Adventures at Disney World - Day 2

Day two brought us a full HOT day at the park.  After breakfast, we headed straight to Magic Kingdom.  We didn't have a formal plan for the day, but after getting a head start on the rides the night before, we knew the goal of the day was to focus on meeting the characters (emphasis on the princesses) and collecting autographs.

We didn't have to look far.  As soon as we walked through the gates and onto Main Street, we ran into this guy:

Hannah:  "Megan, can you believe what's happening here?  It's PLUTO!!"

It has been pointed out to me that in this picture, it appears that Hannah is being attacked by Pluto and Megan  is attempting to defend her sister's honor, but I assure you that is not the case.

 We had been slightly concerned about their reaction to the characters in oversized costumes (as a rule of thumb, Megan HATES any local mascots or anything of that nature), but Disney pulled it off.  They were soooo, soooo excited about these greetings, and extremely enthusiastic about having their books signed.

Shortly after loving on Pluto, we wandered over to Daisy Duck's line (meanwhile, Daddy got us a spot in line for Rapunzel).

This girl loves her some Daisy Duck!

Big, big fans of Daisy they were!

While Daddy enjoyed the quiet calm of a line in the shade with no kids, we took a potty and water break, and inadvertently got a front row seat from the 11 o'clock Main Street Parade.  The parade was great, but I was more interested in watching their faces then the show, as evidenced by my search of the camera roll for one picture of the feature show... but seriously, look how into it they were:

Then, our big time arrived - time to meet our first princess!  (and Rapunzel no less - she is arguably Megan's favorite and also the newest one at the park, so the line to meet her can get quite lengthy).  She was WONDERFUL!  I was very impressed with the characters overall and how gracious they were with the kids, not rushing them through the lines and acting genuinely interested in their trip, and spending time to tell them a little bit about their own story.  Megan, who was wearing a Happy Birthday pin (provided free by Disney), got a very special birthday greeting from each and every character and cast member she came across, and the princesses took the time to discuss their favorite birthday treats (based on the theme of their respective movies) and other traditions.  It was so cool, and the little ones totally bought it.  Out of all of the princesses, I think Rapunzel was my favorite.  We got the most time with her, and she was very affectionate and sweet with our girls.  They LOVED her, as evidenced here:

Rapunzel's gasp, upon seeing the birthday girl's button.  I knew we were in for a good show at this point.

I love their look of total awe here.  Megan:  "I can't believe this is happening!  Be cool, Hannah, be cool!"

Megan declined to put on her Rapunzel dress when the big moment arrived, but Hannah (shockingly) was all about it!



One of my favorite pics from the whole trip!  

We had a FastPass to meet the Storybook Princesses (Aurora - aka Sleeping Beauty, Belle and Cinderella), so we headed that way right after meeting Rapunzel.

Posing with Sleeping Beauty...

...and Belle

Hannah literally bounced with joy at every character greeting.  This pic captures a little of  her bounce routine.

...and Cinderella! 

We were on our way to the back of the park to hit some rides after a full morning of schmoozing with Disney Royalty, when we quite literally nearly ran into Tigger and Pooh.  Hannah went ballistic with excitement, so we found ourselves in line to meet them shortly thereafter.

Hannah did not wait for Winnie to initiate physical contact - she went right in for a bear hug (no pun intended)

Tigger got his share of love as well

Mom is fully aware that she looks like a total loser - I don't care - it was HOT

Hannah and Dad then went off to enjoy a few rides while Megan headed off for her first birthday surprise (1 of 2) - a spa appointment at the Bippidi Boppidi Boutique in Cinderella's Castle - GASP!

Ready to be beautified!

Detangling this mop is no easy task - of course if you're dressed as one of Cinderella's helpers she will not scream at you like she does if you're her mother.

She does the spa thing quite well - smart girl.

Beautified and ready for action!

It was break time after the spa.  We met up with Daddy and Hannah (one of whom had fallen asleep on the riverboat ride - any guesses?) and headed back to the condo for a late lunch and some rest time.  The weather for the evening was looking a bit dismal, and after failing to secure herself a decent nap for the second day in a row, we opted to leave Hannah home with Grandma Purdy and just take the newly glamorous almost-birthday girl back to the park that night.  As we had our ponchos on less than twenty minutes after entering, and kept them on the duration of the evening, I stand by our decision.  Even though it was a little damp, we still had a great, and very productive, evening trip.

Our first spin on Buzz Lightyear's ride.  This is one of my favorites in the whole park, and Megan really enjoyed shooting the targets (and Daddy) as well.

Country Bear Jamboree (not only is it cute for kids, but it's INSIDE - aka out of the rain)

Enchanted Tiki Room

Aladdin's Magic Carpet Ride

And back to Dumbo.  The lines were so short at night that we were able to do our favorites multiple times.

Always willing to strike a pose, this one.

For the second night in a row, we dragged a sleeping child back to the condo at an hour nowhere near her usual bedtime.  She slept very soundly on her last night as a FOUR year old.  (Insert Mom's sigh...)