Disneyland, Pt. 2: California Adventure

On Saturday, our first and only full day at Disneyland, the weather was about 90 degrees and the crowds were insane. After a late night at Mickey's Halloween Party we slept in and got a late start at Disneyland around 11 am. Our first stop was Mickey's Magical Map, an outdoor show near It's a Small World. We thought Ez would be into all the singing and dancing. And he was, for about three minutes. Then King Louis from Jungle Book came out and started dancing and Ez got an exaggerated frown on his face which pretty much stayed there for the duration of the show. Apparently dancing monkeys are a little far fetched, even for Disneyland. Declan, on the other hand, loved the show and was completely enthralled the entire time.

Afterward it was so hot we were all melting, so we headed over to Bugs Land at California Adventure so Ez (and all of us) could run around in the water for a bit. Ez was the last kid standing by a long shot. When we finally managed to lure him away with some snacks his little teeth were chattering.

Then it was on to Radiator Springs where we passed by Mater, Lightning, and Tuner. Ez didn't want his picture taken with any of them, he was content just to wave as they drove by. Then he got to pick out a new toy from Sarge's Surplus Hut before we got a light lunch at Flo's Diner. We pretty much spent the next few hours sitting in the shade watching the Cars ride race cars speed by while Ez mimicked them with his little toy car. Declan napped and Grampa and I drank a beer. It was a perfectly relaxing way to pass the hottest part of the day.

Eventually we headed back to Disneyland for our dinner reservations at Orleans Cafe. It's just not a Disney trip without a Monte Cristo and garlic fries. The crowds were insane though. They had all kinds of one way only walkways set up and we were all being herded around like cattle. After we battled our way up Main Street we pulled over and waited for the crowds to thin out. We finally made it to the restaurant and of course both boys were over everything by that point. Grampa walked Ez around while we were waiting for our food and I had to stand with Declan. For some reason he just wouldn't permit sitting. Thankfully our table was on the patio right next to the fence and I wound up standing next to the table on the other side of the fence, eating a sandwich with one hand and bouncing Declan in my other arm. #momlife

My brother showed up at dinner time since he doesn't do heat and sunshine and after we were all done eating we fought our way back to Disney California. Pushing a double stroller through tens of thousands of people is not for the faint hearted. In all my Disneyland trips I've never seen crowds that crazy. Thankfully California Adventure was a little less crowded. The grandparents took Ez and Declan while my brother and I rode Toy Story Mania then played a few games at the boardwalk. My brother won a Dumbo and the Toy Story horse for Ez and Declan. Then we called it a night and went back to the hotel where we had a few drinks downstairs while Ez ran off his crazy toddler energy. 

Watching Mickey's Magical Map:

playing in the Bugs Land fountain:

Radiator Springs:

crazy crowds:

nightcap with Dumbo:

Looks like this is gonna be a three parter! We crammed so much into 48 hours. You can read part one, Mickey's Halloween Party here. Part three coming up soon.