Toy Story Midway Mania

Over at California Adventure, you can find Toy Story Midway Mania, the newest attraction to the park. It is a 3-D dark ride that is fun for all ages. It is interactive and allows you to play midway-style games for points. Riders sit four to a car, two per row. We were able to ride this with our 2 and 3 year old children without any problem. My 2 year old was not really able to work the pull-string firing mechanism, but he enjoyed seeing the Toy Story characters, which is currently his favorite movie.

Since the ride is so new, the line for this can be pretty long, but it moves at a good pace. It is definitely a must-see when you visit the park.

Disneyland/Disney's California Adventure 2 for 1 tickets (2fer)

If you are a Southern California resident and you have been meaning to visit Disneyland or Disney's California Aventure you're in luck!! For a limited time you can visit either park and come back on another day and visit the other park for free!!

You can take advantage of this offer until June 6. A single day admission ticket is $69 for guests 10 and up and $59 for kids 3-9 - kids 2 and under are free. If you haven't been in a while this is a perfect excuse to visit.

Did you know that this is the best time of the year to visit? The crowds are minimal and you can actually take in a park in one day. Our family loves visiting this time of year because we can usually hop right on to a ride and if there is a wait, it's usually very short. You can maneuver through the park easily with a stroller and there's plenty of room to get great seating at restaurants, benches, etc.. Trust me, as a seasoned Disney pass holder and being married to the ultimate Disney fan - there is nothing worse than a visit to either Disney park on a hot summer day.

Here are the details on the tickets-* Tickets are valid for Southern California residents within ZIP codes 90000 to 93599 and Northern Baja California residents within ZIP codes 21000 to 22999. Proof of residency is required for admission. Admission valid for one day at Disneyland® Park and another day at Disney's California Adventure® Park, but not for both parks on the same day. Tickets are valid 30 days from first use. First use must occur between January 6, 2009 and June 6, 2009. Each day of use constitutes one full day of use. You can purchase up to eight tickets per person per day with valid identification.

Pirates of the Caribbean

Pirates of the Caribbean is my family's ride at Disneyland. The ride is great for children of all ages. It's a 14 minute long boat ride that starts out in the bayou and takes you back to a time when pirates ruled the world. The boat is made up of a couple of rows and you can easily fit two or three kids with you in one single row. There are a couple of mild drops that you and your kiddos will love and it's an absolute must attraction when you visit Disneyland.The ride is a classic that even the tiniest tots will love. My 2 and 3 year old march around singing yo ho ho a pirate's life for me. After a ride through this so will yours!!

Pirates of the Caribbean is located in New Orleans Square and even on a busy day expect to wait no longer than 20 minutes. We usually breeze through and wait less than 5 minutes. My only warning about this ride is to avoid it like the plague on nights when Fantasmic will be shown.

Baby Center at Disney's California Adventure

The Baby Center will be a welcome sight if you have babies/toddlers at either park of the Disneyland Resort. The Baby Center in Disney's California Adventure is located next to the Mission Tortilla factory/experience. They have toddler restrooms, a changing area, a feeding area, a breastfeeding area and a small coloring section for your older children while you nurse/change/feed your baby. If you are missing wipes, bottle, diapers or baby food(I always forget something even when I think I'm prepared) no worries, the baby center will probably stock it at a reasonable price.

Disneyland Annual Passports- Payment Plan

With the state of the economy it can be kind of tough to plop down a couple of hundred dollars to buy annual passes for the entire family. The folks at Disney have come up with a solution to this problem by allowing you to buy your pass in payments.

It works like this- The offer is available only to Southern California Residents
For New Annual Passholders - purchase your pass at the Main Entrance Ticket Booth at the Resort. You pay for the 1 day ticket-$69.00 and pay as little as $5.42 a month for the rest of the year.

If you are a renewing Annual Passholder-you have a choice- you can pre-pay the entire year or pay month by month. Go to Disneyland Main Entrance Ticket booth to renew if you would like to set up a payment plan. This is a great deal if you would like to spread your payments apart. I hope many will use. I have been an annual passholder for over a decade and I just love visiting the park. I love that I can take my time and if it's crowded only do a couple of rides and not be in a rush. It's also a great date night without the kiddos. I had a "girls night out" with my 12 year old niece last Saturday and we had such a blast. We got there at 8:30pm and rode all the "big kid" rides that I don't usually get to ride in about 2 hours. If you don't have a pass already - get one - you will love it!! The best part is that you get into both parks.. It's a total deal!!!