4 Magical Days in Disneyland

We just spent four magical days in Disneyland.  We go every October and it is my favorite time of year to visit the parks.  No matter how old I get each year, I always feel like a kid again in Disneyland and there is nothing more magical than watching and experiencing Disneyland through Carter and Kennedy's eyes.  From the moment you feel the sunshine on your face walking down Main Street, venturing on to meet your favorite characters, Disney magic surrounds you every where you go.  There is a castle straight ahead that always makes you feel like home.  Journey through the gates to an enchanted land where flying ships sail to Neverland, cozy rabbit holes lead to wonderland, and a world of laughter that is small, after all.  Where you think you have seen everything when you see an elephant fly and a wooden puppet dance with no strings, all it takes is a little pixie dust...

Disney Live Three Classic Fairytales

Tonight Carter and I had a mommy son date! It was so much fun. We went to Disney Live: Three Classic Fairytales and Pieology for dinner.  Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy brought the timeless fairytale adventures of Cinderella, Beauty and The Beast, and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to life on stage. The storytelling, music, costumes and glittering special effects were amazing. We dreamed with the princesses, cheered for the heroes as they conquered evil villains, and marveled as these classic tales were brought to life in a theatrical experience at the Saroyan Theatre in downtown Fresno.  It was pure magic and we loved it!

Goodbye Big Thunder Ranch

So Halloween celebrations begin in Disneyland starting September 11th (ending November 1st) and I am so sad to share with you that the carnival at Big Thunder Ranch will not be back this year.  We have visited this area every year as a family.  I will miss seeing the villians at the Conjure A Villian tent, all the characters in their Halloween costumes, the petting zoo, and the talented pumpkin carvers making those amazing pumpkins too.  They are demolishing Big Thunder Ranch and Big Thunder Ranch BBQ to make room for the Star Wars Land (which I am completely against).  That will also mean no Jingle Jangle Jamboree at Christmas time and no Spring Time Roundup at Easter time.  For the moment, Big Thunder Ranch BBQ is still open and I was able to make a reservation to eat there probably one last time in October.  Of course we will be going to Disneyland again next month!  There is nothing better than going to Disneyland for Halloween.  If you have never been I highly recommend it.  Especially during the week when the parks are not crowded.  I personally love all the decorations and feel it is the best time to visit!  Plus you have to experience Mickey's Halloween Party and see the Halloween Screams Fireworks!  If you have never eaten at The Big Thunder Ranch BBQ you really should try soon before they close it for good.  It is amazing.  I just wanted to share this latest Disney news with all of you.

Celebrating Carter's 4th Birthday in Disneyland

We asked Carter several times what he wanted to do for his birthday (he had a huge Toy Story birthday party earlier this month) and we kept getting the same answer, "I want to go to Disneyland!" so we made it happen!  We left Saturday morning bright and early and spent the entire day and night hopping back and forth between Disneyland and California Adventure.  Saturday night we even watched Paint The Night Parade again and the Disneyland Forever fireworks show.  These fireworks were the BEST thing we have ever witnessed!  We rocked Disneyland until 10:30pm that night!  Sunday we were up early (5:30am) thanks to Carter and hopped back and forth between both parks again riding all his favorite rides and headed home in the early afternoon.  It was a quick trip but the park was not busy at all!  There was plenty of room to walk around and push the stroller.  We never waited in long lines to ride rides, so that was amazing.  The not so amazing part was the brutal heat!  It was ridiculously HOT and we were literally drenched in sweat, which was not pretty!  It was so hot that they did not even have characters out to meet in the afternoon, so we only saw a few throughout our visit.  We stayed at Paradise Pier this time and it was nice.  The Disneyland Hotel and Grand Californian were completely sold out due to the D23 Expo (of which I am a member of and will totally be going one year when the kids are older).  Overall it was a great weekend.  The kids were so good and they get so excited to go to Disneyland!  There is no better place on earth!

Carter's Toy Story 4th Birthday Party

Just typing the title of this post tears me up! I cannot believe we had Carter's 4th birthday party last night... wasn't he just born yesterday? My sweet boy! We celebrated with family and lots of friends at SkyWalk in Madera. We chose the private party package and I loved it. The entire arena was just for our guests. I thought it was worth every penny to just watch our family and friends jump and visit and not see other random people in the arena. Everyone jumped, played, laughed, visited, danced, ate pizza and yummy cupcakes, and overall had a great time. Thank you to everyone who came and took time out of their busy Monday night to celebrate Carter's birthday. It meant so much to have all of you there. Thank you again!

Happy 60th Disneyland

This week we went to Disneyland to celebrate Kennedy's 1st birthday and my birthday as well.  Kennedy turned one on Saturday, May 30th and my birthday was today.  So we went this week to celebrate birthdays and the 60th anniversary of Disneyland.  We had the most amazing time.  We saw the new electrical parade, Paint the Night, in Disneyland and we saw World of Color - Celebrate The Wonderful World of Walt Disney.  Both were just out of this world.  Of course I got teary eyed in both.  It was so worth seeing both of them.  I have some helpful advice if you are ever going to Disneyland or wanting to see the parade or World of Color, so let me know.  We were unable to see the new fireworks show, Disneyland Forever, because it was cancelled all 3 nights due to the wind.  That was a big bummer.  Overall we had the best time.  We met lots of characters.  We saw all the main characters in their new 60th anniversary outfits and got pictures, and of course Carter got their autographs.  He is way into meeting the characters, getting their autographs, and taking pics, which makes this mama so happy.  His favorite rides in Disneyland are Small World, Mad Tea Party, Dumbo, Peter Pan, Astro Orbitor and he loves the Tiki Room.  In Disney California Adventure his favorites are Toy Story Midway Mania and Ariel's Undersea Adventure.  I cannot even explain in words how much we love Disneyland.  It is seriously the happiest place on earth.  Carter and Kennedy had smiles on their faces the entire time and we never want the fun to end.  Until next time...

Disney On Ice

Last night my sister and I took Carter to see Disney On Ice in Fresno. We had front row seats and Carter loved every second of it. He enjoyed the entire show and at times he was literally shaking because he was so excited. I also think it helps with little ones to sit as close as possible because he did not take his eyes off the show since we were right next to the ice. It was a great show and it featured Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald and Goofy as they celebrate a Very Merry Unbirthday Party with Alice and the Mad Hatter, a Royal Valentines Day Ball with the Disney Princesses, including Cinderella, Ariel, Belle, Jasmine, Snow White, and Tiana, a Hawaiian luau with Lilo & Stitch, a winter wonderland with Woody, Jessie and Buzz Lightyear, a Halloween haunt with the Disney villains and more in a magical medley of holidays, celebrations and festivities from around the globe. It was a great show and we loved it!

Celebrating The Holidays At Disneyland

Blake and I have not been to Disneyland in the month of December since high school or college days.  Needless to say, it was many years ago.  We thought it would be fun to take the kids (Carter especially) this past week.  He loves the rides, parades, churros, and characters.  We thought he would really like to see the park all decorated for Christmas.  We were supposed to leave at the beginning of the week, but Anaheim was getting lots of rain so we moved our trip back a couple of days.  We arrived on Wednesday and we were hoping to enjoy Disneyland and California Adventure but it was still pouring rain.  There was no way we could go into the parks and ride rides.  We checked into the Disneyland Hotel and got organized and relaxed, and finally the rain stopped just long enough for us to literally run to downtown Disney and have dinner at Naples.  The rain started back up while we were walking back to our hotel room.  On Thursday and Friday we woke up to sunshine and they were beautiful days.  We rode rides, watched the amazing Christmas parade, ate our way through both parks, saw lots of characters, and Santa! We had a great time, but Blake and I both agreed we have never ever seen Disneyland so packed in our entire lives.  We go to Disneyland A LOT and we have season passes and when we planned this trip we decided to go during the week and at the beginning of December thinking kids would still be in school, people would just be starting Christmas shopping, it was right after Thanksgiving, and our reasons went on and on why we thought this would be the perfect time to go and it would not be busy at all, but we were wrong.  I mean we waited in line to ride The Little Mermaid!  We have never waited in line.  We usually walk right up and hop on clam shell.  It was just surprising to us to see how packed it was both Thursday and Friday.  We waited almost 2 hours to meet Santa!  But hey, I am not complaining (I really dislike complainers).  I just was shocked to see it so busy during the week.  I am so blessed to go to Disneyland all the time, have a season pass, stay at amazing hotels, eat delicious foods, and enjoy every little thing about this magical place, because it really is magical.  We had a great time and thank God the weather was great Thursday and Friday.  We decided not to go into the park on Saturday, so we got up and just headed home.  If you ever need any recommendations or have questions please feel free to ask.  I think I could lead anyone around Disneyland with my eyes closed, especially right to Small World... do not ask how many times we rode this ride.  Carter is obsessed.

Disney On Ice Worlds Of Fantasy

Thursday night I took Carter to see Disney On Ice in Fresno. We had front row seats and Carter loved every second of it. Carter loved the entire show and at times he was literally shaking because he was so excited. I also think it helps with little ones to sit as close as possible because he did not take his eyes off the show since we were right next to the ice. It was a great show and it featured Cars, The Little Mermaid (which Carter loves), Tinkerbell, and Toy Story (which Carter also loves).

Our Happy Place Days 5 & 6

Sunday and Monday we rode more rides, ate, watched Mickey's Soundsational Parade and Fantasmic. Carter just loved all the parades and he loved Fantasmic. We ate in New Orleans Square and got a great front row table so we could sit and watch Fantasmic and it was the best. Since we have been home Carter's Small World cd is on repeat. He is playing with all his new toys and constantly talking about the fireworks, parades, rides, characters, and more. It was a blast! Thank you Steve and Nikki for an amazing trip! Seriously THANK YOU for all of the outfits, delicious meals, never saying no to anything Carter asked for, our season passes, the beautiful hotel and so much more! Thank you, we love you so very much!

Our Happy Place Day 4

Saturday we started the morning at Surf's Up (character breakfast) at Disney's Paradise Pier Hotel. It was so good! The characters were Mickey, Minnie, Daisy, Pluto, and Stich. We loved it. The food was great, we had a great big table, and the characters were so sweet when they came around signing all the kids autograph books and posing for pictures. After breakfast we rode rides all day in both parks, ate, and ended the night at dinner at my FAVORITE place Big Thunder Ranch BBQ and watched the Remember Dreams Come True Fireworks Spectacular. My sister, Ashley and her boyfriend Michael came for the day on Saturday to Disneyland. It was nice to see them and ride some rides with them and enjoy dinner and the fireworks! Carter LOVED having his Titi in Disneyland for the day. Those two could have rode The Little Mermaid ride over and over again! If you don't know by now, Carter has a thing for Ariel (this has been going on for a year now) and my sister's favorite princess is Ariel. This was her first time riding The Little Mermaid. It was a great Saturday!

Our Happy Place Day 3

Friday we spent the day at both parks, riding rides, eating, and then we had family dinner at Naples in downtown Disney and headed back into Disneyland for Mickey's Halloween Party. We got to see Mickey's Costume Party Cavalcade, trick or treat, and watch Halloween Screams-A Villainous Surprise in the Skies Fireworks. Yale and Carter were the only two kiddos who lasted through the fireworks at 9:30pm. It was such a fun day and night!

Our Happy Place Day 2

We spent Thursday riding the rides in both parks and having the greatest time! That night we watched World of Color and Carter loved it.

Our Happy Place Day 1

We just got back from spending 6 magical days in Disneyland. We had so much fun! October is my favorite time to visit the park. It is decorated for Halloween and I absolutely love it. Plus it is never as busy in October, and we go during the week mostly so kids are back in school and we can enjoy the park. I recommend going during the week if possible. We rode rides, ate too much, laughed, watched fireworks and parades, World of Color, enjoyed Mickey's Halloween Party, saw Fantasmic, and watched all the magic and excitement through Carter's eyes. Thank you Steve and Nikki for a wonderful trip. We have been taking Carter to Disneyland since he was 2 months old, but I think this trip was the best. He was excellent, loved getting the characters' autographs, he knew what rides he wanted to ride, and since we have been home he can tell you his favorite things about Disneyland: the fireworks, parades, The Tiki Room, The Little Mermaid Ride, It's A Small World, and riding the rockets (Astro Orbitor).

Our Trip Down South

This past week we took Carter to Disneyland, LEGOLAND, Sea World, and the San Diego Zoo. We had a wonderful time. We wanted to do one big trip with Carter before Kennedy arrives in May. The weather was great and since we went during the week the parks were not busy at all. We ate wonderful meals and just had a fabulous time being together. Here is a little scoop on our week.

Disney On Ice: Rockin' Ever After

On Friday we took Carter to see Disney On Ice in San Jose. Papa Steve and Grandma Nikki bought us tickets and we were so excited. We had front row seats and Carter loved every second of it. Blake and I wanted to take him and we were a little unsure of how he would do, but he seriously loved it. At times he was literally shaking because he was so excited. I think the best idea was that I brought this little booster chair and tray so he would stay locked in his seat and not try getting up and down or running onto the ice with the characters. We were able to give him popcorn and snacks right on his tray, so he could eat and watch and he had the best time. I also think it helps with little ones to sit as close as possible because he did not take his eyes off the show. Thank you Papa Steve and Grandma Nikki for a fun day.

Disneyland October 2013

We just got home from spending several days at the happiest place on earth! We stayed at the Disneyland Hotel. We always stay at the Disneyland Hotel or Grand Californian Hotel, I highly recommend these hotels, especially if you have little ones that need to nap during the day. We are always back in our room within minutes and Carter can nap comfortably and then we go back into the park later in the afternoon into the evening. Plus it is so nice to be right in downtown Disney. We absolutely love Disneyland and there is no better time to go than October. The weather is perfect, the decorations are amazing, and it is not crowded at all during the week. It does get a little more crowded at night, especially the nights that you have to buy the special ticket to go to Mickey's Halloween Party, but overall we never waited in any lines to ride rides (which is so nice with a 2 year old). We walked, ate, saw lots of characters, watched a parade, rode lots of rides, and had the best time. We have been taking Carter to Disneyland since he was 2 months old and he seriously loves it every time. Each time gets better and better. I honestly believe you are never too young or too old to experience the magic of Disneyland!

Our Trip To Disneyland

We spent the last few days in Disneyland. We had a wonderful time with Blake's sister Ashley and her three kids, Blake's grandma Gill, and Blake's mom Nikki. We stayed at the Disneyland Hotel, shopped, ate, road rides, saw characters, and had a blast. Everything was going great until Tuesday. Carter woke up earlier than normal acting fussy and ended up getting a fever and throwing up twice (once in the park, which was awful). So we packed the car and headed home a day early so Carter could be seen by his doctor. No fun having a baby sick and being far away from home. I am happy to report today that we saw Carter's doctor and he is absolutely fine. We think it was just a little 24 hour bug. Anyways, glad to be home and hopefully we will go again to the happiest place on earth very soon.

Disney Cruise Day 7

Day 7 we spent at sea. This was our last day on the cruise ship. We spent the day by the pool, eating, being all together, seeing another wonderful show, and of course organizing and packing to go home. What a wonderful trip! We can't wait to go on another Disney cruise! After being in Disneyland for 5 days and on a Disney cruise for 7 days, I just know Carter is wondering where Mickey Mouse is!

Disney Cruise Day 6

Day 6 we spent in Cozumel Mexico. We shopped around Cozumel and then it was back on the ship for more fun in the pool, being all together, eating, and of course seeing characters!