Disney 2015!

Levi's first plane ride!

Our trip to Disney World was nothing short of Magical! We started our adventure spending the night in Chicago near the airport so we could leave early Monday morning. Grandma and Grandpa met us at the hotel. All three boys behaved well on the airplane, with help from many workbooks, the iPad and more. Levi fell asleep on the magical express bus. That evening we ventured out to the dinosaur restaurant at Downtown Disney. We took the ferry there but had to run in the rain to catch the shuttle back to our hotel.

Our first day in the parks was spent at Hollywood Studios. Andrew showed a bit of hesitation to the characters at the Disney Junior breakfast but was willing to take pictures and dance with them. The boys met Phineas and Ferb. Levi was enamored with their shoes, and actually developed a fascination with all the characters' shoes. Andrew dedicated himself to wanting to meet Baymax, so he and Daddy waited over an hour to meet him. We were impressed with all the cast members commenting on Grandma's birthday button. Little did we know that this would continue for days, even including cast members waving/yelling from the parade to her.

Day 2 started with the park opening ceremony at Magic Kingdom! We appreciated our supply of suckers and bubbles while we waited for the train to pull up. Levi quickly caught on to "using" his Magic band, wanting to scan his wrist even when he wasn't wearing it. After a quick ride on Big Thunder Mountain, Mommy and the older two boys hopped on Splash Mountain. Jeremiah had researched the "best" place to sit. On that ride, it became obvious that Andrew wasn't too thrilled with rides in the dark. At Enchanted Tales with Belle, Jeremiah was chosen to be Maurice, Belle's father. We made a special memory riding Dumbo and then Levi gleefully played in the water sprinklers while the older boys and grandma rode the barnstormer. While we waited for the Magic Kingdom afternoon parade, a very nice family shared their scooter for Mommy and Levi to sit while he napped. Papa taught Levi the "hand game" while we were waiting in line at It's a Small World. It became a good distraction during many of our waits. After eating dinner at the Beast's cabin, we met the beast and it was time to call it a night.

By Day 3, Jeremiah had become the "nervous" bus watcher. He and Grandma were anxious about the timing of the bus system. They were two peas in a pod on this one! This day was our chance to meet Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy and Pluto at Chef Mickey's. We took a bus to Magic Kingdom and then transferred to the monorail. Things were going smooth, until Andrew felt sick near the buffet. Queue AMAZING Disney Magic...attentive staff whisked him in to the kitchen, sparing him embarrassment as well as ruining others' breakfasts. He quickly perked up, ate breakfast and was fine for the rest of our day at Epcot! Of course, our Epcot stop included Spaceship Earth (the ride in the big ball) which is a favorite of Jeremiah's. The sun zapped us in the world showcase, but it was another magical day wrapped up with swimming back at the resort.





 
Day 4 started early to catch the animal in action at Animal Kingdom. Daddy was able to ride a big roller coaster while we went to It's Tough to be a Bug. Levi didn't love all the special effects in the bug show, but did like seeing some monkeys. We convinced Grandpa to ride Kali River Rapids, but he managed to stay mostly dry. The rest of us were not nearly as lucky. After a quick rest back at the resort, we ventured out for dinner at Magic Kingdom, the electrical parade and fireworks. Aunt Sandra, Emma and Sophia met us for dinner at Crystal Palace. Although there was a downpour during our bus ride, the rain held off so we could enjoy these special parts of any Disney trip. Because, what's a Disney trip without a kid asking "Mom, are you crying?"

Our last day in the parks took us back to Magic Kingdom to catch a few things we missed earlier in the week. Pirates of the Caribbean and the "Race Cars" as Levi refers to the Tomorrowland Speedway were top highlights, along with the laugh floor. We finished up with the People Mover before we commuted over to Downtown Disney to watch cousin Isabella perform with her show choir. We took care of a little more souvenir shopping before the boys, Grandma and Papa went back to swim. Mommy and Daddy went to Boma for dinner, and were able to watch a horse win the triple crown at the bar.

As quickly as it had come, our magical week was coming to a close. It was so special to share this trip with Maama and Papa. These are memories we'll also hold dear!