President's Day

Today's holiday meant Amy was off from work, so we planned to head to Disneyland. Because Amy works weekdays, it's always a treat getting to go with her and her kids during the week! Because of the holiday, we knew the parks would probably be busy as the day went on. So we planned to get there as close to opening as possible, which was 8:00. We arrived shortly thereafter and made our way to the gates. We were excited to see no lines to get into Disneyland and we just walked up to the gates. Once inside the gates, we had a plan to make the most of the early hours before the crowds hit. So we got Fastpasses for Space Mountain and then planned to get in line for the Finding Nemo ride because that ride doesn't have Fastpasses. However, once there, the line was already well over an hour wait, so we opted to skip that ride for today. We headed over to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, where there were hardly any people in this area of the park yet and the ride was a walk on. Amy and her kids went on the ride first, while I sat out with my two. And then the plan was for me to go with Amy's kids while she sat out with mine, but much to my surprise, Hannah said she'd give it a try if we could work it out for her to sit in the middle. It worked out and she sat between Bethany and me and once the ride started, I told her it helps if you scream and hollar. She saw how much fun Bethany was having with her hands up, and she did the same thing! We weren't even off the ride yet and she was saying she wanted to go again! Steven and I both knew she'd love this ride if she just gave it another try! The line for this ride was getting longer, so we opted to head over to Tom Sawyer's Island for a bit. The walkways along The Rivers of America still not busy and crowded with people allowed the kids to walk hand in hand which made for a perfect picture opportunity.While on the island we stopped for a snack, fed ducks some cracker crumbs, and ultimately had a run in with Captain Jack Sparrow. Who apparently either had too much Rum too early, or hadn't had his morning coffee yet, because he simply wasn't in character. After our time on the Island, we headed back over to Tomorrowland to use our Fastpasses for Space Mountain. Hannah wasn't up to trying this again just yet, so I sat out with my girls and allowed Amy and her kids to use the Fastpasses and go twice! From there, we meandered down Main Street, stopping off in a few of the shops and then headed over to California Adventure. Although it was obvious that the park was becoming crowded, which is why we decided to head across the way, coming out of the gates of Disneyland, we couldn't believe the lines to get in, especially when it was a walk in just three hours before. Once inside California Adventure we found a table and sat and ate our packed lunches. Usually, this park is much less crowded than Disneyland, but today it was crowded! Due to the waits for the rides and the masses of people, we decided we'd gotten to do enough for today and decided we'd leave the parks and head to the Disney Outlet on our way home. It was 1:00 when we got outside the gates of California Adventure and the lines to get in both the theme parks were unbelievable and now stretched out into the middle of the esplanade. The lines to get into the security check points were the worst I'd ever seen them! Yes, indeed we were doing a good thing to be heading for home! Between today being a holiday and the beautiful, beautiful day, in addition to the 2fer special going on right now for Southern Californians, people simply wanted to be outside, having fun. And we did just that! We just got an earlier start!!!