M-I-C....K-E-Y....M-O-U-S-E!
We are back from an incredibly magical trip to Disney, and there is so much I want to share! For those interested (especially those planning future trips or with trips on the horizon!), I thought I'd break down my Disney posts into two topics: (1) The magical memories, and (2) My unsolicited tips, tricks, advice, and suggestions. Today, I am starting with the magic that is Disney, like only Disney can do. Here we go! Presenting, our magical 2018 trip to Disney
Day 1: Travel and Dinner with Mickey
We kicked off our trip by heading down to Florida bright and early in an attempt to avoid Hurricane Florence evacuation traffic. After handing off our Bella to her Nana and Pop (who loved on our girl so well all week!!!), we were on our way! Our ride was filled with watching Disney movies they had never seen that we borrowed from a friend of my sister's (Peter Pan! Alice in Wonderland! Brave! Princess and the Frog!) and playing with the toys, and snacking on the snacks, from their surprise bags (more on those in the next post).
We made it to Disney with just enough time to check into our beautiful resort, Grand Floridian (we stayed in the same place during our 2015 trip and love it there!)...
...before jumping on the monorail to head to our first character meal of the week at Chef Mickey's! We loved starting our week by meeting Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy, and Pluto, and enjoying the yummy food (and delicious desserts - my fave!). We then headed back to our hotel just in time for bedtime. We knew the next day would be our busiest of the week!
Day 2: 13 hours of Magic Kingdom
We purposely chose to go to Magic Kingdom the first day, knowing we'd be the freshest and most well-rested this day, and thank goodness! We had breakfast at the "Be Our Guest" restaurant in Belle's castle in Magic Kingdom, which means we were in the park before it even opened!
This meant that as soon as our meal was done, we were off and running! Over the 13 hours we spent from the time we left our room until the time we got back, we rode 18 rides (max wait time for any ride all day? 30 minutes, which maybe happened twice). Also, because there was a snafu as we were entering the park that day, Disney gave us two additional Fast Passes, in addition to the three we already had reserved. So, we were able to see and do every single thing we wanted to and loved it!!
We also had my favorite meal of the entire trip this day, at "Cinderella's Royal Table," a character meal that takes place IN Cinderella's castle! Every child was greeted with a "wishing star" upon sitting down and each girl was given a fairy wand while the boys were given swords. After a meet-and-greet with Cinderella in the lobby, we were then greeted by four additional princesses at our table! Not to mention, the food was delicious!
Also on this day, we had Raleigh's appointment at the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique (BBB). I remembered this so fondly from our 2015 trip and could.not.wait. for our appointment to arrive on this one! AND Raleigh ended up choosing the same princess up-do she had chosen when she was a 3-year-old. The side-by-side pic comparison just killed me! <3
The BBB is magical. They have "fairy godmothers" who do each little girl's hair, make-up, and nails, and truly make each one feel so special. And yes, I did tear up. #whatelseisnew
Also this day, our boys chose their souvenir for the trip - swords! And they proceeded to sword fight each other the entire rest of the trip - in our room, in the lobby, while waiting for lines - they loved those swords!
We capped off our day by taking in the fireworks show as a family before jumping on the monorail and heading back to our room for some shut-eye. I loved this day so, so much.
Day 3: Hollywood Studios or bust!
I love, love, love Hollywood Studios. Even though there aren't as many rides or attractions as Magic Kingdom, I love walking around and taking it all in, feeling like we've been transported to a Hollywood set. This day was a really fun one! Banks and I actually headed there early so we would be there the second they opened the gates. We then raced to our destination: the place we needed to go to ensure we could sign up him (and Harrison, who, again, wanted to do what his big brother was doing) for Jedi training later in the day! Once our mission was complete, we had about 30 minutes before the rest of our crew joined us, which meant hopping straight on one of the new rides in Toy Storyland and then embarking on the Tower of Terror (or the "Tower of Pain," as Rals accidentally referred to it later that day - ha!). I LOVED this ride. Banks was terrified before and during, but loved it after. :)
Raleigh and my hub then went on it so they could experience it and since, again, we waited in virtually zero lines almost the whole day and had tons of fun from the minute we arrived until we left!
This was also a really fun day for Harrison, who got to meet several of the Disney Jr. characters. AND we happened upon the Star Wars characters greeting area and were able to meet several before...
...our Lu Crew boys trained to become Jedi themselves!
We also enjoyed lunch at a really cute, thematic place called the "50's Diner." It was a hot but full day (one during which, Rals picked out her souvenir, Baby Sven)!
After spending most of the day at Hollywood Studios, we headed back to our resort to cool down with some evening swimming and dinner. It was such a great day!
Day 4: Our first visit to Epcot and a grand finale dinner
Although this was our third trip to Disney, we had never been to Epcot; so, we decided to go there instead of Animal Kingdom for this trip.
I thought it was great - I loved Epcot!! - and we rode on one of my favorite rides of the entire trip there: Soarin'. Again, between Fast Passes and small crowds, there was very little waiting and we packed in tons of fun!
And I thought it was so neat to "walk around the world," to so many different countries that were a part of Epcot, getting some brief exposure to so many different cultures (we even blew kisses to Bella from China). :)
After our day at Epcot, we went back to the room to freshen up before heading to Disney Springs for my second favorite meal of the week at the T. Rex Cafe. The kids absolutely LOVED this place, and I was so glad we had made a reservation there so many months ago. The ambiance was awesome and the volcanic dessert we ended our trip on was so, so cool (and absolutely delicious!). We then went back to the hotel where we caught some zzzz's before waking up, packing up, and dropping this momma at the airport for a whirlwind trip to Vegas! But more on that in a later post...
Etc.
Some of my other favorite memories?
Harrison ordering everything that Banks did. If Banks wanted Mickey-shaped pancakes with a side of fruit, Harrison did, too. If Banks ordered salmon, Harrison did, too. If Banks wanted a sword for a souvenir, Harrison did, too. He would literally just say, at every restaurant, "I want what Banks is having!" no matter what it was. This was the trip that Harrison began idolizing his big brother, and I'll never forget it.
I loved seeing my kids' personalities come through in such individual ways. Take Banks - he would talk a big game but was often terrified right before getting on a big ride and then was one and done after each time. Raleigh? Our dainty little girly girl is also a fierce and brave little lady - she couldn't get enough of any and every rollercoaster. She would be screaming, "This is AWESOME" as we zoomed and race and flew upside down, loving every minute and wanting to ride more, more, more! And Harrison would try everything Banks would. :)
Time with my hub. Even though we are non-stop when we go to Disney (I'm not one to skip a coveted ride or cut a day short. YOLO!), I would still find time to glance over at my hub and just think about how grateful I was to be in this place, with this man and these people, right now. <3
Seeing the love my kids have for each other. The kiddos got along SO well during this trip. It was so beautiful to see their relationships flourishing and seeing kindness prevail. It was maybe my favorite part of the entire trip. <3
The MAGIC of Disney. Disney is magical. If you've ever been, you know: magical is truly the only word to describe it. And Disney magic is like no other.
Banks, Raleigh, and Harrison have done a tremendous job with all the chaos and stress and upside-down-ness that is adding a fourth little one to the Crew, especially given how packed full our first year as a family of six was with appointments and therapies and surgeries and procedures and so much more. They are the kindest, sweetest, most loving big siblings to our Bella, and it was our privilege to whisk them away for this break from the craziness of our chosen life. Next time, all six of us will go together, as one big ol' happy family. But for this trip? It was so nice to celebrate the amazing big siblings that they are. It was a trip I'll never forget for as long as I live. <3 Thank you, Disney, for the magic. We'll be back...
We are back from an incredibly magical trip to Disney, and there is so much I want to share! For those interested (especially those planning future trips or with trips on the horizon!), I thought I'd break down my Disney posts into two topics: (1) The magical memories, and (2) My unsolicited tips, tricks, advice, and suggestions. Today, I am starting with the magic that is Disney, like only Disney can do. Here we go! Presenting, our magical 2018 trip to Disney
Day 1: Travel and Dinner with Mickey
We kicked off our trip by heading down to Florida bright and early in an attempt to avoid Hurricane Florence evacuation traffic. After handing off our Bella to her Nana and Pop (who loved on our girl so well all week!!!), we were on our way! Our ride was filled with watching Disney movies they had never seen that we borrowed from a friend of my sister's (Peter Pan! Alice in Wonderland! Brave! Princess and the Frog!) and playing with the toys, and snacking on the snacks, from their surprise bags (more on those in the next post).
...before jumping on the monorail to head to our first character meal of the week at Chef Mickey's! We loved starting our week by meeting Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy, and Pluto, and enjoying the yummy food (and delicious desserts - my fave!). We then headed back to our hotel just in time for bedtime. We knew the next day would be our busiest of the week!
Day 2: 13 hours of Magic Kingdom
We purposely chose to go to Magic Kingdom the first day, knowing we'd be the freshest and most well-rested this day, and thank goodness! We had breakfast at the "Be Our Guest" restaurant in Belle's castle in Magic Kingdom, which means we were in the park before it even opened!
This meant that as soon as our meal was done, we were off and running! Over the 13 hours we spent from the time we left our room until the time we got back, we rode 18 rides (max wait time for any ride all day? 30 minutes, which maybe happened twice). Also, because there was a snafu as we were entering the park that day, Disney gave us two additional Fast Passes, in addition to the three we already had reserved. So, we were able to see and do every single thing we wanted to and loved it!!
We also had my favorite meal of the entire trip this day, at "Cinderella's Royal Table," a character meal that takes place IN Cinderella's castle! Every child was greeted with a "wishing star" upon sitting down and each girl was given a fairy wand while the boys were given swords. After a meet-and-greet with Cinderella in the lobby, we were then greeted by four additional princesses at our table! Not to mention, the food was delicious!
Also on this day, we had Raleigh's appointment at the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique (BBB). I remembered this so fondly from our 2015 trip and could.not.wait. for our appointment to arrive on this one! AND Raleigh ended up choosing the same princess up-do she had chosen when she was a 3-year-old. The side-by-side pic comparison just killed me! <3
The BBB is magical. They have "fairy godmothers" who do each little girl's hair, make-up, and nails, and truly make each one feel so special. And yes, I did tear up. #whatelseisnew
Also this day, our boys chose their souvenir for the trip - swords! And they proceeded to sword fight each other the entire rest of the trip - in our room, in the lobby, while waiting for lines - they loved those swords!
We capped off our day by taking in the fireworks show as a family before jumping on the monorail and heading back to our room for some shut-eye. I loved this day so, so much.
I love, love, love Hollywood Studios. Even though there aren't as many rides or attractions as Magic Kingdom, I love walking around and taking it all in, feeling like we've been transported to a Hollywood set. This day was a really fun one! Banks and I actually headed there early so we would be there the second they opened the gates. We then raced to our destination: the place we needed to go to ensure we could sign up him (and Harrison, who, again, wanted to do what his big brother was doing) for Jedi training later in the day! Once our mission was complete, we had about 30 minutes before the rest of our crew joined us, which meant hopping straight on one of the new rides in Toy Storyland and then embarking on the Tower of Terror (or the "Tower of Pain," as Rals accidentally referred to it later that day - ha!). I LOVED this ride. Banks was terrified before and during, but loved it after. :)
Raleigh and my hub then went on it so they could experience it and since, again, we waited in virtually zero lines almost the whole day and had tons of fun from the minute we arrived until we left!
This was also a really fun day for Harrison, who got to meet several of the Disney Jr. characters. AND we happened upon the Star Wars characters greeting area and were able to meet several before...
We also enjoyed lunch at a really cute, thematic place called the "50's Diner." It was a hot but full day (one during which, Rals picked out her souvenir, Baby Sven)!
After spending most of the day at Hollywood Studios, we headed back to our resort to cool down with some evening swimming and dinner. It was such a great day!
Day 4: Our first visit to Epcot and a grand finale dinner
Although this was our third trip to Disney, we had never been to Epcot; so, we decided to go there instead of Animal Kingdom for this trip.
I thought it was great - I loved Epcot!! - and we rode on one of my favorite rides of the entire trip there: Soarin'. Again, between Fast Passes and small crowds, there was very little waiting and we packed in tons of fun!
After our day at Epcot, we went back to the room to freshen up before heading to Disney Springs for my second favorite meal of the week at the T. Rex Cafe. The kids absolutely LOVED this place, and I was so glad we had made a reservation there so many months ago. The ambiance was awesome and the volcanic dessert we ended our trip on was so, so cool (and absolutely delicious!). We then went back to the hotel where we caught some zzzz's before waking up, packing up, and dropping this momma at the airport for a whirlwind trip to Vegas! But more on that in a later post...
Etc.
Some of my other favorite memories?
Harrison ordering everything that Banks did. If Banks wanted Mickey-shaped pancakes with a side of fruit, Harrison did, too. If Banks ordered salmon, Harrison did, too. If Banks wanted a sword for a souvenir, Harrison did, too. He would literally just say, at every restaurant, "I want what Banks is having!" no matter what it was. This was the trip that Harrison began idolizing his big brother, and I'll never forget it.
I loved seeing my kids' personalities come through in such individual ways. Take Banks - he would talk a big game but was often terrified right before getting on a big ride and then was one and done after each time. Raleigh? Our dainty little girly girl is also a fierce and brave little lady - she couldn't get enough of any and every rollercoaster. She would be screaming, "This is AWESOME" as we zoomed and race and flew upside down, loving every minute and wanting to ride more, more, more! And Harrison would try everything Banks would. :)
Time with my hub. Even though we are non-stop when we go to Disney (I'm not one to skip a coveted ride or cut a day short. YOLO!), I would still find time to glance over at my hub and just think about how grateful I was to be in this place, with this man and these people, right now. <3
Seeing the love my kids have for each other. The kiddos got along SO well during this trip. It was so beautiful to see their relationships flourishing and seeing kindness prevail. It was maybe my favorite part of the entire trip. <3
The MAGIC of Disney. Disney is magical. If you've ever been, you know: magical is truly the only word to describe it. And Disney magic is like no other.
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