doin' disney-last thursday

The kids were way too hyper the night before to get some sleep, so we woke up groggy and tired but still rarin' to go.  We had the hotel continental brekky (and I must admit I may have had one or two or five donuts. . . yummm) slathered up with sunblock and got on our way.

Love it.do you see how Mickey has the party hat on?

 

We got really lucky right off the bat and saw Mickey at the entrance.  Check!

We had subscribed to the RideMax.  It's a program that helps you set up your Disneyland day in the most efficient way possible, using FastPasses and the knowledge of what things are the most crowded during certain times of the day.  Our longest wait was about 10 minutes while we followed this schedule. It was fantastic.  Ethan had absolutely no fear and loved the roller coasters.  He was absolutely committed to keeping his hands up at all times!  It was so fun to watch!

Ethan's favorite ride was the Astro Orbiter/Buzz Lightyear ride.  We went on it several times for him.  He loved shooting those targets!

  

 

     

The dreaded tea pots.  This vile ride had put an end to our honeymoon Disney trip all those years ago, but I knew the kids would love it, so I made them try.  Dan said it wasn't as bad as he remembered, and of course, the kids had a blast.

 

Space Mountain is the favorite for most of us.  We did this several times and had fun with the pictures each round.  This was Ethan's first time and he wasn't so sure about it at first.

Just when the kids were getting tired of all the walking, we took the little ferry raft ride over to Tom Sawyer's Island.  I wouldn't necessarily say we let them run loose, but here I knew they could just run around and have fun.

 

That is, of course, until Cameron got lost.  For about 20 minutes.  This was not the first nor last time that this happened while on our trip.  Cameron got separated from our party at least a dozen times <----and that is no exaggeration.  It's not that he's naughty. . . he just had complete confidence that he knew where he was going and he really didn't care if we were behind him or not.  This 20 minute stretch was the longest he went 'missing', and I wasn't too distraught because I knew he was somewhere on the island (lol).  We did eventually find him, and this time around, we had to punish him by taking away the Indiana Jones ride.  As it turned out, the Indiana Jones ride broke down off and on the whole time we were there, so no one got to ride it.  *pout*  I love that ride.  But Ethan's too small for it anyway, so it would have been a fight separating the group.

Tom Sawyer's Island is great for letting off a little steam. 

For lunch we had to hit the Billy Hill and the Hillbillies show.  They weren't as great (nor were they all the same cast) as the last time we'd been there.  But it was still fun.

We went to the Tiki Room next (you know, the one with the singing birds?) and although this next shot is blurry and in the dark, I had to share with you the look of wonder on Ethan's face throughout the whole show.  He was transfixed.

  

I'm such a Hulk-ette, I know.  ;)

 

Am I the only one who luuuuuurves the Jungle Cruise?  I just love the dead pan puns from the tour guide.  Such as:  "Beware of the tigers there on your left.  They have a jumping range of 25 feet.  But don't worry; our boat is only 20 feet away-they'll jump right over us."

 

That night the park closed at 9 and so we ate dinner at a Carrow's right next to the hotel.  Cameron slept through the whole thing, and that night, there was no goofin' around from the kids.  Everyone was exhausted and out just like that.

More to come tomorrow. =)