So before I get into our Day 13 happenings, I want to get some meh-ness out of the way. The night before (Day 12), our friends and next-door neighbors the Chagnons (George, Stephanie, Courtney, and Emily) were supposed to have arrived and be joining us at Disneyland today.
Unfortunately, through a series of many unfortunate events, they missed their flight. This meant they wouldn’t be arriving until the night of Day 13. So their plans changed a little bit. While they would still be going to Universal Studios with us the next day and joining us in San Diego, they would miss today at Disneyland and swap out their day at Huntington Beach with us to hit Disneyland after.
So no Chagnons today was a real bummer.
But at least we knew we would be seeing them tomorrow on Day 14.
So Day 13 was officially our last day at Disneyland. The plan was to make the most of it of course. And at least it was a full day, with a night still left at the Disneyland Hotel.
Well, most of us made the most of it. You see, Day 13 was also Early Entry at Disneyland Park. And it was our last day? Obviously, we wanted to take advantage, right?
Welll…..Matt and Tony (and Mia) decided to sleep in a little bit so the rest of us – me, Nickie, Myles, Owen, Laura, Will, Jack, and Larissa – headed to the park without them. We made another stop at Starbucks on the way and were on Main St. just after 7:00 AM.
Our first stop was Tomorrowland.
And our first attraction was one that takes place in a galaxy far, far away.
A long time ago.
So obviously, it belongs in Tomorrowland.
Of course I am talking about Star Tours. Pew Pew.
Our stay in Tomorrowland was short-lived though. We quickly realized we had hardly seen Fantasyland on our first day at Disneyland Park. So we figured we would take advantage of the lack of lines during Early Entry to remedy that.
And our first Fantasyland attraction for the day? The classic Disney attraction Dumbo the Flying Elephant.
Thankfully, they haven’t updated the ride to reflect the recent Tim Burton Dumbo. On account of then it would just be all gothic circus imagery and wasted talent.
So it was me and Nickie.
Myles and Owen.
Larissa and Laura.
And Will and Jack. Though I think they were out of picture taking range from my elephant. Which is a pretty awesome sentence.
After our ride on Dumbo, we made the short walk over to Snow White’s Scary Adventures.
This ride used to be in Walt Disney World but I dunno. Maybe it was removed because it was too scary? I guess Disney thinks Californians handle scary stuff better. Which makes sense. I mean they just go about their days knowing full well they live in the same state that birthed Shia LaBeouf.
Shudder.
After Snow White, we took a ride on the equally terrifying Pinocchio’s Daring Journey. This is a dark ride. And by that I don’t just mean it’s an inside ride. I mean, this shizz is dark. When the kids become donkeys (spoiler alert)? Stuff of nightmares.
None of my pics came out from that attraction. But eh, that’s for the best. This is a family blog.
By the time we were off Pinocchio, it was after 8AM, which meant it was time for the normal people to be let into the park. Matt joined the “normies” and we made plans to meet at Hyperspace Mountain.
Tony and Mia soon made their way to the park as well and we met them over at Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters.
I didn’t score enough to be considered a Galactic Hero. But my mom tells me I am always her Galactic Hero. Which is a weird thing to say. But I appreciate it.
To Infinity. And my mom.
Man, Day 13 was all kinds of Tomorrowland-Fantasyland zig-zagging. Because as soon as we were off Astro Blasters, it was back to Fantasyland to take an ride on the Storybook Land Canal Boats.
I really don’t know how I feel inside about this attraction. I think it’s cute enough. But. Actually, it’s cute enough. Let’s just leave it at that.
Next, we stayed with the whole low-effect boat ride theme and walked over to It’s a Small World since Mia didn’t get a chance to ride it the other night. Yup, twice on It’s a Small World this trip. You know THAT’S a good trip.
I feel like that came across sarcastic. But I actually mean that. I kind of love Small World lots.
I have mentioned this before, but I really do love the inclusion of Disney characters in this attraction. Plus, this?
MUCH more enjoyable than that live-action Lion King travesty.
Speaking of riding something a second time, I grabbed a MaxPass for Matterhorn Bobsleds.
While I didn’t take any great pics or anything, I did take a video of the back of Matt’s head enjoying the attraction, which I dubbed the MATTerhorn. On account of it’s Matt.
I know. I am all kinds of clever.
After the Matterhorn, though, it was time to visit an area we haven’t visited yet on this trip – Mickey’s ToonTown.
We wanted to hop right on Roger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin but just was got in line, the ride broke down so back out into ToonTown we went. And over to Mickey’s house, which he has generously opened to the public for tours.
I love the idea that Mickey sits around and watches himself on TV all day.
He’s so vain. I bet he thinks this blog is about him.
Once we were done touring the house, it was time to get in line to meet the mouse himself. While the line wasn’t super long, it seemed Mickey was taking a little break so we waited about ten minutes to get in. Thankfully, due to Mickey’s vanity, we did have some Mickey cartoons to watch while we waited.
Soon we were let in to meet him. And he was AWESOME. All dressed in his Steamboat Willie best.
After meeting Mickey, Mia was all kinds of star-struck so the Falzones went off to search for other Disney friends. And I mean, they found them.
The rest of us noticed people walking into Roger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin, signaling it was back up and running so we walked over there.
This ride is nearly impossible for good pictures. But fortunately, it broke down again for a minute or so while we were on it so I was able to snap one of Roger himself.
Also got one of these two. So see? Proof. We did go on the attraction. Are you calling me a liar?
On our way out? FUN PICS!!
Whilst on Roger Rabbit, I snagged us some MaxPasses for Big Thunder Mountain so we left ToonTown and made our way to Frontierland. On our way, we literally bumped into Belle and the Beast. And while everyone was making a big fuss over the Beast, I paparazzi’ed the heck out of Belle. I have no idea why the picture is so fuzzy so let’s pretend it’s artistic.
After our brush with celebrity, it was onto Big Thunder Mountain Railroad! Which I hear is the wildest ride in the wilderness.
We met back up with the rest of the group and made the short walk over to The Many Adventures of Winnie-The-Pooh.
Which was less wild, but still. I mean, it got pretty crazy up in there.
Speaking of Winnie-the-Pooh, I was starting to get a rumbly in MY tumbly. It was 11:45 or so which meant lunch was near. But we decided on one last attraction before heading out of the park – Haunted Mansion y’all.
I can’t remember if I have ever mentioned this on the blog before, but if I had to choose an attraction in which to live, I feel like I would always come back to Haunted Mansion. I mean, it IS a mansion.
Of course, I don’t mean this would ever actually happen but like, if we are ever playing that game where you talk about Disney attractions you would like to live in.
It is SO something people do.
Whatevz. It’s lunch time.
After the Mansion, we left the park and headed out into Downtown Disney for lunch on Day 13. And here is something cray cray. We didn’t have any reservations.
Yeah, let that sink in.
But it was kind of on purpose. The place we wanted to visit for lunch on Day 13 doesn’t take reservations. But we like really wanted to eat there.
Seriously though. This was something that was causing us weeks of anguish leading up to Day 13. We even considered eating somewhere we didn’t want to eat just so we could have a reservation. We valued the having of a reservation OVER the food. What have you done to us, Disney?
Annnnyways. Lunch today was at Black Tap. And the main draw? Milkshakes. Black Tap is the place that invented the Crazy Shake. Or so they say. But honestly, I am too lazy to do the research to challenge such a claim so…good on ya, Black Tap.
Not having a reservation wasn’t too big of a deal as the line moved pretty quickly and we made it to the counter within maybe 10 minutes or so.
The woman working the counter asked if the 11 of us minded being split up.
Minded? Hahahahaha.
I mean…of course we minded. But we dealt with it so we could be seated quicker.
Right.
We placed our orders, met up with one of the hostesses, and were brought to our table out on the patio.
It was a super nice day out and we had a great view of Downtown Disney from our table.
So yeah, there were shakes but I will get to those in a second. Nickie and I both ordered beers as well and we split a Texan Burger (Prime Burger, Bacon, Aged Cheddar, crispy Onion Ring, Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ, and Mayo served on a Martin’s Potato Roll with Lettuce, Tomato, a Pickle, and French Fries.)
I know the draw here is the shakes, but we really enjoyed our burger as well. I wish I had pictures of what the boys got at our table, but I don’t. I think Myles also got a Texan and Owen ordered a plain cheeseburger. On account of he’s Owen.
But food schmood, right? Bring on the shakes.
OK, so Nickie and I kept on with the splitsies theme and ordered a shake to split – the Bam Bam (Fruity Pebbles Shake with a Vanilla Frosted Rim with Fruity Pebbles topped with a Fruity Pebbles Rice Krispy Treat, Strawberry Pop-Tarts, Laffy Taffy, Whipped Cream and a Cherry.)
So, this shake? It was pretty amazing. And like, I think some of those other crazy shake things out there are mainly for the Gram – real pretty and what not but not much taste to them. They often come out gritty and with a too-frozen feel. That was NOT the case here. All the accoutrements were great, but the base shake was super creamy.
At the other table, I know Jack also got a Bam Bam. And also was doing the whole enjoying thing.
Owen got The Cookie Shake (Vanilla Cookie Shake with a Vanilla Frosted Rim with Cookie Crumbles topped with a “Cookiewich”, Crumbled Cookies, Chocolate Chips, Whipped Cream, and Chocolate Drizzle.)
Myles ordered the Churro Choco Taco (Cinnamon Toast Crunch Shake with a Vanilla Frosted Rim with Cinnamon Toast Crunch topped with a Choco Taco, two Churros, Whipped Cream, and Dulce de Leche drizzle.)
Since they were at the table next to us, I also got a picture of Will’s shake, which was the Cotton Candy (Strawberry Shake with a Vanilla Frosted Rim with Blue, Pink and Pearl Chocolates topped with a Pink Lollipop, Blue and Pink Rock Candy, Whipped Cream, and Cotton Candy.)
Full of beer, ground beef, and milkshake…I decided there was only one thing to do.
Yeah. The gym. Made total sense at the time.
Matt was originally not on board with this whole idea. And I couldn’t blame him. I mean, throwing up Fruity Pebbles all over the treadmill at a Disney gym was low on the bucket list. But I was determined to not hate myself after drinking a milkshake with both Laffy Taffy and a Pop Tart inside it.
I eventually convinced him and we both hit the gym. I did the treadmill while Matt worked out on the elliptical. And you know what? When it was all over, we both agreed it was a good idea. I was literally sweating dairy, but I felt much better about myself and ready to erase all that hard work with more Disney food.
As we walked back to our room, we walked past this…
And while that looks like a normal wedding reception type thing set up in a courtyard, it most certainly wasn’t. They were filming an episode of Disney’s Fairytale Weddings at our hotel. Which was exciting.
Until it wasn’t. They were actually filming pieces of this most of the time we were there, which meant a lot of areas would be closed off at a time, forcing us to take all these different routes to get to our intended destinations. Which became a little bit of a pain.
And that’s not even mentioning the marching band. Later in the day, while at the pool, the wedding party walked through with a MARCHING BAND. Like, a whole marching band. And throughout the day, we could hear said marching band play while we were trying to hang out at our resort. And this was on top of the pool being under constant construction AND them not putting all our rooms together even though they said they would.
And I know. Wahhhh me, right? #FirstWorldDIsneyProblems, right? But it really did put a little bit of a damper on our time at the hotel. Which we were really looking forward to. Because of this inconvenience, the hotel did end up apologizing and took some money off our bill. Which is totez Disney. I get things don’t always go to plan, but Disney usually makes up for it in some way.
Annnnnnyways.
After the gym, Matt and I joined Nickie and Laura and some of the kids down at the pool. And no. That isn’t some kind of euphemism for going number 2.
We actually went down to the pool. And I actually ordered a Dole Whip with rum.
And I MAY have followed that up with a rum punch. And a beer. Maybe. Also, definitely. Whatever, man. I ran earlier. I’ve earned this.
Speaking of negating exercise, dinner that night was approaching soon enough so we all headed back up to the room to get ready.
Dinner tonight was once again at our hotel. We and the Nerneys walked over to the Fantasyland Tower. And while it was actually not at Steakhouse 55 this time around, that didn’t mean we couldn’t visit the lounge beforehand, right? Which meant we got to do more Manhattaning.
I know what you’re wondering. And I am not 100% sure how I manage to parent either. But for some reason, it all seems to work. Speaking of, Owen actually walked over to check us in for dinner while we were at the Steakhouse 55 Lounge. Within maybe like 10 minutes or so, we were called up for dinner.
And dinner tonight was at Goofy’s Kitchen. For those that don’t know, Goofy’s Kitchen is a character buffet at the Disneyland Hotel. It’s sort of like Chef Mickey’s at Walt Disney World. Except better.
Prior to being seated, you are brought over into the “kitchen” for a photo opp with Goofy. But it’s not the actual kitchen. None of the appliances or burners or anything actually worked. But just to be sure, we let the kids touch everything before placing ourselves in any kind of harm’s way.
Soon enough, the head chef came in.
He took a break from his duties in the kitchen to pose for a few pictures with us.
Our hostess brought us to our table and pretty much right away, Chip came over.
And Minnie followed soon after.
We had a break in the characters at this point so we went up to the buffet.
My plate was a literal work of art.
Buffalo mac and cheese, macaroni salad, chicken tenders, prime rib with horseradish, this amazing inside-out quesadilla thing. And a hot dog. Man, I was sort of too excited about the fact they had hot dogs.
And when we got back to the table, Dale was there waiting for us. Such a good dude.
And LOOK who came next. Best.
And while we were taking pictures with Pluto, Mickey photobombed our picture.
But he made it up to us with a personal visit to our table.
I mean, both you and I know that plate wasn’t going to be the end of trips to the buffet. I went up once more to get some more chicken nuggets and another one of those quesadilla things. And of course, I went up for some dessert.
That thing on the right was called something like Goofy’s cookie bake or some kind of thing. It was all whipped cream and cookie pieces. Whatever it was called, it was getting in my belly.
As was some of the famous Peanut Butter and Jelly Pie.
This is the before picture. As in, before it went into my mouth hole.
And don’t hate on the size of my cookie bake pile. It was like…a really big spoon in that stuff. There was no avoiding it. And I mean, I couldn’t not eat it after I scooped it onto my plate. That would be rude.
As we were finishing up dessert, they started their whole dance-wave-your-napkins-in-the-air-thing. And Minnie came over to…I think…dance battle Mia.
But in the end, I guess no one “got served.” They just hugged it out. Which was a little anti-climactic.
Also yeah, I know. We didn’t eat enough food. So the waitstaff brought over a birthday dessert for Owen. On account of we were still celebrating his birthday. Which was a couple weeks away. How we DO.
Dale came back over to the table for one more visit before we left, too! Seriously with this place.
I know. It’s a buffet and all. But I REALLY love dinner at Goofy’s Kitchen. The food is definitely above-average for a buffet and the character interaction is legit some of the best.
It’s obvious I had a good time. On account of I had to trim down my Goofy’s Kitchen pics to get them down to the 30 I used in this post. Yeah, 30. It was a lot of awesome. In fact, it may have been too much awesome. At one point towards the end of the meal, Matt decided he just couldn’t take it anymore and left to wait for us outside. Couldn’t take what? That I am not sure of. Mirth? Happiness? Friendship?
Heh, kidding with you Matt.
I know it was happiness.
So after dinner, we met him outside and he decided to go back up to the room to relax for a bit. The rest of us went back to Disneyland Park for our last few hours of Disney.
Myles and Tony decided that they didn’t have quite enough food at Goofy’s Kitchen and each got a corn dog at the Little Red Wagon.
Will really wanted to see Galaxy’s Edge at night, so he and Laura headed that way.
Being that we were on Main St., the rest of us had a little photo shoot with the PhotoPass photographer. Strike a pose. Vogue.
Man, that is a SMALL castle.
Have I mentioned how awesome it is that PhotoPass is included with your MaxPass? Because it is. Awesome.
Nickie and Larissa were the next ones to drop from our group, the picture on Main St. being their primary goal of the night.
And btw. I use the term “drop” loosely. Nickie and Larissa didn’t exactly go to bed after leaving us. They ended up having a drink at a bar in Downtown Disney. Choosing alcohol over your family, Nickie. Ah-GAIN.
At this point it was now me, Tony, Mia, Myles, Owen, and Jack. Next stop – Big Thunder Mountain! Again!
But this time it was Big Thunder at night. Which is like the biggest Big Thunder.
Jack and Myles agree.
And since we w-ARRRRR in the neighb-ARRRRR-hood.
I love how the Disneyland Pirates goes past the Blue Bayou restaurant.
It’s sort of like the Gran Fiesta Tour going past San Angel Inn at EPCOT.
Except with more criminal activity.
Now, I was on a mission. A mission to conquer all the mountains of Disneyland Park on Day 13. And there was only one mountain left. One wet mountain. Based on a movie that probably 90% of park visitors have never seen.
There was definitely some hesitation in the group. While everyone enjoys Splash Mountain, no one was particularly jazzed about getting wet at 9:30 at night. Tony and Myles bowed out, leaving me, Owen, Jack, and Mia to conquer the mountains. And Mia was a bit trepidatious as well, but braved through it based on my assurance that she wouldn’t get too wet. She asked all the way through the line and said her dad would make her go back to the room if she got wet. I continued to assure her.
Of course, this assurance was based on my experience with the Walt Disney World version of this ride. This version ensures everyone gets really wet. By basically covering you with a tidal wave at one point. I did my best to cover her, but Mia still ended up getting wet.
See? I tried my best. But look at all that water. Fine, those are drawings. But we did all get really wet.
Thankfully, Tony was feeling generous today and let Mia stay at the park. The old softie. So we had conquered all the mountains. But our scaling days aren’t quite behind us just yet.
First though, since it was right across the way and had no wait whatsoever, we hopped in a hunny pot and took a trip through the 100-Acre Woods on The Many Adventures of Winnie-the-Pooh. Again.
I know. Not THE BEST pic. But I think my Galaxy was like, “You’re riding Winnie-The-Pooh again?” and punished me with a grainy photo. My Galaxy is hella-vindictive.
Ugh, are we celebrating Owen’s birthday again?
Even though a few of us had already ridden it twice, Tony and Mia had actually not been on Star Tours yet this trip due to the timing just sort of not working out, so we made the decision to remedy that situation.
And um.
We rode Star Tours.
I got an immediate MaxPass on my phone, meaning we could just walk right on. And walk right on we did.
After Star Tours, Tony and Mia decided to call it a night, leaving me, Myles, Owen, and Jack to fend for ourselves. The rest of the night had us staying in Tomorrowland, taking another spin on Hyperspace Mountain…
…and another turn at Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters, where we all remained sad Planetary Pilots. Womp a domp.
By this time, even I was getting tired (it was after 11PM by this point) so I told the boys one more ride before we headed back. They all settled on the back-breaking Matterhorn. I guess, to punish me?
Welp, a loosely made promise is a loosely made promise. On we went.
And finally. It was time to call it a night. But seriously, what a day. 20 attractions in all. 21 if you include meeting Mickey at his house. 22 if you include the treadmill. Which is valid. That was definitely the closest I came to throwing up.
But yeah, 20ish attractions, awesome food, great company, and a buttload of memories. We DEFINITELY made the most of our last day at Disneyland.
But it was not to be our last day at a theme park. Day 14 has us visiting Universal AND seeing the Chagnons finally. GET. EXCITED.
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