Disney World: Day Five

It was quite an early start this morning because we wanted to be at the Magic Kingdom when it opened. When we arrived, the monorail was not running, so for the first time ever we took the ferry. Finley was not pleased. We made it in time for the opening show, which made Finley happy again. We headed straight to Belle's Enchanted Tales and once again Finley was lucky enough to get picked for a big part: Phillipe the horse. She got to gallop and neigh with Belle, she was thrilled. We then rode Winnie the Pooh, The Little Mermaid and Peter Pan to complete our Fantasyland visit. We headed over to Frontierland to ride Big Thunder Mountain a couple of times and Splash Mountain (much to Clifton's dismay.) We were in the front row and got soaked. So we headed out of the park for lunch at Friendly's complete with a monster sundae.

After lunch we spent some time at the pool, which may have been a bit much for Finley. So after 10+ times down the water slide, it was time for a nap. After nap we returned back to the Magic Kingdom (monorail!) for the night. We were able to ride Aladdin's Carpets, Pirates and the Jungle Cruise in no time flat. Then it was Big Thunder Mountain Railroad three times since it is Finley's favorite. We had planned to watch the Main Street Electrical Parade, but it was crazy crowded. We opted instead to ride Dumbo, Barnstormer and visit with characters. After that we rode on Tomorrowland Speedway (Finley made me drive,) Astro Orbiter (during the fireworks!) and caught Monsters Inc Laugh Floor. It was a very full day and Finley was having a blast!

Disney World: Day Four

Since we had such a late night last night at the Magic Kingdom, we all slept in and we weren't at Animal Kingdom at open.  Which worked out just fine.  Finley rode Triceratops Spin and Dinosaur twice each, then it was off to visit Pooh and friends.  When we got to Tigger, the cast member told us he was done for the day and we wouldn't get to meet him.  We pointed out her Tigger dress and they allowed one more visit, so Finley got to bounce with Tigger.  We got to walk up the path with Pooh, which was quite fun, he was really interactive.  Then our fastpasses for the safari were ready.  Finley kept asking to see alligators and crocodiles, but none were out today, though there were plenty of other animals to see.  After the safari, we all grabbed a quick lunch on our way to the Finding Nemo musical.  We got great seats with a fantastic view of the show.  We all really loved it.  We stopped by Camp Minnie and Mickey to see some characters, but the lines were crazy long, so we ended up just seeing Mickey Mouse.  After that we headed back for a nap.

We headed out to Epcot because we had anniversary dinner reservations at Chefs de France.  Finley changed into her new Minnie and Mickey Mouse outfit with the Eiffel Tower on it for the occasion.  On our way in we rode Spaceship Earth and Finley visited with Duffy the Bear.  We also stopped in Mexico to meet Donald and in Germany to see the trains "for Grandad."  There were so many amazing flower displays for the Flower and Garden Festival.  Finley did great during dinner.  She has become quite adept at using a knife and was thrilled to spread her own butter.  She ate almost half her chocolate mousse and was full.  After dinner we saw more flowers and got a few souveniers, inlcuding a Buzz Lightyear Astroblaster for Finley since she did such a great job at dinner.  Finley was mesmerized by Illuminations, she wouldn't even let Clifton switch arms because she didn't want to miss a thing.

Disney World: Day Three

We were once again up bright and early to make it to Epcot at park open. Epcot did not open early like Hollywood Studios did, so we were there in perfect time to ride Test Track and grab a fast pass for it. There are now sending the fastpasses to design your own vehicle, but you have to do it in a group. Finley had fun designing a purple truck and a pink mini car in her two rides. She loves going fast! Finley rode Nemo, but was most excited to ask a question in Turtle Talk with Crush. Luckily we were at one of the first shows of the day, so it wasn't crowded at all and Finley was the first kid selected to ask Crush a question. She asked "Do fish bite?" Answer, "They do!" Finley was so proud to have participated in the show. The Flower and Garden Festival is going on right now and it is incredible. Epcot looks better than I have ever seen it and the character topiaries are adorable.

Finley played and rode Journey Into Imagination while we waited for our Soarin' fastpasses to be ready. After a ride on Soarin, we took the Land boat tour before our lunch in Italy. We used the boat to cross over the lake for the first time ever. You can roll the stroller directly on, so it is a really easy way to get across the water. Finley was exhausted and not hungry at all during lunch, so we headed back to the hotel to get a nap in before our evening in the Magic Kingdom.

Getting to the Magic Kingdom was the first time I missed staying at a monorail resort. We had to drive fifteen minutes to the parking lot, then take a tram, then take the monorail and then we were finally there. Finley wanted to fastpass Crooked Choo Choo, so we did that and watched the Country Bear Jamboree while we waited for them to be ready. The line got really short after our first ride on Big Thunder Mountain, so we rode it again with only a 5 minute wait. For how crazy the park was, I was amazed. Especially since it was 80 minutes wait when we got to the park. We grabbed a quick dinner and headed over to the Haunted Mansion. Finley announced to the whole room to keep their backs away from the walls before the cast member got a chance to. It was too funny! After the Haunted Mansion we rode It's a Small World, Teacups and the People Mover (Finley's current favorite ride.) Space Mountain had been closed all day and was completely lit up inside. It was neat to see it with the lights on from the People Mover. We decided to skip the Electric Light Parade since it was so busy, so we rode Stitch's Great Escape, danced with Chip, Dale and Stitch and rode Buzz Lightyear before ending the night with the Castle Show and fireworks. We are sleeping in tomorrow! 10 pm fireworks make for a late night.