We awoke to a rainy view outside of our resort window. The forecast for the remainder of the day was much of the same. We took our time getting dressed and ready and were out the door by 9:00.
A Rainy California Day – Thursday, March 22nd
We took our morning stroll to the Disney’s California Adventure resort entrance of the park. The rain was still coming down a bit so we threw up our hoodies and headed into the park. Our first stop of the day has become our daily tradition, FastPasses for Radiator Springs. We secured a time for the afternoon with hopes the weather would clear by then.
With no official plan for the morning we strolled the park, dodging the rain to the best of our ability. We took a nostalgic spin on Heimlich’s Chew Chew Train, knowing that this would be our last trip enjoying A Bug’s Land. I truly love the fact that Hunter, even at age 11, still has an affinity for the fairly uneventful attraction.
La Brea Bakery Breakfast – Downtown Disney
With more dark clouds on the horizon we decided a breakfast break was in order. We first snagged a few PhotoPass photos on our way out of Disney’s California Adventure park. Without an official plan for breakfast, we all agreed that La Brea Bakery in Downtown Disney sounded good. We made it to the restaurant just in time before it started to absolutely pour down rain. We had an outdoor seat under the cover and were happy to be out of the rain. Emily ordered the breakfast BLT sandwich and I got the chorizo frittata. Hunter was eager to try the French Toast while Sawyer was in a lunch mood and ordered the chicken fingers. We shared an order of bacon which almost broke up our family it was so good. Emily considered using her MMA skills to steal the last piece.
After we finished our breakfast the rain had lot let up at all. Trying to strategize the driest route back to the resort, it just so happened to take us through the World of Disney store. Emily and the boys were happy to take their time looking around at all of the merchandise offerings. After we finished shopping it was back to the room for a chill break before our lunch reservation. This gave us a chance to do a little laundry and dry our hoodies for the afternoon.
With a slightly later adjustment to our lunch reservation we were ready to eat. Emily booked a package which included lunch at Carthay Circle and seating for the evening performance of World of Color. With the weather the way that it was we weren’t sure the show would go so we canceled the package and just did lunch.
Carthay Circle Lunch – Disney’s California Adventure
We mustered up our afternoon energy and started off to Disney’s California Adventure for lunch. We stopped in the lobby of the resort to capture a few detail photos. The boys got a chance to meet and greet with Chip and Dale as we passed through as well. This has quickly become one of our favorite dining locations. Although the food isn’t always our favorite, the ambiance and Walt details more than make up for everything.
We couldn’t have asked for a cozy and relaxing lunch. Emily ordered Korean steak, which she really enjoyed. Having just had a huge breakfast I opted for the Strawberry Salad. Hunter opted to go easy on our pocketbook and ordered the fillet. Off the adult menu. Sawyer went out of the box and got noodles with red sauce (he has gotten this for every meal). We also had to have an afternoon cocktail to warm up our rain soaked bones! Our server was fantastic making it an overall great experience.
Disney’s California Adventure Afternoon
After lunch we took advantage of the nice weather as we strolled through Disney’s California Adventure park. During our original FastPass window for Radiator Springs Racers the ride was down due to weather. This meant that our FastPass was good for any attraction in the park. One of Sawyer’s favorite attractions is Toy Story Midway Mania. We took advantage of the opportunity to play the virtual carnival games without any wait! We also booked another Radiator Springs Racers FastPass for later in the day so we had that one covered as well.
Shopping at Downtown Disney & Hotels
After Midway Mania we took a stroll around the park looking through some stores along the way. Not getting nearly enough of our fill of shopping, we continued out of the park to peruse Downtown Disney once again. Our walk took us to the end of Downtown Disney and into the Paradise Pier resort. Emily was on a quest to find the Spiderman action figure that Sawyer had been looking for the last couple of days. After shifting around a few of other Avenger toys she spotted the long lost Spiderman! Sawyer was super excited as Spiderman is by far his favorite Marvel character.
After we’d exhausted the shops at the Disneyland Hotel and Paradise Pier hotel, we made our way back through the rain through Downtown Disney. It was time for our Radiator Springs Racers FastPass and we didn’t want to miss it. As we worked our way toward Disney’s California Adventure park the rain intensified. Luckily for Dad this gave us another excuse for even more shopping! Then, we once again got the notification that they took the ride down due to rain.
Emily offered to take the boys shopping and I headed back to the room with our purchases. I took the opportunity to take a bit of a chill break while Emily and the boys explored. They did some shopping and hit up A Bug’s Land to ride on a few of their favorite attractions.
A Chilly Evening at Disney’s California Adventure
After a brief chill break we all met up and took a spin on the Golden Zephyr. With the rain and overcast weather the night got to be a bit chilly. With our cozy sweatshirts on we walked through Cars Land and captured some fun night photos. Disney’s California Adventure is such a beautiful park when it is lit up in the evening.
Our last planned activity of the evening was a raft ride down Grizzly River Rapids. You board a large tube with eight seats where you are fastened in for the “fun”. The raft goes through spins and drops all the while providing a dousing of water. We thought this would make the most sense today since we were already wet from the rain. While that was partially true, we failed to factor in the evening chill.
Back in the Hotel – Disney’s Grand Californian
The ride absolutely did me in (I am not a fan of the spinning rides). We stumbled back to the hotel, stopping of course for the evening churro on the way. Back in the room we changed into our cozy pajamas and ordered room service since we didn’t eat dinner. Hoping for a drier day tomorrow!
