My Name is Kris and I Blah-g

Again, the trip to Anaheim was a quick one. But it’s ok. We’re a little weary but the deprivation of sleep was worth it in the end because a glorious time with family in the Happiest Place on Earth was had. Jeff and family arrived in Anaheim a couple hours ahead of us. We flew in late to help curb some of the costs. I was concerned for Mom. She has been having problems with her leg and hip since our trip in early March. I wasn’t sure if she’d be able to enjoy herself much. But she seemed to weather it fine and I think getting to see her grandkids take in all that was Disney made it all worth while.We woke bright and early Monday morning and made it to the free breakfast at 7am. Good thing, too. The breakfast room at the La Quinta filled up quickly. Jeff’s kids eventually filtered into the breakfast room but not much was eaten. Nerves, excitement and anticipation fueled the morning. No amount of corn flakes, imitation orange juice and rubber pancakes were going to help. The kids wanted to get going! We had a nice little hike to the park so we got a head start and decided to wait for Jeff and family to arrive . I was able to capture their first moments in the park, usher them to City Hall for some free buttons and follow them down Main Street hoping to catch their first reactions. Perhaps it was stunned silence. Maybe they didn’t want to cause a scene? But the group was pretty calm and quiet those first steps into the park. Maybe they didn’t know what awaited them? I’m not quite sure. I don’t remember my first time in Disneyland. So I cannot say that I could relate to what they were feeling. What became apparent, however was that the kids were willing to try just about anything and soon, their personal likes/dislikes started to surface.Abby and Enoch wanted it fast and furious. They were abundantly patient when it came to allowing the younger kids a chance to experience some of the tamer attractions. Allie and Maggie were willing to participate in pretty much any activity but clearly preferred the livelier rides. Madelyn is the in-betweener – not quite the older kid but certainly not a little kid, either. Don’t be fooled by her size. She may be the smallest of the bunch but she is no longer a little girl. Her speed was much more in line with the older kids. Emma, having not experienced anything like this before was quite brave. Seeing some of the characters can be kinda creepy for some people. She seemed to enjoy it. Each ride was met with a little cautious curiosity. She tried it and if she didn’t like it, she made it known. I think maybe Sandy was kinda happy to see that her baby was still very much the little girl she hoped she would be and happily obliged when Emma preferred to ride the younger fare. But it didn’t take long for my little dare devil to rub off on her.By the next morning, Michaela and Emma were eagerly hoping to ride some rides together. Alone. NO GROWN UPS! Sandy wasn’t too sure that was a good idea. And I admit that perhaps on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, it could be a little risky having the little ones hang on for their lives by themselves. You slide around a lot on that ride and usually Michaela rides with me. It would be a new experience for me as well but heck, if she can handle Space Mountain, she could handle this. I told Sandy we could ride behind them. It’d be ok. Well, they were fine, of course. Michaela rode with her arms outstretched and freely screaming her head off. I did the same. We made quite the pair. Emma even threw one hand up in the air to show her daring solidarity to her cousin and left the other hand clinging to the lap bar to show her mother that she could follow instructions. Sandy, meanwhile, wrapped both of her hands around Emma’s shoulders. There was no way her baby was going to budge! It was a huge moment – quickly becoming a family classic. This is one memory that I will never forget.The trip was quick. And Michaela was very sad – dare, I say it? She was MAD that we had to leave. As we drove home from the airport last night she asked me, “Why don’t we just move to Disneyland so we never have to leave it?” Sounds like a great idea to me!VIEW THE TRIP PHOTOS