The holiday still wasn't over because we drove to California the day after Christmas. We were gone a total of 10 days. Best vacation ever. No work. All play. Sometimes...you just have to.
2 days of driving + 2 days with various aunts, uncles & cousins + 2 days of shopping + 4 days in Disneyland = BEST VACATION EVER.
I left Utah with the hopes and expectation that the warm weather would once again welcome me with open arms. I was wrong.
I was so wrong.
It was cold, cold, cold.
I am the queen of over-packing, but even if I would have worn everything I brought all at once (which I what I practically ended up doing), I still would have struggled with the surprisingly cold weather.
The day we went to the Ronald Reagan Library in Simi Valley was the prettiest. The sun was bright and cheerful, but in the shade...shiver shiver. It was still chilly!
I'm still as in love with California though. Still in love.
"Keep on, keepin' on!"
It was pretty awesome being in the Happiest Place on Earth for New Years Eve. The countdown to the New Year was exciting and so much fun--despite the ridiculous cold weather. It was PACKED with people. I was surprised to see blankets spread out across Main St. USA when I met up with David and Matt at 10am!
(It felt like I was back in Orem, where people put blankets down for Summerfest the night before).
The park was so packed in fact, that all the sidewalk that wasn't already claimed by blanket people was all one way traffic. By the end of the night you had to walk all the way around the park just to get to the bathroom.
Disneyland reached their maximum capacity around 4pm. Despite being surround by 80,000 I surprisingly still felt a twinge of loneliness. I couldn't help but have bittersweet feelings about ringing in the New Year without all the best friends I had spent 2010 with. Though I hate to admit it, a little part of me longed to be back home with all of them. Although my brothers couldn't make up for the New Years kisses I was missing out on back at home, I was still grateful to be with them.
We were 3 of the very first Disneyland guests in 2011.
Now that's pretty freaking sweet.
Disneyland Highlights:
World of Color
The world IS a carousel of color. This show is now one of my ALL time favorites. Even though we were almost ice cubes after watching it, I would watch it again and again....and again.
If you aren't headed to DCA anytime soon you could watch it on youtube. This video is pretty good--I've watched it several times since I've been home. I am obsessed.
Character Hunting
You are never told old to hunt for Disneyland Characters. Never. Ever. I must confess, I'm a 25 year old that still gets star struck when I meet them. I went on a stroll with Cinderella's fairy Godmother and talked about how I might get in touch with my fairy Godmother.
David, Matthew and I all got "official autograph books" and got signatures and even snapshots the rarest of rare characters like The Evil Queen from Snow White and Daisy Duck.
So worth the hour long wait to meet Rapunzel and Flynn Rider.
Quality Time with Quality People
They put up with me.
They put me in my place.
They make me laugh until my face turns blue.
They laugh at my ridiculous jokes.
They support me.
They love me unconditionally.
They make me who I am.
I love my family.
