Every fall, Emma and I head west.  Ultimately, our goal is LA where we visit Emma’s awesome neuro-opthalmologist, Dr. Borchert.  But, along the way we always manage to have some fun.  And for the third year in a row, we’ve hit up Disneyland for a day or two.  This year I was wise and we stayed in Anaheim.  Years past, we have stayed in West Hollywood, which is close to the hospital (and, an awesome area to stay in). This year, looking outside our hotel door we saw this.

The Matterhorn, probably Emma's second-favorite ride.

Emma was so excited to get through those Disneyland gates!  I think I was just as excited.  In fact, Monday morning, I woke up first and was dressed and ready to go before she even stirred! (granted, a lot of that sleeping has to do with her ADHD medication, but still)  I asked her which ride she wanted to go on first.  If you know my girl, you know her answer was Thunder Mountain.

First, we stopped at City Hall.  I had a chat with one of the cast members there and explained a bit about her disabilities.  They handed me a guest assistance pass, which to me was like paper gold.  If a ride had fast pass, we went directly to that line.  If the ride didn’t have fast pass, we went through the exit to get on the ride.  This cut down or eliminated waiting in line for Emma.   oh.my.gosh.  Hello…why hadn’t I tried this before? The longest we waited for a ride was probably 15 minutes.  And that was for Space Mountain; a ride we won’t be going on again anytime soon.

And, I might add that using the guest assistance passed probably allowed me to walk at least 2 miles more. (note to self: get a pedometer before next trip to DL)  Anyhoo.

So our two days in Disneyland were awesome.  Granted it rained the second day.  A lot.  As in, we were both drenched when we got to the hotel.  But she didn’t want to leave!  In fact, that day during the rain, we went on Thunder Mountain 4 times in a row, 7 times total. A personal record. You can see the evidence of humidity in her hair.  Wish I had those curls!

So excited to meet Tinker Bell!

Only it wasn't Tinker Bell, but two of her friends. Who, I might add, didn't look overly-enthusiastic about being there.

One of Daddy's favorite rides!

Emma loves her some Winnie The Pooh!

And finally, life can go on after that re-opened Tea Cups! It was too rainy most of the day.

I’m ready to go back already.  I seriously can’t get enough of that place!  And Emma’s taking after me.  Never once did she want to stop or slow down.  Even when we grabbed a bite of food, she was always wanting to go! Even though I will gladly head to Disneyland with anyone, this fall trip will always be “our thing”.

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