Bippity Boppity Blog - A day in Disneyland

The little bit of rain that I was hoping for drenched us twice in the early morning, but also kept the crowds down to a dull roar (something less than the average 41,000 per day). It of course abated right after we spent $30 on ponchos, but per our guide book, they make lovely souvenirs.

We'd read up and planned our trip to hit rides early, leave for nap and come back refreshed (a must for all after our night in Santa Monica at The Hotel California, which felt a little like the song - we had a hellish night due to a overactive real gas flame heater in the room cooking us to 85+ at 2:30 in the morning, dragging my self awake to hobble over to the concierge just to find out how to turn it off).

We got soaked as we waited to get in to the park, and again on one of the outside rides (Autopia), but for a rare moment, Kieran did not care as he got to "drive the car".

Going to an amusement park as an adult can be fun, but going with your own kids is mindbogglingly better. I was last in Disneyland some 15-16 years ago. As an adult in a place like Disney, it is too easy to look past the glitz and illusions and miss the whole thing. But with a child in tow, looking to you to make it all real, its a vortex of fun ... every new turn is a new moment to revel in.

Throughout the day, Brian and I playfully vied with each other for the fun of riding with Kieran - it just made the whole place sparkle. Granted there were a bunch of new rides that Disney has added in the intervening years, but being there with the these two - WOW. Even Akira, who on many of the rides was alternately terrified (shown left) yet begging for more (actually signing "more" furiously as she let out wee wails), quickly learned that queuing up lead to more rides and would pull us toward lines with more-more-more.

Kieran was so enthralled with the mini rollercoaster that he begged to be taken on a big one. We picked the lowest key of the large roller coasters, and I got the honor of co-riding. We put our hands in the air and screamed our loudest screams together (it was brilliant). He did NOT want to go on with Brian a second time, but couldn't stop talking about it either.

We dragged Kieran out at 11 pm. By that point, the dogs were barking furiously, and it wasn't Goofy or Pluto.

In case you are wondering about the blog title, this is the song that the Fairy Godmother sings to Cinderella:

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