I am a planner. PERIOD.
The "fly by the seat of my pants" concept is so scary to me. In some ways I envy people who can live spontaneously, but the idea of that makes my heart race and my anxiety rise. I feel like if I don't plan then I might miss something. My life is mapped out on 3 Google calendars that is synced to my phone along with my work calendar. I even made a career out of my ability to plan.
If you don't believe me ask Miss. I knew that this past weekend would be the only time I could take Princess D to Disneyland to see the holiday festivities and I didn't want to miss anything. I checked the Disney website to see what they were doing this year. Then I sent her a Google calendar invite with the following plan and map:
CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE:
- Santa's Seaside Pavilion (will probably be crowded so I think it should be first)
- "a bug's land" (will be decorated for the holidays)
- Cocina Cucamonga Mexican Grill - holiday tamales
DISNEYLAND:
- Small World
- A Christmas Fantasy Parade - 2:30
- Toon Town (will be decorated for the holidays)
- Santa's Reindeer Round-Up
- Haunted Mansion Holiday
- Café Orleans - for dinner & beignets
- Main Street U.S.A. Christmas Tree lighting - 7:30
- "Believe... in Holiday Magic" Fireworks Show - 8:40
Most people would think I was beyond neurotic, but Miss knows me really well and simply dismisses my planning as the quirky OCD side of me because when it comes down to it if my plan completely derails I either have a back up plan or make the best of the situation. And like most of our Disneyland trips this one did not to go as planned! The day looked more like:
CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE:
- Santa's Seaside Pavilion - it wasn't crowded at all
- Silly Symphony Swings
- "a bug's land" - decorated, but we could have skipped
Cocina Cucamonga Mexican Grill - holiday tamales
DOWNTOWN DISNEY DISTRICT:
- Lunch at Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen - the kids food lasted ALL day
- Getting toys at Build-A-Bear Workshop
- Holiday cupcakes at The Cupcake Store
- Riding in the front of the Monorail to Tomorrowland
DISNEYLAND:
- Small World
- Santa's Reindeer Round-Up
- A Christmas Fantasy Parade -
2:305:30 Toon Town (will be decorated for the holidays)Café Orleans - for dinner and beignets- it was totally booked up- Main Street U.S.A. Christmas Tree lighting
- Wintertime Enchantment Holiday Lighting of Sleeping Beauty's Castle
- Chimichanga and corn on the cob from the food cart while we waited an hour for the firework show to start
"Believe... in Holiday Magic" Fireworks Show - 8:40- which was canceled due to high winds- Enchanted Tiki Room
- Pirates of the Caribbean
Also, I forgot that my camera battery was already low and I didn't pack my back up battery. Thank goodness for my Blackberry camera. The quality of the photos are not that great, but at least I captured something.
No matter how many times we have gone to Disneyland (which is at least 12 times a year) we always learn new ways to make the visit better. Next year we will spend the weekend so that we can get up early to get handmade candy canes, take a tour in order to preferred seating for the parade, and make dinner reservations the day before. As for this visit, we might not have been able to do everything I had planned, but we had a great time together and that really is what the day was all about.
