Dad's Special Disneyland Trip!

Growing up, both of my parents were always sacrificing anything they had and/or wanted to not only provide my sister and I with what we needed, but with what we wanted. They always made sure that vacations were everything my sister and I could imagine and hope for. So when my mom told me we could either go to Disneyland for my birthday or for my Dad's 50th Birthday, the choice was easy.

This trip was probably one of the best ever. The only thing that I would change is that Aaron wasn't with us (he had to work). This honestly may have been the best trip that Mom, Dad, Andie and I have ever taken.

We drove out Sunday morning, and headed to the hotel first where we all showered and got ready. From there we headed to California Adventure. We did Soarin, Toy Story Mania, and of course- ate (Chili dogs- yum)!
We really tried not to wear ourselves out Sunday, we knew we'd be there for a good chunk of the day Monday and well- it was hot! After spending a few hours in California Adventure, Mom and Andie weren't feeling well, so they headed back to the hotel. Dad and I headed into Disneyland and of course road the train for a "Grand Circle Tour" of Disneyland!

Monday- Dad's Birthday- Dad and I got up early and headed to the park (we had some pin trading to do)! Our first stop was to get Dad's Birthday Button and Fun Card! After we accomplished our mission, we spent some time in California Adventure, and well took a lot of photo's of the two of us.

While walking around, we happened to find Goofy (dad's favorite character) dancing with a quartet, Dad jumped right in (see- it's genetic, this is why I'm always willing to show my hip hop routine!).
After we finished in Hollywood Back lot we ran into an old friend- Stitch! Stitch is Aaron's favorite character so I HAD to get my photo with him, especially because Aaron wasn't with us.

A little while later, we met up with Mom and Andie. The first thing we did was Grizzly Rapids- it was H-O-T! We spent some time in the park, but decided to head back to the hotel so we could change and get ready for the evening. Mom and I went back first, and did some shopping until we met up with Dad and Andie at the Blue Bayou for dinner! For those of you who don't know, this is the restaurant that's inside the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction!
We had a wonderful meal at a lakeside table. I even tried Jambalaya for the first time (I'm allergic to seafood, so often don't get to eat it, but there's is made from chicken!). Afterwards they brought out a special "treasure" in honor of dad's birthday.
I realized that when Aaron doesn't come with us, not nearly as many photo's are taken! After dinner, we had a nice relaxing evening in the park- Andie and I even ventured out for a bit just the two of us. It was really nice spending some time with her in the park, it brought back some very fond childhood memories.

On a side note- shopping was awesome this trip, there were several sale racks (this is new for Disney) that had all the merchandise I had seen on our honeymoon for 40% off! Plus I found a few new prints that I purchased for um..."a room to be used for later family members" :) There's only one last painting I want... but it's a little more then I'm willing to spend, but isn't it pretty:
We have several more Disneyland trips scheduled. Aaron and I are going for a romantic get-a-way in October, then again in December with David and Abby for his graduation, and again in February (our awesome trip, booked at the Grand Californian Villas!) with the whole family to celebrate Isabella, my Goddaughter's, first trip to Disneyland!