California Trip Part 5 - Disneyland Day 1

I hadn't been to Disneyland since I was about 8....Jason too.  I remember it was great but I know so many adults who are so in love with Disneyland.....I really didn't think it would have that effect on me as an adult.  I approached it with happiness because I knew it would be a big deal to the kids.  Turns out,  it was a big deal to me too.  

Disneyland was complete MAGIC.  It felt so good to be there.  Is there pixie dust or some kind of "happy crack" floating in the air there?  I'm not exaggerating at all when I say that I broke out in chills on several occasions.  Disneyland is expensive.....I really didn't know quite how expensive until I bought our tickets.  I got the 3 day park-hoppers through Intermountain's employee discount program and I was still in shock at the price.  I don't know if Jason would say the same thing or not but in my opinion, Disneyland is worth EVERY PENNY.   From the moment we arrived they began to turn me into one of those adults who gush about Disneyland.  

It was 75 degrees, overcast without a drop of rain all day.....pretty perfect in my book.  We stayed at a hotel near the stadium because we found that paying for parking at Disneyland was cheaper than the few hotel rooms that were left within walking distance of the park (since we booked like, four days ahead and all).  It worked out really well.  Even the parking system was smooth and seamless in Disney style.  There were three smiling and chipper employees directing us into our spot.  Another employee walked us over to where we printed out our tickets and explained everything.  Grady got impatient or something and an old man with a big smile popped right over and gave us buttons for our shirts and told the kids to get ready with their smiles for a very happy day.  They were so proud of their little "Honorary Citizen of Disneyland" buttons.  He gave me a princess button and told the boys, "Your mom is a princess and don't forget to treat her like a princess and don't forget that the princess is the boss!"  Thank you, lovely old man!  We hopped on the shuttle that took us to the gate to start one heck of a happy day......

 We caught a line-less Minnie Mouse while we waited for Jason and Austin to ride Space Mountain.  Grady was so happy to see her but he was not about to stand by her so Jerrett got that honor to himself. 

Casey Junior train - we loved it & the soundtrack was very cute.

Sailing into Monstro's mouth on the Storybook Land Canal Boats.

 Descending into the Nemo submarine. 

 I remember this ride when I was young but it's even cuter now with a Nemo story line.

 We were very fortunate that we never had to use any fast-passes.  The line time was 5-10 minutes for all rides with the only exceptions being the new Cars ride and the Toy Story Midway in California Adventure.  I was so impressed with how efficient the rides and lines are.  They make the lines so fun....it's almost like part of the ride in many cases.  We didn't ever have to wait in the Buzz Lightyear line but it was really cute walking through it!  Giant talking/moving Buzz talks to you about your mission.  

 Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters.....has a target shooting game built into the ride and you compete against the other riders....so fun and competitive!  There was never a wait and we rode it quite a few times on both days.  It was one of Grady's favorites....At Disneyland he begged for the "Buzz Ride" and at California Adventure he begged for the "Mermaid Ride".  

 Even the way you get on and off of the rides....you can tell that a lot of thought went into how it's done.  Everything about the rides is designed with efficiency in mind.  Again very impressed.

 Ready for the tea cups at the Mad Hatters Tea Party!  

 Grady wanted the pink teacup and Jerrett didn't.....you can see who won that battle! :) 

 Spin Spin Spin!  I have no idea how Jason can spin and still take pictures!  I was nauseous just watching him do it!

 Toontown was cute....so much detail.

 Toontown Post Office

 Bustin' out of the "Dog Pound"

 We liked this funny sign at the mechanic shop....

 We saw Goofy right when we arrived on main street in the morning.

 Cloudy skies over Toontown

 Jerrett on Chip and Dale's balcony

 All Aboard the Jolly Trolley!

 The whole atmosphere at the Mad Hatters really got me.  All the color, lanterns, the music.....taking pics of my boys on a very iconic Disneyland ride.  I'll admit that I got kinda choked up watching them spinning and laughing in their pink teacup.  

 We had a nice long break at Chip and Dale's Treehouse.  We were pretty much the only people there and the kids just ran in and out again and again....allowing us to watch and rest our feet for a while.  

Love you, my happy-go-with-the-flow boy.

 Hi Grady!  Don't look at me, I'm over here watching and having an emotional momma moment. :)

 We had fun eating at the Pizza Port in TomorrowLand.  Maybe it was all the walking but I got some pasta stuff that was so good I practically inhaled it.  The big boys wanted spaghetti and Grady got a little pizza.  A lady was there to greet and open the door for us and she made a big deal about the Honorary Citizen badges and my boys were all smiles.  Jason was the one who paid for this meal so his smile was slightly smaller but still there. :)

 Being the big Star Wars fan that he is, Austin thought that Star Tours was the best thing in the whole world.  Grady was too little to go on it but Jason and I both really enjoyed it and didn't mind taking several turns riding with Austin and Jerrett.  We loved all the different scenarios & its just such a thrilling ride even for an old mom like me.  We went 5 or 6 times in the two days and never had the same ride twice.  It's makes for such adventure that C3P0 and R2 are such bad pilots. :)

 Picture jumble.....the submarine again.

 I loved the miniature patchwork quilt garden on the canal boats....cool to hear how old it is and that some plants were planted by Walt himself.  Cute that they give Tinkerbell all the credit for shrinking the plants. :)

Loved seeing Donald in Toontown.

Couldn't believe how clean Disneyland is....it feels like there are people following you and cleaning up even the smallest of crumbs.  Did not encounter one speck of grubbiness whether it was rides, benches, streets, or bathrooms.  We stopped at the Alice in Wonderland bathrooms and Jason laughed and said he came out of the bathroom and it was like a little man came out of the wall to clean up after him immediately. :)

We got so much more of the park covered in this first day than I expected to, surely due to our small lines.   We decided to go to California Adventure the next day while it was still a weekday, hoping to make our visit to the new Cars Land a little less crowded.  Therefore, California Adventure is up next.......