Disneyland Vacation: Day 5

Okay so lets just start off with last night. When we got back from a slightly disappointing day at California Adventure, we noticed that Kaylie felt really warm. Of course I didn't pack a thermometer (who would have thought we'd need it?) so we couldn't take her temperature. We actually started getting really concerned about the possibility of heat stroke because we weren't sure if she'd gotten enough water (even thought we'd been pushing it on her more) and she had been in the hot sun all day. After a very annoying call with the least helpful pediatrician ever, we figured it wasn't a heat related thing and was probably just a fever. I made an 11:30pm trip to Walmart to get a thermometer and children's Tylenol (Phil gave her a lukewarm bath while I was gone) and when I got back we discovered that, sure enough, she did have a slight fever. Major bummer. We figured we'd see what happened in the morning before we decided what to do and prayed that she'd wake up completely fine.

This morning we took her temperature and she had just a low grade fever, nothing major. So we decided to be bad citizens and take her with us to Disneyland anyway, just so long as she wasn't feeling bad. This was our last full day at the park and the day that Blen was joining us and we just didn't want Kaylie to miss out on the fun. After a dose of Tylenol her temperature was completely normal and she was acting like herself, so off to the park we went!

When we got there we saw Donald and Daisy Duck meeting people in the main square, but we barely missed them before they left for a break. Kaylie was devastated, so we promised her we'd come back when they were supposed to return at 10am. So the first thing we did this morning was go on the Winnie the Pooh ride, something we had not done yet. There was no line so we got right in and both kids *loved* it! When we were about to get out Kaylie said she wanted to do it again and, since there was hardly anyone waiting, the guy let us stay on the ride and go straight back through again.

Feeling optimistic that today will go better than yesterday.

Getting ready to go on Winnie the Pooh for the first time. She was so excited!

After Winnie the Pooh we rushed over to the main square again to wait the few minutes left before Donald and Daisy came back out. At that point we met up with Blen, who had been delayed a little bit by the train and getting her season pass picture taken. Blen was pretty on it about watching for the characters and managed to get Kaylie a high five with Pluto while we waited. After a few minutes Donald and Daisy came back out and we got a chance to meet them and get a picture. Kaylie has loved getting to meet the characters, and since the lines haven't been long we've really enjoyed doing that with her.

Aunt Blennie's here!!!

Meeting Donald and Daisy Duck.

Our next stop was Alice and Wonderland and then Astro Blasters. With a couple of exceptions we've been doing a lot of repeat rides today because we've seen practically everything there is to see. Of course we had to go on Small World again, too, which is always a favorite with the kids. Kaylie really enjoyed getting to sit with her Aunt Blennie on all of the rides. Drew got a little snuggle time in with her, too, but mostly he just wanted Daddy, or to walk around and hit plants. Haha.

We ended up getting him one of these as his souvenier. He laughs and hugs it tight when it vibrates.

When she really wants to emphasize her enthusiasm in pointing, she points next to her face.

Snuggle time with Blen.

Small World fun!

About the time we got off of Small World Kaylie was starting to act a little off, so Phil decided he'd take her on the Gadget Coaster in Toon Town (which was right next door) and then go back to the hotel for a nap. She was just a little taller than the height requirement, so Phil, Blen, and Kaylie got in line. While they were waiting to get on the ride I took Drew next door to Mickey's house. This time he wasn't as interested in walking around. I put him in the arm chair in the front room to take a picture and then all he wanted to do was stand in that. Finally I moved him over to the couch since there was room for me to sit next to him and he stood there and laughed and talked and played around for awhile. Then he and I went back just in time to see the others ride the roller coaster. Kaylie had pretty much hit her limit, so while she enjoyed the ride, she was done at that point.

Tall enough for her last right, but not so sure she's up for it. 

Drew as king of Mickey's house. 

Finishing up Gadget's Go Coaster.

We decided that we would take turns staying with the kids at the hotel while they napped so that we could each have a little grown-up time with Blen and go on a few rides we wouldn't otherwise have gotten to do. Phil took the first shift and got the kids back to the hotel and down for naps. Kaylie slept for a little while and then woke up with bad dreams and it took quite awhile for Phil to get her back to sleep. Drew slept really soundly for almost a normal length of time.

Blen and I didn't have a ton of time on our own, so we used our Fast Passes to go on Star Tours. They've completely redone it since the last time I was there, and since it's my favorite ride I was a little nervous that I wouldn't like it. I did miss the nostalgia of the old ride, the little robot who drove the shuttle, and the cheesy 80's hair and clothes on the people in the videos. But it actually was pretty awesome. It's 3D now (what isn't?) and the action was really fun. I was glad we made it on that.

After that I only had time for one more ride before we were at the halfway point for naps and I had to walk back to the hotel, so we went over to Indiana Jones. The wait was about 30 minutes for that one, but Blen and I enjoyed just chatting during the times we waited. There were three teenage girls behind us and they were fine until we got inside the building where you wait in line. Then they started screaming randomly. Blen and I were done with that pretty quickly and finally I told her that if they did it again I was going to get in mommy mode and tell them quit it. They did it again. So I turned around nicely but sternly and said, "Can you please not scream? It's way too loud in here." They looked at me like I was a jerk, but didn't say anything. A few minutes later, when we were about to go down the stairs and go the last few feet to get on the ride, they screamed again. It was obvious they were doing it just to be annoying. So Blen stopped at the top of the stairs, leaving a huge gap between us and the people in front of us, and just stared them down for a minute. Hahahaha. It made me laugh. They behaved after that. :) Indiana Jones was super fun and once it was over it was time for me to head back to the hotel so Phil could have a turn.

I left Blen there so she could get some lunch and shop for hats and I started the 15 minute-ish walk back to the hotel. When I got back Phil had not long before that gotten Kaylie back to sleep, but of course Drew was wide awake now.  I ran down to the car before Phil left and got Drew's toys out that we had brought for the drive. He was in *such* and good mood, laughing and talking and playing around. He pretty much sat on our bed and played with his toys and ate a snack the whole rest of the time we were there. It was nice to relax with him for a bit and I think he liked the down time.

He was in *such* a good mood after his nap. He was cracking us up.

Poor, sweet sickie.

This is pretty much what he did the whole rest of the time Kaylie slept.

A little before 3pm Kaylie woke up. She didn't have a fever anymore, but she was acting really fussy, so I decided to wait before we attempted to go back to the park. I got her settled on our bed and turned on Cartoon Network (yuck) and she relaxed and watched truly terrible cartoons for almost an hour. Finally I turned off the TV and asked if she wanted to go back to see Daddy and Blen and get some popcorn. (She had been eyeing the popcorn there all week and yesterday we promised she could have it as a snack today.) She said yes, and was acting like she felt much better. I gave her another dose of Tylenol for good measure and we headed back over.

The contrast in their expressions cracks me up.

Playing peekaboo with himself. :)

When we got back Phil and Blen were almost to the front of the line at Splash Mountain, but he texted me that he'd seen Winnie the Pooh taking pictures over by the Pooh ride. We grabbed some popcorn (which Kaylie happily ate three bites of and then declared herself to be done) and rushed over there and hit the jackpot! Pooh, Tigger, *and* Eeyore were all there and there was one line to see all of them. When we were almost to the front the characters took a  five minute break and Eeyore didn't come back, but Kaylie was thrilled to see Pooh and Tigger. Tigger in particular was fun. He took Kaylie's Pluto doll (which I let her bring with her this time) and played with it for a minute before he took a picture with her.

Feeling much better and eating the popcorn she'd been craving all week.

Tigger!

Pooh!

Awkward pose for Mommy. :) 

About the time we were done with the characters Phil and Blen were back (They were able to go on Space Mountain, Indiana Jones, Star Tours, and Splash Mountain while we were finishing up rest time. Phil also amused himself by handing Blen a new Disneyland map every time they got off a ride and telling her he found it somewhere on that ride. He then pulled Kaylie in on the joke for the rest of the evening.) and we decided to go on the Winnie the Pooh ride one more time since we were right there. Drew sat on the ride the whole time with his finger ready to point at things. I love when he does that.

Next we went on Pirates again and Kaylie chattered away and sang the whole time. She was feeling so good at this point and was having a wonderful time. She's definitely not the least bit scared of that ride anymore. Phil said that he wants to teach our kids something that his dad taught him: If something is scary or hard, do it again. I'm really grateful to him for that because it allows for opportunities like this where she gets to get a lot of enjoyment out of something that scared her at first. Once again, Drew fell asleep on the ride. It made us all laugh. That ride is just an irresistible place for napping it would seem.

Walking to Pirates. She was fascinated by her own feet.

And, once again, Pirates ceases to impress Andrew.

At the end of the ride.

We made another stop at Peter Pan and then Alice and Wonderland after that, and then it was about time for a late dinner. Jeff was meeting us at the park after work and we had arranged to have dinner with him. Bob and Norma very generously offered to treat us all tonight, so we got to go the the Big Thunder Ranch BBQ, someplace we wouldn't have gotten to go otherwise. The food was *really* yummy and they had a group playing music while we ate. We all had a great time sitting around and chatting, enjoying good food and a fun atmosphere. Kaylie was starting to fade (still no real fever) and didn't eat a thing, but she ended up dosing off in the front seat of the stroller while we ate. Drew, on the other hand, was quite the cut up. He stuffed his face with two gigantic pieces of corn bread, some coleslaw, and a little bit of chicken and was laughing like crazy at Uncle Jeff's antics, and his own of course. When we were all finished eating the waitress came and took our plates and Blen said, "Drew she took your cornbread," and he immediately whipped his head around a watched the waitress walk away. We all got a good laugh out of that.

Making her daily attempt to pull the sword from the stone.

The entertainment at dinner.

Such a fun, and *really* yummy, dinner!

Asleep in the stroller.

Making everyone laugh. 

Kaylie woke up about the time we were done and, since it was after 8pm we decided we should probably head out. But she asked if we could go on Astro Blasters one more time, so we agreed. She was really out of it the whole wait and I kept asking if she was sure wanted to do it and she insisted. So we did and it was a fun end to the day.

She insisted she wanted to do it one last time, but looked about like this the whole time.

The future bride and groom. 

On the way out of the park we stopped in the Emporium to get Drew his souvenir and a little Peter Pan action figure set for Kaylie's birthday (shh!) in a couple of weeks. We got Drew the stuffed alien from Toy Story that talks and vibrates. He thought it was very funny, and played with it for awhile before we left. After our short shopping trip we said our goodbyes to Blen and Jeff and walked back to the hotel.

Drew was sound asleep by the time we got back and Kaylie was a little more talkative by then. We got them both right in bed and Drew took forever to settle back down and go to sleep. Once they were down Phil went to bed and I took some time to pack everything I could so that checkout would be easy tomorrow. The only stuff left to do is put away things we'll be using in the morning.

The plan tomorrow is to pack up the car, check out, and then go back to the park for a couple hours and do our favorite things one more time before we head out on the long drive home.

We had a wonderful day today! Kaylie had about three hours in the middle there, which was pretty much just before and during naptime, where she wasn't quite herself, but otherwise she was wonderful. She's such a little trouper and really had a great time showing Blen the ropes at Disneyland. It was a lot of fun to have Blen with us today and Jeff with us in the evening, and great to get a little adult time in there, too. We were really nervous that today was going to be another rough day, but it ended up being fantastic. We're very grateful God gave us a happy girl for most of the day, and that He gave us our goofy little class-clown of a boy to keep us entertained. And now I'm going to bed. I'm tired. :) Until tomorrow!