The day finally arrived. DISNEYLAND!
I have to start out with a story. Everything was going smoothly. Vita had gotten a good night sleep the night before and ate a good breakfast. We left early and got a great parking space. The diaper bag was packed with extra changes of clothes, snacks, diapers, etc. We slathered on sunscreen. We loaded everything out of the car and took the tram from the parking lot to the main gate. We paid admission, walked through the gate, and proceeded to open up the stroller and get going... and what did we discover? As it turned out, the stroller did not have the straps that hold the baby in place! I must have taken them out to wash them and I never put them back in!
Let me back up to tell you about the stroller. I bought the stroller when I was pregnant with Vita because I assumed I needed one. However, I NEVER used it... not even once. I tend to use a sling for a baby, and once the baby learns how to walk they walk on their own or we carry them. We're just not stroller people I guess. I saved the stroller because I knew I would have another baby but I still hadn't used it with this baby either. I was about to get rid of the thing when I remembered we were going to Disneyland and I figured this would be the one time we'd want a stroller. So really I held on to the stroller for three years just for this one day, and when we arrive at the front gate the stroller doesn't have an essential part and cannot function.
Fortunately, we're all good sports, so we abandoned the stroller to the lost and found, and headed into Disneyland with a three year old, a six month old, a diaper bag... and our own two arms. We were on a mission. We were going to have a magical day no matter what. We didn't let it slow us down at all, and in fact it made us quite nimble when trying to maneuver through crowds.
Right inside the gate, we met Goofy and stopped for a photo.
We headed into Fantasyland first, where they have rides for the younger kids. Can you spot Vita and I getting ready for Dumbo to lift us into the air?
There were many rides that even little Anabelle could ride (with assistance). Here's Ernie getting her set up on the Merry Go Round.
The girls rode together and exchanged silly smiles.
Never one to pass up a photo op, we walked into this teacup.
Vita loved meeting the characters even more than going on the rides. Here she is meeting her two favorite fairies, Videa and Tinkerbell.
Vita was excited to meet the princesses also. She got her face painted in preparation.
They asked what two colors she wanted. Can you guess? Pink and hot pink.
There was a long line to meet the princesses. Anabelle napped in my arms, and Vita made herself quite comfortable as well.
First Vita met Ariel, who she greeted with a hug.
The next princess (Sleeping Beauty?) was Vita's favorite. In fact, I thought she might explode with happiness when Sleeping Beauty said Vita looked like she was a princess too.
Finally, Vita met Jasmine, and they danced together for a little while.
Of course, no trip to Disneyland would be complete without meeting Mickey.
By the way, Anabelle was such a trooper. She did great all day! She didn't cry once (unlike certain other members of our party). She was able to go on lots of rides, she napped and ate like a champ despite the noise and distractions, and she loved everything! I had braced myself for the worst, especially after we had to ditch the stroller... but everything went great all day!
Here's Vita posing with Winnie the Pooh...
And Tigger too! (Unfortunately these two shots are blurry.)
We got to Disneyland at 8:30am, and Vita finally crashed at around 6:30pm. She was asleep within five minute of starting the car, which is a good thing because we drove from Disneyland all the way back home to Santa Cruz after a very full day. As you might expect, the girls slept great through the seven hour car ride, and somehow Ernie and I managed to stay awake and get everyone home safely.
We headed into Fantasyland first, where they have rides for the younger kids. Can you spot Vita and I getting ready for Dumbo to lift us into the air?
There were many rides that even little Anabelle could ride (with assistance). Here's Ernie getting her set up on the Merry Go Round.
The girls rode together and exchanged silly smiles.
Never one to pass up a photo op, we walked into this teacup.
Vita loved meeting the characters even more than going on the rides. Here she is meeting her two favorite fairies, Videa and Tinkerbell.
Vita was excited to meet the princesses also. She got her face painted in preparation.
They asked what two colors she wanted. Can you guess? Pink and hot pink.
There was a long line to meet the princesses. Anabelle napped in my arms, and Vita made herself quite comfortable as well.
First Vita met Ariel, who she greeted with a hug.
The next princess (Sleeping Beauty?) was Vita's favorite. In fact, I thought she might explode with happiness when Sleeping Beauty said Vita looked like she was a princess too.
Finally, Vita met Jasmine, and they danced together for a little while.
Of course, no trip to Disneyland would be complete without meeting Mickey.
By the way, Anabelle was such a trooper. She did great all day! She didn't cry once (unlike certain other members of our party). She was able to go on lots of rides, she napped and ate like a champ despite the noise and distractions, and she loved everything! I had braced myself for the worst, especially after we had to ditch the stroller... but everything went great all day!
Here's Vita posing with Winnie the Pooh...
And Tigger too! (Unfortunately these two shots are blurry.)
We got to Disneyland at 8:30am, and Vita finally crashed at around 6:30pm. She was asleep within five minute of starting the car, which is a good thing because we drove from Disneyland all the way back home to Santa Cruz after a very full day. As you might expect, the girls slept great through the seven hour car ride, and somehow Ernie and I managed to stay awake and get everyone home safely.
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