The best way to make Disneyland, and life, more enjoyable: jazz hands.

How to survive Disneyland? That seems kind of silly, doesn’t it? Isn’t surviving Disneyland the same as enjoying Disneyland? I should think so. However, there are some among us (you know who you are) that feel otherwise. They look at a day in a crowded theme park like the rest of us look at a day in the DMV — long lines, too hot and very expensive.  Man, the DMV sucks.

Disneyland, thankfully, doesn’t. To turn that frown upside down I am offering some helpful tips for creating a Disneyland vacation that should make even the most cynical crack the occasional smile (someone buy that person a Grumpy t-shirt). Churros not included. Read More »

This is the droid you were looking for.

Star Tours, the popular Star Wars ride at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World, will be opening version 2.0 today (May 20, 2011). It is also opening day for the 2011 Star Wars Weekends held in the park, which means it will be crazy crowded, but still fun.

Rumor has it that the new Star Tours ride is in 3D, features multiple destinations and numerous characters spanning all of the Star Wars films. Yes, even Jar Jar. (Check out this new Star Tours commercial via our friends at The Disney Blog.)

The Disneyland ride will reopen on June 3, 2011. They don’t have Star Wars Weekends at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, which is bunk, but expect the park to still be insanely busy for the 2.0 launch.

For more family-friendly travel photos visit DeliciousBaby’s Photo Fridays.

Hippo Sighting From The Wild Africa Trek

Many families make the family trek to central Florida at least once, and those trips to Walt Disney World can provide years of family memories.  But, if your family is a bit on the more adventurous side, you can also fill your vacation memories with an African adventure (as authentic as you can get in Florida).

Your home base for your trip should be the Animal Kingdom Lodge, one of my family’s favorite Disney resorts.  Although it costs extra, consider springing for a savanna-view room.  You’ll be able to see animals right from your balcony.  We saw loads of giraffes when we stayed there, and my children just loved it.

There are several fabulous restaurants at the Animal Kingdom Lodge – Jiko – the Cooking Place for a more fancy dinner, and the buffet-style Boma for more casual fare.  Both are excellent, but make reservations in advance because they do fill up. Read More »

Said the Giving Tree.

Valentine’s Day, in case you didn’t get the memo, is all about romance. It’s about couples courting and expensive ways to say I love you. Also, scoring.

Hey, I’m a romantic.

Turns out I’m not the only one. In a very unscientific study conducted by the bloggers of UpTake we surmised that more wedding proposals take place on Valentine’s Day than any other day of the year. Possible runners-up included Christmas, New Year’s Eve, Birthdays and the Super Bowl. Last on the list were Arbor Day and April, 15.

We, and by “we” I mean “I” because everyone else went on with their lives, decided to make a list of the most romantic spots in America to propose on Valentine’s Day. There are no numbers to back this up and the ranking is based solely on my idea of what everyone else should be doing. I have lots of lists like this.

That said, here they are:  Read More »