Favorite Rides ( Part 2)

The Sorcerer's Carousel

We knew ahead of time this ride would be enjoyed because we had ridden the Carousel in Seattle.
Just look at that face.

Hold on tight.

No fall down, Mommy.

Round and round and round (with hand gestures creating a circle in the air)

Dumbo

Umma could not wait to take Alexander on this ride. Dumbo is her favorite Disney story (and makes her cry. Every. Time.) Her anticipation was well worth the wait, especially when the kid figured out how the controller made Dumbo rise and fall.

Who's more excited for this ride to begin?

Hi Mommy and Daddy!


Ahhhhh, this is how you make an elephant fly...

Weeeee!!

Look up there, Umma. Big Papa is flying too!

Daddy and Mommy didn't really fit in that little ride together but they definitely tried!

Peter Pan
After the fiasco in Mr. Toad Wild Ride, we weren't sure if Alexander would enjoy Peter Pan.


We assume he liked it.

Alice's Spinning Teacups
Mommy doesn't spinning rides. Daddy does.
And so does Alexander.
As an observer, this ride was by far the most entertaining to watch.
They would start with all four hands on the wheel. Daddy would start spinning. I could see Alexander and then...only his feet were visible as he toppled over. His little head would pop right back up...and then his feet. And this his head. And he was laughing so hard. I couldn't stop laughing so I'm not sure I caught the full effect of the ride in photos.
Alexander didn't seem to mind the toppling, as he asked for this ride several times.

Here we go!


Daddy starts the spinning...

...and...


...where'd Alexander go?


Daddy couldn't stop laughing either. While the little man continues to hold on for dear life!

A Toddler's Favorite Rides at Disneyland. (Part 1)

Disneyland Train

You know the one.
The train that goes around the park with stops at Toon Town, New Orleans, Tomorrowland, and Main Street. And I bet I don't have to tell you that someone said "All Aboard" every time.

Where is it, Mommy? Where?


Oh, I love being on a train!


Please keep your hands, feet, and toddler heads inside the train.

Autotopia.
Umma was the lucky recipient of the first ride. The rest of us rode solo and could hear Umma's screams (noover the sounds of our cars (not really). Eventually, we all had a turn with the fearless driver but no else was allowed to touch the steering wheel BUT the toddler.

Where is it, Umma? Where is it?


Umma gives Alexander his first driving lesson.

Mr. Toad's Wild Ride

No, wait. He hated that one.

Go Gadget Roller Coaster at Toon Town.
He had a death grip every time but couldn't get enough of this ride. The faster the better. Again, Umma was the first recipient but we all had a chance to scream with Alexander before the trip ended. I think he and I ended up going on it four times in a row while everyone else napped.
But don't tell Daddy.

Up...


and Down!


Round and Round!


Mommy, I love dat ride.

His Stroller
Ok, maybe we loved that ride more BUT he did fall asleep in it every night on the way back to the hotel.

It's Going to Take a Few Days

...to recover from our trip and share all the pictures and stories. Mommy is a little too tired to do it all in one sitting. And a little toddler is waking from his nap so she must go. However, she will try to post day one tonight. She knows she has some anxious readers who want to know how the little man fared.

By the way, Alexander far exceeded our expectations a traveler and as a Disney fan. He never complained on either plane ride.

He napped the three hours when we landed in AZ and had to drive home to Parker.

Holding Umma's hand, of course.

He was a champ the five hours we had him strapped in the truck as we drove from Parker to Anaheim on Thursday (pretty sure Umma and I won "complainers of the day"). Nights were a little rough but sleeping in a strange place isn't easy. And naps were non-existent but that didn't bother anyone.

He continues to amaze us with his easy going personality.

Today's Adventures

Another gorgeous sunny day in Arizona.

The little man was up at 4AM. And didn't go back to sleep. Oh, he tried. But each time I checked on him, he would say, "hard sleep, mama". At one point, I even tried having him lay down beside me. As you know we DO NOT cosleep so it was fascinating to lay there beside him for about an hour. An hour in which he stayed awake and talked to me about the alarm clock numbers. A second hour in which he and I quietly sang every song we could think of. Finally, he went back to his bed, only to toss and turn for another hour. Eventually, Big Papa took him from the room and let Mommy sleep in a bit. After a good morning run by Mommy, everyone finally showered and put together, we piled into the truck to drive to the hills to look for burros. And within 20 minutes, this is what we saw...

Alexander fast asleep while the rest of us gazed upon burros.
As it turns out, these are the descendants of mules from the mining days in the late 1800's (didn't know you'd receive a history lesson, eh?). There were about 10 of the little guys covering the hill. Alexander did wake up at one point to see them but wanted to get back to Big Papa and Umma's house. Nothing else really seems to matter to the kid.



When we returned to Big Papa and Umma's house, I tried to put Alexander down for a nap but needless to say, napping is NOT on Alexander's agenda for this trip. And who can blame him with the weather SO nice? Even Mommy, who should have napped after a restless night, sat outside in a lawn chair to soak up the rays.



(yes, I adjusted the chair so it was in the sun all afternoon)

So, Mommy and Alexander ventured to the river. Alexander played, made sandcastles, and fed the ducks.







We put our feet in the Colorado River (look closely - it's his right foot).

Now, we're headed out to a bonfire to celebrate our last night at Big Papa and Umma's house. Hopefully, we haven't been terrible house guests and will be invited back next year.

Tomorrow is a HUGE day! Daddy flies down to LA and will meet us for the last part of this adventure.

OUR FIRST TRIP TO DISNEYLAND!!

Ok, it is Alexander's first trip but boy are we excited.

I truly can't wait to view the magic through his eyes. I'm sure he'll be overtired. I'm sure someone will have a meltdown. I'm sure we'll need naps. But the magic will be in the air.
It almost brings tears to my eyes to think about Eric and I sharing our favorite vacation place with our child.

Vacation Day #2 RECAP

Today was pretty low-key but happily, really really warm out there. So warm. So nice.

• Up at 7AM
• Line Dancing at 9AM
• Big Papa spent the day fishing
• We did laundry with Umma
• We played outside with our trains and a bean bag game
• Mama sat in the sun with a book and cocktail while Alexander napped
• Big Papa returned from fishing and took Mama to Wal-Mart in Parker, AZ so she could buy more pull ups and a stroller for Disneyland
• Alexander didn't actually nap so he and Umma napped
• Hotdogs for dinner
• Bath and now Letter Factory with Big Papa while Mama and Umma go play BINGO.

The fun never ends...

Airplane Ride, A Golf Game, and a Boat Ride

It turns out Alexander is the best traveler.

EVER.

From the start, he was best boy in the airport. Held my hand whenever I asked him too. Never took off running away from me. And even through security, he was SO good. I was actually amazed at how great he was for me. We had to sit in the airport for an hour waiting for our flight and he couldn't get enough of looking at the blue plane with Mickey Mouse and the other Disney Characters painted on it.

On the plane, the good behavior continued. Remember, this is all without a nap. He sat in his carseat and watch Choo-Choo Express, part of Up and one Handy Mandy episode. Only in the last 20 minutes, did I see a meltdown. And let's be realistic, who isn't ready to be off the plane at that point, right?

We ended up back at Big Papa and Umma's house around 10:30 last night. The little guy fell asleep in the car so all I can say is the last numbers I saw on the clock were 11:41 when he crawled out of the playnpak to lay by me. About 20 minutes later, he crawled back to the crib so I think we fell asleep around midnight.

DAY 2: Golf, Sunshine, and a Boat Ride

I'm going to add the second day adventures simply because I'm sitting here with Ron playing Poker and Betsy socializing with friends so I have the time.

Wake up was about 7:30 this morning. One of the nice women in the park brought by golf clubs for the little man. With the weather around 70 degrees, the four of us took off to the golf course (which was more like a little put-put course but someone liked the three holes we "played").

After an attempted nap, which means Papa and Umma napped, I laid in the sun with a cocktail and Alexander played and talked to himself, we took on a boat ride to a floating bar on the Colorado river.

It's now 8:00 Arizona time and the kid crashed around 7PM. Up at 7AM and no nap does that to a kid. Not sure what tomorrow will bring but no doubt it will be filled with fun and more adventure!!