Where the Magic Begins

Count me in as a Disney freak.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE it.  I am waiting for my children to be old enough to really obsess about it with me because right now, by the time the fireworks roll around, children + husband really wanted to = bedtime.  Yeah not me.  I gave in to {reasonably} early bedtimes this trip only because I knew I would be back one day.  I would stay up and watch the fireworks every. single. night!

Just as we took only Bennett last time, we took only Bennett and Emory this time.  I admire and respect people who can't stomach the thought of leaving their young children behind, or perhaps don't have generous family who offers to keep said left-behind child.  But for us, the choice was a no brainer.  Jacob might have been free because he was two, but he is also two.  He would have no memory of the trip, he can't ride anything, could barely enjoy the ones he did, would get fussy and sleepy every afternoon, and he and Emory would beat each other up to the point that neither of them would be able to enjoy the trip.  Of course I physically ached for his teenie little urchin sized self the whole time we were gone, and craved his cheeks to the point of frenzy, but alas I still do not regret the decision even for a second.  If we had on hand help in the form of babysitters or grandparents, well then I rebuke everything I just said :)

This was Emory's trip, so it was pretty princess-heavy.  Bennett was a really good sport most of the time, for example:

me: Bennett aren't you excited about seeing a million princesses tomorrow???
B: um NO UGH.  No.
me: are you sure? aren't you SOOOOO excited to hug on some princesses??
B: momma!!! stop! NO! UGH.
me: so you don't want any of their autographs?
B: maybe a couple.

:)
hehe

After a morning of intense princess-ing we were still early in the park so we ran back for Enchanted Tales with Belle - a "ride" that never interested me and always had really long waits.  I'm not sure the "experience" would have been that memorable save what happened with Bennett.  When we entered the first room, he was given the role of a dancing plate.  He was not too thrilled but was a good sport. But then, before I could tell what was happening, the little boy playing the beast backed out and Bennett was given the part.  He was GLOWING.  I am serious.  It was the most precious thing in the world and I am so glad it was captured on camera.

 ^^ on our last day in the MK Emory dressed the part of every princess :) ^^

Emory ended up being half an inch too short for the 40 inch rides, which was OK because she was more concerned about the "easy" rides like The Little Mermaid, Teacups, Carousel, Winnie the Pooh, Astro Orbiter {loved it!}, Philharmagic, etc.

 the pics they take on the rides are always so funny and awkward!

Bennett just isn't a bumpy roller coaster kind of guy.  He didn't love the Barnstormer and would not go on Thunder Mountain again after we tricked him into it two years ago. He DID however do splash mountain with me and the adrenaline was seriously pumping before, during, and after the ride.  He seriously cracked me up!  The one new ride we DID try, and then obsess over, was Space Mountain.  He even held his hands up the whole time on his last ride {I think we rode it a total of six times}.  Stephen and I made great use of the rider-switch fast pass, where one parent waited in line and rode it and the other parent got a fast pass that was then used with Bennett when the other parent got off.  Smart work Walt, smart work.

 ^^ ride one, holding on for dear life ^^

 ^^ ride two, eyes closed ^^

 ^^ ride three, eyes open ^^

 ^^ ride four, eyes open, arms UP! ^^

^^ before the fall ^^

^^ this picture cracks. me. up. He did NOT enjoy this! {and yes we wore ponchos...it was cold and I bought them two years ago when we went in December and we ended up wearing them half of that rainy trip.  I was glad we had them when we walked off the ride dry and everyone else was wet and cold!} ^^

We were already planning our next trip back with Jacob while we were there.  It does seem that really doing Disney and doing it RIGHT takes a lot of planning and preparation.  Which is OK bc that's how I roll.

Emory was most obsessed with the princesses and Minnie Mouse.  She was in awe of the castle and would try her hardest not to get off of the rides when they were over.

It is so nice that Disney is just one long car ride away, and an easy one at that.  It seems almost strange that we don't go more often, just because it seems to easy.

The Wilderness Lodge was AMAZING and we would definitely stay there again.  We stayed at the Port Orleans Riverside last time, which was also nice, but the only mode of transportation from there was the busses.  The busses are great but a little annoying when it is the ONLY mode of transportation to the parks available.  The Wilderness Lodge was a quick boat ride to the MK or Contemporary Resort, where you could then catch the monorail to Epcot.  We rode the bus to Hollywood and it was great because it was not busy, as guests could choose from several modes of transportation.

Being the personality that I am, I could write you an extensive post of exactly what we did, where we ate, how we timed everything, how we navigated the parks, what we did well, what we did not do well, etc...and I still might post about it all to help us plan our next trip... but for now I will not bore you with those details. :) Lets just say Disney is a learning process and I look forward to mastering our Disney adventure in the years to come!

^^ so excited to watch the princess movies she never would watch before meeting them all ^^