Disneyland

I can say that one of the best things about 2011 was the decision to invest in an Annual Pass.  Ken was able to see things at Disneyland we otherwise would not have been able to, and despite his protests to the contrary, he has actually had a great time there.  The girls were able to see each season at Disneyland, and they were able to get on every ride at both parks in 2011.  Of course, with this comes the added cost of taking each trip with food, etc., but it has been an amazing time and the memories are awesome!  From March through December, I made 19 trips to Disneyland, and I loved each time.


The latest trip was on Wednesday with my co-worker, Jennifer and her son, Shane.  Shane is 7 and is not a fan of Disneyland, but he suffered through it for his mom and me, and he seemed to have a great time.  I got such a kick from this kid!  He was not happy about the rides, and he actually screamed on Pirates of the Caribbean.  As we went down the first dip in the dark, he screamed, "Oh Mom!!!"  I was laughing so hard at his fear, which is actually really mean, but it was funny to hear him.  He had a death-grip on the handle in front of him, and even after we told him there were no more dips (after the 2nd), he didn't believe us. 


Shane sang along with It's a Small World, and he wanted to give me a ticket for texting while "driving" on Autopia.  We enjoyed lunch at The Rainforest Cafe, and Shane decided that his favorite ride was Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters.  I managed to do fairly well although I'm convinced Ken would have still kicked my ass if he had been there.

I have to say that I think my favorite part of the day was when Jennifer and I convinced Shane to try out for the Jedi Academy.  I had never actually seen the show, but I figured it would be something fun for him.  Jennifer and I both jumped up and down to help Shane get picked, and he did!  


Jennifer video'd the entire thing, and I hope that she shares it so I can show it to Ken.  Shane did pretty well during his Jedi training, and then the Darth Vader theme song started playing.  I instantly got concerned because I didn't know that Darth Vader, a couple Storm Troopers and Darth Maul were going to come out.  Shane's eyes bugged out of his head and you could see the terror on his face.  We were impressed with him for sticking with it, and he earned a Jedi Paduan certificate at the end.

The Park was one of the busiest ever, so it was almost impossible to get on rides even if Shane hadn't hated them.  Jen felt bad that her son was "keeping me" from enjoying the Park, but I kept telling her that it was great to see his reaction to things, and I totally love Disneyland and sharing the magic with people.  I loved being able to spend some time with Jen as well getting to know her as a friend rather than just my co-worker.  


By the time we were leaving, Shane seemed to like me although he says I talk a lot and I'm crazy.  I told him that Ken would totally agree with him, and he was right on with his decision about me which just made him laugh.  


I got home at a reasonable hour - about 2200 - which really wasn't too bad, and I had a great day.  I missed having Ken and the girls with me, but this was a great experience for me, and I loved that I could be there for Shane's first visit.  The girls had behaved at home for Ken, so I surprised them with charm bracelets so they could start their own memory collections.