The time had come. It was our fourth year, and we were at last staying at the stunning Victorian-themed Grand Floridian Resort. With the exception of longer transport in general, it was everything I had dreamt it to be. Housekeeping was perhaps a little too diligent, and the room was turned more than once a day.
Mom met us at the Orlando airport, and the five of us had the luxury of checking in together by noon. Eager to explore, we visited the Disney Wedding Pavilion and learned that the parks can host up to 10 weddings a day. I have mixed feelings about the idea of a Disney wedding, but as I continue to allow myself to be brainwashed by the parks, I imagine it could be sweet. I learned that Disney World offered commitment ceremonies before same sex marriage was legalized in 2015, so that puts me on their side. And really, I shouldn't be judging the people I don't know who are living happily ever after since their weddings, which were in celebration of everlasting commitments to Princes and Princesses Charming, under God, or the magic of animated movie making, or both.
In our previous years, we had never visited the shops and restaurants that make up Disney Springs. Luckily for us, we were hungry by 16:00, and it was easy to find seating at Drakeson's favorite restaurant of the trip, T-REX. In addition to a Build-A-Dino workshop within the gift shop, the restaurant was a spectacle itself, decked out with animatronics and undergoing a meteor shower every 20 minutes or so. Other shopping highlights included The LEGO Store with its impressive constructions, and World of Disney, which is the largest Disney merchandise store in the world. Although we did not ride it, the hot air balloon, Aerophile - The World Leader in Balloon Flight, also caught our attention. George didn't see the point of spending 75 bucks on one ride when our next five days were to be filled with them, and Mom and I couldn't argue with that.
Back at the Grand Floridian, we headed to Beach Pool and put the kids down the 181-foot slide next to the eye-catching rock waterfall. Milli claimed not to like it, but insisted on going again several times. Although it could be considered a little much for a one-year-old, it was mild compared to the Stormalong Bay slide at the Yacht Resort, which we forced Drakeson down in 2014. We ended the evening with a preview across the Seven Seas Lagoon of the brand new Magic Kingdom fireworks show, Happily Ever After.
Bà & Troubles
Wedding Pavilion
T-REX
Octopus Bar
Wednesday, 27 Jul 17: Hollywood Studios & Magic Kingdom
It was our first day in the parks, and Mom and I started off at the Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith while George enrolled Drakeson for an afternoon showing of Jedi Training: Trials of the Temple. It was my first time on that roller coaster, and I loved it. We took the kids on the The Great Movie Ride and Toy Story Mania! before seeing the March of the First Order. Like last year, Drakeson was terrified of The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, but unlike last year, we forced him to ride it anyway. I didn't feel too bad for him, though, because we ended the morning with Jedi Training: Trials of the Temple and Star Tours.
The Grand Floridian Lobby Pianist was performing as we passed by, but we barely reached the room when it was time to board the boat destined for Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue at Pioneer Hall. Despite the fact that our other dinners were much fancier, this one took the cake. The waiter kept bringing out pitchers of beer, and as people who pride themselves on being unwasteful, we went through three of them. We also had plates of fried chicken, barbeque ribs, corn, mashed potatoes, salad, cornbread, and strawberry shortcake, all while being entertained by a rowdy bunch of talented musicians. Dazed and stuffed, we sailed over to the Magic Kingdom where we peeked into the shops on the west side of the street (we had been through the east side before) and rode Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress for the first time. Mom didn't think the script of that show was sexist, which spurred on a conversation that lasted for days and amused George every time. With little energy left, we visited It's a Small World and followed Drakeson's request for The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. We let Milli pick out a stuffed Pooh to take home for our collection and made our way to Tomorrowland for a great view of Happily Ever After. I had my doubts that it would outshine Wishes Nighttime Spectacular, but it really did; the new projection and lasers added so much to the performance that I didn't miss Jiminy. We were exhausted, so I don't remember why we stayed for Under the Sea - Journey of The Little Mermaid. Drakeson must have asked us to.
Sleeping In
Jedi
The Force
Jedi Training
Sabers
Training Completed
Too Tired
Tink
Happily Ever After
Thursday, 28 Jul 17: Epcot & Animal Kingdom
We started at The Seas with Nemo & Friends and of course SeaBase, which both Drakeson and Milli loved. After some pictures at Meet Disney Pals at the Epcot Character Spot, we pursued my goal to pay more attention to the World Showcase this year. There are two programs to keep kids entertained throughout all the countries, and they are Disney Phineas and Ferb: Agent P's World Showcase Adventure and Kidcot Fun Stops. We tried Agent P in the UK, and while it was a terrific program, it also slowed us down a good deal, so we passed on the other six countries. Neither Drakeson nor Milli paid any attention to the Kidcot Fun Stops, so we didn't bother collecting stamps. There was a lot to see and very little time, but we were able to run through the shops in Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Morocco, Japan, America, Italy, and Germany before taking our fastpasses to the iconic Spaceship Earth and the fairly new Frozen Ever After. We ended the morning with Beverlys at Club Cool like seasoned Disney fans.
Our nap time was cut a bit short from running into Housekeeper Victoria, and dinner had a fairly early reservation at the upscale restaurant Tiffins in the brand new section of the Animal Kingdom, Pandora. The portions were small but delicious, and we shared venison, octopus, duck, and scallops. With a little time before the evening show, the adults took the single rider line for Expedition Everest - Legend of the Forbidden Mountain and let the kids ride TriceraTop Spin and play in The Boneyard, which is like an upgraded dino-themed version of the old Honey I Shrunk the Kids playscape. Drakeson could have stayed there all day, but we brought him along to see Pandora's Valley of Mo'ara. We used a fastpass for Kali River Rapids, which left us no time to find seating for the new show, Rivers of Light. Although it was an obvious misstep, we still had a great view of the spectacle. We ended the evening with the rider switch for Kali River Rapids, which is beautiful in the dark.
SeaBase
"Aishhhhhh"
Mickey
A Little Scared
Still Scared
How Do You Do?
Neptune in Italy
Waiting for the Monorail
Chatting
Tree of Life Kisses
TriceraTop Spin
DinoLand
Boneyard
Friday, 29 Jul 17: Magic Kingdom & Epcot
None of us had ever ridden Space Mountain, and we arrived at the top of the magic hour. To our dismay, it was closed, so we ran to some old favorites Peter Pan's Flight, It's a Small World, Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion, and Buzz Lighyear's Space Ranger Spin. We had skipped Astro Orbiter and The Magic Carpets of Aladdin in the past, so we caught them too before our fastpass to Splash Mountain, which was also closed. It may sound like bad luck, but our fastpasses turned into flex fastpasses, which are good all day at almost any ride. The sun was beating down on us with all its might, so we took a break and watched Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room for the first time, as well as Mickey's PhilharMagic, which we've seen every year. It made my day to see Milli pointing and shouting when Ariel came onto the screen. As Splash Mountain was a madhouse, we used our flex fastpasses for the adults to ride Space Mountain, and George took the kids on Tomorrowland Speedway. Drakeson nervously rode Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and complained in the lines the entire time.
After such a long morning, we all needed some rest. Victoria and we were both mortified to run into each other again, and it showed plainly in both parties. Our dinner reservation was at Cítricos, a beautiful restaurant at the resort stationed right next to the charming Grand Floridian Society Orchestra. We enjoyed ourselves so much that by the time we made it to Epcot, there was only an hour left until closing. We skipped Mexico since we had been there before, and made a last-ditch effort to run through the shops in Norway and China. I had planned on revisiting Canada to see their Martin Short movie, but we had definitely run out of time and IllumiNations was about to begin. George and I had found an article suggesting that the floating globe will be replaced some time within the next three years, so we took it in while we had the chance.
Tomorrowland Speedway
Loving on Bà
Dadas & Rapunzel
Crab Salad with Avocado on Compressed Watermelon
Monorail with Dadas
Mama Loves Trolls
Saturday, 30 Jul 17: Animal Kingdom & Hollywood Studios
The Animal Kingdom has a new land called Pandora, and in it, there are two new rides. Because we had chosen our fastpass for the kids ride, Na'vi River Journey, we arrived before the magic hour began for Avatar Flight of Passage. We were among the first to enter and walked very quickly to the ride, but so did everybody else and their mothers. The line we entered would have been 75 minutes long, and sensibly, we skipped it. With the park to ourselves at 8:00, we rode Kilimanjaro Safaris twice with no wait whatsoever. Avatar Flight of Passage may be new, but you don't get to see twenty majestic animals on an African savanna reserve on a tour that's larger than the rest of the Animal Kingdom itself. The animals were happy in the morning weather, and they were everywhere. We decided to continue taking advantage of the morning, and saw many more animals on the Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail, the Maharajah Jungle Trek, and Rafiki's Planet Watch. I was adoring my children as they selected brushes for the goats, and what happened next reminded me of my sister and myself when we were children. Drakeson was so excited to brush the goats that he chased after one that didn't want to be brushed, while Milli panicked, threw her brush onto the ground, and cried about how scary the goat was. This is not the only way in which Drakeson is Liên's clone. We made it back to Pandora to ride the beautiful Na'vi River Journey, and upon Drakeson's request, we watched the live musical, Festival of the Lion King. A daytime ride of Kali River Rapids cooled us down, and it was finally time to take Drakeson on the ride DINOSAUR. DINOSAUR was closed in 2016, and Drakeson wasn't tall enough in 2015, so I was excited for him. He hated the ride, but it all worked out for Milli, who loved TriceraTop Spin so much that she rode it five times in a row.
When we got back to the resort, Victoria's cart was next door, so we rushed in and put the privacy sign up. It was a close one. Dinner was at one of our all time favorite restaurants, Narcoossee's, but I didn't enjoy it as much as I usually do. The waiter made the audacious assumption that George and Mom were a couple, and I was their kid. I think he called me "Princess" once, and he definitely gave me a Mickey straw. I like to be carded every once in a while, but being mistaken for my husband's child is hardly a compliment. He commented on how well behaved the children were, not once, but twice. George and Mom had a great time of it, but they also had the privilege of alcohol. Were I to order a beer, we would have run into an even more awkward situation, and in sum, I couldn't get out of there fast enough.
That evening in Hollywood Studios, we chose front row seating to the puppet musical Voyage of The Little Mermaid, and caught the first half of the new orchestra show, The Music of Pixar Live! I really wanted to stay, but we had to catch the early showing of Fantasmic!, and even then, Milli passed out. After we got back to our room and showered, we all cuddled in Mom's bed to see videos of some of the shows we had missed - Disney Movie Magic, Once Upon a Time, and Rivers of Light. Our legs were worn to a frazzle, and we could barely keep our eyes open.
White Rhinos
Colobus Monkey
"Aishhhhhh"
Helping Sister
Curly Tink
Can You See?
Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail
Maharajah Jungle Trek
Seeing Thomson's Gazelle
Affection Section
Tink on a Triceratop
Mama & Milli
Safari Donald
Sunday, 30 Jul 17: Blizzard Beach
We have always chosen Typhoon Lagoon over Blizzard Beach, so it was time for a change. The weather was rainy, which kept the park from overcrowding, and it ended up being Drakeson's favorite day of the trip. In fact, he had such a wonderful time that he broke down crying when it was time to leave. Mom said, "It's a pain when they don't like something, and it's a pain when they like it too much."
Drakeson was initially scared of the sled rides Toboggan Racers and Snow Stormers, but he tried them anyway and rode them again until the lines started growing. When we discovered that the whole family could take the Chairlift and ride Teamboat Springs together, we officially decided that we loved Blizzard Beach. Milli and Drakeson were ecstatic and refused to hold onto the raft handles as advised. The wave pool Melt-Away Bay exceeded my expectations, and Milli got plenty of breastfeeding in the lengthy lazy river, Cross Country Creek. The adults alternated falling down the 12-story drop, Summit Plummet, and riding Teamboat Springs with the kids. Time was vanishing quickly, and we ended our stay in the play area, Ski Patrol Training Camp, where Drakeson promptly lost his goggles.
Olaf
Snowpeople & Merpeople
Matching
Grand Floridian Automobile
This year wasn't exactly what I expected. I had thought Drakeson would be excited to ride the roller coasters, and Milli would be intrigued by everything. Instead, Drakeson made it well known that he was scared of anything you could imagine, and Milli didn't care too much about anything that wasn't Ariel or fish. That being said, both kids couldn't get enough of SeaBase, Kilimanjaro Safaris, The Boneyard, or Blizzard Beach.
If we were able to come back next year, Milli would be tall enough to ride the Barnstormer, and possibly even tall enough for the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and Kali River Rapids. Drakeson would be able to ride Space Mountain, Expedition Everest, and Avatar Flight of Passage. I would remember to split up fastpass selections to properly take advantage of rider shares, take transportation into consideration when booking dinners, and schedule them no later than four and a half hours before the parks close. I'd make a point to stay at Blizzard Beach for an entire day. We'd see the Hollywood Studios projection show and fireworks, Disney Movie Magic and Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular, as well as The Music of Pixar Live! if it were still showing. In the Animal Kingdom, we'd visit Pandora at night, ride Avatar Flight of Passage, and get a proper seat at Rivers of Light. At Epcot, I'd get Drakeson back onto Test Track, get Mom back onto Soarin' and Ellen's Energy Adventure, take the kids to Turtle Talk With Crush, and spend more time at the World Showcase, particularly Mexico, China, and Canada. I might even make a dinner reservation in Morocco. At the Magic Kingdom, we'd see the projection show Once Upon a Time, and if the kids were still as excited about Pooh as they are now, we'd have dinner at The Crystal Palace. If not, I've always been curious about Be Our Guest Restaurant, or while in the area, we could go to the Polynesian Resort for Disney's Spirit of Aloha Dinner Show. Or go back to Narcoossee's where I would order a beer with my dinner.
The first year at Disney World was incredible, but we didn't know what we were doing, and there wasn't as much to see. The second year was a little harder for me because I was pregnant, and the third year was compromised due to my MRSA infection. Every year has been an exceptional experience, but I can say with confidence that this was the best year we've ever had. Some clear highlights of this trip were staying at the Grand Floridian, discovering Blizzard Beach, seeing Pandora, and indulging at Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue, but the best part was watching the kids with Bà. They wanted to go on rides with her, hold her hand, and cuddle up for naps in her bed. I'm so very lucky to have her as my mom, and they're lucky to have her as their grandmother.
