Disney World Day 5 - Back at Magic Kingdom

Our last day at Disney World did not start out very promising. Landon woke up not feeling well and then starting throwing up. We weren't quite sure what to do since our plane wasn't leaving until 5 p.m. Landon still wanted to head over to Magic Kingdom so we boarded the bus and wished for the best. Landon ended up throwing up on the bus and had several bouts of diarrhea too (fun, fun!!) but he was a trooper and still went on every ride that morning. We think it was food poisoning from some whipped cream he had eaten the night before that had sat out in the afternoon sun for too long. Thank goodness he was all back to normal by the time we got to the Orlando airport later in the afternoon.

We enjoyed visiting the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse...

And going on the "Jungle Cruise." Gotta love Nolan's expression here!!

We had brunch reservations at the Crystal Palace where we got to meet all the Winnie the Pooh characters. Maylie was quite enthralled with Tigger, as long as he didn't get too close!

Nolan was obviously a big fan too!!

When Nolan spied Pooh across the restaurant, he declared "I sure hope that honey guy comes over here!!"

Abby getting some Piglet love!!

And who could forget Eeyore!!

We were able to go on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad again as well as Splash Mountain which were both a lot of fun!

We went back to Fantasyland to go on "It's a Small World" and "Winnie the Pooh" again before it was time to take the bus back to the hotel and head to the airport. It was really hard to leave such a magical place. We all had an amazing time and can't wait to start planning our next trip.

Bye, bye Disney World...until next time!!!

Disney World Day 4 - Downtown Disney & Hollywood Studios

I made a major snafu on Friday morning in our Disney World planning. For some reason I thought we had Water Park tickets along with Park Hopper so we all got dressed in our swim gear and headed to Typhoon Lagoon. When we got to the entrance we were told our Disney tickets didn't include the water park option. I felt like an idiot, the kids were disappointed, and we weren't quite sure what to do next. Then we saw a bus headed for Downtown Disney and decided to jump on board. It ended up being a pretty fantastic morning after all!!

A few sights from our tour of Downtown Disney...

The highlight of that little trip was the LEGO store. Seeing all these creations outside made entirely of LEGO blocks was amazing!!

Nolan making his best "Hulk" pose!

And then Landon gave it a shot!

Can you believe all of these figures are made from LEGOs?!?!?

We picked out a few kits for the kids and then they got to fill up a bucket with all kinds of unique LEGOs to add to our collection. The LEGO store was definitely a highlight of our trip and wouldn't have happened except for the "water park snafu!"

After Downtown Disney, we headed back to out hotel to change and grab a snack before heading over to Hollywood Studios. The weather had been pretty mild all week, but this day we started to feel the heat a bit more.

We started out by watching the "Lights, Motors, Action Extreme Stunt Show." The action parts were pretty fun to watch, but there was a lot of talking in between and since it was in the middle of the afternoon, we were all ready for it to be done!

The kid play center from "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids" was quite fun for the older kids though!

Looks like we're on a movie set here!!

"Toy Story Mania" was a fun ride. Thank goodness for Fast Passes though because the line was over an hour long. With our Fast Passes, we were in and out in less than 15 minutes!

We had a late lunch/early dinner at the 50's Prime Time Cafe which was quite a treat and had really good food. My favorite part was the Peanut Butter and Jelly Milkshake. Yummy!!

After dinner we watched the "Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular". We all loved it!!

We had to drag Landon to go and see "Voyage of the Little Mermaid" since we had already done so many "boy" type shows. Needless to say, even Landon loved this little show and was enthralled the entire time!

We ended the evening by going on the Tower of Terror. I went with Landon, Nolan and Abby and none of us knew what we were getting ourselves into!!

I thought it would be just one big drop, but nope, they kept bringing us back up and dropping us again and again and again. Neither Landon nor I enjoyed this one, but Nolan liked it and Abby even went on it a second time with Jason. Once was more than enough for me though!!

We were going to stay for the night show called "Fantasmic" but it was standing room only and it was already pretty late. We'll save that one for next time!!

Sailor Baby

I saved a lot of Abby's clothes from when she was a baby but haven't been able to use too many of them with Maylie because they were born in different seasons. Plus there is an almost 9 year age gap in between them so the styles are just different now. But you can't go wrong with this classic navy blue and white sailor dress. I loved Abby wearing this dress and Maylie looks just as adorable in it too!

We sure love our little Sailor Baby!!

Heartbreak

It has been difficult for me to get caught up on my blogging. I was in the middle of recapping our trip to Disney World when I received the terrible news that my mom had unexpectedly passed away. This has been so difficult for me and my family to deal with and her loss has weighed heavy on my mind and my heart.

There were two main reasons for me to keep this blog going year after year. The first was because it provided a good family history and I would use the pictures and write-ups to create our yearly digital scrapbook. The second reason was because I knew my mom checked my blog religiously and I liked updating her on our lives since we live so far away. The thought of blogging again, knowing she won't be reading these little updates about our family, is extremely hard. But my mom was all about pictures and memories and I know she would want me to keep it up. So I will, For her and for the wonderful memories she created for me that I hope to be able to pass down to my own little family. I know I will see my mom again, but it is painful not to have her just a phone call away anymore. I miss her more than words can say...

Disney World Day 3 - Animal Kingdom

On Thursday, we got to Animal Kingdom just as it opened and went straight back to Kilimanjaro Safaris where we had an early FastPass. We all got inside this caravan...

And went on the closest thing any of us had ever been to an African Safari. We saw so many incredible animals and plant life and it was the highlight of our day at this park.

Antelope...

Hippos...

Birds

Steer...

Giraffes...

Monkeys...

Elephants...

Rhinos...

And lions!

It started to rain while we were on the safari and ended up raining most of that day. Fortunately we were able to stay somewhat dry while watching two incredible shows. The first was "Festival of the Lion King"...

It was phenomenal and kept us thoroughly entertained. We ate lunch at Flame Tree Barbecue and then did a little nature tour where we saw some bats...

Some more lions...

(Oh wait, those are just my scary kids!!)

Here are the real lions...

Antelope...

And an area with all kinds of interesting looking birds...

The kids also loved the little monkey exhibit in the middle of the Park...

We explored DinoLand USA for a bit (they were doing a lot of construction and it was raining so it wasn't the best) and then headed over to the "Finding Nemo" musical. Another fabulous show!!

After the show, Jason took Abby and Landon on Expedition Everest which they all loved. 

I stayed back with Nolan since this was one of the few rides that he was too short to ride on. (Sidenote: Nolan was just BARELY 40 inches tall which was such a blessing since most of the rides have this height requirement. I would advise never going to Disney World and paying full price for a child until they reach at least 40 inches. Maylie didn't count since she was free!!)

Nolan making his "scary" face!!

Time to leave Animal Kingdom, but first let's check out that amazing tree in the background...

Isn't it gorgeous?!?!

I loved all the details and images carved inside!!

Then we ate at our favorite restaurant of our trip. It was called "Boma" and was an African Buffet located inside the Animal Kingdom Lodge. Such yummy food and gorgeous atmosphere!!

After dinner, we headed back to our hotel where we got to enjoy the amazing pool at our hotel. They even played music underwater!

Another great day at the most magical place on earth!!