The Day We Started Our Disney Adventure

After our breakfast with Minnie and her friends, it was time to hit the park.  We decided to start with It’s A Small World.  We actually planned our trip dates around its refurbishment schedule.  It was closed when we visited Disneyland in 2008, so we were anxious for Brooke and Emily to experience the ride, especially since it had been Katelyn’s favorite on her first trip in 2006.  The girls love the “It’s A Small World,” so they were all ready and excited to experience it firsthand. 

They absolutely loved the ride and enjoyed looking for all of the “hidden” Disney characters throughout the ride.  They also loved that a real duck lead our boat out of the tunnel.  It was so cute and because of the awesomeness of Disney, seemed intentional.

Next we headed to Toon Town...

As part of our trip prep, we borrowed my parents VHS copy of Roger Rabbit and had a movie night before we left, so that the girl could fully appreciate the story-line throughout the ride.  Yes I am that lame.

Brooke and Emily were very concerned about the containers of “Dip” everywhere and Brooke looked all over for the little cartoon shoe that gets “dipped” at the beginning of the movie – she was hoping he would be at Disneyland thus, reassuring her that he was in fact ok and not really dead as the movie suggested.  Sweet little Brooke.  Despite the scary containers of dip, the girls loved the ride and requested it throughout the trip.

Next, we headed into Mickey’s house.  Katelyn led Brooke and Emily around to check everything out.

Then we got to meet the Mouse behind the magic.

Next up, we headed back to Fantasyland for a tea party.  Brooke and Katelyn were spinning so fast on the Teacups that they were blurry.  We took Emily in a separate car to make sure she didn’t mind the spinning.  She LOVED it! 

The carrousel was also a big hit and was a great repeat ride for Emily when the big girls were off riding other rides.  As a side note, it was awesome have four adults for three kids.  Outnumbering them made everything easier.

When it was time for lunch we headed to the Hungry Bear Restaurant in Critter Country.  Kyle found a chocolate dipped brownie caramel thing from the nearby sweet shop that was amazing and my mom discovered the awesomeness of their Fried Green Tomato sandwich.  I always potassium load at Disneyland by eating as many chocolate covered frozen bananas as I can get my hands on, so I just sampled what everyone else had – too many bananas.  The food was good and the atmosphere was great.  Emily loved watching the ducks while she ate. 

While we were ordering our food, one of the employees made the girls Honorary Citizens of Disneyland because of their good behavior.  The guy was so nice, he said he sees a lot of kids and our three were so well behaved, he thought they deserved it.  We were proud of them, but of course had to tease them a little too, so Kyle made sure that Katelyn wore her badges with pride by attaching one to each side of her glasses. 

After lunch, Katelyn and her posse of adults went to the Haunted Mansion while I took Brooke and Emily on Pooh Bear’s ride.  They didn’t want to go, but of course ended up loving it and riding it over and over.

While we waited for the Haunted Mansion group to return we found some yummy treats to enjoy.  Brooke was so happy to find a fun cookie that she could actually eat.  Very rarely are those fun shaped cookies made on equipment that is nut free – so she was thrilled.  And, like I mentioned earlier, anything shaped like Minnie or Mickey just tastes better.

Once we were all back together we headed for Pirates and then hopped the train to Outdatedland Tomorrowland.

We hit the Astro Orbiter while Emily and Pop went animal shopping.

Emily got to pick out her very own Minnie Mouse and she was thrilled.  I have such vivid childhood memories of getting to pick out my souvenir stuffed animal.  It was so fun to see my Dad and Emily continuing that tradition together.  He extended the offer to all three girls but Katelyn and Brooke decided they would wait until the park closed to pick out their animals.  The awesomeness of the rides, was all they could focus on for the time being.  More on that later…

We all enjoyed a fun ride on Autopia and the gorgeous weather that had smiled upon our entire day.  As a side note, we read that they are turning Tomorrowland into Star Wars Land.  Good call Disney, IT IS TIME!

We finished off our day with Mickey’s Soundsational Parade.  It was a great show and the girls really enjoyed it – the Mickey  shaped pretzels and cotton candy (not Mickey shaped) were part of the awesomeness.  Brooke and Emily loved the music and danced through the entire show.  Emily was FLOORED that every float was filled with the characters she loved – especially the princesses.  I’ve always loved Disneyland, but each time we come with our kids I love it even more.  I love watching them experience it all for the first time (or second or third).

After a full first day, Emily headed back to the room with Kyle while Katelyn and Brooke lead Pop, Gram and I on an animal hunt.  After checking out all the stores, they decided on Build-A-Bears for their souvenir animals.  They said it was a perfect end to a perfect day.

After the stuff-fest, we headed back to the hotel.  I sent my parents and the girls upstairs and made a slight detour.  A cup of hot chocolate was calling my name and as I headed for the elevator I was derailed by a super comfy rocking chair in front of the fire.  It was awesome.

Once I got back to the room, Kyle headed out to forage for food and stumbled upon the greatest place.  Earl of Sandwich is our new best friend.  Their sandwiches are CRAZY GOOD.  It’s one thing if I say that, but if Kyle says that you know it is really really really good.  He also grabbed some of their desserts for us to try and they were equally awesome.  It was such a fun day and the best part is that we were just getting started.