Day 4: The Magic Kindom

Today we had to wake Bridget up early because we had a Breakfast reservation at the Crystal Palace at 9:30 am in the Magic Kingdom. Needless to say, she was not Susie Sunshine upon waking up. In fact, she was quite sassy. 

It was funny, though, when I asked her to get dressed, she picked up the Winnie the Pooh shirt and said, "It's a Pooh shirt, cuz I'm going to Pooh!"

We were at the Magic Kingdom before they opened the gate and got to watch the characters do their song and dance about how all of our dreams were going to come true. It was nice. 

Breakfast with Winnie the Pooh and friends was nice. Bridget's mood changed for the better once she saw the characters. It was really cute when Bridget gave Tigger a big kiss on the nose! After breakfast we rode the Jungle Cruise and Alladin's Magic Carpet Ride. 

Next we had to make our way to Downtown Disney to meet up with my friend Tara. Tara and I met at UNC Charlotte. We were both exchange students. We became fast friends, and even worked together at Dunkin' Donuts. (Bet you didn't know that I worked there!) Tara and I were also partners in crime: I started many a donut fight after hours at the store,  she encouraged me to joy ride in a "borrowed" UNCC mail cart. It must have been a sight to see us tooling around in a golf cart down Interstate 49 at midnight. Ah...memories!

So we had lunch at the T-Rex restaurant. Kinda like The Rainforest Cafe, but with a dinosaur theme. Tara brought her two kids: Colin and Aurora. Bridget and Colin hit it off immediately. Poor Colin, though, at one point Bridget was dragging him by the arm, "Let's go see THIS dinosaur..."

But lunch was over much too soon, and I had to say goodbye to my dear friend. The three of us headed back to the Magic Kingdom. We rode the monorail, and Bridget and Shawn got to ride in the front with the pilot. Bridget earned her "co-pilot's license". Was very cute, and I think Shawn had more fun than Bridget did. 

Back at the park, we immediately went to see Storytime with Belle. Bridget was on top of the world! She LOVES stories and she LOVES Beauty and the Beast. While B and I watched the show, Shawn went off to get fast passes for Peter Pan's Flight. After Storytime, B met Belle yet again. 

Next up: It's A Small World, Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean rides. Bridget was a little scared waiting in the lobby of the Haunted Mansion because it's so dark and scary, but she wasn't at all scared during the ride. She was a little scared in Pirates when the pirates begin shooting, but other than that, she'll tell you she liked the rides.

Then something amazing happened: We were sitting down having a hot dog and drink, and either Shawn or I asked Bridget what it said on our cups. She said, "Disney Parks" and that is exactly what it said. I was speechless. She never heard us use that phrase! Then we asked, "What does it say below that?" and she pointed to the words and said, "Where dreams come true." and that's exactly what it said. I was flabbergasted! I know we never said that phrase! It was then that I decided it was time to really make an effort to teach Bridget to read. (More about that in a later post.)

We then rode Peter Pan's flight and let Bridget run around Ariel's Grotto. The grotto is a small play area with water fountains. B had a blast, but was a bit put off by a bully 2 year old in diapers that was running around pushing other children over. She pushed B twice and Shawn and I finally said, "If she pushes you again, push her back!" Karma was on our side because as little bully girl was running towards B, and B was tensing up ready to push back, little bully girl tripped and fell flat on her face! Bully mom was sitting across the grotto, on her cell phone, oblivious to the havoc that bully girl was causing. 

After drying B off and changing into dry clothes, we went to Toon Town and saw Mickey Mouse again, and met the Fairies. Now, we waited about 45 minutes to meet Fawn, Tinkerbell and Iridessa. That was the longest we waited to do anything this entire trip! Of course, B loved meeting the fairies. She truly believed she was "shrunk" down to the size of a fairy. (Disney mistake: we were never "unshrunk" upon leaving the fairies building.)

Finally we rode the Buzz Lightyear ride. I rested my feet while Shawn and Bridget rode the Rockets. Bridget asked to be carried after the Rockets, so Shawn carried her. By the time we got to the gift shop, she was asleep on his shoulder! He sat on a bench while I looked at the gift shops. She slept through our only voyage on the boats that take you back to the transportation center. 

We decided that tomorrow we'll get B a stroller. She's just too pooped out from all the walking!