Stuff that Dreams are Made of

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Today was back to reality for all of us after an amazing trip to the land of dreams. For our school's fall break, we decided to take the kids to Disney for the first time. I must admit that I was a little concerned about Max not being old enough to really appreciate it all. Fortunately, my worries were for nothing. We had an amazing trip filled to the brim with fun. We left after I got off work Thursday and drove all night until we arrived at about 2 in the morning. Based on our past driving experiences, the kids both usually fall asleep at their regular bedtime. Not the case this trip. Max didn't fall asleep until almost midnight he was so excited. Then, of course, when we arrived, they both got all worked up again and didn't get back to sleep until almost 2:30. We worried about what the next day would be like.

Day One: Animal Kingdom--we arrived at the park a little after 8 and hit the safari ride first. It was great! We did a lot of animal watching and Kinsey and I rode a scary dinsosaur ride and a tubing water ride, then we all head back for naps to get ready for our big Halloween party. That night, we met up with our friends who were also down there for the Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. Haunted Mansion, Thunder Mountain (Kinsey's fav--she rode it 5 times,) Peter Pan, Small World and lots of Trick-or-Treating plus a cute parade and big fireworks show followed by a dance party ended the night.

Day Two: Hollywood Studios--Highlights from Hollywood were Movie Ride, Star Wars, Indiana Jones show, Little Mermaid show, first encounter with Mickey and on the wilder side Tower of Terror (Kinsey rode it but gave it "two thumbs down" and Aerosmith Rock 'n Roll (onlyI rode that one.) Aerosmith was my overall favorite as it went from 0 to 70 in some ridiculously short period of time and I got the front seat--sweet! That night we had dinner at the Port Orleans Resort and strolled through the dock checking out the boats and water wheel.

Day Three: Magic Kingdom--By FAR the best day! Everyone loved every minute of the MK. Max and Jack spent some time on the trains and trams while Kinsey and I hit Thunder Mountain (again and again) and Splash Mountain. We met back up for some Buzz Lightyear and lunch at the Liberty Bell and crashed for a four-hour nap back at the resort. At nine, we woke up and went to dinner at the lodge and then headed back to the MK for extra magic hours from 11-2. We really didn't know what to expect, but the time of night became completely insignificant once we got into the park. Dumbo, Pirates of the Carribean, Jungle Cruise, more Thunder Mountain, Haunted Mansion, carousel, Snow White's Scary Adventure, and Philharmagic show and it was 2 before we knew it! We even hung around after the rides were closed. On the way out, we ran into Kinsey's best schoolmate buddy and her family. What are the chances?!?

Day Four: We finally got to enjoy the resort a little before checkout and played in the pools, found the geyser and slid down the slide. The kids got a treat when a flock of duck decided to take a bath in the pool and were quite friendly with the other guests! A quick trip to the gift shop to bring Minnie and Goofy home with us and we hit the road.

What a trip!