Riding away

So the other reason to go to Disneyland (other than to see characters) is to go on the fun rides! We were able to wait in very short rides for most of our visit (Fridays are probably always chaos), so the kids got to go on rides a lot! I think they got to ride Star Tours six times (different each time!), Indiana Jones 4-5 times, Pirates of the Caribbean 3 times, Grizzly River Run 4-5 times, Splash Mountain 3 times, Thunder Mountain 5-6 times, Space Mountain 2 times, California Screamin' 3-4 times, Toy Story 2 times, etc.

We started out on quiet rides so Austin and Shayla could "break in" to the experience. Peter Pan was our first ride, and they both loved it! :) Then we did It's a Small World (so different than last time I rode it -- loved it!) and the tea cups. Austin LOVED the tea cups -- especially when it was spinning, much to our surprise. He wasn't very smiley because he was teething (getting in all four canines!), but he sure smiled on this ride. It was adorable:

I've gotta say that California Screamin' is the best roller coaster I've EVER been on. It is awesome!!! Mind you, my stomach isn't the same as it was when I was growing up, but I still went on this a couple of times. And we were able to get a couple of good pictures. It starts off SO FAST, as you can see from the girl's hair in the front. Paul, Tyler and Becca are a couple of rows back:

Shayla's favorite ride was the new Ariel ride in California Adventures. We went on it four or five times -- I lost track:

You know how they say girls are better drivers than boys? I totally believe it! I rode on Autopia with both Tyler and Shayla (another one we hit 3-4 times), and Shayla was a much better driver. She got a little annoyed when I made her take her eyes off of the road for a picture:

Austin loved the 3-D glasses he got to wear for Toy Story and Captain EO. In fact, while we were waiting he tried on a few pairs:

Last time we were at California Adventures the huge ferris wheel was closed. However, this time we got to ride on it. We definitely did not go on one of the swinging gondolas!

While we were up there we had a great view into the new Cars land that will open next month. They're building it to look just like Radiator Springs. It looks like it will be VERY cool:

Austin loved the Jungle Cruise -- can you tell?

We also went on it again at night. Who knew it could totally feel like a real jungle in the dark? It was so cool! The only light was from the boat -- he had a spotlight he'd shine when he wanted to show us something. It really was kind of eery. Austin didn't like that version nearly as much. However, he did like a mechanical bird in the rafters while we were waiting in line and kept turning my head to look at it. Oops -- maybe we shouldn't have skipped the Tiki Room. :)

Shayla was my hands-up girl this time. I got a couple of cute pictures of her bravery:

(Pardon me, but isn't this picture-perfect like it's an ad for California Adventures?)

Last time we went we were totally excited to get good pics of Splash Mountain with our new camera. Of course, our camera definitely is no longer new, but it still gets cool pictures on Splash Mountain. Poor Zachary and Shayla look soooooo scared! Turns out Shayla really was, and Zachary loved it. (You've gotta click on the picture to see it bigger so you can see Shayla's face.)

 

We didn't make it to the canal story boats until our last day there, and Shayla was so excited to go in the whale's mouth. She actually started clapping. Cutie:

Oh, Becca's favorite ride was the Grizzly River Run. I'm not gonna lie -- it's on my top 5 list as well. It is funny, though, that you don't know from time to time how wet you'll get. (There is a sign that says, "You will get wet. You may get soaked.) Shayla loved it the first time, even though she got splashed. However, on her second run she got soaked. She wasn't a fan after that:

BTW it took her hours to dry off

Becca, Tyler & Zach with Shayla and Paul (backs to camera)

Zachary got drenched! His pants are not dark blue, just totally wet.

They both got decently wet ... and are posing like the Mickey on their shirts

Becca and I got it pretty good, too.

 In California Adventures we got to go on several rides we missed last visit, including Soarin' Over California (cool, but I don't get the hype), Tower of Terror (I accidentally grabbed the leg of the man next to me when we first dropped -- oops!), and Monsters, Inc. Monsters is in an out-of-the way place a California Adventures, but it was so cute:

And while you're waiting in line they have awesome props, such as a Monsters, Inc. vending machine:

I think I'll have some Sugar, Salt and Fat. Or should I have Blort?

And last, but definitely not least, Austin LOVED the trains. He could hear the Disney Railroad several times a day. He saw the Casey Jr. train while we were in Fantasyland. And from anywhere in the park he would notice the monorail. Every time he saw or heard a train, he said, "Choo, choo!" So we definitely had to ride those a couple of times, too:

The kids loved that we were in the monkey cage since Austin's "leash" was a monkey ...

And sadly, the Matterhorn was closed for repair. That seems to be the Palmer curse. My kids LOVED it last time (it was Tyler's favorite ride), so hopefully it will be open next time we go. Too bad our next visit has to be so many years down the road. (Then again, the Harry Potter world at Universal will be open in 2014, so maybe we'd wait until then anyway to catch that, too. :)