Tuesday I made the voyage down to Anaheim to visit Disneyland with toddler in tow. We were meeting my Dad there for the day (he’s visiting from Boston). Matt had planned to go with us but some important meetings came up and he had to stay and work. I did my research (thanks Pinterest!) and the trip was successful and we actually had fun.
Here’s what I packed to make this a smooth sailing trip. Keep in mind, we only went for a day trip so we didn’t need all of the overnight/multi-day essentials.
1. Ergo! I don’t know if I’ve told you enough, but man I love this thing! It was perfect to strap Hudson in from the car to the parking shuttle. That way I was able to fold up my stroller and hop on the shuttle and skip the super long stroller only shuttle line. I have to admit that I felt like a total baller folding up my stroller and carrying everything + a baby by myself. I had also planned on using this in the park if Hudson got tired of sitting in his stroller since he’s not walking quite yet.
2. E-Tickets, I bought my parking ticket online and zipped on through. Same goes for the park tickets. No standing in line for us!
3. Cross-body bag for your essentials. I used this one (hat tip to Aspiring Kennedy for the rec) and it was glorious. We parked the stroller and the accompanying diaper bag every time we went on a ride. I was able to leave it without worry since I had my wallet, phone and park hopper ticket with me.
4. Get this fan! It was the best $8 I spent. I put that baby on full blast while Hudson was napping so he wasn’t sweltering in his stroller. They sell similar fans at the park for $15-ish dollars.
5. Bring a cooler bag for lunch and snacks. I picked I almost didn’t bring this but am SO glad I did. I pre-packed Hudson’s lunch and snacks in a thermal bag and it was much easier to keep him on his schedule. It was also a relief to not have to run around and find healthy food for him.
6. Pack the PJs! You could get festive with the Mickey PJs or just be lame like me and pack plain old jammies. We left the park at 6:15 so I just popped him in his PJs and he slept the whole way home. I think this would also be a great idea for families staying overnight at the park. Adults and the big kids want to stay for the fireworks (they don’t start until 9 pm!) so it would be easy to snuggle up the younger kids in their strollers.
We had such a fun time going on all of the classic Disneyland rides. Dumbo, Peter Pan and the Pirates of the Caribbean were our favorites. We also lucked out with hardly any lines (California schools were back in session this week). It was a great day and we’ll definitely be back!
Next time I hope to get some better pictures. I had a timed delay on my camera that I didn’t realize until half way through our day. At that point we were all looking a little sweaty and tired! Another reason to go back to visit!
Taking a break in Cars Land! This was so neat to see, it really did look exactly like the movie.
Waiting for Goofy’s Parade in California Adventure to begin!
You are brave, woman!! Teach me your ways. I consider running to Target w/ Quinn an adventure in & of itself.
Looks like such a fabulous time! What memories! Love your aviators, too (I notice these things).
xoxo