CA Trip Day 8

Friday, Day 8:

The original plan for our trip was to go to Knott's Berry Farms on Friday before starting towards home in the evening.  M had misread the map and thought it was only a 2 1/2-3 hour car ride to Las Vegas, NV.  When M mentioned it to her family at supper the night before, she was told that because it would be a Friday night and everyone from LA travels to Vegas for the weekends, it can take as long as 8 hours sometimes.  So, since M and D were both almost amusement parked out, it was decided that we would enjoy the pool in the morning and then start towards Vegas early in the day to beat the rush hour traffic.  After a special breakfast on the top floor of the hotel, we went to the outdoor swimming pool.  M had seen a gift shop in the hotel when she checked in, so since we hadn't paid the Disneyland prices for shirts, M went to check out what she could get for a good deal and ended up with shirts for the whole family.

Off to Vegas we started.  M had never been, so again to make the drive home shorter, the plan was to stop in Vegas and walk the strip a little bit.  We got to the hotel about 3 in the afternoon and since we hadn't had a full lunch (just snacks in the car), M and D decided to head to the strip and find an early supper. 

 

After 3 hours we were all very tired and hungry, but M had really wanted to see Treasure Island.  So while D saved our table at Planet Hollywood and waited for our food, M took us the next 2 blocks to the pirates ships.

After getting back to the hotel we swam for about half hour before going to bed.
The verdict on Vegas was that we could have skipped it.  M would have preferred going to Knott's Berry Farms and driving more on Saturday, maybe skipping Vegas all together.  It definitely isn't a family friendly place.  M (being so innocent) thought daylight hours would be fine for us children, but she was appalled at the street walkers.  Although those brochure pushers do obey the law of not handing them to children.  They even pulled back their arms when we walked past.  That was about the only good thing.  M&D weren't even bombarded with the 1-800-girl brochures like everyone else was.

CA Trip Day 7

Thursday: Day 7

We didn't have to hurry as much this morning, as we were heading back south and the amusement park opened later, so after breakfast we went for a short swim in the pool before packing up and checking out of the hotel.

 

Because it was October, kids were free with every paying adult.  With C already free due to age, and now me free, M and D got a really good deal on these tickets.

=

Today was only family rides, so because C is the shortest, we only went on rides that were 36 inches requirement or shorter.  The first ride was the the Jungle Safari, then onto C's first roller coaster.

We took a boat ride through favorite stories and then ate lunch.  The next ride was the Sky Cruiser.  Talk about ingenuity--the waiting line wrapped around an enclosed play area filled with tables, Legos and jump ramps.  The half hour wait went by so quickly.  In another line that day we ended up by a grandmother who had brought math flash cards for her 5-yr old.  She was nice enough to let me play also.  Things M wish she had thought of the previous two days!!

Did you know that Alaska is only 20 million Moose droppings away from Legoland, CA?  Neither did M, but according to the funny sign M found it is only that far!

Our longest wait of the day was for a little log ride.  As we waited we looked out over the big pirate ship that was a kid water park, with dumping buckets, fountains and mini water slides.  Beyond that was the BIG pirate roller coaster.  According to the map, C was tall enough to go on so after the log ride we headed that way.  It was a short wait, because apparently people don't like to get SOAKED on their rides.  This ride was set up so that the walking/overlook bridge caught the splash and then dropped it right back down just as the boat was passing under.  So even if you somehow were spared in the splash at the bottom, the downpour got you. So no matter where you sat in the boat you got SOAKED.  C was warned before getting in the boat that she would get wet.  She was okay with that until we were actually sitting!  Needless to say she was not a happy camper when her clothes got wet!

What made the ride even more fun (at least for M) was that as we were leaving, I told her I wanted to see the next boat get wet.  So M told me to walk out to the middle of the bridge and watch--knowing that I would get wet again!  M laughed and laughed, but C and I didn't think it was very funny.  M's excuse to D was that we couldn't get any more wet than we already were!

We took our wet selves onto Castleville and saw the watchman who was sleeping on the job.

D had seen apple fries advertised on the map, so M had to go check them out.  Interesting and would have been better if the vanilla cream had been ice cream!

Lego Time!

As we were passing the blacksmith, I just had to stop and give him a hug.

The one ride I went on all by myself was one that had a height and age requirement.  C made height but not age, so I got to ride the horse all by myself.

We walked around and saw lots of fun Lego creations.

D loved showing C and I all the Star Wars creations.

We ended the day walking around mini USA.

When our day at Legoland was over, we quickly changed our of our still damp clothes and headed back up to Anaheim to visit M's aunt and uncle for supper.  They had planned to be out of town, but had to come back early to take care of a sick grand-daughter, so it worked out to have supper with them and a cousin.  I loved playing with my new cousin and it was a wonderful supper Aunt P cooked for us!

We headed to our hotel for a good night sleep before deciding what to do the next day.

CA Trip Day 6

Wednesday: Day 6 of our crazy family trip

After a night's sleep, we were ready to have another long fun-filled day.  M and D had decided that we would start the day at Disneyland since we hadn't gotten to Frontier or Adventure lands and then we would head to California Adventure in the early afternoon.  This time M was smart and used the car pool lane all the way to Anaheim.  We got to the parking lot 10 minutes after it opened.  By the time we got through the ticket gate we still had 20 minutes before any rides opened and so we were the second line behind the opening rope.

The plan was that M and I would head straight to Splash Mountain, while D took C on the Winnie-the-Pooh ride next to it.  So when the rope was dropped, we walked as fast as we could to Splash Mountain.  We were second in line BUT the ride was shut down due to maintenance issues on their morning test runs!!

So because C and D were already on their ride, M and I headed straight to the Old west Train.

By the time we got off, D and C had caught up with us.  D decided he wanted to go on the train also, so I was nice enough to go with him a second time!  While M and C waited they watched a turtle swim around the pond.

In the next hour, we went to the Haunted Castle, Pirates...

Tarzan's treehouse....

and the Jungle Cruise.  My little monkey backpack felt very much at home with all the animals of the jungle.  He spent the whole trip with me and his tail was always in M's hands to make sure that I kept close to her.

 

Since Splash Mountain still wasn't open, we decided to head to California Adventure earlier than planned. As we were leaving Main Street USA, I spotted Donald.   

Goofy was also with him.

Upon getting to California Adventure, we ate lunch right away.  Then we headed to do some rides.  We passed some army men along the way! 

While D decided he would do the BIG roller coaster all by himself, M took C and I on the Mickey Ferris wheel.  We got in one of the swinging cars.  Even though M knew we were safe, it caught her a little off guard on the first swing out over the water and C almost flying off the seat due to the swinging.

After meeting up with D we stood in line for a really long time to do the Toy Story carnival games.

After exiting that ride and using the restroom, D convinced M that because the line to the big roller coaster was only 5 minutes long, she should go on that.  While they were talking I spotted Buzz Lightyear walking through the streets!  While we waited and watched M on her ride, D got us a frozen treat because it was sooooooo hot!!  After M got off her loop roller coaster ride, we headed to the new Cars Land, where the town of Radiator Springs is located.

D took me on the Cars Racer, while M and C went on the other rides that were just right for C.

They walked past Mater and Lightening McQueen a few times.  They got to watch them switch.  As soon as Mater was in position, Lightening went on his break. 

Since the wait for the cars racer was so long, M and C used the restroom a few times, had a snack, went on 4 rides, filled up the water bottles and enjoyed looking at the creativity of the scenery.

90 minutes later....D wanted to see if the Tower of Terror had a line.  So we moved into the Bug land, and while I rode the scary ride with D, C cooled off in the leaking water pipe. 

When D and I joined them, I decided I would take M on the Tower of Terror.  So we switched and when I came back, I decided I needed to cool off a little bit.  After finally feeling cool in the 95 degree day, we watched the interactive theater "A Bug's Life" and went on a few more rides.  I got M and D wet by taking them on the big water ride.

D took me on the Goofy roller coaster ride, while C and M went on the shuttle ride and got supper for us.  We went on a few more rides and then stayed after closing to watch the fountain show.  You can tell we didn't have a very good view, as the big palm tree was right in the middle of our view, but it was still interesting to see. 

D didn't want to miss the shuttle bus back to the parking lot, so we didn't stay for the whole show.  C fell asleep waiting for our turn to get on the bus and I fell asleep on the bus, so M and D had to carry both of us back to the car.  What a long fun-filled day!