Time for Disney! Who's Excited?

This is definitely one of the Top 5 pictures of Luke I have ever taken....

Well, I wasn't kidding when I said it's December and here is your proof: Disney! For the past 2 years I have taken Cindy to Disney World at Christmastime. I usually go the first week of December before the crowds get real crazy, but about 2 weeks ago DeAnne told me there was a church member (who works for Disney) that offered her some free tickets to go on Friday, December 3rd and be part of the audience for the filming of the ABC Christmas Day Parade. Getting in FREE to Disney? Who says no to that, right? So this time I got to take Luke and Cindy and DeAnne! It was fabulous :) Luke is getting to be the age of Cindy the first year I took her and there is NOTHING like taking a child to Disney and watching their excitement at seeing their favorite characters and places in real life. It is entirely priceless :) A quick rundown of the day:

We reported to Disney right at 9am as requested. When we got there there was a crowd forming down Main Street to watch the parade and then a large audience was pooling right at the base of Cinderella's castle. They were beginning a dress rehearsal of a stage appearance by Mariah Carey. She was not there yet however (and I am not sure if she ever finally showed up) so they had this really creepy stagehand guy be her stand-in.



After about 3 times watching this rehearsal (and you can see just how good our view as anyway, we all decided that being in the audience and watching the parade was going to be long and lame. So we ditched and headed for a regular day of rides, food and fun :)

And when you get there right at opening time, there aren't really any lines for anything. Let the good times roll!

Carousel!





















Teacups!




More Teacups!





International Raceway!



MORE TEACUPS!!




Both Cindy and Luke LOVED It's Small World. We rode it twice in a row, in fact!


Even though we ditched the actual filming of the big parade, we did get to see parts of it coming down the street as each piece marched to Main Street to film their particular part. We did happen upon Lightning McQueen driving down the road!



And wonder of wonders we got to see and talk to Rapunzel and Flynn Rider! I actually took this picture at the exact moment that Flynn pointed to Luke and said, "Oh, It's Prince Charming!!" (because his shirt said "Prince Charming" across the front) To which Rapunzel sweetly said, "Oh, he looks just like him!" You could do a meet and greet with them in the park, however the wait was 75 minutes and I decided this encounter was perfectly sufficient ;)





Grandma Bingham gave Cindy this adorable Cindy Lou Who t-shirt the night before and it was THE perfect shirt for our day. In fact, when Cindy met Sleeping Beauty, Belle and Cinderella again, each one of them asked her name and then made reference to her shirt.

DeAnne left with Luke at about 2pm. He was getting tired and she had to be back in town to fulfill her churchy opportunities, so after grabbing some corn dog nuggets and chocolate milk they headed out. I definitely need to take him back for his birthday. He loved every minute of it. We rode the train around the park and he kept telling me "I just know that Thomas is pulling us!" Oh, so cute!




So as Cindy and I stayed behind, we added a few new experiences to our Disney repertoire this year, one being the Haunted Mansion (which we did with Luke earlier and it was a HORRIBLE experience for both my children. Scared the living tar out of both of them) and the other was the blue PeopleMover that takes you around Tomorrow Land. Cindy and I rode this about 5 times because she just thought it was the best "ride" ever. I liked it because my poor aching feet could take a much needed rest :)


Oh and the other new thing we tried was riding the old time Steamboat, the Southern Belle. Cindy was in love with this thing! I stayed in one spot while she ran up and down the stairs and all over the place on this boat. I didn't think she would like it that much, but she had an amazing time!















And actually THIS was the best new thing we tried: Funnel Cakes and Mickey Mouse shaped waffles with whipped cream and strawberries. I dare you NOT to eat this when it is sundown, getting a little chilly, you haven't eaten in a while and you smell it being cooked from 2 miles away. Impossible to resist! And Disney makes a mean Funnel Cake, I must say. HEAVEN!



In the past when I have taken Cindy to Disney we have done multiple parks and fireworks, etc. but this time it was just Magic Kingdom and not even any fireworks. And you know what? It was just as good! We stayed to see Cinderella's castle be lit with Christmas lights and by the time that was over we were good and tired :) It really was a perfect day. Great weather, hardly any crowds, so much fun with BOTH my kids- I couldn't ask for anything more! A huge Thank You to St. DeAnne for scoring the tickets and coming all the way with us :) Until next year! Or April, as the case may be...