Meta tags:
description=Reflections on Faith, Identity and the Things that Make Me Laugh & Cry;

Headings (most frequently used words):

the, faith, and, all, about, rose, on, post, navigation, jumping, into, living, water, sermon, encountering, she, bears, of, our, when, pastors, account, for, their, hours, disneyland, with, littles, maundy, thursday, foot, washing, stickers, snuggles, no, sleep, bailey, 11, 30, 2003, 2018, your, first, thanksgiving, home, lost, in, translation, birth, day, reflections, identity, things, that, make, me, laugh, cry, main, menu, recent, posts, instagram, twitter, archives, subscribe, by, email, blogs, follow,

Text of the page (most frequently used words):
and (460), the (441), that (154), this (115), for (112), was (85), our (82), with (81), you (80), time (79), but (75), have (52), all (49), she (46), day (42), what (42), then (40), just (40), about (38), when (38), are (38), like (37), one (37), ride (37), were (36), there (35), into (33), some (33), not (33), they (33), first (32), her (32), can (32), out (31), from (30), your (30), got (30), will (29), his (28), because (27), while (27), more (27), who (26), faith (25), went (25), did (25), get (24), kid (24), god (23), way (23), disneyland (22), had (22), them (22), baby (22), kids (22), now (21), being (21), over (21), good (21), #little (21), work (21), life (20), posted (20), reply (19), love (19), these (19), church (19), hours (18), before (18), would (18), home (18), where (17), after (17), him (17), really (17), don (17), never (17), didn (16), actually (16), great (16), most (16), today (16), people (16), their (15), much (15), story (15), said (15), come (15), line (15), which (15), power (15), around (14), again (14), make (14), mike (14), world (14), parade (14), water (13), other (13), long (13), lot (13), been (13), also (13), too (13), take (13), any (13), two (13), even (13), down (13), show (13), rides (13), rode (13), still (12), may (12), 2018 (12), here (12), back (12), park (12), how (12), times (12), dinner (12), man (12), means (12), know (12), together (12), jesus (12), passage (12), pastor (11), 2017 (11), leave (11), night (11), think (11), through (11), well (11), could (11), than (11), always (11), has (11), months (11), disney (11), stroller (11), bears (10), uncategorized (10), things (10), only (10), different (10), sure (10), use (10), wanted (10), joannhlee (10), words (10), days (10), made (10), say (10), bailey (10), those (10), iron (10), pooh (10), something (9), older (9), least (9), took (9), met (9), once (9), thing (9), help (9), put (9), find (9), sometimes (9), walked (9), last (9), loved (9), might (9), experience (9), hong (9), kong (9), winnie (9), elisha (9), hope (8), place (8), new (8), 2013 (8), rose (8), call (8), waiting (8), room (8), pretty (8), feel (8), brought (8), rest (8), old (8), three (8), year (8), having (8), during (8), better (8), why (8), small (8), stayed (8), wait (8), pastors (7), everything (7), several (7), thought (7), called (7), right (7), want (7), bring (7), whole (7), understand (7), see (7), family (7), fully (7), each (7), friends (7), food (7), doing (7), used (7), away (7), others (7), hotel (7), train (7), waited (7), lunch (7), christmas (7), confirmation (7), com (6), living (6), account (6), prayer (6), death (6), january (6), 2012 (6), maundy (6), thursday (6), foot (6), washing (6), sermon (6), child (6), need (6), told (6), let (6), until (6), meet (6), hold (6), mother (6), under (6), slept (6), lost (6), ways (6), cannot (6), own (6), ever (6), remember (6), favorite (6), five (6), easy (6), feet (6), such (6), years (6), believe (6), doesn (6), early (6), country (6), characters (6), dad (6), pictures (6), nap (6), adults (6), minutes (6), watch (6), full (6), maxpass (6), mean (6), fact (6), does (6), answers (6), questions (6), email (5), jumping (5), already (5), blog (5), live (5), second (5), journey (5), best (5), december (5), september (5), february (5), march (5), 2014 (5), found (5), sleep (5), post (5), surgery (5), morning (5), hospital (5), decided (5), another (5), change (5), everyone (5), knew (5), girl (5), helped (5), bed (5), wasn (5), probably (5), stop (5), says (5), trying (5), using (5), concrete (5), since (5), saw (5), able (5), happen (5), perhaps (5), within (5), city (5), kind (5), joy (5), part (5), fun (5), very (5), lives (5), afterwards (5), pray (5), human (5), justice (5), pass (5), christians (5), disciples (5), outside (5), ice (5), asked (5), holy (5), completed (5), enough (5), etc (5), walk (5), left (5), spent (5), trip (5), facebook (5), almost (5), try (5), bag (5), snacks (5), diaper (5), often (5), realized (5), bad (5), boys (5), mystery (5), wordpress (4), sign (4), subscribe (4), abraham (4), reflections (4), beyond (4), enjoy (4), free (4), follow (4), posts (4), 2011 (4), april (4), august (4), snuggles (4), birth (4), emergency (4), saying (4), tell (4), meant (4), via (4), wouldn (4), course (4), taken (4), arms (4), later (4), seemed (4), hour (4), less (4), twinkle (4), afraid (4), smile (4), give (4), hard (4), idea (4), making (4), mostly (4), grandparents (4), space (4), many (4), yet (4), thanksgiving (4), big (4), wonder (4), side (4), spot (4), blanket (4), changed (4), though (4), ate (4), keep (4), break (4), every (4), without (4), continue (4), serve (4), however (4), taking (4), christ (4), community (4), tradition (4), christian (4), experiences (4), character (4), few (4), play (4), peter (4), restaurant (4), same (4), off (4), fastpass (4), option (4), note (4), magical (4), consider (4), going (4), isn (4), phone (4), known (4), count (4), week (4), preach (4), identity (4), ignore (4), important (4), choose (4), encounter (4), kings (4), sunday (4), website (3), name (3), required (3), write (3), content (3), log (3), waters (3), glass (3), photos (3), june (3), july (3), instagram (3), images (3), stickers (3), encountering (3), learned (3), forget (3), born (3), section (3), ready (3), couldn (3), austin (3), golden (3), thrilled (3), prepared (3), babies (3), hungry (3), tired (3), safe (3), ultimately (3), face (3), low (3), sugars (3), checked (3), finally (3), move (3), late (3), snack (3), bit (3), woke (3), advantage (3), adorable (3), sweet (3), washed (3), likely (3), grow (3), reality (3), backyard (3), seems (3), putting (3), goes (3), san (3), francisco (3), parents (3), lucky (3), grateful (3), sojourners (3), watching (3), walking (3), limit (3), passed (3), close (3), peace (3), moments (3), eating (3), ability (3), ago (3), peaceful (3), speak (3), laugh (3), matter (3), strollers (3), stuff (3), longer (3), thanks (3), privilege (3), team (3), simply (3), example (3), building (3), shows (3), care (3), shall (3), comes (3), special (3), plan (3), check (3), son (3), worth (3), heard (3), perfect (3), cream (3), swim (3), watched (3), asleep (3), began (3), mountain (3), ages (3), between (3), spring (3), holidays (3), picture (3), tried (3), pan (3), ipad (3), monorail (3), fireworks (3), short (3), getting (3), white (3), evil (3), somewhere (3), must (3), awesome (3), critter (3), bear (3), height (3), possible (3), grace (3), usually (3), honest (3), please (3), allows (3), kingdom (3), start (3), ask (3), difficult (3), walls (3), came (3), run (3), ordained (3), exactly (3), staff (3), salt (3), head (3), mauling (3), actions (3), confirmands (3), communion (3), relationship (3), class (3), preaching (3), lectionary (3), sheep (3), shepherd (3), bible (3), avoid (3), lord (3), site (2), comment (2), subscribed (2), palindrome (2), ideas (2), sajan (2), korean (2), abiding (2), andean (2), blogs (2), overflowing (2), photo (2), tomforstersmith (2), sheena (2), nurse (2), searching (2), substance (2), http (2), miheekimkort (2), address (2), receive (2), 2015 (2), november (2), october (2), 2022 (2), twitter (2), littles (2), navigation (2), weeks (2), remembering (2), scheduled (2), wipes (2), push (2), pushed (2), confirm (2), 4pm (2), clear (2), sit (2), house (2), arrived (2), planned (2), operating (2), shift (2), apparently (2), needs (2), darn (2), blood (2), sugar (2), given (2), poor (2), looks (2), skin (2), rolled (2), quite (2), strange (2), amazing (2), hardly (2), cried (2), look (2), hear (2), star (2), top (2), translation (2), certain (2), ohhhhhh (2), kept (2), follows (2), obviously (2), makes (2), mark (2), knowing (2), someone (2), afternoon (2), subversive (2), suppose (2), riding (2), sitting (2), gratitude (2), weird (2), decisions (2), eye (2), seem (2), its (2), recently (2), moved (2), unit (2), calvary (2), helping (2), places (2), straight (2), lived (2), cities (2), happy (2), filled (2), thankful (2), mom (2), warm (2), smiles (2), waking (2), crib (2), swear (2), self (2), entire (2), body (2), gets (2), lights (2), joined (2), arriving (2), midst (2), transition (2), slow (2), starting (2), unexpected (2), taught (2), deeper (2), lap (2), happened (2), eat (2), motivated (2), jump (2), puppy (2), homes (2), epilepsy (2), developed (2), result (2), weight (2), die (2), mourn (2), embrace (2), weep (2), throw (2), stones (2), kill (2), exhausting (2), ear (2), feeling (2), singing (2), strong (2), showing (2), symbolic (2), acts (2), decent (2), prevail (2), suffering (2), past (2), immigrant (2), families (2), ritual (2), sarah (2), movement (2), hands (2), wash (2), act (2), usher (2), turn (2), upside (2), immigrants (2), outwardly (2), support (2), structures (2), image (2), members (2), strength (2), harm (2), done (2), service (2), fear (2), transformation (2), role (2), set (2), leader (2), commandment (2), sum (2), talk (2), meaning (2), joann (2), lee (2), shorter (2), notes (2), planning (2), enjoyed (2), visit (2), flexible (2), trust (2), according (2), buffet (2), followed (2), themed (2), adventureland (2), cool (2), grab (2), sat (2), played (2), cute (2), table (2), nice (2), festival (2), lion (2), king (2), birthday (2), opened (2), game (2), overall (2), cousins (2), hoping (2), shared (2), fell (2), land (2), loud (2), exciting (2), sleeping (2), real (2), ahead (2), mickey (2), minnie (2), crowds (2), definitely (2), flexibility (2), front (2), tree (2), driving (2), autopia (2), tomorrowland (2), rider (2), switch (2), ended (2), carry (2), thunder (2), railroad (2), horseshoe (2), dole (2), whip (2), downtown (2), instead (2), dumbo (2), winter (2), itself (2), headed (2), ourselves (2), next (2), clothes (2), trips (2), app (2), window (2), twice (2), changing (2), needed (2), map (2), extra (2), ergo (2), infant (2), double (2), direct (2), seen (2), dry (2), highly (2), tips (2), maybe (2), turns (2), argue (2), clock (2), failed (2), become (2), personnel (2), engage (2), ceasing (2), conversation (2), mind (2), default (2), bet (2), street (2), across (2), shower (2), minister (2), word (2), inextricably (2), tied (2), school (2), timing (2), gauge (2), easter (2), holiest (2), calendar (2), expected (2), program (2), ministry (2), minute (2), saving (2), miscarriage (2), taunting (2), bald (2), hurt (2), wield (2), greatest (2), empowered (2), influence (2), history (2), reminded (2), recognize (2), prophet (2), green (2), mantle (2), either (2), complex (2), equal (2), group (2), fellow (2), answer (2), position (2), learn (2), colleagues (2), read (2), turned (2), understanding (2), faced (2), honestly (2), rather (2), struggle (2), bunch (2), wrestled (2), doubts (2), encountered (2), stories (2), explain (2), concepts (2), confusing (2), earth (2), facing (2), john (2), young (2), wholesome (2), baldhead (2), cry (2), skip (2), started, design, loading, comments, collapse, bar, manage, subscriptions, view, reader, report, privacy, creative, worship, station, thoughts, generation, american, pcusa, mission, musings, colombia, venezuela, usa, marci, abundance, welcome, selected, copywriter, designer, speaker, humanity, create, join, subscribers, enter, notifications, 2016, archives, tweets, joannhaejonglee, recent, anything, weighed, lbs, inches, pregnancy, presenting, issues, existed, saturday, 11am, bathe, wipe, yourself, anti, bacterial, wet, worst, fast, awaiting, daughter, births, 2pm, noon, 6pm, ish, drink, liquids, empty, stomach, korets, playground, gate, playing, sister, supposed, coming, tended, rotated, doctor, precipitated, sections, apologies, wanna, tend, highest, healthy, mommas, surprised, gracious, sounded, cranky, hangry, fasted, 50s, spiked, above, 180, hypoglycemic, pricked, multiple, normalized, nickname, agreed, floor, staffed, blankets, instruments, roll, elevator, gurney, noted, evaluation, jenny, 11pm, miyeok, gook, seaweed, soup, return, 2am, settle, stretch, whoa, should, sleepiness, dozed, nurses, breathing, anxiety, preparation, ordeal, grows, exponentially, talkative, listen, wisten, brave, bwave, wittle, tar, unner, tand, wuv, spider, piderman, yellow, wewwow, won, soak, figure, pretended, tub, washt, catwoman, cary, examples, plain, describing, synonym, sound, drops, consonant, marker, preschool, miss, pronounce, gesture, cemented, pun, intended, decides, pull, harder, guys, wish, hand, prints, contractors, poured, sudden, names, generations, illegal, projects, livable, maintenance, included, large, slab, middle, bike, scooter, basketball, dribbling, chair, overwhelmed, electrical, wiring, confuses, plumbing, awry, children, gotten, prettier, interior, exterior, decorating, ugly, busiest, streets, potential, accept, offer, newborn, dogs, single, both, law, advantages, nomadic, adulthood, anywhere, belong, concept, forward, six, apartments, rentals, fills, profound, luckiest, sweetest, greeted, brother, wake, grumpy, constantly, rolling, mouth, interact, coo, shriek, noticed, tolerate, faces, independent, soother, thumb, sucking, helps, behold, kick, flail, vocal, interesting, hectic, presence, reminds, zoom, appreciate, matters, womb, pregnant, dear, thank, resting, comfort, nurtured, nurturer, commitment, burrowed, covers, cuddle, force, knocking, laptops, drive, fixation, surprising, stopped, cuddling, bowls, laps, lake, michigan, gates, eight, married, logan, tolerant, accepted, changes, eyes, caused, neurological, damage, ticks, exacerbated, dog, wild, crazy, prime, seizure, meds, slowed, medication, dosage, acted, soon, died, treats, war, hate, silence, tear, sew, seek, lose, refrain, embracing, gather, dance, build, heal, plant, pluck, planted, season, heaven, ecclesiastes, 2003, precious, harried, belly, laughs, giggles, running, forgetting, kisses, hugs, lungs, ergos, none, playgrounds, libraries, unstructured, weekends, snot, germs, feedings, working, guilt, asks, whom, patters, lambie, clothing, importantly, necessary, kindness, sensible, immigration, reform, fearless, tireless, leaders, sacred, interfaith, integrity, providing, opportunity, chose, stand, individuals, unjust, systems, oppress, dehumanize, created, ancient, honor, leading, balm, source, healing, respite, trauma, bodies, souls, sisters, brothers, mutual, sacrificial, humility, form, resistance, reject, violence, brutality, save, concern, desperately, radical, wholeness, stole, wearing, remind, duty, foremost, represents, towel, wore, neck, aside, powerful, weak, meek, uncomfortable, teacher, kneel, intimately, demonstrated, commandments, celebrate, latin, phrase, mandatum, novum, presbyterian, significance, vigil, repetitive, happens, decide, scrap, careful, heading, luck, logistics, details, savor, captivated, delighted, ones, swimming, pool, public, transportation, takes, amenities, marvel, universe, superheroes, focused, allowed, groot, lined, himself, impatient, splurged, collector, cup, black, panther, wakanda, forever, jungle, cruise, checking, oldest, awake, darker, chillier, showered, aunt, sushi, available, cheap, glad, positive, fairly, provided, guard, rails, beds, action, depending, becoming, pin, boy, wear, earlier, open, 10am, games, toys, spend, shuttle, bus, loooooong, seven, bigger, digitally, video, blast, air, conditioning, priority, kiddos, toy, unique, entertaining, taller, grizzly, runaway, mine, cars, surprisingly, eaten, else, evening, mongkok, efficient, quality, extended, point, highlights, additional, plus, introduce, similar, willing, along, prices, states, hollywood, goofy, pluto, hello, diners, end, warned, peak, yes, somehow, quick, pause, giant, finding, nemo, underwater, submarine, successfully, astroblasters, grabbed, tours, crowded, stimulating, walkways, alseep, caffeine, pastries, hadn, sneak, fuzzy, silly, snacked, indulged, connect, car, dropped, fantasia, strangely, rounds, 14th, final, memory, beautiful, packed, patience, caught, decorated, musical, ridden, 30am, castle, basically, beat, max, potty, snow, queen, nearby, toon, town, iconic, mouse, gave, comforted, vowed, laid, rested, excited, wanting, sang, song, earl, sandwich, ending, frontierland, loop, blow, tigger, piglet, kiddie, roller, coaster, yum, ferry, pirate, lair, tom, sawyer, island, wiped, napped, astroblaster, summer, realistic, expectation, adult, sort, staying, resort, aunts, uncles, especially, impossible, usable, mobile, whenever, cut, slot, beforehand, version, ticket, telling, gaining, entrance, partner, planner, whatever, maxpasses, period, missed, comfortable, plans, general, super, download, visiting, allowing, diapers, cross, purse, bottle, access, hydrating, including, infants, instances, waits, biggest, umbrella, cargo, picnic, weren, ing, falls, plenty, designated, spots, parking, convenient, spotting, hundreds, sun, fits, inside, reasonably, sized, backpack, tupperware, exact, dimensions, meal, drinks, fresh, fruit, meltdowns, thwarted, promise, preschooler, expectations, addicted, ridiculous, obsessed, feign, disgust, overly, sugary, empire, amusement, parks, soft, college, animal, orlando, yrs, passes, amounts, drafting, reasons, related, begrudge, 2nd, profoundly, embodies, gift, complete, rendering, energy, imagination, gig, possibly, considered, lines, drawn, filtered, lens, identify, wow, browsing, thessalonians, incorporate, shut, pastoral, prayerfully, conversations, situations, tie, pastorally, project, showcasing, non, high, quickly, imagine, nativity, combat, share, alternatives, include, informed, intertwined, complicated, joyful, suddenly, captures, birthed, stay, walks, web, postings, scarves, trees, scarf, seemingly, needless, brain, ignite, particular, talking, vocally, parts, personal, prep, realize, huh, haven, reach, true, grocery, shopping, member, treat, stranger, store, sacrament, physically, wiping, nose, tucking, wrapped, announcement, realizing, worse, tuesday, friday, guaranteed, bandwidth, introduced, impact, daily, mention, ramping, participate, tracking, accurately, resources, nay, regards, logged, preparing, amen, extraordinary, miracle, merely, newfound, curses, taunted, mob, immature, path, sends, disasters, creation, metaphor, possibility, hospitals, schools, granting, hopeless, atrocities, committed, religion, crusades, inquisition, holocaust, propagated, destruction, uncle, ben, wise, parker, spiderman, responsibility, unless, responsibly, forgot, carried, dire, consequences, wide, eyed, thinking, emerge, anyone, authority, inherit, congregation, vote, shape, granted, repercussions, far, engaged, impetus, agency, condemnation, truth, although, fallen, order, charged, valued, despite, differences, choosing, task, holds, forge, overcome, inherited, elijah, mentor, premier, stepped, incredible, person, truly, whether, cyberspace, library, gruesome, attribute, atlanta, consulting, usual, biblical, commentaries, continued, dig, calling, upon, cloud, witnesses, discern, approach, confronted, skeptical, hoped, motions, preacher, challenge, looked, precede, learning, remain, struck, stephanie, paullsel, conference, attended, professor, harvard, divinity, preside, episcopal, honored, invitation, altar, priest, graciously, responded, loves, unconditionally, lead, dialogue, tension, kathleen, norris, puts, ideologies, grapple, satisfactory, heavens, worthy, consideration, comprehend, critical, questioning, forefather, jacob, struggled, unfortunately, neatly, packaged, box, aftermath, messy, scares, honesty, courage, easily, unfair, fears, deal, complicate, throughout, shied, theological, trinity, theodicy, wrestling, growing, mysterious, contemplate, paradoxes, incomprehensible, dare, process, unknown, elizabeth, johnson, ends, tornadoes, floods, ravaged, events, resemble, deep, unexplainable, tragedy, verses, comparing, obedient, aren, stray, entreated, justify, oblige, guess, fabulous, miracles, heads, choice, spirit, certainly, conscious, decision, unlike, pretend, exist, youth, referenced, dominated, chapter, lovely, guided, pastures, voice, astray, idyllic, baptize, preachers, plague, rightly, luckily, cycles, disturbing, violent, scripture, commentator, writes, cycle, offended, moral, sensibilities, readers, episode, choon, leong, seow, widely, circulated, circles, absolutely, horrified, appropriate, response, location, sees, unfruitful, bowl, threw, thus, neither, nor, spoke, bethel, jeered, cursed, woods

Text of the page (random words):
iping my kids nose or changing her diaper or tucking him in at night doesn t mean i get to just stop being a mother i am a mother when they re at school and i am a mother when they re with me being a mother changed my life and it is inextricably tied into the being of who i am now in the same way being ordained as a minister of word and sacrament changed my life it is inextricably tied into the being of who i am now true i may not be actually doing work for the church but if i m grocery shopping and run into a church member i don t get to ignore them or treat them like any old stranger in the store or let s say i m driving and i realize huh i haven t seen so and so in a long time i wonder if they re ok and then i say a little prayer for them and make a note to reach out do i log that as time spent on work or what if i m in the shower and talking out loud vocally trying out parts of my sermon i actually do this is that personal time because of the shower or work time because of the sermon prep or while i m walking up and down the street outside the church and suddenly i think there s so little that captures what christmas is about to us beyond the walls of the church and from that is birthed an idea to put a christmas tree outside that allows people to give and take what they need to stay warm do those walks up and down the street count as work what about those web postings i came across several years ago that shared pictures of scarves on trees with notes that said this scarf is not lost please take it if you need it these images and idea took up seemingly needless space in my brain until now helping ignite this particular idea that is now actually something for the church so does that count as work or what if i start an instagram project showcasing pictures of a non white baby jesus no one asked me to do that for church i m not using the church s account but you better believe i thought of it because of my work at the church because my mind is 24 7 on baby jesus during these high holy days and i realized how quickly i default to a white baby jesus in my mind s eye when i pray or imagine the nativity and i realized i bet others do that too i wanted to combat that and share alternatives to that default so that we can all re image jesus together now on this one i know for certain that i would not include this as time spent on work but it s informed by my work it is a direct result of my identity as a pastor and because my life is intertwined in complicated joyful and sometimes difficult ways and that s what it s like to be a pastor for me i don t get to just shut it down because i m not in the church or doing a pastoral visit i can t help but prayerfully consider the conversations and situations of my life and tie it into a prayer a sermon or a means to pastorally care for someone in first thessalonians we are told to pray without ceasing now that doesn t mean stop everything you re doing and only pray for the rest of your life it means to incorporate prayer into all that you do being a pastor is like that for me pastor without ceasing i am known to say in conversation and comment on facebook wow that ll preach does that mean my facebook browsing is work well sometimes but not always that s how it is to be a pastor i am a pastor because i am a christian and like most who identify as such i am a christian all the time the way i engage with the world is filtered through the lens of this call i m sure as we do this it will become more and more clear what our personnel team means by work and what will be considered not work the lines have to be drawn somewhere and they will be but the reality is life as a pastor means that we don t and can t clock in and clock out it is a part of our very being most of us do this because we love it and we couldn t possibly do any other thing in fact many of us have tried and failed so when you ask a pastor to account for her hours please know it will not show the whole picture it cannot be a complete rendering of the time and energy imagination and love that goes into this gig it simply cannot and i am profoundly grateful to be a pastor to have found work that embodies my whole being to take joy and great meaning from what i do it is a gift and a privilege even so i think i can still begrudge at least a little bit having to try and account for my hours and being told on the week before christmas that we will start doing so on january 2nd p s does time spent drafting this blog count as work no likely not but i could argue for many reasons why it actually is work related and yet no still likely not posted in uncategorized leave a reply disneyland with the littles posted on may 14 2018 by joannhlee reply our kids are now 4 yrs old 10 months old and they ve already been to disneyland and or disneyland hong kong three times if you count the times we did 2 day passes it actually amounts to five times we never meant for this to happen i m not disney obsessed in fact i ve been known to even sometimes feign disgust over it s overly sugary empire but we do like amusement parks and as it turns out i must have a soft spot for disney we went in college during spring break mike and i went to animal kingdom in orlando when it first opened and here we are with kids under five who ve already been three different times the first time we did it i just wanted the older child to have a different experience in la to try something just for him but then we got addicted to the wonder and joy it brought out in him i actually cried the first time i watched him watch the parade i know i m ridiculous so here are a few overall tips for going to disneyland and then just to help me remember these trips here s what we did each trip maybe it ll help you set your own expectations for your family tips for doing disneyland with an infant and a preschooler bring snacks disneyland allows outside food as long as it fits inside a reasonably sized backpack or lunch bag and it s not in glass tupperware exact dimensions are on their website we never brought enough for an entire meal but we ve seen people who have we usually just bring drinks fresh fruit and all the dry snacks we have a child who is highly motivated by food so meltdowns can be thwarted with the promise of a snack we used that to our advantage we took the biggest stroller we had to l a we brought the double stroller to hong kong we only had an umbrella stroller big stroller means more cargo space so we also brought a picnic blanket to sit and watch the parade food diaper bag etc the double stroller also meant we had a place to put baby down when we weren t ergo ing her for a long day at a place like disney it s always nice to have that option please note you cannot take strollers in line so if your kid falls asleep in the stroller you can t take advantage of that by waiting in line somewhere there are plenty of designated spots for stroller parking some more convenient than others we often put a baby blanket over our stroller for easy spotting there are hundreds of strollers and to keep it out of direct sun we usually ergo ed the infant on rides or when waiting in line disney has several rides where people of any height including infants can ride there are others with a height limit in those instances you can do rider switch where one parents waits with baby then gets a turn on the ride we probably only used this option once or twice to be honest we had a diaper bag full of stuff extra clothes extra diapers for the little one etc but i also brought a small cross body purse where i kept my phone a small bottle of water snacks and the ipad that way i could just grab that bag for time spent in line we mostly used maxpass or fastpass for rides but some rides like peter pan which is the older child s favorite and one we can all ride together don t have that option so that means we will usually wait for at least 45 minutes having access to an ipad and snacks and re hydrating during that wait helped us pass the time download the disneyland app for the park you are visiting it ll tell you wait times and give you a map allowing you to make some decisions before arriving to the ride itself have a general plan check out the map know which rides your kids can ride consider what you d like to do but be super flexible because well because kids get the maxpass usable on your mobile phone via the app and use fastpass whenever possible this will cut your wait times in over 1 2 it s worth it maxpass will give you a time slot when you can ride a ride via your phone you don t even have to go to the ride beforehand you just show up during that window of time and just walk right in fastpass is the older version you go to the ride get a ticket from the ride telling you when you can come back obviously not having to go to the ride line twice is much better you go through the same shorter line but it s just two different ways of gaining entrance to that short line we loved the maxpass i m lucky to have a partner who is a planner he would get the maxpass for us while we were on one side of the park so that once we got to the other side we d just walk right into whatever ride he thought we d enjoy there were of course times when we didn t get there in time and we didn t use all the maxpasses we got but disneyland was also pretty great about having some flexibility and grace period if we missed the window by 10 15 minutes here and there and we were comfortable with changing plans as needed if you have other adults with you consider riding an adult ride if you enjoy that sort of thing or if you re staying close by at a disney resort consider putting the kids to bed early having grandparents or aunts uncles watch them and going back for night time disney which is magical in a whole different way this isn t always possible but especially with several adults it s not impossible and now so you have a realistic expectation of what you might get to do here s what i remember we got to do on our three different trips disneyland summer 2017 kids ages 3 years 7 months and 2 months this trip we ended up getting a 2 day pass we went almost all day on day 1 and for a 1 2 day on day 2 day 1 hours stayed 12 hours rides completed 3 characters met 4 rides waited for but not ridden 2 other experiences 1 parade 1 fireworks show we went as early as we could but it was still about 10 30am by the time we got into the park we did stop to take a picture in front of the castle but we basically went straight to the peter pan ride to beat the crowds and since it doesn t have a max or fastpass option a potty break followed and since snow white the evil queen were out taking pictures and the line wasn t long we stayed for a photo op we ate an early lunch somewhere nearby but i can t remember where or what then we headed to toon town where the kid played on the play structures this was our first time taking the kids to disney so we wanted to make sure to get those iconic photos we got pictures with mickey and minnie mouse and saw their little homes we then walked over to try and ride the disneyland train but after waiting over 40 minutes and not knowing when we d get on we gave up and comforted ourselves with ice cream and found a spot for the parade a note about the train some people love it and say it s a must do but no one is required to get off so it s hard to know how long the wait will be we rode it on our second day and vowed it was not worth ever trying to do it again we were about 45 minutes early for the parade so we laid out our sleeping bag ate some snacks and rested the parade was magical watching the older kid get so excited and into it was so awesome i think this very well may be why i keep wanting to go next ride was it s a small world kid loved it and sang the song long afterwards we then headed to tomorrowland hoping the kid would ride the astroblaster ride but he was a little too afraid so we had another snack from the restaurant there then we rode the monorail to downtown disney to meet friends for dinner at the earl of sandwich we walked back to disneyland for the fireworks which were awesome what a magical ending to a magical full but exhausting day day 2 hours stayed 5 hours rides completed 3 but we rode 1 ride 3 times characters met 5 this day we stayed on the other side of the park adventureland frontierland critter country etc the first thing we did was ride that darn train there was almost no line so we waited what we were told would be about 15 minutes but it took over 40 yet again but we did actually ride it this time we did one whole loop a stop getting off at critter country baby girl had a diaper blow out on the train so i changed her diaper and clothes on that train after getting off at critter country we rode the winnie the pooh ride and then met all the winnie the pooh characters to take pictures with them pooh tigger piglet etc the kid loved the winnie the pooh ride so much and it s such a kiddie ride with hardly any line that we actually rode it three times that day lunch was at the hungry bear restaurant we also rode the kid s first real roller coaster thunder mountain railroad i got to do this with him and it was awesome he was just 40 which is the height limit we also had dole whip yum and the kid his dad rode the ferry to the pirate s lair on tom sawyer island for some free play we left the park early that day but we were all wiped out any way the kid passed out in his stroller on our way out and napped all the way home disneyland winter 2017 kids ages 3 years 11 months and 6 months hours stayed 12 hours rides completed 14 but we rode some rides several times characters met 0 other experiences some musical show at the golden horseshoe restaurant we went back to disneyland during our winter trip to la and caught the park decorated for the christmas holidays which is a special experience in and of itself we only went for one full day and made a plan to have the older kid nap in a stroller so he wouldn t be so over tired at the end of the day we were warned about the crowds during the holidays peak time and yes there were definitely more people and waiting then we were used to but between maxpass and flexibility we were able to make good use of our time i mean the kid somehow rode 14 rides after a quick pause to take a picture in front of the giant christmas tree our first ride was finding nemo an underwater submarine ride it was different and cute then we successfully got the kid to actually ride astroblasters he was too afraid last time dad son did some driving at autopia which the kid loved so much he did it again with me later that night after dinner while i grabbed a table and food with the baby in tomorrowland dad son went on star tours we got a rider switch for this but never ended up using it i ll just have to check it out another time then we went on it s a small world and watched the parade post parade we found the least crowded least stimulating walkways and walked the ki...