Dreams Do Come True
What can you say after visiting Disneyland other than it is truly the happiest place on earth where dreams do come true.
What seemed like quite a few setbacks in getting there — delayed flight, switching airports, lost bags, late night waiting for a shuttle, and rain the next morning — we were still very excited to finally get to the park. Due to the weather and lost bag, we decided to hit California Adventure Park first to see what A Bugs Land and Cars Land were all about. Ellie might have been a bit disappointed because her princess dress was still somewhere in the suit case and there wasn’t exactly a castle to see there but all turned to smiles once we got on a few rides. It was just like being in the movies and amazing to see all of the details behind every corner. Don’t be surprised if you see a Popsicle stick bench in our back yard this summer (look for the picture below). After a good morning, quite a few rides, and some lunch on the boardwalk, we trekked back to our hotel room for our bag, a shower and change of clothes, and a much needed nap.
We had dinner reservations at Goofy’s Kitchen where we finally got to experience some of the characters with our first being Chef Goofy himself. At this point, we weren’t quite certain how Ellie would react and were surprised when it was our turn for a picture that she ran right up to him and gave him a giant hug. It was priceless. Ellie could hardly contain herself throughout dinner every time someone famous came around the corner. It was so wonderful to see the amazement and excitement through her eyes. While we ate, we were able to visit with Pluto, Jasmine, Aladdin, and Minnie Mouse. After dinner we went back to California Adventure Park to catch a few more rides and our favorite park dessert, the churro — what we dubbed as the Cheer Up Stick.
The next day the forecast called for less rain, and after a quick breakfast we packed up a princess dress and headed for the castle on a mission to meet some princesses. And it was a busy day of just that. Right away we headed to Fantasy Land where we were able to meet Arial, Aruroa, Princess Minnie, Arial (again), and the most sought out of our trip — Cinderella. With Ellie in her matching Cinderella dress it was so fun to see the interaction between the two (video below). You could tell Ellie was in heaven.
Even though we only rode on Dumbo, the Flying Elephant ride, the rest of the day at Disneyland was just as much fun. We were able to catch the new Royal Theater with their theatrical production of Tangled, we met two fairies in Pixie Hallow, we stood in line for an hour and a half (yes, 1.5 hours) to meet the newest characters, Queen Elsa and Princess Anna from the movie Frozen, we walked through Mickey’s Toon Town and were sure to squeeze the Big Cheese himself, and then we rested on the sidewalk to take in Mickey’s Soundsational Parade which was a fantastic way to see even more characters like the Genie, Tianna, Snow White, Belle, Mary Poppins, Donald Duck, Peter Pan and more, not to mention the extravagant costumes of the parade dancers. Ellie was standing and dancing along the whole time. When any of us seemed to get fussy or grumpy we headed to the nearest treat stand for some cotton candy, ice cream, coffee, corn dog or churro to keep the smiles going. Due to the weather, we were told the fireworks could be canceled for that night, and after being on our feet all day, we were ready to mosey back to the hotel. But not before grabbing some tacos and last minute souvenirs on our way.
A Montage of our first Disney Experience
And in case you want to watch the entire parade, here is a video someone else posted, because we forgot to record this part, and it is a really great parade. Ellie will love to watch it over and over I am sure.
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All in all it was a fantastic trip and well worth it as parents to get away and spoil our girl a bit before our lives change once again in a few months.
Even More Pictures!
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