw the talking trash can! What a riot! I wish I had gotten closer and had my camera.



It was then time to go back and do Soarin’. Gia and Kurt went first. Orion showed no interest in going… scaredy cat. I bought him some cotton candy while we waited. They came out and then Gia was so amped she wanted me to go right away with her! I took her and she told me all about the ride on the way there. My feet got a little numb on the ride but otherwise, it was pretty cool! Gia loved it so much she kept asking to go to go throughout the rest of the trip.



We wandered over to the Hollywood Pictures Backlot and went in to Muppet Vision 3D. We had to wait about 15 minutes until the next show so we just sat and waited inside. I haven’t watched a 3-D movie since I was a little kid at a drive-in theater. It was a pretty good show, albeit pretty short. Then we headed over to Turtle Talk with Crush. On the way there, we saw Louis from Meet the Robinsons and so we stopped for a photo and autograph. The kids haven’t yet seen the movie so they weren’t really sure who he was. The Turtle Talk show was fantastic! Orion and Gia sat on the lily pads on the left in the back. They didn’t get the chance to ask any questions but had a great time. As we were leaving, we noticed that Woody, Belle and Mickey & Minnie were in the main area of the Animation building. We decided to wait in line to meet Mickey and Minnie. The kids gave them hugs, too.



It was time for the Block Party Bash so we went and parked on the curb outside of Sunshine Plaza. Kurt had to go to the restroom so he left us there to watch the parade. What an awesome show! The Monster’s Inc. float parked in front of us and we had a fun time. The kids were in no mood for dancing but I could see they were at least having fun watching everyone else.



Since everyone seemed a little tired, we headed back to the hotel and had dinner at the PCH Grill and then went back to the park before the fireworks show. We showed up at 8:15 pm and it was packed already. We grabbed a curb on the castle side of the street but were at a weird angle behind a tree. As we waited, more people filled the park and they started announcing that the show might be cancelled due to the wind. Nonetheless, the show started about 9:30 and we couldn’t see the fireworks… only the castle. We got up and moved toward the castle behind some of the standing crowd and due to the wind, the fireworks were just out of sight behind the darn tree! When we finally found a spot on the bridge to see them better, the announcement came on that they were stopping the show due to the wind. Wah!!!! Bummed, we hung out in the park for another half hour waiting to see if they’d restart the show. No dice. We went back to the hotel and planned to go back on Saturday night.

...MORE TO COME...

Part III
Part IV

Disneyland

Saturday, April 28, 2007 11:05 AM
Pre-Trip Report

Two days & thirteen and a half hours before we begin our 3500 mile trek to Disneyland (May 1st—May 8th). Thank god we’re flying. :) We will depart at 1:35 AM and arrive in Seattle at 6:00 AM. Hopefully the kids will sleep through at least half that flight. After a two hour layover (awesomely short compared to many flights I’ve been on), we head off to LAX! Weeeeeeee! California will be ours at 10:47 AM! I’m so psyched!

Here’s the line up for who’s going:

Me—31, working mom who has NEVER been to a theme park let alone Disneyland. The closest I’ve been is our rinky-dink state fair… and I know that’s NO comparison. I’ve only been to California once as a child and remember nothing about it.

Kurt—30, graveyard shift working dad who has never been to Disneyland and is a bit apprehensive when it comes to public outings (i.e. he has no patience or tolerance of anyone of the human-persuasion. LOL) He really needs a vacation but I fear this vacation will need a vacation afterward.

Orion—8, Mr. Asks-Trivial-Questions (see below). I am worried about him and the rides because he is the biggest chicken-butt. He is a bit anxiety-ridden and has been afraid of the car wash since he was little. He claims he isn’t anymore but I know if I were to pull up to a car wash, he’d be out of the car in a flash. I wonder if he’ll ride ANY rides.

Gia—5, Miss Talks-Too-Much. She is my adventurous one… that is, if you can get her to shut up for a minute. I’m a bit worried about her getting lost since she tends to pay very little attention to what anyone is saying (why should she? She’s got a perfectly good conversation going on in her head!) She has already promised that she will ride the Sun Wheel with me.

Marissa—1, Lil’ Miss Diapered-WooWoo. She’s just a baby so I can’t really say anything negative about her. Heehee… I only am a smidge worried about her because she is going through that stage where she wants to go everywhere and get into everything. She can creep but she can’t yet walk… and she is easily startled. She freaks out anytime someone coughs.

The kids are already asking too many questions. I had originally planned to keep it a secret until we left, at least, but it became really difficult to cover it up when I’ve been ordering from the Disney Store, buying Disney Crocs and watching the Disney Vacation Planning DVD. LOL! They knew something was up so I just let the mouse out of the bag last week. Now, I regretfully must answer at least one question about the trip every 10 minutes. “Mom, is the baby coming with us?” “Mom, what’s inside the hotel?” Nothing of course to do with Disneyland… just the trivial kind of questions I’ve come to expect from my OCD-like children… especially Orion. ;-)

I have exactly enough time to hit the tanning bed at least three more times. I have only gone twice in the past month. I need a tan in a bad way. The past nine months, my legs have only been exposed during showers and clothes changing. They are indeed as white as the Alaskan snow. I also need to hit the store for some summery clothes. It just started warming up here. Going from –20 to 50 above seemed to happen overnight here and now I’m stuck with fleece and wool. I’m looking forward to some good weather in California. I’m hoping for 70’s and low 80’s. Anything hotter and it might melt my icy, Alaskan heart. :)

I’ve been gathering info about Disneyland since January. In February, I decided to just do it and called up WDTC and booked. I am so excited to finally be able to go to a fun place like Disneyland for vacation. We normally only go on family vacations every couple of years and tend to go to Kurt’s hometown to visit his family. Don’t get me wrong, those trips are great… but they can’t compare to something like this! Anywhoooo… I feel pretty prepared (aside from packing). The disBoards provided me a wealth of information and I am certain we will have a wonderful time!


Tuesday, May 1, 2007
We’re Off!

The departure day arrived really fast! I spent the evening packing while answering a plethora of questions from Orion and Gia. I urged them to take a nap since we were flying out on the red-eye but they resisted. That was fine with me… maybe they would sleep on the airplane (a girl can dream).

We left for the airport right before midnight as our flight was departing at 1:35 am. After checking in the luggage and going through security, we sat on the ground by our gate anxiously awaiting to board the plane. Flight was a little delayed but we were off to Disneyland! Hooray! We stopped over in Seattle to switch planes at 6:00 am and departed Seattle at 8:05 am. We hardly slept a wink on the flights. The baby was a real trooper to fly with and didn’t really cry at all… just a little fussiness. The kids were decent as they’ve been on long flights (to the east coast) before. They knew what to expect and behaved decently enough. I had to break up a few fights but for the most part, they were just fine… a little cranky and tired… but fine. Orion had a slight cold from two days prior and by the time we got to Seattle, Gia and I had inherited the cough and runny nose. Rats! We went through a ton of Kleenex.

We arrived at LAX on schedule at 10:45 am and went to grab our luggage. We caught the Alamo shuttle to the rental car place. Wow! That was an experience! The driver was amazing. I cannot believe the way she handled that big shuttle around the traffic. It was what I consider to be my first ride at Disneyland. LOL! All I can say is that I’m highly impressed with the driving skills of any of the California crowd. Once at Alamo, we started to worry about the full-size car that I reserved… we had 2 full sized suitcases, a small suitcase, a few backpacks, the big stroller and car seat for the baby. Could we fit all of that (and us) in the car? The representative offered to upgrade us to an SUV for an extra $200. I squirmed a little bit as the cost was under $300 for the full-size but I didn’t want to run into issues with trying to fit all the luggage in the trunk of a car so we went for it. The representative also gave us directions to our hotel (Paradise Pier Hotel).

The drive was a little stressful for me (leg got tired with my air brakes… heehee) but Kurt handled it well and we had no problems finding the hotel. We pulled into the parking garage at about noon and then Orion announced that he was going to be sick. We didn’t pull over and let him out fast enough… he threw up in the rental. Ugh! It was his belly full of orange soda. He and I walked alongside the car while Kurt found a parking spot. We changed Orion’s clothes right there in the parking garage and then grabbed the stroller and headed down to see if we could check in early.



The Paradise Pier Hotel was much nicer than I expected. It was decorated tastefully and I noticed the cleanliness of everything right off the bat. I waited at the check in line for all of about five minutes. The hotel clerk was very nice and not only allowed us to check in early, but upgraded us to a park view room when I told him that we had only reserved a standard room but were interested in getting a nicer view. He also explained to us that the pool was undergoing repair at this time. Bummer! However, the kid’s slide and hot tub were still open… yay! The slide was really all I was interested in anyway. He also gave us a key for the pool at the Grand Californian. We never did go over there during our trip but it was a nice gesture to make up for the pool closure.



Our room was 1104 on floor 11 and the view was FANTASTIC! The room itself was large and clean. It had two queen beds and a fold out couch. There was a Pack ‘n Play in the closet that I assembled for the baby. The bathroom was very nice. I noticed that the vanity/sink was in the bathroom with the bathtub but that didn’t pose any problems for us since the kids are still young and not “fighting” for the bathroom. One of the reasons I chose the Paradise Pier Hotel was because it seemed the most “laid-back” of the three on-site hotels at Disneyland. The Disneyland Hotel looked nice but I was worried it might be too crowded and complicated with so many towers. The Grand Californian looked gorgeous but it was expensive and rather upscale-ish for this simple family of 5 from Alaska. I was pleasantly surprised with the comfortableness of everything at the PPH. We were near the end of the hallway where there was a balcony for smokers. This was a wonderful perk so guests wouldn’t have to trek all the way down the elevators outside the hotel to smoke. The small balcony didn’t have a place to sit but there was an ashtray. I have to mention that you really do have to pay attention to the details while staying at a resort hotel… every morning when the ashtray was cleaned out, the staff would draw a Mickey’s head in the fresh sand. It was silly but a cute touch to make us unpopular smokers feel the Disney magic as well. :)

After getting acquainted with our new home for the next 7 days, we took showers and hit the sack for a nap. It was hard to fall asleep knowing we were in Disneyland. Also, you could hear all the fun happenings down in the parks. I’m glad we chose to stay on-site for our first visit.



We woke up about 5:00 pm and were starving. We headed out of the hotel and followed the red brick road to Downtown Disneyland. It was a short walk—maybe 5 minutes or so. I had planned on the Rainforest Café for dinner possibly but it looked like there was a line to get a table so we kept walking and saw Ralph Brennan’s Jazz Kitchen. We were seated immediately. The host asked if it was our first time there and then said he would seat us up front. We were right next to the pianist. It was awesome! One thing I noticed is that they didn’t seem to have high chairs or booster seats at Ralph Brennan’s. Kurt and I took turns holding the baby throughout dinner. I ordered the Coconut Shrimp, Kurt had the New York Strip Tchoupitoulas, and the kids ordered Mac ‘n Cheese. The food was delicious. Kurt proclaimed that the steak was the best he’d ever had so I tried a bite. It was juicy and perfect. The kids’ meals included the carrots/celery with ranch appetizer and came with either fruit, corn on the cob, or fries I think. I got one with fruit and one with the corn. Gia ate her entire plate of mac ‘n cheese and the corn. Orion ate most of his and some of the fruit. I really enjoyed the atmosphere at Ralph Brennan’s and the delicious food was wonderful after a long day of travel. After dinner, we strolled around Downtown Disneyland and looked around in some of the shops. It was really pretty at night-time with the lighted fountains and being surrounded by music. We grabbed some cotton candy for the kids and headed back to the hotel at about 9:00 pm. On the way, we checked out the grounds at the Disneyland Hotel. It was beautiful at night... and as cheesy as it sounds, quite magical.


Wednesday, May 2, 2007
Sickies Ride Space Mountain

I awoke around 6:00 am on Wednesday but felt horrid due to the cold. My muscles ached so I fell back asleep and didn’t wake up until about 8:30. I wanted to head straight to Disneyland but we had to go to a store to get some Dayquil for me and cold medicine for Gia who had a sore throat. We drove to the K-Mart on Katella and picked up the medicine, much needed Dr. Pepper, bottled water and a few other necessities that we didn’t pack. Since we missed park opening, I figured we might as well stop for breakfast. We ate at Millie’s on Harbor. The food and service was awesome there! The kids and I had breakfast and Kurt had some sort of brisket sandwich that the waitress had recommended.

Bellies full and meds taken, we then made our way to Disneyland for our first day of our five day parkhoppers! We stopped at the Lego Store in Downtown Disney for some photos with the sleeping Lego guy.



We got to the gates around noon and took our first photo through the gates.



We saw lots of characters around Main Street… Mickey, Minnie, Goofy and Donald. We only managed to get Minnie’s autograph, though. It was cute how excited Gia got when it was our turn. She got her autograph and then she wasn’t sure what to do next. I kept asking her to turn around so I could take a photo but she was star-struck. Finally, Orion got her to turn around for a photo.



We then went to Fantasyland and the kids and I rode the teacups while Kurt and the baby watched. I was surprised to see the kids so willing to do any rides. We headed to the It’s a Small World ride and everyone rode. I managed to get a few decent photos without my flash but got a good handful of blurry ones, too. The ride was cool and then we all had that darn song stuck in our heads for the rest of the day.



We got the kids some Mickey Ear ice creams and took a break. We spent more time wandering around the parks. Orion kept asking if we could go on the train and the monorail so we finally got on the Disneyland Railroad at Tomorrowland. We took the round trip and just sat back and enjoyed being together at Disneyland.



Running with the excitement, we headed toward Space Mountain. I grabbed Orion and Gia and said, “Come on! Let’s go on this ride!” They didn’t know what it was but I just kept walking. The fastpass line was being used as the regular line and so we just walked and about the time we were almost at the loading room, Orion freaked. He got scared and bolted off back toward the entrance. This scared Gia and she started to cry. I took Gia back toward the entrance to find Orion and make sure he made it back to Dad safely. On the way back, I convinced Gia to go on Space Mountain with me. I told her that I wasn’t sure how fast it was (this is true… I’ve never been on it or any roller coaster ride) but I didn’t think it would be too scary. We confirmed Mr. Chicken Butt was safe with Dad and I scolded him for running off like that. I would have walked him back but I guess he thought I was going to force him to ride it. Back into the fastpass line and into the loading area. Woah! I started to get worried that Gia was going to freak out but she stayed calm. I just kept talking excitedly and this seemed to reassure her that all was fine. We were loaded into the back of the vehicle and took off. From that point, I knew it was probably a mistake to bring the five-year old because it *was* fast!!! And it was dark, too… so I couldn’t tell if she was okay. I asked her “Are you okay?” and I felt her little ponytail brush across my arm in a back and forth motion. No. But surprisingly, she didn’t cry or scream. She kept her eyes shut the entire ride with her hands white knuckling the lap bar. After the ride stopped, I looked over at her and said, “You did it! You rode a roller-coaster!” She was in a bit of shock still but then I saw her lips curl into a smile. She was pretty darn proud of herself (and I was proud of myself, too, LOL). I then asked her if she wanted to go on it again with Daddy since Orion was a chicken. As expected, her answer was no. ;) The rest of the trip, every time she’d balk at going on some ride, I’d remind her that she had already been on a roller-coaster and that nothing else would be as scary as that. It worked sometimes...



At about 3:30, we ran out of refreshments so we went to the Refreshment Corner for drinks and hot dogs. I forgot to charge my camera battery the night before so that’s where my photos ended for the day.

We decided to go take a peek at California Adventure so got our hands stamped on the way out and wandered around Hollywood Pictures Backlot for a bit. We saw Stitch and got his autograph. Then Kurt decided he would go ride the Tower of Terror. As we waited outside on the curb, a fight broke out at the entrance between two guys. They were yelling and trying to hit each other. At first, I thought they were fighting with the cast member at the entrance but I think he was just caught in the middle. I’m not sure what the argument was about but they were quickly removed. I was worried that there would be gunfire so I was trying to shield the kids just in case. Kurt finally came out about 25 minutes later and we decided to head back to Disneyland for the parade.

We were about half an hour early for the parade but Main Street was already filled with people. We sat on the curb on the left side near the shops before you get to the Carnation Café. It turned out to be okay seats even though some people stood in front of us. We were able to see everything pretty well. A little boy shared some of his Mickey lollipops with the kids.

The parks were closing at 8:00 pm so after the parade, we made our way back to the hotel. Kurt was tired so he went straight to bed. I took the kids down to the PCH Grill, the restaurant in the hotel, for dinner. They have fantastic service and food. I love their Mushroom soup. I think I’m addicted… as I ordered it all four times we had dinner at the hotel during the trip. Their Bacon Cheese Fries are yummy, too! They have really large portions so come equipped with an appetite.

After dinner, I took the kids into the hotel arcade. They played some games while the baby tried to play with another little girl that was there. It was cute. I also tried to unsuccessfully win a purple hippo stuffed animal from the claw machine. I later found out that the claw machine champ in our family is Kurt. He would go down to the arcade every night after having a beer in the bar and bring back 3 to 8 stuffed toys. LOL! We had to buy an extra oversized bag to take home all of our claw machine winnings.

All in all, it was a fantastic first day at the parks! I wish we had gotten there early but we wouldn’t have made it until closing if it weren’t for the cold meds.

....MORE TO COME...

Part II
Part III
Part IV