Disney 2015 ~ Hollywood Studios

When we planned our trip we left two days available to go to Hollywood Studios but knew we probably would not need those full two days. When we first got there we decided to go straight to Rockin' Roller Coaster so that Reese could earn her big money. It took some convincing over the last year to get her excited about this ride. She wasn't sure about going upside down. This was going to be her biggest money earner and I had promised her a t-shirt out of it too. I have no shame! The whole time we were riding it I was trying to see it through her eyes. When we got off, I looked at her and she said she loved it and wanted to do it again. We didn't do it again right away because we needed to get Tower of Terror over with. Neither kid wanted to ride this but I just knew they needed to again. This picture below is so funny. Sam from the beginning was not happy about riding it. He cried the whole time we were in line. Reese, surprisingly, was keeping it together. Her face quickly turned to look like Sam's once we were seated on the ride and I didn't know until the ride was over that she had tears too.  It made me feel a little bad but I just want them to do every ride at least once. I don't want them to regret not having done something just because they don't know what it will be like. I didn't make them ride it again. I begged them to and they both said no. While we were doing ToT, Lance took Hayes to meet Jake. I saw this picture when we got off the ride and I was so surprised. Hayes even gave him a hug all by himself!

The rest of the day was spent seeing shows and trying to stay cool. It was so very hot and humid.

Reese wanted to go ride Rockin' Roller Coaster again later in the day so we took her over there and the ride was closed due to technical difficulties. Hayes wanted his picture taken in front of the big guitar but there was a couple sitting there taking a selfie. I offered to take their picture and they took our families. We really did not take many family pictures at all this trip.

We didn't have any dinner plans and decided we wanted to head to Epcot for dinner because we hadn't made it in to the World Showcase when we were there Monday. When we arrived we realized they were doing a sneak peek at the Food and Wine Festival for that weekend and it was packed. Not only was it packed but then it started pouring down rain. We were all kind of bummed and didn't even make it to get food. We went back to our room and had poptarts and protein bars for dinner at 8:00.

Friday was much of the same except we had dining reservations at Hollywood and Vine for breakfast so we got there early.

Since Sam wasn't too in to the characters and we were done eating breakfast, Lance left with him and went to ride Star Tours (their favorite ride). We met up with them and walked through a part of the park that is going to be gone the next time we go. They are changing some things to add a new Toy Story land and a few other things. The kids played in the "Honey, I shrunk the kids" playground. It was super cute.

About half was through the day, we had done everything we wanted to so we went back to the Poly and played in the pool for a couple of hours. We made a last minute decision to go back in to Magic Kingdom one more time before we left. Lance wanted to buy a coffee mug and we hadn't been able to find one that he liked. Finally we did when we went in to the Starbucks. As we were walking around (we had no clear direction) we saw the Pirates of the Caribbean ride was open (it had been closed earlier in the week). Hayes had fallen asleep in Lance's arms so I took the big kids on the ride while Lance sat with Hayes. And then, you guessed it, we went to ride Thunder Mountain one final time. We just can't get enough!

That night we had dinner reservations at O'hana at the Poly. It was also family style and it was so much food! I felt like I didn't even get to enjoy it all because there was so much. It was a great way to end our week though. Every one slept great that night and we headed home on Saturday morning. 

The things I loved most about this trip is that we tried a lot of new things we hadn't done before and all the rides I got to ride with the kids. When planning this trip I really tried to try all new restaurants. If we were doing a restaurant we had done before (which was only three) it had to be a different meal because each meal is so different. As much fun as we have going to Disney, I think we are going to take a break for several years. Probably the next time we go, Hayes will be tall enough to ride everything and that will be so fun! I hate having to leave him behind when we go off to do something. It is so fun when every one can do it at the same time. 

Disney 2015 ~ Magic Kingdom

Once again this year we did our normal two days in Magic Kingdom. There is just so much to do that we feel like we have to do two days.

Tuesday we woke up early, had breakfast at Kona in the Polynesian, and then headed to Magic Kingdom. Our first fast pass wasn't until mid-morning so our plan was to go straight to the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and ride it early before the line got too long. What we didn't realize was that the passage way through the castle was closed for construction so we had to go around the castle to get there. Well, we chose the wrong way around and by the time we got to the ride the line was ridiculously long. So, Reese and I thought we would check out the line to see Anna and Elsa...crazy long too. So we did a few other rides while we waited for our fast passes. I am not really sure what Hayes thinks about all of the rides. He gets the funniest face when things go high and/or fast. We are going to have to keep working on him.

Finally our fast pass time arrived for Big Thunder Mountain. Sam has been waiting for a long time to get to ride this ride. Last year he pitched the biggest fit and would not do it. He was a little nervous but excited more! When he and I got off the ride, he said he wanted to do it again so I sent him with Lance and Reese to ride it immediately again (you can sit three to a seat). He loved it and probably rode it eight more times before we left.

Next up was Splash Mountain. Reese was not super excited about doing this again and Sam wasn't sure what to think. After getting soaked at Animal Kingdom, I decided to sit this one out since it was only 11:00 in the morning. Lance took them to ride and they had fun. I let Hayes play on the playground under the train bridge while we waited.

We had lunch in Beast's Castle. It was definitely a different experience from having dinner there. You place your order at a kiosk and then they find you through your magic bands at your table after you have already sat down. Again, I thought the food was okay.

After lunch we walked over to the Jungle Cruise. We had never done this before and figured it would be something Hayes would like. Well, when we got there to get Hayes out of the stroller he was sound asleep. I thought for sure he would wake up as we took him out but he didn't. He slept through the whole cruise, I put him back in the stroller and he slept for another hour or so. He was so tired after having missed three days worth of naps.

He finally woke up when we made it over to the Laugh Factory. After that show we did the Buzz Lightyear ride and then they took their picture with Buzz. Lance paid Sam $5 to take his picture because he was refusing. I guess the picture of all three of the kids with Buzz is on Reese's iPad or Lance's phone. I know we got Hayes in the picture too.

Later in the afternoon we drove the Tomorrowland Speedway cars and then made our way back over to Thunder Mountain. While Lance took the big kids on the ride, I took Hayes over to Tom Sawyer's Island. That was another thing we had never done. Hayes loved playing over there. After Lance and the kids rode the ride, they met us over on the island and then I took the kids back to ride it again while Lance played with Hayes on the island. 

That night we had dinner reservations at 1900 Park Fare in the Grand Floridian. It was gorgeous in that resort. It is definitely on my list of places I want to stay. We had a buffet dinner and met the characters from Cinderella. Once again, the character pictures are on Reese's iPad. I will have to do a separate post with all of her pictures. Reese wanted me to take a picture with the stepmother. My favorite character was Drizella...as always. Disney always casts the perfect people for the step sisters. They always play it up right. This was the first time we met the stepmother and she was perfect too.

Wednesday, we ate breakfast in the room and then headed over to Magic Kingdom again. I took very little pictures this day. This time we knew we wanted to see Mickey and we went straight there. We were getting our picture with him with in ten minutes of being in the park. Hayes loved Mickey and gave him a big hug. Sam was hiding behind the photographer. From there we went back to the Goofy Barnstormer because it is a ride Hayes is tall enough to ride. I giggle every time I watch the video of him on that ride. We also got to see a double rainbow over the park. We just happened to walk up on it above the castle and it was so pretty. 

The park was open later that night and we had reservations at Cinderella's Royal Table for dinner. We had done breakfast before but never dinner. The dinner was very good and the princess were ok. We only got to see three of them at dinner (not including Cinderella who you see walking in) and I feel like they weren't that great. BUT, Reese loved it and that is why we were there. A funny story while we were there...there was a couple at the table next to us. The whole dinner I kept hearing this guy laugh and it just sounded funny. I didn't really understand why I thought this but it was in the back of my mind. Right before dessert comes, the waitress brings out a special plate and a photographer is following her, the guy drops to his knee to propose to his girlfriend. As he is down on his knee Hayes is swinging his sword above his head and drops it behind his back, right at this guys feet. I almost die. A while later the girl got up to go to the bathroom so I leaned over to the guy to tell him congrats and sorry about the sword. He just laughed and said he didn't notice at all. And then I figured out why his laugh was so funny...it was a nervous laughter all during dinner because after the proposal his laugh wasn't nearly as bad.

We had originally planned to be in the park that night because there was a nighttime parade we had never seen and we wanted to see it. As we were walking out to a part of the park where we knew the parade hadn't passed yet, we decided to head over to Thunder mountain one more time. I know, we are crazy. We walked up and it was only a ten minute wait which really meant your only wait was how long it took to walk through the queue to get to the ride.  So Reese, Sam and I headed in while Lance watched the parade with Hayes. When we got off we notice Splash Mountain is the same wait so since I hadn't ridden with them the day before we ran over and got in line there too. Lance just happened to be standing on the bridge when we got to the bottom so we yelled his name and waved to him. He was surprised to see us but he and Hayes were having a sword fight and didn't seem to mind. He took the kids over to ride Thunder Mountain again right as it was about to close. They were in heaven and we learned a fun lesson. Next time fireworks are about to start, run to your favorite ride and jump right on!

Unfortunately by doing this, we got stuck in the crowd of people leaving. It took us almost 1.5 hrs to get back to our room. The Poly does not have a walkway from the Magic Kingdom the way the Contemporary does. That was a def win for the Contemporary that night.

Next up...Hollywood Studios...

Disney 2015 ~ Animal Kingdom and Epcot

Monday was our first day in the parks. We decided to do a half day in Animal Kingdom and Epcot. I know every one has very strong opinions on all the parks but these are our two least favorite parks. We knew there were a few things we wanted to do in each of them though so we didn't want to miss out.

(I need to mention this here first. Last year we gave each of the kids $50 to spend how they pleased in the parks. This made it easier to get souvenirs because they had full control. So this year we mixed things up. We decided to "pay" them for each ride they rode. It had to be a ride they had not ridden before or one they didn't want to ride to earn money for it.)

(Also, another note, we really didn't take a whole lot of pictures this trip so I will do the best I can to add pictures in with stories. Reese has most of the character pictures on her iPad. We found this great app that allowed us to take pictures of the characters and then they could sign it right on the iPad.)

First thing in the morning we headed to Animal Kingdom. As soon as the park opened we headed over to Everest. We actually did not get to do this ride the last time we were there so we wanted to check it out. Both of the big kids were going to earn money for this ride so they were ready to get it over with. Lance and Reese were the first to go. Lance said that Reese had tears in her eyes while on the ride but once she was off she said she liked it. Sam and I were up next and he was scared. This was going to be his first big ride. We had watched videos on you tube about this ride so he knew what was going to happen. He had tears in his eyes the whole walk to the ride but once we sat down on the ride he was ready. I thought it was a lot of fun and he said it was fun but that he wouldn't do it again.

After this ride we decided to walk over to the safari ride. On our way over Reese saw Kali River Rapids and wanted to ride. Every thing in me wanted to say no but I didn't. We rode it. We all wore rain ponchos. However, Hayes didn't have one so I pulled him in close to me and tried to cover him with mine. Well, Hayes and I got drenched. Like the biggest wave ever came right over the top of us and the poncho was rendered useless. It knocked my sunglasses down my face and we were soaked. And wouldn't you know I had on white shorts. I was NOT happy. I was trying to keep from crying behind my sunglasses. Reese felt really bad and I kept trying to assure her that it wasn't her fault and I wasn't mad at her. I finally had to break down and buy myself a pair of shorts (at 35 ridiculous dollars). Hayes was much better at keeping it together and didn't complain once about how wet he was. There were no kid shorts anywhere or I would have bought him some too. After my little melt down, we made our way over to the safari, and did a few other things before eating lunch. I was still pretty miserable because of wet socks and shoes (and I may have been going commando) and I knew Hayes had to be too so after lunch he and I headed back to the Poly to change. Lance and the big kids stayed and did a few things we hadn't made it to. 

After Hayes and I were changed and happy, we met Lance and the big kids at Epcot. The timing of it all worked out perfectly and we were there within minutes of each other (and I was in a much happier mood). I have a lot of selfies with Hayes from this day because we spent a lot of time together. He was a half inch too short to do a lot of rides. He could have done so much more if he had that extra half inch in him. Reese and I rode Test Track together and Lance and Sam rode it as well. We had to take turns on most rides so that Hayes was covered. Luckily Disney has parent passes so that always worked out nicely and we of course had fast passes for all the rides we knew we wanted to ride. That night we had dinner at Garden Grill. It is family style and all of the food is locally grown. It is a character meal so we got to see Farmer Mickey, Chip and Dale, and Pluto. Sam and Hayes were even brave enough to take a picture with Mickey. The kids didn't love the food and Lance and I thought it was decent.

We realized that where our room was at the Poly was actually closer to the monorail at the ticket and transportation center than to the lobby of the Poly so most days we would get off the monorail there instead of at the Poly. It was a nice walk back though.

Up next Magic Kingdom...