Merry Christmas!

At DCA on Christmas day, a photo by marcailgaelyn on Flickr.

Via Flickr:

view from Paradise Pier across Paradise Bay (looking at the giant light up Ferris Wheel) in Disney California Adventure. :)

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Merry Christmas Everyone!

Nothing like an impromptu family trip to Disneyland! (That's the nice thing about some of us deciding to splurge and get the Top-of-the-Line Premium pass that lets us in any day of the week - no "blackout dates").

Sara called in the mid-afternoon and said that as their prior plans fell through, Jeremiah suggested that they travel up & go to Disneyland for the rest of the day...and they were letting us know in case we wanted to join them. Heck Yeah! :D

So around 5pm my folks and I headed over to the Park. Turns out they were just getting in line for Toy Story ride and we might be able to meet up with them in time. Jeremiah and Chloe were outside of the line (Sara & Keely waiting patiently in the line) so C could "explore" and get some of her wiggles out (since she'd soon be restricted in line again :).

As we spotted C & J, C was next to the railing of Paradise Bay, looking out over the water. I snuck up behind her and squatted down to be on her level. She turned around, and gave a squeal of delight! Then she spotted Grandpa & Nana - another squeal! Such a happy little 2 yr old! :)

We rejoined Sara in line and eventually made it to the ride itself. (If you've ever been on the Toy Story ride, you KNOW its a long line - but well worth it! :).


In line for Toy Story Ride :), a photo by marcailgaelyn on Flickr.



Another pic from in line at Toy Story (Lil Miss Active), a photo by marcailgaelyn on Flickr.



 I got to ride with Chloe and we sat facing her mommy, daddy, and lil' sister Keely.


Sara, Keely, & Jeremiah at Toy Story (Chloe is next to me), a photo by marcailgaelyn on Flickr.

Let me just say:  C *LOVED* the spinning of the carts. (She kinda got how to fire the toy guns - pull on the cord - so I helped her out, let her try it herself, and then helped her out firing again).


Chloe's Score & My Score. (Not bad for either when you consider I helped Chloe some of the time :), a photo by marcailgaelyn on Flickr.



After Toy Story, we grabbed some dinner in the nearby food court area. (Side Note: the Holiday Special - slice of Beef Pot Roast with Whipped Potatoes & sauteed Veggies...and gravy of course - was excellent! Kudos to the Disney Chef/kitchen staff! Only downside is that their unsweetened Tea somehow got sweetener in it, and it wasn't until I had them check in the back after receiving Sweetened Tea twice in my cup that they discovered that. At least I got to exchanged for a bottle of water, so I was good :).

After dinner, we headed over to the Bugs Life area where we went on a bunch of Chloe-sized rides. She LOVED them! :) By this time we were getting close to the Evening Fireworks time (they go off at 8:45p), so the Cornthwaites headed off to the Main Park to get a spot to view the Fireworks and the rest of us headed to our respective homes. (Fortunately we had just debarked from the Tram when the Firework Show started so we DID get to see a good portion of it standing in the Tram/Parking Structure area.)

What a wonderful end to our Christmas Day - impromptu family trip to Disneyland was a success!

And now, on to 26th of December (Boxing Day) - another day of Family! :)