My life as a sitcom

I saved a different blog for the weird, funny, and/or outrageous stories of this trip. How fun can a trip be without funny stories?

Arriving in LA, we drove to Anaheim to find our hotel which, according to the brochure, was located .25 miles from Disneyland. This was a benefit in two ways: first close to the hotel so we could get back and pick up Felix from the airport when she flew in Saturday night and second, not having to pay for parking since we were in walking distance.

Get up fairly early Saturday morning - as I mentioned, the park was closing at 5 for the premiere but to make up for that faux pas, it was to open at 7 am. That was a tad early for us, since we dragged in at 10:30 so we opted out of the early morning rides. We did get there around 9 and let me tell you, that was no .25 miles. We walk 2.5 miles every other morning and it was closer to 1.5 miles than .25 miles. They were blowing smoke up our butts.

After the park closed and people were running over to California Adventure (it was staying open an hour later to accommodate the early closing of Disneyland), we needed to head back to the hotel. Walking 1.5 miles after you've been walking all over the park all day is next to impossible. I could feel my hip sockets seizing up. Robee was barely lifting his feet. Thomas, however, was walking faster than I've ever seen him walk. He was on a mission to get back to the hotel and he was going to get there as fast as possible.

Robee opted to stay at the hotel rather than come with us to pick up Felix. I told him to lock the doors and not answer if anyone knocked or at least check the peephole and to keep his phone and close by. I'm just a tad paranoid leaving children in hotels ... alone ... in a new city. Even if it is Disneyland.

We pick up Felix (20 minute ride) and head back. Go up to the room and use the key card to open the door. Red light. Slide it in again. Red light. Again. Again, angry red light. Not working. So Thomas goes to the office, gets a new card. Back again. Slide the card. Red light. WHAT?? How can this be? Are we putting it in wrong? Check it. Slide again. Red light. I go this time since Thomas' have seized up now.

They've closed the office but there is a night person through a 3" thick window. I tell her that our card still isn't working. She makes sure I'm putting in the right way. Get a new one. Jog - painfully - back up ... by the way, on the third floor - to our room. Try the card. RED LIGHT. Arrrrrrgh. What the h***??? I jog BACK down to the office. She finally thinks we're complete idiots and comes to the room with me. SHE puts the card in. HA! "Red light for you too," I think.

I should mention too that I can see Robee sound asleep in bed through a small opening in the curtains. Sound. Like a coma. We knock on the door. Nope. Knock louder. Louder. Pound. Knock on the window. Nothing. He doesn't stir. Finally the guy next door comes screaming out of his room to tell us to shut up and quit pounding on the door.

Back to the woman. She gets a red light too. Then she says, "Is the security lock on?" Oh dear. I do believe that was me who told him to lock and double lock the door. Apparently, when the security lock is locked from the inside, no card can open the door. Now that I think about this logic, it seems like this may be a bad idea. And why doesn't she have a special hotel manager card that no one else has in case of emergency?

But I wasn't thinking straight because we were locked out of our room, with a soundly sleeping kid in bed, in a hotel in Disneyland that was completely booked solid.

Our next attempt was to call the hotel room and try to wake him that way. Called and called and called. Over and over and over. He never heard it ring. I tried his cell phone. Nothing.

Thomas was tired and freaking out saying that we were going to have to sleep in the rental car and Felix was looking like she wished she had stayed in Washington. I told them we were not staying in the car while he was in there alone. I thought about the window. It was a long shot but ... I pulled off the screen and pushed on the window and BAM!! It slid open! Albeit only two feet open but enough I could put my head in and shout to Robee. Which I did. Repeatedly. And he never woke. Luckily, Felix is not built like me and she slithered through the window and got us in. I replaced the screen, good as new. I leaned over Robee, who was still slumbering, and told him we were home. He barely opened his eyes and said "okay" and went back to sleep.

Robee never knew what happened. He didn't remember a thing.

Some may say "Wow! That sounds super dangerous that that window was unlocked and can be opened like that." Yeah, probably. But I figured by the Grace of God it was unlocked so we were able to get back into our room, so I wasn't going to question the safety at that moment. Never look a gift horse in the mouth.

More to come. The ride home.