Results tagged “Disneyland” from The Path to Lost End
For dinner that night, we all went to the pizza place in Downtown Disney (what is it called? Naples, I think?). Kyle and I had actually gone there for lunch on Sunday when we arrived, so when everyone was doing the "I don't care where we go, you decide" dance, we were able to make a statement with authority. "This place is good. We should go here." And so we did. <grin>
There was a girl there doing balloon animals, which is always fun. After watching her fingers, I've decided that one of the tricks to manipulating balloons is firmness. You have to know what you want to do, and not be afraid to do it. It's when you're hesitant and unsure that things have a tendency to pop. Or at least that's how it appears to me. Anyways, Maddie and Abby both got horses, Ryan got a hat with a shark on top, and Kylie got a pink poodle that lasted the walk from the restaurant back to Disneyland <grin>. I blame her darling bottom teeth. Cute as all get out, but those things are sharp!
So after Bugs Life Land (or whatever it's actually called), we mosied on over to the Boardwalk area to ride the Ferris Wheel. Why? Because it's a tradition. Even though the Ferris Wheel makes me want to curl up in a little ball and die, part of me loves the idea of the Ferris Wheel and keeps thinking 'This time it will be different.'
Yes, I'm delusional, I know.
Anyways, after we survived the Ferris Wheel, we went back over to Disneyland and went to lunch at the Blue Bayou (another K.Anderson Family Tradition). We had a little bit of time before our reservations, so we sat down in New Orleans Square, fed Kylie, and people watched. It was perfect.
Kylie had no problem with the Ferris Wheel at all. She actually insisted on standing up on the seat and holding onto the wire that fences in the window. Kyle gave me the camcorder to work after the third whimper or so (that's Katharine whimpering, in case you're confused) and it helped because it gave me something to focus on. The video I took is probably useless, because we kept going from shadow to sunlight and I kept on trying to adjust the exposure to match. But it was wonderful in keeping my mind off the empty space beneath me.
So on Wednesday (our last day at Disneyland <sob>) we started out by going to California Adventures and doing some playing around in a Bug's Life Land (or whatever it's called.) We went and did a show which was supposedly about how great bugs are and left Mommy with nightmares (especially with the giant spiders descending from the ceiling. I could have done without that part.) Kylie didn't seem to be affected one way or the other and Kyle thought it was a hoot. <Katharine rolls her eyes>. Afterwards, we paused to appreciate the sunlight and take some beautiful pictures.
The Bugs Life portion has this whole farmer motif going on which included crates full of (apparently) real lemons. Whether they were real or not, the crates made a good seating place for Miss Kylie. She'd pulled off her bow and kicked off her sandals a few times by this point, so we decided to go for the "back to nature look" (though not as "back to nature" as she probably would have liked, 'cause that would have meant going down to diapers and I thought that was a little too naturalistic. No (almost) naked babies here!)
So, our next stop was Toontown. Kylie actually fell asleep right before we got there and managed about forty-five minutes, before she woke up when her cousin started fussing (that's the problem with having a bunch of kids around -- it seems like someone's ALWAYS fussing.). Anyways, Kylie is like her Dad -- a very little sleep energizes her completely! So we spend the next hour or so playing around and doing photos in Toontown. Lots of fun.
Lest anyone think that we did nothing in Disneyland but fawn over Kylie, let me state that's completely not true. We confined our fawning to only about 90 percent of the time <grin>. But we did enjoy spending time with our nieces and nephews, and we did get some pretty pictures of them.
So Tuesday dawned, and we were able to get into the park one hour early because we had those "get in early" tickets (don't ask me what the official name is). The whole family made a beeline (Well, most of the family made a beeline. Kylie and I had a small delay due to Kyle turning into a bit of a Camcorder Tyrant. <laugh>) straight for Fantasyland in an attempt to get some of the most popular rides out of the way before the wait become longer than an hour. My advice for anyone going to Disneyland? Get Peter Pan out of the way early, or you'll spend most of the day there.
Kylie was dressed in her brand new Disneyland hoodie. I don't think she cared, but her parents sure thought she was darling!
The first ride we did was Dumbo. Unfortunately, it's hard trying to get Kylie to look up for picure taking at just the proper time <grin>
This is right outside the Snow White ride which, by the way, is a lot scarier than I remembered it being. It helps that Kylie's too young to understand any of it. Anyways, right as you come out, there's a little garden plot (like everywhere else at Disneyland) and Kylie was fascinated by the flowers.
Kylie was much relieved to get to Mickey's House. In some ways, Disneyland is not very friendly for those who are not mobile on their own yet. <grin> She was getting tired of the stroller, and the chance to play with unbreakable things was lots of fun.
Every few minutes, there would be a ring and Mickey's voice mail would pick up. Kylie kept looking around, trying to see where the voices were coming from.
Everything in the house was made out of a very durable, hard plastic. (Or maybe it's some kind of ceramic?) Very kid-proof, but not very comfortable and a little slippery. But Kylie didn't seem to mind.
The TV was showing a bunch of old Mickey cartoons. Not that there was theme going on here or anything... <grin>
The light wasn't terribly good in Mickey's house, so we were having to experiment quite a bit with settings and such while we were taking pictures. Also, since Kylie was in motion, we'd take a few shots quickly in succession and see which ones came out. And sometimes they all came out. I just love her various expressions so much, I did a little collage so that everyone could see. <grin>
And we finally get to meet Mickey! The characters aren't allowed to hold children (major liability there, you know) but he was willing to kneel down so that Kylie could hold his hands and stand up. Kyle was wielding the camcorder while I had the camera, and a beast of a time I had getting a picture as well! <sigh> Practice, practice, practice is needed. I'm not quite sure what Kylie thought of the whole thing, since she's too young to recognize Mickey, but she was very good tempered and not scared at all, so I think we can count that one a success.
At the end of February, Kyle, Kylie and I visited Disneyland with the rest of my family. Since Daniel, my brother, had just returned home from his mission, it was the first time in three and a half years that my whole family had been together (It's three and a half years, because my sister Margaret went on a mission, and then Daniel left about a month before Margaret got back. So there was an overlap.)
It's the nature of life to have a few snags going on somewhere, and I have to admit this trip was full of them. I lost my cell phone on the plane during the very first leg of our trip; several members of the family were sick; and pregnancy meant I was tired a lot and unable to go on some of my favorite rides. But we had a grand old time anyways. Kylie's a little young for Disneyland, but she loved the spectacles and rides, even if she didn't understand the significance of anything.
If nothing else, Kyle had fun playing with his camera, as the 220 pictures he took testify (and that's not counting the ones that were deleted right after shooting for various reasons.) Luckily, I promise not to inflict the full amount on you -- only my favorites. Which should still keep me busy for the next few entries. <grin>
At the park entrance, the very first day. I actually didn't mind pushing the stroller around, as it gave me something to lean on and help support my waddling. Next time we go to Disneyland though, I'm beginning a strict training regime of walking at least a few months in advance!
At Snow White's wishing well. There had been a lot of rain the previous days, so I remember the fish that spout water were actually under water. Still very pretty, of course.
