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Thread: Five "Who Enter This Happy Place" [Day Trips 2013]

  1. #101

    Great reports MANIAC! I am MAD about them. Looking forward to mine coming up in OCT!!


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  3. #102
    Quote Originally Posted by letshavefun View Post
    Wow nice job finding that hidden Mickey. Looking through the pictures it took me a second to see what I was looking at.
    Quote Originally Posted by MadasaHatter View Post
    Great reports MANIAC! I am MAD about them. Looking forward to mine coming up in OCT!!
    Thanks y'all. Will look forward to reading about the trip MaaH. And lhf, I knew what you meant.
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  4. #103

    Trip 32: August 9, 2013. 6:45 to 12:30.

    Two of the kids' favorite things of all are 1. Disneyland and 2. time with cousins. Combine the two, and well, it doesn't get any better. To boot, tonight's trip included not one, not two, but THREE cousins. What fun. Sounds a little cray and daring I know, but yes in fact Kim and I were flanked by 6 young people. Actually, having Boo along is as good as having a third adult and, as I mentioned a few reports ago, he relieves DW and I to go off and do stuff with the young fella just the three of us. So in addition to DL time and cousin time, my two oldest get time away from mom and dad time. Life is good. Goofy's Sky School, Tuck 'n Roll's (twice), and Tower of Terror were the night's "kids only" rides. I'm glad they enjoyed themselves. Hey, any time I can skip Tuck 'n Roll's you'll get no complaints from me.

    As I recall it was a pretty slow night as nights go for us. I mean, we must've sat in Fiddler, Fifer, and Practical Cafe just relaxing and enjoying each others' company for a good 40 minutes. We rarely do that kinda thing. We might've stayed longer but young Walt went from knocking over a water to spilling snacks to dropping, well, practically any and everything. And I gotta say I love me some FF&P Cafe.

    Once in DLP, the crew got split in half: the four who wanted to ride Splash Mountain and everyone else. I was part of the former group. Two nephews insisted on riding Splash a second time. No thanks for Nancy and me "but you guys go ahead" and they did while we rode Pooh. Their second turn on Splash was a mini-disaster. It broke down and DD and I were there waiting for them to be walked off for longer than I care to remember. What a drag. I wouldn't have minded so much except we had a foursome in a holding pattern waiting for us in NOS and these kids had a laundry list of "to do's" to check off in the night's last 90 minutes. Well, by the time they got off a broken down Splash we were down to our last 50 minutes. Urgh! Our only saving grace was nephews received two ride anything passes for the inconvenience.

    Not exactly sure how we pulled it off but managed to make it from Critter Country and onto three of the kids' faves in under an hour. Matterhorn. Space Mountain. Autopia. Even with the fastpasses it was a tall order. Thomas leaving his hat on Space and the crew having to wait there for it nearly ruined their Autopia plans, but they made it there. Just barely. Right around 11:59 lol.

    As a sidenote. The Splash Mountain breakdown and resulting time crunch forced me to forego the one plan I personally had for the night: to ride The Haunted Mansion on this, its 44th anniversary. D'oh! Oh well stuff happens. I look forward to visiting it next time out.



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  5. #104

    Trip 33: August 15, 2013. 8am to 12:30.

    Boys only trip. This was Walt's first go on Astro Orbiter; he's instantly a fan. Roy didn't even notice or mention we missed all the e-ticket rides. As long as he gets some quality Innoventions time in, he's over the moon. We had lunch and a show - Laughing Stock Co. - before heading home for the day. Since Walt is a big hot dog enthusiast we picked up his lunch at Coke Corner, and I gave in once I saw the seasonal item: the pulled pork hot dog. Here it is. Suffice it to say it looks better than it tastes IMO. Bleh. After a few bites it occured to me that a dog is absolutely its best with yellow mustard and onion ... why mess with a good thing? I ended up eating the pulled pork and slaw with a fork and gave the dog to Walt who had already devoured his first hot dog.

    One nice thing about Laughing Stock Co. is they perform several variations of the show. Although the general plot is the same each time, the presentation gets switched up so you're not hearing the same rehearsed lines. Oh and here's a picture of Roy stuck on Autopia. A CM had to come get him. When that didn't help, they called out a mechanic.

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  6. #105

    Trip 34: August 18, 2013. 6 to 11.

    The magical and mysterious ruled the night as I was left pondering this poignant question: When one receives a Mickey shaped chicken breast nugget from Taste Pilot's, is it merely coincidence or did the chefs make it that way intentionally? Here, you decide:



    Dinner at Taste Pilot's was a nice relaxing break between visiting the two parks. We practically had the restaurant to ourselves. In fact, there was hardly a line to be waited in all night - Alice may've been the longest wait and it was about 10 minutes. Early in the evening we indulged in one of our favorites: soft serve ice cream cones from Paradise Pier. The girls went to race the Radiator Springs Racers. They rode in a purple car and won, two facts that Nancy reminded me of several times. While they were busy in Cars Land, Walt and I rode Monsters three times. He would've kept going too, but dinner called.

    When we boarded Storybook Land Canal Boats a few minutes before 11, Fantasyland was all but a ghost town. We had the night's last boat to ourselves. Of course, Nancy took this opportunity to be a whale watcher but Walt chose to sit with his mom. To me, the night had a feeling of finality to it. That is, summer's over. For the first time in months, the park is closing at 11pm, not midnight. Tomorrow, SoCal passholders return. Summer out-of-town crowds have dispersed, it appears. School is about to start. As a family, we'll break from the parks through at least Labor Day. In my mind's eye, as I exited the park I envisioned the giant Mickey jack-o-lantern in the square. Soon enough it'll be reality.

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  7. #106

    Trip 35: September 14, 2013. 7 to midnight.

    My favorite time of year in Disneyland - when it's tinted orange - has arrived. Soon after it became apparent tonight that a single restaurant would't accomodate our varying preferences, I realized neither would two, so why not go for three? So DW ate with the two boys at Plaza Inn and the three of them split two adult dinners: pot roast and pasta w/ alfredo. Daughter and I picked up her chicken nuggets at Stage Door, headed over to get my baked potato at Harbor Galley and grabbed a table at French Market, where we met up w/ the family and ate under the fireworks. Yes it was more labor intensive than compromising on a single restaurant and sitting down for a relaxing meal, but this way everyone got exactly what they wanted and after the week we'd had, you want what you want.

    As teachers, we're accustomed to a lot of dispensible time in July and August giving way to sheer crazy levels of activity and no spare time in September and beyond. But never quite as sheer and crazy as this year. Among Roy's two current soccer teams/ fall baseball team/ piano lessons & practice and his sister's soccer and gymnastics along with the full complement of daily homework for both, my coaching two of their teams and refereeing and attending coaches'/referrees' meetings and church and exercise and so on, and DW meeting the demands of, well, everything .... stealing away for a few DLR hours one night is harder than ever. Sleep deprived and going on six straight days & nights out and about, I should've been dragging by the time we reached the park. But "I haven't felt so alive in years" (says the Depeche Mode lyrics by Martin Gore). Well that's perhaps overstating it, but you get the point: The parks, the Mickey jack-o-lantern, the California Screams, the Mad T dancing, and not least of all Haunted Mansion Holiday ... it's all so invigorating.

    I look at these kids and I'm proud. They work hard in school and at practice and in games and push themselves and go all out and have more asked of them than average 6 & 8 year olds and go to bed most nights completely spent. Then they get up at 6:30 the next morning and do it all over again with equal passion. So when it's put to me by a friend that we should relax at home when finally given a night off and "Why/how could you go to Disneyland til midnight when finally allowed to take it easy?" the answer is simple: Because the kids wanna go, and they earned it.



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  8. #107

    Pictures sayit all, Brad! Since when is Roy doing Piraes on his own? Such a big boy!!!

    Siggy aka Jill

  9. #108
    Quote Originally Posted by SigalTchelet View Post
    Since when is Roy doing Piraes on his own? Such a big boy!!!
    There was a stipulation he agreed to in order to do that, namely that he check in via text every 10 minutes. In fact I took a picture (here) of the exchange he and his mom had texting; the teacher in her never lets up you'll see.
    We don't leave him unsupervised, well, anywhere besides Disneyland, now that I think about it and even there it's for a brief interval.
    Koenig devotes a chapter in Mouse Tales to the urban myth of child abductions in the park. I read it a while back and seem to recall the author nearly completely debunks the notion of Disneyland as a hotbed for child predators. Truth is it's a relatively safe and secure environment for kids.
    That, and Roy knows the parks inside and out and could meet us at any given spot on a moment's notice. He knows the rallying point should the cell phone fail. And in the event of an emergency he's well aware that the CM's are to be flagged down.
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  10. #109
    At home in the hills candles71's Avatar
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    Bwhaha, love the screen shot.


  11. #110
    Quote Originally Posted by candles71 View Post
    Bwhaha, love the screen shot.
    Me too! Good job Roy (and Mom for correcting the spelling!!! LOL
    Siggy aka Jill

  12. #111

    Trip 36: September 21, 2013. 7:30 to midnight.

    Walt got to wear his favorite shirt tonight. We Scare Because We Care .... SO WATCH YOUR BACK. He likes to show it off:



    Funniest part is he's convinced himself every shirt has writing on the back. He gets so many compliments on this shirt that when he's wearing a different shirt and someone says "hey I like your shirt" he immediately shows them his back (which is, of course, blank at this time) and he asks "What's the back say?"

    Was very sparse in Redwood Creek so we stayed awhile. Then before we boarded Ariel's Walt partook in one his newest favorite pastimes: pin trading. Here he is showing off his newest monorail pin along with his sissy, who just traded as well. He's beginning to identify Disneyland by name and has committed more ride intricacies to memory. For instance, when asked if he wants to ride the choo-choo he says yes then emphatically mimics the Casey jr. "All aboard!" The morning after our recent trips he states "I have fun, Disneyland. Have fun, daddy." And he's begun asking when we're going back.

    Then there's these two (Roy and cousin). They set a new standard for being the park but not actually getting on stuff. I mean, they're either spending time retracing their steps across the park to retrieve Roy's hat, or getting in a line (like Autopia for the second time) only to get out of line, or hanging out in Star Trader making light sabers. I'm pretty sure they're not causing any trouble and I'm glad they're getting some play time. This trip came just a few hours after their opening day game of fall baseball. Thomas played catcher all six innings and Roy pitched a couple; they're a nice duo and stoked to finally end up on the same team.

    Compared to a week earlier when we visited same time same place, Disneyland Park was noticeably more congested ... not to the point it was a bother but there's a subtle line between crowded and not. DW and Walt tried Buzz's Astro Blasters and daughter and I attempted Toad's both around 10:30pm and we both found the lines longer than we were willing to stand in. They ended up on Finding Nemo Subs and we on Pinocchio's Daring Journey. I could be wrong but I think the King Arthur's Carousel closure puts a strain on Fantasyland. These couple Saturday nights were nice, but this latest one was enough to convince me a Sunday morning trip is due.

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  13. #112

    Trip 37: September 29, 2013. 8am to 12:30.

    He may be just two years old, but the little man knows what he wants. We'd hardly passed the turnstiles when he decided it'd be Pooh to start the day. I couldn't have planned it better myself: start at the back of the park and work our way forward. Great plan, young padawan. No telling how many times he could've kept on riding tMAoWtP but I cut him off at 2 to get over to HMH before the lines set in. The updates in there add a nice modernity and are just spot on. PotC and Jungle Cruise rounded out a busy first hour before we broke for breakfast at River Belle.

    Walt's eyes light up like a Christmas tree at the mere mention of sausage, and with as much stimulation as there is in the park sausage is about the only thing capable of holding his attention enough to get him to eat. The Mark Twain made a pass as we enjoyed our meal outside. And why didn't anyone tell me River Belle Terrace added menu items? Cinnamon Roll French Toast -and- Biscuits and Gravy. I'll have that, and that. As if I didn't have enough reason already, I just found two more to stop in for breakfast.

    For Walt this was a magical trip. Do people remember things from this young? I'm not sure but I think not. When he's older he can at least relive the experience through pictures, 'cuz I took plenty of them. We stopped at one of my favorite things of all: Dia de Los Muertos. The petting zoo was incredibly fun. Then at 10:30 the gates to the pumpkin carvers and Billy Hills and some other activities opened up and Walt got to meet 'n greet first with Pluto, then Woody, and finally Mickey. That Woody, what a personality. He had a lot of enthusiasm to say the least. He did such a great job with Walt by engaging him in pantomime about Buzz (since Buzz was on Walt's shirt) and they both pretended to operate a forearm laser a la Buzz Lightyear. Walt told him "There's a snake in my boot!" to which Woody pretended to panic and freak out. They hugged and bid adieu and just as it ended it kept going ... Walt turned back to give him a kiss and that Woody had such a big heart; he stopped to let Walt kiss him. The line that had now grown to at least a dozen collectively gasped then in unison let out an "Awwww." The Photopass photog and I had both stopped shooting by now but it was a really priceless moment.

    Alright I could add a lot more detail and reporting but I promised to try to keep these short so I need to give myself the hook. A few real quick notes: the goats and sheep were a huge hit, as was the whirl on Francis (where Walt screamed in feigned fright - he learned that from his sis), and the kindly gentleman CM who traded him pins at Ariel's made his day .... it's all there in the pictures. Take a look. It's a photo essay of a little boy completely in his element having the best time he possibly knows how.



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    Last edited by MidwayManiac; 10-04-2013 at 11:29 PM.
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  14. #113

    How lovely he got a day to himself with you at the parks!!! Soooo adorable!!!

    Siggy aka Jill

  15. #114
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    I love the last picture all passed out in the stroller still holding on to the Cheetos bag. What a great day. I often wonder if the CMs and characters really know how much they can impact a guest visit. One of the best experiences my adult son and his girlfriend had was with a photo pass guy on Tom Sawyer Island (I know that's not he name but that will always be what we call it) they said he was awesome.


  16. #115
    At home in the hills candles71's Avatar
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    Letshavefun:Actually, the Island is still Tom Sawyer Island. The atraction is called Pirates Lair on TSI.

    Brad: I was 6 weeks old when we were stationed in Germany and 3 1/2 when we got moved back stateside. I remember the Zugspitz in Austria, I remember ascending and being on top of the Eiffel Tower, and I vividly remember going to Dachau. I also remember going to Disneyland. Mom said we went twice during the time we had been released from Germany and had to report to the next posting. I remember the parade and being in the skyway buckets and going through the Matterhorn. I am 42, you will be surprised at what he will remember.


  17. #116
    Quote Originally Posted by SigalTchelet View Post
    How lovely he got a day to himself with you at the parks!!! Soooo adorable!!!
    We had a full day at the parks w/ all five of us planned, then late the night before the older two kids ended up at sleepovers. Since we leave for a day trip by 7am that did in any plans they had for DLR. At first I assumed the trip would be cancelled then thought why should it be? the little guy wants to go as badly as anyone.

    Quote Originally Posted by letshavefun View Post
    I often wonder if the CMs and characters really know how much they can impact a guest visit. .
    you and me both.


    Quote Originally Posted by candles71 View Post
    Brad: I was 6 weeks old when we were stationed in Germany and 3 1/2 when we got moved back stateside. I remember the Zugspitz in Austria, I remember ascending and being on top of the Eiffel Tower, and I vividly remember going to Dachau. I also remember going to Disneyland. Mom said we went twice during the time we had been released from Germany and had to report to the next posting. I remember the parade and being in the skyway buckets and going through the Matterhorn. I am 42, you will be surprised at what he will remember.
    Wow that's pretty incredible. I was gonna say my memory is much more foggy than that. But we lived in the garden state until I was four and I have memories (albeit vague ones) of it.
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  18. #117
    At home in the hills candles71's Avatar
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    Dad was drafted while my mom was pregnant with me, so I was born in the garden state.


  19. #118

    Trip 38: October 7, 4:30 to 9.

    Like a CM once told me in Star Trader, "You take a normal situation and put a Storm Trooper in it on a t-shirt and it becomes funny, am I right?" He's right. But the target audience of the shirts is all wrong in my opinion. For instance, this shirt would be great for our 2 1/2yo but it's only offered in Youth sizes. Further, this shirt would be the perfect addition to our 8yo's wardrobe, but it's available only in Adult sizes. Roy's forever admiring the mall kiosk t-shirt selections such as "Cool story bro," "Come at me, bro," "Why you mad, Bro?" and "I aint your bro, bro" none of which we're going to buy for him .... but we could totally get on board with the Storm Troopers and "You get my text, bro?" but evidently it's not meant to be.

    "Can we get dinner now?" Roy asked as we entered the park and I asked "At 4:30?" then I said sure why not. After all we'd just got done conversing about when you're tired, sleep; when you're hungry, eat; when you're thirsty, drink. So we did. I've been on a Harbor Galley baked potato kick lately so I walked all the way over there and back to join him and his fusilli chicken alfredo at Pizza Port. On my trek back across the park carrying my bbq chicken potato w/ slaw I gained several admirers. What's that and where'd you get it? they wanted to know. It's one of the best kept secrets in the park. Delicious. Nutritious. Inexpensive. Filling.

    On Autopia Roy had a nice idea: to ride side by side rather than one in front of the other. As a result I got some good driving shots of him. At Big Thunder he got a kick out of the goats. Sophmorish humor we're not typically prone to but we were feeling a little silly. "Uh, look dad. This one's chewing the chicken wire." "Look, he's licking the tree." "Oh, nice. Standing on a barrel." We waited and took part in this special "Conjure A Villain" meet and greet. Speaking of silly. Jafar comes out and is speechless throughout but is plenty funny with his mannerisms and hand gestures. I told him that once he's sultan that if his last name is Peppershaker, his full name would be Sultan Peppershaker. He pretended to be incensed and chased us from the tent.

    We covered a lot of ground and had a good time and did some good rides and ate some good food .... but I gotta say we worked our tails off to make it happen. Crowds kept popping up in the weirdest times and places: for instance Splash Mountain with a 40 minute standby wait at 8:30 on a cool night? ... really? (luckily I had grabbed FP's hours earlier when I was near there). Earlier we ran into a crew of junior varsity CM's on Silly Symphony Swings and what should've been a 5 minute wait was closer to about 20. The wait for a Toy Story shuttle at the end of the night was 25 minutes. Never seen anything like it. Every time I park at M&F I do so with the realization I'll probably have to walk back and I don't mind that walk .... but I NEVER plan to walk back to Toy Story. But we did tonight, and it was far more exertion and time consuming than I bargained for. Who knows where the crowds came from? ... holdovers from Gay Days weekend?, or could it've just been a SoCal APolooza? it's hard accounting for it but no matter. Adventurous as always.



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  20. #119

    Trip 39: October 16, 2013. 4:30 to 9.

    The plan was a good one and making it a reality would've been nice, but being spontaneous and letting the magic happen instead was even nicer. For the record, the laid out plan was to get DD to Big Thunder Petting Zoo and to see the pumpkin carvers and Billy Hills and all that area has to offer, to make good on those same opportunities each of her brothers had recently. But when we arrived and picked up Space FP's the very next thing we noticed was the day's final installment of Jedi Training getting set to start. Nancy commented, "Ooh I haven't done that in a while." Say no more. You had me at ooh.

    The pictures tell the tale of our JTA better than I ever could. If happening upon JTA wasn't fate enough, our next right place-right time experience felt even more meant to be than the first. Nancy loves Golden Horseshoe. And the nuggets she gets there. And the shows. And if she can't see a show, she'll settle for reminiscing about one and getting just the nuggets as a consolation. From the deserted look of the place, silly me I assumed the shows were done for the day when we walked in. She said something like "That's fine. Can we still eat dinner and get chicken and ranch and fries? And can we eat over there in that side booth? It's empty. See? Cuz remember that time we ate there on Ron's birthday and Billy Hill and the Bill Hills sang to us?" (she calls them Bill Hills , not hillbillies. I'm not about to correct her)
    Why of course. Let's sit in the booth and have dinner since it means that much to you. I had no more than retrieved our food and sat down when the Laughing Stock Co. pianist entered the stage and the show began. What luck. Laughing Stock is such a good time. We laughed plenty.

    By the time we got to Big Thunder it was closed for the evening. Although visiting there had been the chief reason for tonight's trip, we wouldn't have traded JTA and the Horseshoe for it. Usually we stick much closer to the script but we were glad not to have.

    The other couple highlights of the night were Turtle Talk w/ Crush -and- Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy. I had soured on Ghost Galaxy last time we rode a few years back, but DD and I enjoyed it quite a bit this time.



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  21. #120
    Quote Originally Posted by MidwayManiac View Post
    Trip 39: October 16, 2013. 4:30 to 9.

    The plan was a good one and making it a reality would've been nice, but being spontaneous and letting the magic happen instead was even nicer. For the record, the laid out plan was to get DD to Big Thunder Petting Zoo and to see the pumpkin carvers and Billy Hills and all that area has to offer, to make good on those same opportunities each of her brothers had recently. But when we arrived and picked up Space FP's the very next thing we noticed was the day's final installment of Jedi Training getting set to start. Nancy commented, "Ooh I haven't done that in a while." Say no more. You had me at ooh.

    The pictures tell the tale of our JTA better than I ever could. If happening upon JTA wasn't fate enough, our next right place-right time experience felt even more meant to be than the first. Nancy loves Golden Horseshoe. And the nuggets she gets there. And the shows. And if she can't see a show, she'll settle for reminiscing about one and getting just the nuggets as a consolation. From the deserted look of the place, silly me I assumed the shows were done for the day when we walked in. She said something like "That's fine. Can we still eat dinner and get chicken and ranch and fries? And can we eat over there in that side booth? It's empty. See? Cuz remember that time we ate there on Ron's birthday and Billy Hill and the Bill Hills sang to us?" (she calls them Bill Hills , not hillbillies. I'm not about to correct her)
    Why of course. Let's sit in the booth and have dinner since it means that much to you. I had no more than retrieved our food and sat down when the Laughing Stock Co. pianist entered the stage and the show began. What luck. Laughing Stock is such a good time. We laughed plenty.

    By the time we got to Big Thunder it was closed for the evening. Although visiting there had been the chief reason for tonight's trip, we wouldn't have traded JTA and the Horseshoe for it. Usually we stick much closer to the script but we were glad not to have.

    The other couple highlights of the night were Turtle Talk w/ Crush -and- Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy. I had soured on Ghost Galaxy last time we rode a few years back, but DD and I enjoyed it quite a bit this time.



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    Looks like a perfect night! She makes an adorable Jedi Knight!, Brad!
    Siggy aka Jill

  22. #121

    Trip 40: Nov. 3, 2013. 9am to 1.

    Everyone has their own favorite eating spot for lunch and it causes everyone else to say "Eww, no thanks." Since we can't agree on a spot, a laughable arrangement ensues in which oldest DS gets a to-go plate of fusilli pasta at Pizza Port, meanwhile I pick up a basket of adult chicken breast nuggets at GHS for youngest two, a baked potato w/ bbq chicken from Harbour Galley for yours truly, and a fried green tomato sandwich at Hungry Bear for DW. Eons later we meet up at Hungry Bear to enjoy our lunch from four restaurants. Looks like this.

    A couple hours earlier at the start of the day we set out in DCA. While DW and oldest two hopped on RSR, little Walt decided to have a battle of wills with me (spoiler alert: he lost). This is a first for him at the parks. Lovely. What happened was ten minutes into a 20 minute wait in the Mater's queue he decided to have a sit-in, criss-cross applesauce style and wouldn't budge right there in the middle of everyone much to the annoyance of, well, everyone not the least of whom ... ME! I considered grabbing him by the ear (j/k, but not really) and telling him "Out ya' go youngster" like Kurt Russell did Billy Bob in Tombstone, but instead I carried him over my shoulder promptly out of the queue. Gheez what a buzzkill that was.

    To be honest, this wasn't a banner day at the parks IMO, and about the time my youngest was giving his world-class rendition of the terrible two's at Mater's I was already over it and kinda ready to leave. At 9:30 am no less. First of all, Mickey & Friends was cordoned off to everyone except those approaching from the 5 freeway; this I discovered only after dropping 3 of our party at the Harbor drop and trekking over, right on Katella, right on West, U-turn at Ball. Urgh! So now I detour over to Toy Story where I most definitely had not planned to park. Next vent: what's the deal w/ this 9am start? (won't be doing another one of these on a Sunday) I'm used to 8am starts and it being not crowded and cool and hazy, not sunny. And why's it so sunny so early all the sudden? (I mean it feels like it's noon and I just got here!) Oh that's right we just set the clocks back. .... and why's it got to be so crowded? ... and why can't my oldest two get along? ... and why, pray tell, is that train stuck halfway up California Screamin'? ... and why is my 2 year old fighting me tooth and nail? ... and why is this Woody at Big Thunder so lame compared to the one who was here a month ago? ... and why is the petting zoo closed come to think of it? why? why? why? This was my morning. I had maybe a couple legitimate gripes that led to me being pissy and nit-picky about everything and, well, that's not a recipe for feeling the magic. The vibe just wasn't there today. In my way of thinking that just means we'll get double the magic next time out.

    Sorry to be a negative Nancy. I think I was successful at masking my poor attitude enough to where I didn't ruin the trip for everyone else. Speaking of which, DW couldn't have been more pleased with the outing. She checked a good chunk of her Christmas list off today. Let's see we got some 18 wheeler in Cars Land and three sets of Mater teeth and several bags full of who knows what. It was a lot, enough that we needed to check it at the shopping bag drop right there beside Main St. Station and pick it up later. And all this Christmas shopping right under the kids' noses, lol. On a day when I couldn't find much to laugh at, that provided some comic relief.



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  23. #122
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    I like this trip report -- it's real life. Sometimes things happen and we just aren't "feelin it". Glad you toughed it out for the sake of your family and can see the silver lining in that DW you made DW happy.

    BTW, it' irks me when I can't park where I like to park. Also my kids used to have favorite spots to park in and it was almost like an omen if we got a bad spot.


  24. #123
    At home in the hills candles71's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    foresthill Ca
    When I read it last night, I almost told you to suck it up. But someone extended some Disney magic to me this morning and I am in a better mood.
    Sorry your day wasn't optimal.

  25. #124
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    puyallup washington

    I like the picture of the family with all the different meal. Every one looks so happy, kinda worth trekking all over the park huh I agree with DW the fried green tomato sandwich is a must do for me too.

    Keep a cap on your radiator & a smile on your bumper

  26. #125

    Great trip report! I love the pics. Your story about how you and your wife had two different trips makes me wonder what two trip reports side by side would look like.


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