DisneyWorld, here we come!

I admit, I love DisneyWorld.  I remember going when I was in 1st grade, and up until I moved to Memphis I hadn't been back.  But I willingly agreed to attend a nursing conference in Orlando shortly after I started at St. Jude (they really had to twist my arm), and since then I have loved going to Disney!  My first 1/2 marathon was at Disney; it was lots of fun....running straight down Main Street at the Magic Kingdom, through Cinderella's castle, and through all the different countries at Epcot.  Shane & I spent our 5 year anniversary in the Orlando area, spending much of our time at Disney.  I just love a good thrill, big or small.  And I have been dying to take our kids...especially Avery, while the princesses are still magical to her.  So I've been planning and talking Shane into going for the past year, year and a half, and all the planning has been worth it!

I'd like to say it was a hard decision to make, but it really wasn't for us....leaving Carter at home with Grandma.  The little dude just would not have had much fun; he still isn't walking much so he'd be all day in a stroller.  He was much happier at home getting lots of love and attention from Grandma and Aunt Karen.  There were several times throughout our trip (although I missed him tons), I thought to myself, "I'm glad we didn't bring Carter."  So I had my good cry the night before, standing over his crib watching him sleep.  And I knew it was best for the both of us if we left before he got up the next morning.  Arise and shine and we're off to Disney.  We opted to drive since airfare is so expensive (and in the end we saved a ton of $$$ by doing so).  And all before we got out of the driveway Shane backed into the garage door before it was all the way up, knocking it off the track; and Parker yanked open the cover on the DVD player, breaking it.  Woo hoo....what a way to start our trip :-)  They were both easily fixed; they didn't slow us down too much.  And with our second attempt...off we go!

I was really proud of the way the kids traveled.  They watched a lot of movies and played with their toys and took some naps and ate some snacks.  We stopped a few times for bathroom breaks and to stretch and run around, and to eat.  We had to find somewhere to eat with a playground....good ole Chick-fil-a!  Avery did say one time, "Mommy, when are we going to be at DisneyWorld because I'm really tired of sitting here!"  Ha!  I told her I was tired of sitting there, too.  So we stopped for the night in Valdosta, GA and got up bright and early to finish our trip....4 more hours!

As we arrived on Disney property and were navigating to the Animal Kingdom Lodge, Avery & Parker were screaming in the backseat, "yay for FOrland, we made it to FOrlando!"  And despite the fact that it was pouring down rain when we got there, the "FOrlando" lifted my spirits and made me laugh.  The Animal Kingdom Lodge was beautiful and had a great lookout to a private, little savanna with giraffes and zebras and antelopes and some other animals I couldn't pronounce.  So by the time we got to our room and unpacked and got ready to go catch a bus, the sun was shining!  Magic Kingdom here we come!

We're here!!!

I have been anticipating this moment for quite some time, and even though we had 2 tired kiddos, they were quite enthusiastic about all the sights and sounds!  We got in a couple of rides before heading to Cinderella's Royal Table for dinner.  Avery was a little shy when it came to meeting Cinderella, so I held her hand and took the picture with her.  As you'll see below, after that initial shyness, she had no problem with the other princesses.  Parker, however, had no desire whatsoever to take a picture with anybody! 

Parker received his royal sword while eating dinner and he carried this thing around with him ALL week.  I don't know how it didn't get lost.

Here's Avery on the Teacups.  She didn't quite know what to think about it at first, especially since the girls were the only brave enough to ride them (Daddy can't quite stomach going round and around and around :-)

And here, of course, would be Parker's favorite...the racetrack.  Bless him, thanks to the low lines he got to ride it several times.

I guess since we figured we were only going to be there for a few hours, we didn't bother taking our stroller with us that first afternoon.  Big mistake!  We had been there maybe an hour before Parker started saying, "hold me, Daddy".  And speaking of, Parker was all over Shane, all week.  He wouldn't do anything with me...no riding rides with me, taking pictures with me, going to the bathroom with me, sitting beside me.  He was all about his daddy.  Shane said he was just making up for lost time.  No feelings hurt; that's just my Parker man.

So after 2 days of travel and an afternoon at the Magic Kingdom, everybody was exhausted and we all slept very well that night.  All throughout the week I just thanked God for this vacation.  That He made it financially possible for us; and that we are all healthy and able to be here and enjoy it; that Carter was being well cared for back home by Grandma who gave up over a week of her time to be there with him; that we have a good car that got us there and got us home; that He granted us travel mercies!   Just so much to be thankful for! 

Stay tuned....more to come!