First Trip to Disney

The kids, Granna-MiMi, KyKy and I all went to Disney in the first weekend in October. I must say, I think I was more excited than the kids were!! I haven't been to Disney since I was a little girl!

I was nervous because my whole house, starting with Grant, had a stomach bug the week we were leaving! I was still feeling kinda puny Friday and Saturday while we were there.



Of course everything lived up to our expectations.  I decided we would just do and see what we could this time, and not have a particular time line.  We got down there Friday night and ate at Rainforest Cafe.  This is a MUST if you have kids!! (Although, if you have kids that are scared of thunder, animals, or loud noises.... Then no.). There's so much to see and do!! And it had an awesome gift shop.  Norah Kate loved looking at all the fish and animals!!!  I got a steak and shrimp combo and it was yummy.  

We stayed at the Port Orleans resort and it was Beautiful!!!

The next morning we woke up earlier and went to eat at Chef Mickeys, but the wait was over an hour so we settled for a quick service breakfast right next to it. The waffles were so good!!! I have been craving them since. We were tickled at the kids because they were literally liking the syrup out of the container! Yikes!

We rode the monorail to the park which was neat! We got in the park early (I am thinking like 9 am). And we were able to ride a few rides before lines got long. I did have a few fast passes, but with it being our first trip I wasn't sure how everything was laid out in order to know how to set up the fast passes!



 

We rode the teacups and the Dumbo flying elephants first. It didn't take NK long to get used to the crowds and rides, but the first couple her and G were both shell-shocked. Haha!! We also went to see Ariel in her Grotto. The Disney Princesses are all so beautiful.  The waits were long to see them (expect about an hour!!) unless you have a fast pass. In the end though, it was well worth the wait to watch Norah Kate's face.  After we saw Ariel, Norah Kate jumped up in the air and did a "air punch" with her fist!

 

 



In the morning, we rode the teacups, Dumbo, Under the Sea and saw Ariel. Then we had an 11 am reservation for Be Our Guest.  It was so pretty inside.  I may be the only person that thinks this, and I also think it was because my stomach wasn't "normal" yet, but I wasn't crazy about the food at BOG. I really think it was just me! Everything looked and smelt wonderful though!!

I also love how everything is Enchanted-like in Disney. It was truly like the castles were alive inside.

After lunch, we rode more rides like the carousel, the boat ride through the jungle, it's a small world, and the Country Bear Jamboree.  We also watched the parade and ate the famous Dole whips (now, those are good!!!) Next time, I will go ahead and get a seat close to the street for the parade.. We were in the very back and it was hard to see the parade :(

Grant loved the Small World ride!! He danced to the music and kept saying "look!"

He was also so funny on the boat ride too. He was fine the whole time, even with loud noises, but we went under a waterfall in the boat and he FELL APART!!

At about 2, we hit a rough patch. NK asked all morning to see "Frozen" and while we saw them in the parade, that wasn't good enough. She wanted to talk to them. Every time we checked the time though, it was an hour or 90 minute wait!! We finally walked by one time and it was "50 minutes." But we got to see BOTH Ana and Elsa. In line we got. (We didnt have a FastPass for this one.). NK was having a MELT DOWN. She didn't understand why we were waiting, but she DIDNT want to get out of line (believe me, I asked)!  I finally held her and she went to sleep (thank you Jesus.)

So she got about a 45 minute nap while we were waiting in line ( and Grant fell asleep too ).  She woke up and was so excited to see them!!! She just looked up in a w e....  I also love how the princesses made my little princess feel special. They give the little girls their un-divided attention and I loved that. We had a fast pass next (thanks to KyKy!!!) to see Cinderella and Rapunzle! So one hour and 4 Disney Princesses. Pretty good if I must say so!!

After the little power-nap they were rejuvinated, but by this point wait times were about an hour for everything. We ate a little snack and watched another Mickey Mouse street party. 

Then we headed out. I think we could have stayed longer, because the kids were good.

We were so tired though, we didn't even go out to eat that night. We played on the playground at the resort and ate beignets. We got some quick service food and ate in the room.

The next morning we had breakfast with Tigger, Pooh, Alice, Madhatter and Mary Poppins at 1900 Park Fair. This is in the Grand Floridian Resort which is B E A U T I F U L!!  The breakfast was S O good!! This was probably my favorite of the whole trip! It was worth every penny!!!

We headed back home after breakfast. The kids slept the whole way home!!  It really was an awesome trip! The kids did so good considering their young age. 

I really can't wait to go back!!

 

 

 

 

 

Norah Kate is 4!

On December 29 my sweet baby girl turned four!! I still have a hard time with birthdays. It seemed like yesterday I had her.

Poor thing, with her birthday being after Christmas, I feel like it's all overwhelming for her.  Last year, I had her party in February!!! This year, she thought Christmas was her birthday...

We had a small family party the Saturday after her birthday. She wanted a "Princess theme." I didn't do a full-blown Pinterest party this year! We went to Walmart and picked out plates, balloons and decorations.  I bought the cake from Publix.

I rented a bouncy slide and it was sooo much fun!!! For adults and kids!!

She got spoiled for her birthday day. I feel like I am still putting away Christmas and birthday stuff!

what is she up to?

She is wearing size 4T  clothes. She can still wear some 3T things. Some 4T things are a little long.

Her hair is still super blonde and long. It's amazing how much her hair has grown in the last year!!

She LOVES her baby brother. She is like another little mama to him. She wipes his nose and helps him get dressed.  I love when I pick them up from school and they are holding hands, playing together or sitting together.

NK loves to play outside and she loves animals. She tends to Hoss and Princess just like she does Grant. She loves to play school and teacher. She plays with her baby dolls and Barbies and refusing to part with them. She still loves all thing Frozen. She also loves to color and can color inside the lines so good.

She doesn't forget a thing. She can remember things from last year, which is crazy to me. Sometimes she gets mad because she can remember things and I can't and she gets frustrated.

She loves dancing and singing songs. She sings all the time. She is a sponge.  (Right now, we sing Hello by Adele and Do you Want to Build a Snowman.  And we dance to Whip and NaeNae (oh em gee....).  Oh, and we also sing church songs.  Jesus Love Me.  BIBLE.

She knows her alphabet and we are working on letter recognition.  However, with a 3 sec attention span... it's taking time.  We practice on the way to school.  "What starts with ___?"  She loves it and its fun.

Her eyes are a blue green and she is so expressive she talks.

She talks with her hands and often counts things off on her fingers. She sounds just like me when she talks. 

She is also so considerate of others. She loves giving gifts and we often have to fix goodie bags and surprises for family and friends.

She is still very independent and strong-willed. I had to start laying out about 7 outfits on Sunday nights for her to pick from during the week. We were often changing clothes 3-4 times in the mornings. I have truly had to practice "picking my battles."  And I have also become a pro at "no, means no.  don't ask again."

She loves to go places.  And is always asking---"What are we doing today, mama?"  She loves to go on trips.

We still let her sleep in our bed.  Honestly, I have gotten so used to her being there, that I can't sleep good without her.  She is so cuddly.  Matt has her spoiled though because every night she says "scratch my back, Mama."  It used to take forever for her to fall asleep.  Now, she lays right down and is asleep within 10 minutes (note to self:  it WILL get better with time. and the 1-2 hour getting them to go to sleep does not seem to last forever.  Now, though, we are going through it with Grant!!! Yikes.)

She will just hug us out of the blue and tell us how much she loves us.

Right now, when she grows up she wants to be a snowman (true story...) or a nurse ("like you Mama!!").  That was the other answer I got. 

Norah Kate,
Those blue-green eyes are showing me what life is all about.  You are so observant, sassy and sweet.  You are super smart, and sometimes have  a smart mouth.  In the end though, you are so kind and thoughtful.  I pray all the time for you to be kind-hearted as your grow up.  If you stay as independent as what you are now, then I know you will be successful in life (either as a snowman, or a nurse ;)).  Stay sweet little girl.  I love you!!

A bushel and a peck,
Mama