A Day in the life...: Happiest Place on Earth

On our drive home yesterday Jack comments:

"Mom. When can we move to Disney World?"

I guess that about sums up Jack's experience this past week. He wants to move to Disney. Sorry bud- doesn't work like that.

If I were to pick a line to sum up Riley's experience it would be, without a doubt:

"Is it over yet?"

On everysinglefreakingride Riley spoke those words. Wether she was enjoying it or terrified she asked the same question. And believe me- there were moments of shear joy for her and moments of extreme terror.

Bless her heart- she was a trooper all week. She experienced it all at Disney: singing with Mickey Mouse, speeding down a hill on Splash Mountain, meeting Cinderella, Soarin' over the ocean, boating down the "Nile River", watching Poppy do the Hoop-De-Doo on stage, eating in 'Italy', playing with Buzz Light Year and much more.

She refused to go near any characters, which did not surprise me in the least. She runs from all mascots. I didn't book any character meals because I knew she would not want them near her while she ate. We did manage to squeeze a 'forced' picture of her with Mickey and Minnie but that was it.

Jack showed me what a brave kid he's turning into. I figured he'd ride the smaller roller coasters, which he did. But he also road Thunder Mountain, Splash Mountain, Test Track, Mission Space and The Tower of Terror; all of which have some frightening moments. He attempted to ride Space Mountain but once we found out it was one person to a seat and the seats were single file he chickened out. It was totally fine with me. His 42 lb body did not need to be thrown about in the darkness. I am definitely proud of him for trying though.

Unlike his sister, Jack loved the characters. He waited in a few lines to meet them and have his pic taken by yours truly.

One of the funniest moments was during the Monsters Inc. Laughter Show. During the show the cartoon characters placed a spotlight on various people and asked them questions. Before you know it a light was shining brightly on Jack and Todd. The Monster asked Jack: "Where are you from?" He answered: "Columbia."

He seems to have forgotten that he was BORN in Columbia and lives in Charlotte (well- near Charlotte). It was too funny.

Besides the heat and everything being ridiculously overpriced I have no complaints. We had a great time- but sure are glad to be home.

It's impossible to document every moment but I am going to do my best. One day, when our children are grown and thinking about taking their own children to Disney, they can pull up this blog and share their own experiences.

Our hotel: The Polynesian

Day One: Click Here

Day Two: Epcot

Probably my favorite ride: Soarin'. We loved it so much we went back to ride it one more time the day we drove home. Riley even liked it!

Trying to stay cool in the stroller. It was blazin'.

Possibly Jack's favorite ride: Test Track. I didn't get to ride it because I stayed back with Ri.

Instead we waited inside for everyone to get off the ride.

Another pretty cool ride at Epcot, Universe of Energy. We actually learned a little on this ride. I was surprised at how much one can really learn from many of the rides in Epcot. It was my favorite of the parks, for sure.

We ate lunch in 'Italy.' It was delicious!

That night we boated over to Ft. Wilderness for a dinner show: The Hoop-Dee-Doo Review.

Poppy was pulled onstage and gave all of us a great giggle. (What you don't see is Poppy wearing a fairy costume. I was able to capture that part on video. Here he is getting his award!)

Day Three: Magic Kingdom

Breakfast with Cinderella

Ri was able to meet all the princesses.

This is where we lost Riley- well- not really LOST her, but after she survived Splash Mountain she would not ride on any more roller coasters .

I remember Splash Mountain from when I was a kid. What a great ride!

We rode many rides in Magic Kingdom. I particularly like this boat ride where they take you along all the major rivers of the world. Our boat captain was hilarious and the 'animals' actually looked real.

Day Four: Hollywood Studios

The one and only ride we had to wait more than 15 minutes for the entire week was Toy Story Mania. The fast passes were all gone so we ended up waiting about an hour. Not sure it was worth it- but now we can all say we rode it- even Riley.

Here's Scoop being dramatic. This was just the morning after being scared out of her mind on Splash Mountain. She cried at the beginning of our wait for Toy Story Mania. By the time we actually rode the ride she was good to go.

Spending a little time at the Honey, I Shrunk the Kids playground.

While the boys rode Tower of Terror the girls saw Playhouse Disney Live. Ri LOVED it.

We never saw the parade at Magic Kingdom but we did see the one at Hollywood Studios. It was cute.

Photo Op

We saw a couple of stunt shows, Indiana Jones and the Extreme Stunt Show. I don't think I'd recommend the Indiana Jones one to anyone- but the Extreme Stunt Show rocked.