A Day with Disney

Monday morning dawned sunny and cool.  The blue skies belied the 80% chance of rain in the forecast. Chucking caution to the wind, we headed to The Happiest Place on Earth without our umbrellas or rain jackets.

Two hours later, we were in the middle of a downpour.  I scurried into a shop to buy Disney ponchos at a Disney price.  Tying one over Elizabeth's stroller and giving another to Chad, Joseph and I donned windbreakers and gamely stood in line for Small World.

I'm a native Washingtonian.  If we let a little rain stand in our way, we'd never get anything done.

An hour after it started, the rain cleared up, leaving steaming humidity that turned my hair into a nightmare version of an 80's perm.  Although...now that I think of it...is there any other version?

We stripped off our jackets and ponchos and continued riding the rides.

When we took Joseph to Disneyland for the first time, we spent a great deal of mental energy on determining which ride should be his first.  (And by "we", I mean "me".)  We finally decided to start out with the Jungle Cruise and then continue to Tarzan's Tree House and Dumbo.  We avoided any rides that would scare Joseph and concentrated on the things he likes to do.

Poor Elizabeth...not so much.

Elizabeth's first ride experience was Pirates of the Caribbean.  Strapped to my chest, the little darling stared wide-eyed at pirates, battles and wenches.

Following that, she waited patiently while I took Joseph on Splash Mountain and then joined us on the Pooh Ride.

I'm going to stop right there.  Have any of you been on the Pooh Ride?  It's a crazy psychedelic trip masquerading as a "dream sequence".  The colors are garish, the music frantic and the movement hypnotic.

Elizabeth loved it.

We toured Disneyland, Elizabeth strapped to my chest, Joseph riding in a stroller.  We rode Buzz Lightyear.  Twice.  We bought souveniers.  We ate kebobs in front of a bazaar and rode an elephant named Dumbo.  Halfway through the day, we went back to our hotel and took naps.  Joseph steered a boat through the jungle while the guide snapped out witty dialogue.  Elizabeth danced to the rythms of a jazz band in New Orleans and Chad and I took turns changing diapers.

At the end of the day, I took Elizabeth to get her mouse ears while Chad and Joseph spent quiet time in the theatre, watching black and white movies.  We left the park tired, swollen and sticky.  And happy.

While it was difficult to take pictures with a little princess strapped to my chest, I did get a few good shots while Chad or his parents held her.