First let me tell you that if you want an uncrowded, line-free Disney vacation, January, mid-week, is the time to go. Even better, go after dark. For the last two hours prior to closing, you’ve practically got the place to yourself. My kids loved the one kiddie-coaster in Toon Town, and one evening they rode it over and over without any lines.

  And I do mean over, and over, and over.

Secondly, let me tell you that Disneyland becomes even less crowded when it is pouring down raining. And for good reason. If you’re thinking, “oh, big deal… a little rain can’t spoil Disneyland”… well, you couldn’t be more wrong. Disneyland can be quite un-enchanting and frickin cold when it’s raining in January. Disneyland sells Disney brand rain ponchos for $50 (or some such crazy price) but we laughed in the frickin cold face of big business and instead packed an umbrella from Target.

It’s hard to tell just how entirely soaked we are… but Jachin’s jacket is normally light blue.

The umbrella worked alright when we weren’t on rides, but what about keeping dry when actually riding the rides? Well, I was one of those annoying people who didn’t want to ride the log ride because the water would make my hair all big and Chia-pet looking. I bundled as best as I could. I thought of wearing the shower cap from the hotel room, but figured that may have looked silly. I opted for this more chic look:

 (ps- my butt got soaked)

I learned on this trip that my children are very brave. Jachin was finally tall enough to ride California Screamin’ on this trip, and he rode it three times in a row. Here was his first time out of the gates:

The key to working up courage for big rides is to first browse the gift shop for courage-encouraging swag. Like this:

Zoe took on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Space Mountain, and a bunch of other scary rides. Her courageous attire looked a little different.

 That’s one badass, pink cowgirl. 

She drew the line, though, at Tower of Terror. She would. not. do. it. So I wandered around the gift shop with Zoe, checking out cute Jack Skelington garb while Jachin and Jon rode Tower of Terror. Then I rode the T.o.T. by my lonesome. Jon took a blurry picture of the screen:

That’s me with fun Chia hair on the front row,  grinning like a dork. If I would have known that the flash was coming, I would have done a sweet thumbs-up like the bell-hop in the second row, or a “shocked” face like the other bell-hop in the front row.  But no, that terrified glee was my real face.

Mostly we stuck with the rides that the four of us could do together, which was a lot of them. The kids are both tall enough and gutsy enough to ride mostly everything.

 I love my family.

The ride home was NOT fun. The usual 9 hour car ride took a full 11 hours. There was heavy snow for hours. In our attempts to make “good time” we didn’t stop for meals. The kids ate crackers and Chewy bars and fruit snacks… for 11 hours. It ended with Zoe throwing up in the car. She gave me just enough warning to empty the Target bag (holding all of the snacks) and put it under her mouth. Poor sweetie. On top of the barfing, the windshield washer fluid stopped working. Each time a truck passed us, spraying filthy snow unto the windshield, we were pretty much blind. Jon had to pull over repeatedly and manually pour washer fluid on the windshield to clean it off. It was tedious and a little scary. When we finally pulled into the garage at 11:30pm, the kids cheered.

As we tucked ourselves into our own beds in our own home last night, Jachin said, “It’s nice to go to Disneyland, but it’s nice to sleep in my own bed again, too.” It was the perfect amount of trip; just enough to make home seem really nice again.

3 Comments »

1. What a great trip! I love the pictures, especially Jachin’s courage-enhancing wear.

   Comment by Leslie — January 29, 2008 @ 4:26 pm

2. I so LOVE Disneyland! I could easily be one of those wacky people who decorates her kitchen in Mickey-themed canisters. I love planning to go, I love getting there, being there, staying there, thinking about going back the moment our plane leaves the ground…

   Sigh.

   So glad you made the most of your time. I’m even happy when others are at The Happiest Place on Earth (Welcome home, we missed you!)

   Comment by stephanie — January 30, 2008 @ 5:51 am

3. I don’t know how, but you still looked lovely, despite the rain and misery.

   Glad you got away, even if it was drippy.

   Comment by Lisa Milton — January 30, 2008 @ 2:09 pm

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