Last Day in Disney

On our last day we headed back to Disneyland to try to hit all of the fun things we missed the first day. We started off with the Nemo Submarine ride. I am so glad we did this first thing, because at the end of the day the wait was over 75 minutes long!

 After Nemo we wandered around and ended up in New Orleans. A Jazz Band was playing right in front of this little café that said "try our gumbo" but when Louis looked at the menu he said it was steak gumbo. Um, no thanks.

We headed over to Pirate's of the Caribbean, did Star Tours and Toy Story again...and again. Met a few fairies, flew on elephants and even met a few villans

I have to say, if you ever find yourself at Disney don't miss the villans! There's usually not a long line for them like the princesses and Mickey and friends but I promise you they are hilarious and not to be missed. The people at Disney never break character no matter what questions you ask them and The Evil Queen was no exception. Brianna had a pin of the evil queen on her lanyard and when she showed it to her the woman said "well at least you have decent taste. Now turn around, your mother wants a shot of your face, not your behind" in her best evil voice, then after they took the pic Brianna said thank you to her and her reply was "the pleasure was all yours, I'm sure of it"

Brianna was giggling the entire time!

For lunch we stopped at took a picture with Mary Poppins and Bert and then ate at The Jolly Holiday Café it was pretty cold that day, so Louis, Marshall and I all go the Tomato Basil Soup with Grilled Cheese and Brianna got the kid's Macaroni & Cheese served with Sliced Apples and juice box. I love that with most kid's meals come with fruit and veggies and at the quick service places they come sealed in single serving bags which are perfect to take with you to snack on later. The soup was really good even though it was a small portion, and with the weather being so cold it really hit the spot!

 After lunch, Louis took Marshall to do all the activities that he wanted to do again, and I took Brianna to stand in line and meet the princesses. Again.

It's so funny to me that each time she met them she reacted the same way- excited, shy and totally in love with them all. It also really surprises me that she never said anything about the fact that each time she met them they have a different face! haha! I was totally expecting one of the kids to realize that each Cinderella we met looked different, but they never did!

For dinner we stopped at the Village Haus Restaurant The kids and Louis got cheeseburgers and I got their BLT Flatbread Pizza- Thin Flatbread Crust, Cherry Wood Smoked Bacon, Mozzarella Cheese, Caramlized Onions, and Marinated Tomatoes Topped with Arugula and Shaved Fennel. It was so yummy! I would totally get this again and plan to make my own version of this at home. The shaved fennel was delicious and I love arugula so I was happy! The only thing I wasn't happy about was the service. This was the only place in the entire park on our entire trip where customer service was lacking. The food took forever and the three girls standing at the counter with their backs to us just chatting like they weren't at work at all really annoyed me. That is not typical of Disney, so maybe that's why it annoyed me so much. At least my food was good when I got it!

That night we used our pass to view Fantasmic

Going into it I thought it was just going to be another fireworks show, but this was so much more and really awesome to watch! Using the passes we had we were able to sit in the second row and had no trouble seeing the show. The kids loved it and it was so cute to see them waving at all the characters that passed us by.

All bundled together with cotton candy before the show! 

This trip was so wonderful and I was sad on our last night that it was already over! I know I will never be able to convince Louis to go to Disney again so my plan is to win a trip there, that way he can't say no! Have you been to a Disney Resort before? If so, what was the most magical moment you had?



Disney's California Adventure

On Christmas morning, in the pitch black all I heard was a little voice saying

"It's 52 o'clock mama"

then a little while later, and a little louder

"mom, I just want to let you know it's 53 o'clock"

 Even on vacation, after being up longer then they ever had in their lives the day before, my kids were up bright and early Christmas morning! We opened a few small gifts in the room and then headed to Disney's California Adventure Park. Because we were staying in a Disney hotel we were allowed to enter the park 1 hour before it was open to the public, so we took advantage of that and chose to do the "most popular" rides and experiences first before the park got crowded

I was totally shocked to be the first people to walk up and meet Anna and Elsa. Brianna was in absolute heaven and was so excited! I loved that since there was no one else in line we weren't rushed and the princesses took a long time with her and were so sweet. From there we went to the very back of the park and hit Radiator Springs.

The rides in Cars Land were some of my favorites! There was a moment while we were spinning on the tractor in Mater's Junkyard Jamboree that Marshall was laughing hysterically and yelling "this is Awesome!!" at the top of his lungs. There wasn't even a full line of people waiting for the next ride, so the man just let us stay in our same seats and ride it again immediately once it ended. After getting dizzy, we headed to Radiator Springs Racers which may be the top favorite ride for all of us at the end of our trip!
We were able to ride this twice and then grabbed a Fast Pass for later in the day to ride it one more time. By the end of the day the wait time was close to 2 hours, so I'm so glad we went there first when the park wasn't open to the public and then as soon as the Fast Passes opened at 8 am we grabbed one and went around the rest of the park until it was our time to return. Such a time saver!!
I had downloaded the "Disneyland Wait Times Free" app on my phone and that was also a huge help in figuring out what we should do next and which rides we should get passes for. If anything was 30 minutes or less, we went for it. If it was longer we would either get a Fast Pass or go to that one later on. I totally recommend having something similar on your phone if you go!

Once we did our second ride and grabbed our Fast Passes we took a break for breakfast at the Cozy Cone Motel. I think another tip for having a successful trip, especially with little ones is to eat at "off times" I brought a box of granola bars with us and packed them in our bag each morning. We would snack on those while waiting to get into the parks in the morning and were able to do the bigger more popular activities when everyone was eating breakfast. Then, once the park started to get more crowded we would take a break and eat. Then it wasn't hard to order food or find a table since most of the breakfast rush had already passed. Having a late heavy breakfast set us up for having a snack in the afternoon and then an early dinner- again, when there wasn't much of a wait time for ordering or finding a table. For us, it worked perfectly!
 Cozy Cone Motel was the cutest little spot and each cone had a different snack or meal. We tried both of their breakfast cones:  Chorizo & Eggs Cone- Scrambled Eggs, Chorizo, Tomatillo Sauce and Pico de Gallo served in a Bread Cone and the Southwest Scramble Cone- Scrambled Eggs, Bell Peppers, Onions, Roasted Corn, Black Beans, Cheddar Cheese and Avocado Corn Salsa served in a Bread Cone. The Chorizo Cone was so much better than the Southwest Scramble one! They were both delicious, but the chorizo one was by far my favorite! My kids are already asking me if I can make them at home and I can't wait to try!

It was such a gorgeous day and we had a ton of fun meeting characters, riding different rides and seeing the shows that were offered. All was great, merry and magical until we got on that damn Ferris Wheel. It looks all innocent from far away and then you get on it and realize the entire cart slides on rails and when you are actually sliding on said rails into the middle of the giant wheel you feel like you are an inch from death. I'm not kidding, it terrified me and my kids were begging to get off of this thing. There is also a stash of barf bags provided for you on each door. How convenient.

After that traumatic experience, my kids and husband decided to try out Tower of Terror (which did not scare them as much as that wheel of death if that tells you anything) and I found a better way to spend my time by people watching with some bubbly. Let me tell you, after sitting and just watching the people walking by for about 30 minutes or so, I was shocked at the amount of mullets I saw. Why is this still happening?!

 We filled the rest of the day with:

 meeting Olaf- the kids were so excited but the line was WAY long, Goofy's Sky School Ride- the kids did this one 6 times in a row, Grizzly River Run- this is like a white water rapids "ride" where you will get soaked, Toy Story Mania- this one is also in Disney World and my kids love it!

Ariel's Undersea Adventure, Bug's Land, The Carousel and walking the Boardwalk

After all that I was starving and was really glad we had early dinner reservations at Ariel's Grotto at 4:30. It was right when the sun was setting and it was really beautiful to look over the water at the death wheel over dinner.

 When you walk in you are met with these gorgeous views before you walk down a long winding staircase to meet Ariel, take pictures and then are seated at your table

 Beautiful!
We were given this pretty bread right when we sat down

And I got this fun drink! It was so delicious and my kids were amazed by the light ice cube, so naturally, I ordered another so each kids could have a light. The things we do for our kids...

I will be re-creating this drink at home for sure!

"Magical Star Cocktail- X-Fusion Organic Mango and Passion Fruit Liqueur, Parrot Bay Coconut Rum, Pineapple Juice, and a souvenir Multicolored Glow Cube"

Our starters were Veggies and Ranch for the kids and Crab Soup for us, which I could have sworn was the exact soup we had the night before. It was delicious, but I didn't notice any crab in it

For entrees Louis had the Red Oak-Smoked Honey-Whiskey Barbecue Tri-Tip with Mashed Potatoes and Seasonal Vegetables and I had the Fire-Roasted Corn Cakes with Sautéed Spinach, Onions, and Shiitake Mushrooms with spicy Bean Salsa and Chili Oil Drizzle. Mine was SO good and it was a huge portion so I wasn't able to finish it all even though I tried! Louis said this was better than the dinner the night before, but still not amazing. I really think Ariel's Grotto was worth it, especially if you have a small princess in your family!

Marshall chose Ursula's Octo-Dog- served atop Macaroni & Cheese with fresh Fruit and Vegetables and Brianna had Angel Hair Pasta a la Dinglehopper served with fresh Fruit and Vegetables

All through dinner you are visited by all the princesses there that evening.

Again, Brianna was in heaven!

For dessert the kids and adults got their own trios

 I think the s'mores bar was the best with the mini crème brulee was a close second

Then the waiter brought the kids a cupcake for being so well behaved at dinner

Another sweet end to a fantastic day!

It's the Most Magical time of the Year!

Have you ever had a vacation so amazing and wonderful that when you got home you were in a funk because all you want to do is go back? That's how I feel right now staring at my gigantic pile of laundry and suitcases.
On Christmas Eve morning, Louis and I woke up ridiculously early, showered and got dressed, packed last minute items and then put a robe on so the kids wouldn't know we were already ready. Then we went into their rooms and told them we heard a lot of noise downstairs and the Elves had woken us up so we all needed to go downstairs and check it out

I think they were both still asleep and didn't really understand what was going on at the time but they threw on their shirts and away we went
We got in our car and headed to the airport, got on the shuttle bus, then on a plane then on another shuttle bus, then to our rental car and finally arrived at the Paradise Pier Hotel
It was all decked out for Christmas and I loved that the hotel was a 5 minute walk away from the parks. Once you get to the property you don't need any shuttle busses or car rides to get where you want to be!

We were dying to get into the park and start our day, so we settled in pretty quickly and walked over to Disneyland

I know for some people, Disneyland or World is the last place they want to be, but for me, I couldn't think of anything better to do with my kids. I think them being 8 and 5 was the best possible age to go! No strollers and diapers to worry with, they are big enough to walk on their own everywhere we needed to be, and yet they were still young enough to be in wonder and awe of everything the parks had to offer. There were many times where they asked "is that real?!" on a ride. I can't count the number of times while we were walking to our next ride, or waiting in line to meet a new character where one of them would just look up and say "you're the best mom in the whole widest world" or "this is my favorite-est day, mama".
Priceless moments that I will never forget.
I suppose I love Disney for all those reasons and the fact that, while there, I can say yes so much more than I can at home. Everything is geared for them and there's not much that isn't a possibility while you're there.
You want to meet your favorite character? OK
You want to be the driver of a race car while I sit back and enjoy the ride? Sure
You want amazing fireworks while eating cotton candy every night? Done
Magical

Doesn't everyone take goofy selfies while spinning on the Teacups?
No?
Oh well, on to the food!
Disney is so good about paying attention to the tiniest details and food in the parks is no exception
As soon as we got to Main Street we grabbed and inhaled corndogs. It was the best freaking corndog I've ever had! When I say we inhaled them, I really mean it so there is no picture proof to show you, but I promise it was great!

Louis' first request was a Mickey Bar. I don't know why they are SO good!
After a long day of travel and then the excitement of finally being in the park we were starving for dinner. The first night in the parks I made reservations at the River Belle Terrace Restaurant. It's one of the original restaurants in the park and it offers the Fantasmic Dining package, which means when you reserve a table for dinner you are automatically given a pass for a reserved seating area to view the Fantasmic show that night.
The dinner is a 3 course meal and your view for the night can't be beat while watching the Mark Twain Riverboat paddle down the Rivers of America

Louis and I started with the Creamy Corn Chowder with Bacon and Chives and the kids got veggies and ranch. It may have been the fact that I was starving, but I practically licked my bowl clean. The soup was awesome! Unfortunately I can't say the same for our entrees.  Louis got the Slow-roasted New York Strip and Cajun Shrimp Skewer with Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Seasonal Vegetables, and Red Wine Reduction. I got the Hand-tossed Cavatappi Pasta Primavera in Garlic Cream Sauce with Seasonal Vegetables. Both dishes were literally just ok, I would not recommend either of them, but I think my pasta was marginally better than Louis' dish. I would have been happier with a corndog.

Marshall tried the Grilled Chicken with Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Seasonal Vegetables but didn't finish most of it and Brianna got the Macaroni & Cheese with Seasonal Vegetables and Grapes but they both had hacked into everything before I could get a pic of their plates.

We ended the meal with Confetti Cupcake with Chocolate Frosting for the kids, Caramel Apple Pie with Streusel for Louis and River Belle's Chocolate Mousse Cake with Raspberry Sauce for me

Before we were served our dessert the kids were falling asleep at the table. I knew they wouldn't make it another 2 hours in the park, so I spoke with our waitress and they were so understanding and nice she printed me new passes to use on another night for the Fantasmic show! We went back to the room, put the kids in bed and they literally passed out in 2 seconds! Louis walked downstairs while I was bathing the kids and brought me this

Best. Husband. Ever.

We clinked our neon plastic glasses and couldn't wait to wake up on Christmas morning and do it all over again!