Final Day!

Our final day was a doozy.  We had the Magic Morning Pass so we were able to get into the park a day early.  We planned to use this pass to go see Anna and Elsa before the park opened.  Well us and all other families worldwide.  They cut the early admission line at the family in front of us!  We were highly annoyed.  Anyway, Marc had me hand him my backpack and told me my half marathon training started that day.  So as soon as the Mickey clock him 8AM, I was sprinting across the Magic Kingdom to secure a spot in line for Riley.  Another woman got behind me and told me that she saw me at the gate and I looked like I knew what I was doing so she told her husband she was following me, turns out she was super cool and lives in San Jose so we chatted the whole time we were in line, the entire 2 hours!  The things you do for your kids.  Originally, they told us the line would be 4-5 hours and we decided since it was our last day that we would just do it, Marc took the kids on some rides and I held our spot in line.  It ended up being a 2 hour wait and it was worth every minute!  Riley was beaming meeting Anna and Elsa and it only seemed fitting to end our surgery recovery celebration trip with her meeting the princesses that got us through post-op recovery with the countless hours of watching the movie.  Riley was beaming and she sang "Let It Go" to them, told them they were singing their songs for their pre-school graduation, got their autographs.  It was awesome! 

After our Frozen experience we went on some rides (Jacob's request) in Disneyland, then headed back for naps and then back to California Adventure for one last hurrah.  We went on the Monster's Inc ride again and Mater's ride and watched the parade one last time.  Then off to Downtown Disney for dinner and a trip to the Disney Store there so the kids could spend their gift cards.  We once again hit the Frozen jackpot on gear. :)

Waiting for Anna and Elsa!

We're almost there!

We're NEXXXXT!

Olaf!  He's our favorite!

The smile says it all!

Jacob wasn't so sure about Anna but Marc and I were super happy to be in there with them!

Dancing a jig while waiting for Merida

Merida was FANTASTIC!



Jacob ate his way through Disneyland! 

Disney Day 3:
Met Anna and Elsa
Carrousel while mommy stood in line
Winnie the Pooh
Met Merida
Monsters Inc
Parade at California Adventure
Mater's Junkyard Jamboree

So long Disneyland!  Thanks for the wonderful memories!  We can't wait until the next time!

Disney Day 2

Disney Day 2 brought us to Disneyland!  First stop, princesses!  We stopped by and met Cinderella, Ariel and Aurora.  Oh the heaven that Riley was in.  Then it was off to go on some rides per Jacob's request.  We had to go to Dumbo which everyone loved, even Jacob, who about 30 minutes into the 40 minute line decided he didn't want to go on it.  I bribed him with the promise of popcorn afterwards and he was in.  He, of course, loved it and requested it again and again.  Next request, the choo-choo train he had been eyeing from the Dumbo line.  Ironically, we got seated in the car labeled "Wild Animals,"  how fitting!  After that, Marc took Jacob for popcorn and I took Riley on her first big girl ride, Big Thunder Mountain!  We really wanted to do Space Mountain but it was closed the whole week we were there. 

From day 1 but Ri found a Kellogg's truck and so we had to take a picture with it, it's now my desktop at work. :)

Cinderella

Poor Ariel, Riley sang "Let It Go" to her.  She used to be top princess until Anna and Elsa came along!

Jacob needed a little princess action!

Finally the wild animals have been caged on the choo-choo!

Ready to ride Big Thunder Mountain!

Apparently this is what happens when you tell your son that Mickey doesn't like his biting and he then comes face to face with Mickey.  Jacob was extremely concerned in line and then when we got back to Mickey, he turned bright red, started to shake and yelled "Done!  Mickey doesn't like it!  I'm doooone!!!"

And the final list of our Day 2 Activities!

Scored Pull Apart Olaf at Target (we've been looking everywhere for him!)
Met Cinderella, Ariel, and Aurora
Dumbo
Casey's Circus Train
Big Thunder Mountain (Mommy and Riley)
Pirates of the Caribbean
Met Mickey Mouse

Disney Day 1

Well the Disney trip came about because when we told Riley that she had to have surgery we promised that we would take her to Disneyland when she was fully recovered.  We were driving to SoCal anyway and Dr H said she was looking good so we decided to do the Disney trip before she starts her Kindergarten summer program mid-June.  She more than earned this trip!

Tuesday we decided to do California Adventure, I had heard good things about Cars Land and was eager to check it out plus, Riley's friend Joey was there with his family and we had secret plans to meet up with them which was another awesome surprise!  We did a TON on Monday.  I should mention we stayed at the Marriott Suites which was fantastic but far away.  Rather than pay the $14/day per family shuttle fee we opted to walk to and from the park.  It was far after the 3rd day and the area is sort of shady, I'm surprised Disney hasn't cleaned it up more but I digress.  Jacob would have probably been very happy just riding all of the shuttle buses.  Cars Land did not disappoint!  We rode Mater's Junkyard Jamboree, I wasn't sure how Jacob would do with the rides and crowds but he pleasantly surprised me.  He loved the rides, was great in line and was like a different kid!  He was so outgoing and friendly and sociable.  It was so refreshing to see him so happy.  He loved Mater, he wanted to meet Mater, Lightening McQueen and Red.  Then we met up with Joey, Alex and their parents for a few rides and the Disney Jr show before heading back to the hotel for naps.  Then back to CA Adventure for another round of rides, we also caught the parade which Jacob loved because it featured Monster's Inc which we loves! 

Ready to get the fun started!

12 corrective casts in a year, one ATTT and cavus tendon lengthening, one month in a non-walking cast, 2 weeks in a walking cast, going on 2 months in an AFO - this girl has earned her trip to Disneyland!

Jacob really wanted to go on Mater's Junkyard Jamboree

Ready to get our first ride started

Jacob was so cute, he wanted to meet Mater but was nervous so he clung to Riley!

Same with Lightening McQueen!

This family photo pretty much sums up our family dynamic right now - all smiles, except for Jacob with his tongue sticking out!

Little dude was having fun!!!

Love these 4!

How cute are these two!?!

On Toy Story!

Love vacations with these guys!

On a mission in Cars Land

This girl was in heaven

This is how Jacob rode the rides, he took it all in with his hands clasped on his lap

In front of Jacob's favorite - Monsters Inc/University!

Finally, laying quietly playing on the iPad

Day 1 in Summary:
Mater's Jumkyard Jamboree
Luigi's Flying Tires
Ariel
Toy Story with the Almeidas
Ferris Wheel with the Almeidas
Monster's Inc
Disney Jr Show with the Almeidas
Rocket Ships
Goofy Rollercoaster (Riley and Marc)
Parade
Monster's Inc (kids favorite)
Mater's Junkyard Jamboree (my favorite!)

Disney Arrival

Monday we told the kids that we were heading to Disney a few hours before we actually left, that cut down on the "when are we going to Disneyland?" questions!  It was a little over an hour drive from Temecula so once we got there and checked into our room and settled a bit, we walked down to Downtown Disney to pick up our tickets.  The kids were beyond excited to get there!

What was the first thing we saw when we got to Downtown Disney?  A sand sculpted Olaf!  Because he loves warm hugs of course!!!

Princess Mania

Well like I said, Monday we left my parents and headed up to Anaheim for a few days at Disney.  We stopped in Irvine for lunch to see my friend Dayna who had just had a baby which was super fun, even though Jacob is only like 2 1/2 months older than baby Adam it was seriously a shock to see how small he was, you forget so easily how small newborns really are, not to mention that Jacob is a beast (but an utterly cute one at that).  After lunch we hit up Carter's (love that place and I have Marc addicted with their super functional, cute clothes and killer deals) and then we did our Target run before heading over to our hotel, or as Riley calls it "hotowel."  We decided to stay this trip at the Embassy Suites, a suite is necessary these days and they offered an extra large one for a reasonable price so we figured with Riley and a crib that would do us justice.  Well the first night it was 9:00PM and Marc and I hadn't eaten and Riley was still awake, our plan was to have Riley sleep on the pull out couch out in the living room and us in the bedroom with Jacob in the crib.  Unfortunately the microwave, refrigerator and bathroom were all out in the living room so at 9:00PM we moved Riley into the bedroom on the king size bed and Marc and I landed ourselves on the full-size pull out couch with the crib next to us. 

Pipsqueak in her bed

Tuesday we headed to the parks!  Riley was "so escited!"  She kept saying it over and over, it was so cute and made the exhaustion worth it.  My brother, Lauren and Cousin D met us there, they actually got there before us despite driving up from San Diego, one of the pitfalls of trying to get out of the hotel room with 2 kids especially when one of them doesn't sleep through the night, not that I'm naming names, Jacob!  Our first stop was the Dumbo ride which happened to be the longest we would wait in lines, 40 minutes.  It was perfect, when we were there last Christmas, lines were 2-3 hours long, with a toddler, yeah that didn't happen but this trip the lines were generally 5-15 minutes for the rides that Riley and D were interested in.  We also found that Jacob could go on a lot of rides in the Bjorn so we were both able to take Riley.  I didn't go on Buzz Lightyear because I was feeding Jacob so the entire trip she begged me to go back on with her because it was "so awesome!"  We finally made it on the last day, which I deemed junk food day and we had a blast.  She was so excited for the one on one time with me and loved showing me how the ride worked since she had already been on it.  So Tuesday we spent at Disneyland followed by a late lunch at ESPN Zone in Downtown Disney and then we headed back to the hotel for a nap and then returned to downtown Disney and then to California Adventure where we ran into some friends that we know from back home.  So random and such a nice surprise!

Wednesday we spent the morning with my brother, Lauren and D and then headed over to California Adventure where we had lunch at the winery restaurant.  Thursday we did the same, all in all it was a fun vacation.  Disney really thinks of everything, we found that they have a Baby Center where you can go and nurse but they also have pumping rooms so I was able to bring my pump and pump throughout the day.  Seriously, they think of everything.  Riley and I also checked out the new Ariel ride which she loved.  Unfortunately Riley did not nap for 2 days and then did not nap the entire drive home.  Not fun times but more on the Riley subject at a later date.  Here are some pictures!  Riley was on a princess hunt while we were there, we couldn't find enough princesses fast enough for her.

Heading into Disneyland, woot, woot!!!

First ride, Dumbo!

Ariel loved Riley's blue nails with flowers painted on them

Posing with Ariel

Jacob pants' first ride.  It's a Small World.  His next ride was Pirates of the Caribbean where he fell asleep.  I can't blame the guy, it was cool and dark, I almost fell asleep too. 

Sleeping Beauty was next, Riley showed her that she had a picture of her on the light up shoes. :)

Me and my girl waiting for Goofy

Ooooo, Prince Aladdin!

Chilling in Mickey's house

Last stop of the trip, a picture with Mickey

Last Day :(

Thursday was our last day at Disneyland and our last day down in the OC.  It seemed to be another transition day as the park wasn't overly crowded.  We made one last stop to the gift shop and then walked around California Adventure again, saw the Muppets 3D again then headed over to Disneyland for an ice cream and to meet Winnie the Pooh and Eeyore!  And just like that, our vacation was over!

One last viewing of Muppets3D!

Sharing Ice Cream with her favorite Mommy!

Pooh Bear!

Eeyore!

Bye Disneyland!  We had fun!  See you next time!