Disneyland!

This week was momentous for our family - we made our first trip to Disneyland since Cora was barely 2. It was, of course, Violet's first trip ever. The park was decorated for Halloween, the weather was great, and the crowds weren't too bad. In short, it was an excellent day together.

Grandma and Grandpa have annual passes, and also generously pay for a pass for Cora, so she has been a number of times the past couple of years. But Stace and I haven't been to Disney's main park since March 2009, when Dean and Jenny were over, so it was an exciting day for us all.

We made Winnie the Pooh our first ride of the day, since Cora fell in love with it when she was 2. Violet took it all in, wide-eyed, and every time we asked if she was having fun, she gave a big nod.
Then it was on to Stace's favorite part of the park, the former Tom Sawyer's Island, which is now a Pirate's Lair. He and Cora ran all over the place, making up games and make-believe stories.


Violet spent a bit of time walking around, wearing Cora's old monkey friend.
Violet really liked the Jungle Cruise, pointing to all the animals and the water.
Violet entertained herself in the line for Peter Pan, which, at a half-hour, was the longest we waited.

We managed to go on eight rides in about six hours, including Thunder Mountain and Splash Mountain. Cora was just tall enough (40 inches) for those two; I'm so glad we got to be along on her first time riding those big rides. Since Grandma was with us, she stayed with Violet. Cora loved the rides, though she was a bit scared of the big, wet Splash Mountain drop.
We made "It's a Small World" our last ride of the day. Violet had a great time pointing to the singing dolls and clapping along to the catchy theme song.


And then, it was time to make our way out, though there are always attractions I wish we could have taken in. The girls were falling asleep in the stroller as we walked to the front.
But, we woke up Cora, and Grandma took the girls into California Adventure for an hour while Stace and I got dinner in the Downtown Disney shopping district. It was a good chance to catch our breath before we got in the car for the long drive home.