Accidental Disney Visit

So...we accidentally went to Disney World.  After arriving to our hotel, I talked Michael into going to Disney World.  I just wasn't done with the Disney magic and how did I not know Disney World was only an hour from where we were staying?! The tickets were bought for us all to arrive the following day. Grandma and Daddy went to rent a van and then Grandma and I bought Gabby a booster seat, bottles for water, a Minnie Mouse stroller, walking shoes, and lunch for our endeavor the next day.

We arrived at the Magic Kingdom the moment the doors opened and we stayed until about 10 minutes before they closed for the evening.  It was a busy day.  The first thing on our agenda was to meet Ana and Elsa; however, on our way to the two snow princesses we saw Merdia from Brave! She only had about 5 people in line so we stopped by and said hello.  Gabby colored while I waited in line and then she met the Brave princess.  Finally, the part she was looking forward to, shooting her bow and arrow.  Gabby hit a bulls eye!  Now she is obsessed with getting her own bow and arrows.

Next, I found Ana and Elsa's castle and began to stand in line.  It was estimated that it would take one hour to finally meet the princesses.  Gabby and Daddy went to ride Prince Charming's carousel while I stood in line.  It was wonderful because she didn't feel like the wait was too long.  Finally, we were at the front of the line and Gabby was amazing because in a beautifully lit glass case on display for all to see was Cinderella's single glass slipper distracted her from the anticipation of meeting her favorite princess.

Then it happened, the doors opened and we were welcomed in to meet Elsa first.  The doors closed behind the three of us and we had the ice princesses all to ourselves! It was a magical moment for Gabby.  Elsa held her sweet little hands and asked if she had ice powers because her hands were cold. Gabby was smiling from ear to ear.  Once she finished talking with Elsa it was our turn to meet Ana! Gabby and Ana were giggling and twirling.  It was very hard to get a picture of  Gabby and her favorite princess because they were having too much fun giggling, twirling, and chatting.  It was by far the best meet and greet we have ever experienced.  They treated Gabby as though she was the only sweet little girl in the entire world.  Naturally, after leaving their chateau you directly enter a store that sells every "Frozen" toy you can imagine.  The only thing we bought during our day at Disney was an Ana toy and I think it was a great choice.

Grandpa snacking and looking out at the rain while we waited in line for the Peter Pan Flight

Everyone there kept telling us that this was a great time to be at Disney World because the lines were short.  We still waited 20-45 minutes per ride.  The first ride we went on was Gabby's choice, the Seven Dwarf's Mine Ride, and it was Gabby's first ever roller coaster.  She LOVED it! I was afraid she would be upset but she giggled, screamed and asked to ride another! We ended up riding every single roller coaster Gabby was tall enough to ride. I was genuinely surprised when she begged to go on Splash Mountain which is a straight down 50 foot drop.  It was one of the longest lines we waited in and she of course thought it was super fun.  We hopped on the It's A Small World Ride, which had no wait.  After that we crossed over to ride Peter Pan's Flight because it was the closest ride to us and it was pouring down raining.  The line was covered so we managed to stay dry.  The ride was fun and it really did look like you were flying with Peter Pan.  Next we waited the rain out.  Once it was nothing more than a drizzle we tried a few rides but they were closed due to the weather so we ended up on the  ride: Under the Sea: Journey with Little Mermaid.  This was one of my favorite rides because it is very interactive and includes all of the songs and manages to tell the entire story of The Little Mermaid.  Gabby loved it and just beamed while watching all of the animatronics perform.

We went in the Haunted Mansion because it was raining.  I didn't realize how spooky it would be and I wish we would have skipped that ride it was for older children, but Gabby survived the ride.  She was very upset because we saw Rapunzel's tower, but you could not go into it.  We stared at it in the rain trying to convince her that there was nothing more than restrooms in this area.

Then the weather cleared up just in time for the parade.  Gabby sat on Daddy's shoulder's and she enjoyed the fun/brief elaborate floats.  All of the characters were there to greet us.  Then our stroller was stolen, but Disney was kind enough to loan us a rental.  We finished the day with a a ride on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Splash Mountain,

Disney World was enjoyable for Gabby, but it was nothing near as magical as our cruise.  I can't wait to have another vacation with Grandma and Grandpa, it was the best vacation we have ever taken!  Finally, being debt free is paying of for our family!