Last Thursday we headed off to Disneyland. We are very fortunate to be able to go! The kids were so excited and Carson kept asking about what the inside of a plane looks like. We watched tones of you tube videos and looked at pictures gallore. I got the kids out of school just before lunch and then it was last second packing and waiting for Daddy so we could head to the airport.
Dillon had two packets of homework to do so the deal was that he had to do one on the plane ride down and one on the way home. He was so studious and worked so hard! He is finally getting interest back in reading after having problems last year. His eye sight had gotten worse without us realizing so his fluency went way down. He had problems getting motivated to work at it again but since the school year has started he has taken off again, wanting to even start reading chapter books.
Carson was SO excited to go on the plane... Until it got up in the air. He does NOT like heights and wanted to "go down now". He spent a good portion of the flight gripping the arm rest and my leg. Eventually he settled down and realized everything was okay. Dillon was so sweet telling Carson "On my first time going up high in a plane I was scared to but then I was okay." Carson had no issues whatsoever on the way back home.
When we finally got checked into the hotel and then out to dinner it was already 8:30. We had been on the move since 1:30. We were all exhausted and excited for the next day. The kids did amazing on the plane and then did phenomenal sitting and waiting for dinner as well. They really did fantastic during the entire trip with only a few sporadic fights.
Heading off to disneyland! The first day!
The first ride we had to do was Buzz Lightyear. It is my favorite ride, the kids loved it and we thought it would be a great start for Carson.
Then autopia! We had to ride this ride several times, keeping track of which kids had driven so they all got a chance.
Kayda drove me first and told me "It's my first time driving so it will be a little buimpy!"
On the last night of Disneyland we rode it again. Kayda drove with Daddy and I was in the other car driving with Dillon and Carson. At the end Kayda ran into us. She was trying to do the pedal (which she could barely reach) and drive. Well, we kept creeping up slowly and she ran into us again and again. I finally turned around and said "Kayda, you are a TERRIBLE driver". I was teasing of course. She responds with "Sorry! I'm new!". She kept laughing and laughing, telling Daddy "I laughed so hard I could've wet my pants!"
Afterwards they played hopscotch to earn a big Disneyland button.
Carson was too shy so Daddy did it for him.
And of course, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. This has been Kayda's favorite ride since we first went to Disneyland (she was 3). Carson was nervous so he and I went elsewhere. Good thing too because Kayda and Dillon rode it three times, in a row.
Kayda and Dillon would listen to the annoucment for Thunder Mountain and at the end say "The wildest ride in the wilderness" with them. Every time they rode. Carson decided to try it one night and it became his favorite ride. Kayda rode that thing about 10 times, Dillon 8 and Carson probably 7. It is still Kayda's favorite ride, now it is also Carson's favorite ride though he calls it "Kayda's favorite ride" to tell us when he wanted to ride it.
Carson and Mommy time!
Splash Mountain! Carson loved it!
When we headed to California Adventure we went into Bugs land. They make everything seem like you're big size. So I joked about how we had shrunk and it must be magic. Dillon shocked us by getting all deep. He said "Did we shrink or did they grow bigger?" He and Kayda then spent the rest of our time in there debating which was the case (all in good fun of course). Every time we walked through there after that resulted in the same discussion.
We found out where we could go see Elsa in the animation studio. So in we went, all around are screens of various sizes showing different phases of the same photo throughout the animation process. One would just be a sketch, another would be a rough drawing and then they would be showing the scene as well. One of them that came up was the floating lanterns from Tangled. All of a sudden the lanterns were floating on EVERY screen all the way around you. Kayda got SO excited and thought it was just magical. Her eyes got so big and a huge grin came on her face.
This trip the kids were all about getting signatures of different characters and taking pictures with them. Here are Elsa and Ana from Frozen.
Oswald. Dillon knows this character from a game that he plays.
Lightning McQueen from Cars.
Donald Duck.
Waiting for Toy Story Midway Mania. This is my new favorite ride. We would get off the ride and Carson would strike a super hero type pose and continue making the shooting motion, with sound effects.
Dillon decide to brave California Screamin'. He and Daddy are in the very back. He LOVED it. Kayda thought about it and changed her mind. Later on she decided to try it with Dillon and I. She, of course, loved it and the two of them went again immediately. I couldn't, my stomach hates rides. I'm glad they were old enough to ride on their own.
Grizzly River run. This is one of my favorite kinds of rides. Especially since I get to sit across from my children and take their pictures as we go through it.
Chip!
They got to have a dance party with Olaf from Frozen.
They met Mr. and Mrs. Incredible along with Frozone.
Carson was SO excited to meet Mickey. Sorry for the blurry picture but look at his face!
Tow Mater!
There were actually several times that Kayda wanted to continue at Disneyland while the boys wanted to play in the water at the hotel. I was usually the one back at the hotel simply because my stomach takes issue with rides. That and crowds make me super anxious so I was happy to get away from them for a while.
Ariel. Kayda and Dillon both had characters they wanted to see specifically for their teachers.
Jungle Cruise. See his face? That's how his face looks through the majority of rides. Then it's over, he would smile and act so excited and tell us how much he loved each ride.
Buzz Lightyear from Toy Story.
Goofy
Minnie
On Monday Dillon caught his foot at the end of the water slide at the hotel. He ended up falling face first into the cement. Of course I sent Grandma G this picture since she is our tooth expert and she confirmed my need to go to the dentist. We were lucky enough to find one that was still open considering it was after 6pm. Dillon and I jumped in a taxi and off we went.
Look at that brave boy!
Fortunately the break was low enough that it didn't effect the nerves.
He was given fillings in order to smooth them out. Eventually he may need crowns. They are both a little loose so we have to coddle them for a few weeks until they stabilize.
He was back at it the next day with not a single complaint! Here's Tigger.
Eeyore. He kept spinning the top of Carson's hat so after that Carson refused to wear it to see any of the other characters!
Pooh Bear.
On splash mountain!
Carson was a total Daddy's boy this trip. Normally he cannot be separated from me but this trip he was all about Daddy. He wanted to ride every ride with Daddy and even wanted to sleep next to Daddy. It was funny because as soon as we got on the airplane to head home he was suddenly a Mommy only boy again.
Just as we started down the hill.
Just after we got to the bottom.
Waiting for the World of Color show.
There was a portion where it showed a bunch of different characters and Kayda would yell out the movie. She and Dillon said their favorite part was learning about how Disneyland started. Carson liked the fireballs most.
Dillon wanted to ride Space mountain with me (my stomach started hurting just thinking about it) but we headed that way anyway. After being in line for about 5 minutes with the sound effects going (since it's halloween time it is themed Ghost Galaxy). There were screams and all sorts of other spooky noises. He decided he didn't want to do it after all so we headed to Star Tours.
The last day we packed and swam until it was time to eat lunch and head home. I wish we could've spent more time in the water but the kids loved being at the park. By the end of the trip Kayda and Dillon were both ready to head back home and go back to school. I was emotionally exhausted and ready to go home. Daddy and Carson both wanted to stay. Carson even told me "I want to live at Disneyland every day for ever and ever."
I think it turned out to be a magical trip for our children and they will have wonderful memories from it. I'm so glad we were able to go.
