Disneyland 2011

WARNING: This is going to be a big post!

We have been home from our trip to Disneyland just over a month now, and in some ways it seems like it was yesterday. We had such a great time! This year we were joined by the Whitehead, English and Burt families, and I think it's safe to say that this was our best trip to Disneyland yet. We went on lots of rides, saw lots of shows, met lots of characters, did pin trading and a character breakfast (see Cupcake Chowder for my review), and had a magical trip. Here are a few pictures and stories in no particular order:

We've arrived!
Right when we walked into the park we met Donald Duck, the White Rabbit, and the Queen of Hearts. Peter wasn't too sure about the Queen, but he loved seeing Donald.English, Holdaway, and Burt families on Main Street U.S.A.
Gary and Teresa share a kiss on Main Street.The Holdaway family poses in front of Sleeping Beauty's Castle.Megan and Peter get to meet Cinderella.Preston enjoys his Mickey Mouse cookie.Everyone was very excited to see the Fairy Godmother! A teacup full of kiddies. Apparently Preston was the only one who heard the directions, "Look at the camera!"
Waiting in line to go on the Mad Tea Party.Peter and Sofie taking a spin in a teacup.Daddy and Peter ride the teacups together. Peter knocks on the White Rabbit's door. Anyone home?
Peter and Sofie chillin' outside of Frontierland. These two are best buds!
Peter tries to pull the sword from the stone.Everyone was excited to meet Rapunzel and Flynn inside the Tangled Tower.
Watch out for Flynn Rider and his smolder Cutie - I mean Katie! Peter was in heaven meeting Rapunzel. She was so sweet! Sofie gets an autograph. Amanda and Katie at Snow White's Wishing Well. The gang heads off on Small World - "The happiest cruise to ever set sail!"
Tick-tock - Peter at the White Rabbit statue (love that the heart was positioned perfectly over his head). Going on one of our all-time favorite rides - Peter Pan's Flight.
Amanda takes her dad for a spin on Mr. Toad's Wild Ride. Watch out boys - this girl just got her learner's permit! Teresa and Sarah ride Dumbo the Flying Elephant - another Fantasyland favorite.
The gang waits in line to ride Jungle Cruise. From left to right: Grady, Sarah, Sofie, Nate, Mike, Peter, Jordan and Ryan. This was also our first time riding the Jungle Cruise at night - which is an experience not to be missed!
Pirates of the Caribbean is the first ride we went on together as a group. "Shift yer cargo dearie, show 'em your larboard side."The whole gang in front of the Matterhorn. We had short lines and perfect weather for most of the trip.
Teresa and Gary pose in front of Space Mountain. (This is Mike's all-time favorite Disneyland ride).
I got a Golden Ticket! One of the ride operators heard me talking about Club 33 and gave me an Attraction Readmission Pass - basically a ticket getting us to the front of the line for a ride of our choice! We ended up using it for Autopia.Mike, Megan and Peter in front of the "Partners" statue.The English family at the "Partners" statue.The whole crew at the entrance to California Adventure. Almost the entire front of the park was sectioned off for the new renovations they were working on. We hope to be able to go back in 2012 to see the new entrance, Cars Land and the Little Mermaid ride. Peter gets to meet two of his favorites: Mater and Lightning McQueen. Kerchow! Peter and daddy get to meet Mickey Mouse.Heather and Carter get to meet Mickey Mouse.Amanda and Katie pose with Pluto. Smile!Peter loved getting to meet Pluto.The Holdaway family posing with aviator Goofy (just outside Soaring Over California). Peter LOVED meeting the Toy Story characters.Ryan and Sofie meet Jessie the yodeling cowgirl. The English boys get up close with Woody.The Whitehead family at the Hollywood Tower of Terror.Peter gets to ride Mickey's Fun Wheel. Mommy had to make sure we got a car that wouldn't rock! I definitely do not like heights.Heather and Claire wait in line to get tickets for World of Color.Preston, Peter, and Mike ride Flik's Flyers.Peter and Uncle Gooey on the bumper cars.Marie and Nate catch some R&R in A Bug's Land.Sofie and Peter having fun riding the train again, and again, and again... Peter waits in line for Soaring Over California. This was his first time on the ride and he loved it! It was also his first time going on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, the Haunted Mansion, Autopia, Splash Mountain, and the Monorail. The whole crew poses in front of the Hollywood Tower of Terror, just after we finished seeing the Aladdin show - which is definitely not to be missed.Gary and Jordan strike a pose.Teresa, Gary and Sarah waiting for World of Color to start......Carter on the other hand apparently couldn't wait. Needless to say, it was a long day! Heather and Gary strike a pose with the famous Disneyland turkey leg. This was a running joke with our group - we still don't really get the whole turkey leg craze, but to each his own. Gary took some great pics of Paradise Pier all lit up at night. By-the-way, World of Color was amazing! And it was even better the second time around with our VIP seats! Mike's favorite segment is the Pirates of the Caribbean, I loved Pocahontas, and Peter liked Toy Story. It was a really fun show set to really great music.After 5 days spent in the park I think we wore little Peter out. Thanks for being so good to us Disneyland!