We planned this trip months ago, thinking that poor Averson last went as a baby and is the most perfect age and disposition for DisneyLand. We also thought that with Eli getting to be (so, so very) teenager-y, our window of opportunity was closing. Given that it was likely going to be our last hurrah, and the last couple of years have been...rough, we went all out. We stayed at a Disney hotel, splurged on a couple big experiences, and planned to approach the whole trip with an attitude of YOLO. If you're planning to try a Disney vacation, I HIGHLY recommend using a Disney travel agent (thank you, Danielle!). She made it so, so easy and even gave me some insider tips (like bringing our own backpacks for the droids so we could save some money.)
Turns out no one is over Disney and Sydney, our most over-everything of all the kids, said on our last night, "I think we might be Disney people?" So now I'm exploring annual passes and matching t-shirts...
Our pool had a water slide and C showed all the other dads up by FLYING down it. A mom asked if he was covered in baby oil, which I think was more of an innuendo than he gave it credit for.
First ride! The Haunted Mansion, which is my absolute all-time favorite
This was the last time we took the kids to DisneyLand
And on this trip, multiple people mistook Syd for an employee
We planned the trip thinking that this might be the last time Eli would be into it. We were totally wrong and he is ALL IN
The girls built droids in StarWars Land. Eli and C built light sabers and C is still on a high from it.
This is the face we make when the ride is lamer than we'd hoped AND it gets stopped because someone took off their seatbelt (and by "someone" we later learned that their names rhymed with Schmeli and Bldney)
My brave girl wanted to try the Ferris Wheel and since letting 8 year olds ride with strangers is frowned upon, I ALSO had to be a very brave girl
The only meltdown of the trip happened right after this picture was taken. Art is hard and wrought with emotion
OMG. SO MUCH FOOD. One night we had reservations at Storyteller's Cafe, a fancy buffet dinner, and I off-handedly mentioned to Eli how much each person cost. I don't know if the kids had a staff meeting or what, but they approached that dinner with a work ethic I didn't realize that they had. Averson ran the numbers and by the end of dinner she proclaimed that they had eaten 18 plates of food, not counting dessert plates. There were a lot of dessert plates. YOLO.
When your teenager asks to take a picture with you, you don't ask questions
Radiator Springs Racers. Note Sydney's vacant look of terror. She spent the entire hour in line reviewing videos on-line to decide whether she wanted to try it or not. Ultimately she went for it, and was happy that she did. My favorite memory of this ride though is Eli freaking out because he didn't have a shoulder belt. I was teasing him and said, "I'm sure this guy [the random biker guy covered in chains that filled the empty seat on the ride] will hold your hand if you're scared." The guy offered his hand and without missing a beat, Eli grabbed it and proclaimed "I'm confident in my sexuality, but less so in my stomach right now" and his new BFF replayed, "Me too, Man. And even less so in my choice to eat a green chile burrito." I nearly died laughing.
A successful trip should be measured by how long three kids can sit in the backseat without bickering. The drive was seven hours and no one complained, so I think we did alright :)
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