Five Days of Disney - Day Two

We decided to start our Disney week at the Magic Kingdom. Despite the extreme temperatures, we were super excited. Bring on the Mouse!

So, let’s go ahead and get this out of the way. Even though we went to Walt Disney World, where lifelong memories are captured on camera, I probably took 30 pictures total. No, I mean 30 pictures the ENTIRE WEEK. And before you start judging, let me tell you something else. I’m pretty darn proud of that number because they weren’t easy to come by. You see, although we spent three very full days at the ‘Happiest Place on Earth,’ my boys did not get the memo that glee was required. They groaned every time I asked to take a picture so I had to bribe them with candy or ice cream and, even then, they couldn’t muster more than a constipated look for the photo op so I basically conceded. I’m not losing sleep over it. We’ll go back again one day. It may be another 5 years but I’ll take more pictures then. Especially since I’ll have Nanny McPhee with us on that trip. Or maybe Super Nanny - maybe that lady can whip my crazies into shape....



That picture was actually as we were leaving the park for the day. We'll call that the 'after' shot. The 'before' shot didn't come out too well since you couldn't keep them standing still long enough to press the button on the camera. Fine, so I guess they weren't miserable the entire time; it just seemed like it. And if D1 walked around all day with the backpack unzipped, we are pretty lucky nothing was ever stolen. Don't you think that Vera Bradley pattern looks nice on him?



Castle shot



d1 on Winnie the Pooh ride with Indiana Jones Uncle J



Here is their one and only character autograph. This is one occasion that I'm thankful we have all boys. They cared nothing about meeting the princesses or characters, which was great because those were just long lines, usually on the hot pavement in direct sunlight. Have I mentioned how HOT it was? Florida + July = stifling.

One of my favorite things about Disney is the fact that they allow coolers in the park with outside food and drink. Before our trip, we got some great tips from our friends who are either Disney experts or who had just visited. We loaded our lunch boxes up with frozen Uncrustables and Capri Suns and containers of Pringles. Having the first two items frozen when we left ensured they would be thawed and ready to eat by lunch. And, although Pringles are not this family's chip of choice, their containers are able to take some beatings in the shuffle of the day so it worked. Saving money at Disney is not easy. The ticket prices are mind boggling and everything inside the park is severely inflated but we sure felt good when it was time to eat lunch, knowing we weren't going to spend $50 on hot dogs and fries for the family. Plus, this made it a little easier to shell out $20 for an afternoon ice cream treat. I tried really, really hard not to do the math in my head of how many cartons I could purchase when Publix runs them BOGO. I just kept telling myself that we were on vacation, which means it's okay to spend ridiculous amounts of money on plain ole' soft serve ice cream.

Here's another tip for anyone contemplating a Disney visit - take a stroller. Unless your child exceeds the weight limit {and even then I might consider it}, take a stroller and do a double if you can. Sure, you could rent one from WDW but $15 a day? That's your snack size cup of ice cream, remember? Seriously, though. I can't tell you how many times d1 and d2 wanted a ride because they were tired of walking. d3, on the other hand, wanted nothing to do with the stroller. Or holding hands. Or just behaving in general. Instead, he was more interested in blending in with the crowd and giving us panic attacks.

We lasted about nine hours that day. All things considered, that's pretty solid. We took in some Space Mountain, Pirates of the Caribbean and Buzz Lightyear, just to name a few, and really got a taste of the Disney experience. We headed back to the house with Uncle J and his family for some burgers and a little pool time before collapsing for the night. No injuries, no illnesses, no missing children. This day goes down in the books as a success. We'll take it when we can. Injuries and missing children? We saved that for later in the trip....