On our second day in California, we went to Disneyland! We had a “magic morning” which meant we got to get into the park an hour earlier than the general public. That was nice because it was very uncrowded. We got on lots of rides…sometimes by ourselves with no line! My dad, Elias, and I were on the carousel when 8:00 hit and the gates opened for everyone. We had a good view of the huge mass of people rushing in through the castle. It was quite amazing. (We were part of that mass the next morning….)
Anyway, here is our day at Disneyland in pictures:
The front gate, and much of the park was decorated for Halloween! We enjoyed seeing the fake carved pumpkins, and all the fall themed decorations.
When we entered, we met up with the rest of my family. Most everyone went on the Matterhorn first thing. My dad and I took Elias on the Alice in Wonderland ride and the teacups since those are very near the Matterhorn. This was the first time that Nathan rode the Matterhorn, and Elias’ first time on any ride at Disneyland! Elias loved the teacups. He wanted to go over and over again. I think we went three times in a row because the crowds were so low. We walked right on! Elias kept saying “purple one” or “red one”….I think we may have been in one of those colors every time we rode.
Elias even learned how to use the spinny wheel…although, luckily for Baba and Mama who don’t like spinning, he couldn’t turn it very fast!
After a few rounds of teacups, the rest of the family was done on the Matterhorn. We all went to ride Peter Pan and Dumbo. Here are Elias and Nathan preparing for the Dumbo ride. Elias kept telling Nathan whether to go “up” or “nown” (down).
Then, of course, we had to take a few rides on the carousel. Elias loves carousels! He also loved choosing which horse to ride. By the end of the day, I felt he was stable enough that I could ride too rather than stand next to him and hold his waist. What a big boy. He always looks so serious in these pictures, but he was having a very good time. After it was over, he would want “more.”
Here we are walking between “lands.” Auntie and Uncle are treating Elias to a fun way of walking. After awhile, he started saying “one, two, three, wheee!” on his own so he didn’t have to wait as long between swings.
Elias having fun on the submarine. He got a bit nervous when it was dark, but for the most part, he loved it.
Then on to autopia. Elias did not want to drive the cars, but he enjoyed the ride. It was reported to me that any time the car hit the track he would say “uh oh”
Nathan saw these frozen bananas and had to get one for a snack. Anyone know the reference?
At lunch time, we decided to head back to our hotel. We made sandwiches in our hotel room, then went for a swim. Elias loved doing jumps and motor boats, and just splashing around, taking a break from the parks. After swimming, we took a long nap!
After naps, we met back up with the rest of the family and my parents treated us to a nice dinner at the Rainforest Cafe. Elias loved walking around the restaurant and seeing the monkeys, elephant, etc.
After dinner, we went back into Disneyland for a couple more hours of fun. We rode the rockets, Buzz Lightyear astroblasters, and Elias’ possible favorite ride, It’s a Small World.
For the last hour or so, the rest of the family wanted to go on Thunder Mountain Railroad so Elias and I had some time with just the two of us. We rode It’s A Small World again, watched some fireworks, and I took him for one last spin on the teacups.
It was a long and very tiring day, but we all had a lot of fun. Two days down, one to go!