He Said:I'm writing this the next day and they have been loooong days, so let's see - Yesterday we did the early morning admission to Disneyland. We had planned to hit Adventureland, but it was closed. We ended up at the Toy Story ride again. That's fast becoming our favourite. Shannon can be a bit competitive. Another week or so and she might catch up to me. I've been trying to work Ryan up to Pirates and the Haunted Mansion, talking to him about it every day. We managed to get him on Pirates and I thought it went well, but he won't go on it again. Seems to be more about the water splash. But he did it. Mara, Ryan and I had a nap while G and Shan went to the pool. Then we had 5:30 reservations at the Blue Bayou. Once again, I had no appetite. Then we got Ryan on the Haunted Mansion, and he LOVED it. Rode it 3 times in a row. Everybody did. Bit more wandering around, home for the fireworks on the roof (everyone) and bed.
Say what you will about Disneyland, Walt had a vision. Pirates and Haunted Mansion are almost flawless. I'd love to see them with the lights on one time. See what goes on behind them. All in all, the only beef I have with Disneyland really is the drinks. The admission price isn't bad, I feel I get more than my money's worth. The food is on the high end, but usually good. But you'll never convince me that it costs them twice the price for a bottle of pop. That's just gouging. I know movie theatres use the argument that they actually don't make much off the movie, and the concession is their profit. But there's no way you could convince me that's the case for Disney. It's gotta have the buying power of a Walmart. Still, it's easy enough to bring a couple empty bottles and fill them up from the fountains.
And really, if you bring your water in and eat off site, all they're getting is $60 for the day. I know I easily received that much in resources. The line of high fours on the way in, the character poses, the rides, the parades. The shows are just as good as any travelling CBC/Curious George/Dora show I've taken the kids to. They're all polite, friendly, seem genuinely interested in where you're from and how you're doing. And the kids have their dreams fulfilled. Fine, >I< have my dreams fulfilled.
She Said: Much better day. Not so much standing in line in the heat. Being there in the evening is nice. Cooler temperatures, and it seems a little less busy. More teenagers and young adults, but we don't go on the same rides as they do. We're getting smarter about eating out. Sorta. We don't order for Ryan, just an extra plate. Because we're trying not to spend too much and also because we just don't need that much food. Brad is not hungry at "meal time" to eat much, so he and Ryan both just scrounge off of what the girls and I order. We kinda blew it at the Blue Bayou (restaurant at the Pirates ride). The kids drinks came with a plastic cube that glows different colours (for $4 extra), so we had to get 3 of them. Then Ryan lost his 2 minutes after we left. Oh anyway - complain complain. It was a nice day. Mara is dying to see the princesses and especially Merida from brave. The girls have autograph books and it was a great idea. They really seem to treasure the autographs and are very excited about meeting the characters. Ryan doesn't care that he doesn't have a book - he gives the greatest hugs to each character and giggles and smiles and is just awesome. He didn't care about meeting the princesses though.