Disney: Is it Thursday Already?

Today is the first day we are completely splitting up. No need to make everyone wait in lint to see Rapunzel, right? The girls and I headed to Magic Kingdom via water taxi and Steve set off for Animal Kingdom with the boys. I knew I had to give daddy specific plans otherwise they would just lounge around all day.

Considering MK opened at 8:00am for resort guests I was surprised to find our wait for Rapunzel to be under 2 hours. She greets her first guests at 9:15 but early risers formed a line when the gates opened this morning. The cast members securing the queue could not have been any nicer really and the other guests kept an eye on things while we grabbed a snack.

When it was our turn to file into Storybook Garden we were first in line when Rapunzel reappeared from her quick break. It made the wait all worth it. It amazes me how Grace and Caroline can easily wait a couple hrs to see a princess or character. I would love to have the drive and imagination to see things again the way children do.

All done with Rapunzel, it is time to catch the bus to Animal Kingdom. Disney does transportation well but sometimes, this time, the drop off point for the bus seemed to be at the back of the parking lot. This makes me very happy we stuck with our decision to rent a car. I am exhausted after walking the parks, the last thing any of want to do walk additional steps to wait in a line to board transportation.

For the first time this vacation I was able to sneak into a photo, how nice of that girl to offer her assistance. Steve and the boys had been in DinoLand killing time until we arrived so we all b-lined for the Safari to get in at least once attraction before moving onto Hollywood Studios for lunch. Thank goodness it is mating season for the giraffes, they are VERY active.

It ended up a full day at Hollywood Studios. Character lunch at Hollywood and Vine, Parade, shopping, Toy Story Mania a couple times, Muppets, Phineas and Ferb, Little Mermaid. There was something for everyone today.

At lunch Caroline only dropped her buffet filled plate once and Grace threw herself down maybe 3 times. The chef wasn't quick in coming out to the table and we were almost done eating by the time Mitchell got his food. The characters were great but the girl who was dancing & singing was really loud and the whole experience was extremely overstimulating for everyone. On the plus side, we didn't need to stand in line to get a spot at Disney Jr Live on Stage since we saw Handy Manny, Oso & Jake here.

Thea afternoon parade ended just in time for the afternoon rain the begin. Perfect weather for shopping and be inside at shows. Steve and I had forgotten how funny the old guys in the balcony were on The Muppets and all the kids love 3-D shows. Not wanting to overuse our "Mitchell Pass" and cut ahead of too many people we limited our Toy Story Mania to 2 tours. Then, Steven was very hesitant about sitting through Voyage of the Little Mermaid but I assured it was more a show than a princess story and it did not disappoint. There was even a little boy sitting back in the handicap section with us who clearly had issues similar to Mitchell. He kept talking to Caroline and the mom ended up switching spots with him so he wouldn't bother her. Of course I couldn't say anything to her because that would lead to tears at Disney, which are not allowed, I assumed it was obvious they were alike but maybe only in my mind.

Phineas and Ferb were a great distraction in the afternoon. Once again, we wait in line only to have them go on break, but we were first in line as they emerged for photo ops. Grace still talks about Ferb taking her Baby Minnie and doing rock-a-bye-baby. Quite the characters they are. We ended the night in the food court and transferred sleeping children to their beds upon return to our cabin. Doesn't get much better than this.

Disney Continuing the Fun

After all the excited on Tuesday we were hoping for a little rest on Wednesday. We had our helper scheduled to meet us at 1:00 at Magic Kingdom so we decided to head to Hollywood Studios for a quick breakfast and some rides. Now for most people this might seem silly to go to one park early and expect to get anything done by noon but in the land of Ivey things work a little different. Staying at the Fort Wilderness Cabins we can get to any park in less than 15 minutes then add in the disability parking placard and the life-time Mitchell Fast Pass we are golden.

In less than 3 hours we were able to eat breakfast, ride Toy Story mania and the Great Movie Ride, play in the Honey I Shrunk the Kids playset, watch the dance show, meet some character and have ice cream - with time left over. At this rate we will run out of things to do by Friday. Steven went out on a limb and stood in line to see Stitch while the girls & I waited for Daisy & Donald.

What a big change from Steven standing across the street while we had all the fun. March 2007

Next we drove to Magic Kingdom. Rock Star parking again, and as we boarded the monorail we bumped into Tara our helper. Our first stop was going to be lunch and I had to find a place to suit all of our needs. I had the Undercover Tourist app on my phone that gave locations and menus for all restaurants at parks and resorts as well as wait time for rides and parade times. Entering the park, I made a B-line for fast passes at Splash Mountain and met the rest at the restaurant. While eating I reiterated the game plan so we'd be on the same page and not waste any time. Since we can no longer refer to the Haunted Mansion as the Fun Mansion, Steven can read, he opted out and I gave him the choice of waiting outside with Tara or going into the Hall of Presidents. Grace says " I want to go with Tara & open presents!" What? She repeats and then I understand and explain it's a show with people and she would find it boring and go into the story of 2 years ago when she hated it so I took her into the lobby and she wacked her head on a handicap bar while trying to run away from me. Oh the memories. Nope, not doing that again. Moving onto the fun, er Haunted, Mansion, we decide to take in the while experience and bypass the handicap entrance. The wait time was only 10 minutes anyhow. UGH. So it's Steve, Caroline, Grace, Mitchell and I waiting in the queue inside for well over 15 minutes. Lights off, hot, ride is broke down and about 150 people crammed into the holding area. Techs walking in and out, no one saying anything but the recorded lady announcing something about the spirits have disturbed our journey today, please stay seated the ride will begin momentarily. Just as we were about to head out, the motors start turning and we are on our way. We got stuck in the seance room but it worked out OK. Exiting just in time to find a great spot for the parade - facing the afternoon sun. Hey, we were in the front row.

The kids really enjoyed the parade and Mr. I don't like to draw attention to myself was being sought out by characters because of his Chinese hat. Even Mary Poppins leaned out of her float to comment on it. After the parade I took Caroline & Mitchell to Splash Mountain while Steve, Tara and the others went to Jungle Cruise & Tiki Birds. Not sure if I mentioned Mitchell's Dynavox crashed before we left home so he has no voice this trip. Waiting in line I heard what I thought was "potty". Not sure how I heard it over the crowd but my Spidey senses must have been on high alert. I asked Mitchell if he had to go and he said it again. Big bummer we had to get out of line but huge accomplishment for Mitchell to vocalize his need. yay Mitchell. Splash Mountain was a little worrisome for Mitchell but I think he enjoyed it anyhow - he likes excitement as much as Caroline & I. We finally met up with our group and finished our time with Tara without any mishaps as in the previous days. We said our goodbyes and hopped the monorail for dinner at Chef Mickeys. Since we can never be "on-time" for anything we arrived 20 minutes early but the wait was bearable. Between potty breaks and the Chef Mickey's the time went fast and our pager buzzed only 3 minutes after our reserved time.

Many people have told me how fabulous Chef Mickey's is but I never imagine it to be this good. There was constant entertainment, even for my kids. Something that can grab the attention of Steven, Mitchell and Grace at the same time is the like hitting the lottery for us. Caroline loves everything so I wasn't worried about her. The food was like, well, real food. And the way they seat you in rooms makes all the seats close to the buffet and dessert bar. The kids scarfed their food and headed for more. Mitchell had freshly made bacon & fries and the others ate multiple ice cream cones. I even enjoyed chocolate mouse - mousse - covered oreos and key lime tarts. So yummy. They really how now to do it right there, next time we might eat there every day!

Sad to think our magical vacation is half over. booo!