Magic Kingdom #2 (Day 4)

Our first day at the Magic Kingdom, we spent all of our time in Fantasyland and Tomorrowland.  On our second day, I had a strict itinerary so that we could do everything that we wanted on Main Street and in Adventureland, Liberty Square, and Frontierland.  We finished all the things that the kids were interested in seeing in those parts of the park by about 3pm.  At that time, we saw a fantastic parade and did a pirate treasure hunt.  Then we spent the rest of the day re-doing their favorites in Fantasyland and Tomorrowland. 

It was a busy morning/early afternoon and evening. And it all started with fun on the monorail because everything is more fun when Dan puts his spin on it.

 

We started the day by taking pictures with Tinkerbell.  The lines for Tink and Mickey were side by side, so we had to choose one.  It was first thing in the morning and I knew that by the time we were done in one line, the other would be too long to be worth the wait.  The kids voted that they would rather take pics with Tinkerbell, so I don't have that "family with Mickey" money shot, but I do have these cute ones. (I am obviously saying, "Smile, Jonah" through my teeth in the family picture.)

This one would be so great if it wasn't blurry!

We were lucky because right when we walked out of the Tinkerbell store, we ran right into Snow White and were able to take a photo with her with no wait.

Next, we ran into a firefighter and his wife on Main Street.  We were also lucky to see the Dapper Dans and a trolley on our way to Liberty Square.

 Family pictures in front of the castle Take 2:

 

 

 

 Pit stop:  We hopped in line for the Peter Pan ride because we knew that it would be one of the longest lines in the park later in the day.  It was a good choice.  (The mermaids were, of course, Elena's favorite part.)

 

 We enjoyed a ride on the Riverboat and saw all kinds of neat things while steaming around the river.

 

We walked past Chip and Dale on our way to Tom Sawyer's Island.

Swiss Family Robison Treehouse was fun for the kids because we had just watched the movie a couple of weeks before our WDW trip.

Dan made sure that I got in the picture since I am usually behind the camera.

I told the boys that this would be their room.

The Tiki Room was weird, but the kids liked it okay.

The kids had so much fun exploring on Tom Sawyer's Island.  They could've spent half the day running around there.

I love this photo of Kevin

 I have a picture just like this from when I was a kid playing on Tom Sawyer Island.

The boys were very worried about going on The Haunted Mansion, but they did great. Jonah slept through the first half.

This was the best that I could manage.  It's amazingly hard to get pictures of ghosts.

This bear show was also a little weird, but it kept the kids entertained and it put us in the perfect position at the right time to see the amazing mid-day parade.

 Picture overload of The Festival of Fantasy Parade:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Kevin was so excited to see Goofy.

 

 Next we checked out Pirates of the Carribbean

 

 Jonah enjoyed locking up his brother and sister

 We did the coolest treasure hunt.  They have several in this area of the park.  They give you a map and as you solve each clue, there are interactive displays to give you the next hint.  Dan and I were both so glad that we did this and wish we had had time to do more.

This rock lit up and the clam to Kevin's left opened up.  Each interactive stop is part reward (Yay! We got it right!) and part clue - leading you to the next step in the hunt.

 The eyes in the mirror and the glowing box let us know that we had done something right.

 We all enjoyed a train ride and were even lucky to see Woody and Jessie from a bridge.

 This is my favorite family photo from the whole week and it was such a short wait for Goofy and Donald because it was in a tucked away corner of the park.

 Nothing better than warm, Mickey shaped pretzels on a chilly Disney World day.

 Kevin and Elena were both super excited to drive one more time.

 

 Winnie the Pooh and the Teacups were the last rides of the night.

 Super cute final photos.  Good bye, Disney World!!!  Thanks for the memories, the pictures, and the crazy weather.  We had a great time and it was so nice to be together as a family.

 

 We were unlucky enough to need to leave just as droves of people were arriving for Mickey's Very Christmas Party.  The silver lining was that we were able to walk down Main Street with Christmas music pumping and snow falling.  That was fun.  We even saw Santa and asked him for a picture on our way out.  It wasn't even Thanksgiving yet, but it was like Christmas Eve at Disney World.