Hung, Avery and I escaped to Orlando this past week and met up with Grandma T, Grandpa, Uncle Nate, Debbie and Aunt Maddie (Maddie is currently working at Disney World as part of the Disney College Program and was the perfect tour guide).
We left on Saturday and the trip down was very smooth. Avery was an awesome traveler and did great at the airport and on the plane. She was not that interested in looking out the window and told me she was worried about falling out. G wrapped lots of little gifts for Avery to open during the trip so that helped pass the time and she also liked watching Scooby Doo and movies on her iPad and her new headphones.
Our first day was a pool day at the Blue Green timeshare. We didn't take any pictures at the pool (we should have!) but it was beautiful. Perfect weather, huge pool. waterslides, kids play area, games, DJ, little poolside cafe with yummy drinks, etc. etc. Just a wonderful and relaxing day. Teri and Debbie made us dinner at the condo and we all just hung out together and got rest before we hit the parks.
On Monday, we started off at Animal Kingdom (where Maddie works so we had lots of inside scoop). One of the first characters we met was "DeVine". She isn't an actual character in any of the movies but she lives at Animal Kingdom and Avery was 100% mesmerized. We went back and saw her a 2nd time and she winked at Avery and blew her a kiss - It was a cool moment. We also went on a Safari (Avery was a little cranky and laid down for most of it), saw a Lion King Show (Avery passed out during the show and took a good nap that got her through the rest of the day), explored Dino Land with Grandma T while everyone else went on Mt. Everest and then ended the day on a water ride (Avery and Maddie got SOAKED). On our way out we were also able to meet Daisy Duck! That night we went to Hollywood Studios and had dinner and saw Fantasmic. Fantasmic was a HUGE HIT - Avery was sucked in, By the end she was cheering "YOU CAN DO IT MICKEY" as he fought off the bad guys. She then decided that Mickey was her Hero and was calling him her "Hero" the rest of the week. So fun to watch her watch the show. I just loved it.
Heading in to DAK
Pouting on the Safari
The Amazing DeVine!
Passed out after the Lion King Show
Find in DinoLand
Before the Water Ride
After the Water Ride :)
Loving Daisy - She was hooked on meeting characters after this!
Cotton Candy before Fantasmic
Our second day in the parks we started at Hollywood Studios. Avery loved the Disney Junior Show and Little Mermaid show. Then we got to meet Wreck it Ralph and Venelope - They were SO huge compared to Avery :) After lunch and the Toy Story ride Avery had the meltdown to rival ALL meltdowns. Went crazy and could not pull it together - I think it was just too much stimulation and not enough sleep. She was telling Hung and me that she doesn't want parents and even screamed "MICKEY IS NOT MY HERO!". We dropped everyone else off at Epcot and headed back to the condo for a nice, long nap. She was so upset when everyone got out of the car and kept saying she was "going to miss the show" - Not sure what that meant but I think she just didn't want to leave everyone. After the much needed nap, we met up with the rest of the crew at Epcot. Hung, Avery and I had a fantastic dinner at Mexico. There was a volcano in the background that kept "erupting" and Avery was using Hung's phone to call the fireman and was trying to blow out the smoke. It entertained us through dinner. We also went on the Mexico ride and walked around the shop and made wishes in the fountain. She LOVED making wishes at every fountain we saw. During the crazy meltdown she made a wish mid-cry at a fountain and said "I wish for something to suck on (aka: Paci)" haha. In Mexico she wished that she could live with mom and dad forever and that we would always be happy - That one I really loved! And one time she wished for a "Mickey Rug"?? After dinner, we met up with the family and walked around the food and wine festival. We ran into Snow White. Avery would get so shy when she met the characters but loved it and wanted to meet more the second we walked away. As we were leaving Snow White Avery said to her "Africa is a safe place. And my mom locks the doors at night so bad guys can't get in". NO clue where that came from but Snow White was amused :) Avery had lots of fun goofing around with Nate, Debbie and Maddie. We ended the night with macarons from France and a few fireworks.
Before the Disney Junior Show - Such a cute show!
Lemon Chill's were the hit treat of the vacation! I think she had one everyday!
Making a Wish in Mexico
You can see the Volcano in the back right - Our view at Dinner
Avery was very into Grumpy/Mad and Silly Face pictures
Not great pics but capture the end of the night
Our last day was spent at Magic Kingdom. Avery was all dressed up as Snow White and was just giddy on our way into the park. We started the day meeting Snow White Again - She was SO sweet and danced with Avery. We then got to meet Tinker Bell and Mickey who talked to her. She would be so shy and star struck but you could tell she just loved it. Then we caught a show in front of the castle (totally mesmerized and she then decided that both Mickey and Peter Pan are her heroes). We had fast passed and went on the Little Mermain Ride and Pooh Ride. After lunch, we had some downtime in hers stroller and then met Aurora (as we were walking away she told Aurora to make sure NOT to touch any spinning spindles), Marie and Pluto before catching the parade in the afternoon. The parade was SO cool - It had every princess and Avery was blown a ton of kisses and waves and winks. And she even had the Prince from "Princess and the Frog" kiss her hand. She barely blinked and just was totally swept into the parade. We then headed over to Polynesian and had a wonderful dinner all 8 of us (actually 7 as Avery slept through the whole thing :)). We headed back to Magic Kingdom after dinner and got to meet Ariel, Donald (Avery told him he was the funniest duck she ever met), Goofy, Daisy (She told Daisy how funny her boyfriend was) and Minnie (She told Minnie that her boyfriend is Avery's hero but she was a little worried that Minnie would be mad that Mickey was her hero. I assured her no and then Avery decided they could share Mickey as their hero). We caught a little bot of the light parade and headed home. When we got home, Nate and Debbie gave Avery a Disney storybook and read to her for an hour (They were SO sweet and gave her a new gift every day - She LOVED the Daisy and Donald ducks they gave her and she made them her babies. They kept crying and we had to feed them and rock them through the park one day). It was such a nice way to end the the evening.
Enjoying the show at the Castle
Loving the Parade!
Silly times with Uncle Nate - I think she was making him be a dog and he was an amazing sport!
Sweet Endings with Uncle Nate and Debbie
Out trip home was very smooth and easy. Avery was an excellent traveler - especially for being so tired! She fell asleep at 5:00 pm when we got home and slept straight through until 6:15 am. She was one wiped out and happy girl. Although Disney is not the most relaxing places on earth it certainly is a fun one and Avery was swept right in and loved it. I loved having time with my Dad, Teri, Nate, Maddie and Debbie. Maddie was the perfect guide through the crazy parks and we could not have gotten it all done without her (Not to mention all the discounts and free tickets)!! Nate and Debbie were amazing playmates for Avery and went along with her wild imagination and crazy requests. It was SO nice to take a break from everyday life, be together and show Avery the magic of Disney.
