We decided to take advantage of free admission to Disney for kid's under 3 by taking a trip with the family to Disney World in Florida at the end of February with Mimi and Papa (right before Emily's 3rd birthday). We made a similar trip with Kara right before her 3rd birthday (Blog post of Kara's first visit to Disney). To get the girls in the Disney mood, Mom set up an awesome scavenger hunt (see the video below) on Valentines Day. That day was exactly two weeks before our flight to Disney World. Mom and Dad figured that was plenty of time for the girls to get excited about the trip but not so much time that the girls would pester us with questions about how much longer until our vacation for too long. It worked perfectly as Mom and Kara were able to scout out some of the rides and watch some Disney videos to get prepared and Emily had time to get used to the idea of meeting characters.
Sleeping was a bit of an issue for the first several nights. It was the first time we'd all shared a single hotel room and the first time we'd traveled with the girls since last summer. It seems Emily likes to talk to herself a bit before she goes to sleep. The first few nights, our bedtime process was a cycle of Emily talking a bit, Kara telling her to be quiet and go to sleep, Mom and Dad telling Kara to leave Emily alone, Emily then talking to Mom and Dad, Kara getting annoyed, and so on. Plus, Emily kept waking up every so often and getting up to check if everyone was still there (and waking everyone up in the process), but we got it figured out after the first few nights (thankfully!).
We signed up for a Disney Photo Pass, which was great since we got some good group shots. Emily was a little camera shy at the beginning of the trip, but she warmed up toward the end. We picked out the best for the trip photo album, but here's a link to all the photo pass pictures.
It was quite an eventful trip. Even though we didn't go into a Disney park every day, the trip seemed to fly by and we were always busy!
We hit Kennedy Space Center near Cape Canaveral our first day. It was a favorite visiting place while we were temporarily living in Florida. Kara enjoyed checking out the Rocket Garden, the play area, and the Space Shuttle exhibit. The girls also got to meet Robonaut, which was awesome. Robonaut is a humanoid robot (his twin is currently on the International Space Station, ISS) that you can interact and talk with. By the end, Emily was exhausted and a little cranky (since we'd stayed through her naptime and she didn't sleep too well the night before).
The rest of the trip was taken up with Disney. We hit all four parks (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom, Disney Hollywood Studios) plus Disney Springs (formerly known as Downtown Disney). It was a whirlwind trip. We did a couple of character breakfasts: Chef Mickey's at the Contemporary with Mickey Mouse, Donald, Goofy, Pluto, and Minnie and Cinderella's Royal Table, which is a restaurant in Cinderella's Castle with Cinderella (of course), Ariel, Jasmine, Snow White, and Aurora (Sleeping Beauty).
Kara enjoyed doing all the thrill rides. Her favorites were Tower of Terror, Test Track, Big Thunder Mountain, Splash Mountain, Star Tours (a ride with C3PO as a guide on a tour gone very wrong, which Kara, Dad, and Mimi ended up doing Star Tours 4 times in a row since the line was almost non-existent and the ride is a little different every time), Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Astro Orbiter. Kara also really enjoyed Spaceship Earth, though she said she was disappointed that it wasn't a real spaceship. Mom and Dad were a little concerned that Kara would be scared on Tower of Terror, but she said it wasn't nearly as scary as the Haunted Mansion ride.
Emily was a little small for the big rides but really enjoyed meeting the characters. Her favorites were Goofy, Baymax (who she calls the puffy robot), and Tinkerbell. Emily was just in awe of Tinkerbell and just thought she was the coolest person ever. Emily also really enjoyed Frozen Sing-A-Long. Emily did enjoy some of the rides like Winnie the Pooh's Adventure, Dumbo, it's a small world, and Prince Charming Regal Carrousel.
Unfortunately, Emily started to get a sniffle on the last night, so she didn't sleep well, which made for a very unpleasant travel day. But we all made it home safe and sound. I think the girls are ready for their next Disney adventure!
We decided to take advantage of free admission to Disney for kid's under 3 by taking a trip with the family to Disney World in Florida at the end of February with Mimi and Papa (right before Emily's 3rd birthday). We made a similar trip with Kara right before her 3rd birthday (Blog post of Kara's first visit to Disney). To get the girls in the Disney mood, Mom set up an awesome scavenger hunt (see the video below) on Valentines Day. That day was exactly two weeks before our flight to Disney World. Mom and Dad figured that was plenty of time for the girls to get excited about the trip but not so much time that the girls would pester us with questions about how much longer until our vacation for too long. It worked perfectly as Mom and Kara were able to scout out some of the rides and watch some Disney videos to get prepared and Emily had time to get used to the idea of meeting characters.
Sleeping was a bit of an issue for the first several nights. It was the first time we'd all shared a single hotel room and the first time we'd traveled with the girls since last summer. It seems Emily likes to talk to herself a bit before she goes to sleep. The first few nights, our bedtime process was a cycle of Emily talking a bit, Kara telling her to be quiet and go to sleep, Mom and Dad telling Kara to leave Emily alone, Emily then talking to Mom and Dad, Kara getting annoyed, and so on. Plus, Emily kept waking up every so often and getting up to check if everyone was still there (and waking everyone up in the process), but we got it figured out after the first few nights (thankfully!).
We signed up for a Disney Photo Pass, which was great since we got some good group shots. Emily was a little camera shy at the beginning of the trip, but she warmed up toward the end. We picked out the best for the trip photo album, but here's a link to all the photo pass pictures.
It was quite an eventful trip. Even though we didn't go into a Disney park every day, the trip seemed to fly by and we were always busy!
Day 1: Kennedy Space Center
The morning after we flew in, we headed straight to Kennedy Space Center near Cape Canaveral. It was a favorite visiting place while we were temporarily living in Florida. Kara enjoyed checking out the Rocket Garden, the play area, and the Space Shuttle exhibit. The girls also got to meet Robonaut, which was awesome. Robonaut is a humanoid robot (his twin is currently on the International Space Station, ISS) that you can interact and talk with. By the end, Emily was exhausted and a little cranky (since we'd stayed through her naptime and she didn't sleep too well the night before).
Day 2: No park day
We took our second day relatively easy without a park visit. We started off the day with a character breakfast at Chef Mickey's in the Contemporary hotel at 9:30. We got to meet Mickey Mouse, Donald, Goofy, Pluto, and Minnie. Mom and Dad were slightly concerned that Emily would be afraid of the costume characters, but she seemed to warm up to them quite well. After breakfast, we did a little shopping at the Contemporary hotel and then took it easy back at our hotel, Shades of Green. That night, we had a fancy dinner at Sanaa in the Animal Kingdom Lodge. They have African animals (like giraffes, wildebeests, and other exotic animals) wandering around the grounds. The girls had a good time checking out the animals before dinner.
Day 3: Magic Kingdom
On day 3 we finally made it to the Magic Kingdom. Mom made reservations at Cinderella's Royal Table (which is a resaurant in Cinderella's Castle) to meet all the Disney princesses. We got to meet Cinderella (of course), Ariel, Jasmine, Snow White, and Aurora (Sleeping Beauty). The upside to having breakfast at the castle with the princesses (other than eating in the castle with the princesses) is that we get into the park before it officially opens. We headed straight for Fantasyland and got to check out some of the kid-friendly rides there (Winnie the Pooh's Adventure, Dumbo, it's a small world). After lunch we headed back to the hotel for a little break. After a quick nap for Emily (and a little quiet time for Kara), we headed back to Magic Kingdom. Our second time around, we checked out the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, which is a very popular new attraction. It was a fun roller coaster. Kara loved it! We also checked out Mickey's Electric Parade, which both girls enjoyed. After that, Dad and Papa headed back to the hotel with Emily while Mimi, Mom, and Kara hit the Haunted Mansion and the nighttime fireworks show.
Day 4: Animal Kingdom/Disney Hollywood Studios
The next day took us to the Animal Kingdom. As soon as we got into the park, we headed straight to the Wild Africa Trek safari, which always a cool ride to check out. The morning just flew by, and after only a couple of shows, it was time for Emily to head back for naptime. Kara stayed at the park with Mom and Mimi before they all headed over to Disney Hollywood Studios.
Once Emily woke up from her nap, Dad and Papa headed back out with Emily to meet with Kara, Mom, and Mimi. We first checked out the Muppet show, which both girls thought was awesome. Dad, Kara, and Mimi then headed to Star Tours (a ride with C3PO as a guide on a tour gone very wrong), while Papa, Mom, and Emily headed over to the Frozen Sing-A-Long. Papa, Mom, and Emily missed their FassPass window, so Kara, Dad, and Mimi ended up doing Star Tours 4 times in a row (the line was almost non-existent and the ride is a little different every time). We stayed late at the park that night to check out the Fantasmic show.
Day 5: Disney Springs
After two days in a row at the parks, we decided to take it easy and headed to Disney Springs (previously known as Downtown Disney). We poked around the shops for a couple hours and then grabbed lunch at the T-Rex restaurant.
After a nap and a leisurely afternoon at the hotel, we headed over to the Polynesian hotel to grab some dinner at 'Ohana.
Day 6: Epcot
We next headed to Epcot. Unfortunately, Mimi started to feel kind of under the weather as we walked to catch the monorail. She was a trooper and toughed it out, though. We only stayed in the Future World portion of Epcot and hit some of the big rides (Misson:Space, The Seas, Journey into Imagination, Spaceship Earth). Kara really enjoyed Spaceship Earth, though she said she was disappointed that it wasn't a real spaceship. After a quick lunch, Mom and Dad headed back to the hotel with Kara and Emily while Mimi and Papa enjoyed an afternoon touring the World Showcase at Epcot.
Day 7: Magic Kingdom
Our final day at Disney found us at the Magic Kingdom. Fortunately, we were able to get to the gate in time for rope drop, so we were able to hit some rides early in the morning (Space Mountain and Big Thunder Moutain). We also took some time out to visit with characters. Both girls met up with Chip and Dale, and Emily met up with Tinkerbell. Emily was just in awe of Tinkerbell and just thought she was the coolest person ever. Overall, Kara enjoyed doing all the thrill rides (her favorites were Tower of Terror, Test Track, Big Thunder Mountain, Splash Mountain, Star Tours, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Astro Orbiter) while Emily was a little small for the big rides but really enjoyed meeting the characters (her favorites were Goofy, Baymax, who she calls the puffy robot, and Tinkerbell).
Mom and Dad spent the afternoon in the parks while the girls stayed at the hotel with Mimi and Papa.
Unfortunately, Emily started to get a sniffle on the last night, so she didn't sleep well, which made for a very unpleasant travel day. But we all made it home safe and sound. I think the girls are ready for their next Disney adventure!
Mommy and Daddy have been spending a lot of time with Kara recently. The highlight was the Royal Ball. Kara dressed up as a princess and Daddy got dressed up to go dance and drink punch. Kara had a blast! Another day, we went up to Nederland to check out the Carousel of Happiness, which Kara thought was pretty cool. In addition, we've been getting a lot of snow recently, so Daddy and Kara have been getting out and playing.
Kara is getting exciting about having her baby brother or sister join us. We got out the Pack-N-Play last weekend, and Kara spent the rest of the day putting her stuffed animals to sleep in there. She also renamed Fifi to Fifi Human Baby and practiced putting diapers on him.
The baby has decided not to come on its own, so Mommy and Daddy will be reporting to the hospital at 7:30 am tomorrow to try and induce labor. Hopefully we will have pictures to share of our little one soon!
