Disneyland

We surprised Halle Grace and Garrett with a trip to Disneyland for their birthdays. They are just 3 weeks apart, so we made the trip a gift for both of them. Halle Grace chose Incredible Pizza Company for her birthday dinner, and we gave them their gifts that night...a ticket to Disneyland, a Mickey ears hat, and a Mickey/Minnie t-shirt with their name on it. They were super excited. :) Scott took Grant to Chicago for his birthday, so this time it was my turn. (By the way, we were so proud of Grant's attitude toward all of this. Before we could talk with him about it, he came up with the idea and suggested it on his own! He said that he had been lots of times and that he was fine with just them going. Makes a mom's heart swell with pride!)

My mom got to come with us (hooray!). We got up early on Friday, Sept. 11 (HG's actual birthday - she got in free with Disney's birthday promotion this year), and headed to the airport. By 10am, we were in line for Peter Pan! The 2-hour time change works in our favor. :)

We ran ourselves ragged - rode everything we wanted, and then some. Garrett enjoyed showing Halle Grace the ropes, and Halle Grace just took it all in. She truly believed everything she saw was real, waving to the pirates in Pirates of the Caribbean, and even to the animals on the Jungle Cruise. Ahhhh, Disney magic!
She fits right in to our family - she will ride anything, the faster the better!. Their favorite rides of the day were Splash Mountain and Indiana Jones.

We had lunch in New Orleans Square and had some play time at the old Tom Sawyer Island (now called Pirates Cove, or something like that). That was a big highlight as well - they loved exploring and climbing on everything in sight. We took a treat break at the Tiki Room with a Dole Whip (heaven in a bowl). If you haven't had one of those at Disney, you're missing out! Put it on your list.

We decided to skip the parade and Fantasia since we only had one day. We caught the firework show that night, though, and that was plenty. Halle Grace was in tears by 7pm, asking to go to bed. We drug her around for one last round, saw some fireworks, then headed to the hotel. She was a trouper!

We stayed at the Candy Cane Inn, which we highly recommend. It's a charming little place with updated, super clean rooms. You can walk to the park, but they have a great shuttle as well.

The next morning, Mom had to head to work, and I took the kids to Storytellers Cafe for a character breakfast before heading to the airport. We love this one because it's the only one where you can order off the menu (they have a $40 buffet, but it's not mandatory). The kids meals were around $5, which is amazing for a character meal! The eggs-Benedict, which I have every time I go, was outstanding. :)

By the time we got to the airport, it was exactly 24 hours from when we arrived at the airport the morning before. We were all sad to leave and wanted to stay longer...hopefully we can plan a family trip soon!