Disney World - Day 2

Magic Kingdom!

We were all up early, Mr. at Home headed down for a full day of conference and the girls and I grabbed some snacks for breakfast before catching the bus over to the Magic Kingdom. We were there in plenty of time to see the song and dance routine that opens the park and then we swarmed in with hundreds of our closest friends.

We walked toward the castle where the girls saw the horse-drawn trolley, so we had to ride that. To right back where we started. We jumped on the train and rode it round to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Where we stood in line with kids holding cups of water. For a science experiment. Thankfully, none of them were on our train when they discovered how hard it is to keep water in a cup on a rollercoaster. Gotta love field trips. Both the girls *loved* Big Thunder Mountain, but L was determined that riding it once was enough.

We had been seeing kids with buttons on all morning proclaiming "1st Visit!" One "cast member" told us we could get them at City Hall, so the next time we were over that direction, we stopped in there. We waited for just a minute for our turn at the desk and just as someone beckoned us over, L tripped and fell hard on the marble floor. As I tried to console her, K went up to the desk and talked to two very concerned people. One headed out the door saying she needed to take care of one thing and she would be right back. K came over and I asked if she had asked for the buttons, but she said they had asked her all kinds of questions and she didn't get around to the buttons. L eventually calmed down, we got the buttons, and walked outside where the lady came rushing back. She had gotten princess crowns for both the girls (the questions that had confused poor K were what princesses were their favorites) and stickers. They really take care of you at Disney.

Right after that, we went to get autograph books and trading pins. Those things are the absolute best souvenir *ever*. We all got lanyards and pins and most cast members have their own sets that they will trade pins with you whenever you ask. The girls must have gone through 20 pins each that day, trading with anyone with a lanyard.

After that we took the train around, make a potty stop, and spent the next *90 minutes* in line to see the princesses. That line's where they need to put the fast pass because entertaining kids for that long in line ain't pretty. When we finally got to the front of the line, it stopped. And we waited and waited. Someone finally got to ask what the hold up was. It seems that a Make a Wish family had gone in right before us and the characters always take extra time with those kids. The little girl had gotten sick as she went in and they were waiting while she was taken care of. Suddenly our wait wasn't nearly so annoying as I looked my own two healthy children. In a few more minutes we were escorted into the room where K and L got to talk to each princess, get their autograph, and have several pictures taken. It was a really neat experience in spite of the long wait.

The rest of the day was spent riding a few rides (K rode Space Mountain by herself and loved it!), walking around, trading pins, watching the light parade and the fireworks (where we had to buy a beach towel to wrap around the girls because it was COLD), and me reminding them that we could stay as late as they wanted if they didn't get grumpy. We finally walked out of the park at 10:40, 14 hours after we arrived. The girls both collapsed into unconscious heaps on the bus ride back to the hotel. I carried L, but I had to poke K for awhile to get her to wake up and walk back to the room.

It was an amazing time.