The summer after we got married we planned a big trip to Vegas and California and we spent a couple days at Disneyland. Ever since that trip, there hasn't really been a vacation we've had that we loved more-- so we made it a goal to go back again! So a couple of weeks ago we headed down to Vegas, spent the weekend with Paul's parents and then left the boys Sunday night and just the two of us drove off to Disneyland. We were gone Sunday night til Wednesday afternoon. Thanks a MILLION again to Mark and Jan for taking the boys for a few days!!! I was a pretty terrified mom because Blake was refusing bottles, but just leave it to Grammy and Granddad to make it work. They claim that the boys were "angels" the whole time. We did miss them and kept tons of things in mind for when we go back in a couple of years with both boys, but for now- it was fun to be selfish and have a trip to ourselves. It was sooo fun!
Ah here we are at the beginning of our first day. Paul was so excited he woke up and he said he felt totally refreshed and ready to get going, then looked at the clock and it was 3:30 in the morning. Pretty cute how anxious he was. We did some speed walking to the park to get there right when it opened. It really felt like Christmas morning.
Since we went the week before Halloween it was all decked out in Halloween decor and we were just ecstatic as we walked down Main Street and caught the Disney spirit. From that moment on... Paul planned out every single minute of the 2 days we were there. Not even kidding. He whipped out the maps and started planning where to go first, which fast pass to grab, then how much time we'd have before our next one etc. etc. He made sure we got the most out of the trip as possible and wow, he ran me ragged. At the end of the first day I thought I was going to die. We never took a single break, not for lunch or anything. We ate snacks in lines and ran from place to place. It was exhausting but that's what makes it so fun and memorable too so I wouldn't change it. 
The haunted mansion is a big deal around Halloween. They convert everything into the Nightmare before Christmas. The line here was long but thankfully we got a fast pass the 2nd time around. It was fun to see everything so festive.
A random photo of Paul and this spooky lady :)
We actually went in the castle this time around. We have both been to Disneyland several times and neither of us could ever remember actually walking through the castle, all the little Sleeping Beauty storybooks were fun to see but we were on a schedule people... 5 minutes tops. 
We opted for the whole park hopper pass and I am really glad! We got to go on a lot more there that we'd never been on before. Here I am at the entrance with the lovely "N"
and here's Paul, trying to cover up the right part of the "R" so it would look like a "P"
On the second day we went straight over to California adventure as soon as it opened and RAN to California Screamin' and the new Toy Story ride. We even got in trouble from a worker there, that told us to slow down. I LOVED California Screamin'. We went on it 8 times, 5 on the second day. It was the best roller coaster I've ever been on. I even had a dream I was on it last night. Ahhh. It's behind us and to the left here.
The other really fun ride here was this fairly new toy story one. It's in 4-D and you play all these carnival games and compete against each other. It was really fun, too bad everyone else thought so too- we only went twice before the line got too bad.
I think we'd both agree that one of the best memories we'll have was our escapades on Splash Mountain. We realized that first night that after about 7 at night NO ONE goes on Splash Mountain because they don't want to get cold and wet at night. What we learned is since no one else wants to ride, they will give you your own log, and if you sit in the middle 2 seats you don't get wet. They let us stay on as many times as we wanted til the ride closed and we didn't have to get off. We rode the ride 9 times in the 2 days and it was SO fun. I will admit I was scared the first time or two but after that we just had so much fun trying to make funny faces for the photos and singing along with all the songs. We were the very last ride of the night on Tuesday and when we came out of the ride the park was pretty much empty, pretty cool. This is us just chillin in the log :)
Ah here we are at the beginning of our first day. Paul was so excited he woke up and he said he felt totally refreshed and ready to get going, then looked at the clock and it was 3:30 in the morning. Pretty cute how anxious he was. We did some speed walking to the park to get there right when it opened. It really felt like Christmas morning.
Since we went the week before Halloween it was all decked out in Halloween decor and we were just ecstatic as we walked down Main Street and caught the Disney spirit. From that moment on... Paul planned out every single minute of the 2 days we were there. Not even kidding. He whipped out the maps and started planning where to go first, which fast pass to grab, then how much time we'd have before our next one etc. etc. He made sure we got the most out of the trip as possible and wow, he ran me ragged. At the end of the first day I thought I was going to die. We never took a single break, not for lunch or anything. We ate snacks in lines and ran from place to place. It was exhausting but that's what makes it so fun and memorable too so I wouldn't change it. 
The haunted mansion is a big deal around Halloween. They convert everything into the Nightmare before Christmas. The line here was long but thankfully we got a fast pass the 2nd time around. It was fun to see everything so festive.
A random photo of Paul and this spooky lady :)
We actually went in the castle this time around. We have both been to Disneyland several times and neither of us could ever remember actually walking through the castle, all the little Sleeping Beauty storybooks were fun to see but we were on a schedule people... 5 minutes tops. 
We opted for the whole park hopper pass and I am really glad! We got to go on a lot more there that we'd never been on before. Here I am at the entrance with the lovely "N"
and here's Paul, trying to cover up the right part of the "R" so it would look like a "P"
On the second day we went straight over to California adventure as soon as it opened and RAN to California Screamin' and the new Toy Story ride. We even got in trouble from a worker there, that told us to slow down. I LOVED California Screamin'. We went on it 8 times, 5 on the second day. It was the best roller coaster I've ever been on. I even had a dream I was on it last night. Ahhh. It's behind us and to the left here.
The other really fun ride here was this fairly new toy story one. It's in 4-D and you play all these carnival games and compete against each other. It was really fun, too bad everyone else thought so too- we only went twice before the line got too bad.
I think we'd both agree that one of the best memories we'll have was our escapades on Splash Mountain. We realized that first night that after about 7 at night NO ONE goes on Splash Mountain because they don't want to get cold and wet at night. What we learned is since no one else wants to ride, they will give you your own log, and if you sit in the middle 2 seats you don't get wet. They let us stay on as many times as we wanted til the ride closed and we didn't have to get off. We rode the ride 9 times in the 2 days and it was SO fun. I will admit I was scared the first time or two but after that we just had so much fun trying to make funny faces for the photos and singing along with all the songs. We were the very last ride of the night on Tuesday and when we came out of the ride the park was pretty much empty, pretty cool. This is us just chillin in the log :)
Here's Paul getting ready for the big drop
And here's the official Splash Mtn photo. One of 9 I guess. Whoever thought of taking pictures of these pictures with your phone or camera was a genius!
Overall, Our trip was a blast. In my dreams we'll take the boys for their first time in 2 years but who knows where we'll be or what life will hold two years from now. Some other memories of the trip...-65 total rides
-trying to scope out the LDS people everywhere we went, it's like where's waldo, and isn't it funny that EVERYONE wears a BYU t-shirt to Disneyland? I even debated wearing mine :)
-the halloween themed fireworks display
-walking to and from the park
-riding in the front car multiple times at California Screamin and Space Mtn, it really does make all the difference!
-getting back to the hotel to find emails loaded with pictures of our cute boys having fun with Grammy and Granddad
-getting stuck on Indiana Jones for a second time
-re-living every ride as we recounted the entire trip on our drive back to vegas
-realizing I never want girls (we got stuck behind so many teenage girls in line, and the things they talk about- oh my goodness!!)
-looking over at Paul in Space Tours and seeing him grinning from ear to ear like a little kid
-putting my seat belt through the loop in California Soarin thats only supposed to be for kids under like 4 feet
-laughing hysterically when Paul tried to hi-five the worker on the bumper cars, (he thought he was supposed to b/c everyone else was doing it) only to get rejected
-trying to balance two bowls, two cups, utencils, and donuts up to our room from the continental breakfast
-and the list goes on....
