Parades, Princesses and Palaces OH MY!

Still day two at Disney. As soon as we make it through the ticket gate(Key to the World a whole 'nother post)we walk into a Parade. YES!!! This is why I love Disney. Move it, shake it, celebrate it parade. It felt like the whole park were welcoming OUR arrival.

We took a few photos including some photo pass shots(another post)...

and guess who we ran into.... Granddaddy!!!

No seriously we knew he was coming. He met us at Midway airport for our change of planes. He found a nice adult hotel to stay in off property and spent half his time with us and half his time enjoying the Dis in his own way. We rode some rides. Barnstormer was a hit, but hold on to your hat...and your toddler! I had planed to get so many yummy snacks but as hot as it was all we wanted was water and fruit bars. and then it was time for a nap. After our break and a change into Royal attire we made it back to MK in time to do a few more things including hit up Bibbidy Bobbidy Boutique and then it was time for dinner at the palace.

This experience and planning may need it's very own blog post. We met many, many princesses and had a meal fit for...royalty.

Our dinner was over as the clock struck to signal the Wishes fireworks show...it was magical. As we walked out the castle we saw the droves and droves of people who had been camping out for the last few hours waiting on the fireworks show. Here we are making our way down the palace steps and under the rope...we can't go any further. Oh well. I guess we'll just have to stay put here at the front of the castle until the fireworks are over. Sorry camper-outers. We win!! Front row for Wishes fireworks. I'm kidding. I honestly had no idea it would work out that way. Again I felt a sense of great grace and thankfulness because our experience was so special...it was Awesome...Magical even.

Day II Monorail to Magic Kingdom

We started our day at Chef Mickey's. It was So much fun! Watching the kids meet the characters, seeing the look on their faces...it was truly a dream come true.

My son had to go to the bathroom and was scared he was going to miss Pluto, of all characters...

...he made it right on time. Hubby even got a picture of me... 'caught in the magic'.

The food was great.

I only wish I'd have eaten more but with all the excitement...who can eat? I guess next trip I'll be calmer and ready to throw down...lol. I had no complaints(not even that one waitress(another story) could spoil my mood). I almost made a fuss about our table, until....

I realized we had a view of the castle at MK. After breakfast we took the monorail to Magic Kingdom. What a fun ride. Stay tuned to our day at MK...

Finding Nemo Family suite

Our accommodations: Lovely. The sofa pulls out to a queen bed fit for our three little queens. The table converts into a full size bed that the boys shared.

Then of course there's the master... ...cute, right. Two bathrooms... There's a mini fridge, microwave and a coffee maker in the 'living area' as well. Best part about this part of the resort tho??? The Finding Nemo play & swim.

Day 1 Downtown Disney

We checked in early and headed straight to the Downtown Disney area. Once there we shopped and saw some sights. My favorite store? World of Disney, of course. They had everything!! We had lunch reservations for T-Rex... Yum. For those of you that don't know... T_Rex is the sister restaurant of Rain Forest Café. All dinosaur themed with a similar menu. The kids(all except our toddler) loved it. We were stuffed. The restaurant is an experience all by itself. After our late lunch we were surprised with a Florida rain storm so we headed over to Goofy's Candy CO. And back to our suite....did I mention we were staying in a Finding Nemo 😄 Family suite? Stay tuned for a photo tour....

To Art of Animation please...

Once in Orlando we head for the Disney Magical Express transportation which took us to our hotel. I must say the Magical Express transportation service was exceptional. Clean, cool, friendly, helpful, informative. There were nice flat screen TV's on board the Coach style buses that played informative Disney vacation videos...great for people without a plan. We have a PLAN.

Traveling to Orlando

August 5th finally arrived. We were ready. After all the planning, praying and preping...it was here. WE'RE GOING TO DISNEY WORLD! I watched three weekly forecasts.

We made it to the airport with all five kiddos in tow and ready to go. No meltdowns. Eleven pieces of luggage, thank Southwest Airlines for Bags flying free. Our check in was probably ten minutes...the airport seemed empty. Our nine year old, was in charge of the snack carry-on. Eight bags checked. Seven bodies. Six tickets. Five hours of flight time. Four electronics to keep the kids busy...our three year old slept the whole way. Two laps for our one year old. He was back and forth. Takeoff....I'm pushed into the cushion of the seat, praying for safe travels and fun times for the kids. I feel so blessed.