All about Disney!

So I am FINALLY sitting down to blog about our trip. For some reason I got back from Florida w/ a HUGE desire to get things done. I have been planning and doing since I got back!...we are going to be painting in Emma and baby's room very soon and I need to decide some things about how to fit everything into that tiny room! I know alot of people have co-roomed their kids...but was the room only 10x10? If it was HELP ME out on how to fit everything. Anyway...another story for another day!

DISNEY...was awesome. We left here on Sunday morning at 5:30...I was so proud of us for being out the door when planned and not late! We had the most perfect drive down, no tears at all....none! and very little whining...a little from Emma at the very end. We stopped for lunch at the Florida welcome center(I had packed lunch)...it was the perfect thing to do...the kids literally took a bite and ran around and came back for another bite. Not something I would normally let them do, but under the circumstances...it was totally needed! We got to our hotel about 3:30....unloaded ate some dinner and went to the pool! Sunday was all in all a great day, although we were tired from the car ride.

Monday....we went to Epcot, I chose that park because I knew there wasn't a lot the kids could do there, but it was Memorial Day and I knew that Magic Kingdom would be really crowded. So we head to Epcot and the first ride we went to was the new Nemo ride. Ian cried everytime it was dark and Emma was overwhelmed....it was sorta funny. After you ride the ride, you can go into a interactive "talk" w/ Crush...well, we walked over to do that and would you know this guy walks up and he was a friend of Alex's from when he worked at the "y" he was a cast member for the crush talk...so Emma had the chance to talk to crush herself, but she wouldn't do it!...she was to shy. Oh well, it was still cool to get special seating and be able to see so well! Next we had a few bumps in the road...we lost our video camera...someone picked it up from right beside the stroller...so frustrating! we were on our first day at about 10 in the morning and the camera was gone...yes the camera I was so excited to get just a few months ago! Well...Ian crashed on us right after that and started screaming non stop! He was so cranky! Cried through every ride! We survived through lunch and right after lunch we were starting to walk through the worlds and we saw Jasmine and Aladdin taking pictures....praise God something exciting....Emma was so cute, a little overwhelmed, but determined to meet Jasmine....she wouldn't give Aladdin a hug though, just Jasmine!lol! SO CUTE. We had a special meet and greet we got to go to that afternoon....where we were in a room w/ Mickey and Pluto and the photography and we received a free 5x7 of our choice....Emma walked right in and up to mickey and Ian followed her...they had so much fun. Pluto chased Ian around a few minutes and let the kids get really comfortable before they started the pictures...so the picture at he top of my blog is from that "meet and greet" After the "M & G" we decided to stop by "lost and found" AGAIN...just to see...lol...and praise God, there was our camcorder...someone had turned it in. We were SO excited that we forgot to go and get our free picture from the M&G...and left to go back and take a nap...we came back later and played in the water sprouts then got an early seat for the light show that night....all in all this was our worst day at disney....we decided that everything that could go wrong did on the first day...but the wonderful thing is that everything that went wrong, righted itself in time....so that was the first day at disney

Tuesday...we went to MGM, we saw Lighting McQueen and Mater...and had one excited little boy! He was thrilled! We rode a new ride that was really fun, for kids and adults...it's was toy story mania...fun, fun, we went to Mickey mouse clubhouse and an Ariel show, we watched the new parade that was really good...we had an alround great day...loads of fun and lot's of memories. We left the park around 3:35, let Ian nap and they went to chick-fil-a (across from the hotel) for dinner and let the kids play for about an hour in the play area...which was empty...while we sat and talked...really really nice!


Wednesday....we took the day off from the parks and played in the pool...after nap we went to downtown disney to do our shopping. Again, lots of fun, Emma took all her money she had been earning and spent it...she loves to shop. She filled a box w/ my little pony "stuff" and Ian did the same w/ mr. potato head "stuff" they had fun doing that. After Emma brought her pony stuff she wanted to buy things for everyone else, for Savannah, for the baby...she was SO giving, she kept saying..."this is all I need, I want to get something for Eli....or Savannah..." so sweet, I was so proud of her.

Thursday...our first day at Magic Kingdom...and our first day of a 10 degree jump in tempature....lol...it was HOT, Emma was thrilled over the castle and the show they do in front of the castle, but when Hook and the queen from snow white came out she literally shook in my arms, poor thing, I sometimes forget that they don't understand fact from fiction and she saw them as real people, really scary people to her! We rode all the kid rides, from dumbo to the tea cup to the carousal to the race cars...we saw the Belle, and Aurora and Cinderella. Donald, Goofy and Pluto. We went back for a nap (praise God for naptime!) then back to the park for the late parade and fireworks. Again, a wonderful day...fun,fun,fun, the kids and US LOVED it.

We decided on Thursday that we would leave after the park on Friday and come home a night early, the kids were showing signs of being tired and drained and we were worried how the trip home would go and that driving at night w/ them might be better then leaving at 5am the next morning...so the next day was a LONG one!

Friday...we packed everything up and into the car and headed to the park...magic kingdom again (we decided to not go to Animal Kingdom...b/c there wasn't much our kids could do) we hadn't made it all the way through the park the day before. We arrived about 10...and as soon as we walked in we say Snow White...the one princess Emma still wanted to see...yet a hard princess to find we had been told. So we had Emma's picture made w/ snow white, stood in line to look at all the pictures that disney photopass photographers had taken for us...rode on Aladdin's carpet, saw Stitch, and buzzlightyear...Ian's new addiction...then at about 2 oclock it happened. Alex looked at me and asked "why is Emma crying?" I looked down at her in her stroller and sure enough, she was in tears. I got down in front of her and ask her what was wrong? "I want to go home, and I want my teddy!" was her reply, it wasn't even done w/ a whine, just matter of fact...SHE WAS DONE....it was so sweetly said I wanted to laugh at her...I looked up at Alex (who was also biting his tongue to not laugh) and said...I am glad we are already packed, let's go home! We didn't stay for the last parade, we just left. By the time we made our way out to the park(Ian fell asleep in his stroller...he to was done) and onto the monorail and back to the car and got gas and on the road it was 3:30ish...we stopped for dinner and then for gas...the kids did very well and we got home around 2 am on Saturday morning. The kids were up at 7 of course and Mom and Gary came and took them from the whole morning! Thank God for parents who live close and help out! I was able to rest, wash clothes and put everything away on Saturday!...SO that was our first visit to disney world w/ kids...it was awesome, we can't wait to go back. and we had all that fun for $1500.00...don't tell me you can't go to disney and have fun w/o spending way to much money!...I now know better! I was given a great book to read from a friend from Emma ballet and also spent alot of time researching how to make it fun and cheap...it worked...we had a blast, didn't feel cheated AND didn't break the bank! On the way home, I told Alex one of the best things for me about the trip is that we didn't have to come home and PAY for the trip, when we left disney it was all paid for!