Independence Pass

We headed up to Independence Pass this morning since it just opened on Thursday after being closed for the winter. Finley was very excited to see the snow, she even was able to throw a few snowballs. There were lots of back country skiiers out and it was cool to see them coming down the mountain. I cannot believe how far they hike to ski! Finley and I will stick to the gondola and chair lifts. Once we made it to the top we stopped for a picnic lunch. After lunch, Finley was grouchy and ended up throwing up. Poor thing! The altitude combined with the huge lunch she ate didn't sit well with her. We cut our trip short and headed back home.

Brave Swimmer!

What a difference a year makes! Finley went swimming at Grammy and Grandad's yesterday for the first time this year. She went off the diving board at least 10 times! She made me jump first every time, but she was quite brave.

Disneyland, Day Six

The main goal of our last day at Disneyland was for Finley to participate in Jedi Training. In Florida, you have to sign up in the morning and they schedule you a time to return. In California, the Jedi select kids from the audience to participate. I had done a little advance reading and learned that making a sign was the best tip to get selected. I made Finley a sign that said "Judge me by size, do you?" She held it up for the start of the show and was FIRST PICKED!

Disneyland, Day Five

It was another day of major park hopping! We once again started at California Adventure to get fastpasses for Racers, Soarin' and World of Color. After riding Ladybug Spin and Chew Chew, we rode Zephyrs and then hit the Disney Jr show. Finley loves that it includes Doc and Sophia now. We got there just as the doors were closing, but scored awesome aisle seats that gave Finley a great view. After we rode Soarin', it was off to Disneyland to meet Tigger and Eeyore. We also rode Winnie the Pooh and Splash Mountain, luckily none of us got as wet as we did in Florida. Our Racers fastpasses were nearly ready, but we stopped at Guest Relations to see about adding a sixth day to Grammy's pass. They don't sell a six day pass and we really didn't want to pay for a full day for the few short hours we will be able to visit tomorrow. Luckily, we had a fantastic cast member who loved all of Finley's buttons...he gave us a comped park hopper for tomorrow! We rode Racers and lost (boo!) but we got to do the tires this time, so that was neat. After Racers, we headed back to Disneyland to ride Buzz Lightyear, the monorail, Space Mountain, Astro Orbiter, Small World and Star Tours. Finley still wants to know when she is going to get to be the Rebel Spy. We went back over to California Adventure to ride Luigi's Tires and watch World of Color. Finley was exhausted, but she made it through the whole show with my holding her up. She passed out in the stroller as soon as it was over. Jedi Training tomorrow (hopefully!)

Disneyland, Day Four

We did lots of park hopping today, which is quite easy to do in Disneyland, you basically just walk across the street. We started in California Adventure, while I gathered fastpasses, Grammy and Finley played in the Wilderness Explorer Camp. I joined them for a little more play time, then we headed to use our fastpasses for Soarin'. Lucky for us, Minnie was out front ready to meet Finley. After Soarin', we headed over to Disneyland to ride the Haunted Mansion, Pinnochio, Snow White and the Casey Jr. Train. Our fastpasses to Space Mountain were ready, so Finley was ready to ride her favorite ride in the back row once again. Most of the afternoon was spent in Toon Town, with visits to both Minnie and Mickey's house. Finley still adores playing in their houses, moreso than even meeting them! The Pixar Play Parade was starting in California Adventure just as we arrived, it was perfect timing. We rode Mater's Junkyard Jamboree and Radiator Springs Racers (we won this time in a red car) just before our dinner reservations at Blue Bayou. We had a fantastic table near the water and it was a lovely meal. Finley mainly loved eating the bread and butter. We rode Pirates right after dinner and by then the park had closed. I gave Finley the option of going back to California Adventure for World of Color, but she said she was too tired. Three days of Disney without a nap tuckers a girl out!

Disneyland, Day Three

We started off at California Adventure this morning, but it had opened 30 minutes early (like Hollywood Studios tends to do) so we were too late to ride Radiator Springs Racers. I pulled fastpasses while Grammy and Finley rode the swings and Zephyrs. I joined them for Mickey's Fun Wheel, for the first time ever we rode in a non-swinging gondola. After the Fun Wheel, I rode California Screamin and met up with Grammy and Finley to meet Duffy Bear. While I was riding Screamin', Finley got a new Boo doll. After we met Duffy, we rode Goofy's Sky School and Jumpin Jellyfish. Finley led us around the World of Color area on a stroller tour and by then our fastpasses for Radiator Springs Racers were ready. Finley was so excited to get a red car, just like Lightnin' McQueen. Everyone in Cars Land loved her Cars dress, she got plenty of compliments on it. After Racers, we crossed over to Disneyland. We rode Alice, Tea Cups, Space Mountain, Pinocchio, Snow White and Mr. Toad's Wild Ride. It was quite a full afternoon. After dinner we explored Snow White's singing wishing well and got front row seats to the parade. After the parade we rode Star Tours again. Finley got a set of magnets of Mickey foods, she was so excited to hang them on her refrigerator. We left at park closing, Finley skyped with Daddy and went straight to bed. It was quite a long day!