Keeping up our trend of being horribly behind on blog posts, hopefully we’ll churn a bunch out this weekend. We already shared tons of pictures and stories from Eliza’s first visit to Disney World in February, but there were other fun things that happened during our two-week trip to Florida, too!
Thanks to the minivan, making the two-day drive down to stay at my parents’ place in Venice wasn’t as bad as we thought. Just as Matilda had reached her threshold for time spent in a car seat, we stopped in Atlanta to spend the night and visit the Hults family. Mark recently graduated from seminary there, and since our days together in Lafayette, we hadn’t been able to visit them much. It was so much fun (and Eliza had a blast playing with Emerson and Hayden), that we stayed with them on our drive back two weeks later, too.
The girls made a mess of all the toys, and Emerson prepared Eliza for Disney World by showing her all the princess outfits she had.
After seeing the Hults family, we continued the drive to Florida. Georgia and northern Florida are pretty boring drives, but it’s always fun to see the car thermostat slowly increase as we head south. I remember marking those Fahrenheit milestones when I was a child packed in the minivan on my way to visit Grandma and Grandpa. Overall, the girls did well on the trip, but I think Matilda was desperate for some more “hold time” as soon as we arrived. Fortunately my parents were ready for some grandkid time.
During the two weeks in Florida, other than going to Disney World, we were able to relax, go to the beach, swim in the pool, and eat some great food, including the greatest ice cream in the world – lime soft serve at the Nokomis Groves. It’s probably the most nostalgic part of the trip for me each year, since I can remember going often when I was a child. And it’s lime ice cream, a very underappreciated flavor (especially when swirled with chocolate).
Eliza getting used to the pool
We worked on our swimming
Matilda enjoyed watching
Eliza enjoying the first beach day
Checking out the water with Grandpa
Matilda's first beach experience. Seems like it was just yesterday Eliza was this small hanging out on a Florida beach for the first time.
It was a very hazy day at the beach, but it cleared up later
She wasn't as afraid of the waves this year, but she still was hesitant to get in the water
Enjoying the best ice cream in the world!
Family picture in the orange groves
We took a day to drive down to Naples and see Eliza's Great Aunt Janet and Uncle Dave. We had a lot of fun catching up, swimming in their pool, visiting the beach, watching the fisherman, seeing dolphins, and eating some delicious food (although Eliza got a bit sick due to either the heat or car sickness).
The Naples dock
Before we left, we had to visit the beach one last time, and we went to Siesta Key, the first beach Eliza experienced back when she was a few months old. Eliza spent a lot of time in the water, and we were very proud of her.
The girls liked the kites flying high overhead
We can't wait to go next year, and hopefully we can stay for at least a month thanks to Kirk's flexible work schedule!
Back in February we drove down to Florida to visit my parents in Venice for a couple weeks. We’ll share photos and stories from the trip, but the highlight was spending a few days in Orlando and visiting Disney World with the girls. Fun fact: kids are free at Disney until they turn three, so Eliza had two months to spare. We decided that one day at the Magic Kingdom would be a fun treat, but we knew it was a risk with such young kids. Eliza had only seen a couple Disney movies, Snow White and Beauty and the Beast (hiding her eyes during the scary parts), but she had read lots of the stories.
Our first day in Orlando, we visited Downtown Disney to let her see the characters at the Disney store, hoping it would help her get acclimated to the fun in store the following day. You would have thought that the store itself was a theme park, as Eliza loved seeing the costumes (princesses), toys (magic wands), and stuffed animals (see picture below). Downtown Disney was also a lot of fun due to the giant Lego store and Disney movie scenes built out of the blocks, live music, pier, bright lights, and hot air balloon.
Hiding among Mickeys in Downtown Disney
So many Legos at the Disney Lego Imagination Center!
Matilda enjoyed the Lego store, too
The next day we got up early to get to the park before it got too crowded. Even though it was the winter, it was kind of a busy week at the park, but that meant the gates opened early and rides stayed running well into the night. Eliza enjoyed breakfast where she received some special presents: a Disney princess water bottle and Tupperware for her lunch that we were taking into the park. She also got a tiara and got to wear a Snow White outfit her grandma had found earlier in the week.
A pre-Disney breakfast fit for a princess
We arrived at the park at 8:45am, which is pretty early for the girls (Eliza usually wakes at 8:30am), but she was so excited to start her big adventure. She was thrilled to see the castle for the first time, and we immediately headed to Fantasy Land, where most of the movie-themed rides, perfect for young children, are located. First, Eliza rode the carousel (it was the first ride she saw, so we couldn’t resist) with Lynne, and then we all sailed through It’s A Small World. As it seems to be the case with all kids, Eliza loved the ride and the song.
Thanks to the Fast Pass system, it was really easy to avoid long lines. We never had to wait more than 15 minutes to see an attraction, despite the crowded park. Next, Eliza and Lynne rode the Winnie the Pooh ride, which is a “dark” ride since it’s indoors and dimly lit. I had planned to ride it with Eliza next since Matilda was fast asleep in her stroller, but Eliza was a bit afraid of the dark and didn’t want to go on the ride again. I never knew Winnie the Pooh could be scary!
Arriving at Disney World!
Strolling down Main Street with a princess
Seeing Cinderella Castle for the first time
The royal family
Eliza's first Disney ride - the carousel!
Eliza's favorite ride - It's a Small World
The coolest dad at Disney
Our "sleeping beauty"
Eliza loved the castle
We told Eliza to make a "grumpy" face in honor of the dwarf, and this is what she did
Next, I took Eliza to see Mickey’s Philharmagic, which is a 3D movie sensory movie experience that follows Donald Duck through musical scenes from classic Disney films. Eliza hadn’t seen Lion King, Little Mermaid, or Aladdin yet, but she loved the songs and silly antics of Donald (and wearing her 3D glasses). After that, Matilda was awake, so we all went on the Peter Pan ride, which was also pretty dark, since it starts with a nighttime scene. Eliza made it through but had to cover her eyes a bit and curl up in the middle of the ship/car because she didn’t like the sensation of being up high above the city.
We decided to take a break from the “inside rides,” and I took Eliza on the teacups, which she really liked (although I couldn’t spin our cup too fast). As we exited the ride, Eliza got to see Alice and the White Rabbit, her first character sighting, and she was in awe. Then we stopped for some snacks and bathroom breaks. Eliza was fantastic and even though we were in the middle of potty training, she didn’t have any accidents at the park.
Eliza on the teacups
That concluded the rides in Fantasy Land (the Snow White ride there is very dark and centers around the queen chasing Snow White, so it’s definitely not age appropriate), and we learned that on the other side of the park Eliza could meet the princesses. We hustled over to get Fast Passes, because the lines had more than a 90 minute wait. Eliza couldn’t quite understand why we stood outside the building with the princesses (getting our Fast Passes for an entry time a few hours later) and not going in, so we explained that we had a special reservation for later, and she liked the sound of that.
Following that we went to Adventure Land where Eliza saw Peter Pan in person, went on the Magic Carpets of Aladdin (she really enjoyed it), Pirates of the Caribbean (definitely a little dark, but she did better on it than on the Peter Pan ride earlier!), and the Jungle Cruise (definitely a favorite, seeing all the animatronic animals. She also saw the Enchanted Tiki Room show, which she loved and even stood up and danced during, and walked through the Swiss Family Tree House. We also had a relaxing lunch and saw a bit of a pirate show.
On our way to see the princesses, we stopped near the castle to watch the midday parade. Eliza sat on my shoulders to see it all: Mickey and Minnie, princesses, signing, dancing, and all the other characters. The highlight was definitely when Snow White came by and noticed Eliza in her costume (see video below). Eliza was tickled that Snow White talked directly to her. Watching Eliza excitedly wave was hilarious, and we’re still not sure how her arm didn’t get tired.
Mickey and Minnie at the parade
The day parade begins
Eliza sees Snow White
Eliza sees the princesses
The rest of the parade
After the parade we headed to our reservation with the princesses. Apparently there are always three princesses to meet, but they don’t let you know which ones. Eliza was obviously excited to meet Snow White, her favorite, and even brought an apple to give to her. Unfortunately, as we approached the front of the line, we learned that she would be meeting Aurora (Sleeping Beauty), Belle (Beauty and the Beast), and Cinderella. We were a bit worried that Eliza would have a meltdown. Up to that point, she had been behaving perfectly, so this would definitely test her patience and understanding.
Eliza was very excited to give a "good apple" to Snow White, totally her idea.
First Eliza met Aurora. She was familiar with the Sleeping Beauty story but hadn’t yet seen the film. Her first words to Aurora were, “Where’s Snow White?” Not exactly the way to make a princess feel special. The actress put up with her well, but in the video below you can hear her getting a bit sassy that Eliza wasn’t as excited as most kids to see Sleeping Beauty.
Eliza meets Aurora
Next, Eliza got to meet Belle, and she was so excited. She gave her a huge hug, asked her to dance, and just beamed. The actress was really great with her and made it lots of fun.
Eliza meets Belle
Finally, Eliza got to meet Cinderella who was also wonderful. They danced, and I almost cried when she asked her, “What’s your prince’s name?” and she said “Prince Daddy” (and later “Prince Kirk”). Eliza also had to show Cinderella that she had a picture of Snow White on her dress, and as we were leaving, she asked “Where’s Snow White?” We hoped she would forget, but not our little memory expert! As a special treat, Lynne gave her a little Snow White figure we had purchased at home and brought with us. She clung to that little doll with a kung fu grip the rest of the day (and I ate the apple).
Hiding among Mickey dolls after meeting the princesses
As we left the princess exhibit to go find more rides, we happened to catch the afternoon castle show, which featured many of the Disney characters: Snow White, Cinderella, Aurora, their princes, Pan, Hook, Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy, and even Maleficent. Eliza really enjoyed watching them all sing and dance. She didn’t really question how these princesses got there so fast (since she had seen them on the other side of the park just minutes ago), and she was even happy to see that Maleficent wasn’t “grumpy” (her term for when the evil characters are acting bad in the films or books – they aren’t evil, they’re just grumpy).
The castle show
Fireworks at the castle show
Snow White needed a snack
Our next destination was Tomorrow Land to see if any of the rides there were age appropriate (quick answer – no, not really). I tried to take Eliza on the Buzz Lightyear ride, but as soon as we got to the front of the line, she said it was too dark and scary, so we left. Instead, we sat, had a snack, people watched, and Eliza got to dance with Goofy, Stitch, and Pluto. It started to sprinkle a bit, and earlier in the day I had scored us two Fast Passes to go on Space Mountain, so we could each ride solo while the other watched the kids. Us adults have to get some real rides in, right? I went on Space Mountain, which is my favorite ride in the park, but when I came out i found a drenched Lynne and kids in the gift shop. It had started pouring while I was on the ride, so we had to wait out the weather for a little bit. A lot of people left the park since it was about dinner time and the sky was very ominous, and we hustled towards the entrance to see if we could get some food and make a decision on leaving or not.
While we walked around under Main Street’s covered sidewalks, it was fun to window shop and see the cool displays for each Disney film (ala Macy’s shop windows in New York). Eliza didn’t seem to mind the rain at all and thought it was all fun. We enjoyed some dinner, and by the time we were done, the rain had stopped and it was dark. Eliza and I got up close to some ducks that were enjoying crumbs from the guests’ dinners, and I think she enjoyed seeing them as much as any of the characters (princesses excluded of course).
Staying out of the rain
Since it was dark, we figured we could wait around until the evening’s electric light parade, so we headed back to Fantasy Land since we had gone on every remotely age appropriate ride already. Matilda was fast asleep, so we each rode It’s A Small World one more time with Eliza, and then I took her on the carousel (since Lynne got that privilege earlier in the day). It was a nice bookend to start and end with the same rides. It started to rain a little again, so we ran back to Main Street in case we had to watch the parade from a dry location and because we planned to leave as soon as the parade concluded.
The castle at night
The carousel at night
One last ride with daddy
Fantasy Land at night
The evening parade was postponed due to weather, but we waited out the 20 minute delay. Eliza loved the lights, even though she was quite tired, but the highlight was when she saw Snow White walking down the street. Eliza screamed, “Snow White! It’s me!” as if the princess would recognize her from the moment they shared at the earlier parade, and then she threw open her jean jacket to show her dress and yelled, “I’m wearing you!” We were in stitches. Even at the point of exhaustion, Eliza had to make sure Snow White saw her.
The night parade
Pete's (electrified) Dragon
As we got ready to leave the park, there was no wait to go get your picture with Mickey, but Eliza said she was done. It was 9:45pm, well past her bed time, and with no nap, we were amazed at how well she behaved the entire day. Her actions and demeanor truly befit a princess. The only tears she shed the entire time were as we left, since she didn’t want the day to end.
