Back from the Happiest Place On Earth

Today, we returned from Orlando, where we spend 3 full days at Walt Disney World.

Instead of flying or driving, we decided to take the train, which was only $80 round trip per adult (and less for Emily).  It's a fairly tolerable trip - 14 hours overnight - but the return trip was less than pleasant because we were at the front of the car, which makes it exceptionally loud and bumpy.  Plus, the door in front of us didn't close properly so it kept banging and making noise all night.  Emily slept pretty well from 9pm to 6am, but Adrienne and Erin and I did not.  Oh well.  At least we had today to rest up.

I took a couple hundred photos, you can download the zip file here.  The photos are all 1280x960 and so are suitable for nice 4x6 prints if you want to make some prints.

Anyway, our train arrived in Orlando around 11am, we picked up our rental vehicle and then picked up Mom, who flew in for the trip.  Then we headed to our living quarters for the rest of the week - the Fairfield Orlando at Bonnett Creek.  We were booked in a 2 bedroom deluxe suite, thanks to my mom.  Don't confuse the Fairfield name with Fairfield hotels, they're definately not the same!  This resort is the only privately owned resort in the heart of Disney property, and let me tell you it's pretty sweet.

That evening, we went to Downtown Disney to do some shopping and to give Emily her first taste of Disney.  She was pretty excited.

We spent the next day at the Magic Kingdom, starting with breakfast at Cinderella's Royal Table, where Emily got to meet numerous princesses.  Most of the rest of the day was spent in Fantasyland and Toontown, riding rides and meeting characters.  The night came to an end around 7:30 when it got too cold for Emily in just her little Cinderella dress.

The second day was also spent at Magic Kingdom.  We started the day a little later, taking the 10:20 bus instead of the 9:20 bus, and we made sure to dress Emily warm enough for the evening festivities, including the Spectromagic Parade and the fireworks.  By the end of the day, she was so worn out, she fell asleep in my arms around 8:35 while we waited for the bus, and she did not wake back up.  She was out for the night!

We ended up doing all of Magic Kingdom except for Tomorrowland.  We probably could've pulled off the whole park in two days had we been there open to close both days, but I'm not sure Emily could've handled it!

We spent day 3 at Epcot Center, which is my favorite park.  Emily enjoyed the rides, and we got to meet a few more characters, including the Beast, and Alice.  We also got 2 beautiful silver pearls from one oyster in the store in Japan - very cool!

Overall, this was a great trip, and Emily had a fantastic time.  4 was the perfect age to take her!