The Humble Abode: Ready, Set, DISNEY!

Honestly... I still think we are recovering from this trip. My children are waking up at 6am and falling asleep during our afternoon walks at 6:30pm. And yes, Burke sleeps the ENTIRE night. He's getting 12+ hours of sleep. I am starting to believe he's sucking it from his sister.

Anyway.

We had a magical time! Every bit of planning, Pinterest stalking, counting down, and spending hours thinking about this trip was worth it. Burke was/is at such a fun age. Every character was real to him. The smallest rides where the best in his eyes, and to witness his joy and excitement was nothing short of amazing. Now.... were there things I would do differently- a ton! But we had a great time, and I wouldn't take a million dollars over seeing Burke's face the first time he met Mickey. Not a billion.

So starting off... there were no lost children, broken bones, or car problems, so it already took a step up in the successful vacation arena. :)

There is no way I can document all the things in one post, so I'm going to break it up by park. First up, our ride down, and Disney World Eve.

We were packed and ready on Friday, so when Ryan got home we could start our journey south. We spent the night at the lake so we could have a head start on the morning, and the men folk could strategically pack (are repack) the vehicles. We left Alexander City around 8am. (I just love this picture... so telling of our outlook on this adventure...ackmmm... Ryan.) ;)

In PaPa's truck were PaPa, Danielle, Hylan, and me, and in Libby were the three boys, Ree, Ryan, and Wes (YES.... Ree had the hard job on the trip... entertaining all these boys! She would tell you it was easy, or they had so much fun, because that's who she is... but I know she had to have been tired by the time we reached our destination!).

The boys had prizes waiting on them in the car. A bag with a little Disney buddy, coloring books, and a personalized pencil pouch filled with goodies. We also stocked up on stuff from the dollar store and Walmart, wrapped them so they would have a new "present" every hour of the trip. They were spoiled rotten, but whatever gets you nine hours in a car, right?

They were so excited!

Hylan did AMAZING on the drive down. She slept most of the ride, and right at Tifton, GA (our scheduled lunch stop) did she start screaming. All was good once she (and everyone else) had a full tummy at Chick-fila. It was really crowded, but none of that mattered to the boys... to a three year old, a playground is a playground... no matter if there are two people or fifty.

It was a 7hr and 30min drive by GPS. It took us 9 hours. That included a lunch break and three potty/nursing stops. Not bad! We wanted to drive until we couldn't drive anymore... and that's just what we did. We spent the night at a hotel five minutes from Disney World and let the kids play in the pool and eat pizza to their hearts content.