We left on Sunday after church to Orlando, Florida.
We drove straight to the temple. My goal was to enjoy walking around the grounds, but after containing the boys for the 8 hour drive they were pretty wild. We made a very quick loop and it was back to the car!
We checked in to the military resort on Disney. The resort was nice, but the room was all one room which makes sleep a bit difficult. The boys were still excited and ready as we rode the shuttle to Hollywood Studios.
First stop was signing up for Jedi Training. Joshua and Matt waited for 1.5 hours!
He loved it, and it made it in the top 5 things he did the whole week. He almost didn't do it though because after sign ups we all met up to look at all of the star wars stuff and meet Kylo Ren. Kylo Ren started talking to Joshua with the voice changing mask. Joshua froze and just stared. We walked away, and he started sobbing. We had to ruin the Disney Magic and convince Joshua that everything there was fake including Star Wars NOT being real. He finally stopped crying and agreed to do Jedi Training.
While they waited for Jedi sign-ups, Rachel, Nathan, and I went to the Disney Jr. show.
It was a hot day!
Both boys froze to respect the Storm Troopers
Star Tours
We also met "magic" Mickey.
We did the disney jr. character dine. Nathan would eat but was constantly watching the characters and would ask when his turn was coming. Then he would jump out and hug as long as we would allow.
He lined up with each character to get his picture taken.
Everyone dealt with it as I had my princess moment!
Toy Story Mania was a blast for everyone!
Both boys rested on the way to Epcot
Epcot was fun and test track won the prize for being the best thing there (according to the boys)
Waited entirely too long for this encounter but since we have seen this movie a million times and Nathan said pwease....I love him!
Monday was a little too long and hot for everyone. Traveling from resort to park to park to resort was a bit more than anyone bargained for, and we skipped some countries in Epcot.
Tuesday was Animal Kingdom. We started out with It's Tough to be a Bug which was a mistake as Joshua was in my lap and then out the door. Nathan wasn't really a fan either so he decided to go too. The rest of the day he was having flashbacks to the show.
We went from there to the other side of the park to watch The Lion King show which is incredible. Both kids really enjoyed it but especially Nathan. People always label him as a jock because of his energy level and size, but this kid loves a live show. Maybe a man that does it all? Then Nathan and I waited to meet Mickey and Minnie. This was the longest character wait of the trip, and Nathan kept saying he wanted to go. I would explain that if we left we couldn't see them, and he would then decide to stay. When our turn arrived he was skipping in place because he was too excited to get the forward motion going! He then went back and forth between the two with hugs and kisses.
We tried to ride Dinosaur but after waiting and waiting some more the ride had technical difficulties. At this point we were stuck in a dark room and Joshua's flashback to the bug show earlier flared up and he began crying that he didn't want to ride it. Well we were obviously not in an easy place to get out so we convinced him to ride. However, after making it all the way to the ride entrance it broke again and they said no ride that day. AHHHHH! I don't really care about rides especially in my "old" age now but waiting is the pits. Joshua, Rachel, and Matt went to ride Expedition Everest. He says he loved it but...
While they were crazy, Nathan and I checked out dinosaurs and rode on a dinosaur. Nathan cackled and squealed in delight the whole time!
Then the boys traded pins. Thanks, Aunt Jessi and Uncle Peter for the cool disney pins! They both enjoyed it but Nathan didn't like being held down to show his off in a picture.
Tuesday, we checked out of the military resort and in to our timeshare tour property. It was nice and cheap since we committed to the tour. Someday, we will be able to afford just staying at the resort without worrying about it. It was nice and we were all excited to have separate rooms. Wednesday, morning we did the tour and everyone else relaxed and recharged. Nathan needed his "gubbles" as they went for a walk in the rain....
We headed to the park after Nathan enjoyed a nap. It was a rainy day which actually made this my favorite day! We didn't have to wait at all and most of the time it was either not raining or just drizzling.
Enjoyed seeing this parade.
It started raining harder at dinner time. We had sandwiches packed so we ran to the ferry to go to Tom Sawyer Island. We ate just as our family in the play set house. It was a favorite moment for me. Having a quiet picnic in Disney.
Fantasmic! Boys loved this also but Nathan doesn't like loud so he covers his ears. He decided that this show was also too bright for him so he needed my help.
After Fantasmic, there was a special Star Wars Fireworks show. As the songs changed during the show, Joshua would name the movie and he would comment on why certain color fireworks were chosen. This is crazy to me since he hasn't been allowed to spend that much time on this interest. I need to direct this brain to useful information. He amazes me!
Thursday we started late and enjoyed a few things we missed but then we went back to enjoy the resort. After people missed Wednesday the park was ridiculously crowded on Thursday and no one wanted to push through the crowds.
Picked out his souvenir, storm trooper Donald. He changes his voice and interacts non-stop with Donald. Much to my chagrin, they both also got swords.
That evening we took everyone to this restaurant. We all loved it! The entire place is filled with dinosaurs, aquariums, and other bright decor.
Our plan was to just order this amazing desert called Chocolate extinction. We also ended up ordering a kid's meal since Nathan grabbed the waiter on his own! He ordered mac and cheese with chocolate milk pwease. He also got a chocolate milk refill. That kid!
Lego store and lego creations were a hit
Then of course we ended the night at Magic Kingdom for the parade and fireworks! It was a magical night. I loved watching Rachel, Joshua, and Nathan smile and have that twinkle that comes from Disney magic!
Memories were made and I can't wait to continue to re-see the world through their eyes!
