Where Dreams Really Do Come True

Oh, sweet Magic Kingdom. How I love thee. I mean- for reals. :)

When people talk about how magical it is, you might very often just roll your eyes and say whatever. But seriously...to me- personally...it's oh-so magical. I have been many, many, many times. I don't know how many, but enough to not even need a map to get through the theme park. I was lucky enough to have parents that worked for the airlines. And plus, I had grandparents that took us too. The last time I was there though was Ben and I's first Christmas we were married. How very special to come back with our 3.5 year old daughter.

We drove up to Orlando just for the day. Our friends we were staying with very graciously offered to keep Bennett with them, which made it much easier. We were/are very appreciative, VERY appreciative! As we were coming into the park area I saw the big 'ole sign that everyone takes a picture of- we're no different. It's a bit blurry, but you get the gist. The traffic was non-existent, which is good- but bad for a picture. :)

Makenna happened to be asleep until we woke her up to put her in the stroller. I told her that we were there and she said, in a hazzy-dead sleep voice "I can see Cinderella's castle now?!" Yes, sugar..you can see her castle. Lil Sweet Pea.

We waited a bit for the next tram to pick us up. Now remember she is OBSESSED with "being 5 for the bus." She asked, "Mommy, I can be 5 for the bus, or I can be 3?... I'm 3 for this bus!!!" Total excitement- she couldn't contain it.

After we bought the tickets, then we waited in line for the monorail. She loved going through the hotel. Really cute. And then once we could see the castle in the distance, she lit up like a light. It makes me teary eyed remembering already. "Mommy- there it is, there it is! There's Her castle!!!"


Off the bat, we saw Daisy and Pluto giving photo opps and autographs. Then we saw a quick show (parade-type thing) with Mickey and Minnie. We saw Ballou from The Jungle Book, the Jeannie from Aladdin, Pinocchio, and then Alice and the Mad Hatter. Makenna yelled, "Hi Alice!" She turned and waved right at her- Lil Mak melted. She thought that was totally cool. We rode the Buzz Lightyear ride first. We rode the Winnie the Pooh ride, the Merry-go-round, and Dumbo. She'd tell you that was her favorite.

She was really happy, I promise. It was just so dad-gum hot.

We then saw the 3D show, Mickey's Philhar Magic and LOVED it. I don't recall doing this in the past, but am SO glad we did. Seriously cute!!


She wore her 3D glasses upside down throughout the entire show- hilarious. She was grabbing for things, thinking they were right in front of her. And then- she saw Aladdin and Jasmine and yelled, "Hi Aladdin. Hi Jasmine!" ...like they could hear her. As parents, Ben and I relished the moment.

We rode It's a Small World and cooled off for a bit. She really enjoyed that ride too. There's so much to look at. :)



After lunch, we went to try and find a good spot for the 3:00pm parade. Luckily, we had looked at the weather beforehand, and packed 3 ponchos and an umbrella. I wasn't a girl scout for nothing! Always be prepared was our motto. :)

You might have guessed it- Downpour. Storm. Crazy rain, wind, thunder, and lightening. The whole kitten caboodle. For! Two! Hours! Hence- the parade was cancelled. We debated...a lot. We decided we'd stand in line for the Peter Pan ride, and that might keep us dry for 45 minutes. It did, and she loved it.

After the ride, we debated some more. The Country Bear Jamboree was inside and we hadn't seen that yet. Really cute too. We ran in the rain to our last ride the infamous, Pirates of the Caribbean. I thought she might be scared a bit, but totally wasn't. She's even still talking about it. I guess it made quite an impression.

And then- the event that completely made the day. I spotted, just out of the corner of my eye, a beautiful teal colored gown. It was Aerial and Prince Eric!! I had been so bummed since the parade had been cancelled. That was going to be our chance to see all of the princesses. But weather happens, and you move on. Makenna wanted to stand in line and meet her- well, duh! I didn't blame her- so did I! She literally couldn't handle it. The excitement in her voice, in her actions, in her smile-- ugh. Worth every flippin penny.



She showed them her middle finger boo-boo (she'd been biten by a rabbit) and stuck it right in their faces. :) Aerial asked her about her shirt, and about her shoes...they had a quick little convo. And Prince Eric just stood there and looked good. Too Cute.
And would you believe they even had Cinderella's Castle roped off because of the storm?! We didn't even get to walk through the dang thing. Next time, next time.

And this just proves that she's still so young. After all of this- taking her to Disney World, riding the rides, seeing the shows, meeting Aerial in person...she's still just a babe. She talked to the damn ducks for 10 minutes!! They're so funny.

A sacked out sweet pea.

And a beautiful ending to such a magical day.