TR: 4 Adults, 3 Kids, 2 B-days, and our 1st family DL Trip! 5.25 - 6.1! (**Updated 7/7!**)

momtohms

DIS Veteran
Joined
Jul 16, 2012
Welcome to my very first Trip Report! I know there were a few people following along from my PTR (you can find that right here) but I wanted to say hello :wave: again!

I'll start off with a quick background and introduction.

This was our first family vacation to Disneyland! We went for the last week of May, right after the 60th celebrations had started, and stayed at the Paradise Pier Hotel. My oldest and youngest DDs celebrated birthdays on our trip as well. As not to leave my middle DD out, I've already decided our next trip will be around her birthday in October (2017, likely) which works out quite nicely as I've always wanted to go around Halloween. You know you've had an amazing trip when you are starting to plan the date of the next one before you even get back from the trip you are on :thumbsup2

On the trip were my husband and myself and our three little girls (ODD turned 6 on the trip, MDD is 4 1/2, and YDD turned 3 on the trip). My parents also came along for most of the week and we loved having them there (not going to lie, the 4 adults to 3 kids ratio was quite helpful too!)

I will be sharing a ton of details and pictures in my posts, but I wanted to get the thread started and a little intro post up to kick things off! Looking forward to sharing our amazing week with you :woohoo:

I leave you with a pic from our first day!
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Chapter Links!


Chapter 1: I'm Skeptical About Those Palm Trees...
(travel day, surprising the girls, breakfast with Mickey, and getting settled in!)

Chapter 2, Part 1: Wait, This Trip Didn't Include a Marathon!
(first day in the parks!)

Chapter 2, Part 2: SOS! We're Stuck on Small World!
(the first park day adventures continue!)

Chapter 3: Lets Play "The Quiet Game"
(park day #2)

Chapter 4: The Best Dates are Disney Dates
(a shopping date, a park date, some quality pool time, and a kid free night in DL!)

Chapter 5, Part 1: Princess, Princess, Princess, Princess, Princess, Baymax
(a birthday morning full of princesses and one very special light up balloon )

Chapter 5, Part 2: It's My Birthday and I Can Pitch a Fit in Front of the Castle if I Want To!
(the second part of our birthday fun; with meltdowns, presents, and a colorful ending to our day)

Chapter 6: Koalas, and Hippos, and Lemon Trees...Oh My!
(our day trip to San Diego including brunch with relatives and an afternoon at the zoo, topped off with a birthday dinner at Bubba Gump's!)

Chapter 7, Part 1: And Then There Were 5...
(saying goodbye to my parents, and now being outnumbered by our children in the parks)

Chapter 7, Part 2: Making the Most of our Last Night!
(spending our last evening of the trip in California Adventure)

Chapter 8: All Good Things Must Come to an End :(
(a whirlwind last day of rides, a show, and souvenir shopping)

Chapter 9: Everyone Loves Pictures!
(picture collages for every day of some favorites I hadn't posted yet!)

Chapter 10: Baymax Balloon! Baymax Balloon!
(Video of YDD getting her beloved Baymax balloon the morning of her birthday!)

Bonus Posts: Life in Alaska

Part One: Northern Lights!

Part Two: Rural Alaska and Mt. McKinley

Part Three: A Favorite Local Hike
 
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Chapter 1: I'm Skeptical About Those Palm Trees...


Our Trip Report begins the night before we arrived in California! As mentioned above, and in my PTR, we decided to completely surprise our girls with this trip! As in, they didn't even know we were going ANYWHERE until we showed up at the airport for our flight. We led them to believe we would be going to Seattle to see their grandparents, though my oldest was quite suspicious at first. This exchange took place a couple of times before we boarded the plane:

ODD: Where are we going?

Me: To see Nona & Pop Pop!

ODD: But where are Nona & Pop Pop?

Me: Where Nona & Pop Pop are

ODD: You're confusing me!

By the time we got to the gate, they were all happily distracted with the contents of their carry-on bags and getting quite tired as it was around midnight by this point.

Our plane left just after 1am, the girls slept nearly the entire flight, and when we landed in Long Beach the overcast skies helped keep up our ruse of going to Seattle quite nicely. That is until we walked outside and through a giant row of palm trees. ODD had the most skeptical look on her face, DH and I were sure she was about to figure out that we weren't at the Seattle airport. Though the combo of still waking up, and then seeing her grandparents waiting for us outside baggage claim provided a nice distraction, so it never came up. My Dad and I grabbed the luggage while DH and my Mom took the girls to the rental car to get the carseats installed and we were off to Anaheim!

All three girls were fast asleep when we pulled into the Paradise Pier Hotel, so my Mom waited with them while my Dad, DH and I went to check-in early. It would be awhile before we could get into our rooms (which was expected, it wasn't even 9am at this point) but we were able to confirm they would have us in connecting rooms and said they would call as soon as they were available. Back in the car, my mom told us that MDD had woken up real briefly and noticed a Disneyland sign out the window but shrugged it off because there were no princesses on it and went back to sleep :rotfl:

We had a couple of hours to kill before we needed to be back for our Mickey's Surf's Up breakfast reservations, so we drove around and grabbed some much needed coffee while the girls slept. Originally we were just going to wait until the girls figured out where we were, but I also really wanted their reaction on video. DH and I decided to spill the beans once we got back to the hotel for breakfast . After parking, we took the girls up to the top level of the garage (I was hoping we could see part of CA, but it was on the other side. Though we did have a nice view of the water slide at the pool ;-) ) and gave them each a bag that contained the outfit they would be wearing to breakfast. I'll let the video (hopefully this works!) tell the rest:


MDD is my shy one, especially when she is just waking up like she was when I filmed this. She was definitely more excited once she was a bit more alert!

Surf's Up Breakfast with Mickey was a perfect way to kick off our week at Disney! We met and took pictures with Mickey as soon as we walked inside, and Minnie came over for pictures right after we had sat down. Later on we had visits from Daisy and Stitch. Daisy was quite the flirt with my DH & Dad. We also had repeat visits from Mickey, Minnie, and Daisy. Minnie and Daisy especially loved interacting with YDD. Daisy would tickle her and YDD would bust out in a fit of giggles. Then YDD gave her hair bow to Minnie, she tried to put it on but it was too small so she put it back in YDD's hair for her (and did an awesome job, especially considering the big gloves she wears!) Our food was okay, I wouldn't say it was the highlight of the meal but there were a few things each of us enjoyed. My faves were the sausage and Mickey waffles, DH enjoyed his omelet, and the girls thought the cereal dispensers were the coolest thing ever (but were mostly too distracted to eat much). Overall we thought the atmosphere and interactions were well worth it

Some favorite pictures:

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And a short clip of YDD & Daisy:


When we got the call that our rooms were ready it was just before 1pm! We were all running out of steam after a very busy day on very little sleep so getting our keys a couple of hours early was much needed. Our rooms were on the 7th floor right by the elevators and overlooked the pool (we were in 717 and my parents in 715 with a connecting door between). I'll write more about the hotel and our rooms in another post though.

For the rest of our day, we got settled in and enjoying some rest and relaxation. We sent the guys out for In n Out burgers and had a quiet dinner in the room before heading to bed early.

Wrapping up this post with a collage of iPhone favorites & highlights for Day 1!

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Top L: Waiting for our flight! Middle L: Obligatory "out the window of the plane" shot, complete with sunrise! Bottom L: Those skeptical looking palm trees at LGB ;-), Top M: Yay Grandparents!
Bottom M: Yay Mickey! Top R: Getting some extra Zs, Middle R: Perfect first day dinner!, and
Bottom R: Some didn't even make it to a bed before falling asleep :rotfl:(I moved her after, of course!)

Next Up...

Chapter 2, Part 1: Wait, This Trip Didn't Include a Marathon!
 
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Chapter 2, Part 1: Wait, This Trip Didn't Include a Marathon!

At last, our first day in the parks! I had been looking forward to seeing my girls experience Disneyland for the first time for so long :)

Getting up early for EMH at Disneyland was the plan, but with 7 people (three of them being under the age of 6) it wasn't as easy at it sounded. We left PPH a little after 7am and headed through GCH and DTD to the park entrance! Right after we got through bag check I thought I'd take a few pics of the girls while we were waiting in line, only to realize my camera wouldn't turn on. Guess who left the battery on the charger back in the room? :blush:

Since the line was quite long, I left my purse & camera with the others and RAN back to the PPH. I'm not much of a runner, but I made the roundtrip (including taking the stairs up 7 floors, because I was NOT waiting on the elevators!) in about 15 minutes. I got back just as my family was getting to the front of the line. Perfect timing :) Our military ticket vouchers were easily traded for actual park tickets and we were on our way!

A couple of friends advised me to get ahead of the girls and take a picture of their faces as they saw Main Street and the castle for the first time. It was still early, but there was excitement there ;-)

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Since Peter Pan was still down for refurbishments, we headed to Dumbo for our first ride of the trip while my parents grabbed breakfast.

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Next up were the spinning teacups!

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At that point it was just before 8am so I gathered up fast passes and headed over to Space Mountain while the rest rode the Carousel and Pinocchio. I went to meet everyone back at Fantasyland and we decided to head towards Tomorrowland and ride on Buzz since our Space Mountain FP return time wasn't too far away. We had a blast, I got a few pics but mostly tried to "help" YDD play (which she greatly protested, she's very much in a "I do it myself!" phase)

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My Dad has been a fan of the Toy Story Aliens since the first movie came out. He's acquired quite a collection of Alien related things over the years, but it's not always been the easiest to find. So as you can imagine, walking into a store full of Aliens after the ride was like Christmas for him! We spent awhile looking around, he bought the Bucket of Aliens and my mom helped the girls pick out pin trading starter sets.

When our Space Mountain FP window as open we left YDD with my parents and took the older two with us! This is favorite ride of DH and mine so we were excited to see what the girls thought. Our verdict: :thumbsup2:woohoo:but the girls' reaction was more along these lines: :scared1: :sad1: the darkness and the speed were not favorites and they both were quick to claim they wouldn't be riding that again. Fair enough :goodvibes

We met up with my parents and YDD and headed over to ride Pirates!

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The older two LOVED it and both said it was their most favorite ride so far, but YDD was not a fan of the dark aspect of the ride.

Next up my mom & I took ODD to ride the Matterhorn. I didn't think she'd want to ride any of the big coasters after not loving Space Mountain but she insisted she wanted to ride the "Yeti" ride. We grabbed some Mickey pretzels for a snack to eat while we waited in line. We all loved the ride, even ODD (she wanted to ride again right away!) and the new Yeti was awesome. I was hoping to get a pic of him but that ride goes a lot faster than I was thinking so this was the only picture that turned out:

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My Dad and DH had taken the younger two to Tarzan's Treehouse and the Castle walk through while we were on the Matterhorn so we met back up near the Finding Nemo Subs. Since YDD wasn't keen on another dark ride, she stayed with my mom & DH to ride the Storybook Canal Boats while my Dad & I took the older two over to Haunted Mansion!

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Add another favorite to the list for my older two :thumbsup2

It was approaching lunch time and the crowds in DL were really picking up, so we decided to head over to CA for the first time and find a place to eat! I took some pictures of the castle & Main Street as we made our way out of the parks.

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Once inside CA, we ended up finding a place near the pier that had a few options to choose from. Most of the group ate at Cocina Cucamonga, my Dad had a bread bowl salad from the Pacific Wharf Cafe, and I had a margarita. Not a meal, I realize, but I was still full from Mickey pretzel and really craving an icy frozen drink.

As you can see YDD was more than Disney-ed out by the time we finished lunch and her sisters were sporting similar faces so back to the hotel for much needed rest time we went!

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Stopping here for now (mostly because I've hit my 10 uploads per post limit) and I'll be continuing the rest of our day in another post soon!

Chapter 2, Part 2: SOS! We're Stuck on Small World!
 
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The expressions on your kids faces are awesome- from sheer delight to total exhaustion! We are taking our grandkids on a Disneyland trip in September and I cannot wait to spoil them!!
 


Chapter 2, Part 2: SOS! We're Stuck on Small World!

Our afternoon break back at the hotel included about 30 minutes of rest. Mostly for the adults. All three of the girls got a second burst of energy on the walk back and immediately wanted to go swimming. We told them that quiet time was first, and if they could relax quietly for a bit we'd go down to the pool once everyone had a nice rest. They (mostly) obliged and our afternoon swim time became a quick favorite! My older two loved the slide, and my youngest was on a mission to splash all of the water out of the kiddie pool. Fun times all around :cheer2:

After a few hours we were ready to head back to the parks for more rides and dinner! We made a stop in the gigantic World of Disney store on our way through DTD (I may have sent out a text to my brother & his wife to send help if they didn't hear from us in a couple of days, that place is massive!) and let the girls pick out autograph books.

My middle daughter really wanted to ride Ariel so that was our first stop once we got into CA, but it was down. We opted to eat dinner first and then come back. Boardwalk Pizza & Pasta was our pick and it was delicious! I had the chicken caesar salad and DH had the sun dried tomato pasta! Both choices were great and we ended up sharing quite a bit. Ariel was back up and running when we were finished so we headed back over!

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It was getting darker out, and since seeing the lights go on in Cars Land was something we were looking forward to, we went over that way to ask what time it would be that night. We had around 45 minutes to kill, so we took the girls over to A Bugs Land to look around and rode Flik's Flyers. After that it was back to Cars Land to get some mini churros in a cone to share for dessert while we waited (the CM we asked about time said to get a spot by the traffic light, we were right across from Flo's!). There was also some pin trading action!

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Watching the lights for each building come on one by one as they played "Sh Boom" was definitely a favorite moment of the trip. They have done such an amazing job bringing Radiator Springs to life and the little touches like that make it even more fun!

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Next we thought we would head back to DL for the Paint the Night Parade but we greatly underestimated how crazy the crowds would be for this (rookie mistake!) and the entire route was packed without a spot in site. We walked to the very back of Fantasyland, and it was pretty clear we wouldn't be getting a spot that night. Since we were back there, we hopped in line for IASW since there wasn't really a wait (probably because everyone was at the parade :rotfl:). While walking through the line we did get to see the first few floats begin the parade and knew we had to make it a priority to get seats the next night!

Our Small World experience was quite entertaining. It was fairly empty on the ride, our boat was full (our family, and then three others) but the boats in front of and behind us were entirely empty. We were near the end of the ride and the boats just stopped moving. For about 7-8 minutes we just sat there, song blaring and not another park guest or cast member in site. Pictures of us stranded on IASW were posted to FB with messages to send help ;-) They did shut the music off and had us moving, slowly but surely, not long after. Of all the rides to get stuck on, ha! We took it in good humor of course.

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(the bottom right & top middle pics are from the area we were stuck in for reference, my brother was texting with us and made sure we noticed the mismatched ceiling tiles while we waited :rotfl2:)

After our three hour tour (or 25 minute...) we looked around in the gift shop at the end of the ride for a bit. This was right as the fireworks show was about to begin so we found a spot across from the Village Haus to watch. Though we couldn’t hear the music or see the majority of the show, my girls loved the fireworks they could see (YDD especially!). Plus we couldn’t really go anywhere with so much being blocked off and the crowds, so it was nice to have something to watch while we waited.

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Getting out of Disneyland that night was quite the challenge since we were near the back of the park and had to be routed around through Frontier and Adventureland while Fantasmic crowds were also leaving. Eventually we made it back to Main Street where we got to take a backstage short cut behind the shops to get to the front of the park more quickly. By the time we were back to the hotel my oldest had fallen asleep in the stroller and my younger two barely had their heads on the pillow before they were sleeping too. It was a very fun, and very eventful day for all of us!

Day 2 Collage of iPhone Pics :)

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Top L: We're in Disneyland Selfie!, Middle L: Margarita and a great view, Bottom R: ODD being goofy in a Goofy hat, Top M: Step count before we even got into the parks, SO much walking! Center: Bugs Land!, Bottom M: Stuck on Small World! Ahhh! Top R: YDD the navigator, Middle R: Our Space Mountain ride photo, and Bottom R: Another Dumbo pic, because I love their faces :)

Up Next...

Chapter 3: Lets Play "The Quiet Game"
 
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The expressions on your kids faces are awesome- from sheer delight to total exhaustion! We are taking our grandkids on a Disneyland trip in September and I cannot wait to spoil them!!

Thanks! It was so fun to see their reactions to everything! You will have such a great time with your grandkids, I'm pretty sure the spoiling grandchildren was high on the list of favorites for my parents on our trip :)
 
Chapter 3: Lets Play "The Quiet Game"

Our third day (and second day in the parks) started off with another " we intended to get early start, but got there later than planned" kind of morning. I think it was closer to 7:30 when we finally got to CA and then decided we'd just find breakfast while waiting for the FP machines to open. Until we passed the FP machines for RSR and there was already a long line. While everyone went off to get food, I did the FP gathering. They opened the RSR FP machines about ten minutes early and the line moved quickly, so I was able to get those and the Anna & Elsa FPs by the time the park opened for everyone else. I met up with the group after they had wrapped up eating at Flo's and off to meet Anna & Elsa we went.

My girls were all pretty talkative and interacted with the characters at the breakfast our first day, so I was totally not expecting them to all go radio silent here. Elsa and Anna were fantastic though, Anna suggested they should play "The Quiet Game" and then a few seconds in goes "Elsa, I can't do it!" and finally got a few laughs out of my (not usually) quiet trio. We got a couple of pics and the girls got their first autographs in their books too.

They all look so unimpressed here, but right after we left they were SO excited about meeting A&E. Silly kids.
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Next up was RSR! It was fun, but I'm also glad we had the FPs and didn't wait in a really long standby line :) They really did a great job on the details, I can see why it is so popular! I especially loved the waterfall (and it was the only pic that turned out, but it was one of my favorite parts too!)

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We didn't really have a plan for the rest of the day, so we ended up going over to DL to ride on the Jungle Cruise. Our captain was really quiet and at one point his mic cut out completely so we didn't hear much of the commentary, but I caught a few of the typical jokes (back side of water, MIL elephant, sleeping zebra...) and the girls had a fun time!

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For lunch we ate at the Plaza Inn and then most of the group headed back to the hotel for an afternoon rest. ODD and I stayed behind to shop & ride BTMRR and my Dad also stayed to walk around a bit on his own. First ODD and I got FPs for BTMRR, and then decided to grab a frozen treat. It was just our luck that we approached the Dole Whip stand right as my Dad was getting to the front of the line. Ten points (and a free Dole Whip Float!) for good timing! We did a little bit of shopping, the Castle walk through and then ODD wanted some pics by flowers she liked. When we went back to ride BTMRR, it was down and they didn't know when it would be back up. I gave ODD the choice to wait or go back, she was ready to get out of the sun and take a break from walking so the latter choice won. Though I did make her stop for a few minutes to catch a Dapper Dans performance on our way up Main Street.

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When we got back to the room, I checked the wait time app and saw that BTMRR was back up and there were still about 20 minutes left in our FP window. DH and I were both looking forward to riding and figured if we hurried we could get back in time. My mom offered to keep an eye on the girls for us. Since we are not ones to turn down a kid free date (even a short one) we ran back to DL and got to the FP return with a couple of minutes to spare. BTMRR is probably my favorite ride in DL and I loved the new updates they made. It was well worth running from the hotel for ;-)

Later that afternoon we headed back to DL to get a spot for the parade a couple of hours ahead of time, and found a nice section in front of the Matterhorn with room for us all to sit together comfortable. We ate dinner while we waited, and I stood in line for an hour for a corn dog. Our girls made friends with kids sitting nearby and played on their tablets to stay occupied. Not a super eventful wait, but the parade was awesome and worth getting there early for!

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After making our way through the crowds to get back towards the front of the park, we caught the fireworks show near the flag pole near Disney Emporium. It wasn't a great view of the fireworks themselves, but we were able to hear the music and see the projections on the main street buildings.

My parents headed back to the hotel after, but DH and I spent a bit more time in the parks with the girls. We got them Buzz Lightyear light up bubble guns, and light up balloons. We were hoping to do a ride or two, but the lines and crowds were pretty crazy still. Seeing as the girls were getting tired quickly, it was an easy decision to head back (with our new collection of battery drainers) and go to bed. All in all, a very good evening!

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Day 3 iPhone Collage:

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Top L: FPs galore! Middle L: ODD and her new friends taking a selfie on her tablet while waiting for the parade (Lord, help me now), Bottom L: What I found when DH told me there were "antiques" at Disneyland :goodvibes, Top R: A big group warm hug, and Bottom R: Right after we bought them bubble guns and became the most popular and most unpopular people in the parks at the same time :thumbsup2

Next up...

Chapter 4: The Best Dates are Disney Dates
 
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Chapter 4: The Best Dates are Disney Dates

Thursday was our beach/pool/hang out day! Because the girls loved the hotel pool so much, we decided to skip the beach and stick around the area instead. We slept in, I made a Starbucks run for breakfast, and everyone enjoyed a lazy morning. I took MDD on a little shopping date in DTD to pick out birthday presents for her sisters (and a little something for herself too!) after I'd had some coffee. Most of our time was spent in World of Disney, but we also got a treat to share at Marceline's and did some window shopping too.

For lunch, my parents and DH took the younger two to Farrell's and ODD and I spent another afternoon in the parks! We grabbed FPs for Grizzly River Run first and then went to ride Mickey's Fun Wheel. We were about 5 minutes into a 25ish minute line when ODD didn't want to wait. So we left and walked on the Silly Symphony Swings, Jelly Fish Jumpers, and Golden Zephyr one right after the other. ODD was a big fan of the swings, though I think it was mostly because she thought it was hilarious that I had to leave my flip flops on the ground and ride barefoot ;)

We grabbed sandwiches to eat at the Pacific Wharf Cafe and headed back over to GRR. I had packed a couple of cheap ponchos in my bag but it was pretty warm out and I didn't think we'd need to wear them, but ODD insisted she needed one and that I had to wear one too. It worked out in our favor because we were in seats on either side of the opening and got pretty wet even with the ponchos! Getting some cotton candy was a must before we headed back to the hotel for some late afternoon swimming!

I typically left my camera and phone in the room when we went down to swim, but brought it for part of our pool time to get a few pics in the gorgeous light just before sunset :)

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Everyone had had a late lunch so the girls weren't hungry for a big dinner. We fed them a light meal in the room and got the younger two to sleep after a bubble bath and a princess bedtime story or two...or three. ODD had gone over to my parent's room and was quietly watching a show there. With the little ones sleeping and the oldest quietly hanging out with her grandparents, we left to spend a kid free night in the parks!

Our first stop was CA to ride California Screamin', but we got there just after it had closed down for WOC. We also wanted to ride Indiana Jones (Screamin' and Indy were the two rides none of our kids were tall enough for so they were our top two for date night!), so off to DL we went! As we are walking across the esplanade, I hear DH gasp and he takes off running. Of course, I'm confused and trying to figure out what the heck just happened when he turns back and goes "Baymax!" and points to a balloon guy with a few Baymax balloons among the bunch he's holding.

I don't think I've mentioned this before in the TR but YDD is absolutely smitten with Baymax. I was certain we'd find lots of Baymax merchandise in the parks for her but there was next to nothing Big Hero 6 related at all (I'm still shocked by this!). Earlier in the week we had asked and been told by a couple of the balloon guys that they stopped selling Baymax balloons the week before and didn't think they would be back. So to see that they had them back again AND on the night before YDD's birthday was quite exciting! Of course we bought one right away and then realized that we probably couldn't take Baymax on the rides with us. DH ran back to the hotel to drop it off and I headed into the parks.

We met back up and went to get our Indiana Jones FPs. We stopped by BTMRR to ride that next and it was down again, but they said it would be back up by midnight. DH wanted to ride Star Tours so we did that (not a good choice for my motion sickness prone self) and then went on Buzz Lightyear because there was no line. Or maybe because we wanted a turn to play since our kids had the guns last time :rolleyes1

We walked around a bit kind of looking for food, but not hungry enough to wait in the long lines for it. Indy with our FPs was next, and then got into the BTMRR line right before midnight. I'd never ridden BTMRR at night before and it did not disappoint! So fun!

Our night in DL ended with a little post midnight shopping on Main Street and we left just before 1am. By then we really were hungry, and regretting that we had passed the ice cream place that was still open on Main Street 30 minutes earlier. Thinking we might have some luck DTD we went to House of Blues but they had just closed. Their hostess mentioned that Trader Sam's at the DLH was usually open until 1:30 or so. We headed there and I was so excited to see the bar menu, and then so not excited when I found out the kitchen had already closed. I still ordered a fancy fruity drink and I've never been so happy for a pineapple garnish! Plus the environment in there is so fun! We'll have to go back when we have more time to enjoy it.

We stayed until they closed (which was about 20 minutes before closing, not quite the same as closing down a bar in college) and walked through the DLH ground on our way back to the PPH. DH and I both agreed that we could spend a few more days on that date and we might just have to take a kid free trip to DL someday!

As you've noticed this post isn't super picture heavy, but I did take some pics with my phone! iPhone collage day 4:

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Top L: ODD and her poncho on GRR!, Bottom L: We took a selfie on every ride, but this was my favorite :thumbsup2, Top M: MDD was a big fan of the "warm pool" (aka the giant bubble bath, aka the hot tub), Center: Nighttime castle shot, Bottom M: Enjoying a drink at Trader Sam's, Top R: A nearly empty Main Street, and Bottom R: MDD and I on our shopping date!

Up Next...

Chapter 5, Part 1: Princess, Princess, Princess, Princess, Princess, Baymax
 
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Hi! I wasn't aware that you had gotten this started! Your DD's are so cute! I loved the reveal video, but the one that got me giggling was of youngest DD and Daisy! So cute! Thank you for sharing all this!!
 
Hi! I wasn't aware that you had gotten this started! Your DD's are so cute! I loved the reveal video, but the one that got me giggling was of youngest DD and Daisy! So cute! Thank you for sharing all this!!

Hi back! I just got it started in the last couple of days. I wrote little notes on my phone about our day each night and I'm so glad I did - it's made typing everything out so much faster!

Thanks! That video of my youngest and Daisy is my fave too, though youngest's jaw drop at the end of the reveal after I said we were going to breakfast with Mickey is a close second! She's such a character!

You are welcome, I've been enjoying re-living our trip by posting these too. It's fun to share our excitement with other Disney fans!
 
Hi back! I just got it started in the last couple of days. I wrote little notes on my phone about our day each night and I'm so glad I did - it's made typing everything out so much faster!

Thanks! That video of my youngest and Daisy is my fave too, though youngest's jaw drop at the end of the reveal after I said we were going to breakfast with Mickey is a close second! She's such a character!

You are welcome, I've been enjoying re-living our trip by posting these too. It's fun to share our excitement with other Disney fans!

I think it helps to get over the after the trip blues to relive it too!
 
Chapter 5, Part 1: Princess, Princess, Princess, Princess, Princess, Baymax.

I woke up this morning with a mix of bittersweet sentimentality that my girls were turning 3 and 6 that day, and the relief that unlike 3 and 6 years before then, I was not in labor or just recovering from giving birth at that moment :thumbsup2After our late night out it was nice to not have anything planned super early in the morning though we didn't get to do much sleeping in. After getting the girls up, we had YDD find the Baymax balloon we had waiting for her in my parent's room. Her reaction was hilarious, I'm still so glad we were able to get one for her! When I get a chance to trim it down a bit, I'll post the video here!

Next up was a breakfast with princesses at Ariel's Grotto! We had a bit of a wait until our table was ready, and then another wait on the stairs down to the restaurant area since they have each party stop for a few minutes to meet Ariel and take pics and get autographs. Once we had our turn to meet Ariel and get a few pics, they sat us at a table outside. Each of the girls had an activity book (or it may have been a double-sided sheet) with crayons and a paper crown with stickers to decorate which kept them occupied quite nicely between each princess visit! Chocolate milk and a week's worth of sugar in a waffle boat on a blue frosting sea with a cup of syrup to drench it in also helped ;)

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Pictures with the princesses! Ariel, of course and then we met Snow White, Tiana, Jasmine, and Cinderella while we ate!
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Out of all of the princesses, Cinderella was the highlight. She is YDD's favorite princess so when Cinderella got to our table she went right up to YDD and goes "a little birdie told me I was your favorite!" I don't remember them asking, so someone must have overheard our excitement when we found out Cinderella was one of the princesses we'd meet and let her know! It was such a sweet moment, my youngest was absolutely in awe and jumped right up with a big smile (that I wish I had on camera to share but she turned her head right before this) I'm quite surprised she also didn't try and jump into Cinderella's arms :rotfl:

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We headed over to DL after breakfast because the older girls had BBB appointments that afternoon, and as we went through the gates we saw Sleeping Beauty doing a meet & greet right out front! Out of my three girls, MDD is by far the biggest fan of the princesses but Princess Aurora is her absolute favorite. Earlier in the trip she had been waiting to meet her on two different occasions, and both times Aurora had gone "on break" when they were almost to the front of the line. She was also bummed that Aurora wasn't in the Paint the Night parade or at breakfast that morning so we were were pretty motivated to find her before our trip was over. While the rest of the group waited in line to (hopefully!) meet Sleeping Beauty, I went to double check our BBB time, since I may have not written it down and not remembered the exact details. Calling would've been the faster and easier choice, but I couldn't get through during any of my attempts that morning.

On the way I passed by this merry group of characters out on a little ride through Main Street! Both the Mad Hatter and Donald totally hammed it up for the camera when they saw me :thumbsup2
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Confession time: while I was bummed for MDD when the previous two times she had wanted to meet Sleeping Beauty didn't work out, I was also somewhat slightly relieved because I wasn't there for them. It was one of those moments I really wanted to see! They had just walked up to her as I got back from my little side trip, the timing was perfect. She spent a few moments talking with them and signing their autograph books. Before we went on our way, MDD gave Sleeping Beauty the biggest hug. While there were many moments before (and after!) this that made our trip worth every penny, this one probably tops the list for me:

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I'm planning to have it printed on a canvas for her room, since she still asks to look at it multiple times a day :lovestruc

We did some shopping on Main Street and took the girls to pick out a pair of Minnie ears before it was time to go to the BBB! DH and I took the older two to their appointment, while my parents kept YDD with plans to go on a few Fantasyland rides!

At the salon I surprised the girls with brand new dresses inspired by their favorite princesses from Etsy (I'll share more about them later!) Then it was a whirl of hair gel, hair spray, nail polish, makeup, and glitter galore. The fairy godmothers were SO good with the girls! MDD absolutely hates having her hair brushed. When I do it you would think I was submitting her to some medieval form of torture, so I was slightly worried about how she would react to having her hair done. I had gotten all the tangles out that morning, but her hair seems to tangle if you look at it funny, so it could've gone either way ;). Thankfully all went well (a few concerned looks, but no tears or whining!) and the end result were two very happy, glittery, princesses!

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They gave me an extra birthday sash for YDD and told me to bring her over and they would give her pixie dust too :) I highly recommend the experience if you have little girls, it was so much fun!

My parents and YDD had been at the teacups the entire time and YDD and my mom were on their third time in a row. YDD had picked the pink teacup to ride in the first time, right after they stopped she suddenly HAD to ride in the yellow teacup. Back through the line they went, and as they got on the ride for round two someone got the yellow teacup before them. YDD had to "settle" for pink again. Life is so unfair when you are spending your birthday at Disneyland and someone gets your second favorite color teacup before you so you have to make due with your favorite color instead :goodvibes. My mom took her once more, and (jokingly) told my Dad that anyone who got between her and that yellow tea cup was going down :rotfl2: The third time was the charm and YDD was happily spinning in her "other favorite color" teacup when I got there.

When they were off the ride, I put YDD in her dress and sash before the three girls rode the teacups with their Daddy (much to my mom's relief that they didn't request that she ride too, three times in a row was her limit! Haha!)

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I'm going to break this day up into two parts since there is so much to write about and share :)

Chapter 5, Part 2: It's My Birthday and I Can Pitch a Fit in Front of the Castle if I Want To!
 
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I love the Princess photos! With YDD you can see the smile on her face from the side it's so big! The one of MDD with Aurora is priceless! The look of joy on her face is wonderful! BBB came too late for my girls. My oldest who is 22 years old would do it in a heart beat!!
 
I just came upon your TR! Oh my goodness, your girls are SO adorable! We are thinking about going to DL for our first time next year, and so love seeing your photos of everything. How would you rate the walk from Paradise Pier hotel to the park? Can't wait to see the video of your daughter seeing her Baymax balloon for the first time!
 
I love the Princess photos! With YDD you can see the smile on her face from the side it's so big! The one of MDD with Aurora is priceless! The look of joy on her face is wonderful! BBB came too late for my girls. My oldest who is 22 years old would do it in a heart beat!!

Thanks! They were in princess heaven all day :goodvibes

I just came upon your TR! Oh my goodness, your girls are SO adorable! We are thinking about going to DL for our first time next year, and so love seeing your photos of everything. How would you rate the walk from Paradise Pier hotel to the park? Can't wait to see the video of your daughter seeing her Baymax balloon for the first time!

Thank you so much and welcome! I was really happy with the walk from the Paradise Pier to the parks, we used the short cut through the Grand Californian and it usually took 10 minutes to get from the hotel entrance to the gates. Close enough to make trips back and forth pretty easily. It was also nice that the Grand Californian has their own entrance to California Adventure too that guests of any of the Disneyland property hotels can use.

Great reports...the girls are so cute!

Thank you and thanks for reading too!
 
I got the chance to read your latest trip report. It was interesting that you were there during my two trips (May 26-28 & May 30 to June 1st). You did quite a lot during your visit from all the character interactions with your daughters, selfie shots, rides and shows. All of your pictures are very nice and all enjoyable to see where everyone is happy at the DLR.
 

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