Disneyland - June 2012

We went to Disneyland!

We spent two days at the Disneyland Resort and went to Disneyland and California Adventure. We also spent a night at the Grand Californian Hotel. I was impressed at how much Ellie remembered from our last trip there last August. Ellie was so excited to go and knew exactly what her priorities were. In an amazing combination of time management, knowing Disneyland inside and out, and the strategic use of the FastPass everyone got to do everything they wanted.

The best thing about taking a 3 year old to Disneyland is watching the amazement, joy, and honest excitement on her face. When we walked down Main Street USA just as the park opened at 7am on Tuesday (after leaving our place at 5:30am) she was so excited and amazed by everything.

 We hit the big 3 rides of Fantasyland first: Peter Pan, Dumbo, and the Tea Cups.

Of course, Ellie knew what to expect on those three rides. We then went on a couple rides that she wasn't that familiar with. Now, Ellie s 36 inches tall. Which apparently is tall enough for some really thrilling rides!

Look Mommy! I'm tall enough!!

Tall enough for what? What?!? A ROLLER COASTER!

See the orange shirt in the  second to last car? See the little blonde sitting next to the orange shirt? That's Ellie! On a roller coaster! Its the Gadget Go Coaster in Toontown.

"I went really high and really fast. I liked it Mommy!" -Ellie

If I'm sitting on the left side, who is driving the car??

Oh, that's Ellie!

"Daddy, was your car really bumpy? Our car was really bumpy" - Ellie

Well, "bumpy" is what happens when you can't see over the steering wheel and over correcting everytime the car hits the guardrail. 

Ellie not only went on Dumbo, but also went on the Astro Oribitor. Yep, she was tall enough for that as well!  

As scary as some of the Fantasyland rides are (she did not enjoy Snow White!) she loved Alice in Wonderland. It may have been that she got to sit by herself in the front of the car (or caterpillar)...

We also went on a few brand new rides for all three of us, all were in California Adventure. There was an Ariel ride, Monster's Inc. ride, and a Toy Story ride. All got thumbs up from all of us. Nick and I also fell in love with the Toy Story Ride. Ellie wouldn't wear the 3-D glasses so she didn't get the full effect, but this ride was AMAZING and so much fun.

In California Adventure, Ellie went on the giant Mickey ferris wheel. You know where I was? Not on the ferris wheel! I got my thrills from the California Screamin' roller coaster.

We made sure to get in line right away to meet Mickey and Minnie. Ellie wasn't too happy to see Mickey, only because she was so much more excited to see Minnie. We got some good family photos as well.

Ellie was really a trooper, waiting in line patiently, taking a nap in the stroller both days, and even being an amazing little girl at dinner at Blue Bayou. There were only a few meltdowns, but that happens when you stay up late, get up early, and are too excited for anything.

Did I mention she napped?

Yeah, she did.

Did you know that Disney has a Rider Switch program? Basically, if two parents have a young child and want to go on the rides where you have to be over 40 inches tall for, one person can wait in line while the other stays with the kiddo. Then, one the parent waiting gets to the front of the line, they get a special pass for the other parent to get to use the FastPass line or go right to the front. Hence, during nap time both parents can go on Indiana Jones and Thunder Mountain. Have you ever noticed that near some of the over 40 inch tall rides, there are rides with no height requirements? With single rider lines and FastPasses and Rider Switch, one of us could go on Space Mountain or Splash Mountain or something else while the other took Ellie on Winnie the Pooh, Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters, or the Carousel.

We also got to meet some of Winnie the Pooh's friends including Eeyore, Rabbit, and Tigger!

Ellie loved the parade. She was so excited that she sat patiently on the curb for over 30 minutes waiting for the parade. Well, maybe the ice cream and flavored ice her parents bought themselves and shared with her that made the time go by quickly. She was so excited and waved to everyone and danced along with the music.

Did you know Ellie loved all the Disney princesses?? She wanted to meet them all and get a princess dress. At the end of our first night, we took Ellie to the Bippity Boppity Boutique and let her pick out a princess dress for herself. She picked a Sleeping Beauty dress. She was so happy and it was such a great experience for her to pick out her dress. (tip: if you stay at a Disneyland Resort hotel, anything you buy in the park will be delivered to your hotel so you don't have to carry it with you. Perfect when you don't want to carry around a princess dress!) We also got a crown, which has some pretty lights for night time. Ellie didn't necessarily want to always wear the crown, but she felt that someone should be wearing it...me!

Our second day we went to breakfast at Ariel's Grotto in California Adventure. Ariel and four of her friends were there and were more than happy to visit with Ellie and spend time with her. The food was good, the view was great, and watching Ellie get so giddy and happy to see her favorite princesses was awesome. She gave each one a hug (after being a little shy with Snow White) and posed for photos. We also took time to go meet Rapunzel who has a home in Fantasyland.

Those smiles in the photos above are pure joy, excitement, and happiness from Ellie. She was so happy and felt so special to get to meet all of the princesses.

The first day Ellie stayed up and watched the fireworks at Disneyland. She declared that now that she is bigger, she wasn't afraid of the fireworks. However, according to Ellie, the better show was the water/light/video show at California Adventure, "World of Color". We got some reserved seating and had great seats. Ellie sang along (loudly) to all the songs much to the delight of people around us.

Ellie's favorite rides:
1) The Baby Ride (aka It's a Small World)
2) The pirates ride ("its not scary anymore!!")
3) ARIEL!
4) "Buzz Lightnin'".. as Ellie called it (aka Buzz Lightyear's AstroBlasters)
5) and, The Baby Ride again

We all had a fantastic time.

A truly fantastically, magical, amazing time!

Happy 9th Anniversary to Us!

Today is our 9th wedding anniversary. Ellie took this picture as we were waiting for the parade at Disneyland where we went to celebrate as a family.

Happy Birthday Aunt Susie!

Dear Aunt Susu,

Happy 28th Birthday Susie! Ellie hopes that you will have cupcakes and cake on your birthday and that you have friends who will sing to you. Don't worry, I'm sure we will call and sing Happy Birthday to you as well, because that's what Ellie does.

Ellie really misses you out here and asks when you are going to come visit. We explain that you are in Boston and that you will come visit when you can, but that you aren't just a drive away anymore. Her mermaids aren't just mermaids, but her "special Aunt Susu" mermaids.

And her pretty dress you got her for Christmas...its a cherished object. She still loves to wear it. Today she asked if she could wear it and go to the "castle" (aka Pasadena City Hall).

Anyway, have a great birthday. We will miss not having wacky cake with you this year, but we know we will see you soon. We can have cupcakes then. Oh! Ellie wanted me to remind you to have balloons at your party. Its not a party without balloons!

-- Ann, Nick, and Ellie 





Exploring L.A. :: Los Angeles Zoo

So I thought I'd start a little series within our little blog here, Exploring L.A. As we venture out beyond our little apartment complex and explore what Los Angeles has to offer, I thought I'd summarize it here. We are trying to get out as much as possible, but so far our work schedules haven't quite allowed for a lot. Also trying to time things with Ellie's nap schedule and find thigns that she would be interested in add an additional challenge. We did head to Griffith Park, and we've done quite a bit of exploring within Pasadena. Without further ado...

On Saturday we headed to the Los Angeles Zoo. Now, the zoo is located within Griffith Park ground, but since it is its own thing, we did it separately from our previous hike. Living in LA I thought things would be much further away from our home base out here. Well, actually getting to the LA Zoo is easier and quicker than either zoo in Boston. Ellie really likes the zoo and she was not dissapointed by the animals at the LA Zoo!

As this zoo is located literally in the side of a mountain, there is quite a bit of walking up and down hills and stairs. It makes for a fun adventure, but also a tired little girl. However, Ellie was a trooper and was always excited about what animal was around the forner.

There were the usual favorites, elephant, giraffe, zebras, alligators, snakes, chimps...Ellie was impressed with the koala and thought the wild pigs were hilarious. And we all thought the gorilla exhibit was awesome. There was also a nursery where we saw some baby seals. Ellie thought it was hilarious that they had baby animals in cribs like people babies. Ellie was very happy that the flamingos didn't smell like at the Boston Zoo. I guess when you have a completely exterior exhibit the odors dissipate enough.

However, the orangutan exhibit was everyone's favorite. Why? Because there was a very active baby orangutan. And we all know how much Ellie likes baby anything. We stayed watching the baby orangutan for a long time, it was really fun to watch.

As soon as we walked through the front gates and it was visible, Ellie locked onto the carousel. She loves "round and round horsies". Since Ellie was very well behaved and walked most of the zoo by herself, we agreed to one ride on the carousel. Now this wasn't just "round and round horsies". Ellie quickly noticed that it was "round and round animals". Ellen selected a gorilla to ride. She thinks next time she wants to ride the giraffe.

The stores...there was quite a bit of shopping and Ellie wanted to look at everything. There were some really cool toys, but seriously that much...its hard for parents to walk out of there with money left in their pocket. Ellie actually was really cool about the fact that we didn't get her a toy. I think the promise of getting to come back was enough.

We enjoyed the zoo and are now have a family membership. Since it is so easy to get to, and there is so much there, we know we will go back quite a bit. I know there were animals that we didn't see and apparently they do a cool elephant training thing which we missed. There are also some other animal encounters and shows that we didn't go to. Ellie was one happy little girl at the zoo so I know she'll be asking to go back!

Happy Mother's Day

We had a great mother's day weekend. We spent yesterday exploring Griffith Park and the Observatory. Ellie had been requesting to go on a hike or "walk in the mountains" so we figured Griffith Park would be fun and let us explore part of Los Angeles.

We all have a blast and Ellie did a great job keeping up with us. She got a little tired and got a little bit of a ride, but for the most part did a good job on the hike. We took some snacks with us and had a snack up at the Observatory, once we made it up there.

Unfortunately we went for the hike in the morning and the morning fog hadn't burned off so we didn't get the great view of downtown. However, we did see the Hollywood sign and parts of Hollywood.

Happy Mother's Day Everyone!

Happy 32nd Birthday Nick!

Happy Birthday Nick!!

Over the weekend we went up to Santa Barbara to have a VB family birthday party for Nick. On Saturday, we grilled out burgers and hot dogs...and by we, I mean Nick! My grandparents and aunt and uncle were there to celebrate Nick's birthday. Ellie helped decorate the cake by putting the strawberries on it.

Tonight we went out for dinner, then had some cake and opened Nick's present back at our place in Pasadena.

Saying "See you Later!" to Boston

Last week, Ellie and I packed three large suitcases, said some good-byes and boarded a plane for Los Angeles. Nick and Mallie had already made this journey. For a while, I thought Ellie didn't understand it. That we were flying out to California for a vacation like all the other times. But, she knew something was up. Between Mallie not being at home and all the talk from teachers, parents, and friends at school...she knew it was different. But she was excited for California.

Her last two days at preschool I left our camera there and asked teachers to take photos of Ellie with friends, teachers, napping, and different activities. The pictures speak for themselves. Ellie really enjoyed going to her "Bright Horizons" school and teachers and friends loved having her there.

On Thursday, Aunt Susie, Ellie and I went out for a celebratory dinner in the North End. We also had gelato! Of course, before we got to the food and gelato...we stopped at the Old North Church. I figured Ellie needed to learn some history (we were with Aunt Susie) plus, the photo opportunity was there...

Of course, after pasta and gelato came time to say "see you later" to Aunt Susie. Ellie was a little upset that Susie wouldn't be a car ride away anymore, or that she wouldn't come to see her on the weekends. Well, I think Susie was a little sad about that too. And Nick and I are a little sad that we don't have free babysitting 10 minutes away...

As we waited for the cab to take us to the airport Ellie said, "see you later" to the house. She even gave it a big hug.

As much as we are going to miss things in Boston, we are super excited for this new chapter in our lives. Ellie is looking forward to playing with the baby carriage at my parent's house and eating tangerines at Grandma Dolly's house more often. She asked if she could feed the fishes at Grandma and Grandpa Van's house too. Nick and I are looking forward to career opportunities out here as well as not having to shovel snow.

So stay tuned, I'm sure there are going to be lots of fun adventures ahead!