Trip #1: September 2-9
Before we even knew we were moving to Florida, Jake and I had planned a trip to Disney World. It was just that much better when we moved here because then we could get season passes and we didn't have to buy flights! Our first trip up to Orlando was the first week of September. We went with Jake's parents and we had a blast.
We stayed at the Coronodo Springs resort. It was nice! I'd never stayed on property before, but it was really fun. Our first day was at Hollywood Studios. The highlight for Mckynlee was the Ariel show. For the rest of the week, she was singing "ah ah ah" everywhere we went.
We stayed at the Coronodo Springs resort. It was nice! I'd never stayed on property before, but it was really fun. Our first day was at Hollywood Studios. The highlight for Mckynlee was the Ariel show. For the rest of the week, she was singing "ah ah ah" everywhere we went.
We tried out the Disney Dinning plan for this trip because it was free when you book on property! Usually, Jake and I are a pack-a-sandwich-and-snacks-and-make-due type family. But it was fun to mix it up. Our first dinner was at Hollywood and Vine in Hollywood Studios. This is where Mckynlee really fell in love with Mickey Mouse.
The food was "eh" and was Mckynlee was acting, well, like an 18 month old. But we still had a good time.
We didn't get to see Mickey for very long because another guest had picked him up (who does that?) and he had hurt his back. People are weird.
We didn't get to see Mickey for very long because another guest had picked him up (who does that?) and he had hurt his back. People are weird.
The next day we started at Animal Kingdom. We have never received so many compliments on our shirts. And it seemed no one could resist Mckynlee in her Moana dress. (Thank you Little Adventures!) It was really hot. And hopefully I won't dwell on that too much.
Mckynlee was a little bit hesitant to meet Mickey. But throughout the trip, she soon came to LOVE Mickey and Minnie. It helped that we saw them, like, 15 times.
Disney's new Pandora land is really cool! Leave it to Disney to really bring a fantasy world alive. I don't love Avatar. I don't really like it at all actually. But I LOVED the Flight of Passage ride. It was an amazing experience. It's a 4D type movie, mixed with being on a ride. Every tiny detail was planned out to really make the rider feel like they were on a Banshee as an Avatar. It was cool. Jake and I's favorite ride is by far Expedition Everest. For some reason, it's really not ever that crowded. So, we try to go on it as many times as we can.
Dinner was at Teppan Edo, which is a Japanese steak house. Yum! Definitely my favorite.
The next day started at Hollywood Studios. We did a lot of park hopping this day! After Hollywood Studios, we went to Magic Kingdom.
The next day started at Hollywood Studios. We did a lot of park hopping this day! After Hollywood Studios, we went to Magic Kingdom.
Not all Disney photographers are created equal. Some just take the photos with very little effort to get Mckynlee to look. This guy (for the picture below) was awesome! It's one of the few pictures we have where we are all smiling!
He even took the cool sunglasses picture! It was unique and I love it! Growing up, we mostly went to Disney at Christmas time. It was fun to go when it was decorate for Fall and Halloween. It was so hot it didn't really feel like fall, but the decorations were fun.
Dinner was at the Italian restaurant at Epcot. So good!
We ended the night watching the fireworks at Epcot. We kept telling Mckynlee, "look, see how pretty the fireworks are?!" At one point we looked down (she was snuggled into Jake's shoulder) and she had tears streaming down her cheeks and she says, "So pretty mommy. So pretty." Poor thing. Trying to hard to enjoy the fireworks that were actually scaring her. I love that little girl.
We ended the night watching the fireworks at Epcot. We kept telling Mckynlee, "look, see how pretty the fireworks are?!" At one point we looked down (she was snuggled into Jake's shoulder) and she had tears streaming down her cheeks and she says, "So pretty mommy. So pretty." Poor thing. Trying to hard to enjoy the fireworks that were actually scaring her. I love that little girl.
Oh how fun it would be to experience life through Mckynlee's eyes. We headed to Epcot for dinner. After dinner, we had some time and the line for Anna and Elsa was only 5 minutes (say whhhaaat???) On our drive to Florida--for the move--Mckynlee watched Frozen for the first time and became OBSESSED with Anna and Elsa. Anyway, we headed to Norway to take advantage of the short lines. Mcks loved meeting Ana and Elsa. We went through multiple times. We asked at one point if she could get a picture of Anna and Elsa together, but they said that wasn't possible. But, our like 3rd time through, they surprised Mckynlee and she got a picture with both of them at once! She just about died of excitement.
Day four started at Magic Kingdom. We had breakfast at Chef Mickey's which is at the Contemporary Resort. That hotel is walkable from Magic Kingdom, so we headed there.
At this point, Mckynlee is OBSESSED with Mickey. So this was really, really fun.
At this point, the treat of Hurricane Irma was upon us. Our city, Davie, had parts that were being evacuated. We couldn't go home if we wanted. Gas stations were running out of gas. And the airport was starting to cancel flights. Irma was no joke. We contemplated all our options, and decided staying in Orlando was what we would do. So, all we could do was wait for the storm to come and do its business. Annndd....we got to enjoy a very not crowded Disney for a few days.
Mckynlee was really loving meeting the princesses. We just couldn't get enough! And she was beyond thrilled every time she saw one.
Our next day was at Epcot. The highlight was going to Askerhaus Banquet Hall. Aka: Princess breakfast. Mckynlee was in HEAVEN. At one point, they have what they call the princess promenade. All the kids in the room get to walk around the hall with the princesses. Mcks really thought she was a princess. She grabbed Ariel's hand and marched away. She waved and blew kisses to everyone around.
At this point, we are to Friday. Irma is terrifying the country and we're stressing out. We were worried about Pepper, so one of Jake's coworkers picked her up on her evacuation route out. She texts him on Friday and says we need to drive 2 hours to go get the dog because they can't keep her anymore. I did NOT want Jake to go. It made me so nervous, but we didn't really have a choice. So, Jake and Ron headed to get Pepper and Mcks, Lisa and I tried to make due. For this reason, we didn't take too many pictures. My cousin, Tynan was currently working in the Disney college program. He had the day off, so he joined us. We probably weren't very fun. I was stressing big time. But I do that sometimes.
So here we are. To Saturday. The day before Irma hits. At this point, no one can really say where Irma is going or how badly its going to hit. So what do we do? Spend another day at the parks. what else could we do?
Lucky for us, Irma hit Orlando in the middle of the night. Jake and Mckynlee slept right through it. (Miracle!) I was up a couple times, but Orlando really didn't get it too bad. Leading up to and just after the hurricane, we were told to say in our rooms. The city was on lock-down. We were, however, able to go to the lobby of the hotel. Disney is awesome and had a big party going on. They had games, snacks, toys, movies, etc. Mckynlee was SO excited when Minnie and Pluto showed up. It sure made bedroom lock-up bearable with a toddler.
And this ended our crazy survival Disney trip. We had so much fun. And thankfully, nothing was hurt by hurricane Irma. I guess it was just Florida's way of saying, "WELCOME!"
Trip #2: Halloween(ish)
In our attempt to take advantage of all we can, we went up to Orlando for Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. We went up on a Friday and Stayed through Monday morning.
This Mickey Mouse LOVED Mckynlee. As soon as we'd start to leave, he'd call her back to take more photos. He took 60 photos with her! She felt like the Queen. I can't tell how grateful I am for that experience. I wish that person knew how excited he made one little girl. She still tells me that Mickey loves her.
Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween party was so fun! Overall, I think we might skip the Halloween party next year. The trick or treating was fun. But we don't really know a lot of the Halloween stories. We were expecting there to be more classic villians like Jafar or Scar. But we didn't really know them. Still, great. We had a wonderful time.
There was a dance party with the Monsters Inc characters. Each one made a point to come dance with Mcks. She was Boo, so it made sense. Can I just say that she was a champ!? She stayed up until 11:30pm and was still happy and friendly. She's the greatest.
Trip #3: Thanksgiving Break
Our next trip was over Thanksgiving. Jake's parents were already going to Disney the following weeks, so they added a few days to their trip so that we could join them. At Disney Springs, they have a fun Festival of Trees. Each tree was decorated for different Disney movies.
It wouldn't be a trip to Disney without meeting Mickey and Minnie.
Can you tell we like princesses at our house?
Disney has some cool technology. They projected a show onto the Hollywood Tower of Terror. It was neat!
Mcks went on her first roller coaster! She loved it and said "wheeee" the whole time.
Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party followed. This was SO much fun. We love everything Christmas at our house.
She was terrified of Santa, but not Goofy Santa. She has her priorities right!
We had cocoa and cookies and treats all night long. One thing I will never understand is why adults think its okay to stand in front of a CHILD during a parade or show. I mean, seriously? Mcks is standing there, super excited to see Mickey, when a group of ADULTS push right in front of her. I nicely asked them if she could stand in front so she could see. But they ignored it. Thankfully, she has a very tall dad who could see over them. But really? 1) It's Christmas. 2) My child just wants to see Mickey.
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We had been waiting to meet Minnie and Daisy for a while and Mcks was getting ansi, We were next in line when they announced that the firework show would be starting soon. They also told us that they set the fireworks off right behind where we were standing and it was going to get really loud. They weren't lying! And as I've mentioned before, Mckynlee really isn't a fan of fireworks. Hence the scared look. She was super excited to see Minnie, but was very distracted by the fireworks that were literally right above us. Jake and I enjoy the show though.
Trip #4: Christmas
My family was able to visit us over Christmas this year! We spent Christmas at Disney. It was pretty crowded, but we still made the most of it and had a lot of fun.
It was really foggy most of the day. It helped clear the crowds, but it also felt like a zombie apocalypse was on the brink.
We were all pretty excited to eat at Be Our Guest. Mcks was asleep in the stroller in this picture.
She was dressed like Belle, so obviously we had to go the the Be Our Guest restaurant. Although, I do prefer the small Belle to just about anyone else.
There was some kind of mix-up with our waitress and she thought we were part of some special dining package that received special tickets to Fantasmic. So after dinner she gave us VIP tickets. We weren't really sure why she would do that, but we accepted them anyway. It wasn't until after the show that we put 2 and 2 together.
We had a reservation at the princess breakfast at 8am, before the park opened. Mckynlee sure loves princesses!! Immediately after breakfast, we headed to Anna and Elsa. (The park was just opening.)
We headed back to Magic Kingdom to watch a special Christmas Parade. Unfortunately, we had a bad experience with some cranky people. But, it was alright because an "elf" from the parade went out of her way to make Mcks feel special. She took her into the middle and danced with her. It was really fun to watch. Disney really makes things magical. During the parade, it seemed that every character in the parade make eye contact with Mcks and interacts with her. And this wasn't even this first time this has happened. Its EVERY parade. Sure makes this mom happy to see Mckynlee feeling so special. What really made her day was Anna and Elsa in the parade. They saw her and Anna says, "Elsa, can I say something crazy? She looks just like you." Mcks turns to me and says, "Mee? They talkin to meee?" All the heart eyes. :)
My parents were so nice, and offered to take Mckynlee back to the hotel for an earlier bed time (she'd had a long day) so Jake and I could stay later with my brothers.
As you can see, Jake is obviously superior on the Buzz Lightyear ride. Also, we were stopping to get a treat and the employee asked if we wanted to sample their vanilla cake pops. Sure! Little did we know that we would each get a whole one for free! Wahoo! We finished with the firework show, and it was awesome. Maneuvering through crowds without a stroller is SO much easier. Although we really did miss Mckynlee.
My parents were so nice, and offered to take Mckynlee back to the hotel for an earlier bed time (she'd had a long day) so Jake and I could stay later with my brothers.
As you can see, Jake is obviously superior on the Buzz Lightyear ride. Also, we were stopping to get a treat and the employee asked if we wanted to sample their vanilla cake pops. Sure! Little did we know that we would each get a whole one for free! Wahoo! We finished with the firework show, and it was awesome. Maneuvering through crowds without a stroller is SO much easier. Although we really did miss Mckynlee.
Next day was Hollywood Studios. A stormtrooper approached us, but Mcks (or me) wasn't a fan.
Epcot in the afternoon for Teppan Edo!
With a group this big, I couldn't help but make 7 Dwarves shirts. We only had 6, but it was close enough.
Dad -- Grumpy, because why not?
Mom -- Happy, she's a grandma, so it makes sense
Jake -- Doc, because he's really smart
Me -- Sleepy, I have a toddler, need I say more?
Kevin -- Bashful, he's quiet, but hilarious
Cayson -- Dopey, he's the youngest. He could also be Sneezy. The kids allergic to everything.
Unfortunately, Snow White (AKA Mcks) wasn't really feeling super chipper for pictures. Haha.
Dad -- Grumpy, because why not?
Mom -- Happy, she's a grandma, so it makes sense
Jake -- Doc, because he's really smart
Me -- Sleepy, I have a toddler, need I say more?
Kevin -- Bashful, he's quiet, but hilarious
Cayson -- Dopey, he's the youngest. He could also be Sneezy. The kids allergic to everything.
Unfortunately, Snow White (AKA Mcks) wasn't really feeling super chipper for pictures. Haha.
Cayson had been sick that day, so he and my parents and Mcks headed back to the hotel to get some more sleep. Kevin, Jake, and I had some spare Fastpasses to use, so we decided to stay a little later. We did a few things at Epcot, then headed to Hollywood Studios. Instead of waiting for the Disney bus (our car was at Hollywood Studios) we decided to walk it on the back path. We walked FAST. We made it to Hollywood Studios with 15 minutes to spare before the park closed. We went as fast as we could and rode Rockin' Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror as many times as we could. Because it was Christmas Eve, it really wasn't too busy. So that plus FP made for some very short wait times. It was a blast! And a lot of walking. |
Christmas Day was at Animal Kingdom. It was VERY busy. Thank goodness for FP! At one point, the line for The Flight of Passage in Pandora was 290 minutes. Over 4 hours of waiting! My goodness. With FP and child swap, we each got to ride the ride 2 times with a like 10 minute wait. Child swap is seriously the best! If there were a way to gain the system, child swap would be the way to do it. Not that we wanted to do that...
We ended the night at Hollywood Studios. Somehow, our snack credits got mixed up and they thought we had a whole bunch more than we actually did. So we ended up taking home like 20 rice krispies home with us. We drove home that night around 9pm, getting us home around midnight. After that, "Santa" came. So it was a very late night for us! Worth it though! That's all our Disney trips for now, but there will be many more to come!