Aedan: Week 39
After a sort of rough night in the hotel in Indianapolis, Ben and I were actually able to get up and shower in the bathroom attached to our bedroom without waking up Aedan, who was sleeping in our room. Then, once both kids were awake, came the task of getting everyone ready, suitcases packed again, breakfast eaten, and off to the airport to get checked in on time for our flight. After waking up with a fever during the night, Samantha still wasn't feeling the greatest that morning. It's always difficult to get her to get ready and eat breakfast quickly on normal days, but being sick made it even worse.
It was easy to get to the airport from our hotel and we got there in plenty of time. The hardest part was lugging our four suitcases that would be checked, along with the stroller, Samantha's backpack, Ben's briefcase, Aedan's diaper bag, not to mention Samantha and Aedan themselves. We were glad to finally get to the ticketing counter to unload our suitcases. After that, it was smooth sailing through security. I carried Aedan in the Ergo while we navigated the airport so that I would have my hands free to carry or push things. Samantha said hi to all the "police officers." Before we left, I showed her a video on the TSA website of what they were going to do with sending our belongings through the x-ray machine and having to walk through the metal detectors. She was actually disappointed that she didn't get to go through the one the adults went in where you have to stand still for a few seconds while it scans you, so one of the TSA officers took her back and let her try it out. He also gave her a "Junior TSA Officer" badge sticker to put on her shirt. She proudly wore it the rest of the day. She also said, "I want to be a police officer when I grow up."
After we got settled and used the bathroom, we didn't have much time before they started boarding the plane early. We were on the plane and in our seats before 10:00. Here are some pictures after we boarded.
Everyone did a really good job on the plane. I was worried about the pressure messing with Aedan's ears, but it didn't seem to phase him. He was ready for a nap, so once we began taxiing, I got the nursing cover on and nursed him as we took off to help relieve the pressure in his ears. Aedan was very tired and after nursing fell asleep in my lap. I left the cover over his head to block out more of the lights and sounds from the plane, and he ended up sleeping most of the flight. I was amazed. My arms were going numb from holding him for so long, but I enjoyed watching him sleep, holding his warm body in my arms, and hearing his little breathing sounds. I don't get a chance to just sit and hold him while he sleeps very often, so this was nice. Samantha also did a good job on the plane. She got to sit by the window so she could look out as much as she wanted. If you fly Southwest, they have free TV through your computer, so Ben put on a couple cartoons for Samantha to watch. Then, she just quietly played, sucked on her sucker, and ate her snack the rest of the flight. We arrived in Orlando early, which is always nice.
After getting off the plane, we didn't have to worry about our luggage at all because Disney has something called the Magical Express, which is a bus that takes you directly from the airport to your resort. They also pick up your specially tagged luggage and deliver it right to your room. So we just had to worry about ourselves and our carry-on items. We got on the bus before 12:30 and then had a forty minute drive to our resort. We were all getting pretty hungry and ready to get to our hotel so we could eat lunch and figure out our plans for the rest of the day.
When we arrived at the Art of Animation resort hotel, there was a concierge person waiting for us, to get us checked in, and answer any questions we may have. Our room was actually ready, so we decided to head there first to check it out and so that I could nurse Aedan. Here are some pictures of our room. Samantha enjoyed looking around, and Aedan couldn't wait to have some time to roll around and be free for awhile. Ben and I were going to sleep in the bedroom, which also had a bathroom with a shower attached to it.
Ben's friend, Tim, had plans to get us into Disney through his benefits of working for them. However, even though he requested time off for the whole week we planned to be there, his other employer called him into work on Monday so he couldn't get away. At first he thought he would be able to, so after we ate lunch at the food court area at our hotel, while we waited for Tim to contact us, we just walked around outside on the many sidewalks around our hotel, checking out the pool, and enjoying the warm Florida sunshine. We actually ended up buying sunglasses for Samantha at the gift shop because we forgot hers in our car back in Indiana, and it was so sunny out. Being in the Midwest during the winter, you certainly don't need sunglasses!
After waiting for awhile to hear whether Tim would be able to get off work, we ended up just heading out to the Magic Kingdom on the bus. However, as we rode the bus there, Samantha was fading and actually fell asleep leaning against Ben, making us second guess whether we should even go to a park that afternoon. I thought maybe we should have just stayed at the hotel and let both kids take a nap. However, we figured there'd be no chance that Samantha would nap as the first thing when we just arrived at Disney World. She was just too excited, but was still fighting off her fever and sickness that had come on in the last day. She got about a twenty minute nap in on the bus and that seemed to take the edge off. Maybe she just needed a power nap to get her through the rest of the day.
Anyways, after awhile of waiting outside the entrance to the Magic Kingdom to see if Tim could meet us there to get us into the park, we just ended up buying our own tickets so that we could get in and start touring the park. Plus, Aedan hadn't napped since that morning on the plane, and I knew as soon we started walking he would conk out in the Ergo since it was already past 4:00. Once in the Magic Kingdom, our first stop was to buy an autograph book for Samantha to use when meeting princesses, and from there we stood in line for about twenty minutes to see Tinkerbell, while I set up a few Fast Passes for us for that evening.
From there, we went down Main Street, and Samantha was so excited to see the castle that she remembers from the beginning of all the Disney movies she's seen.
After dinner, we had two more Fast Passes for meeting princesses, both kids were doing pretty well, so we decided to stay at the Magic Kingdom and do a few more rides and meet and greets before heading back to the hotel. As we passed the castle, we wanted to get Samantha's picture in front of it while it was lit up, but she just kept making this silly face. :) I think she was excited to finally be at Disney World. We had been talking about this vacation for so long.
Samantha got to meet Ariel, which she was really excited about. Again, she didn't really talk to Ariel, but you could tell by the look on her face that she thought it was pretty cool to meet her and sit next to her. All the characters are great at interacting with the kids, pretending to be their character, and trying to engage in conversation.
This first picture is while we were standing outside of Belle's cottage and you could see the beast's castle up on the hill in the distance. The new expansion in Fantasyland is huge with many new things from when I was here last many years ago.
Here is a video and some pictures of the kids and Belle telling the story together.
Aedan had fallen asleep in the Ergo and taken a good nap, only waking up during the clapping at the end of Enchanted Tales with Belle. We had one more Fast Pass time coming up, so we decided to ride It's a Small World before heading to meet Rapunzel and Cinderella. It was already almost 9:00 p.m., but Samantha was doing well and having a great time. You wouldn't have known that it was well past their bedtime and that we had just flown from Indianapolis that very morning! Both Samantha and Aedan were mesmerized by all the singing and dancing dolls on It's a Small World. There's so much to look at and take in on that ride.
Then, our last stop for the day was meeting Rapunzel and Cinderella at Princess Fairytale Hall. We had a Fast Pass for this, saving us from having to wait over an hour. Samantha was so excited to meet the princesses, even though she was tired as it was almost 9:30, well past her bedtime, and we had been going strong all day. Here are some pictures from meeting Rapunzel and Cinderella. I just love the smile Samantha gives them as they talk to her, as well as the great hugs she gave when saying good-bye. It's pretty cool to live vicariously through your daughter and to have her experience so many special things.
We stayed at the Magic Kingdom very late that night, and it took us a while to get out of the park because a parade started in the streets, blocking off some of the roadways to get out of the park. However, we finally made it back to our hotel room around 11:00 p.m., got the kids ready and in bed, and we all crashed. It had been a busy, long, fun first day at Disney World.
Luckily, Aedan did pretty well sleeping that night, probably because he was tired from being out so late. He woke up once in the early morning hours, I nursed him, and he went right back to sleep. Both Samantha and Aedan slept in on Tuesday, which was definitely needed after our late night. We had plans to meet my grandpa at Epcot that morning, so after eating breakfast with our friend Tim, we stopped back at the hotel room to grab something and I took this cute picture of Samantha by Timon, Pumba, and Simba. These are the larger than life figures that they have all over the Art of Animation resort. Samantha loved saying hello to them every day.
We met up with my grandpa in the area called "The Land." We wanted to check out how long the wait would be for a popular ride called Soarin', and then we decided that Ben would wait in line and we would do a Rider Swap. While he was waiting, my grandpa, Samantha, Aedan, and I rode Living with the Land, which is a small boat ride showing how we have used land over the years and what we have to look forward to in farming and agriculture. Then, we went over to "The Seas" to ride The Seas with Nemo & Friends, a slow-moving ride based on the movie Finding Nemo. We didn't have to wait very long in line, which was good, but it was long enough to get Aedan to fall asleep in the Ergo. He was due for his morning nap and was getting pretty fussy.
After the Nemo ride, we walked around the aquarium area there, waiting for word from Daddy when he got close to the front of the line so we could meet back up with him. As we walked around, Samantha wanted me to take her picture inside this gigantic shark statue. She kept reassuring me that he wasn't real.
Samantha was very cute with my grandpa. There were many times as we walked around that she would grab and hold his hand as she walked. I wish I would have thought to get a picture of the two of them together. It was precious, and hopefully something that was really special to my grandpa.
Shortly after that, we went back over to "The Land" to wait for Daddy to exit the ride. We didn't want to go on another ride and end up not being back when he exited, so we took the chance to sit inside, relax a little, and Samantha got to run around and play with another little girl and little boy that were waiting as well. I got a chance to sit and talk to my grandpa more, in a quieter setting, and Aedan continued to take his nap in the Ergo.
The ride Soarin' was really just an IMAX projection dome with footage of California as if you were a hang-glider flying overhead. It's all a simulation, but your feet hang free from your seat, and they make you feel as if you truly are flying. The height requirement for the ride was 40 inches, and Samantha is 41 1/2 inches, so we figured we'd let her try out this ride to see what she would think. Grandpa, Samantha, and I rode together while Daddy hung out with Aedan. I was impressed by both Samantha and my grandpa. What other 95 year old man would go on a ride like this, or even would be willing to traipse around Epcot with his grandchild and family? Samantha was also very brave. When the ride first started, it surprised her a little and she began to cry, but once I talked her through it and reassured her, making sure she knew that none of it was real and that it was just making you feel like you were flying, she calmed down quickly and then enjoyed talking about all the things she saw as we pretended to fly over California.
After finishing up this ride, it was lunch time and we were all getting pretty hungry so we stayed and ate at the food court in "The Land." Samantha got mac and cheese, grapes, and a cookie for lunch, and she actually ate better there then at any other time on our trip. The cookie was used for bribery if she ate a good lunch, and it seemed to work. I am not below bribery. :)
Then, Aedan was wanting to nurse, so I walked all the way to the other side of the park to the baby care center to nurse him while Samantha, my grandpa, and Ben went to something called Turtle Talk with Crush where kids could learn about the sea and ask questions of Crush the turtle from the movie Finding Nemo. Aedan didn't nurse very well that afternoon, so we weren't gone for very long. As we waited for the rest of our family to finish, Aedan and I hung out and looked at the fish and dolphins in the aquarium. He thought his view was pretty awesome and kept banging the glass in excitement.
From there we went on a ride called Journey into Imagination with Figment. This is another silly little ride, and we mostly went on it because we took Samantha on it when she was 18 months old, and I thought it would be interesting to compare what she thinks of it now to what she thought of it then. Aedan was getting pretty tired again, as it was after 2:30, well past when he is usually taking his afternoon nap, so Daddy entertained Aedan with his strawberry toy as we went on the ride. There was one moment towards the end of the ride where a strong blast of air blew right in our faces, making everyone jump, and making Aedan cry a little. It's those surprises that catch us off guard!
And here's the video from when Samantha was 18 months old. The comparison is so funny!
Shortly after that, we went back over to "The Land" to wait for Daddy to exit the ride. We didn't want to go on another ride and end up not being back when he exited, so we took the chance to sit inside, relax a little, and Samantha got to run around and play with another little girl and little boy that were waiting as well. I got a chance to sit and talk to my grandpa more, in a quieter setting, and Aedan continued to take his nap in the Ergo.
Then, Aedan was wanting to nurse, so I walked all the way to the other side of the park to the baby care center to nurse him while Samantha, my grandpa, and Ben went to something called Turtle Talk with Crush where kids could learn about the sea and ask questions of Crush the turtle from the movie Finding Nemo. Aedan didn't nurse very well that afternoon, so we weren't gone for very long. As we waited for the rest of our family to finish, Aedan and I hung out and looked at the fish and dolphins in the aquarium. He thought his view was pretty awesome and kept banging the glass in excitement.
At the end of the ride they have a fun interactive area where kids can do different things to make music, like step on these colored squares to make different instruments play the melody to Figment's theme song. Here is the video from this trip:
After this ride, we had a Fast Pass scheduled for Spaceship Earth, so we made our way that direction. My grandpa thought about joining us by just standing in the standby line, but the line was a little too long for his liking, so he decided to head home. It was so good to see my grandpa for some time. I don't get to see him very often, so it's nice to do so whenever we have the opportunity. You just never know how much time you have left with a relative when they are already in their mid-90s. Luckily, he is in pretty good health. We will definitely have to make plans to see him again really soon.
Since it was already 3:00, and we thought it would be silly to head to the hotel then, we stayed at Epcot a little longer, with plans to to meet some more princesses. Originally, we planned on staying at Epcot for just half a day, going back to the hotel for some rest and/or swim time, and then going back out to another park later in the evening. But since we were out late at the Magic Kingdom, we got a later start to our morning and spent more time with my grandpa. Samantha still wasn't feeling like normal, and we thought that her fever was gone, but it seemed to come back again that afternoon. I felt so bad for our little girl. After all, this trip was mostly for Samantha, and I felt like she wasn't enjoying it as much as she could have because of not feeling well. Not only did she feel pretty hot, but she also had developed a pretty bad cough. We brought Advil with us and made sure to keep the medicine working in her little body throughout the day.
There were several princesses that did meet and greets at Epcot, so Daddy and I divided and conquered. I waited in the line for Princess Aurora with Aedan (he was finishing up his nap in the Ergo), while Daddy and Samantha went to be one of the first in line to see Belle. We figured by the time she got to meet Belle, they would be able to come back to meet Aurora as well, without having to wait in line. It worked out really well, and Samantha enjoyed meeting these princesses even though her face doesn't look like it in these pictures. We had given her Advil to bring down her temperature, but she was fading quickly, poor girl. Here she is meeting Aurora a.k.a. Sleeping Beauty.
There were several princesses that did meet and greets at Epcot, so Daddy and I divided and conquered. I waited in the line for Princess Aurora with Aedan (he was finishing up his nap in the Ergo), while Daddy and Samantha went to be one of the first in line to see Belle. We figured by the time she got to meet Belle, they would be able to come back to meet Aurora as well, without having to wait in line. It worked out really well, and Samantha enjoyed meeting these princesses even though her face doesn't look like it in these pictures. We had given her Advil to bring down her temperature, but she was fading quickly, poor girl. Here she is meeting Aurora a.k.a. Sleeping Beauty.
And here is Samantha meeting Belle.
Tim and Jenna were very great and fun to hang out with. Tim, in particular, is a huge fan of Samantha. They were happy to bring her some Mickey ears that day, a pair that Jenna actually designed herself. This picture shows Samantha's grumpy smile because she got hit by something as we were entering the park, making her cry for a little while. So this is her attempt at smiling through feeling grumpy. Pretty great, right?
Our first stop at Animal Kingdom was the ride Expedition Everest. It's a pretty fun ride, and Ben and I wanted to do the Rider Swap for it before the line got long. Ben got on it quickly and then I had my turn, as we swapped taking care of the kids. It's a great, very creative ride where you go up like you're climbing Mount Everest and eventually you reach the end of your track because a snow monster (a yeti) has broken it apart, and then the roller coaster switches tracks and you go down backwards into the mountain. I was glad we were able to ride it. (It's not all about the kids, right?)
We figured there was little possibility that Samantha would actually nap that afternoon, so I decided to take Samantha swimming in the Big Blue Pool while Daddy stayed back at the hotel room while Aedan slept (giving Daddy some much needed downtime as well). Samantha wore her floatie and had a great time jumping and splashing in the pool. It was a wonderful warm and sunny afternoon. We spent most of our time at this end of the pool, near the giant jellyfish, pretending to be mermaids. I think Samantha enjoyed skipping her nap that afternoon. :)
We spent our evening at Hollywood Studios and had a great time. Our first stop was Rock 'n' Roller Coaster since I lined up a Fast Pass for that ride. Daddy went in first to ride and then we were going to do the Rider Swap. Samantha, Daddy, and I ate some food before leaving our hotel that afternoon, but Aedan hadn't eaten yet, so while Daddy went on the ride, Samantha helped me feed Aedan his baby food. This is another fun ride because it shoots you off quickly, you get to go upside down, and it's mostly in the dark, which makes every drop and turn a surprise.
She couldn't take her eyes off the stage. She just sat there with her hands folded in her lap, taking it all in.
Right before you get to the area of our resort where the Lion King Suites are, you pass this statue of Rafiki. Every day Samantha asked to get her picture taken with him, so on Thursday morning we finally got her picture. Every time we passed him, Samantha would say, "Hi, Rafiki!" or "Good night, Rafiki!"
Our first stop that day at Magic Kingdom was to see how long the line to meet Anna and Elsa was. However, it was approaching 90 minutes, and we weren't willing to spend that much time waiting in line. Our plan was to check back on the time later during the day, or try to go at 8:30 when the line tends to be shorter. Samantha really wanted to meet Anna and Elsa, but she knew the line might be too long and that we may not be able to see them, and she seemed okay with that.
Aedan had fallen asleep in the Ergo as soon as we started walking in the park, taking a nice little morning nap. Our first ride was the Haunted Mansion ride because the line was less than 15 minutes long. I had Samantha watch a video of what the ride would be like on YouTube before we left for our trip, mainly to gauge whether or not she would be too scared to ride it. However, she really wanted to ride it, and she did really well. She knew it was all pretend, that the images were all made by computers, and that they were just trying to trick you and scare you. During the Haunted Mansion ride, Aedan woke up from his nap, probably because I sat back down again. I think Samantha's favorite part was at the end of the ride when they pretended like a "ghost" was riding along with you. I got this picture from the Disney website so you could see what I mean. We had the big, fat ghost sitting on top of our car.
While the three of us went on the ride, Tim and Jenna hung out with Aedan for us. Then, we were able to give them our Rider Swap pass so they were able to ride it as well.
Many weeks before our trip, I received an email about a special lunch at the Be Our Guest restaurant in Fantasyland. It is underneath the mountain that has the beast's castle at the top, and the inside is designed to look like various parts of the castle like the ballroom where Belle and the beast danced and the West Wing with the magical rose. I made reservations for lunch for us, and we just had to show up, find a table, and our pre-ordered food was delivered right to our table. It was a pretty cool experience, and the food did not cost much more than if we had purchased it elsewhere in the park. (Samantha wore her Elsa dress to the Magic Kingdom that day, in hopes that we may meet Elsa sometime during the day.) Here she is with her noodles and chocolate milk. The noodles came with marinara sauce and shredded cheese. However, she only wanted the shredded cheese on her noodles. When there is a lot of commotion going on around her, Samantha does not eat very well, which was pretty much true of everywhere we ate while at Disney World. Getting Samantha to eat decent meals was a struggle on our trip. There was just too much fun stuff to do and see to take time for eating.
As I mentioned earlier, as Samantha was starting to feel better except for a little cough and hoarse voice, Aedan was beginning to feel worse. He was much fussier than usual, not his normal happy self. Sitting in the Be Our Guest restaurant for lunch was not exactly what he wanted to to. He was not happy sitting in the high chair, and both Ben and I took turns holding him in order to get through the meal. Poor little guy.
Anyways, here are some pictures from inside the restaurant. We sat in the room that was designed to look like the ballroom, complete with chandeliers hanging from the ceiling and tall glass windows where they made it look like snow was falling outside.
After lunch we went to Tomorrowland because we had a Fast Pass for Space Mountain. We met back up with Tim and Jenna, and they offered to hang out with Samantha and Aedan so that Ben and I could ride together. It was so nice of them to hang out with us for most of the day, and to hang out with our kids some too. The more hands, the better. :) Even though Space Mountain is a simple ride, it's a classic, and it brings back fond memories for me. It was one of the first roller coasters I went on with my dad, and he often tells me the story of the first time I rode it. The exit from the ride is a long moving walkway, and apparently, I cried all the way through the exit, but then immediately wanted to ride it again. Samantha wasn't tall enough to ride this one with us yet, but it looks like she may take after me in her liking of roller coasters.
After Ben and I got off the ride, Aedan was getting pretty fussy and needed to nurse and take a nap. So I went to the baby care center with Aedan while Ben, Tim, Jenna, and Samantha rode the People Mover ride and then went back into Fantasyland to ride Dumbo the Flying Elephant. Aedan was so happy to be in the calm, quiet nursing room. He was happy to nurse and actually fell asleep while nursing, just like he does when we are at home. Needless to say, he wasn't too happy when I moved him and woke him up when it was time to leave the nursing room. I put him in the Ergo right away to see if he would fall back asleep, but he was too stimulated by going back outside in the sunlight among all the noise.
I met Daddy and Samantha at the Dumbo ride. The line for Dumbo can get pretty long sometimes, but it wasn't too bad that day. Plus, they have a new line experience where you wait for a little while and then get a buzzer that you keep with you while your child plays in an indoor play structure, as if they are inside a circus tent. When your buzzer goes off, you know that it's your turn to ride on Dumbo. It's a great idea to help the time pass more quickly while waiting for your turn. I found Daddy and Samantha finishing up in the play area, and then we were all able to ride on Dumbo together. I think it was Aedan's favorite ride. He was smiling and giggling throughout most of the ride. Plus, we were able to get a longer ride because they had to stop the ride halfway through because someone didn't have their child sitting in the proper position so they made everyone get off the ride to do a safety check, and then we were all able to get back on again for a complete ride. Samantha enjoyed riding with Daddy, looking at the water fountain in the middle of the ride, and making Dumbo move up and down. I'm glad we decided to ride this. Everyone had a fun time.
After riding Dumbo, we decided to use one of our free Fast Passes to meet Anna and Elsa. It was wonderful! Rather than waiting for almost two hours, we walked right in, waiting for maybe five minutes. Samantha was SO excited. She had her autograph book all ready to go and couldn't help smiling as she waited patiently for her turn in line.
We had been telling Samantha all week, whenever we ended up in a gift shop and she was begging to get something, that she could pick out a souvenir on Thursday, our last full day. Well, after meeting Anna and Elsa, there was a whole gift shop of Frozen paraphernalia. Samantha wanted to pick her souvenir from this store, and she chose Anna and Elsa dolls. I would say they are about a foot tall each, and they are designed to look like little girls, like they are at the beginning of the movie. Samantha loves that part of the movie when Anna and Elsa are "babies," as she calls them, and they play with Elsa's ice magic together. The other nice thing about staying onsite is that we could have purchases sent back to our room, saving us from lugging them around all day. However, there was no guarantee that they would be delivered before we would have to head to the airport the next day. They also give you the option of having them sent to the Chamber of Commerce building at the front of the park, so we chose to do that instead. However, Samantha desperately wanted to take them both out of the box. We didn't want to have to deal with keeping track of both of them the rest of the day, so we let her choose one that we'd take out of the box and she could keep the doll with her the rest of the day. She chose Elsa, so the kind lady at the gift shop lovingly removed her from the box for us, and Samantha was so excited. She didn't let Elsa out of her sight the rest of the day. You'll see her appear in many of the following pictures.
After getting Samantha's souvenir, we decided to make our way to where the Festival of Fantasy parade route was located so we could find a good location to relax and watch the parade. Aedan had fallen asleep in the Ergo shortly after riding the Dumbo ride and was taking a really good afternoon nap. (He needed it!) We found a really good place right along the street in the shade and only had to wait about ten minutes or so for the parade to start. We also took the opportunity to get a special ice cream treat to help us cool off. You can't go wrong with a Mickey Mouse ice cream bar. :)
Our sit and stand stroller came in handy in so many ways. It was great to have a place for both Samantha and Aedan to sit. Plus, it gave Samantha a place to her own to watch the parade from. You can see her here as the parade came down the street, holding on to her special Elsa doll.
The Festival of Fantasy parade was so fun to watch. It had all of Samantha's favorite princesses and characters in it. The floats were so creative. Most of them actually had moving parts on it. This is definitely a parade worth seeing. Beauty and Beast started it off, with Cinderella and Prince Charming following them. Then there was Tiana and Naveen on one side and Anna and Elsa on the other side of a platform that spun around so that way the characters didn't have to move as much and both sides of the street were able to get a great view of them.
Next up was Rapunzel's float with Flynn Rider and other characters, riding back and forth on these movable parts. It was pretty cool.
Next came Ariel's float. Samantha enjoyed saying hello to Ariel as she went by. (Notice her hoarse voice? She was feeling much better, but just didn't sound so great yet.)
After that came a Peter Pan float, with Peter Pan and Wendy in a ship on top of a rainbow, Captain Hook underneath, and Tinkerbell in the back. Samantha really liked this float.
After that, there was the complete cast of Sleeping Beauty with the three fairies flitting around, probably on roller skates, followed by Prince Philip battling Maleficent's evil creatures. Then, there was a huge fire breathing dragon. Samantha commented, "That fire made me feel hot!"
Then came Snow White and the seven dwarfs dancing together along the street, some characters from Alice in Wonderland, and Jiminy Cricket. The next float had Pinocchio, Dumbo, Daisy and Donald Duck, and Pluto. There were some dancers wearing brightly colored outfits, and then the last float was a hot air balloon with Mickey and Minnie Mouse inside.
After the parade was over, since Aedan was still sleeping, Daddy and Samantha went to watch the Country Bear Jamboree while I let Aedan continue his nap in the Ergo. I was afraid he would wake right up if we went inside the loud show. Once he woke up, we tried going to the Enchanted Tiki Room show together, but Aedan was not in the mood for that and Daddy ended up taking him out halfway through because he was being too loud and fussy. Samantha wasn't too interested in the show either. It was that time of the afternoon where her tiredness was just starting to hit her, before she got her second wind.
So from there we made our way back to Fantasyland to ride other rides we hadn't gotten to yet. We went on everything we were interested in in Frontierland and Adventureland. We saw the 3D show, PhilharMagic, and then rode on the carousel together. It was a pretty warm afternoon, hence why Aedan doesn't have pants on. We didn't want him to get too warm in his jeans.
It's hard to tell what babies think, especially after we had already dragged Aedan around so much the past few days, not to mention he wasn't feeling the greatest either, since he seemed to have caught the cough and runny nose that Samantha had. He was kind of zoned out on the carousel, but Samantha really enjoyed riding next to him. In fact, she reached out and held his hand for part of the ride, which I thought was so precious. She certainly loves her little brother.
We made our way back to the baby care center so that I could nurse Aedan and Ben attempted to figure out a good place to eat dinner. However, there really was nothing much in that location. The best restaurant was back in Fantasyland at what looked like Pinocchio's house. We were able to get pizza and salad to share, and we had a nice dinner sitting outside, enjoying the sunset and the cooler air that was starting to settle in. By the time we were done with dinner, we decided both kids needed to put their pants and sweaters back on. It had been a long, but good day at the Magic Kingdom. The kids were doing great, so we decided to stick it out a little longer.
We had a Fast Pass for Peter Pan's Flight, and it also showed that Ben had one more free Fast Pass on his account to use on any ride at any time. We weren't sure if going on Peter Pan would take up that Fast Pass, so I just took Aedan and Samantha on the ride, and once again, we were so glad that we had a Fast Pass. The standby line was over an hour long, but we got right on. Peter Pan has always been one of my favorite rides for some reason. I love the fantasy of it. You're riding in a boat suspended from the ceiling. It starts off in Wendy, Michael, and Peter's bedroom, and then takes you on a tour of Neverland. It's simple, but great, a classic. Samantha really enjoyed, too. She just had to make sure the pirates and crocodile were really pretend.
After that, we decided to see if Ben's Fast Pass would work for the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. This is a new ride in Fantasyland and is therefore very popular. We were not going to spend a long time waiting in line, but Ben was able to go on with his Fast Pass and get a Rider Swap so that I could go on as well. We weren't sure if Samantha would like the ride or not, but after Daddy rode on it, he figured Samantha would like it too. So, Samantha and I were able to ride it together after Daddy got off. There were times when it went a little fast, but she seemed to have fun. I had never been on it before, so I couldn't warn her ahead of time about what was going to happen. I was able to tell her that whenever you're on a roller coaster, if you go up a hill, you know that you are about ready to go down a hill. Toward the end of the ride, you go down into the mine where the seven dwarfs work and then go up a hill while they play the song "Hi, ho, hi, ho, it's home from work we go." Then you go down past the cottage where you can see Snow White dancing with the seven dwarfs. It's a really cute ride, and I made sure to make a big deal about Samantha being brave. She came out bragging to Daddy, "I was really brave on the Seven Dwarfs ride. I like fast roller coasters! They're not scary!"
After riding the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, it was getting close to 7:00 which is when the Main Street Electrical Parade was going to start, followed by the Celebrate the Magic Show and Wishes Fireworks. We wanted to get a good spot to see all those special events, so we made our way toward the castle. People were starting to find their seats, but we had really good timing. We were able to find a spot right in front of the castle, but just a few feet away from the street so that way we could see the parade and the fireworks from one location. Once we claimed our spot, we took turns leaving to use the restroom. I got out the glow sticks that I had purchased ahead of time to save money, and Samantha had fun playing with those for awhile until the parade got under way.
The parade was pretty interesting because every float and even the characters, were covered in lights. However, I felt like the parade was a little slow-moving, but maybe that's just because I had a sleeping baby in the Ergo, we had been at the Magic Kingdom all day, and it was getting close to the kids' bedtime. (As long as I kept rocking back and forth, Aedan stayed asleep, even through the noise and commotion of the parade. He only woke up once I had to sit down so that I wasn't blocking people's view of the castle for the Celebrate the Magic show.) The stroller once again came in very handy because we were able to claim our spot easier. Once the parade started, everyone started shoving closer to the street and even tried to get in front of us, but with the stroller, Samantha had her own designated spot. Plus, she was able to stand on it to get a better view of the parade.
We had a really fun night. I feel like it was the perfect end to our day at Magic Kingdom and our time at Disney World. I know it's probably silly, but I loved it as much as Samantha did. It made me feel like a kid again.
The fireworks were over a little after 8:00, and then we had to make our way out of the park among the mass of people. We stopped at the Chamber of Commerce building to pick up Samantha's Anna doll, and then Tim offered to drive us home, so we actually took the monorail to the Grand Floridian hotel where he was parked. Anyways, we didn't get back to our hotel room until around 9:30 with two tired kiddos (and parents).
We took some pictures of Samantha's bed that night because it was a highlight of her day to come back at the end of the day, see her bed made by the housekeepers, and discover how they placed Minnie and Blankie carefully at the top of the bed on the pillow. (We actually were able to meet our housekeeper as we were leaving on Friday and were able to compliment her, telling her how much Samantha loved that added touch every day.) Samantha enjoyed having this big bed all to herself on the trip, even if she curled up in a ball and didn't take up much of the bed.
Aedan had a rough night that Thursday night. He woke up coughing and crying quite a bit. We had trouble getting him back to sleep and didn't want to wake up Samantha, so we actually ended up bringing his pack and play into our bedroom and letting him finish off the rest of the night with us. I know Ben even sat up in bed with him for quite some time because it seemed like he would wake up every time we tried to lay him down. Also, he woke up early in the morning, and we tried to get him back to sleep, but he was wide awake and making noise. We did all we could to keep him quiet in order to allow Samantha to get more sleep.
We had plans to go to Hollywood Studios for awhile on our last day. Our main priority was to see the Frozen Sing Along show. We knew Samantha would love it, and we had heard great things about it. So as soon as we got in the park we made our way back and got in line with no problem. While we were in line, we talked with a family from Mississippi who had a little girl a little older than Samantha. The girls enjoyed talking to and playing with each other while we waited for the show to start. They even wanted to sit next to each other. It was cute to see them interact with each other.
The Frozen Sing Along really was fun. They had Anna come out first, as if she were looking for Elsa, the Queen of Arendelle, and then they had screens with the parts of the movie with the most popular songs, as well as the lyrics so everyone could sing along. Here are cute videos and pictures from the Sing Along.
After swimming, we gave the kids baths, gathered up our last belongings from our Lion King suite, and went down to the food court to have lunch. We even bought some special desserts to bring with us to eat at the airport. Everyone was pretty tired, but especially the kids. Aedan was acting pretty fussy as we waited for the bus, so I ended up giving him his pacifier, holding him in my arms, and rocking him to sleep, right there outside in the middle of all the noise of traffic and people. This is so unlike him, the poor boy must have been so tired. The bus ride back to the airport was about forty minutes long, and Aedan slept the whole way. In fact, Samantha actually fell asleep on Daddy as well. That is an amazing thing! She has never been one of those kids who will fall asleep anywhere. I'm glad she let herself take a little bit of a nap because we had a long day of traveling ahead of us.
The flight went pretty well again. Aedan wasn't quite as easygoing as he was on the fight down, but he still nursed fairly well on take off and took a little nap in my lap. Samantha enjoyed watching a couple shows, eating her snacks, and playing with her new Anna and Elsa dolls. After Aedan woke up, he spent the rest of the time playing with Daddy and Samantha. Now, Aedan must have been feeling much better than me because on the descent my ears started hurting badly. It was very painful, so much so that I began to cry. This cold/cough thing had now made it's way all the way around to me, and luckily, I guess for Samantha and Aedan, I seemed to have gotten the worst of it.
We got home safely, got the kids tucked in their own beds, sorted out some of our luggage, and then fell into bed ourselves. We had a great week in Disney World, made memories that will last a lifetime, and survived our first family vacation as a family of four. Hey, if we can do Disney on our own, we can do anything, right? I can definitely see why people go to Disney every year. It's just such a fun place, with a little something for everyone in the family, and so much to do that five days there isn't enough. We will definitely have to make another trip to Disney World. :)
The rest of the weekend we just took it easy, relaxed, did laundry, caught up on sleep, and enjoyed some downtime at home after a jam-packed week of fun. I will leave you with a cute picture of Aedan's bedhead when he woke up on Saturday morning.
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