The Disney Vacation

We had a fabulous trip! Although exhausting with a shaky start, the week finished with wonderful memories and a great time. We can't say thanks enough to Bapa and Grandma for helping us with the trip and being there with us and Will. Will was in heaven to have the attention of all 4 of us all week long!

So, do I think Will was too young for Disney? If you asked me Monday or Tuesday I would most definitely say YES. But now, I don't think so. If you take a toddler his age, just be prepared to give him a chance to adjust. There was so much going on at one time that it took him a while to really get into it. My biggest recommendation for traveling with kids his age is to 1) get up early to arrive at the parks when they open; 2) take advantage of the "Magic Hours" if you are staying at a Disney resort to get to the parks an hour before they officially open; 3) keep the toddler very very well hydrated - have lots of juice and water on hand; and 4) when he falls asleep - no matter what - let him sleep ... and take advantage of that time to do something you want to do!

Thanks to Bapa, I did not have to worry about capturing the trip with my camera (I just snapped a few). I've glanced through those he has taken and, of course, they are wonderful. Here are some with a recap of the trip ....

We left very early Sunday morning to arrive in Orlando around 2pm. It was great because it gave Will a chance to go swimming in one of the many pools at our resort and get used to his new surroundings before bedtime. We stayed at Saratoga Springs Resort on the Disney property. It was beautifully done -- I could have stayed there for weeks! Great thing is that we got a two bedroom condo, so Will had lots of room to run around and we could stay up and have "grown-up" time after Will went to sleep at 7:30.

Day One

Those of you who know me, know that I love Disney and could not wait to share it with Will. I tried not to have any expectations ... but, lets face it, I was dying to see his expression when he say Main St USA in Magic Kingdom. We took our time that morning, arriving at the park around about 10am (MISTAKE!). It started off well - Will enjoyed his first Monorail ride to the park --

But, then it all collapsed. First of all, it was supposed to be cooler weather and it was NOT supposed to be crowded - the main reason I booked the trip in September. But it was SO crowded and sticky, hot. As I was trying to come to grips with the fact that, no, the lines will not be short ... Will was hot, overstimulated and DONE by the time we approached Fantasyland and before he got on his first ride. Tantrum in the middle of Fantasyland is how it all started. However, eventually, things calmed down and we took Will for his first ride ever at Disney ... on Its a Small World, a classic. Thankfully, the boy loved it and we didn't have to wait too long to get on it.

I think Will's favorite ride in Magic Kingdom was the Cinderella Carousel. He absolutely loved it, but on that first day, he was still learning about waiting his turn and to get off when the ride ended. There were some mild tantrums when I had to physically pry his fingers from the horse when the ride ended. :)

Eventually, he did take a nap, for about 15 minutes ...

When he woke up, he was in a fabulous mood, so we took advantage and rode more rides in Adventure Land like Pirates of the Carribean and seeing the Tikki birds. We were having such a great time that we refused to pay attention to the storm clouds moving in.

And the first day would have ended better, except it poured. And I don't mean a quick 15 minute downpour. I mean rivers running through Fantasyland (where we had returned to and gotten trapped by the storm). Water leaking through the roof in the restaurant we were waiting in. Hot, sticky, wet, lots of people, irritable child. Ugh. It was not pleasant. Eventually, we put on ponchos, braved the steady rain, and got out of the park by 3ish.

Day Two

The second day went much better than the first day. It was still crowded and hot, but thankfully, almost no rain. We were prepared for the crowds, and Will was getting a little more used to everything.

We started off with breakfast at Chef Mickey. Will was so shocked to see the characters coming close to his table.

But, even though he kept exclaiming "Goofy!", he was not too happy when he came over.

We were able to get a picture with Mickey without him getting scared, and he even gave Minnie a kiss, although was upset when she bent to give him one!

The rest of Chef Mickey continued to be a little too much for Will who was getting more and more irrtable. But we headed to Epcot for the rest of the day, and Will did much better and started to really enjoy everything. We rode Spaceship Earth, looked at the big fountain, ate lunch, and spent lots of time at the Seas with Nemo before heading home. Will loved seeing Nemo and all the Fish!

That night, we ate dinner at the Rainforest Cafe in Downtown Disney where we celebrated Grandma's birthday! Will loved all the "monkeys!" and "noise!" at the restaurant and kept talking about the monkeys and noise the next day. (The gorillas and other animals in the restaurant come alive a couple of times an hour.) Afterwards, we strolled around Downtown Disney for a nice end to the evening.

Will started becoming more and more like the always-happy boy that we know! :)

Day Three

We had planned for day 3 to be the restful day, and boy did we need it by then! Bapa and Grandma went to visit a relative of Grandma's about an hour away. Meanwhile, we played it easy at the resort. Will had a fabulous time in the main pool that morning (I forgot my camera!), and then took a long 3 hour nap. Then, we headed to Downtown Disney and did a little shopping before meeting up with Bapa and Grandma for dinner at Planet Hollywood.

(Will enjoyed playing with Legos at the big Lego store. The boy loves blocks and building things more than any other toy.)

Day Four

We did it right on Thursday and had a fabulous day. We got up early and hit Magic Kingdom in the extra hour in the morning that the Disney Resort gave us. There were few crowds and the weather was much cooler. Will was so happy and enjoyed everything. And he napped a good bit in the stroller, giving us time to ride some of the grown-up rides. Will's favorites at Magic Kingdom, in addition to the Cinderella Carousel, were the Mad Hatter Tea Cups and the Winnie and Pooh ride.

That afternoon, we went to Hollywood Studios where we took Will to see Playhouse Disney Live On Stage. Will LOVED it! It was the cutest thing. He knew all the songs and all the characters. I wish we had more pictures of him but it was too dark where we were for Bapa to get pictures (but he did capture all of the show itself that we plan on showing Will again). Will stood up and danced and laughed and clapped and jumped and just had a ball! It was worth the whole trip for that moment. (This next picture is the one we were able to get of Will at the show.)
Day Five

On the last day, we went to Animal Kingdom. We all continued to have a wonderful time, and Will loved seeing all the animals. We were able to see the tigers, which is probably Will's favorite animal. He also really enjoyed the Nemo Musical -- the boy loves Nemo now. Plus, we got to ride the new roller coaster - Everest Expedition (so much fun!) - while he slept with Daddy. (Because Daddy does not ride roller coasters.) And, as we were leaving the park, a Disney cast member told us that Winnie the Pooh and friends were down the path with a very short line. We decided to give it a shot and see whether Will would be okay with them. Let me tell you .. he had come a long way from the Chef Mickey experience. He LOVED to see the characters - Pooh, Eeyore (sp?), Piglet, and his all-time favorite, Tigger. He ran up to Pooh and gave him a big hug, and we thought he would not ever let him go! He gave them kisses and high fives. Piglet grabbed her ears or played peek-a-boo and other things, and Will imitated everything she did. It was the cutest and most perfect way to end our Disney vacation with Will.

What made it even better is that Bapa and Grandma watched Will that night so Ellis and I could use the Magic Hours at night at Epcot. We stayed until after midnight and rode Mission Space, Soarin' and some others, and we had a chance to have a nice dinner at Germany in the World Showcase. We were tired on Saturday, but it was well worth it.

I am a sucker for Walt Disney World. I have always enjoyed going there with my family and have many fond memories. Now, I am thrilled that I can do the same with my own child. And next time we are able to go, Will will probably actually remember it when he is older. :-)