Disneyland by the Numbers

Here are the numbers:

Miles we put on the car: 1548
Hours we spent in the car: 25
Kids who had their first visit to the beach and to Disneyland: 2
Cousins whom we loved hanging out with: 3
Children whom we discovered do NOT like spinny rides: 1 (That would be Bitty - she even cried on the Carousel, but somehow loved Dumbo)
Bags of cotton candy consumed: 4
Cavities created: To be determined
Times Bitty wet her pants at Disneyland: 0!!!!
Princesses met: 6
License plates seen from other states/provinces while on the road: 36 (Including Alaska and Hawaii!) (Yay for mommy's OCD...)
Creepy Tour Guides on the Storybook Boats: 1 (and 1 was enough)
Times Stomper rode Star Tours: 4
Times Daddy got sick on Star Tours: 3
Times Bitty rode on Peter Pan: 4
Times the kids will ever go on Pirates of the Caribbean again: probably 0
Points Daddy earned on Buzz Lightyear: 127,900 (Yeah, he's a level 4)
Number of Inches Stomper needs to grow before he can get on Indiana Jones: 1
Number of new Padawan Learners in the family: 1 (Stomper totally took down Darth Maul)
Times the children made it off Disney property awake: 0
Longest number of minutes spent in any given line: 20
Number of calories consumed: Don't want to think about it
Hours spent in the myriad gift shops: Not as many as I feared
Major muscle groups in serious pain after carrying kids around the park for two days: all of them
Level of fun had by all: I'd say an 11.



We had a great trip. I'm kind of on a Disneyland high, even though the days were long and exhausting (I'd rather not be pregnant next time I go) and the drives were...long and exhausting. The kids were such troopers. We had no major melt downs, even after 10 hours in the car on Wednesday, and I have to say, Disneyland just does things right. Yes, sometimes the perpetual music gets a little heavy on the xylophone use. Yes, it's a little creepy how cheery all the employees are. Yes, you pay through the nose to get in there, but even still it's just awesome. Of course it was crowded, but I think that's unavoidable, and the lines were not long at all. I can NOT imagine being there when all the lines are triple what they were. It helped having kids who weren't interested in riding the big rides that usually have the longer lines. No Matterhorn, no Thunder Mountain, and we didn't even mention Space Mountain. Troy did convince Stomper to ride Splash Mountain with him. As soon as I sent them off in line I wondered just what I had done and was waiting to hear the screaming from the top of the big hill. But I guess it was fine - Stomper said he loved it and it was his favorite ride. Of course, he wouldn't go on it again, but at least he went once and wasn't too traumatized.



Before we even hit the big D-land we went to Santa Monica beach. I was so worried that all our days would be cold and rainy, but to our delight we woke on Sunday to a sparkly blue day. It was a little chilly - not too many people actually IN the water at the beach, but we couldn't stop our kids. They put on their suits and everything. It's so fun to watch your kids squealing as they run around playing tag with the waves. The one thing about a January trip to CA is that the water was too cold to swim in. But the lack of crowds sure made up for it.





One highlight of the trip was splurging a little and taking Bitty to the Princess Lunch they have over in California Adventure. It was just a mommy/daughter date and totally worth it. A nice restaurant with really good fancy food, crowns for the kids, and a chance to meet all six princessess: Ariel, Aurora, Cinderella, Snow White, Belle and Jasmine. (Jasmine was totally hot - I saw a couple of pre-teen boys grinning sheepishly as they got their pictures taken with her...) I was a little afraid that Bitty would get shy and kind of shut down, but she was darling. What a kill.



Another total highlight for me was watching Stomper participate in the Jedi Training. He just gets so serious and stoic when he is up on stage like that (primary program not included). He takes it very seriously. He was the first kid they grabbed to fight Darth Maul and the look on his face made his parents laugh until they cried. Well, actually he looked like he might be about to cry himself, but he was just being very intent. And he was so excited at the end - he wouldn't let go of his little certificate for a couple of hours. It was just great.

I think what sums it all up is the fact that Troy, he who loves nature and generally shies away from Disney-type lands, actually wants to go back someday. A big thank you to Peter and Sheri (and her mom!) for letting us crash on the way down, and to Adam and Whitley for hosting us and making us so comfortable at their house. Good times.