K and I picked D up early on Friday from day care with a surprise for her birthday!
Happy Birthday (on Monday), D! We’re going to Disneyland..jump in the car!
Yeah…we’re nuts. Arrived in Anaheim really late Friday night and left town super early this (Sunday) morning! We determined we were in Anaheim less than 36 hours…fastest trip EVER!!!!
Naturally, D was very excited with the surprise. Here are some of the highlights of our whirlwind visit!
Always happy on the tram going to the park!
Big Nightmare fan!
Has the ink..and shirt..to prove it!
D asked to ride in the front row, wish granted. From then on out, she seemed to score front row seats (without asking)!
Amazing character interaction with Cruella. This moment was a lot of fun!
Big fans of the Nightmare Before Christmas overlay in the Haunted Mansion!
Originally, D wanted to go horseback riding for her birthday. Those plans didn’t pan out so this was the alternative..
Our most favorite castle in the world!
The park was SUPER busy and I can’t recall the last time we visited on a Saturday. Sadly, we encountered a few times where we’d get to the front of the line and the ride would break down. We’d then have to get out of line – TRUE STORY!! It was a bit frustrating but what can you do??
What could make this weekend any more perfect for D?
Why…a stop to put her feet in the surf, of course! Honestly, D would stand with her feet in the surf all day long if we’d let her.
This trip included throwing rocks in to the surf…
Of course, I’m all kinds of curious as to where these random black rocks come from. The beach we visited wasn’t “rocky” and these rocks seemed completely random to me. But D sure had a lot of fun hunting them down and then throwing them out in to the surf!
She also got a kick out of using the telescope!
I can neither confirm or deny if she used them to check out the surfers! Ha!
Sadly, we weren’t able to stay at the beach for long and after an hour and a delicious fish taco..we were back on the road making our way home to Phoenix!
In running related news…My leg managed to hold up really well during the trip. In the beginning of the day at Disneyland, I noticed it was sore and sometimes I would get off a ride and bear all my weight on the left leg and I would feel a twinge. But as the day went on..I noticed the pain disappeared. Is it possible I walked out my pain? It wouldn’t be the first time this has happened to me. Last year when I went to visit my sister in Boston, one of my legs was hurting but then after a long weekend of doing a ton of walking..the pain was all gone and never returned.
Do I dare to dream this has happened again?!?
Needless to say…or I should say…a run is on the schedule for Wednesday. I plan to wear my old running shoes (not the ones I despise but the ones before that) and see if the new shoes may be contributing the issue. I’m excited to find out!
What is your favorite childhood birthday memory?
What’s the last weekend trip you went on?
Have you decided what you’re going to be for Halloween yet?
What a thoughtful, creative, and awesome surprise you gave her!!! She looks so happy and adorable!!! What a great weekend!
PS-glad your leg felt better as the weekend went on. I don’t dress up for Halloween but I do enjoy handing out candy to the trick or treaters. 
I don’t dress up for Halloween either. LOL Thanks for the compliments on D. I looked at the pic of her in the front row and thought, “She’s growing up way too fast!!”
I’m anxious to find out if I walked off my injury!! Fingers crossed. I’m ready to pound the crap out of some pavement again!!!
I swear time flies by quicker every year! My fingers and toes are crossed for you too!
That is basically every kids dream come true. Yay for good parenting moments!
Also, in case you don’t see it in the reply on my blog, here’s my advice on icing your foot:
Not too much ice in the water is the key! I just use a bucket or large bowl when it’s my foot. That way I can multitask. If it hurts when I put my foot in, I take out some of the ice or add warm water. It should be really cold, but not hurt. You can definitely give yourself frostbite, but your body will tell you with pain if you are getting it.
Good luck getting it all fixed up!
I’m glad I didn’t ice my foot yet because I would have just stuck it in a bowl full of ice and screamed through the pain!! Ha ha!!!
How fun and exciting! You’re awesome!
We went to Wisconsin Dells for a weekend over the summer and the kids loved it!
Looks like you guys had a great time.
I read your post about the WI Dells…that did sound like a lot of fun. Just trying to enjoy these moments while we have them…they grow super fast!!
What a great surprise! I miss Disneyland sooo much! I once was at Disneyland where 3x in one day we waited in line and were near the front when the rides broke. I had a season pass at the time, so didn’t mind too much, but I had friends with me who were at DLand for the first time! They were so sad!
It happened to us twice…Space Mtn and Matterhorn. It was pretty upsetting but..we’ll be back. I’m sorry it happened to your visiting friends, especially on their first time. That is a bummer!
Wow, parents of the year! What a great birthday!!!
I don’t know about “parents of the year” but I do think she was VERY pleased with her birthday.
OMG! Disney all decked out for Halloween looks sooo cool!! What an awesome surprise. Glad to hear your leg is feeling better. Hopefully it stays that way for you!
Disney is cool for Halloween but SO MUCH cooler for Christmas. Nothing beats Disneyland’s decorations at Christmas!! Thanks for the well wishes on my leg. I’m honestly too chicken to find out if the walking really worked!
Happy Birthday, D! This is so cool! I’ve never been to Disneyland for Halloween, but it looks really amazing!
Hope your run works out for you today! I’m sending pain free thoughts!
And my favorite birthday memories as a kid are of course the 2 that I spent at Disneyland! Is there any place better? (except maybe Disney World?).
Aww…you and D share favorite birthday memories!! K took me to Disneyland for my birthday a couple of years ago and I must admit, it was my favorite birthday!! I’ve only been to Disney World once..I’m a firm believer that the park you visit for the first time is your true love..so my heart belongs to the Land!!