Trip Report What did we Celebrate? 3/13/09 - 3/15/09

ROBONICS95 · 03-21-2009, 11:19 PM

The goal was to be in Anaheim around 10:00 am Friday morning. We are coming from Northern California so that meant being on the road by 4:00 am. After a late night packing, we set the alarms for 3:30 am hoping to get up, shower, and jump in the van. We were on the road by 4:48 am, not the time that we planned but I guess it could have been worse.

After a few stops on I-5, we made it to the Resort by 11:30 am. We checked into the Paradise Pier Hotel and fortunately our rooms were ready by noon.

After settling into our room, we dressed the princess for her big event this evening and dressed our son in his "1st Visit" outfit.

Blurry but gets the point across, she was focused...

Strapped in and ready to go!

Here is the view as we were heading through the Grand Californian.

Our kids sharing the stroller

On our way through security Disney reminds us why we are there.

Yes, Disney, we will!

Stopping to take a picture in front of Celebration Point.

On the way to our first destination, we stopped for a few pictures in hub.

So, for our daughter's first trip, mother chose Peter Pan's Flight as our daughter's first attraction. Since this was our son's first trip, I chose Casey Jr. Circus Train for his first attraction.

Here's my son completely overwhelmed with excitement and joy on his first Disneyland attraction. YEAH!!!

Next, we headed toward Big Thunder for my wife's first coaster in nearly 12 months. We were traveling with grandparents so they volunteered to stay with the kids while the big kids went and played.

After that exciting adventure, we headed to DCA for our dinner at Ariel's Grotto.

Of course, the big talk of the town was the new Paradise Pier sign.

Our little princess with Ariel

The view from our table.

I know this dining experience gets mixed reviews but we happen to really enjoy ourselves every time we eat here. Now that our daughter is into the whole princess franchise, it was overwhelming to see how excited she got when she met them face to face.

Cinderella meets Cinderella...

And although Lily (daughter) is wearing a Cinderella dress, her favorite princess is Aurora.

After a fantastic and memorable dinner we headed over to Hollywood Pictures Backlot.

Here's Lily having fun with grandma on the way...

Hooray for...

We headed back on over to Disneyland for the controversial yet always entertaining, It's a Small World.

This was our last attraction for Day 1, Day 2 will be posted soon...

*penguinsoda* · 03-21-2009, 11:31 PM

What great pictures! I love the pic of your daughter and her grandmother having such a blast together! Thats what its all about!

ROBONICS95 · 03-22-2009, 12:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by penguinsoda

What great pictures! I love the pic of your daughter and her grandmother having such a blast together! Thats what its all about!

Thank you!

Watching Lily and her grandmother was an amazing moment and a highlight of our trip.

pratt55 · 03-22-2009, 12:18 AM

Great pictures. I love it when the adults have just as much if not more fun that the little ones.

P.S. You have very cute kids.

Rex Dopey24 · 03-22-2009, 12:29 AM

cute trip report awww. it puts a smile to my face. Glad to hear you all had a wonderful time. thanks for sharing.

OldSchoolMickey · 03-22-2009, 01:52 AM

Looks like loads of fun!

denice25 · 03-22-2009, 08:04 AM

nice shots!! yeah lots of fun i see... nice share mate!!!

amosina · 03-22-2009, 10:36 AM

Fun!! I loved staying at the Paradise Pier! I have been taking both my kids since they were babies too!

ROBONICS95 · 03-22-2009, 10:42 AM

Thank you for the kind words!

Up and ready to go for Day 2.

I have never seen so much excitement...

Working our way down Main Street to the first destination on our agenda, Pixie Hollow.

We invited my mom and my wife's parents with us for this trip. Each now are AP's and retired...

Having about 30 minutes to spare before Pixie Hollow opened, my daughter and I toured the castle grounds. With 'Sleeping Beauty' being her favorite movie, she really enjoyed the Sleeping Beauty Castle Walkthrough.

"Hi, Grandma!"

On to Pixie Hollow...

Meeting Iridessa...

Meeting "Gingah!"

Not sure why but my daughter has always referred to Tinker Bell as Gingah.

Oh look, how appropriate?

After a memorable encounter with Ms. Bell, my daughter wanted to head back into Sleeping Beauty's Castle.

RJ (son) and I sat and waited outside and had a few smiles.

After breakfast at the River Belle Terrace, Susie (wife) took RJ to the Baby Care Center for his own breakfast while Lily, the grandparents, and I got in line for Pirates. While in line, Pirates went down so we then ventured over to the Haunted Mansion but the line was long and we needed to meet Susie and RJ on Main Street.

We decided to take the Disneyland Railroad from New Orleans Square to Main Street.

It was nap time for the kids so we laid them down in the stroller while we headed over to DCA to go on Toy Story Midway Mania.

Notice Lily is holding a Sleeping Beauty figure that grandpa had purchased for her...

Just enjoying some time on the boardwalk...

My mom, who is incredibly devoted to her faith, left us Saturday afternoon to go to church. Susie and RJ visited the Baby Care Center with grandma and grandpa, and Lily and I visited the Blue Sky Cellar.

Soon after that, Susie and I went on Tower of Terror while the grandparents took the kids wine tasting with them.

Lily asked for "whole world" again, which means she would like to go on It's a Small World, so we headed back over to Disneyland.

(I never realized how much park hopping we did until I went through the pictures.)

After our happy voyage, we needed to meet my mom for dinner and we decided that we were in the mood for burgers at Taste Pilot's Grill in DCA.

It was 8:00 pm by the time we finished which meant that it was bedtime for the kids. Susie's parents took both Lily and RJ back to the room while Susie, my mother, and I headed over to Toy Story Midway Mania.

California Screamin' zooming through the Pier...

It was 9:25 and we headed back over to Disneyland hoping for a wait of 45 minutes or less for Space Mountain. When we arrived it posted a 65 minute wait. We were already exhausted so we stood in line for the monorail and waited until "Remember..." ended so we can head back to the room.

On our way from Downtown Disney to the Paradise Pier Hotel, we stopped at the Rose Court Garden to take a few pictures.

It's hard to imagine that almost 3 years ago both Susie and I were exchanging marriage vows in this very spot.

Day 3 soon...

Peoplemover Priit · 03-22-2009, 11:10 AM

Very cool. Can't wait to see the rest.

royaldisneyfan · 03-22-2009, 01:37 PM

Very cute pics. Can't wait for the rest!

xalesa · 03-22-2009, 07:59 PM

Nice report! Thanks for sharing. The children are precious!

IzzyInWonderland · 03-22-2009, 08:22 PM

I remember reading your Disney cruise trip report. Your family is just beautiful! Thanks for sharing your special memories.

SingingAngel7242 · 03-22-2009, 08:37 PM

keeeeeeeeeeewt!!!

Micoofy Duck · 03-22-2009, 09:21 PM

Great trip report.

And Tinkerbell in a coat... pretty cool for some reason.

03-21-2009, 11:19 PM	#1
ROBONICS95 Junior Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Walnut Creek, CA Posts: 973	What did we Celebrate? 3/13/09 - 3/15/09 The goal was to be in Anaheim around 10:00 am Friday morning. We are coming from Northern California so that meant being on the road by 4:00 am. After a late night packing, we set the alarms for 3:30 am hoping to get up, shower, and jump in the van. We were on the road by 4:48 am, not the time that we planned but I guess it could have been worse. After a few stops on I-5, we made it to the Resort by 11:30 am. We checked into the Paradise Pier Hotel and fortunately our rooms were ready by noon. After settling into our room, we dressed the princess for her big event this evening and dressed our son in his "1st Visit" outfit. Blurry but gets the point across, she was focused... Strapped in and ready to go! Here is the view as we were heading through the Grand Californian. Our kids sharing the stroller On our way through security Disney reminds us why we are there. Yes, Disney, we will! Stopping to take a picture in front of Celebration Point. On the way to our first destination, we stopped for a few pictures in hub. So, for our daughter's first trip, mother chose Peter Pan's Flight as our daughter's first attraction. Since this was our son's first trip, I chose Casey Jr. Circus Train for his first attraction. Here's my son completely overwhelmed with excitement and joy on his first Disneyland attraction. YEAH!!! Next, we headed toward Big Thunder for my wife's first coaster in nearly 12 months. We were traveling with grandparents so they volunteered to stay with the kids while the big kids went and played. After that exciting adventure, we headed to DCA for our dinner at Ariel's Grotto. Of course, the big talk of the town was the new Paradise Pier sign. Our little princess with Ariel The view from our table. I know this dining experience gets mixed reviews but we happen to really enjoy ourselves every time we eat here. Now that our daughter is into the whole princess franchise, it was overwhelming to see how excited she got when she met them face to face. Cinderella meets Cinderella... And although Lily (daughter) is wearing a Cinderella dress, her favorite princess is Aurora. After a fantastic and memorable dinner we headed over to Hollywood Pictures Backlot. Here's Lily having fun with grandma on the way... Hooray for... We headed back on over to Disneyland for the controversial yet always entertaining, It's a Small World. This was our last attraction for Day 1, Day 2 will be posted soon... __________________ "If you build it right, they will come." - Bob Iger "I'm not a literary person. As far as realism is concerned, you can find dirt anyplace you look for it. I'm one of those optimists. There's always a rainbow." - Walt Disney "I don't care about critics. Critics take themselves too seriously. They think the only way to be noticed and to be the smart guy is to pick and find fault with things. It's the public I'm making pictures for." - Walt Disney

03-21-2009, 11:31 PM	#2
penguinsoda Jester of Randomness MiceChat Teen Scene Leader MiceChat Moderator Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Across the wild, blue, yonder... Posts: 53,029 Blog Entries: 2	Re: What did we Celebrate? 3/13/09 - 3/15/09 What great pictures! I love the pic of your daughter and her grandmother having such a blast together! Thats what its all about! __________________ Shop at the MiceChat Cafepress Store! ------ Added fun! Go Gold! As long has you’re buying from Amazon anyway, use our link! ----- Pocky! Official snack of MiceChat and more! Planes, Trains, and Automobiles! Build my transportation network in Pingvinivlle! Yup, I have a MySpace too, have a look if you want to!! Number? The number is currently on hiatus and is residing on a tropical island somewhere with a big fruity drink. I mean drinking the fruity drink not with... or maybe they are together... um?

03-22-2009, 12:18 AM	#4
pratt55 Official MC Bouncer Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: too lazy to click from place to place Posts: 7,676 Blog Entries: 7	Re: What did we Celebrate? 3/13/09 - 3/15/09 Great pictures. I love it when the adults have just as much if not more fun that the little ones. P.S. You have very cute kids. __________________ Be a good MC'er by reading and following the rules: http://micechat.com/forums/faq.php?faq=mcrr

03-22-2009, 12:29 AM	#5
Rex Dopey24 Goofy Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: in wonderland. Posts: 10,005	Re: What did we Celebrate? 3/13/09 - 3/15/09 cute trip report awww. it puts a smile to my face. Glad to hear you all had a wonderful time. thanks for sharing.

03-22-2009, 01:52 AM	#6
OldSchoolMickey Longtime Lurker Muhuhaha! Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Pasadena Posts: 2,115	Re: What did we Celebrate? 3/13/09 - 3/15/09 Looks like loads of fun!

03-22-2009, 08:04 AM	#7
denice25 Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 201	Re: What did we Celebrate? 3/13/09 - 3/15/09 nice shots!! yeah lots of fun i see... nice share mate!!! __________________ thanE

03-22-2009, 10:36 AM	#8
amosina New Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: So. Cal. Posts: 21	Re: What did we Celebrate? 3/13/09 - 3/15/09 Fun!! I loved staying at the Paradise Pier! I have been taking both my kids since they were babies too!

03-22-2009, 10:42 AM	#9
ROBONICS95 Junior Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Walnut Creek, CA Posts: 973	Re: What did we Celebrate? 3/13/09 - 3/15/09 Thank you for the kind words! Up and ready to go for Day 2. I have never seen so much excitement... Working our way down Main Street to the first destination on our agenda, Pixie Hollow. We invited my mom and my wife's parents with us for this trip. Each now are AP's and retired... Having about 30 minutes to spare before Pixie Hollow opened, my daughter and I toured the castle grounds. With 'Sleeping Beauty' being her favorite movie, she really enjoyed the Sleeping Beauty Castle Walkthrough. "Hi, Grandma!" On to Pixie Hollow... Meeting Iridessa... Meeting "Gingah!" Not sure why but my daughter has always referred to Tinker Bell as Gingah. Oh look, how appropriate? After a memorable encounter with Ms. Bell, my daughter wanted to head back into Sleeping Beauty's Castle. RJ (son) and I sat and waited outside and had a few smiles. After breakfast at the River Belle Terrace, Susie (wife) took RJ to the Baby Care Center for his own breakfast while Lily, the grandparents, and I got in line for Pirates. While in line, Pirates went down so we then ventured over to the Haunted Mansion but the line was long and we needed to meet Susie and RJ on Main Street. We decided to take the Disneyland Railroad from New Orleans Square to Main Street. It was nap time for the kids so we laid them down in the stroller while we headed over to DCA to go on Toy Story Midway Mania. Notice Lily is holding a Sleeping Beauty figure that grandpa had purchased for her... Just enjoying some time on the boardwalk... My mom, who is incredibly devoted to her faith, left us Saturday afternoon to go to church. Susie and RJ visited the Baby Care Center with grandma and grandpa, and Lily and I visited the Blue Sky Cellar. Soon after that, Susie and I went on Tower of Terror while the grandparents took the kids wine tasting with them. Lily asked for "whole world" again, which means she would like to go on It's a Small World, so we headed back over to Disneyland. (I never realized how much park hopping we did until I went through the pictures.) After our happy voyage, we needed to meet my mom for dinner and we decided that we were in the mood for burgers at Taste Pilot's Grill in DCA. It was 8:00 pm by the time we finished which meant that it was bedtime for the kids. Susie's parents took both Lily and RJ back to the room while Susie, my mother, and I headed over to Toy Story Midway Mania. California Screamin' zooming through the Pier... It was 9:25 and we headed back over to Disneyland hoping for a wait of 45 minutes or less for Space Mountain. When we arrived it posted a 65 minute wait. We were already exhausted so we stood in line for the monorail and waited until "Remember..." ended so we can head back to the room. On our way from Downtown Disney to the Paradise Pier Hotel, we stopped at the Rose Court Garden to take a few pictures. It's hard to imagine that almost 3 years ago both Susie and I were exchanging marriage vows in this very spot. Day 3 soon... __________________ "If you build it right, they will come." - Bob Iger "I'm not a literary person. As far as realism is concerned, you can find dirt anyplace you look for it. I'm one of those optimists. There's always a rainbow." - Walt Disney "I don't care about critics. Critics take themselves too seriously. They think the only way to be noticed and to be the smart guy is to pick and find fault with things. It's the public I'm making pictures for." - Walt Disney

03-22-2009, 11:10 AM	#10
Peoplemover Priit Lego Peoplemover Priit Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Tallinn, Estonia (Yes it is real) Posts: 922	Re: What did we Celebrate? 3/13/09 - 3/15/09 Very cool. Can't wait to see the rest. __________________ My Lego Peoplemover Movie: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3iwZBgK-uA Joe Sakic! Thanks for 20 memorable seasons!

03-22-2009, 01:37 PM	#11
royaldisneyfan Zack is the Cy Guy! Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Goin' to Kansas City. Kansas City Here I Come Posts: 2,910	Re: What did we Celebrate? 3/13/09 - 3/15/09 Very cute pics. Can't wait for the rest! __________________ $"C:\Documents and Settings\martinla\My Documents\My Pictures\WINDVD Capture\cap014.jpg"$ *'It's me! I'm the bobblehead!'*

03-22-2009, 07:59 PM	#12
xalesa Arkansas Fall Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: SoCal girl living in Arkansas Posts: 735	Re: What did we Celebrate? 3/13/09 - 3/15/09 Nice report! Thanks for sharing. The children are precious!

03-22-2009, 08:22 PM	#13
IzzyInWonderland Naughty... Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: You Stay Classy San Diego Posts: 1,814	Re: What did we Celebrate? 3/13/09 - 3/15/09 I remember reading your Disney cruise trip report. Your family is just beautiful! Thanks for sharing your special memories. __________________

03-22-2009, 08:37 PM	#14
SingingAngel7242 Off to Neverland Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: So. Cali Posts: 1,530	Re: What did we Celebrate? 3/13/09 - 3/15/09 keeeeeeeeeeewt!!! __________________

03-22-2009, 09:21 PM	#15
Micoofy Duck I'm Theme Park Happy! Join Date: May 2006 Location: Texas Posts: 1,946	Re: What did we Celebrate? 3/13/09 - 3/15/09 Great trip report. And Tinkerbell in a coat... pretty cool for some reason. __________________ Micoofy Duck Disney Theme Park Fan #4,584,376 http://www.micoofy.com Last edited by Micoofy Duck; 03-22-2009 at 09:31 PM.

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