Weekend with Walt (Disney, that is)

Mark and I decided to bite the bullet and get seasonal passes to Disney World for our family. As part of a special promotion for Florida residents, we got 15 months for the price of 12 months. So, anyone want to come down and go to Disney with us???
To celebrate my birthday last weekend and to kick off our year-plus adventure, we decided to get a hotel in Orlando and visit both Animal Kingdom and Magic Kingdom over two days. When I told Aubree we would be going to Disney World her first reaction was, "what's Disney World?" A friend had given me a "Kids Guide to Disney World" book, so I hunted that down and gave it to Aubree so she would know what to expect. In the two weeks leading up to our trip she spent countless hours looking over the pictures and asking us to read (over and over) about the different rides and attractions. By the time we left, she was extremely excited.
Animal Kingdom was great! It involved a lot of walking around and didn't have many rides, but that worked out well for us because standing in lines is not Bryce's strong point (more on that when we get to day 2). We LOVED the Lion King show, the safari tour, and the Finding Nemo musical. Bryce was careful to notice every giraffe (real or otherwise) the entire day. I'm pretty sure giraffes are his favorite animal.

On our safari jeep

Towards the end of the day Aubree declared she wanted to see the 3-D "Bug's Life" movie. We'd been warned that it's scary for little kids and tried to talk her out of it. She wouldn't be deterred. BIG mistake!! Bryce was actually the first to freak out. The combination of the loud noises, darkness, and splashes of water were way too much for him to handle. While trying to calm a screaming Bryce, the theater went dark and the audience was "gassed" by the revenge-seeking bugs. That's when Aubree flipped out. Luckily it's a short "film" and everyone else in the room was also screaming. I don't think we'll be doing that attraction again anytime soon!
After a long, adventurous day we went out to dinner then checked into our hotel. The idea of staying at a hotel always sounds fun and appealing, but then I get there and realize two kids in one hotel room is not exactly a picnic. I hoped they'd both be exhausted enough to fall asleep quickly, but no luck there. Then, Bryce woke up at his typical 5:45 am with extra "enthusiasm" (aka LOUDNESS) and soon woke up not only Aubree but probably all our neighbors as well. I'm sure they loved us.

Aubree watching TV in the hotel, ready for day 2

Magic Kingdom was fantastic! There is so much to do and take in; I'm really grateful to have year passes so I didn't feel any pressure to try to see and do it all in one day.

Cinderella's Castle

We went on lots of different rides and saw a number of shows. Most were really fun. Standing in line, however, was not fun. Bryce is at an age where he wants to be independent. He doesn't want to be held, he doesn't want to have his hand held - he just wants to be free to walk on his own (and run away if possible). He didn't understand the concept of "standing in line" so I think he probably thought we were torturing him. At first he didn't like the rides either, but as the day progressed he got more enthusiastic once he was actually on the ride.

Trying to escape his "jail"

A fairly typical "standing in line" scene

We went on lots of variations of this ride

There were a number of highlights. Bryce couldn't get enough of the parades. He waved at all the people and floats as they went by. Mark kept talking about the Monster's Inc. comedy show. I was pleasantly surprised by the "It's a Small World" ride. For Aubree, seeing the princesses was a really big deal. She told Sleeping Beauty all about going camping for her birthday. She told Cinderella about me being pregnant and how she's going to be a big sister again.
It was a great way to say good-bye to my twenties.
P.S. We've since washed and dried our passes. Oops. At least they're still readable...