9.27.2016

Disney World {day 1 & 2}


Last time we went to Disney World Grayson was 3 and Griffin was 21 months old. I was big & pregnant with Cheney and could not wait to bring her back to experience the magic. Well, we booked our trip at the end of April and decided to keep it a secret from the kids! Ben's parents spent the week with us again & it was such a fun trip! I'll break up my posts over a few days but I want to make sure I don't forget anything.  We booked our trip with Jami Hill of FTM Travel...she was awesome! We originally wanted to try a different resort but decided to stick with Art of Animation because we love having the suite AND we just could not beat the price. Plus? We really only sleep in our rooms--we spent every day at the parks! We stayed in a Lion King suite this time and it was super cute. Griffin is obsessed with Lion Guard and Lion King & we knew he would love it! That resort is just so much fun for little kids.

We left on Saturday, September 17th and told the kids that morning. We had spent the night at my parents house in Atlanta since we were flying out from there. I wrapped up the magic bands and had them open them up after breakfast. I expected screams and jumping for joy--and, well, I didn't get that. Ha! You never know what you will get with kids! I sat with Griffin and Cheney on the plane and she was a little bit wild. We are still working on our quiet voice (she can be a yell talker-ha!) but she loved the airplane!
We got to the resort in the early afternoon on Saturday. We explored our Lion King section & Griffin was so happy.

We had plans that night to eat at the Wilderness Lodge at Whispering Canyon. We had not yet told the kids that Mimi & Pops would be joining us. I waited with them in the lobby and when Ben walked over with Mimi & Pops, Cheney flipped out. She ran screaming with joy towards them--it was so cute!

Whispering Canyon was good & Cheney and Griffin enjoyed having stick horse races around the restaurant.  The Wilderness Lodge looked awesome--it is on my list of places to stay eventually!

Sunday was our first full day & we spent it at Epcot.
I was really excited about our breakfast because we had reservations at Akershus & would finally get to meet some of the princesses! It definitely did not disappoint. The food was good & the princess meet and greets were great!
 The kids all loved meeting the princesses. We brought autograph books (I found 3 Disney journals at the Dollar Tree!!) this time and they loved collecting all their signatures. Griffin was enamored by all the beautiful girls--it was so sweet!



They did a parade around the restaurant and Griffin and Cheney participated. They frolicked around waving to everyone!

We rode the new Frozen Ever After ride after breakfast before the line got crazy. It was fun! We also met Princesses Anna and Elsa.
 Cheney LOVED Anna and immediately started jumping up and down when she met her. Anna held her hands and hopped with her--made her day!

We rode the Nemo ride and saw Turtle Talk with Crush. I am a fan of anything inside with cold air conditioning! Grayson also got to ride his first "big kid" ride. Last time we went he was just under 40 inches & could not ride any of the bigger rides. He is a thrill seeker and we were excited for him to ride the big rides with us!
We rode Soarin' and he LOVED it! The new revamped one is amazing!

We also did a character meet & greet that afternoon with Mickey, Minnie, & Goofy. Cheney was super pumped to meet Minnie!


I was curious if Grayson would act interested in the characters. He tends to act more like a mini teenager than a 6 year old. BUT, the magic was definitely still there and he loved every character meet & greet!

Our 2nd day was super special because it was Grayson's SIXTH birthday!

We started off our day with an early character breakfast at Ohana. We heard great things about this one & it did not disappoint either! The food was good & the characters were wonderful.

The servers passed out maracas & they did another character parade. Grayson was way too cool for that but the littles loved it! Love their enthusiasm:)

We spent the rest of the day at Magic Kingdom--my absolute favorite!! We picked up G's birthday pin on Main Street first thing when we got there & he wore it proudly all week! He has been looking forward to turning 6 for what seems like forever & I know he loved how all the cast members told him "Happy birthday, Grayson" all week!
One of the boys all time favorite rides is the Buzz Lightyear ride! They are so competitive & love shooting the lasers and trying to beat everyone else. We rode it like 8 times all week..ha!
Griffin is the easiest kid to please. He gets excited about just about anything. The simplest ride in all of Disney World (The People Mover) made him so happy. Love his little heart!
I was happy that I could actually do the Teacups this time!
This was one of my favorite pictures from the whole week. Griffin was just tall enough to ride the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train roller coaster and was thrilled. I was a little worried that it would scare him but he rode it like a pro! Those little hands up in the air and that sweet grin--can't handle it! Our boys both love roller coasters! He repeatedly asked all week when we could ride on the "roller coaster I can do!" It was a really fun one!
Grayson's favorite ride at Magic Kingdom was definitely Space Mountain...he & Ben enjoyed the cameras a little bit!
Cheney loved all the rides (except for the Tomorrowland Speedway--"too hot!") but she was particularly mesmerized by Prince Charming's Carousel! She wanted to ride every time we walked by!


We had Grayson's birthday dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern. It was yummy family style food that reminded me of Thanksgiving! Grayson got a special birthday cupcake!

We wanted to stay late that night and watch the fireworks but a big storm rolled in during dinner. It POURED as we left but luckily we were right by a big pavilion. We tried to wait it out but the thunder & lightning kept coming. We ended taking our super exhausted back around 9:00.
We didn't see the fireworks but we did see the beautiful castle! It is just as magical as an adult!


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