observations from our vacation

We got back about an hour ago from two weeks vacation.
One week in Disneyland, followed by a repositioning cruise on Princess from LA up to Vancouver.

Some thoughts:

1. Disney has the best bathrooms for moms. The changing tables have disposable liners. Loved that.

2. Disney knows how to control line ups. Princess Cruises hasn't figured that out yet (particularly with respect to disembarkation)

3. You can nurse a baby standing in line for the Finding Nemo ride (45 min) AND for the cruise disembarkation in Victoria (45 min). Actually, the cruise line up was more of a muddle of several hundred people crowded in a small space trying to get off a ship.

4. Mothers and Grandmas will empathize with you when you have to do #3.

5. With your second baby, you lose all worry about what "first foods" he can eat. Since we ran out of rice cereal on the ship, Fynn experienced bananas, peaches, yogurt, ice cream and meat/veggies. Princess carries baby food (thank goodness).

6. A broken camera on the FIRST day of Disney can really bum you out. Thankfully they sold disposables. I'm still bummed about this. I think something has gone wrong with the shutter.

7. Disney charges a fortune for their roving photographer photos. But when your little girl gets to meet Arial and Jasmine, you gotta buy a photo. Right?

8. You can lose/maintain weight on a cruise. Yes, you can. When you are running around/carrying children to and fro and walking all over the place (in search of diapers, Starbucks, bathrooms).

9. The kid's centre on the cruise was heaven sent. Each evening Sophie happily went there and we got a bit of time to go to some shows (with Fynn since they didn't take babies).

10. Speaking of Fynn - he WAS the star of the Golden Princess.

11. Never assume your hotel valet parking and your cab driver in Vancouver are speaking the same language. You will wait 20 minutes for your car, with 2 hungry kids and 2 semi-tired/cranky/hungry adults. You can't be rationale when you have only had a cruise pillow chocolate since waking up (no breakfast when you disembark at 7:15am).

12. Your 4 year old may be scared of "Bugs Life" but not Splash Mountain, Space Mountain, Tower of Terror or Thunder Mountain Railroad.

13. Be thankful Small World was closed for maintenance.

14. Be thankful for the SunVeil/ UV stroller cover you bought 4 years ago and never thought you would use. In Southern Calif. the sun is hot! And Fynn still has baby white skin.

15. Fynn can roll really fast. Thankfully the beds in our cruise cabin were not too high off the floor. Poor kid. No bruises.

16. Le Brea bakery is the best for breakfast at Downtown Disney.

17. Trudging through the heat of the day / crazy Friday crowds is worth it for Sophie to go to the Princess Faire. So worth it!

18. You will be grateful for on site laundry machines at the hotel.

19. Staying on site at Disney is worth the money.

20. You will think (a bit shamefully) to yourself that it was "worth it" that your daughter got a sliver under her nail and had to go to first aid in California Adventure. Disney, in all of their Disney goodness, awards young patients with a plush toy if you need first aid. Sophie scored with a $19.95 baby Cinderella plushie for her pain. Actually mom took out the sliver because the nurse couldn't get a good grip on it. All of my eyebrow plucking over the years came in handy.

21. And again, you think your misfortune has an upside, when after being stranded on top of Mulhulland Madness due to a malfunction, you and your young nephew get 5 Fast Passes that you all use on California Screaming.

22. It's good to be home!