Blogging from FLORIDA!
Part 2
I'm back! Today is Pool Day, and it's too hot outside (97* yesterday!), so I will sit inside and blog. Sounds like a good idea to me! :)
Well I believe I left off right before Saturday, which was a fabulous day. Definitely one of the best. We commenced our day at Animal Kingdom where I had to pass on my Minnie ears and buy some leopard print Mickey ears, you know, to get in the wildlife-jungle-safari spirit! We watched a few shows like the Lion King and Finding Nemo and walked all around and met Lilo & Stitch (much to Nikki's excitement... she is convinved Stitch is Haylie) By mid-afternoon, I was bored in my least favorite park, the Percocet wasn't doing enough for my back, and I was falling asleep during shows, so I took the bus back to the condo while my parents and sister stayed to ride the you-will-get-soaked rafting ride, etc. I was much more comfortable doing nothing but catching up on my beauty sleep for my evening with Minnie and Cinderella.
Once everyone else got back, I hurried to get ready, and Dad and I went to the park earlier than our dinner reservations so I could see Minnie Mouse. The line was so long that Mom and Nikki, trailing behind, actually got to join us for 2/3 of the line and meet Minnie & Mickey as well. By the time we were at the front of the line, I was jumping up and down like an excited little kid. (True excitement or the Percocet... it's your call!) Minnie was so excited to see me for like the billionth time of my life, and I reminded her that she is my favorite!! We took pictures and got autographs and hung out for a few minutes until I felt bad for the little kids in line so I said goodbye and Mickey gave me a kiss. (Don't worry Jonathan, he's just a mouse.)
Of course, it was almost time for our dinner reservations at Cinderella Castle, so we checked in there and waited for Cinderella to come down. While we were waiting, one of her coachman played a few games with us.
Can you name the 15 Disney movies with one-word names? ("The" doesn't count)
Bambi, Cars, Aladdin, Cinderella, Fantasia, Pinocchio, Hercules, Mulan, Tarzan, Pocahontas, Ratatouille, Dumbo, Dinosaurs, Bolt, Wall-ECan you name the 7 Disney movies that contain absolutely no human characters?
Robin Hood, Cars, Lion King, A Bug's Life, Chicken Little, Dinosaurs, BambiWhat are the only 4 wishes the Genie could not grant?
Can't make anyone fall in love, can't kill anybody, can't raise the deadWhat are the names of Cinderella's stepmother and stepsisters?
Lady Tremaine, Anastasia, DrizellaWhat are the names of the 4 fairies in Sleeping Beauty?
Flora, Fauna, Merryweather, MalificentName the 7 dwarfs.
Dopey, Sneezy, Bashful, Doc, Sleepy, Grumpy, Happy
I have to admit, I let the little kids answer first, but none of them knew so I scored the most points at all that Disney trivia. When you're raised on it, you don't really forget it. :)
Before long, Cinderella came down, and we all lined up to meet her. Nikki and I went first, and of course, I was so excited! We took lots of pictures with her, and then we went to wait for our Royal Invitation. A castle attendant gave us magic wands and swords for us to take up to the dining room with us, and once we had the Royal Invitation, we proceeded up the 40-step spiral staircase to Cinderella's Royal's Table. We were seated right at the window and were called "King, " "Queen," and "Princess" for the entire evening while we were waited on like royalty. Our waiter was accommodating and efficient, and a palace worker delivered an 8x10 and a packet full of 4x6s of our portrait with Cinderella. Also, a perk of a 9:25 reservation is having great seats to see the 10pm fireworks show, Wishes. The lights dimmed and the show's music played just as if we were outside the castle watching in the dark. We had fabulous seats to see the beautiful fireworks through the castle windows, and it was such a magical experience. Next, our meals were served, and I enjoyed my pasta and grilled chicken. We even got dessert - ice cream! We were surprised when Cinderella's mice came out, followed by the Fairy Godmother. They sang and danced around the dining room and put on a show for us. The Fairy Godmother told us that she's our Fairy Godmother, too, and whatever we wish for and dream of will come true if we believe enough.
After our wonderful dinner, we had a little bit of time to ride Dad's favorite ride, Pirates of the Caribbean, before going back home. So we sailed and yo-ho, yo-ho'ed as the last riders of the day. After that, we left the beautifully illuminated nighttime park and crashed into bed.
Sunday was Disney Hollywood Studios Day. For all of my life, this place was called MGM Studios, and although the new name better suits the park, it's long and annoying to say. Just my personal opinion. Anyways... by the time we got up after our big night, we rolled into DHS just shy of noon. We rode the Great Movie Ride before our lunch reservations at 50s Prime Time Cafe, a restaurant styled just like home in the 1950s. (The server is your "cousin," and "Mom" is in the back cooking the food. You will get in trouble if you're wearing a hat or resting your elbows on the table!) After our delicious, homestyle lunch, we did all kinds of things around the park, some together, some by myself, some with just Dad, some with just Mom... it was pretty crazy. I saw the Voyage of the Little Mermaid and the Beauty and the Beast shows, two of my favorites, and then while Mom and Nikki were seeing the stunts show, Dad and I saw Muppet Vision 3D, one of his favorites. All 4 of us saw the High School Musical 3: Senior Year show, thanks to my sister, and then we participated as audience members in the American Idol Experience, which was so fun. Then, we did Star Tours, and Dad got sick, and other unnamed people were crabby, so we ended up going back to the room. Nikki wanted to go back to Magic Kingdom to ride Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, the Tomorrowland rocket ride, and Dumbo, so Mom took her back in to do just that. Dad went to bed, and I chilled and finished my Jodi Picoult book. :)
The thing about Disney is that you cannot go-go-go-go from morning until night for days and days. About 2 days of that and you'll be burnt out for the rest of the trip. One of the books I saw said the average person walks 6-7miles/day at Disney, and that's in this heat and humidity that can often be unbearable. Sure, Disney is amazingly fun, but it's hot, and exhausting, and there's lines and cranky kids and tired adults, and well, you just can't do it all without a rest here and there.
Today, everyone wanted to have a relaxing day before heading back home. Dad is out fishing, Mom is by the pool, I'm here blogging, and my sister is still asleep. We're pretty much "Disney'ed-out" and ready to go home. We've had a truly wonderful time, and we've all been able to enjoy the break from our day-to-day monotony and have some magical fun.
Later today, we girls will probably hit up the "other" outlet mall in the area, the one where I bought the Crocs flip flops, the one that is the 2nd largest outlet mall in the world. (Yay!!) Then, we have dinner reservations at one of our favorites, Whispering Canyon Cafe at the Wilderness Lodge.
Tomorrow, we fly home... I think our flight is around 2? Not sure. But I believe I heard something about getting home at 4-something. Can't wait to see my puppies and my fiance!
xoxo
