HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME! 
I don't normally get "into" birthdays. Just not my thing. But this year, I planned this trip to The World as my birthday present to myself, and darn it I was gonna do it up right! I planned to spend the day in my favorite park, riding my favorite rides, seeing my favorite shows, and eating dinner in (what used to be) my favorite restaurant! So let's see how the day went...
After my normal routine of my early morning trek for tea, I woke up the rest of my family and got them ready to head on out - c'mon people, let's go!
We decided to mosey on down to Riverside Mill again for breakfast, but today we would be there earlier (about 7:30, vs about 8:30 the previous day), so we hoped it would not be as crowded. NOPE. Still a zoo. That's OK, we grabbed our food, ate and headed out to the buses.
We made it to Epcot just after opening, and it was a beautiful day. Blue skies, sun shining, light crowds. In fact, all day long I couldn't believe how UNcrowded it was... in comparison to how it had been on the weekends it was just WONDERFUL. I stopped at Guest Service to get my birthday button, and then we headed off through Future World. I was SO sad that Spaceship Earth was closed... it is my favorite Epcot attraction. WAH!! Oh well, a great reason to plan another trip after the refurb is done.
Our first stop was Ellen's Energy Adventure, another family favorite. This ride is SO much better with the addition of Bill Nye and Ellen than it used to be when you watched the cheesy 70's movie about energy production! The kids loved the dinosaurs. Now wave sadly at the huge chunk of unused space that used to be the Wonders of Life (sure hope they do something with it someday) and on to Test Track! James and Ariana and Alyssa rode it first, then I rode it with Alyssa (who LOVED it and had to go again) while Daddy and Ari waited with Caitie. While they were waiting they discovered the kids' fountain play area near TT, and Caitie and Ari were quite damp by the time we met up with them again. On to Mission Space. James and Ariana were the only ones who wanted to or could ride this ride, so the little girls and I played in the play area while we waited for them. This is SUCH a great idea; I think anytime Disney builds a new thrill ride (i.e. Everest) there ought to be a play area like this for the smaller kids to enjoy themselves in while they wait. This one is expecially nice because it is inside and air conditioned.
*soapbox alert*
Just have to say it... I am a Disney purist. For me, the most magical moments are those that are Disney as Walt planned it. Carousel of Progress, TTA, the ORIGINAL Tiki Room. Everytime something old and wonderful gets bulldozed down or re-made with a Pixar theme, it chips away at the magic for me. Test Track and Mission Space may be wonderful attractions, they may be cutting edge, they may have helped "up" the attendance levels, but I don't care. For me, Epcot is supposed to have World of Motion and Horizons, and I will forever grieve their loss.
*stepping off soapbox*
Alrighty then... where were we?
After finishing out the left side of Future World, we ventured into World Showcase. First up, Mexico! I love this pavillion. I adore the pyramid, I love the art displays, I especially LOVE the marketplace. With the dark night sky and the pyramid looming up, the smells from the restaurant, and all the cool shopping things to browse. Perfect! First up, my family decided to follow tradition, and try on hats for a while! Viva Sombreros!
Next we shopped, and I bought myself a birthday present from me. A Three Caballeros/Gran Fiesta coffee mug! Three Caballeros is one of my favorite classic Disney movies, and I LOVE Donald Duck, and I ADORE this cup. I am drinking coffee from it right now as I type. Finally, we rode the Gran Fiesta Tour ride, and I may be in the minority here on the Dis, but I think it is awesome.
Now on to Norway.
James is Norwegian, so this is his favorite pavillion. I really like the architecture here too. We toured the exhibits inside the church, then went into the shops so everyone could play with swords and horned helmets, and take the obligatory picture with the gigantic troll.
We rode Maelstrom (again in the minority, I think, but we really like this one too!) and even stayed for the film afterwards. This one needs an update, kinda like Canada.
By now, everyone was feeling a little peckish, but not really ready for a huge meal, so we went into Kringla Bakeri and got a meal to split, and a couple of goodies from the bakery. That hit the spot and we were ready to move on.
We wandered aimlessly through the next few pavillions, with the aim of making it to Japan in time for the Matsuriza drummers. Ariana is a fan of all things Japanese, so this was a must-do on her list.
They put on a great show, but it was REALLY hot out, and the little kids were wilting quickly. After the performance we ducked into the Mitsukoshi Department store, where my eldest gleefully spent almost all her money on Naruto merchandise, necklaces adorned with Japanese writing, and Lucky Cats for all her friends. I really REALLY wanted to buy Caitlyn a Mon-chi-chi, but I resisted the temptation.
Our next goal was the 3 PM Off Kilter show. I LOVE Off Kilter, and this was a must-do for my birthday. We got popcorn and sodas to munch during the show
, and had a foot-stomping, clapping-and-singing-along good time! What a fantastic show they put on!
Now we wandered back into Future World, and visited Figment (not a personal favorite of mine, but the little girls asked for it) - PHEEUW on the skunk smell!! After that we skipped the Land pavillion, cause we had dinner ADRs there at 6:30, and went to The Seas.
Now, don't get me wrong, I *like* the Nemo movie. Its a cute show, well-done. BUT I must go on record as saying I totally resent the "dumbing down" of the ride-part of this attraction. More Pixar in the parks, shock and dismay! *rolls eyes* This ride was perfectly done when it taught about the beauty and wonder of the seas, it did NOT need confused cartoon fish to make it appeal to the masses. Grrr. After our ride in our clam-mobiles, we were just in time for a Crush showing. In direct contrast to the foolishness of the Nemo ride, we LOVED Crush! This is such an awesome show! Alyssa even got picked to ask Crush a question! Her question was: "Are turtles born with a shell, or do they grow them later?" She was SO proud of herself for talking to Crush.
And the rest of the family went around saying the different variations of "Duuuude!" for the rest of the vacation.
We spent quite a bit of time exploring the tanks and aquariums and looking through the windows at the fish and turtles and sharks... this pavillion is one of my family's favorites (minus the cartoon fish). We got to watch a presentation by the dolphin trainers too. Great fun!
Finally, we hiked up the hill to the Land. This whole pavillion was a must-do on my birthday list.
We grabbed FastPasses for Soarin' then rode the Listen to the Land boats, and saw the Circle of Life movie, before it was time to check in for our Garden Grill ADR. I actually enjoy the Circle of Life movie, its a nice break in a cool spot, off my feet, with a good message to teach. But BOY does Disney need to spend a little bit of money in this part of the pavillion! That theater is a dump! Dingy, dirty, outdated-looking... my chair was even broken!?! It felt like the supports under it were giving way, and I felt like I would slide right out of it onto the floor! Not a very Disney-like atmosphere.
We checked in for our ADR at about 6:10. We were seated fairly quickly, and the characters started coming round as soon as we were seated.
After dinner, I got a birthday cupcake, but I was much more interested in the apple cobbler dessert, so gave the cupcake to my cupcake-loving 7 year old.
When we finished dinner, we rode Soarin', once again using baby swap cause Caitie was too little.
I love this ride, experienced it in DCA two years ago, and loved it then! But I would really like to see them do a FL version of the film. I think it would be cool; soarin over the Everglades (alligators snapping at your toes), over the beach, over the orange groves, over the Keys, over the space center (with a just-timed-right shuttle launch). That would be so cool!
After finishing up The Land, we headed back outside. We wandered to MouseGears, where James bought me a lovely new Disney watch for my birthday gift, then we found a spot for Illuminations. Everyone was getting tired, but Caitlyn did much better then our MK evening, and we all enjoyed the show.
We crammed our way onto a bus (Epcot after Illuminations and the buses - YIKES!
) and headed back to POR and bed. Tomorrow was our off-property day, and we had a rental car shuttle to catch at 7 AM!
THE POOH SIZED REPORT
In my own personal opinion, Epcot is the BEST park for folks of Pooh-sized dimensions. Yes, there is a lot of walking, but the pathways are (for the most part) level and wide and paved. There are lots of misters and fountains and AC'd shops if you get hot. There are NO turnstyles except for at the entrances (YAY for Disney for taking out the turnstyles!). Rides have ample, confortable seats.
THE FOOD REPORT
Riverside Mill = Once again, we had breakfast here. Today, James tried the omelet bar, and chose cheese and mushrooms for his omelet. He liked this quite a lot, but wasn't too fond of the potatoes (said he could tasts onions). Ariana and the little girls all tried the mix-your-own cereal bar, and enjoyed their cold cereals mixed with strawberries. They also shared a mixed fruit bowl (snack credit). I tried the mix-your-own yogurt parfait. A word to the wise here, that yogurt is UNSWEETENED! A fact I did NOT know till I took my first bite! YUCK! In my opinion, unsweetened yogurt is a great ingredient for sauces for Greek foods, but NOT meant to be eaten on its own... and I don't care how much fruit and granola you add... unsweetend yogurt! BLECK!! *insert pucker-y nasty face here*.. I enjoyed my parfait just fine AFTER I added about 7 packages of sugar. Again, we all chose one breakfast-y drink, and got bottles of water to take to the parks.
Kringla Bakeri/Norway = We all shared a Daily Chef's Selection, which included a cup of seafood chowder, a HUGE roast beef and jarlsberg cheese sandwich, and a choice of dessert. We also ordered lefse, and 2 pieces of cappucino cheesecake. The sandwich was fantastic, and more than enough even when we split it; this thing was gigantic. Only complaint we had was that the bread is SO chewy, tough even, you were more RIPPING off bites then you were biting it. I was very disappointed in the soup, as I had been hoping to try the jarlsberg cheese soup, but seafood chowder was the soup of the day, so that's what we ended up with. I didn't much like it, but the little girls did. For the dessert, I chose Rice Cream, which I LOVE. The little girls had the lefse, and James and Ari had cheesecake. I stole a bite of the cheesecake, and it was AWESOME.
Garden Grill = I love this restaurant. It goes around in circles, through the upper part of the Land boat ride. I love the atmosphere, listeneing to the rainforest noises, and the chickens at the farmhouse. The character interaction is great, I think probably the best we experienced. Sadly, I was a little disappointed in some of the food choices, I didn't find it nearly as yummy as the last time I was there (admittedly, 7 years ago). It was still good though, and a lovely finish to my birthday at Epcot!
WHAT WE LEARNED
Watch out for that yogurt!!!
At Epcot, take lots of time to play in the fountains, and browse the shops. Epcot is, at minimum, a 2-full-days park.
Enjoy the Circle of Life movie, but beware the seats!
I noticed you live in WA and flew out of Spokane airport too! We live a few more hours away, and in the opposite direction, but Spokane is our closest "major" airport as well!
James would cry...LOL.. he has this silly idea that not all vacations have to involve Disney... foolish human...
I had no extra clothes along for her (bad mommy), so she went around the rest of the day looking like the victim of a pizza-shop explosion. SIGH.
