Disneyland

The day the kids have been waiting for is Disney day!

We arrived early, even getting to the gate 20 minutes ahead of schedule. We then headed past the ticket booth to the main area, where we all waited for the park to open. Then it was a mad rush.

First thing we did? Adventure Land.

Shortly thereafter, we stopped to ride Dumbo.

Ezra has had a thing for horses, so he was tickled when he could get on the carousel and ride one.

As would be expected, Ara wanted to say hi to Minnie.

Then, before you knew it, the sun was setting. You could see the golden rays shooting through Arabella’s hair. The sun would soon be setting. Luca even fell asleep while we were waiting to catch a ride on the Disneyland Railroad.

The kids started to mention they were feeling a bit tired, so we picked things that would hopefully allow for some sitting (like the boat ride). They, however, didn’t want to stay sitting. They were up, running amok.

We rode everything in the park except:

• The Monorail (meh)
• It’s a Small World (also meh)
• Space Mountain (it’s okay)
• Thunder Mountain Railroad (one of our faves)
• The Matterhorn Bobsleds (meh)

We weren’t too crazy disappointed. I think we accomplished a great deal in a short amount of time. Despite this, the Arabella rode Autotopia a couple of times before it got dark.

The hardest part? No real child switch. Unlike Universal, which allows the family to all go through the line and then quickly switch parents, Disney makes you split up. Then you have a ‘quick pass’ after they return, but it takes a lot more time out of your day when it’s run that way. It’s somewhat frustrating, as Disney is supposed to be a family-friendly park.

We stopped for a final photo at the spot where we began our day, and now where it was ending, before heading off to our hotel for the night.

Okay, so technically, for the morning, as it was past midnight when we left the park.

Technically, we turned a 1-day pass into a 2-day pass. Follow us for more hacks!

just Pray

P.S. As we are in the hotel room, Luca asks me, “What’s your favorite part of the Tram ride?”

Tram ride? Do you mean the Disneyland Railroad??

“No, the tram ride.”

Confused and needing clarification, I said, “Oh, well, what’s your favorite part?”

“King Kong”

After a day at Disneyland, he was still talking about Universal. Funny, but it summarized how I felt, too. The kids all chimed in that Disneyland was okay, but that Universal was overall more fun.

Who knew?

P.S.S. I turned on the TV in our hotel room, and the Impractical Jokers came on. We decided to watch it. This episode happened to be the one where they visited Universal Studios Hollywood, much to the kids’ excitement.