As promise, here is part two of our California trip. (If you missed part one, it’s right here).

After a full day at Disneyland on Thursday, we all slept in a bit on Friday morning, then made our way down to our character breakfast.

While we waited to be seated, we watched all the kids in the restaurant dancing and singing with several Bear Country characters, and also saw Rafikki from The Lion King walking around. Based on Peanut’s reaction to the characters at Disneyland, we were excited for him to meet a bunch during our breakfast. But by the time we were seated and got our food, those few characters had left, and the only one left was Chip, of Chip and Dale. And although we were there for nearly an hour, Chip was the only character we saw. Total waste — we certainly won’t be doing that again on future Disneyland trips. But at least Peanut liked Chip…

When we entered the park, it was cold and overcast, and the forecast was rain, so it wasn’t too crowded. We went for the ferris wheel first, and of course chose the free swinging basket (my favorite). The moment we went up and that thing started swinging, Peanut freaked. No crying, just total fear…sad, but hilarious.

We rode a bunch more rides, most of which Peanut loved, and then headed to the animation room where he meet Mickey, Chip, Goofy, and Woody. Of course, he loved them all.

Our last ride of the afternoon was the new 3D Toy Story ride, which we loved, despite the thirty minute wait.

When we got out of the ride, it was pouring rain with lightening and thunder. Most of the rides quickly began shutting down, and everyone was soaked. It was time for Peanut’s nap anyway, so we took off and headed for the rest of our trip down at Huntington Beach.

After we checked into our hotel, Peanut and Philip sat out on the porch enjoying the semi-nice weather, and then we decided to brave the cold and wind down at the beach.

You guys, it. was. freezing. I had three shirts on and a jacket, and a towel shielding my face from the wind and sand that was pelting my skin, and I was still miserable. And all the while, Peanut was having the time of his life (runny nose and all).

I lasted as long as I could (about 25 minutes) until I finally put my foot down and we left. Peanut threw the biggest tantrum I’ve ever seen, but all was forgiven when we got to the pool and there was a big water slide, protection from the wind, and a heated pool. We all warmed up very quickly, and while the boys played in the water, I laid out in the sun and read a book while eating a delicious pesto, fresh mozzarella, and tomato panini from the poolside grill. Heaven, I tell you.

The next day (our last) was much nicer, so we headed for the beach again. This time I only wore one shirt and my jacket, and I was perfect. We spent an hour or so down there before we headed back to the hotel, showered, and took off for the airport.

It was a fantastic five days, and we were all sad to see our trip come to an end.