Disneyland

yesterday we got back from a crazy, but good adventure to disneyland with the kids.  (ben says i cannot call it a family vacation, as it was not relaxing in any way :)!  it probably seems weird, but i have mixed emotions about this trip, but that's for me to work through.  we were gone for 3 1/2 days.  1 and 1/2 days were spent flying to anaheim and back.  we ate lots of carrots (especially bridon) and trail mix and the boys loved watching the airplanes come in and out.  they watched the baggage get driven all around and slung on the planes too, a highlight.   emerson, not so much.

 we spent our first day in disneyland park.  here we are on our first ride...the flying dumbo elephants!  it was overcast and even rained on us once this day.  i packed us a lunch, so we could stay going until evening, and we braved the weather.  favorites this day were the teacups, buzz lightyear ride (3x!), small world, and bentley and i enjoyed splash mountain.  he thought it was great!  he also go to go on thundermtn railroad w/ ben and was quite amazed their was no driver of the train.  bridon liked the rockets and wanted to go on the those again the next day, but we never made it back, much to his dismay.  we tried to stay as long as we could, but emerson melted down about 6.  we walked to 3 different restaurants before we found one open, ate, rode buzz again and left for the nite.  bridon got pretty slow moving towards the end, and said 'he had to do a lot of work at this disneyland.' :)

 our second day, i realized we needed a better plan of action (slow learner), so we mapped out a route (thx to an old friend!) and started in california adventure.  the weather was beautiful and the crowd was not nearly as thick.  it was great!  bentley and i did all the big rides.  he loved the big roller coaster that went upside down and goofy's sky school.  we also went on the swings and the little kids did the carosel, more toy story rides, and our family went on the ferris wheel.  emerson finally went to sleep and we had great fun with the boys in a bugs land with tons of little kid rides including the bumper cars that they loved.  bridon wanted to drive once and then the next time, he wanted to lay down so that he could touch the gas pedal.  he is so silly.  we took advantage of the fastpasses and ben took bentley on the tower of terror (dropping elevator ride).  this was the only one he did not want to go on again...thought is was slightly freaky.  i went by myself right after him and thought the ride was great, but both people i was confined in by wreaked of garlic.  that freaked me out :).  we met woody and sully and the kids loved the monsters inc ride.  those little rides really are amazing with all the characters!

i had to break down and eat in the park that afternoon.  bentley and i split a burger.  that kind of food is just nasty to me.  that evening, ben took bentley on the roller coaster again and then we hit soarin over california.  emerson loved the carosel and then melted down soon after.  bridon wanted to go on the rockets again, so i hauled him and emry all the way to the top of the one we could go on together and he did not like that it was  not the same one as yesterday and freaked out, so we climbed down.  that nite, emerson went to bed!! it was amazing, she actually slept one nite while there.  sadly, i was woken up at 4 a.m. because bentley peed the bed all over him and bridon.  he never does that.  must have been very tired.  we had to wake emerson up to go the airport, and we were off!  when we got home, she went to bed at 6:45 and didn't get up till 8 this morning.  notes to self...if we decide to go to disneyland again, wait till our family is complete and everyone is at least 40 inches tall, bridon was shy 1/2 inch :(, we would probably drive for more freedom and no layovers!, some members of our family need to work on patience, have a plan of action for each day!

all in all though, i am glad we went.  it was a lot of fun! february was a great time to go for crowd control and a perfect time for us to get away!  i used to think people who went on a relaxing vacation to sit in a chair and read a book were nuts.  i may reconsider :)  but i probably won't remember that next winter when i get another hairbrained idea.  emerson won't be such a difficult traveler by then, right?  wait, see, i have not learned my lesson.  i believe the boys really made some good memories and that is what i was hoping for, so in the end, that's all that matters!  bridon brought the hotel key home and has it on his dresser, so we will have a place to stay when we go to disneyland again...ben says he may have to wait a LONG time :).