Disney World

Okay, I think I've neglected the blog for long enough! To be honest, the amount of pictures I took on vacation was so overwhelming that I was exhausted just THINKING about posting them. Of course, a million things have happened in between then and now but we'll start with Disney World and see if I can slowly catch myself up in the next few weeks.

Audrey wasn't quite sure what to think upon entering the Magic Kingdom. I couldn't tell if she was in awe or completely confused (we told her she was going to Mickey's house). The nice lady at the front gate gave her these stickers and a pin that said she was celebrating her first visit.
We had lunch with Pooh and friends and that was a big highlight for Audrey. She is working on her first smile of the day in this picture...


After lunch, we rode Dumbo. My family went to Disney World several times when I was growing up, but I don't ever remember riding Dumbo. Obviously, it looks like Audrey would like to forget riding Dumbo as well.

Oh! There it is! A real, genuine, I'm ready to admit that I'm happy to be here, smile! We should have taken her to the carousel first.
From then on, she was pretty much all smiles. We rode the Winnie the Pooh ride and Audrey got a new Pooh bear. I wasn't sure how well a nap was going to work out, but shortly after this picture was taken, she fell asleep for about an hour.
We took advantage of the nap and headed over to Tomorrowland, which is a favorite of mine. Brett was kind of making fun of me because Tomorrowland is kind of outdated now but I just love it. Brings back lots of good memories of family vacations past when Tomorrowland was a fascinating place that made you wonder if the world was going to really be that "space age" in the year 2000. I really wanted to ride Space Mountain for old times sake but it was closed for renovations. So, we headed to my 2nd favorite, which is the "Carousel of Progress." I'm sure some of you who have been there (and know what I'm talking about) are rolling your eyes, but I. LOVE. IT. I'm a dork. I admit it.

After Audrey's snooze was over (and I devoured a delicious Mickey Mouse ice cream bar), we headed to Mickey's house for a little meet and greet.

We spent the rest of the afternoon in Mickey's Toontown letting Audrey play and explore Mickey and Minnie's houses. Audrey was also introduced, for the first time, to the world of princesses. Before Disney, our world was all about Pooh and Mickey. Now, our world is all about Cinderella, Snow White, and Ariel. The "pwincesses."

Before we left, I decided that since Space Mountain was closed, I would ride Splash Mountain (another old favorite). You know, just for old times sake.

The best part was that there was no waiting, I got right on! And then after the 5 story drop, I remembered why I don't do roller coasters anymore. Even for old times sake. I'll just hang on to the memories next time. And now I have new memories to add to the older ones of when I was a kid experiencing Disney World. It felt just as magical as an adult as it did when I was a kid- with one exception. I don't ever remember being so tired-- and so hot! But I still think it is the most magical place on earth!