The Buttars: Sayin' It Out Loud: Disneyland 2013!

Sometimes you just want to go to Disneyland. So we planned a trip real quick and went. The one thing I really wanted was to stay close enough to the park to walk, so we could go back to the hotel in the afternoons for naps. Well, we stayed right. across. the. street. It was awesome! We also flew so we could save some time. (And because I couldn't bear the thought of that long drive.)

I think the airport, both going and coming home, was one of the high points of the trip. The boys loved watching the airplanes and yelled, "Take off!" every time one took off.

We got there in the early afternoon, so we headed over to Disneyland after checking into the hotel. The first ride we rode was the Buzz Lightyear ride. This was Davis's favorite from last time and both he and Noah loved it. So it was also our second ride. Then Autopia, Teacups (which is what Davis will say is his favorite ride now that we are home, because it had a "steering wheel" that let him spin it), Dumb, the parade, and Toon Town. Davis absolutely loved the little rollercoaster in Toon Town, and because we were there just before the park closed, there was no line, so he rode it over and over and over again.

(Noah is not happy to be so close to Pluto! Davis wouldn't even get out of the stroller.)

(These are watching the parade, and the top left picture is one of my favorites from the whole trip! Good job, Darren!)

(This is the best picture I could get of the roller coaster, but I had to put it in to remember how much Davis loved it!)

Back to Disneyland on day two. We thought since Davis loved the rollercoaster in Toon Town, he might like the Matterhorn. But I had never ridden it and Darren had forgotten it was scary because of the dark and the things jumping out, so Davis did NOT love the ride. But we rode some other rides, then headed back to the hotel to nap and swim. The boys didn't want to nap, so I napped, then we swam (another highlight of the trip) and headed back to California Adventure. Our first stop was Radiator Springs Racers, which was awesome! Davis got to ride it twice, first with Matt, Amanda, and Darren and second with me. Noah napped in the stroller. In fact, after refusing to nap in a nice comfy bed at the hotel, Noah was asleep in the stroller before we crossed the street going back to the parks! We had dinner with Goofy and lots of fun and stayed up late to watch World of Color (which the boys weren't too impressed with).

(These are all from Tom Sawyer's Island.)

(Noah and I sat on the bridge to save our spot for World of Color for about an hour. Noah had a blast spending a little one on one time with me. He would bring me pretend food from the stroller, then kiss my cheeks and go back for more.)

Day three . . . by then we were exhausted. Late nights, no naps, and lots of walking and playing. We stood in line for Toy Story Mania in California Adventure. Matt and Amanda stayed with the boys while Darren and I rode the big ferris wheel ride, at which point I realized I may be a little afraid of heights. In the afternoon Noah napped in the stroller and we tried to find somewhere cool to spend our time, what with the hot, hot, hot temps. While Matt and Amanda and Darren rode some "grown-up" rides, me and the boys sought out the little kids rides with little or no lines. Even though the park stayed open till midnight, we petered out about 5:30 and headed back to our hotel. We ate dinner at McDonalds (the cheapest meal we ate and the only one the boys actually ate all their food) and went back for swimming and bed.

(Noah loved seeing the characters, but did not want to get too close. This is the only time we stood in line and this was as close as he would get to Mickey. He was content to wave from the stroller and say hello whenever we passed a character.)