Disneyland February 2020 - Day 6

Family picture on in a Tea Cup

Day 6 - Saturday

• Peter Pan - Saturday was another early entry day at Disneyland.  I was pretty worried about it because of the previous Disneyland days did not go the way they should have.  This one was different.  There were cast members ensuring people were in the right lines and also turning away people that were not hotel guests.  This made the park much less busy and the way it should have gone.  We also got there a little earlier and had figured out our schedule better.  We went straight to Fantasyland and checked Peter Pan.  There was a much shorter line so we hoped in.  We only waited about 25 minutes.  During our wait, we tried out the Disney Play app.  I had used it off and on through our trip and it was ok.  It was really fun during the Peter Pan queue.  It was a scavenger hunt and it unlocked visual items in the queue.  Pretty cool.  The ride was great as usual.  I went with Ellie and she really enjoyed it.

• Alice - After Peter Pan, we wanted to try Alice in Wonderland.  We hadn't ridden it yet and we missed it the last trip so I wanted to do it.  This was our chance.  We waited about 25 minutes here as well.  What a great ride.  We really enjoy this one too.

• Tea cups - When we got out of Alice, there was no line for the tea cups so we hoped on.  I really enjoyed riding this with all 4 of us.  So much fun.  Ellie loves it and Grady found that he really liked it too.  This was one that he got off the ride and said "FUN!".  During the ride I tried to get a boarding pass for Rise of the Resistance, but didn't get one.  We heard lottery cheering around the park though.  What a weird experience.

• Toad - We also hadn't ridden Mr. Toad's Wild Ride so we tried it next.  There was not a very long line here either.  This ride is ok.  Not my favorite, but a good dark ride.  Grady didn't know what to think about it.

• Red rose tavern - We were getting hungry so we decided to try Red Rose Tavern.  Grady was becoming a bear again so we just got food and ate.  We all really enjoyed it.  Grady didn't eat much, but my hash was really good and Lisa's french toast was good too.

• Dumbo fail - We then tried to ride Dumbo, but Grady was melting down.  We got out of line and went somewhere else.

• Indy - We had got a Fast Pass for Indiana Jones, but it was down, so we got a Fast Pass for any ride.  While we were trying to decide what to do, Indy came back online so we went and did it.  I love this ride.  Ellie did it for the first time and she did pretty good.  I was worried she would be scared, but she did really well.  Sam stayed out with the boys and the rest of us rode it.

• Haunted mansion exhibit and characters - After Indy, it started raining so we went back to main street to walk through some shops.  We decided to get a couple of treats at the candy shop and I got some popcorn for the kids.  We then walked through the shops and Grady fell asleep.

• Magical map and chimichanga - I wanted to walk through the Disney Gallery and as we walked through we saw Mickey.  That was a surprise.  We got to take a picture with him.  Then we found a Haunted Mansion exhibit which was really interesting.  Then we saw Cinderella, but she was leaving so we didn't get a picture.  Next to Cinderella was Goofy and Pluto and we got pictures with them.  This was a cool experience.  We were just trying to get out of the rain and ended up finding a Haunted Mansion exhibit and characters.  Pretty cool.  After that we walked through the park and I got a chimichanga by the Matterhorn.  I took it with us to see Mickey and the Magical Map.  This is a cute show that gave us some down time and a snack.  The kids enjoyed the show too.

• Small world - Next we rode small world again.  We all love this ride.

• Nemo sub and space mountain - We got a Fast Pass for Space Mountain since we hadn't done it.  Ellie and Lisa went first.  I went to ride the Nemo submarine with Grady.  I thought we would enjoy it but come to find out we are both claustrophobic.  It was not great.  Too contained and not enough to see.  I don't need to do this again.  After that, I got to ride Space Mountain with Ellie.  It was fun.

• Shopping - After that, we went across to DCA and did some shopping.  The kids got some good stuff (crocs, a sweatshirt and a couple other things).

• Monsters - We got a Fast Pass to ride Monsters since we hadn't been able to do it yet.  We really love this ride and found that Grady really liked it too.  He was pointing and waving at the characters and then he said "FUN!" at the end again.  

• Carousel - Next we were going to ride the Incredicoaster, but the wait time was longer than the app said it was so we rode the Critter Carousel.  This was a hit with the kids.

• Lisa Ellie Guardians - Lisa had not ridden Guardians of the Galaxy so we got a Fast Pass and she and Ellie went to ride it.  I waited with Grady, but it started raining so we went into the shop and waited.  He had fun seeing and playing iwth the stuff in the shop.  When they were done, we had to hurry across to Disneyland for dinner.

• Dinner - Carnation Cafe didn’t work out for us, Grady and rain; went to Red Rose Tavern - We got to Carnation Cafe and since it was raining there were no tables.  They finally told us they could not seat us inside and if it rained we would be stuck outside.  Grady was already getting antsy and I was not going to deal with him at another long meal.  We split up and my family left, my brother's family stayed and ate there.  We ended up at Red Rose Tavern.  It was ok.  We were so tired at this point.  Mine and Lisa's feet were so sore and tired we just enjoyed sitting for a while.

• Smuggler’s run x 2 - After dinner I saw on the app that Smuggler's Run had a relatively short line so we headed that way and told my brother's family to meet us.  Once we got there, Lisa stayed with Grady and the rest of us got in line.  We didn't wait too long, maybe 10 minutes and all 6 of us got to ride together.  There were enough that we filled a cockpit.  It was so much fun.  This is a ride that you have to have a group that you are familiar with to make the best of it.  We had a blast.  After that, we traded Spence, Sam and Crosby for Lisa (because Crosby didn't like it) and we rode again.  Ellie loved this ride.  We had fun again.  Not quite the same because there was 4 of us instead of 6, but still a lot of fun.

• Fantasmic / Mix Magic with Dole Whip - Next we walked back through Star Wars land and toward Critter Country.  When we got there, Fantasmic was going so we stopped and watched a little.  Then we walked back toward Main Street, stopping at the Tropical Hideaway for one last Dole Whip) and stopped at the end of Main Street to watch Mickey's Mix Magic with fireworks.  The kids were asleep so we just stopped and ate our Dole Whip while watching the show.  We didn't want to leave, but it was a great way to end our trip.

Fantasyland during Extra Magic Hours

Surprise!  We found Mickey trying to get out of the rain.

Peter Pan and Characters

Meeting Goofy and Pluto

Cute kids in front of it's a small world

Getting ready to ride Monsters Inc

Meeting Groot

An Incredible family!

Riding the Critter Carousel

Walking around after a rain shower.

Full group riding Smuggler's Run

We tried to make it last as long as possible.  None of us wanted to leave.

Disneyland February 2020 - Day 5

Sleeping Beauty Castle in her full glory.

Day 5 - Friday

• Incredicoaster - We started the day at DCA because it opened early.  It was a pretty easy entry.  I got down early and got in line with Grady.  Ellie and Lisa caught up.  I got drinks for everyone before we went into the park.  Ellie wanted to ride the Incredicoaster, so we got a FastPass and did Rider Swap with her.  She loved that ride.  It was so cute.

• Inside out - After Incredicoaster, we decided to just wander through the park and do what we wanted and it came up, so the next ride we walked by was the Emotional Whirlwind.  We did stop at Bing Bong's on the way, which is a really cute store.  The Emotional Whirlwind is much better in the morning with no line and no sun.  It was fun.

• Swings - Next, Ellie and Lisa did the Silly Symphony Swings and Jumpin' Jellyfish.  They both enjoyed them.  There was no line so they just hopped on.  They had not done the Silly Symphony Swings and they both liked it.

• Zephyr - Next was the Golden Zephyr.  We had not done this ride before so we decided to do it.  There was no line again so we hopped right on.  We all enjoyed it.  It was almost too much height for me, but I made it.

• Ariel - After that, we completed the circle and rode Ariel.  There was no line again and since we could all do it, we did.  A cute fun ride as always.

• Meet Mickey - Lisa was hungry and we wanted to try and ride Monsters so we walked back around to the front of the park.  When passed the fountain on Buena Vista Street and saw characters out.  Then we saw my brother's family waiting to meet Mickey.  We joined them and got a couple really good family pictures with Mickey.  

• Donald donut - After seeing Mickey, we went to Schmoozies! to look for their specialty donut.  We were lucky enough to get the last one and man it was huge.  It was Donald Duck tail and feat on a cronut filled with lemon and blueberry jellies.  It was really good.  Ellie loved it.

• Ellie and Lisa - Radiator Springs - We got a Fast Pass for Radiator Springs Racers and Ellie and Lisa got in line to do it.  They were in line quite a while so we didn't get to use our rider swap.

• Zack - Ghirardelli coffee - While Ellie and Lisa rode Radiator Springs Racers, I went with Grady to get a coffee.  I have wanted to get a coffee from Ghiradrdelli for a couple of years and this was finally my chance.  I ordered a mocha because I had heard the chocolate in the mocha was really good.  I let it cool a little (as some of you know, I can't drink really hot coffee) and it was SO good.  This was almost a hot chocolate with a little coffee.  I will get it again.

• Zack and Ellie - incredicoaster - It was almost time for brunch at Lamplight Lounge, but there was no line at the Incredicoaster.  Ellie and I went over and rode it before lunch.  That ride is so much fun with her.

• Lisa - check in to lunch, Grady fell off table - While we were riding Incredicoaster, Lisa took Grady to check in to Lamplight Lounge for brunch.  They seated her and my brothers family and when Ellie and I got there, Lisa came out with Grady from the bathroom.  Come to find out, he was standing on the chair at our table and fell and hit is chin on the table and started bleeding.  It wouldn't be a Disney trip without one of our kids bleeding.  When they got back, I took Grady (because Lisa was pretty frustrated with him) and I couldn't get him to calm down and sit.  It was naptime and he hadn't eaten much.  So I left with Grady.  

• Zack take Grady to hotel for nap, Lisa and Ellie ate - I put Grady in the stroller and went straight back to the hotel and to our room.  He cried and screamed all the way back until we were almost to the room and he finally calmed down.  When I got to the hotel, 2-3 people in the security area said "Oh!  It must be nap time!".  Yep, it was.  Now, Grady had been napping in the stroller and sleeping in the bed with LIsa.  He didn't fight me getting ready for a nap, he seemed ok with that, but he wanted to sleep on the bed and that wasn't going to happen.  He got our of his pack-n-play 4 times before he finally gave up and fell asleep.  Meanwhile, Lisa and Ellie had a wonderful relaxing brunch at Lamplight Lounge.  Ellie at all of her french toast and said it was really good.  Lisa got chilaquilas and a mimosa flight.  She really took advantage of the situation.  She did bring me leftovers of the chilaquilas and they were really good.  After brunch, they did some rides including Goofy's Sky School.  I was sitting on the balcony and I could see the ride so we waved at each other when they were on the ride.  It was kinda cool.

• Grady lunch - Ellie Grizzly - Grady slept for a little over an hour and then Lisa and Ellie came up to change clothes and get us.  Ellie put her water clothes on and rode Grizzly River Run with Spencer and the cousins.  Lisa, Sam and I stayed with Grady.  Grady wanted a hot dog to eat so I went to Award Wieners and got him the kids hot dog.  This was the cutest little hot dog and it came with a milk and an orange.  Grady at the whole meal.  He was a new little person after his nap and a meal.

• Disneyland - We decided to go across the esplanade to Disneyland for the evening.  We wanted to do some more rides there and try to see Fantasmic. 

• Big thunder - First, we got a Fast Pass for Big Thunder Mountain.  Ellie loved that ride.  It is so much fun with her.  The pictures of her on this ride show why you take kids to Disney parks.

• Pirates - Next we rode Pirates of the Caribbean because the line was pretty short.  This was the first time Grady had been on it and he was really cute.  He sat on my lap and didn't know the drops were coming so he grabbed on to me and put his hands out because he felt like he was falling.  Both kids enjoyed this ride a lot.  We found that Grady learned to say "pirates" too.

• Matterhorn - Then we got a Fast Pass for the Matterhorn.  When we came out of Pirates, everything was all wet.  Come to find out, it had rained quite a bit while we were on Pirates.  Thankfully we covered the strollers and they weren't wet inside.  We went to ride Matterhorn and it sprinkled a couple times while doing that.  Ellie did not remember this ride from last time, but she really liked it.  She even said the Yeti wasn't scary, which was good to hear.  I thought he was a little scary.

• Dinner - plaza inn - After Matterhorn, it was getting dark and it seemed like a good time for dinner.  We went to the Plaza Inn.  I really like this place.  I got the fried chicken again and it was delicious.  Lisa got it too and really liked it.  Ellie got pasta and really liked it.  Grady again was a pain at meal time.  He wouldn't sit in his chair or eat.  I at fast so I could watch him and then we left.  It was something.  After dinner Grady was eating a carrot and apparently he choked on it a little and threw up.  Yuck.  It was on him and on the stroller.  

• Rain - After dinner, it started raining again so we walked toward Adventureland to walk through the shops in Adventureland and Frontierland.  These are some unique shops rather than the same-old same-old stuff in the parks.

• Jungle cruise - We also found there was no line for Jungle Cruise, so we parked the strollers in the covered parking out of the rain and got on the ride.  I like this ride all the time (especially at Disneyland) and it is a different experience at night.  Grady wasn't sure about it at night.  

• Pirates - After Jungle Cruise, we went to meet my brother's family to watch Fantasmic.  They found a really good spot and we holding space for us.  We still had about an hour before the show started and Pirates was only 25 minutes.  Most of us decided to go and ride it so we left my brother with his son and the strollers to hold spots.  We got a little nervous in line because he was texting us saying to hurry because people were trying to crowd into our spot.  The 3 strollers helped a lot to hold spots.  We all enjoyed the ride and Grady did even better his second time.  He kept saying "Pirates!" throughout the ride.  It was cute. 

• Fantasmic - When we got done with the ride we rushed back to our spots and there was still enough space for us.  We did spread ourselves out as much as we could to make sure no one crowded in around us.  It worked really well and there was a rope behind us so the cast members kept anyone from crowding us since there was a walkway behind us.  The show started and it was great.  The one catch was the dragon wasn't working so we didn't get to see it.  After Fantasmic they play Mickey's Mix Magic in the same spot so we stayed and watched it.  Ellie and Crosby went to sleep in the strollers, but Riley and Grady were dancing like crazy to the show.  They were fun to watch.

• Beignets - We were going to get beignets before the show to eat during it, but the line was long and we didn't want to lose our spot.  We got some after the show and took them back to the hotel to eat them in the lobby.  It was a nice end to another full fun and challenging day.

Morning fun in Paradise Park at DCA

Ellie and her giant delicious donut

A beautiful morning at Pixar Pier

E-Ticket Rides in the Morning

Radiator Springs on the way to a delicious Ghirardelli coffee

Brunch at Lamplight Lounge

Nap time at the hotel

Kids and their favorite castle

So much fun on Big Thunder Mountain

My family enjoying Fantasmic

Disneyland February 2020 - Day 4

Pixar Pier after World of Color.  BEST NIGHT SHOW EVER!

Day 4 - Thursday

• Easy security, stupid park entry - We got up early again to get to the park at opening.  Today we started at Disneyland for early entry.  The Downtown Disney security was quick, we got there pretty early.  Then when we got to the park entrance the lines were crazy.  We couldn't figure out where the Extra Magic Hour line was, which is for resort guests only. We thought we found it and were ready to go in at opening.  When the gates opened ALL gates opened.  This was weird.  Then there is supposed to be a rope and room key check at the end of Main Street, but it was not there.  They were allowing everyone through.  I was not happy.  I was frustrated at the gate because we were staying at their premiere hotel, and did not recieve one of the big benefits of staying there.  Then when our room key was supposed to be checked, it wasn't.  We should have slept in and gone to DCA to avoid the crowd.  I hate to admit, but I kind of vented to a cast member when we switch parks later in the day.  It really tainted the day for me.  When we got to Fantasyland there was already a 30 min wait for Peter Pan and Alice.  That means they let too many people in.  Dumb.

• Dumbo - Since Peter Pan and Alice were busy, we decided to ride Dumbo.  Grady loves Dumbo and the line was pretty short.  The kids both wanted to ride with Lisa so I rode by myself.  We love this ride.

• Tea cups - After that, we walked toward Alice to check the wait and it was too long.  There was no one in line for the tea cups so we hoped on.  This is such a great ride that we can all do.  It was fun to get us all in one cup.  Ellie and Grady had a lot of fun together on it.

• Galaxy Edge fail - After that, we met up with my brother's family and went to go to Galaxy's Edge when the full park opened.  We did not anticipate how many people would line up to get in.  We waited until rope drop and then got stuck in the hoard, so we backed out.  Seemed like our plans were not working this day.

• Casey Jr - We had not ridden the Casey Jr train before and between not doing and Grady's love of both Dumbo and trains, we had to do it.  We didn't wait too long and we all fit on one seat of the caboose.  It was a really cute ride.  You get to see all of the Canal Boats miniatures and they play the Casey Jr song through the ride.  It was cute and we were glad we did it.

• Galactic grill - I think we have  talked about it before, but we found Grady gets HANGRY!  We wanted to eat at Galactic Grill because the breakfast burritos were delicious.  Ellie got a breakfast sandwich and Grady got a snack pack.  He didn't eat very much unfortunately and wouldn't stay seated.  He was a lot of fun at meal time (can you sense the sarcasm).  The burritos were delicious and Ellie did really good with her sandwich.

• Space Mountain - Next we had a FastPass for Space Mountain.  Lisa and Ellie went first.  I stayed with Grady and then we switched.  This is one fo the best and Ellie found she really liked this ride this year.

• DCA - Disneyland was busy and we were having lunch at Wine Country Trattoria so we needed to head over there.  We also found we could get better FastPass options at DCA.

• Incredicoaster - I booked a FastPass for Incredicoaster.  On the walk to DCA, Grady fell asleep so we traded riding with Ellie and sitting with Grady.  I loved doing this ride with Ellie.  She loved it and was so cute riding it.

• Cookie num num - After the Incredicoaster, we got a Cookie Num Num.  That is a delicious cookie.  We "shared" it, but Ellie ate most of it.

• Shopping - We walked through so shops while Grady slept.  We went through the shops on Buena Vista Street again.  The kids ended up using their gift cards and own money to buy a plush each.  Ellie got a baby Minnie and Grady got a baby Dumbo.  They were pretty cute.  

• Ariel - We rode Ariel's ride and Grady was so cute on it.  He waved at all of the characters, even Ursula.  It was really cute.  We were really glad that he enjoyed the dark rides as my nephew has a lot of trouble with them.

• Zack - walk to Rise, ride down, walk back for lunch - After Ariel, we had got a boarding group for Rise of the Resistance that morning and our group was called so I headed back to Disneyland to meet my brother and his family there.  I stopped on the way and got a blue milk.  It was really pretty good.  I that it tasted like the blue part of a Bomb Pop.  It was a little coconutty.  We got to the ride and it was down.  Darn it.  We headed back to meet Lisa, Sam and the kids for lunch.  Wow, that was a lot of walking.

• Lisa and kids - inside out - While I went to try and ride Rise of the Resistance, Lisa took the kids to ride the Inside Out Emotional Whirlwind.  Lisa did not enjoy it.  I think mostly because they had to wait in the hot sun and then it was a really short line.  

• Lunch - good but slow - Lunch was at Wine Country Trattoria because we wanted to do a World of Color dining meal to get a better spot to watch World of Color.  We have done this before and it is 100% worth it.  The spot to watch the show is so much better.  Lunch was really good too.  The pasta was delicious and you could tell it was made there.  It was a 3 course lunch and it was extremely slow.  If we are with just adults, I'm ok with that.  We had 4 smallish kids and that doesn't work.  The kids actually did really well considering how long it took.  The service was ok, but the food was really good.  I don't recall what we all had.  I had linguine and clams.  Ellie had the kids spaghetti.  

• Zack - Walk to Rise - down again, Smuggler’s single rider - After lunch we found that Rise of the Resistance was open again.  So my brother, my niece and I headed back to Galaxy's Edge to try again.  Since I had done this before I decided to track the walk on my Garmin watch to see how far and how many steps.  Come to find out, it was 3/4 of a mile and around 2,000 steps, just to get there.  I went there, and back, and then there and back.  We got there and the ride was down again.  We didn't get to ride it this day.  So I walked back to find Lisa and the kids.  Oh, before I walked back, I stopped and rode Smuggler's Run through the single rider line.  The line was not very long, but I wasn't sure when and if I'd get to ride so I hoped on.  It was about 10 min and then I was in the Millennium Falcon.  Holy S%$#!  It was so cool.  You are given a job for your crew and then you wait in the main area of the Falcon.  Then when you crew color is called, you get to go into the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon.  It was so cool.  The ride itself was fine.  Part of the problem is there are 6 jobs and the ride is best if you all work together.  I was with a family of 4, 2 of them pushed their buttons and then it was me and another single rider.  Fun, but much better for a group.

• Lisa and kids - Ariel & play - While we were trying to ride Rise of the Resistance, Lisa went to ride Ariel with the kids and then they played around the area of Ariel.

• Ellie Lisa - Soarin’ - When I got back from my "walk", she and Ellie went to ride Soarin'.  They love that ride.

• Zack Grady - Ariel, boats & redwood creek - While the girls were riding Soarin', I had Grady.  He did not want to sit in the stroller anymore so I decided we needed to find something to do.  We rode Ariel, which he enjoyed.  Then we walked by the Grizzly River Run area and watched the boats go by.  He enjoyed watching and waving to them.  Then we went into the Redwood Creek Challenge trail.  He loved this.  It is a contained play area and I just let him go and he loved being able to just run around.  He really loved the hollowed log that he could run through.  We had a good time with this area.  

• Zack Ellie - Grizzly - After that, I had told Ellie I would go on Grizzly River Run with her.  She changed clothes under a blanket in the stroller to put a swim suit on and we change clothes.  We had not done this before so we got a FastPass and hoped on.  The ride is very similar to Kali River Rapids at Animal Kingdom, but there isn't much of a story or stuff to see.  It was fine.  I had fun with the people we rode with.  Ellie shut down after she got a little wet because she got really cold.  We waited too long in the day to ride it and the sun was starting to go down.  She got pretty cold after riding it.  

• Change at hotel - Because she was so cold, we went back to the hotel room (which the hotel was literally across the path from Grizzly River Run) and we all changed clothes and rested for a couple minutes.  It was a good restart to get ready for the evening.

• Flo’s - Ellie asleep - We got back into the park and headed to Flo's V8 Cafe for dinner.  On the way there, Ellie nested in her stroller and was asleep by the time we got there.  She was tired.  Grady was hungry.  We just shared a couple things.  We got him chicken fingers and Lisa and I split the club.  It was all good.  Grady actually ate well at this meal.  We sat outside and watched the cars at Radiator Springs Racers.  It was cool to look out at the ride.  Ellie slept through dinner.

• Hot fudge sundae - Then we went to Ghirardelli and got a hot fudge sundae.  This is the best hot fudge sundae ever.  I love ice cream and I now have to have one of these every time we go to Disneyland.  This was came with round waffle cone pieces covered in chocolate that looked like Mickey ears.  It was cute and delicious.  We took it with us to watch World of Color.

• World of color - Grady asleep - We headed over to our World of Color reserved spot.  Note:  Always do the dining option for World of Color.  They are all great spots to watch the show.  By the time we got to our spot, Grady was asleep.  Both kids missed the show.  Lisa and I split the hot fudge sundae.  It was so good.  The show started at 8:15pm.  I love it.  It has everything.  Fountains, lasers, fire and DIsney images and music.  There are things they do with the water and lights that we have no clue how they do it.  So cool.  This is my favorite.  After the show, we headed back to the hotel and went to bed.  I had almost 28k steps this day.  It was a very busy day.

Riding Dumbo

Riding the Tea Cups

More Tea Cups

Casey Jr Train

Family picture on Casey Jr Train

Incredible Ellie with a Cookie Num Num

Grady snuggling Dumbo

The kids being silly in 1 stroller

Riding Ariel and the Emotional Whirlwind

Zack going to Galaxy's Edge with blue milk and going on the Millennium Falcon

Grady running through a hollow log at Redwood Creek Challenge

Carsland at Night.

Dinner at Flo's and Magical

The kids at Grizzly River Run

Lisa and I after World of Color

The kids really enjoyed World of Color

Disneyland February 2020 - Day 3

Family Picture at DCA

Day 3 - Wednesday

• Up early, entry to DCA - We started early and the lines to get into California Adventure were much shorter.  We used the entrance from our hotel to DCA and it was wonderful.  This is the easiest, most convenient method to enter a Disney park.  The park opened at 7:00am and we got in line at about 6:20am.  They opened the security check at 6:30am and we could enter the park at 7:00am.  It was very smooth.

• Radiator Spring racers - We started at Radiator Springs Racers in Carsland.  This is one of my favorite rides.  It is a great mix of a classic Disney dark ride with the thrills of Test Track from EPCOT.  We didn't wait long because we got there as the park opened.  It was me, Spence, Lisa, Ellie and Riley.  Crosby didn't want to ride, so Sam took he and Grady to ride Luigi's Rollickin' Roadsters.

• Maters and Luigi - After that, we all rode Mater's.  Even Grady got to ride it.  He rode with Lisa and she said he had a great time.

• Toy Story - After Carsland, we got a FastPass for Toy Story Midway Mania.  We all got to ride it.  I rode with Ellie and Grady rode with Lisa.  I think Spence had the most points.

• Radiator springs racers - After Toy Story, we went back to Radiator Springs Racers because we got another FastPass (thank you MaxPass).  It was great again.

• Flo’s - tamale, French toast, waffles, eggs & bacon - After Radiator Springs, we ate at Flo's.  They have a great breakfast.  I got the breakfast tamale again, which is really good.  Lisa got the brioche french toast, which is also really good.  Elle got waffles, which were really cute because they had Cars characters on them.  Grady had bacon and eggs.  He was starting to crash while waiting in line and had some trouble at meal time.

• Soarin’ - After breakfast, we had a FastPass for Soarin'.  This is a great ride.  We were hoping to see Soarin' Over California because they had switch it temporarily.  But it was back to Soarin' Around the World when we were there.

• Nap - shop - Grady fell asleep in the stroller during Soarin' so we went and did some shopping on Buena Vista Street while he slept.  Ellie and Lisa got some jewelry.

• Guardians - We then went and rode Guardians.  Lisa stayed with Grady and Sam stayed with Crosby.  The rest of us really enjoyed the ride.  Ellie is back and forth on it.  Sometimes she likes it and others she says she doesn't like the falling part.  After the ride, Grady was full on melting down.

• Melt down - Grady was struggling after his nap in the stroller.  Lisa watched him while we rode Guardians and said he was a mess the entire time.  We were going to try and ride Monsters after Guardians but Grady was inconsolable.  So we decided to go back to the hotel.  

• Hotel - lunch - poop - Lisa got lunch for us from the Craftsman Grill in our hotel.  We used Mobile Order from our room.  We did Mobile Order a couple of times on this trip and it worked great.  This meal was surprisingly good.  The kids got mini corn dogs and Lisa and I both got cheeseburgers.  The kids liked the corn dogs.  Our burgers were REALLY good.  One of the best burgers I've had in a long time.  It had almost a hash on top of it with cheese.  It was SO good.  During lunch we found out why Grady was grouchy and not happy, he had to poop.  He had some trouble getting it out, but once he did, he was back to his normal self.  After we ate, pooped and rested, we were ready to head back out.

• DCA - picture and churro - We went back into DCA from the hotel because it is so easy and walked toward the front of the park.  We stopped at the churro stand to get a fluffernutter churro.  Lisa saw this on social media before our trip and really wanted to try one.  It was a churro with a marshmallow fluff, peanut butter and chocolate chips.  Man it was good.  We should have bought more than one.  We split one between the 4 of us.  DCA was pretty busy that day and we had dinner reservations at Cafe Orleans so we headed to Disneyland.

• Disneyland- dole whips, jungle cruise, Ellie asleep - walk through Star Wars land, tea cups, small world, train, cafe Orleans, Pooh, candy, Star Wars land at night, star tours, fireworks - We started in Adventureland and got Dole Whips because we were in Adventureland and that's what you do.  Ellie got a swirl (raspberry and pineapple) and Lisa got a Pineapple float.  They were delicious, prefer the regular and not swirl or float.  Then we rode the Jungle Cruise.  I've been reading the Jungle Cruise books with Grady so I was looking forward to it.  We really enjoyed it.  After that we walked up to Star Wars land and just explored a little more.  It is a really cool land.  We checked out some of the shops and other areas we hadn't seen.  We then left and went to Fantasyland.  Ellie was asleep in the stroller so we stopped at a couple stores and then went to ride the tea cups because there was no wait.  Since Ellie was sleeping, Lisa and Grady went on the tea cups.  After that, we went to ride Small World, but waited for Ellie to wake up.  Grady got to walk, run and dance around the area in front of Small World.  It was really cute.  We had to wake Ellie up because we had a FastPass so we then rode Small World.  After that, we rode the train because Grady had been wanting to do that.  It was fun.  He really liked it except for the dinosaur scene he got a little scared.  We had to go from the Fantasyland train station to Cafe Orleans for dinner reservations.  We had to wait a little while and Grady was really funny while we were waiting.  But we found that Grady can't wait for food very long.  He didn't do well at this meal either.  I ended up talking him outside for most of it because he was throwing a fit.  Dinner was pretty good (when I got to eat).  Lisa got shrimp and grits, Ellie had shrimp and rice and I got a steak and potatoes to share with Grady.  Ellie and Lisa really liked their food, Grady didn't eat and I got to eat cold food.  I did get a mint julep though which was delicious.  After dinner we went to Critter Country and rode Pooh.  The kids liked it.  We then went to Pooh's Corner and got candy.  Ellie got her Tigger Tail, which I don't like anymore because they changed them, and Lisa got churro toffee.  After that, we decided to take the side route to Star Wars land because we wanted to see it at night.  Wow, this land is amazing at night.  As cool as it is during the day, it is so much cooler at night.  The colors were amazing and really made it look like a different planet.  Grady fell asleep on the walk (not a surprise).  We then headed back to Main Street because the fireworks were going to start soon.  Ellie and I almost road Smuggler's Run because the wait was low, but as we decided, the wait time went up.  I got a FastPass for Star Tours and after we found our spot for fireworks, Lisa kept our spot (which was off the hub on the Tomorrowland side) and Ellie and I went to ride Star Tours.  It was good, they added scenes from Rise of Skywalker (which is not good), but it was a fun ride.  We watch the fireworks, which were good.  It was hard to see the projections on the castle, unfortunately because the castle is so small.  It was a good day.  We did a lot.

Carsland and Pixar Pier Fun! 

More Carsland and naptime

One of the best snacks - the Fluffernutter Churro (peanut butter, marshmallow and chocolate chips on a churro)

Dole Whips and Jungle Cruise

Tea Cups with Grady and Ellie naptime

Small World and Grady running around

Riding the "choo-choo"

Grady and Daddy fun time before dinner and a Mint Julep at Cafe Orl

Galaxy's Edge at Night!

Millennium Falcon at Night!

Star Wars at Night!

Fireworks and the Castle at Night

Sleeping Beauty Castle