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View Full Version : Trip Report just shy of 6 months... Sequel to "Just shy of 3 months"



june1st1997
08-22-2006, 04:07 PM
Just returned from our second Disneyland trip with DD… I learned a lot.

We had been about 3 months ago and while it was not an easy transition going from Non Parent to Parent I left with an appreciation for the parent amusement park experience.

With time comes a bit of arrogance. I have since learned that arrogance has no place in parenting. Children can smell it. Like dogs and fear... and with much of the same results.

The same can be said for grandparents.

We arrived Saturday at noon. The original plan had been 3pm, but my father arrived a day ahead of schedule and well I'm fairly certain that is when the wheels came of the wagon.

Anyway, we arrive at Disneyland Hotel and check in. We usually stay at GCH, but with $160 difference we chose DH. I really liked the fact that they told me flat out there was no way I would get an early check in (GCH always says it should not be a problem, then at 5 I finally get in). And that is the only nice thing I can say about DH.

While in line my father calls my cel phone twice (apparently Disneyland "enthusiasm" is genetic... or maybe not). Ok. Slather DD with SPF 50 and strap her into the Bjorn head into CA. We make our way in and find my dad. Then we walk to the babycenter at DL and I nurse. DH gets locker for diaper bag #2 (BIG diaper bag… ya know 20 diapers, 12 pacifiers, 3 onesies…).

I remember the babycenter fondly, but this time the castmembers did not seem as pleasant. And DD who always gives me a bit of a time when I nurse, well she was in rare form. Sip Sip Sip... Give mom a piece of my mind. Sip Sip Sip. After 20 minutes of that back out into the park.

Lunch…

First let me say I understand I was delusional... I should have gotten PS... But well ya know sometimes that just doesn't happen. We go to Cafe Orleans... They are not accepting walk-ups... try back in 20 minutes with the 30 other people they just turned away. Blue Bayou... Same. Ok. River Belle... God it smelled like rancid meat... Moved onto Buzz Burgers (or whatever that pace is called). Ya. Burger was great, always is. Dad wants to know what we are doing next. Slather DD with SPF 50, back in the Bjorn and we are off. We have been in the park 2 hours.

Ok... I'm feeling a bit of stress about now. But I am determined to recover... DD who is on a very good sched at home is not on it here... perhaps it’s because she is only 6 months old and I am too consumed with making sure everyone is having a good time. She must have a good time. In hindsight she really needed a nap. We decide to do Alice in Wonderland... I will probably never ride this again.

We get in and my husband holds the baby. We pull into the dark and my daughter begins to howl. I look at her and she is terrified. It stopped my heart. OH MY GOD... What have I done? What was I thinking? She is upset the whole ride. My father, his wife and my husband feel bad... I feel panic. I feel like I am the worst mother in the world. I must have just scarred her for life. As we pull into unloading I grab her from my husband to comfort her... Thus endangering her as she is no longer under the safety bar. The cast member yells for me to put her under the bar. Which I promptly do… what is the matter with me? As I try to unload, the Bjorn, which I did not take off fully, traps me in the car and I cannot squeeze out (I still have not lost that 40 lbs I spoke about in my last trip report). I laugh out of sheer nervousness as I try to wrestle free. I must have looked like I should be committed. All I can think is.. I have become one of those parents.

Did my desire to have a child who is not afraid drive me to this? What is the matter with me?

It is once again time to nurse and I decide to try and nurse outside the safety of the babycenter (I’m a bit shy)... On the bench just outside the babycenter. My father wanted to watch the parade so we separated and I sat on the verge of tears nursing my baby.

We wrap up and head over to Small World. This should be ok. We wait in line and I continue to slather baby with SPF 50. We get on the ride and I hold her this time. She begins to get afraid and I begin to sing in her ear. It's a small world after all, it's a small world after all, it's a small world after all, it's a small small world... And it works. She does not relax fully ... But she does not cry. She knows I am here and maybe she trusts me enough to see what happens next, but she will not relax. Ok. That is more than good enough for me.

We split from my dad for the night. He is going back to the hotel and will return after 8. DD's bedtime is 8 so we will see him tomorrow. On our way out of the park we stop by the Lockers to get the big diaper bag. I type in my code and the door is jammed (large diaper bag … small locker). We need to go to City Hall and have someone help us. We cruise by and see a huge line. We'll come back.

We head to DH... We check in, uneventful. Get up to our room and boy is it small. Although I will say this, they put us in a corner room which is almost wall to wall floor to ceiling windows, which would be great except I have to set up a pak n play and up against a pane of glass 6 stories up... we figure something out and I nurse. By this time it is 6 and we need food. DD gets put in the stroller and passes out. We see how long the wait is at Jazz Kitchen and get seated immed. We have a wonderful dinner. Baby wakes and we are outta there. Now a smarter person would have gone back to the room with the baby while my husband went back to get the diaper bag... Not me... Back to the park.

As luck would have it a cast member is approaching the lockers as we are and I assume all is taken care of quickly... I have no idea what transpired because DD flipped out. I realize that the flimsy little blanket I brought is not sufficient and she is freezing. I take her out of the stroller and hold her. We (DD, myself and stroller) careen into the store with the baby clothes. DD is shrieking and I look like I might cry. Cast member approaches and asks if she can help. I say yes a blanket please. The woman finds one and sweetly lets me know that it is $28. Over DD shrieking I offer her everything in my wallet (well over $28). She deftly maneuvers all of us to a register and asks the other guests who were patiently waiting in line if she can take me in front of them (even I hate me now). Dirty looks cast in my directions. She rings me and clips the tag. I thank the other guests as much as you can someone who is scowling at you and DH who has arrived escorts us out. Ugh. I’m fairly certain if he hadn’t arrived we would not have made it out alive. Back to the room. No bath... I just can’t. Which is too bad because while I did not pack a decent blanket, I of course packed an amazing assortment of bath toys. We all sleep... till 2:30 anyway. DD nurses and goes back down. I'm up til 5, then pass out.

Up again at 6:30. Take a shower... Water pressure sucks. As I get out DD wakes and it's that good kind, where she's talking and playing with her pacifier. I pick her up and we tuck back into bed to nurse. Perfection. Pack up and have the bellman hold the bags. Slather DD with SPF 50 and back to the park… We are having breakfast with Minnie and friends. Of course it was amazing. My favorite part of the trip. Before becoming a parent I had never done it… My DH and I go nuts with pictures and video of DD with everyone. It bears repeating, the characters are fantastic. The cast members are fantastic. DD loved the balloons. A lovely cast member sought her out a pink one (I have it for her scrapbook) and he kept coming by and she would go crazy. Disney magic at it’s best.

After breakfast I go off to nurse and we tell my dad we will call him when we are done. She nurses pretty well and after slathering her with SPF 50 begins the morning from hell.

I call my dad and tell him to meet us at Peter Pan. DH unpacks the stroller and parks... We get in line and it's sooo long and I know we will be leaving to go home soon soooo... I call dad back and tell him to meet us at Pirates (they are coming from Splash)... DH packs up and as we are pulling out my dad calls. Pirates is shut down. DD begins frantically pulling at her sun hat. She will not wear it today. Yesterday was enough! Ok we need a parasol. I can do this. Ok... I tell him to stay there and we will meet him buy a parasol and go to HM. We find my dad and his wife and buy a pink parasol. It’ll take 90 minutes to paint my daughters name… AVA. Ok… Ya know what I could not paint anyone’s name on anything, but I’m not gonna wait 90 minutes either. (They were really amazing and offered to give me a loner til it was ready. I declined. We turn around and the line is INSANE for HM… Ok. We are headed in the general direction... let's do POOH. OK. We get there; I apologize to my dad for making him come back all this way... DD is screaming, DH has unpacked the stroller and POOH breaks down. OK... DH repacks and is no longer looking me in the eye. Father looks at me and says... Ok now where (totally cool, but wanting to keep things moving) I say Peter pan... yep. Back to Peter Pan.

DH carries baby who will no longer tolerate the Bjorn or the stroller… You guessed it he is walking with the pink parasol. And looking as macho as possible doing it.

This whole charade took about 95 minutes… But we all get there with minimal hurt feelings... and the line is shorter than before. GREAT. It's fate. DH unpacks the stroller and we get in line. 10 minutes in NOTHING will console DD. Nothing. I GIVE UP. We are going home... I'm not mad... just afraid… Will it always be like this? What is this new place in my life? It wasn’t like this before?

My dad helps us out of line (he had no interest in riding) and we say our goodbyes. DD is just miserable and I spot a bench in the shade (by Villains Lair)... DD and I slide in and I nurse. For the first time I am not nervous about doing this in public. All the stress drifts away… A cool breeze sails by… I close my eyes… It's as if DD is singing in my ear... It's a small world after all, It's a small world after all, It's a small world after all, It's a small small world.

The secret was to remember what was important… All my fears about having a good time went away when I realized all I needed was to enjoy my time there with her. Isn’t that what Disneyland is REALLY about?

3894
08-22-2006, 04:37 PM
Nice trip report, june1st1997.

DangerMouse
08-22-2006, 04:40 PM
I'm completely exhausted after reading your report. You are a wonderful writer, by the way, and have me feeling sooooo extraordinarily happy to be long past the baby stage of my life. :p :D

weluvdisney
08-22-2006, 04:49 PM
Wait until they walk and want to run by themselves :)

MammaSilva
08-22-2006, 04:51 PM
Can I just say that I love that the new mommy is sooo sooo getting it? Yeah some trips will be awesome, some not so much, but they're all going to have memories and war stories! Trust us you didn't scar her for life and she'll end up loving the Mouse as much as her mommy & daddy as she grows up...but each trip will have new challenges and experiences!

Crazy4DL
08-22-2006, 05:01 PM
WOW! wished for you a calmer time but like MS said, even the "war" stories are memories that make up your wonderful life with your baby girl. :)

Excellent report again.

adriennek
08-22-2006, 07:01 PM
If you're worried about scarring her, I'll introduce you to my almost 8-year-old and you can see how un-scarred he... uhm, ok. Let me try this again.

If you're worried, I can introduce you to my 5-year-old... uhm, ok.

The two-year-old is still adorable. You can meet him! :D

;) Don't give up. I promise. I'll PM you my horror story and you'll feel much better. :D

Adrienne

Andrew
08-22-2006, 07:03 PM
The two-year-old is still adorable. You can meet him! :D
How adorable, exactly?

adriennek
08-22-2006, 09:33 PM
How adorable, exactly?

He's "The Even More Freaking Adorable One". Just don't tell TFAO.

Adrienne

yellowrosedtxn
08-23-2006, 05:24 AM
I love reading your trip reports. They are frantic, funny, loving and adorable. I hope you print each report you write and put it in her scrapbook. She might not remember it, but you will. And besides that, she will see how much you loved her with each trip you took.

Thanks for the report!

Shelley

kikid
08-23-2006, 05:59 AM
I suppose we all have our "Disney-Baby-Horror" Stories.
I can only offer this advice to a new mommy. Your precious little one is going to react to your stress...yes, even in Disneyland!
On past trips, I was the designated baby sitter...they ride...I sit, wheel, feed, coo, ya get the idea..Don't rush to put her on every ride at this age, just enjoy the park benches for a time, walk her past store windows, enjoy the many sights and sounds with your daughter. I'm sure if you can relax she will be right there with you!:)

Faith Trust & Pixie Dust
08-23-2006, 08:30 AM
Thanks for a great trip report--it had me laughing and welling up with tears at the same time! I made the mother of all stressful trips to the HPOE with my little ones a few years ago (when I was a Disneyland lover, but had not yet found MP or otherwise studied how to make the most of a visit). We were visiting my MIL in South Pasadena for Thanksgiving and spontaneously decided to go to DL the day after Thanksgiving...with DD2 (2 months old), DD1 (22 months old), and a double stroller packed for an assault on Everest. A disaster all around, except for the holiday parade...which they now love to watch on video and "remember their first most favorite time at Disneyland." They forgave me and are now 5 and 6 year old Disneyland fanatics.

Do be gentle with yourself and enjoy that precious girl--it's going to get more fun and rewarding every time you visit the HPOE (with new and different challenges, every one well worth it).

june1st1997
08-23-2006, 01:43 PM
Thank you for all the kind words and support. And thank you for sharing your horror stories as well.

kikid: You are absolutley right. In fact I do not sit next to her on planes beacuse I do not want her to afraid like I am.

adriennek: They all look pretty adorable.