Figment78
05-04-2009, 02:28 PM
Day 3 – March 26 – Early Magic Hours at MK & Animal Kingdom
Cast:
Me – Disney fanatic
DH – Disney fan
DS, 1 – Disney fan-in-training
Night #2 in the hotel room did not go as smoothly for DS as the first night did. Although he never, I mean, never sleeps in our bed at home, that is where he ended up in WDW! Oh well, we had decided to just roll with it. As long as everyone was happy and healthy and having fun, that was what was important. But as a result of being inexperienced co-sleepers, we were hesitant to get up before he did, leaving one side of the bed open for him to roll out of. So we got a bit of a later start than we wanted to, but still made it to MK by 8:30.
Side note: “Before baby” I used to say that the only thing I willingly get up early for is WDW. But that used to mean be at the parks at 9…ish, munching on a granola bar and coffee en route. They say a baby changes everything. Me up before 7 on vacation definitely falls under “everything.”
Back to our magical magic kingdom morning. We headed straight for Dumbo, as advised by those more experienced than us. 30 minute wait. Leaving our stroller in the care of the stroller-parking lot gods, we tentatively stepped into line, unsure of how DS would handle being held for that long. 30 minutes and 15 passes back and forth later, DH, DS and I are about to ride. I hang back and snap a quick photo of the two of them in the actual elephant. That is one for the photo albums for sure. It was a first ride for all of us and nothing more precious than hearing my son giggle as we went up and down and around all above fantasyland.
After Dumbo we hit a few more fantasyland rides – the carousel and It’s a Small World – and then decided to try the Haunted Mansion. I got fastpasses for Winnie the Pooh and DH changed the baby. We figured that the dark Haunted Mansion might calm him down the way that Nemo did yesterday, so we wanted to be prepared. DS was pretty indifferent on the ride, and was not nap-ready afterwards! Since the MK is so loud, we headed down mainstreet towards the photo place by Tony’s to try to nap him in the stroller. I love that spot – DH and I discovered it on our honeymoon when we were trying to escape the heat. Good thing too, b/c the Move It Shake It, Celebrate it street party was just starting up and that is a loud event!
Hungry and thirsty for a snack, I went off in search of a soft pretzel for me and DH. For some reason, I had thought they sold pretzels somewhere around the hub, but I guess I was wrong – just popcorn and ice cream. When waiting for Dumbo, I thought I saw a stand selling pretzels back by Ariel’s Grotto. Having always been a pre-teen or older for my past trips to Disney, I had never actually been on “the other side of Dumbo.” Anyhow, I ended up walking all the way from the beginning of Main St to the top of Fantasyland – roundtrip – just to find a pretzel. You’d think I would have learned, but this became a habit for the rest of our trip! Exhausted, I returned to find DS asleep in the stroller. When he woke, we played around the cinema a little and then headed towards the Baby center for a diaper change and lunch.
I LOVE the baby centers. It was so nice to have a place to go to feed my son out of the way, with a microwave to heat his food, a high chair for him to sit comfortably in like at home and even a tv with the disney channel. Brilliant idea – whoever came up with this park attribute! Even at lunch time, there were only one or two other babies/children there eating. Definitely a nice break from the crowds for a toddler.
After lunch we wanted to use our Winnie the Pooh fastpasses and catch Philharmagic also. On the way, we stopped to enjoy the Move It Shake It Celebrate It party which I had raved about to my DH after my pretzel run. DS just loved seeing his favorite characters so up close and since he loves music, he was very into the whole thing. I would have never thought of Metro Station’s Shake It as a Disney song, but now I can’t hear it on the radio without remembering our trip.
We made it back to the hotel in time for DS’s second nap and DH and I sat on the balcony discussing our plans for the evening. We planned to go to AK to catch the parade and the Lion King show before our dinner ressies at Rainforest Café.
When we finally made it to AK, we had missed the parade but didn’t want to go in for the Lion King show too early. After all, why make a toddler sit still longer than the already long show? So we wandered over to Camp Minnie Mickey and had another Mickey Mouse encounter. Much less shy than yesterday, DS walked right up to Mickey. So far, no character fears! And all adorable pics. (Which reminds me I have to order photo pass pictures!) Anyhow, I really like the way they have the character meets set up in Camp Minnie Mickey. We will definitely return there next spring. We may skip the Lion King show though. Although DS did well, it was LOUD. Much louder than I remember. But I do love that show. It’s an amazing production.
Rainforest Café was pretty cool. I must say that I wasn’t thrilled with my dinner and it didn’t sit too well with me later. But DS did love the gift shop and picked out a new sippy cup and some snow globe magnets! The rest of our night was uneventful. My stomach ended up recovering enough for DH and I to share a brownie from Roaring Forks while watching a movie on our DVD player that night.
Tomorrow – off to Hollywood Studios & DS’s first swimming pool experience!
Cast:
Me – Disney fanatic
DH – Disney fan
DS, 1 – Disney fan-in-training
Night #2 in the hotel room did not go as smoothly for DS as the first night did. Although he never, I mean, never sleeps in our bed at home, that is where he ended up in WDW! Oh well, we had decided to just roll with it. As long as everyone was happy and healthy and having fun, that was what was important. But as a result of being inexperienced co-sleepers, we were hesitant to get up before he did, leaving one side of the bed open for him to roll out of. So we got a bit of a later start than we wanted to, but still made it to MK by 8:30.
Side note: “Before baby” I used to say that the only thing I willingly get up early for is WDW. But that used to mean be at the parks at 9…ish, munching on a granola bar and coffee en route. They say a baby changes everything. Me up before 7 on vacation definitely falls under “everything.”
Back to our magical magic kingdom morning. We headed straight for Dumbo, as advised by those more experienced than us. 30 minute wait. Leaving our stroller in the care of the stroller-parking lot gods, we tentatively stepped into line, unsure of how DS would handle being held for that long. 30 minutes and 15 passes back and forth later, DH, DS and I are about to ride. I hang back and snap a quick photo of the two of them in the actual elephant. That is one for the photo albums for sure. It was a first ride for all of us and nothing more precious than hearing my son giggle as we went up and down and around all above fantasyland.
After Dumbo we hit a few more fantasyland rides – the carousel and It’s a Small World – and then decided to try the Haunted Mansion. I got fastpasses for Winnie the Pooh and DH changed the baby. We figured that the dark Haunted Mansion might calm him down the way that Nemo did yesterday, so we wanted to be prepared. DS was pretty indifferent on the ride, and was not nap-ready afterwards! Since the MK is so loud, we headed down mainstreet towards the photo place by Tony’s to try to nap him in the stroller. I love that spot – DH and I discovered it on our honeymoon when we were trying to escape the heat. Good thing too, b/c the Move It Shake It, Celebrate it street party was just starting up and that is a loud event!
Hungry and thirsty for a snack, I went off in search of a soft pretzel for me and DH. For some reason, I had thought they sold pretzels somewhere around the hub, but I guess I was wrong – just popcorn and ice cream. When waiting for Dumbo, I thought I saw a stand selling pretzels back by Ariel’s Grotto. Having always been a pre-teen or older for my past trips to Disney, I had never actually been on “the other side of Dumbo.” Anyhow, I ended up walking all the way from the beginning of Main St to the top of Fantasyland – roundtrip – just to find a pretzel. You’d think I would have learned, but this became a habit for the rest of our trip! Exhausted, I returned to find DS asleep in the stroller. When he woke, we played around the cinema a little and then headed towards the Baby center for a diaper change and lunch.
I LOVE the baby centers. It was so nice to have a place to go to feed my son out of the way, with a microwave to heat his food, a high chair for him to sit comfortably in like at home and even a tv with the disney channel. Brilliant idea – whoever came up with this park attribute! Even at lunch time, there were only one or two other babies/children there eating. Definitely a nice break from the crowds for a toddler.
After lunch we wanted to use our Winnie the Pooh fastpasses and catch Philharmagic also. On the way, we stopped to enjoy the Move It Shake It Celebrate It party which I had raved about to my DH after my pretzel run. DS just loved seeing his favorite characters so up close and since he loves music, he was very into the whole thing. I would have never thought of Metro Station’s Shake It as a Disney song, but now I can’t hear it on the radio without remembering our trip.
We made it back to the hotel in time for DS’s second nap and DH and I sat on the balcony discussing our plans for the evening. We planned to go to AK to catch the parade and the Lion King show before our dinner ressies at Rainforest Café.
When we finally made it to AK, we had missed the parade but didn’t want to go in for the Lion King show too early. After all, why make a toddler sit still longer than the already long show? So we wandered over to Camp Minnie Mickey and had another Mickey Mouse encounter. Much less shy than yesterday, DS walked right up to Mickey. So far, no character fears! And all adorable pics. (Which reminds me I have to order photo pass pictures!) Anyhow, I really like the way they have the character meets set up in Camp Minnie Mickey. We will definitely return there next spring. We may skip the Lion King show though. Although DS did well, it was LOUD. Much louder than I remember. But I do love that show. It’s an amazing production.
Rainforest Café was pretty cool. I must say that I wasn’t thrilled with my dinner and it didn’t sit too well with me later. But DS did love the gift shop and picked out a new sippy cup and some snow globe magnets! The rest of our night was uneventful. My stomach ended up recovering enough for DH and I to share a brownie from Roaring Forks while watching a movie on our DVD player that night.
Tomorrow – off to Hollywood Studios & DS’s first swimming pool experience!