Vacation to end all Vacations

Alrighty, as the title suggests, this is going to be a pretty lengthy post. After leaving you with a wondrous tale of my car woes, I finished packing and managed to get 3 hours of sleep before getting up to get ready to head to the airport. Before getting picked up by a friend, I decided to go and make sure that my car was locked up while taking out some trash. I'm glad I did! Apparently, in the chaos of the night, my car door hadn't shut all the way and was left ajar. Unfortunately, this meant the inside lights had stayed on... ALL NIGHT. If I hadn't checked to make sure my car was locked, my battery would've died while I was gone, and not only would I have had to figure out how to fix the steering wheel but I would've had to buy a new battery!

After closing up house, I was dropped off at the airport and because my flight was at 7:30 AM, it was a breeze to get through security. Literally. There were two people in line. Myself, and a woman ahead of me. We both got to use a scanner each, and were through security in under five minutes. Even on a slow day at our airport, I have never flown through security like that. It was amazing and I will gladly get up at the crack of dawn to fly somewhere if it means I get to experience the security line like that!

Anyway, there must have been someone smiling on me, or realized I needed to sleep, because on both of my flights I was the only person in my row. I would've been fine with curling up in my window seat should someone sit next to me, but having both seats to myself allowed me the chance to stretch out and get a total of one and a half hours extra sleep. Normally, even with my Dramamine, I can only sleep for half an hour on a flight. I was thankful for the extra time, and so happy the flight attendants were also really nice. I was able to get extra pretzels/peanuts because I was all alone in my row. Silly, I know, but I don't like to eat much until I get to where I'm going. Best flight ever!

Arriving in LA, I was ready for a week of relaxation. What I got, after grabbing some lunch, was a face plant into an air mattress when I got to my destination. After a two hour nap, I enjoyed some family time and we began the week of wonderfulness. The zoo and a coastal drive by the beach, and two dance recitals later, I was coming to the end of my vacation. But, as always, what would be a trip to So Cal without heading to my happiest place on Earth? It wouldn't. So we always make time while we're down there...because I'm slightly selfish and always want to go. :)

So, the plan this time, because it would be the last for a while, was to stay at one of the Disneyland hotels. With help from a friend, we were able to score a night's stay at Paradise Pier. So exciting! We headed down as early as we could, but traffic kept us from getting there early so we could enjoy Downtown Disney. I wasn't too upset with this, as we could still spend time at the pool. Well, all those plans were halted when we got to the check in desk and discovered a miscalculation: when making the reservation, the dates for the night had gotten switched! So, of course, there was panic all around because this was the only time to go, we were there, and the man behind the desk was not very helpful. Odd for a Disney employee,  I know. But, needless to say, we were able to get a new reservation....

At the DISNEYLAND HOTEL!!

You guys. You guys, you guys, you guys! It was the first time in my twenty-five years of life, that I'd ever gotten to stay at a Disney hotel, let alone THE Disneyland Hotel. I about cried, and I'm not kidding. What had started as a bad experience turned into a golden one. The girl at the front desk at the D-land hotel was exactly what someone working at a hotel, let alone a Disneyland hotel, should be like. She was helpful and courteous, understanding and empathetic, and even found us at Goofy's Kitchen to let us know that she'd been able to get our two groups on the same floor. How wonderful was she? Above and beyond the call of customer service.

So with food in our bellies, rooms to finally crash in, we made our way to the Frontier wing and had a special Tinkerbell greeting for the girls in their room. Now, this may just be my love of everything Disney talking, and the fact that we were all exhausted, but those beds felt like Heaven. I kind of wish we'd had another night in those rooms, but it was wonderful while it lasted. Being tired and still emotionally charged from the day before, we were unable to use our special passes to get into the park early for breakfast, but we were still able to head over as they opened and enjoy California Adventures first before the crowds got too big.

Another first for me happened, as I got to go through the single rider line for one of the rides in Cars Land while my parents got breakfast. I went with my brother-in-law, and got to spend a little quality time with him. So much fun! My parents went after we returned, and I enjoyed my Disney breakfast while we woke up a little more and decided where best to head next. Needless to say, we got through almost all of Carsland and then headed over to ride Monsters while checking out a few characters we passed along the way. I even got a chance to enjoy the Mad Tea Party setup before ducking into the Sorcerer's Workshop, The Beast's Lair, and Ursula's Grotto. A few goodies were grabbed before we decided it was time to head to main park so we could get in a few rides before lunch.

Now, while I love C.A., Disneyland will always and forever be my place of Zen. I was able to get a Dole Whip for the first time, and I got soaked on Splash Mountain. The rest of the day was as magical as the park, but the best part had to be lunch at Blue Bayou. Now, it would've been amazing had we been able to get into Club 33, but you have to know people who are members, and while we're a cool group of people, we didn't know anybody that cool. Still, Blue Bayou is one of my favorite restaurants, and being that it was our last hoorah, my dad was able to reserve a table right by the water of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. That is something that needs advanced reservation, especially with a larger group. Thank you, thank you, thank you to the people who work at Disney for making that happen.

As much as I'd like to explain every fine detail of what we did in the park, I will just say that after lunch, we were able to get on every ride that we really wanted to go on. I also had a little time to myself to go through the Sleeping Beauty Castle walkthrough, as well as the Pixie Hallow walkthrough. We got to watch fireworks while eating dinner, and we ended the night with one more small round of shopping. While I know that I'll be able to go back, it was a wonderful trip, and I couldn't have been happier with the time we spent together.

Now, it wasn't the smartest plan, but it was the only way we could work the times. After leaving at midnight, we headed back home and flopped into bed. My parents and I were leaving the next morning after watching my youngest niece open her gifts. Her birthday is this next weekend, so we aren't going to be able to attend, so we wanted to have that moment before leaving. It was adorable and wonderful, but the time came to leave. As wonderful as it had been to be with family, and knowing they'd be moving in about a month, there was one family dynamic that would be changing.

Because of health, my fur-baby nephew, Jackson Jefferson Montgomery, was going to be put down. Ever since he arrived in the family, he's been a special dog. During visits when I would sleep on the couch, he would be my couch buddy and night time protector by sleeping on the floor below me. I loved to take walks with him, and he always provided some sort of entertainment when playing with him. Saying good bye to that overgrown puppy was the hardest thing I'd had to do in some time. Especially since I had to hold together in front of my nieces. I've had my cry since then, but it will be hard to know that when I see my family next, he won't be there.  I love you Jack Jack.

Well, after all was said and done, we left So Cal and headed on back up to the mountains and blue skies. After barely getting an sleep before heading down, and barely getting any during the week, plus getting in late from Disneyland and taking a Dramamine, I don't remember much of the first day driving back. There's a few stops for potty breaks and food, but I don't remember much. I got rest, though, and was better the next day as we made it home.

Two days back and I still smile at everything we did. I don't know how it happened, but from the plane ride to the car ride home, everything was perfect even with the little hotel hiccup. I'll be back So Cal, but it may be a while. Until then, stay awesome.

And now, to end this lengthy post, I wish you all a good night.

Later days <3 br="">