Day 7–Epcot

We spent our first full day at Disney World at Epcot because we had reservations to have lunch with the Princesses.

I was pleasantly surprised with how un-crowded it was.  There were lots of people but the lines were all very short and it didn’t feel like people were pressing in on you everywhere you went.

The ball was much smaller in person than I imagined it would be.

But later I was surprised to find out that it is actually a ride!  The last thing we did for the day was go on this ride.  It takes you through a timeline of technology and you get to go to the very top of the ball.  Then they spin you around so you descend at what felt like almost flat on your back while you watch a funny video they make using your face on cartoon bodies. :)

I thought Epcot was just the different countries but there was a whole other area with lots of buildings showcasing different things.

The first one we went into was called “The Seas” and had a Nemo ride in it.

After the ride we spent some time looking at all the aquariums.

Since Bug was wearing her birthday button lots of “cast members” and even park goers were calling out, “Happy Birthday Snow White!”  The employees must be trained to spot the buttons because I was surprised at how people 10-20 feet away would notice it.

They had some gorgeous flower displays there.  These flowers make up pictures of flowers and butterflies.

We thought these were really interesting.  I have no idea what they are.  They look like feather dusters.

We wandered over to the countries section as soon as it opened.  Each country had a “Kidcot” station where kids could get stamps and a flag drawn on either this little bear or in a pretend passport.

Every cast member that we saw working in the countries area was actually from that particular country and we even heard them speaking in their native languages.  I wonder if they recruit them from overseas?

This is that point where we had lunch with the princesses, but that is going to need a whole post of it’s own!

After our lunch which was in Norway we started to make the rounds of the countries.  We went on the Norway ride which was a short history of the country.  The ride was on a Viking boat and at one point trolls pop up in front of you, and tell you to go away.  Then your boat starts going backwards into the mist until you are away from them.  Bug did NOT care for that.  Haha :)

I was so impressed with how not only the architecture was designed around the country, but also all the plant life!  This pond in “China” was full of lily pads and other strange looking plants that made you feel like you were really there!

Germany.  I’ve always heard they have great pastries but we were so full from our big lunch we couldn’t get anything.

Italy, the one place T and I would LOVE to visit some day.

We had rented a stroller this day, anticipating that we wouldn’t make it back for naps.  I was really hoping Boo would get a short nap in, but it ended up being super short – about 15 minutes.  It was just so hot and loud, and not a very comfortable stroller that she woke up.  I tried to prop her head up with clothes but it got wedged between the plastic back and the bar.  She woke up saying she had a headache.  Poor baby.

In the U.S. section they had a performance with the musicians in full colonial dress.  It was really neat!

I think that was what woke Boo up because it got really loud when they passed us.

We walked a little ways and Bug saw the Beast standing there signing autographs.  She got all excited and asked it we could get his autograph for her book so we stood in the hot sun and waited in line.  Thankfully it wasn’t too long of wait or I would have been really frustrated when both the girls freaked out when it was our turn.

We tried a second time for a picture, with the Beast standing far behind us, but that didn’t work for Boo.  Aunt Karen was the farthest person away from him so she started crying for her.  Too funny.

After that we continued to make the rounds.  I must have been tired of taking pictures because I don’t have any from Japan, Morocco, France, or the UK.  Here are Karen and the girls in front of the Canadian gardens.

Oh wait, I just remembered why I don’t have pictures from those countries…I do, but they are pictures of the topiaries displayed there.

Our trip just happened to coincide with the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival.  Starting in mid-March they have these beautiful topiaries (over 100!) all over the park!  They were all so neat!  I couldn’t believe how much work must have gone into them, and then they only last about six weeks!  I was glad we got to enjoy them.

There’s France in the background.

Prince Phillip and Aurora in the UK.

Boo was desperately trying to tell/ask us something when we saw the Pooh topiaries and no one could figure out what it was.  I finally pieced it together after she kept talking for awhile. 

Boo: “Grow bigger!” she was insisting, and then she finally said, “Pooh have baby sister!”

Me: “Where?”

Boo: “In tummy.”

Me: “What do you mean?” 

Boo: “Pooh have baby sister in tummy.  Tummy big like Mommy!” 

Me: “Ohhh, ok.”  Hahaha :)

Cinderella and Prince Charming.

Canada was the last country in the loop and then we headed back to the cool of the buildings.  We went in “The Lands” which had a really neat boat ride that took you through the ins and outs of agriculture in our country.

The Imagination Pavilion was our next stop and they had all sorts of fun, interactive displays for kids.  We somehow went in backwards and didn’t do the ride but the girls loved running around doing all the activities.  These floor mats represented different instruments and when you hopped on a lit up one it made the sound of the instrument. 

This picture is for baby…we’ll show her one day that she got to go to Disney World, but I’m guessing she won’t buy it. :)

Epcot was quite an experience and we didn’t see the half of it!  Nevertheless we had a great time! 

Pictures from the girls’ highlight of our trip: our Princess lunch, up next.

Day 6–Disney World!

On Tuesday we let the girls sleep in, ate breakfast, checked out of our hotel and went across the street to Target.  I’d packed 12 outfits for the girls, reasoning that I rarely have to change them in the day at home so three extra outfits would be plenty. 

Later I realized that if Boo gets really dirty at home I usually just leave her in the outfit until bedtime anyway.  But on vacation I didn’t really like the idea of photographing her doing new things with a smear of food down the front of her shirt (even with bibs this kid manages to get messy).  I had looked through the suitcase and realized that she didn’t have enough outfits to make it to the end of the trip so we let her pick out four outfits…and yes she ended up wearing them all by the end of our trip! 

After Target we got in the car once more and made the two hour drive to Disney!

We got there around lunchtime and right away experienced some of the “Disney magic”.  We had two rooms, one for us and one for Noni and Aunt Karen who were soon to join us.  First I should explain that this “hotel” was more like ten hotels in one.  We were in the All Star Resorts.  There are three resorts within that.  All Star Sports, All Star Music, and All Star Movies (where we were), and each one has ten areas (as big as a normal hotel) in it. 

When we got there the had us in a room right next to the Lobby (which was so nice!) and Noni and Aunt Karen in one of the very back ones, which was several minutes away by car!  The sweet lady at the front desk worked some Disney magic and got us adjoining rooms right near the Lobby, which was also home to the gift shop (as big as a store) and food court (with four restaurants) and right in between two of the pools.

They also gave the girls balloons, autograph books and pens (which we later realized you could buy in the gift shop for almost $20) and a flower for me.  Everyone was SO nice.  They really do treat you like you are an honored guest.

We went and checked into our room, and everything was so cute.  Bug was so excited she did her air guitar.  Haha:)

We put our stuff down and headed back to the food court.  If you ever go to Disney World I would highly recommend the food plan.  It was AMAZING!  Food is definitely a huge part of the whole experience there.  For the “quick service” (meaning the food court type areas-no reservations) you got to have a meal with a drink and dessert.  I got chicken penne alfreado and it was a huge plate of noodles and chicken along with a breadstick and small salad.  The girls and I shared it and I was still full!  They chose Mickey Mouse shaped rice crispy treats for dessert!

On top of your drink, which could be a bottled soda, water, juice, milk, etc. you get refillable mugs with your stay.  Here’s K with her pink mug.  Then at all resorts’ food courts you can refill your mug for free.  It was an impressive deal!

Bug thought so too. :)

Noni and Aunt Karen were arriving at the Orlando airport within 45 min. of each other and since we didn’t have enough room in our rental car they took the shuttle over to the resort. 

We let the girls have a good long nap while we were waiting for them to arrive.

We were joking that our reinforcements were arriving.  We love our kiddos to death, but vacationing with kids is anything but relaxing!  It was soooo nice to have Noni and Aunt Karen arrive mid-trip to help out.

After a nice refreshing nap (for me too) and letting them settle in a bit, we headed out.

We were in the 101 Dalmatians section (again, think 10 hotels in one).

And right next to the Mighty Ducks section (each section has it’s own parking lot).

Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom were the two closest parks to our resort so we made reservations at a restaurant in Hollywood Studios for dinner.

Mom started taking pictures of our adventures right away. The tram – which the girls thought was a fun ride. :)

Our first park! Everything is so fun and larger-than-life!  That hat at the end of the street is huge in person.

Noni carrying Boo down the street. :)

One thing we were surprised at was how early everything closed. We were definitely not on Florida time when we got to Disney but we were by the time we left.  We had anticipated just letting the girls stay up “late” by FL time but stuff closed so early we had to move their little clocks.  I think it was only 7 when we got here but almost all of the shows were over for the day.

We walked around enjoying the sights.  When you come around one corner you are met with a full on replica of the New York streets!  It was really impressive with sound effects and everything!

And down another street was San Francisco.

We meandered over to find the restaurant where we had dinner reservations and there was a lake in front of it with a big dinosaur.  The girls wanted a picture with it and Aunt Karen but I don’t think you can see it very well.

We chose to eat at the 50’s Prime Time Café and when you walk in it was like walking into the 50’s.  The decorations, workers’ clothes and attitudes – everything.  It was really fun! 

They had old shows on the TV’s like “I Love Lucy” and “The Andy Griffith Show”. 

They acted like you’d just come down to the local diner and our hostess said, “Cousin Amanda will be over to take your order in just a minute, kids.”

Of course the menu was all in keeping with the theme as well.  T ordered Mom’s meatloaf.  There was fried chicken, pot roast, mashed potatoes and gravy, etc.  The two “rules” were keep your elbows off the table (I actually heard the waitress reprimand someone at the next table) and eat your vegetables. 

Cousin Amanda was heckling T about eating his, “You saving those veggies for last since they’re your favorite?” and after she said something two different times he finally gave his fresh green beans to Karen and mom.  When she came back the next time she said, “Oh good, you finally got your veggies down.”  So funny.

Bug just wanted a hotdog and it came on Mickey shaped plate which she loved.

Once again we were impressed with our dining plan. I had apple cobbler for dessert.  So good.  Boo thought so too.  What a fun place!

We didn’t get done eating till about 9 and that’s when the park closed so we headed back for bed.  It was so nice to have Aunt Karen and mom there to help get the girls ready for bed so we could have a little break. 

And it was so so nice to have adjoining rooms!  We put the girls down in our room and then hung out in mom and Karen’s room until we were all ready for bed.

After Hollywood Studios we realized that each park is huge and if you don’t have an idea of where you are going and what you are doing you will spend half your day wandering around looking for stuff, so we spent each evening planning a route and circling what we wanted to do on the park maps for the next day. 

I think you could literally spend a month at Disney and not see every show and display they had.  We were there four days and probably saw a mere fraction of what they have to offer! 

Next up: Epcot!

Day 5–Gainesville

After our busy weekend we decided we needed an easy day.  We slept late and decided to take the “scenic” route to Gainesville so that we would only have a 2 hour drive to Disney the next morning. 

Looking at the map this highway takes you right along the coast so we figured we’d have a great view of the ocean.  And we would have.  If Southerners didn’t like their trees quite so much. :) We did see a little bit of the ocean, but I’d say this was our view for 90% of the journey.  Trees, trees, and more trees!  The ocean is probably less than 50-100 feet to the right, but you wouldn’t even know it!  We drove almost all day through a tunnel of trees. :P

We made several pit stops for snacks.  One lady said, “Your girls are so cute!” and then a minute later, “Oh they are wearing Seminoles shirts!  Now they are even cuter!”  Haha :)

Once again the girls did great in the car!  We listened to our G.T. and the Halo Express, and Odyssey cds. They also did a lot of coloring, looking at books, and playing with some of the toys we brought.

They took their naps in the car so when we got to the hotel we promised them that we could go swimming.  They got changed right away and I was getting our swimsuits out when I noticed they’d both climbed up on a bench in front of the mirror.

They started dancing and singing while admiring themselves.  It was too funny. :)

We had a fun time at the pool and then we went back to our room, had baths and ordered pizza.  Daddy found a baseball game on TV and the girls sat there and watched while they ate.

It was a nice, relaxing day after being on the go, and just what we needed to gear up for Disney the next morning.  Pictures from that up next!

Day 4–Boat Ride

After our fun afternoon at Gulf World we made drive to Aunt J and Uncle K’s house.  They live right on a bayou and have a boat so they offered to take us for a ride.  Boo hadn’t had a nap yet so she fell asleep on the ride over and even stayed asleep once we got there.  We let her get about an hour before we woke her up to go on the boat. Uncle K sat outside with her while she slept in the car so we could have a tour of the house, so sweet.

Not only did we get to see dolphins at Gulf World but we got to see some in the “wild” right in front of their house!  

The girls had a great time looking into the water trying to find dolphins.

It was warm and we enjoyed the ride around looking at all the different houses and businesses.

Aunt J let Boo help her steer. :)

And Uncle K actually taught Bug how to drive!  He let her steer all by herself and was so patient with her even when we were going really far to the right, then really far to the left, back and forth, back and forth.  The other boats probably wondered what we were doing. :) She loved it though and one of the first things she told Noni was that Uncle K taught her how to drive a boat!

I think we saw about four dolphins, although it could have been the same two multiple times.

I had to take a few pictures but I actually managed to get them a couple of times.

How fun! 

We went back to the house and the girls played with Lizzie, their Great Dane.  She is such a sweet dog and was really good with the girls!  She likes to chase a light from a laser pointer and the girls thought that was great.

Uncle K and Aunt J made us a delicious dinner of grilled steaks, mashed potatoes and gravy, salad, vegetables, and french bread.  It was really good, and nice to have a home cooked meal amidst all our eating out on the trip.

Then Uncle K brought out the big guns, ice cream sundaes!  The girls thought he was the best ever!  He even had sprinkles and chocolate syrup, and he introduced them to whipped cream in a can.  They thought it was hilarious when he sprayed it into their mouths. 

We had a wonderful time and enjoyed finally seeing their home.  I wanted to grab a picture on the way out and Boo insisted, for some reason, that we take the picture in front of the oven.  She liked it.  Maybe because it’s black and shiny??  No idea, but we accommodated her. You can see how happy she is. :)

Thanks so much for a wonderful weekend Aunt J and Uncle K!  We had a great time!!!