Here goes the next day of our wonderfully awesome vacation. Glad we got it in before disaster struck!
We woke up on Monday to freezing cold wind and rain. It was hands down the coldest day we spent in Florida. This is also the day we decided not to take the cars. It is faster to go from Ft. Wilderness to MK by ferry than to drive to the Ticket and Transportation Center and then shuttle to MK. There is no parking by the MK so you have to park at the TTC. Anyway, I thought the ferry sounded like a new adventure - I was ready! We caught a bus to get to the other end of Ft. Wilderness, have I mentioned it is very large?
I should also mention that Ryan left us on this day. He says it is because he had a job interview in SLC, but I think he just needed a break. We can be a lot to handle. Anyway, we missed him the rest of the trip - I think Sara missed him most. But, we were all glad Sara was there to help us out.
Jainie, Jaxon, Josh and Grandpa are just excited to be out of the biting wind and onto the bus!
Josie, Grandma and Sara need to have a bit more excitement - well Jos is doing great!
Right before we got to the pier there was another Christmas tree - isn't it great! Dad and Joshi are enjoying it or do they just like their picture taken?
Jainie is just starting to realize that it might be colder than she anticipated - but she looks so darn cute!
We finally made it to the pier and it was even colder there than anywhere else. The wind whipping off the water was frigid! I think Josie is under the blanket Jaxon is holding. I guess the plus of this weather was that it was good family bonding - the closer together, the warmer you were. :)
At this point the boys decided it would be warmer to lay down on the dock - and I think it probably was. They enjoyed themselves for a few minutes, at least.
You can see we are all wrapped up. We bought extra stuff and wore every warm thing we packed. Yes, Sara is a bit of a pansy. :)
So, this is looking back at our beach - see all those wonderful chairs up on the beach? Those were the chairs I should have been able to sit and relax in. Oh well, there is always next year, right sweetie?
Finally made it onto the ferry - you can see Jainie changed her fancy beret for Dad's un-girly beanie. To make a fashion faux pas like that, it must be cold.
Our first view of the MK, you can see the train station above the dock! We made it!!!
First to-do list of the day was to make Jake feel special. He had been having a rough vacation and needed some extra loving care. He is usually such a darling, easy-going, carefree boy but he was definitely needing some attention. So, after entering the magic gates, he and I rushed to get a birthday phone call from Goofy.
He loved his special call - he thought it was pretty cool.
Jake and I had run ahead and left everyone else, we were going to meet them at Dumbo. So, I got to get this sweet picture of him with the castle and not a million people milling about. You can see he is feeling better at this point. Such a cutie pie.
We always go to Dumbo first. I read once in a book that it is the slowest loading ride at Disney so we head there first thing and ride it so we can forget about it for the rest of the day. Plus, the little kids love it and the older kids can handle being annoyed much more easily than the little kids can. :)
I am thinking Josie must have been able to go by herself - she is the age that it would be cool to go on your own.
Dad and Jainie got to go on purple - hooray!!!
Joshua got to go with Grandpa on blue - yes color is still a big deal for us.
And, I went with Jake on this one - teal? perhaps. I remember Grandma, Sara and Jaxon had stopped to shop for something and didn't make it on the ride. I don't think any of them minded too much. The rest of us thoroughly enjoyed a good whirl on Dumbo.
So there was this big blue wall that you couldn't see over when walking around. Something new coming to the MK, so when we got on Dumbo, I decided to see what I could see. This was it. A bunch of construction, no wonder they cover it up, huh? Anyway, it is rumored to be a new ride, "Ariel's Undersea Adventure." It is supposed to be a huge dark ride/adventure. Sounds interesting - not opening until early 2012. Plan accordingly.
This is a shot from Dumbo as well. It is the Pinocchio inspired eating place that we stopped and got some fries at a bit later. Isn't it darling?
Jainie was dying to get on Cinderella's Golden Carousel and Jake was getting ornery so while we went to find some food, Dad took Jainie on her favorite MK ride. None of the other kids cared to go on it, which should tell you how cold it was, it is usually one of our traditions. Why can't the weather just cooperate?
This is inside the Pinocchio eating spot. You can see we are still quite wrapped up. We stayed in for at least a half an hour enjoying warm french fries and some tasty chocolate milk. Normally, we wouldn't waste this much time. (I really didn't want to even now - good thing I can now think of the kids, occasionally :)).
So, we went to Peter Pan's Flight, Mickey's PhilharMagic, Snow White's Scary Adventures, and then headed to The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. This ride is so much busier at DWorld than DLand. They are pretty much the same ride except the queue in DWorld is much more fun and interactive. It is also a much longer wait in line, which is the stinky part. However, sometimes I think the best memories are made when the kids have to interact and entertain each other. Here you can see that Jaxon has cracked Jainie up. He really can be very witty and funny.
I should also mention that we went on "It's a Small World," which is one of my absolute favorite rides. Disneyland's is far better, however, since they have renovated it. DWorld hasn't done that yet but it was fun to see it the way it used to be at Dland.
Jake had had enough of Fantasyland. He had been wanting to go on a big ride since we walked in the park. He is definitely a thrill seeker, worrisome to me, what will it take to get him excited in the future? Anyway, he finally sat down and refused to go on anymore rides. He did miss a few. So, Grandma took him aside and they just sat and watched people walking past. They did finally catch up and go on the Winnie the Pooh ride with us. He likes them once he is on them, but those lines just do him in.
We had lunch reservations at around 2:00 so we didn't have much more time to do things before then. I really wanted to get to the Hall of President's so we decided to walk around the back way of Liberty Square. The line didn't look very long for The Haunted Mansion, so we took advantage and headed in there. I love the HM, every time we go to Dland, it is decorated for Halloween and Christmas as Nightmare before Christmas. I like the original HM better, so it was fun to go and see it here - normal, just like I remember it growing up. And, it is always a pleaser for the kids. Jainie was a bit nervous though.
Oh scary! Josie got this picture, I have to admit I didn't pull the camera out here. It really was so cold this day, we didn't take nearly as many pictures.
So, this is a picture of one of my FAVORITE spots in the MK. I remembered this sitting area from when we came here when I was much younger. In fact, this is in Liberty Square right outside of a shop and by the HM, however, growing up I got it confused with Dland and I spend many trips to Dland looking for this spot. I don't remember why it held such allure for me, but it did. It is just so peaceful and welcoming and I love big porches to sit outside on. This actual picture was much later at night when we came around this way again, but I felt it fit better at this point. You'll notice everyone is a bit happier, the later it got, the less the wind blew, which made it a bit nicer actually. Man! I have a darling family - how can one girl be so lucky?
I really wanted to get to The Hall of Presidents this trip. Dland doesn't have this exact attraction and I really want my children to be patriotic and appreciate this land that we live in. However, the next show didn't start for a little bit, so we waited outside, well, some of us chose to shop instead, but others just elected to wait. Here Jake is all wrapped up in our new Dworld blanket enjoying a little rest. Good thing they keep Disney so clean!
Ah! how I love Cinderella's castle. Isn't it magnificent? This is the view we got of it after coming around the corner of Hall of Presidents to the Crystal Palace where we were having lunch. There was actually a show going on you can kind of see. It was fun to watch, even from a distance.
Josie, Sara, and Jake enjoying the show as we are waiting to get into the restaurant.
We are finally seated - hooray! This is a character dining experience that is also buffet style. They serve things like waffles, pancakes, fresh fruit, prime rib, mussels, vegetables, pasta, shrimp, chicken and an ice-cream sundae bar. I have no idea what I ate here, I honestly can't remember. I do remember loving their lemon bars! It was fun to see the characters but more fun to see Jake and his excitement to see them.
Yay! happy again. This is Jake's special lunch - all about him. He was thrilled. And, although I was a bit nervous about eating with Pooh, Eeyore, Tigger, and Piglet - I thought he might think they were too young for him - luckily, he LOVED IT! In fact, Piglet came to our table and gave Joshi a big hug first and Jake was furious. He kept insisting it was his special day. Piglet did a good job of making him feel better by signing Jake's book backwards and behind his head. Boy, Jake was acting a bit spoiled!
Josie would have gotten in more of these pictures but she was kind of stuck behind the table. Isn't this the sweetest though? The kids were all happy to be getting warm and their bellies full.
Josh and his big hug from Piglet. I have to admit I love seeing Joshi acting like a normal, cute 9-year old. He is usually too mature for his age. He is such a sweet boy!
After Jake has forgiven Piglet and starts following him around giving him hugs. Jainie was just happy they were both pink!
Jake and Jainie still LOVING the characters. Josh was enjoying taking it all in. I think Josie was a bit sad that she felt she was getting too old for this. It is a hard time trying to decide if you are still young enough or should be growing up and being cool. Either way, I am glad she would get in the picture - she is still my little girl.
I made Jared get a pic with Eeyore - since that is who he is like. And, Jaxon consented to getting in too since he is quickly becoming just like his dad.
Oh Tigger, how I wish I had your energy!
Jacob enjoying his cupcake - he ate the whole thing in about 3 bites. He has quite a large mouth. :) I am just glad something made him happy and important-feeling.
Jaxon and Sara ready to go fight the elements. There all all sorts of darling characters made of flowers - they were pretty awesome!
After eating, we decided it was time to head over to Big Thunder. Grandma and Jainie opted to not go on it, but met us at the exit. What a ride! Still one of my favorites! Everyone in the fam loves this one - except Gma and Jainie.
After this it gets a bit blurry as to what we did. I know none of us went on Splash Mtn. Boo - I would have gone, and I think Gpa would have, but no one else. It was too chilly. I think we headed over to Space Mtn., Buzz Lightyear, Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor, and Stitch's Great Escape. However, Jainie fell asleep so Gma and I took turns staying out with her.
I don't know how you could sleep in a place like this?
We also went on the Tomorrowland Speedway. Josie is finally tall enough to go by herself - YAY!!!
Jainie, Jake, and Sara take a spin on the teacups. Uncle Ry will go with the kids too and Sara had her job cut out for her without him around. :)
Jainie coming off the teacups - she and Jake LOVED it and wanted to go again.
We hadn't been on Pirates yet, which is a must so we headed that way and ran right into the Mainstreet Electrical Parade. I love this parade and haven't seen it since I was little so it was fun to see a few floats. Jainie liked it best, everyone else was ready to go on rides. This one is Pete and his dragon, Eliot. Ah, what a good movie. He really is up there very high - fun to see, you never see him anymore.
Jainie waving to the princesses. I had her hoisted up on my shoulder so she could see above the masses of freezing cold people.
Joshi is so cute when his dad is teasing him. He was so excited to get over to Big Thunder and Pirates. He is usually pretty happy with whatever we are doing.
So, we decided to take a detour and go back to Big Thunder, one of our absolute favorite rides. Jake was crazy excited - as you can tell. He rode with Sara. Dad rode with Joshi. Jaxon rode with Josie and I rode with Jainie. Jainie hadn't ever been on this ride but Gpa and Gma had gone back to the hotel because of the cold and all of us wanted to go. I really thought she would like it if she tried it out. You can see this theory worked with the rest of the kids!
So, now you can tell how much Jainie liked this ride. :) Makes me smile every time. Is that bad? Anyway, Jared felt bad for her (good thing he is so compassionate) and decided to take her into the store to look around while the rest of us went on it again. She just wanted to sit and pout but Jared started throwing these hats on her and taking pictures. You can see it didn't take long for her to perk up. I wish I could change my moods so easily.
(These are the ears she ended up with.)
And, then she found Minnie. Ah, we were back to normal. All it takes is some fancy hats, toys and a lot of posing. What else could a girl want? (Well, she would also take shoes or fingernail polish and candy! ).
After this we headed over to Pirates and the Tiki Room, which we never get to go to. We are always to busy. In fact, Jake forgot his gloves on Big Thunder so the boys headed over to find them and we girls stayed in the Tiki Room for a second showing. It was nice and warm inside plus NO ONE else was in there so the host showed us some hidden Mickey's and told us some things to look for. It was great! I think the boys enjoyed it too. (There was literally very few people in the park during the night - yes, it was cold, but come on, how many times do you get to go to DWorld and have NO lines? If it weren't for my kids, I would have stayed all night. I think we left around 11:00 - it didn't close til midnight).
Growing up I remember many times splitting up and then all of us would meet at The Country Bear Jamboree for lunch and a show out of the hot sun. Well, as everyone knows, Disneyland did away with TCBJamboree and now it is where Pooh's ride is. I still miss it. Yes, I know it is corny and silly, but I am a sucker for tradition and memories. So, I forced everyone to go to the show. Still think it's pretty great. I think the kids liked it too, they do like the movie.
So, this is the view we got on our way back to Main Street. Isn't is wonderful?
I just love this castle. It was so tempting, in fact, that we girls decided to run back to it to see if a shop was open, which it wasn't. Oh well, it was fun to say good-bye.
So, these are the pics we got inside the castle. They have these awesome murals. We decided Josie and Jainie would have to be by Cinderella - they fit here so well.
While Sara and I fit so well with the stepsisters - haha - if you could see them, you would notice they have facial expressions exactly like ours. :)
I have no idea where the boys went during this time. I think they might have gone back to Space Mtn. or something. I wanted a few minutes to wander through the shops on Main Street. I always love wandering through them all and we just never have enough time.
I had read about this phone, but couldn't remember where it was, but luckily we found it. It is a replica of the olden days and it is a party line, so you just pick it up and listen and hear these two crazy women talking on it. It is pretty funny. The boys actually found us in this store so they got to enjoy it as well. (Jared has a knack for finding me - we were in the very back corner of a store that sold ? I have no idea, but he still found us. Weird. When I try to find him, I can't find him if he is 2 feet away from me. I guess this says something about how hard I look for things, right?)
So, good-bye to Magic Kingdom - it has been a great day! Wish I lived here. Someday? Until then, I will dream of you often.
This was our towel surprise when we got home to our cabin - it is a crocodile, if you are wondering. I think it is easy to tell, my kids don't. Pretty creative.
And, this is how our maid set up Jaxon's cougar for the night. She also knew we had a birthday so left us all of those fun toys and stickers, isn't that great? I love DISNEY!!!
