Disneyland: Day 1

We have returned from our triumphant Disneyland journey! I think I'll divide posts out per day, so tonight you get Day 1 of our adventure.

We woke up a little early on Thursday to catch a 10am flight. Edie heard us showering and woke earlier than usual, which was convenient because we didn't have to take her to the airport in pjs, which had been my original plan. She loved pulling her own duffle on wheels around the airport and it made her seem like such a big girl.

Edie was a total champ on the plane trip south and so excited when we got to LAX that I think she might have thought that the airport WAS Disneyland. She saw a stuffed Mickey Mouse at a kiosk and got so pumped it was hilarious. You can imagine how much the actual Disneyland blew her mind considering an airport snack station was so thrilling. Here she is RUNNING to the gates after purchasing our tickets.

We arrived in LA around 1pm, but it took quite some time to get our rental car

Waiting for the rental car shuttle at LAX.

and drive to Anaheim, so after a quick cheeseburger pit stop, we checked into our hotel around 4pm and immediately caught the next shuttle to Disneyland.

Waiting for the shuttle.

Our first evening there was pretty magical.

Entering the front gates, Edie pointing at the Pumpkin Mickey.

Edie was in great spirits, lines were short and the weather had cooled a bit to be pretty pleasant. Some of you might ask the question, "Did Edie like Disneyland?" To which I answer:

(Video taken about 5 minutes after entering the park.)

We kicked the evening off with a walking tour of Aurora's castle, which in all my Disneyland trips, I can't remember doing.

Our first ride was It's a Small World - Jeff had a good philosophy of starting with the least scary rides and working our way up to the more mid-level rides. Edie couldn't have loved it more. Before it was even over she was asking if we could go on it again.

Second up we rode Autopia, which Edie thought was a little loud and Jeff and I thought was a little too filled with exhaust.







To cap the night off, we rode one of my all time faves - Peter Pan. Edie loved it and after wandering around a bit in the dark (climbing Tarzan's tree house - formerly known as Swiss Family Robinson), we headed back to the hotel for a hard sleep. Edie had her own bedroom with bunk beds, so we were all able to get a great night's sleep before tackling the park again the next morning.