Disney Day 3: Magic Kingdom!!

Today was another beautiful day in Central Florida.  We got up and went to the Magic Kingdom to meet up with my sister and her daughter! Yipppppeeeee

Lon is loving this pin trading thing, buying pins, trading them with cast members. He is enjoying it.

Nothing like ice cream for breakfast

We saw Marie from Arisotcats.  She was signed Lon's autograph book

And gave him a hug

By then, Aunt Karen had arrived and it was time for lunch!
Lon did not like the panko chicken nuggets, so he ate cake and Aunt Karen got him a peanut butter sandwich.

We made it down from lunch at the Terrace to Main Street just in time for a parade. How cool is that?

Lon's first ride at the Magic Kingdom was Aladin's Magic Carpet Ride. It was pretty fun.
Well, the kids and Aunt Karen went through the Swiss Family Robinson Tree House while I stayed down on the ground.

We went next to the Jungle Cruise. The line took a very long time and once aboard it was difficult to hear the driver. darn it.

Then off to Pirates of the Caribbean ! Still love that ride.
We introduced Ing to the wonderful world of smashed pennies. Lon loves those things still. He has almost filled a book here. We will get him another one soon
Then on to Splash Mountain! Aunt Karen got us Fast Passes for that. Super fun, love the no line

Tom Sawyer's Island. I still want to know why we never went there as kids. It was so cool. They have a cave and of course, Lon told Ing all about being in the Mark Twain Caves this past summer.  It was a fun place to play and run around, the kids had a blast
Since we had a fast pass for Splash Mountain, we could get a fast pass for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. So we did.  Lon loved the roller coaster.

On our way to Country Bear Jamboree, we found Briar Rabbit.
Love him, got a smooch from him since we were wearing the same shirt.  

Country Bear Jamboree ! We thought about Grandpa.

Lon enjoyed it

Haunted Mansion. It was as fun as I remember. Lon was okay with it.

It's A Small World. Love the ride. Still.  I am sure now we all have the song in our heads.

If you look, you can see Lon's red shirt on the carousel. I did not get on that one.  I was doubting if I could get up on the horse.
Lon  had a good time

I had never heard for Philharmagic before. It looked like it could be fun. It was a 3-D movie. I had not seen one of those before. It was amazing.

The sun was setting. It was time to see about dinner.

Aunt Karen was able to get our reservations moved up a bit, which was good. Ing and Karen had been on the go since early morning!
We did not have to wait too long.
Be Our Guest is a super popular place!

Lon playing the menu games

Lon's goblet. It also glows red.  Lon did not like the grilled fish, so he ate bread and broccoli.  My steak on the other hand was out of this world.
These goblets are very tall and top heavy, so yes, I ended up wearing the sprite that was in the cup. No harm done, they brought him new sprite in a separate, smaller, cup.

After dinner, we got to see Beast! We did get a photo pass picture of us with him. It was very nice.  We decided that since I was walking slow,  and they were tired, we would let them go on ahead and we would walk back at a much slower pace.  Well, since we passed the teacups and there was no waiting at 9:30 pm on a Sunday night, we went for it! Lon was thinking this might be fun, but how fast could I REALLY get it going?

I slowed down to take the picture. That was the coolest ride EVER.
Then we walked back toward main street

We noticed the Castle changing colors. What could this mean? People were stopping to look. This might be good. I had no clue on what was going to happen

They light up the Castle in different ways. They can make it look so different. It was amazing to watch

Same Castle.
Then we thought it was over and started to move on. But other folks were not moving.
we only made it a little ways down the path

When TinkerBell came zipping over our heads. I think it was a real person in a lit up costume on a zip line from the top of the Castle.  Then the fireworks started!!

This was close to the finale. They were wonderful fireworks. There was a story that Jiminey Cricket told about dreams and wishes.
We could not leave where we were during the show as they blocked the exit from our path. Just as well, we did not want to leave anyway.  It took a while once the fireworks were over to get back to the busses to get back to the hotel, but it was worth it. There were people lining up for the Electric Light Parade, but we decided to get back and get some rest before we started this up again in the morning!!  Lon and I are having so much fun. I am so glad I was able to do this.

A Full Day at EPCOT

Today Lon slept in, and I let him. He did not get up till almost 10!  I was up, goofing off, picking up, having coffee. I let him sleep, I wanted to wake him up but I did not. I was good.
Lon wanted to go back to Epcot and see the things we did not see. We missed a couple of things that we wanted to see, and forgot to get pennies fro four countries, so we will be going back later. Lon is getting smashed pennies all over the place and as far as Disney souvenirs go, these are a real bargin!

We saw Goofy! And the line was not too long, so we waited. Lon got his first autograph. Daisy Duck was close by, but that was a girl thing so we did not stand in line for her. Sorry Daisy.
We use the photo pass. There is a photo of the two of us with Goofy.  I am not sure how it exactly works, but I know I have the pictures I just have to go find out where to get them.  (Mark, I will do that before I leave here. The line was just too long today)
Lon really wanted to go on Space Ship Earth. So we did. He thought it was very cool. All the history of the world and how we are forging the future.

Lon wanted to do the Agent P spy game. So we did. We got an assignment in the UK. It took about 25 minutes of listening to the phone, walking around, figuring out the clues and finishing the puzzle. It was free to do, but it took lots of time. The cast members in the UK were very helpful. Neil in the Sportsman's shop was great, he even took the phone back so we would not have to go back to space ship earth to return it

The tea pot garden.  Mary Poppins and Alice in Wonderland were there, but they were girls. We did not wait.

Fish and Chips. We were in the UK after all! Love the dining plan. It is so nice to have it and not have to worry about paying for lunch. We could get a cookie or chips with our meal, so we got one of each. A pop or a bottle of water. Lon got a soda and I got water. I did not want a soda. There were no tables to be had, since we got take away for lunch. A nice couple from Florida let us share their table.  She wanted to know if I was a teacher, I said no. She said I would be good at it.  (?)
We also listened to the band that was playing on the Canada stage, The Kilted *somethings. Bagpipes, guys in kilts. Good stuff. There were lots of guys in kilts today around the park. I wished them all a Happy Tartan day.  I am cool like that

In the bookstore in UK there were Winnie the Pooh and Tigger too ! The line was super short, and bonus, it was inside an air conditioned building!!
Lon got the autograph book signed and he got hugs and we used the photo pass and both got in the picture!!
Lon bought a lego book with his own money and had it sent back to the room. It will be here tomorrow

aw.

on our way to France!

They are remodeling France so some things are not open and those that are, are crowded. The penny machine is being used for an Agent P spy adventure so it as out of use for the general public.
While we were taking a picture of Flat Stanley, a group of teachers came up to us and wanted to take our Flat Stanley's photo. I let them. Lon was chatting with them about Stan.  They thought I was a teacher and his mother.   Second time today.

Part of the Epcot Garden show is an excersize showcase, but they also were giving away applesauce packets. Once you ate the applesauce, you gave the packet back to them. They filled it with dirt.

They had the kids color the package they put the dirt filled applesauce packet in. Once they were done, they put a bean in it. Put the lid back on, put it in a burlap sack and gave it back to us to take home and grow. Lon was thrilled.

Fez. We were in Morroco.  Lon thought the Fez was so cool.

Off to Japan. We agreed that buying almost anything in Japan would be weird since we could get 99% of that at Uwjimeya.
Except the pearls. Lon wanted to pick an oyster and get a pearl.

So he did. He got one for him and one for me.

This nice lady as so up and so thrilled with each and every kid that came up to her to get a pearl. She must have be exhausted at the end of the day. She taught Lon to count to three in Japanese. Ichi, Ni, Sun.  I doubt I will ever forget it now

Two pearls, 7 1/4 each.  They are not always the same size. The person before us got a 6 and a twin set of pearls that were 5 3/4.
So we did all right. We could not agree on a setting, so we did not get that.  We are just bringing home the pearls.

Watching fish in the pond.  I told him about the neighbors behind us, they tried to have Koi, but the racoons thought they were a lovely snack.

The fife and drum corp in America.  They had all the kids come up that wanted to to recite the pledge of allegence to the flag.  I snapped a picture real quick before I joined in.

With the Fife and Drum Corp. Lon was one of the two people they let get photos with them before they went back inside

With Lotsa.  The topiaries are so cool.

Spy man Lon. He was looking over to France

Italy, again! Yipppeee

Fontana di Triton.
I know the pictures could use a bit of a crop, but I will work on that at home. For now, I just want to get them up before I forget!

Pizza di Napoli was no waiting. It was 4:57pm.  So we went in. Dined Al Fresco in the shade. NICE
The ice tea was very good.
Lon was so excited to finally have his pizza, but they did not put on the fresh basil. He asked the waiter where it was. The waiter said most kids do not like it. Lon said, but I do, and could you please add some? The waiter thought he was a great kid from that moment forward. Real mozzeralla cheese, wood fired pizza. SO good.

The good stuff

Our dining plan includes a dessert for both of us. Tonight Lon was able to enjoy his gelato sundae.
I got the Zeppole. I have to make those at home someday. Lovely little riccotta doughnut holes. You dip them yourself in to a deep dark chocolate then into a pile of whipped cream. Lon ate all his gelato and half my zeppole.
The lady who was dining behind us, asked me about Flat Stanley, since I pulled him out and took his photo. We chatted and she said I should be a teacher.  Third time today.

The wood fired ovens.  Lon and I thought they were very cool.

Watching the trains in Germany. Those garden trains fascinate Lon.
We looked around Germany.  I looked at getting a Nutcracker (no Mickey types) but they wanted a lot more money than they do in Leavenworth, so I will get a good one there and not worry about shipping it home.

These are the most silly ears I have seen yet.  No, we did not get any. Lederhosen ears, with a pretzel. I laughed out loud.

China. The tomb of the warriors. A smaller scale version. Lon thought it was wonderful.  He enjoyed that exhibit.  We asked about the pennies, since we did not see a machine. The nice cast member told us that the penny machines for China and Japan are between the UK and France. We will have to look for those!

We looked around in Norway and rode the Malstrom. That was fun. Lon's first water ride with a tiny drop. Lon really wanted to go on more ride, but Epcot is not really known for it's rides.
After Norway we went to Mexico. Lon watched the glass artists. They were wonderful. But getting that home would be a challenge.

We did not make it to Canada. We missed it the first time since we were on an Agent P mission.  We were tired. Time to go home even before the fireworks, but not too much before. Lon found these light up sidewalks. They were in a circle area. benches around the edges.  Lon made a new friend and they chased each other around.  One lady walked through the circle and made a comment to me about there were too many children here. I laughed out loud. It is DISNEY.
After one last ride on Space Ship Earth,  we went back to our hotel, did not see our buddy Bill.
When we got back to the room, I remembered we needed to go down to Port Royal to pick up our cups. We can refill them with juice, soda or water at Port Royal through out our stay.  Lon got the blue lid and I picked out a black lid. The pictures on the cups are the same.
Lon talked to a very nice cast member named Laura and told him all about the pins he was getting. It was fun to trade them. She pulled out a board and asked which one he wanted to trade for. Lon said he would have to come back and trade since he did not bring any of this pins with him. She asked which one was his favorites, maybe she could hold it for him till later. He pointed to a little black kitten. She pulled it off the board and handed it to him. She told him it was a present, since he was such a good kid.  He said Thank you. Several times. He told me that one does not go in his for trade pins.
We walked back to our room, Lon is still awake. I hope he gets some sleep soon.
We both got a little sunburnt today. Tomorrow it is super sunscreen!! and the Magic Kingdom
We will be coming back to Epcot to get the last of the pennies.

DISNEY WORLD!! Day 1

Today was the day! The day we, well, I have waited for!! 7 1/2 years in the making. Lon and I are going to DISNEY WORLD!! In Florida!  We had to get up super early to make it to the airport by 4am.  Two hours before our flight. Getting through security was not that awful,  it was slow but that left us only a half hour to wait at the gate.

We are taking photos of Flat Stanley. We are going to make a book of him to share with the class when we get home
We are at the N gates, ready to leave!

First class is the ONLY way to fly. Thank you so much!! WE loved it. Lon does not want to fly any other way from now on.

In Houston, we had a small lay over. Lon thought the freeze dried ice cream sounded good. Well, not so much after he tasted it. Good thing we only bought one

ON THE BUS going to Disney. It was so easy, we went to the Magical Express lane and they looked at         my tickets, told me which line to be in. Waited about 2 minutes and got on the bus. Away we went!

Mickey Mouse left a present for Lon in the room welcoming him to Disney. Goofy left a phone message too, saying how much  magical fun he was going to have.
When we checked in, the man who checked us in, Junior, was from Brazil.  We were taking about the names of the 7 dwarfs, and he told me he could say them in Portuguese, but not in English. SO in Portuguese I ask him to say them. He was so surprised that I could speak Brazilian Portuguese!  He said that was his surprise of the day.

First stop, Epcot. Lon wanted Pizza for dinner, so we decided to go to Italy.
We stopped to get our photo pass worked out. Got yelled at by some other tourist. I asked this one cast member if I needed to stand in this line with the people looking at photos just to get the pass and she says, well.. come over here and I will take care of you. And she did, but another lady got all upset about it. Oh well, not ever going to see her again.  It pays to be nice.
Right after that we ran into the driver from our internal bus (not the magical express from the airport, but the one from the check in desk to the actual room complex) His name is Bill. He was so nice to Lon, he remembered his name and he is introducing him to all sorts of other cast members.  He is making Lon feel special without being creepy.

It is the flower and garden show at Epcot. They have some wonderful topiary all over the park.

The Pizza place was crowded, a line out the door. Lon was so hungry. I knew he was not going to eat much and that was okay. But I knew he could not wait much longer to eat. The FANCY Italian restaurant, Gusto,  had no line. We got right in and ordered. Lon tried foccicia bread and mozerella di buffalo.  He ate some of his pasta all panna. It was very rich, so a little went a long way. I had spaghetti with meatballs. SO good, but so much.  We were able to use the dining plan. So our meal was prepaid. NICE.

The dining plan included dessert. It is a use it or lose it plan. So of course we ate dessert. Chocolate Gelato for Lon a cannoli for me. Our very nice waiter Vincenzio, from Naples is pictured carrying the wine bucket behind Lon's head

Lon got a Mickey Mouse rice krispie treat in his welcome pack. Vincenzio, gave us our reciept to sign for the dining plan early so we could get a good spot for the fire works show. Earth Illuminations.  We only had to wait 10 minutes

Space Ship Earth all lit up. Lon thought that as cool. The poles are in front of Italy, and there are gondolas parked there too.

Fireworks!! The show was amazing! It lasted about a half hour.

They float a giant globe out to the center of the lagoon and it spins and the countries light up with different pictures and colors and lights are shooting up from all directions and fireworks are going off. It is pretty spectacular!!

Yes, it was dark when we left. This is in front of the garden railway in Germany. We will see it in the daylight tomorrow

Lon in front of China. We will explore all the countries in way more detail tomorrow. Walking back from the fireworks, they were all closed.

On the Epcot side, these were the coolest part of the walkway. They lit up at different times with different intensities.  Lon and a few other kids were having a ball stepping on them.
As we headed out to the bus, Bill was there directing folks which bus they needed to take. He took the time to talk to Lon. Lon wanted to show off his Agent P hat, and tell him about the fireworks.  It was very nice.
My knee did fairly well. So far so good!
Now to get some sleep. This was only 4 hours in Epcot!! Tomorrow is full day of Disney Fun!