California: Chapter 2- The Happiest Place on Earth

Disneyland! Disneyland was actually not on the agenda when we left for California. Yes, I know, we could see it from our condo and we traveled all that way, but the idea of Disneyland with two 1-year olds and a 3-year old didn't exactly spell out a fun time for us parents. However, some other McGuires (who will remain nameless) caved and decided to go. I still was hesitant because Daniel hadn't even gotten there yet so I would be braving it alone (plus I didn't want him to miss out), but he convinced me to take Delaney with the others. It actually turned out great and the kids had a good time (I think). Dave and Kathy were excellent tour guides and got us to all the important stuff quickly so we never spent more than a minute or two waiting in line. We had gotten in several rides and mouse ears for Harper in just a couple of hours. The kids were all asleep on the walk home, so it definitely wore them out. Delaney will not remember it, but at least we have pictures from her first trip to Disneyland. Here is Delaney showing how excited she is to be entering Disneyland.

Harper taking it all in.

Ronan and Delaney were keeping their eyes on something. They are trying to contain all their excitement. They were playing it cool.

Um, trying to take pictures on a carosel while it is moving up and down and spinning is hard when you are also trying to hold on so she doesn't fall off her horse. Don't blame me for the blurry picture.

The Dumbo ride changed Delaney's view on rides. She did not like Astro Blasters and in fact I wound up with a claw mark on my face from the meltdown on that one. The carousel was ok, but Dumbo, well Dumbo was awesome. She was grinning the whole time. After that, rides were fun. I thought she might freak out a little on Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, but she had a blast. She like the Roger Rabbit ride too. She loved the music on It's a Small World and all the different scenes (although the consensus with the adults may differ on the song). That is stuck in your head FOREVER after that ride. Here she is on her favorite ride at Disneyland.

Mike and Ronan on the tea cups. Mike and I were the "No Spinning" cup since we had the kids (although I think we both would prefer to not spin even if we didn't have the kids). Dave, Kathy, and Karry went all out with the spinning. Some didn't look so good halfway through. We laughed in our stable and nausea free cup.

Some of the McGuire girls in jail where we belong.

Delaney exerting her independence at Toon Town. This was one of our last stops and there was a minor meltdown when it was time to get back in the stroller. I do think she had a good time and it gave her some new experiences. I wasn't too thrilled to be going, but I will admit that I got a little excited about it once we walked in the gate. I guess Disneyland is still magical no matter how old you are.