Miss Ella excited to head out on our first day. And, showcasing Mom's poor photography skills. (Helps to turn the flash on.)
Whoo hoo! We're here!! (I'm not really sure who was more excited at this point - but I think it was me.)
Ella sees the Disney signs and realizes we are finally at "Mickey's house."
Arriving at Epcot :)
Mother's Day photo @ Epcot's entrance. They gave all the mothers roses for Mother's day which I thought was a nice touch. Ella stole mine.
First ride of the day :)
Touring the Finding Nemo exhibit with Paw Paw. Not too excited about the sharks.
Family photo with Nemo and the gang :)
Ella made friends with this little girl and they took turns pointing out all the "Nemos" in the tank.
"The Land" ride. Which I think may have been Ella's favorite of the day. She really enjoyed seeing all the plants growing. Plus she got to ride in a boat. Big fan.
They had just re-released the 4-D Captain Eo (I'm probably spelling that wrong.) I was pumped to go see it again.
And so was Ella...until she realized what was happening. Turns out, Captain Eo a little scarier than I remember. So, Ella and I waited outside and played in the fountains. After we walked out, Ella looked at me and said "Dat too scary at me." Oops.
Ella playing outside while we waited for the gang.
She was really fascinated with these "hopping" water fountains. Until one hit her in the head.
She also liked jumping on these squares that changed colors and lit up when you landed on them.
And, after all that excitement and a PB&J sandwich it was time for a nap :) (PS - did you know Disney lets you bring in your own food? Score. Highly recommend.)
Ella woke up somewhere around Norway and we took another boat ride.
They also had these stations just for kids at each country where they could color their very own bear from that country. With Sharpie markers. Not sure who planned that one out.
Playing some drums with Paw Paw at the African outpost.
Contrary to what it may look like, Ella and I were not about to enter a boxing match here. We are actually waiting in line to meet Snow White. Apparently, this is Ella's favorite princess. She informed me of this later. Strange seeing as how I'm pretty sure she had never seen her before that day.
The whole fam in Germany.
Yay, they have beer at Disney. Very, very expensive beer.
Hanging out :)
Watching a Japanese drum show.
Our little Tinkerbell resting up after a long day.
We spent our "off" days hanging at the pool. It was nice to have some R&R time after all the Disney action.
And then it was time for the big event - Magic Kingdom!
Ella chillin' in her shades on the ferry trip to the entrance.
Clearly, Ella was pumped to be there. (Apparently, Miss Priss put her crabby pants on that morning. Luckily, she cheered up once we got inside and she saw all the characters.)
Waiting in line for Winnie the Pooh.
Riding in Pooh's honey pot with Paw Paw. Ella basically refused to ride any ride's with Jason or I.
She also requested to ride the Goofy roller coaster when we walked past it. And, met the height requirement. I was a little nervous she would freak out once she got on but she actually did really well and seemed to enjoy it. Little daredevil :)
We finally convinced Ella to ride Dumbo with Mom and Dad. That's us back there in the blue dumbo :)
Riding the carousel.
Daddy was taking pictures from the next horse over. His horse was the only one with flowers decorating it. Strangely, many small children seemed disappointed not to get this horse. We later learned that was because it is Cinderella's horse. So, Jason crushed a few dreams that day by stealing Cinderella's horse from little girls. (J/K the line was short - they could ride again.)
Waiting in line at the Haunted Mansion playing with all the gadgets. I remembered this being more of a funny haunted mansion. Ella did not agree. Oops, again.
Very happy while in line. Once we got inside things changed a bit. And then the ride broke while we were on it. In the dark. With a toddler who was freaking out. Good times.
Jason told Ella just to close her eyes and she wouldn't be scared anymore. So she did. And when we got off she was squeezing her eyes shut with everything she had. It was a little bit sad - but also hilarious. She recovered quickly.
The events of the Haunted Mansion were definitely forgotten once Ella got to meet her idol...Tinkerbell.
I cannot explain to you the excitement she had when she realized she was going to meet the "real" Tinkerbell. (FYI: Ella defines things that are real as anything not plastic. As in, "Mommy she real, she not pah-las-tic.") These pictures don't really do it justice. It was awesome - probably my favorite moment of the day.
And, Ella got her very own Tink to take home with her.
Jungle Cruise with Daddy :)
Elephants on Jungle Cruise.
Taking a break to watch one of the street shows.
We also met some princesses later that day - Aurora, Belle and Cinderella. Ella loved this too.
I asked Ella to smile so I could take a picture of her kiss from Belle and this is the face she made.
We capped off the day with the electrical light parade and then headed home. Long, fun day.
Exhausted. Doesn't get much better than this. Donald, Tink and a kiss on the cheek from a princess :)
Our last park of the trip was Animal Kingdom.
We started the day out on the Safari ride which really was awesome and Ella loved seeing all of the animals.
I got some really great shots of the animals but since this post is getting a little lengthy and you may already have stopped reading and/or be on picture overload, I'll just post this giraffe. When Ella saw it she said "He coming to see me! He's my best friend!"
There are also a few nature walks at the park. Checking out some of the animals with Paw Paw.
Me, Ella and a hippo skull. Probably one of my new favorite things is to hear Ella say "hippopotamus." It sounds something like "bee-po thomas." Hard to write in a blog. But hilarious.
Sweet girl checking out the animals.
The whole crew.
Ella making new friends again. Pointing out the snakes.
The gang (minus Paw Paw who was taking the pic.)
We went to meet the characters and Ella had fallen asleep on Jason's shoulder. We woke her up just as we got to Donald. This was her reaction : )
Donald, is it really you?!?
Hugs all around.
Meeting Chip and Dale. Ella walked right up to them and said: "I have to tee tee potty." I'm sure they were impressed.
Group photo with Goofy.
Hanging with Uncle Justin.
Picture with Minnie. Not a great pic because it was hard to keep Ella still and this was at the end of the day. The munchkin was a wee bit tired. And HOT.
This is Ella busting a move for a crowd of folks at the Indian dance party. We, quite literally, had to drag her away kicking and screaming. For dancing video, I will refer you to my Facebook page.
So, if you made it this far - congratulations! I'm impressed. That is a brief (sort of) recap of our adventures in Disney. Great time. Can't wait to go back. Thanks to Nana and Paw Paw for providing the condo :)
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