Disney Part II (Da dum dum chh)

That was my drumroll. Because it only took me 5 months to complete this trip. How did I not post Disney Part II?!? That is a tragedy. I just can't let that happen! So here goes...

In between our Disney Days, we spent a day going to the beach. So beautiful. I've always said my dream is to live in  a charming little coastal town. Not the kind where there's lavish mansions built onto the seaside with the entire back made of giant windows - I'm talking quaint, eclectic beach homes full of character and adventure. Maybe someday...

This trip we visited Treasure Island Beach which was recommended to by my friend Kamy. It was a great choice! Clean, gorgeous but quiet, with tidepools to explore.

 

This cool cliff looks the profile of an old man. See it?

 
A tater print in the sand <3 p="">

Yao, King of the Rock

 

Exploring the Tidepools

And getting a private lesson about sea life in the pools. He let Emmett keep this brochure and Em was so excited! We still have it in our bookshelf.

Dreamy

This picture embodies happiness!

 

The following day we explored Long Beach for the first half of the day.

 

 We walked around the harbor, saw the Queen Mary, and went into a few little shops.

 We even found this CTR boat amongst the masses!

 

Finally it was time for our return to DISNEYLAND!! And equally exciting - that it was Mickey's Halloween Party! I am probably as passionate about Halloween as I am about Disneyland, so I was definitely riding a peak this day. I told Jared "I feel like my life has been leading to this moment".

 

Jessie and her cowboy, Woody. I opted not to do my homemade wig for the party as I knew it would be hot and a pain. However, check out how awesome it was.

 

 

First stop on my itinerary that day was the "Jedi Training Academy". It did not disappoint. Definitely a highlight of Emmett's trip. He ALMOST did not get chosen, and when I finally heard the words, "and the young cowboy" I exhaled and huge sigh of relief and pushed him off to the stage!

 Emmett completed Jedi training just before the appearance of Darth Vader and Darth Maul.

 In keeping with the rest of our trip, Emmett was chosen to be the star of the show (yes again!). He was selected to be the first to battle Darth Vader with his newfound light saber skills. You could tell he was a little nervous with all of Vader's theatrics but he managed to pull it off like a pro.

Dad and Tate watched from the audience.

See the white arrow on the picture? Its pointing to my tiniest little Jedi at his graduation ceremony.

#2 on my list was Haunted Mansion. Duh. It felt wrong that it was Nightmare before Christmas since it was less spooky than the original Haunted Mansion (and it was Halloween) , but Id never seen the Holiday version yet, so I didn't mind too much.
 

 

 

At dusk the trick or treat trails began. Can't beat being handed candy at Disneyland.

 

 

The party ended up being a lot busier than I expected, and some rides got shut down early. Fortunately we'd already checked off most everything on our list, so we were able to just enjoy all the Halloween frills. Poor Taters threw up not too long into the party, so the Buzz Lightyear costume didn't last long. It's not a proper vacation until somebody vomits right? I just felt bad he wasn't feeling great while getting dragged to and fro.

 

 

The highlight of the night was definitely the parade and fireworks show. Disney never disappoints when it comes to these things, but on these particular Halloween events they really outdid themselves. We still watch clips from this parade on my phone weekly and sing the theme song all the time. Every Disney character was dressed up for Halloween and it was fun to see all their costumes.

 

 

 I still can't get over this fireworks show. I can envision it so clearly in the playback of my mind. I loved Zero from Nightmare before Christmas flying over the castle to start the show in place of the regular Tinkerbell. The music was coordinated phenomenally and the selections were perfect - Pieces from Nightmare and "Grin grinning ghosts" from the Haunted mansion. My favorite was during of a remix of "This is Halloween" when Jack sang "Everybody scream!", howling rockets shot straight up into the sky. The eerie lights and fog were perfection. I was in seventh heaven.

 

The Downside? My poor tuckered babies slept through the entire thing. Tiredness had finally caught up to them (and it was nearly 11 by this point).

 

 

 We left Disney deadbeat, content, and exhilarated all at once - just as you should. I seriously had the time of my life and loved every single millisecond watching Emmett and Tate soak up the magic. Time to start my next Disney Jar ;)