Florida Vacation: Magic Kingdom Day!

We had the most amazing time at Magic Kingdom on our last full day in Florida.  The kids were really looking forward to this part of the trip, and I think we saved the best for last :). It was such an awesome day!

We woke up extra early to be there as close to opening as possible, but even though we left the condo around 6:30 AM, we still didn't get into the actual park until almost 9:30.  I completely forgot how much of a little 'city' Disney World is, how long it takes to get parked and into the entrance, and then once you get your tickets, it still takes times to ride the monorail into Magic Kingdom itself.  But the kids didn't miss a beat--they thought every part of the day was great, and their faces when we walked in...!  I wish I could bottle up that excitement and save it.

We had worked out a little scheme of rides to go on for the morning thanks to some Fast Passes, and we never really waited all that long in any lines.  I had hoped we could get the kids on the Peter Pan ride, and Jeremy wanted to take the big kids on Splash Mountain, but Fast Passes for those rides had been gone for days and the lines were already an hour long when we arrived.  The great news was that the kids didn't even know what we were missing!  We're so mean, aren't we!?!?  

We got inside, spent the BEST $31 of the week on a hard-sided double stroller for the big kids, and tried unsuccessfully to get some pictures.  The kids were a little overwhelmed, and it was not a great time to get pics :)

We went to Fantasyland, and went right to Enchanted Tales with Belle.  It was the perfect start!  The kids got to be a part of a 'play' inside the Beast's castle.  Izzy was chosen to be a dancing dish, Cooper was the beast, and Jeremy was a knight in shining armor (he was thrilled).

There was an audible gasp when Belle herself walked into the room.  All the kids were so excited.  She was a part of the 'play,' and she even danced with the beast!

https://youtu.be/g-J6at95yeg

She took a photo with every character, and Carson wanted to give her a hug!  Melt. My. Heart.  

Throughout the rest of the morning, we went on more rides and got to meet more characters.  Meeting Ariel was so cool for the kids because they got to have a little conversation with her.  She, along with all the other characters all day, were always in character, and they really made the day magical.  Seriously, the place is magical.  Even as an adult, I couldn't wipe the smile off my face!  (Okay, spending $65 for lunch wiped away the smile for a bit, but just a bit!)

The classic Dumbo ride:

Izzy LOVED meeting Daisy and Minnie.  She was excited to show Minnie her "party nails" which had Minnie and Daisy nail wraps.  And she gave Minnie the biggest hug!!  Cooper was being too cool for Minnie, but she got him :)  She pulled him into a hug and photo, and surprisingly, he went along with it, with even a smile!!

The classic Teacups:

Vroom vroom!!

Cooper LOVED the go karts.  He was at the wheel, and he was simply giddy.  Jeremy couldn't stop laughing when they got off the ride.  https://youtu.be/2HmUqjWw8zI

Carson had no trouble making himself comfortable for a nap while we were go karting and planning our evening :)

The many family rides were so much fun! This was the Pirates of the Caribbean ride.

We did end up with a good family pic in front of the castle!

Grandma, not so much...

Grandma really wanted to buy the kids a couple souvenirs from the park, so as the day came to a close, Cooper and Izzy both picked out a set of ears.  Carson wouldn't keep a pair on, so he got a Mickey ball.  And they all got a shirt, too!  I picked out a Christmas ornament for our tree, and Jeremy got a Diet Coke ;)

When it was time to go... it was time to go.  So we grabbed supper at McDonald's on the way to our hotel.  Of course, ice cream was in order to celebrate the amazing day!

We made the decision to leave our Indian Shores condo a day early and spend the night in Orlando to save four hours of driving... we needed to be at the airport by around 8 the next morning.  We had stopped at McDonald's and once those bellies were full, Carson and Izzy were out!  It was literally a 7-min drive!  Neither of them woke up getting out of the van, getting into the room, getting pajamas on... they didn't move!  (In the morning, Izzy was confused about where we were!!!)

We were all exhausted, but I spent nearly an hour looking through the pictures from the day and reliving the fun memories.  I wish I could bottle up their innocent and pure excitement from this day.  I am so glad we decided to spend the money to take them (we seriously considered not), and I'm so glad they got to experience it while they are so young and innocent!  The next time we go, I'm sure Cooper will be getting on the old side to enjoy the characters and the 'magic' of the place... maybe Izzy too (depending on how fast we can save up for another vacation).  Even Carson was so much more into it than we thought he'd be.  I didn't mind pushing a stroller all day, and in fact, I'd rent another one for the big kids in a heart beat.  I know they wouldn't have enjoyed it as much if their little legs walked the same 8.5 miles that ours did!

What a day!!

Florida Vacation Day #6

We spent the morning at Clearwater Beach.  It was hot but fun!

The kids were cutely thrilled to play on an actual playground.

 

We went out on the pier and watched a couple people fishing.  No catching, though.  The kids thought it was fun to be that far out into the ocean.  They also liked tormenting the seagulls along the way.  And Cooper was obsessed with knowing what each and every signs along the pier said.  He was particularly interested in the lion fish warning signs after having learned a little about these 'invaders' at the Tampa zoo.

Back on land, Grandma treated the kids to a turn on a bungee trampoline.  They thought it was pretty fun to jump that high, but neither of them wanted to try a backflip.  We thought for sure Izzy the daredevil would :)

What day would be complete without ice cream?  They had superman flavor, so with stained faces and full bellies (and a teasing photo to grandpa), we headed back to our condo for lunch and quick naps.

The kids begged to go in the pool one last time, so we swam and swam and swam to the little hearts' content.  Cooper kept trying to splash me with his jumps, and he loved having swimming and holding-your-breath contests.  After a scare without her life jacket the other day, Izzy was a little more skiddish today, but she still had a blast.  Carson was happiest if he could just do his own thing, which mostly included walking along the ledge.  

We had to go say farewell to the ocean... it was the windiest day of the whole trip, so we were so thankful we had already spent so much time on the beach.  The kids tried their hands at boogie boarding again, collected some more shells, built some more castles, and just played in the waves.  Carson had fun just throwing rocks and shells in and out of buckets.  Izzy loved searching for little fish and unique seashells with grandma.  And Cooper, well Cooper was content in the most complete sense of the word.  If we would move to the beach, he wouldn't ever wish for another thing!

More sunset pics and a final goodbye to the sun... tomorrow will be an early day!!  On tap??  Magic Kingdom!!

Florida Vacation Day #5

Last night, again.  Gosh they're cute!

The kids went to bed earlier than any other night and they slept in longer than they had any other morning!  The salty sea air seems to be taking it out of them :)

Today was a very laid back day.  I snuck out for a run on the beach, and it was awesome.  It is a bit harder to run on the sand, but it felt good to be out in the warmth!  It was peaceful and quiet.  

The kids snuggled up with cartoons for a while each morning:)

Jeremy headed to Orlando to pick up his mom.  They were slated to be back around 1:00, so the kids and I spent time hanging out in the condo, working on a little of Cooper's school work and laying low.  

Carson was excited for the beach!

https://youtu.be/oJkcLQu8kzo

We made it out to the beach for a couple hours of fun, though.  The kids were very good listeners for it being just me on three!

Izzy went back to her shell collecting...

Carson just wanted to keep filling buckets...

And Cooper could live on the beach. He told me he loves when his fingers get all wrinkly :)

The kids were so excited for grandma to arrive!  We baked her a cake for a "surprise party" since we didn't really celebrate her birthday last week, plus the kids really wanted to welcome her in a fun way.  Izzy was a bit bummed we didn't get balloons.  They watched out the window for Jeremy and Lori to pull into the parking lot and then hid (this place has a bunch of fun going places) and jumped out when they came in.  After a ginormous piece of chocolate cake, they took a quick nap and then we headed back down to the beach for the evening.

Carson was really into the shells this time.  

He also loved splashing in buckets, dumping, and filling them.

And he loved his castle :)

He also loved to swim, swim, swim.  He was most comfortable today of all the days here.  

Cooper loved having water fights.  He was also trying to catch minnows, and he even stepped on something--he thought it was a fish--and two seconds later, Lori saw a small stingray swim away.  Yikes!

He definitely had wrinkly fingers by this point!!

Both kids liked boogie boarding again.

The mermaids came and wrote Izzy's name in the sand with shells!

Breathtaking sunsets would never get old!

They were wound up at the dinner table!

https://youtu.be/A0b4O4lrzFU

Thanks to Grandma Lori for getting the kids down for bed so we could go meet up with a friend and grab a drink.  It's kind of crazy we had to fly hundreds of miles away to be 2 mins apart for a few days!  Thanks, Kristine, for the good ice cream shop idea!  Jeremy and I did go grab a drink afterward, so it was a fun little mini-date :)

Cooper's favorite part today was the water fight.  Izzy's favorite was simple: the beach.

Tomorrow will be our last beach day.  I can't wait to spend another day in the sun!