Thanks to a generous Christmas gift to the girls from their grandparents Jeff and Renate, AND a sale on tickets for local residents, we got a few passes to use over the next months for Disneyland.
We decided that we would go the next time there was a nice sunny SoCal day forecast, which was this past Saturday. And we got to test out our new wheels!* The park ended up being a bit busier than we expected, probably because rain was forecast for the next day, but it was manageable!
(*For anyone that doesn't know, James's car was totaled by a reckless driver while it was parked in front of our house. Thankfully no one was hurt. We took the opportunity to get ourselves a used, but new to us, Acura MDX that fits the whole fam, plus guests!)
In line to get in
My favorite - Alex kept getting excited, then finding "guy"
to show him the stuff she was excited about.
Here she is showing him the castle!
I took this picture of Alex in front of the castle. I showed it to her and she said "I crying" and I asked her if she wanted to take one with her smiling, and she said no, she liked the crying one!! Well then!
All of us in front of the castle!
Super Excited! (and no longer sad)
Oh Josie love
On the carousel - more carousel, all day.
I spent a ton of time researching Disneyland with toddlers and got some GREAT tips. The night before we went, I felt like someone who had never been to Disneyland before - what do I bring? What will I need? This from a girl who had annual passes for YEARS and would just head down with my pass, license, and my debit card in my back pocket. No, Disneyland with toddlers is a whole new thing. That said, I wasn't missing anything when we were there, and we were glad to have everything we brought. I wouldn't change too much about our day.
In line at Dumbo - they are so used to being told to sit down
for snacks, that they did that right there in line.
She has the feather they give you before you get to ride Dumbo
Waiting patiently
And we are OFF! Jamey with Josie.
I wish this pano photo had come out better, and less jumpy! But how cute are they in the teacups?
Will just have to go again and take another one!
The girls freaking LOVED DISNEY LAND. And went WILD with Mickey related stuff. Even non Mickey stuff drove them wild - the Winnie the Pooh ride, seeing Goofy, seeing Donald Duck. Like, their little minds were BLOWN.
James's favorite moment was when we were in line to see Mickey Mouse, and a movie of Mickey Mouse was playing on the wall, and his shadow appeared, and Alex screamed across the room "MICKEY MOUSE!!!!" So adorable! (not so fun, shortly thereafter, the "meet Mickey Mouse" line was shuffled outside and told that, due to an emergency, Mickey Mouse was no longer available for meet and greets. Of course! But Alex and Josie had no idea, and were perfectly happy moving on to the next thing.)
This was a very impromptu photo - I thought I would do one to copy the original eventually (maybe on a future trip when the girls were older), but when we got the pink elephant and we were so close to the exit at the end of the ride, I handed James my phone and asked him to quickly snap this as a little something to text to my dad. It wasn't until I got to a computer and looked at both of these photos that I realized how similar these are. I am six in the photo below, and that means my dad was almost my age now. And I guess we both like giant sunglasses. How nice to have a photo just like this each of us with our daughters? xoxox
Alex and Josie were amazing all day - only two breakdowns but both were totally justified. They needed a little bit more carrying than they usually ask for when we were in lines, but I think they felt short and lost among the crowded adults. Probably my favorite moments of the day were when the girls didn't want to leave rides - like Josie silently laying on the ground in front of the exit of Dumbo not wanting to leave, or both of them sad when the teacups stopped. I agree girls, I hate when the ride is over!
More tours for Guy
And Bear.
Mom and dad :)
Pinano!
Watching the world go by.
1st visit pins!
We just had a blast. I was very emotional all day sharing my favorite things with them. I can't wait to go again in a few months.
Finding fun things to explore in Toon Town
I felt like a ROCKSTAR getting the girls to sleep
in their stroller at nap time! They haven't done this in ages!
Tips that I collected from other moms:
Stroller - I was told not to bring mine but man I was glad I did. We parked it in each "world" as our home base, letting the girls walk and explore but using it to transport them between worlds, and it held all of our "stuff"
Stroller lock - We got a cheap bicycle lock to put on our stroller when it was parked for long periods of time in different spots in the park. Probably unnecessary but I felt peace of mind having it. We do, after all, have the Cadillac of strollers.
Identification - Get a big sticker label and put your child's name and your number on it, and stick it to the back of their shirt. We didn't do this but what a good idea in case you get separated.
Blankets - We used a few swaddle blankets to keep the girls warm, wipe boogies/mouths/faces/hands, and cover the stroller during naps.
Rider Switch - I was nervous to do this but it was SO easy. Definitely something you can do during toddler's nap. Just inform all the attendants that you are doing rider switch. When the ride is over, bring your rider switch pass to your buddy who then gets to get right on without waiting in line!
Diaper Change Bag - Have a separate little bag to change diapers - with just a few diapers, wipes and a changing pad in it. The restrooms are crowded so not having to bring in the giant bag of stuff is helpful. The changing pad was absolutely necessary.
Snacks - separate snacks (gummies, goldfish, cookies) in advance in little baggies so you can bring one in each ride line. A&J each ate 1000000 cookies that day.
Dining Gear - A ziplock with bibs and utensils for each meal.
Stuff - Stuff we brought that was used: extra clothes for A & J, sweaters, sun hats, sun glasses, milk sippie cups, water drinking cups, and our portable phone charger.
Tram - We skipped the tram. The lines were long and you have to fold up your stroller. No thanks. We walked and I bet we made the same amount of time both ways. Highly recommend that.
Baby Stations - There is an awesome baby station in Disneyland and California Adventure that has a ton of baby stuff, clean changing tables and nursing/feeding rooms. We didn't end up using it, but what a great resource if you need it!
