Disneyland Birthday Trip!

This year in lieu of having birthday parties we all agreed that we would take a family trip to Disneyland! Normally, when we go to Disneyland we make sure to take along a grandparent or two to help us manage the kiddies. They are a HUGE help! This time we thought we would give it a try on our own since the kids are big enough to walk, we didn't need a stroller and they are both tall enough to go on most of the rides.

We had a great trip! The first stop on our trip was dinner at the Pirate Dinner Adventure. For those of you who haven't heard of it, it is very much like Medieval Times except with pirates instead of knights and horses. The kids loved the action and watching the pirates fight and capture/rescue the princess. If you have been to Medieval Times you should definitely check out the Pirate Adventure. It was a lot of fun!

The next day the kids were extremely excited to get up and go to Disneyland. So excited that Landon woke us all up at 5:20. Way too early for a vacation. Actually, that is way too early any day!

We got to the park before it opened and headed straight to my favorite ride - Peter Pan!! We rode a ton of rides the first day!






























 We were really excited because before we went on our trip we had purchased World of Color picnic lunches so we would be guaranteed a spot at one of the shows. The picnic lunches, although pretty expensive in my opinion, are delicious and well worth the purchase to avoid missing the show or getting stuck with seats that are too far away. We waited with the rest of the people who had reserved seating at around 7:30 for the 9:00 show. The kids were a little restless while they were waiting but they LOVED the show! It is amazing! If you get a chance to see it I definitely recommend it! SO good - words can't really describe it!

After the show Ashlyn was dying to go on Tower of Terror. She had gone on it during a previous trip but then decided she was too afraid to go on it again. Well, that day has passed. She has become our little thrill seeker! She decided at the end of the week that her favorite rides were all the rides she was not previously tall enough to go on; Indiana Jones and California Screamin'! Chris said that when they got off of California Screamin' that she giggled for a good 10 minutes afterwards!

The next day was filled with more rides, and pictures with characters and the Jedi Academy. Landon had been talking about doing the Jedi Academy ever since his love of Star Wars began. I made sure he was wearing his Star Wars shirt (thank you Wendy!) as I read that was a sure way to be chosen! Well, he was one of the chosen ones! He was so thrilled that I don't think he heard a word that the instructors were telling him. He just stood there in awe. He told me before that he had already been trained as a Jedi back in December at his friend's birthday party so I don't think he thought he had to listen to the Jedi Master. Lol. Landon got to fight Darth Vadar and had a great time! He said it was one of his favorite things at Disneyland.

That night we watched the fireworks show! Disney never disappoints and the fireworks show was no exception. I won't give away the best parts, I will let you enjoy it for yourself! Of course, being the sap that I am I totally cried during the fireworks! It doesn't take much to get me weepy, all I have to do is hear the Electric Light Parade song and I tear up.

The last day we hit all the rides we hadn't gone on and then did some repeats of our favorites. Normally, we head back to the hotel halfway through the day to rest a bit before heading back to the park for the night. We can usually avoid a lot of burnout temper tantrums this way. The third day we just stayed at the park and powered through. The kids did great! In fact, I think they did better that day than the other two days. Of course, that could have been because we slept in that morning!

When someone takes a picture of you & they don't know how to focus...









The drive home...

Overall, we had a great trip with a lot of wonderful memories made. I really enjoyed the family time that I got to spend with Chris and the kids this week.