Meeting Mickey and Minnie Mouse

Of course it was the one day Finley was not in a Mickey or Minnie Mouse dress...smacks forehead.  But she sure looks cute in her Pooh dress.  And she was so happy to meet Minnie and Mickey Mouse.

I hope no one is getting bored of the Disney pictures.  I have so many more to share and I figured interspersing them with our regular daily life would be a nice way to share them without having a Disney post that was several pages long.  Finley still asks to go to Disney World every day, especially "Minnie's House".  I am trying to convince Clifton that we need a return visit this winter.

Gymboree Fun and Fun

Finley is a huge fan of Gymboree. Too bad my Groupon is only for one month of play time. If it weren't so expensive, I would surely sign Finley up for more classes. She really enjoys playing with all the gym equipment, especially the slide. It is amazing how much she has progressed from our first visit to Gymboree for Ryan's birthday party. She is so brave now about trying new things. She still isn't very good at climbing things, but we are working on it. Of course the highlight of the class for Finley is the fact that her best friend Max is there. The two of them just love each other and will imitate whatever the other one is doing. It is hysterical!

For future Gymboree classes, no more one piece outfits for Finley.  The kids get a Gymbo stamp on their tummies and having to unsnap her outfit is a real pain.

EPCOT

Epcot has changed a lot since the last time I visited Disney World.  Test Track has replaced the World of Motion, Figment is still around but he has lost his Dreamweaver sidekick, the Living Seas have morphed into The Seas with Nemo and Friends and Kitchen Kabaret is now a food court and Soarin.  Finley loved Epcot.  I was worried she might be too little for it, but she could spend hours playing with Nemo and his friends.  The music at the World Pavillions captivated her and she was content climbing on all the pathways and stairways throughout all the lands.  We spent two fun days at Epcot and were able to see the new to us Illuminations.  I miss the old one, the fire ball thing really didn't do it for me. 

Playdate in the Park

We have been having the most amazing weather so far this fall.  In the eighties, sunny and with a slight breeze.  The best part: no humidity.  We have taken full advantage of the weather and spent time outdoors every day, even if it is a simple walk around the block (or four depending on Finley's demands)

We had our playgroup at the fantastic Huffington Park in West University.  Finley and Max had the best time playing together.  Finley was not a fan of the swings at first, but once she realized how much Max liked them, she was all for it.  She also fed him several grapes, it was quite hysterical.

Car Race

Finley loved the "Car Race" at Disney World.  She said that the cars were all "Daddy's Car" and she was so happy to race around the track.  Obviously, she enjoyed this ride multiple times.  Maybe by our next visit, her feet will be able to reach the pedals.

Opa! Part II

The weather here is just lovely and after our family photos this morning, we decided to change into some comfy clothes and head out to the Greek Festival. Houston is lucky to have two Greek Festivals every year. Finley went to the Festival of Greece in the spring of 2008 (the one with the IFOCE Gyro Eating Contest), but this was her first visit to the one in Montrose. We got there when it first opened, which made it super easy to park and grab some yummy food. Finley devoured the gyro meat, just like she does at Niko Nikos.

After lunch, we watched Greek dancers perform in the auditorium. Finley loved the music and clapped to the beat.

We then went outside to the children's area. With her Disney World experience, Finley did amazing on the swings. She was wary the first two go rounds, but she settled into it. One of the boys didn't make it, they had to stop the ride and let him off. Poor guy.

Breakfast with Pooh and Friends

Finley had an amazing time at breakfast at the Crystal Palace with Pooh and his friends, Tigger, Eeyore and Piglet.  I think Finley was too excited to eat much breakfast.  It is hard to concentrate on Mickey Mouse waffles when Pooh Bear is coming your way! 

Finley was all dolled up in her Pooh dress that Grammy had made.  Hopefully, it still fits her next year and we can enjoy breakfast with Pooh and Friends again.

After everyone had gone, I got to have a second visit with Tigger.  So fun!

Disney World: The Jammies

Finley had Disney pajamas for every night we were there.  She had zebra prints for the night before we went to the Animal Kingdom, Winnie the Pooh the night before her breakfast with Pooh and all his friends at the Crystal Palace and of course, Minnie and Mickey Mouse were represented.  They have all become her favorite jammies!  I picked them up on a great sale over the summer, no one wears footie PJs in the summer, except for Finley.

Gymboree Fun

Courtney and I decided that the Gymboree Groupon deal was too good to pass up. We anxiously attended Max and Finley's first class this afternoon. The kids did great, they were super excited to see each other. Finley doesn't like going over a week without seeing her best bud. The funniest part of the whole experience for me was when Finley went underneath the parachute. Max wasn't there with her and she started crying out for him. Those two are too cute.

Fun Video

Waiting on those pictures...

Welcome Home!

Most of the Disney World pictures were taken by the Grandparazzi and the fun Mac made it impossible to transfer the pictures to my memory card.  I will post a fun video of Grandad on Main Street  tomorrow in order to try and speed up getting all the fantastic Disney pictures to me sooner.

Finley did fantastic on both flights to and from Orlando.  We did do some booing today when the former Continental CEO was on our video monitors  proclaiming the merger a success...boo United!  Finley charmed her seat mate on the flight home tonight, which meant she had no nap.  The pictures of her on the drive home say it all.  Clifton got some good snuggling in with a sleepy Finley before getting her in jammies and off to bed.  I am sure she is dreaming of the Monorail, Country Bears, Pirates of the Caribbean, Nemo and Friends, Pink Princess (aka Aurora), People Mover, boat, Peter Pan, Snow White, Fireworks, Minnie & Mickey (and their houses), Jungle Cruise, Joe (her favorite concierge), Swiss Family treehouse, Tiki Birds and all her Disney World friends.  To say that Finley had an amazing time is an understatement, she absolutely adored everything Disney.  I cannot wait to take her again, it was truly magical.

And I am thrilled to be back home using a real computer...one that can transfer files and blog with ease.  But I sure do miss Disney World...  Many thanks to Grammy and Grandad for the most perfect trip to Disney World ever.

Disney World

Finley is absolutely loving Disney World.  She has had the best time.  Yesterday, she made it through the whole day without even needing a nap.  She was such a trooper.  So many firsts....first monorail ride, first Disney World ride, first mouse ears...

The first ride we did was Winnie the Pooh.  She had so much fun.  The only ride she hasn't really liked so much was the carousel.  Her favorite park so far is the Magic Kingdom.  She even rode on the Pirates of the Caribbean tonight.  I was so proud of her for being such a big girl.  She talked to the pirates as we rode, it was super cute.  She also really enjoyed the Country Bear Jamboree, she kept yelling "Bears!"  By far her most favorite thing has been Minnie's house at Toon Town.  We will have to return there at least a couple times more before we leave.

Finley is loving all the attention here, she collected five stickers tonight from castmembers after the Main Street Electrical Light Parade.  Everyone adored her Minnie dress and Grammy & Grandad bought her her very own Minnie Mouse to take home.

We also visited the Animal Kingdom this morning.  Finley loved seeing all the animals, but it is crazy hot here, so we left before nap time.  We were able to get through Africa and Asia, so the rest of the park will have to wait for sometime later this week.

If you have any doubts about taking a toddler to Disney World, DO IT.  It is magical to watch her get so excited about everything.  She has been a total dream and I know she is just loving it so very much.  We have also been spoiled by the Grand Floridian.  After staying here, I doubt we will be able to stay anywhere else.  We are just a short monorail ride away from the Magic Kingdom and then we get to take an equally short boat ride home.  Add in a room with a view of the lagoon and monorail (and Cinderella's Castle if you turn your head right) and you have the makings of an ideal Disney

Please accept my apologies for only having large pictures.  I am working on Grandad's Mac...and it is SO frustrating.