Disneyland--birthday edition

After a short weekend in San Diego, we woke up at the crack of dawn Monday morning to head up to Anaheim.  After grabbing breakfast, we loaded up our trusty double stroller and headed to Disney!

Day 1

On our way in to the park!

Jake new exactly where we were going, and was trying to get Mia psyched. :)

Happy kids!!!! 

(and happy pregnant momma in her leggings and birkenstocks. I looked so good. lol)

We were able to do pretty much everything that we wanted within those three days (the parks weren't too crowded).  But we definitely spent as much time as possible in the new Cars Land at California Adventure!  It really felt like we were in Radiator Springs!!!

Waiting in line to meet Mater

Getting a drink and some ice cream at the "Cozy Cone".  Darling little place.

Wesley was really strict about not wanting me to carry Mia unless it was absolutely necessary, so that I could last walking around all day with my 26 weeks pregnant self.  So he and Mia had lot's and lots of time to bond :)

She loves her daddy!!

Waiting to ride Luigi's.

Can you tell he's a little excited!?

Each day we timed a long walk from one park to the other for right around nap time so the kids could pass out for an hour or two.  Then we'd find a nice bit of shade to sit and relax. :)

After nap time, we met up with Wes's cousin Angela and her little family.  They have annual passes (lucky!!) Jake and Mia loved having 2 more buddies to run around with.  A few times, the big kids wanted to ride without adults, and Mia wanted to hang with Angela, so Wes and I rode on our own!

That first night, we got tired pretty early after starting out our morning in San Diego, so we left the park before it closed.  After getting checked into our hotel, we headed to the nearby Red Robin for dinner.  It felt so good to sit down.  Great service, yummy food, and the kids ate a ton.  (nothing like a day at the parks to work up an appetite.)

Can you tell that Mia was pretty tired? :)

Day 2

Tuesday morning we got up bright and early to go wait in line for the parks to open.  Jake had been talking non stop about wanting to ride on the "Radiator Springs Racers".  This happens to currently be the most popular ride at Disney, so we had to line up outside of California Adventure, and then hurry inside to line up again just to get a fast pass for the actual ride line.  Lot's of hassle, but totally worth it.  

Unfortunately, Jake was terrified after his first time riding it.  We were so sad for him, because that ride was the main reason he'd wanted to come to Disney in the first place!

But he conquered his fear, and rode it a couple times that day.  We let him choose a souvenir, and he picked a little die cast car that looked just like that Racer Ride.  Mia chose a stuffed Mcqueen car.  (why is she such a tomboy? lol)

Next up, we waited in line to meet McQueen.  The kids were so star struck.  They were literally shaking with joyful anticipation when their turn was up next.  Then Mia gave McQueen a tender hug. hahaa.

Say cheese!

Speaking of star struck, Mia was so excited to meet all her favorite characters.  Although she doesn't really play with dolls (preferring to play cars with her brother 99% of the time), she is actually pretty into Minnie and Daisy.

Picture perfect ;)

Riding Dumbo!

The kids really liked the personal pizzas in Toon Town.  We ended up getting one for them every day!

We got lucky with our timing, and landed front/center seats for the Disney Junior stage show.  The tricky part was keeping Mia from climbing up and joining the puppets... :/

I love my little family!!!

Mia got a little sleepy on the train ride.  Good thing she had her daddy, and trusty mcQueen to keep her comfy! ;)

Jake wasn't quite as excited to meet characters as Mia this time.. (so sad that he's getting older!!!!)  But he still thought Goofy was pretty awesome.

Who's the photo crasher!?!?

:)

That evening we had a quick dinner in Cars Land (It looked amazing with all the neon lights!!) and then headed over to Paradise Pier for the World of Color show.

I've gotta say, the kids were total troopers for being up past bed time every night!

Winding down in the hotel before bed :)

Day 3

We started out day 3 at Ca Adventure.  I got in line for Radiator Springs Racer fast passes again while Wesley rode Toy Story Mania with Jake.

Then we rode it again!  (By the way, between utilizing "kid swap", the kids were able to ride most everything twice in a row, and at the beginning of the trip I got a "stroller pass".. since I was pregnant with 2 kids, I was able to get this magical pass that let me take my stroller into every line.. and the lines that didn't fit my stroller--We didn't have to wait at all!!! how awesome is that!?!?)

By the third day, Jake decided that the Racers wasn't a scary ride after all.  We were happy that he was  brave enough to try again, and we could tell how proud he was of himself for conquering his fear.  Way to go Kiddo!!

See!?! happy faces all around! :)

One more time on the flying tires!

Cute Jakey.

My top 2 favorite things about our trip

1.  seeing our kids joyfully experiencing the magic of Disney...

2.   and the food.

Wes and I have been working hard to eat healthy (especially during my pregnancy), but we pretty much threw that out the window for our vacation.  We made it fun to try as many different venues as possible while we were there.. ordering less at a time, sharing a yummy treat here and there--Just so that we'd have room to try something new a little while later!  We definitely made some great discoveries!!

On day 3, we spent the kids nap time in New Orleans Square.  I felt like each nap was a little mini-date for Wes and I.  On that day, we shared a pile of fish and chips, and then headed over to the French Market for some Mickey shaped beignets.  (Thanks for the tip Angela!!!)

Seriously.. they were To. Die. For.

I so loved this trip with Wes.  It reminded me how much I love him, and that he really is my best friend!!!!

After naps we headed back to Toon Town one last time, so the kids could finally go meet Mickey.  Jake made sure to swap out his Cars hat for his Mickey ears while we were there! ;)

Seriously could this be any cuter???

It's not a trip to Disney without a ride on Small World. 

lol, Mia's face.

Casey Jr!

That night we headed back to Cars Land to say goodbye.  10 minutes before the park closed we stopped by the Little Mermaid ride.  The thing never had a line, and we'd ridden it at least 10 times over the 3 days.  Jake and Mia really loved that one (especially Mia).  Since there was no line, we rode twice without even getting off.

As we loaded up the stroller to head back to our hotel, I could tell that Jake was quietly struggling.  When we left the park, I looked at him and noticed that he had tears rolling down his cheeks.  He'd had such an amazing time, and was heartbroken that it was over.  I knew just how he felt.  This was really the first vacation we've taken with only our little family, and I'm so glad that we did it.  Spending that one on one time with the kids made us all a little closer, and I could tell that Wesley's relationship with them was stronger.  He's not around Jake and Mia as much as I am, and I knew that their time together had been extra special.

I'm so grateful that we were able to do this with the kids before life gets super crazy again.

The next morning, Jake put on a happy face as we packed up the car and headed back home.  When we got there he told us how he'd had so much fun, but was excited to see his toys and room again.  And that's really the secret to life right?  Being grateful for the magical memories, looking forward to great ones in the future, while always remembering the blessings in our everyday lives :)  

Wow, that post was long.  Can't believe you just read the entire thing ;)