On May5th we went Disneyland and it was awesome! This post in 4 words, We will go back.
This trip was so different than our other Disneyland trips. Hannah drove there and back with us and was with us the whole wee, we spent 3 of the 4 days with Dallin and Shellee Salmon, met up with the Harrisons on Tuesday and Wednesday, and on Thursday Andy and Annie drove down to spend a day with us. It was a giant week of overload and party! Despite what it sounds like we didn't really plan for all of this to happen but I'm so glad it did. I was so worried about making everything work with so many people but
it was so flawless. No one felt obligated to stay together
making the times we were together really enjoyable because people wanted
to be there.
Friday everyone left and it was back to just us and Hannah and as much fun as we had on Friday with Hannah, there was a slight sadness in the air.
Kelsey was
still free this trip, but my goodness we got our moneys worth!! She
loved EVERYTHING. She still asks to go back almost everyday. We listen
to "Its a Small World" at least once a day to fill the void. Her
favorite rides were Small World, Dumbo, and the Carousel. Kelsey and
Hadlee rode the carousels probably 35 times. We all took turns staying
with the little girls while people went on the coasters so the girls got lots of carousel love.
We typically have gone to Disneyland in January and this time it was May so the crowds were terrible. I feel like they were bad not only in my head. At one point, Disneyland had closed Pirates, Haunted Mansion, Big Thunder, Innovations, Winnie the Pooh, Peter Pan, Matterhorn, and Space Mountain all at once!! They also changed the Magic Morning passes with out really making it clear so we all missed our Magic Morning. AND on Friday they cancelled the firework show. It got a little ridiculous. The only thing that kept us sane was the fact that we got to use the stroller swaps AND Hannah's special passes which allowed us to skip the line to two rides a day for up to 6 people. They were as awesome as they sound. Don't be fooled. We still had fun, it was just frustrating.
The weather was a bit cooler than we would have liked and we ran in to a few showers, but now that I am typing this from Phoenix, I am realizing that we had it pretty nice in our 60 degrees.
We spent 2 days in Disneyland and 2 days in DCA. Ethan had a spread sheet that we followed as to capitalize our time the best that we could. I love him so much for that. I want to share every detail, but I don't have enough blog space for that. We had so much fun and I am so glad that we went. I'm especially glad that everyone joined us for this vacation. It was the first time in our married life that we have ridden a roller coaster together! Plus having everyone there just added a whole new element of fun that I wasn't prepared for.
We took turns watching the little girls and one of the times I got to be with them we went to the Disney Junior play and oh my goodness! Kelsey danced the WHOLE time. She was in heaven. It was so much fun to see her sing along with Jake, Doc, Sophia, and Mickey. While we were there however Madison needed a change, like up her back change, but they wouldn't let me go get her stuff. Luckily Shellee had two diapers (yes, we needed two :) Love you Rooster!!) but they wouldn't let me leave to go change her. I decided to change her in my seat and got in trouble for disrupting the people around me. I wasn't trying to be defiant of the rules, but I think the rules were a little ridiculous if you ask me and any other mother. Regardless, Kelsey had no idea about the mishap and had the time of her life.
I love this picture because it pretty much sums up Kelsey's face the entire week :)
Some Kelsey quotes that were awesome
"Dad get off your chair and help me."
"Agh! The wing is blowing my hair away and I hate it."
We
passed a little girl, about 5, and she was like "AHHHH!! I HATE all
these people!" We laughed so hard because that was exactly like how we
were feeling the day all the rides closed down.
On Friday, after we had seen all the parades, had seen all the shows, had used up all our stroller swaps, and all the friends and family had left (except Hannah of course), we decided to spend a lot of the day meeting Princesses. Kelsey was super shy the whole time but loved it so much. I mean, I'd be speechless too if I came face to face with some of the people I talk about every day!! .
This trip definitely solidified to me that I am a parent. I
had more fun watching Kelsey get excited than actually riding the
rides. I love being a mom.
Friday was also a fun day for me and Ethan because we decided to celebrate graduation and our new adventures in Phoenix by eating at the Blue Bayou (the restaurant that you can see from Pirates). Oh my goodness!! So fun and so delicious. Hannah was nice enough to take Kelsey and Madison slept the whole lunch so it felt like such a fancy date.
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| Monte Cristo: ham and cheese wrapped in a doughnut aka the tastiest stomach ache Ethan has ever had |
I love that I married into a Disneyland loving family. It really has become a magical place for me. I love seeing the excitement on Kelsey and Ethan's faces and can't wait to see that same excitement on our future kids. It is such a fun place to be.
