Just me and my girl a very special 13th Birthday trip! (updated 2/20/14)

[Lovemy3babes]

Glad to see you back. I enjoy reading your trip report.




This quote made me sad though.

I took my daughter last year at the age of 6 and now she is approaching 7 and the change in her is so significant. Don't get me wrong it is great to see her growing up and becoming more of her own person but part of me really misses that complete "innocence" of youth that seems to slip away little by little.

On a happy note though her and I are going back for our second (hopefully to become annual) daddy daughter trip in May.

Hey there, thanks for reading along with me. I apologize for my absence. It makes me sad too. Why do they have to grow up so quickly? I think it is so amazing and awesome that you take her on daddy & daughter trips. That seriously warms my heart.

This one made me laugh in that where as you no longer need glasses I on the other hand had to get my first ever pair of reading glasses after having 20/20 vision my whole life. LOL

They told me those are coming! I get to enjoy glasses-free life for awhile but will most likely need reading glasses when I get a little older. I feel older so I'm sure they are coming soon! It's heck getting old, isn't it?!

 

[Donald Duck888]

It's heck getting old, isn't it?!

It sure is. I think that is one of the reasons I enjoy Disney so much. When I am there i feel like a kid again in so many ways.

 

[MeMom]

It was a nice treat to check in and have your fun updates. I would love to be walking around Animal Kingdom today taking pictures of a thousand little details.

 

[Lovemy3babes]

It sure is. I think that is one of the reasons I enjoy Disney so much. When I am there i feel like a kid again in so many ways.

Me too!

It was a nice treat to check in and have your fun updates. I would love to be walking around Animal Kingdom today taking pictures of a thousand little details.

Hi MeMom! I'm so glad you have popped in as I've been thinking about you lately. I hope you are on the mend. I know how much you love photos so shall we hop on a plane to AK today? I'm game!

 

[Lovemy3babes]

When I last updated, we had just hopped a bus back to Port Orleans Riverside. We wanted to freshen up a bit before dinner.





We did so and then it was quickly time to get going to a beautiful resort Morghan had not yet visited. We also needed a ride on the monorail. So we took a bus ride, then took a monorail ride to Grand Floridian! Unfortunately for my pocket book, my lovely daughter fell in love with this beautiful resort. It's totally not my style but right up her alley. Lucky me!

She seriously was star struck.




Guess where we were eating?! Well 1900 Park Fare of course. Morghan and I have a very similar sense of humor. We like the snarky funny stuff. I thought dining here at dinner time would be perfect for her 13th birthday celebration.

We saw a little dancing first of all.



The dinner buffet was good for us. We aren't picky, we aren't fancy. Put some hot food out that tastes good and is recognizable and were satisfied. I do like buffets so you can try lots of different things.

However, the memorable part of the evening was the character interaction. They were seriously the best ever. There was sooooo much playing around! Our bellies hurt from laughing out loud.

First up was Anastasia and she was the cutest thing. She really liked Morghan and told her all about her life. She complained about how Cinderella gets all the praise and she gets ignored. The best part of the story is when she talked about how cranky her mother is. She is made to rub her feet at the end of long days. It was said with such disgust that we could NOT stop giggling.



(gosh her makeup is hilarious!)

Well then her mother came around. First we took this photo.



Then we made a little mention of how her daughter rubs her feet. What happened next we still talk about. She literally screamed to Anastasia across the room and made her come back to our table. Anastasia did in a way that was mopey because she knew she was in trouble! She chastised her in front of everyone loudly, called her out and asked why she was talking about her feet and made her apologize. It was a hoot!!!!!!!!!!!! She was the best stepmother ever. So convincing!



Our Cinderella was nice but wasnt really into the whole funny thing.


This handsome dude came and wished Morghan a super special birthday.


I remember posting this one on Facebook that evening and got some great responses about how Morghan is just too young to date quite yet. Heehee!

Mom too!


Drizella was mad at her sister and mom both she explained. She also wasn't a Cinderella fan. Lol!



I had forgotten to take food pictures for awhile! I'm sorry. I really love looking at other peoples food photos so had to slap myself on the hand.







I had Morghan when I was 19 so I'm kind of a young mom I guess. But when we left the photopass guy who tried to sell us our photos would utterly not believe I was her mom. He kept saying sister and he was being dead serious. He still didn't look like he believed me after I explained the whole age thing. It was flattering I guess.

We took a little mosey on out of there. Morghan was in Heaven checking out all the beautiful sites.



We monorailed it back to Magic Kingdom because it was open late that night for MNSSHP. I had played around with the idea of going to the party but we were really tired at that point. I'm glad I didn't spend the money on tickets but still hope to do the MNSSHP some day because I hear such great things.

Bad firework photos as we were talking to the bus stop:











We bused back to POR and walked back to our room. We were in a Royal Room, which isn't too far of a walk. But when it's late and you have been walking all day long, it feels like you are walking ten miles. Soon we were washed up and in our beds. I know we were both out within minutes!

It had been a long day and a great night. Our food was good. The characters were the absolute best! Morghan found her dream resort. It was just a really fun, fun night with my daughter. She's even older now. I'm coming to the realization that we only "have" her for a handful of years before sending her out into the real world. It's sad to me to think about not being able to see her face every day. I hope that we set her up with a good foundation and wonderful memories. It's hard watching your kids grow up. I think this is why Disney is so special to me. It's my Happy Place. It's where I hold such tender memories with my children. I'm blessed.

Up next&
Our last park day! Boo.

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Great update Kelli! What an awesome evening. You and Morghan remind me so much of DS14 and I. I can not think of my life without him being here everyday without literally starting to cry. I hate the thought of him being out of HS in just a little over 3 years. Crazy.

We ate at 1900 PF about 5 years ago. The kids had a blast. Your update makes me want to take them there again!!

Well, it looks like Miss Morghan has found her dream resort. I happen to know a pretty awesome travel agency that gets super awesome deals for the GF if you can ever travel in the late summer!!

Great update, thanks for sharing!!

 

[MeMom]

It had been a long day and a great night. Our food was good. The characters were the absolute best! Morghan found her dream resort. It was just a really fun, fun night with my daughter. She's even older now. I'm coming to the realization that we only "have" her for a handful of years before sending her out into the real world. Its sad to me to think about not being able to see her face every day. I hope that we set her up with a good foundation and wonderful memories. Its hard watching your kids grow up. I think this is why Disney is so special to me. Its my Happy Place. Its where I hold such tender memories with my children. Im blessed.

You are truly blessed. In the future, you may not see your kids every day, but the time you spend together will continue to be so special and so treasured. And most likely, when they come to visit, they're going to be dragging along a carload of little kids that belong to them, and that makes things even more lively and special. I am guessing that you have done a most wonderful job with your almost grown-up girl, and she's going to be an amazing young woman, friend, wife, and mother.

Loved seeing the POR pictures. It's such a serene place. I love visiting there, but have not yet stayed there.

 

[Lovemy3babes]

Ok, first of all I had to go back and edit my entire TR post. For some reason, it took out all of my apostrophes. Yikes! Sorry for the poor-looking grammar people. That's embarrassing!

Great update Kelli! What an awesome evening. You and Morghan remind me so much of DS14 and I. I can not think of my life without him being here everyday without literally starting to cry. I hate the thought of him being out of HS in just a little over 3 years. Crazy.

We ate at 1900 PF about 5 years ago. The kids had a blast. Your update makes me want to take them there again!!

Well, it looks like Miss Morghan has found her dream resort. I happen to know a pretty awesome travel agency that gets super awesome deals for the GF if you can ever travel in the late summer!!

Great update, thanks for sharing!!

Your big guy is a freshman too Shelly? What happened to the early years?!? I'm glad I'm not alone in feeling so sad about this. You two also remind me so much of Morghan and me! If that trip were ever a possibility, I'm so glad I know someone so awesome!!

You are truly blessed. In the future, you may not see your kids every day, but the time you spend together will continue to be so special and so treasured. And most likely, when they come to visit, they're going to be dragging along a carload of little kids that belong to them, and that makes things even more lively and special. I am guessing that you have done a most wonderful job with your almost grown-up girl, and she's going to be an amazing young woman, friend, wife, and mother.

Loved seeing the POR pictures. It's such a serene place. I love visiting there, but have not yet stayed there.

Aw MeMom. Why do they grow up so fast? I know how much your love your grandbabies. That must be a special relationship, in a different way than your own children. You are so blessed as well! You are right, POR is serene! Walking along that water is wonderful.

 

[wiigirl]

Great pics!

 

[Mndisneygirl]

Great update - what fun at 1900 Park Fare! Those stepsisters are a hoot!

It is too bad that the kids seem to grow up in about 5 minutes, but I'm sure you have instilled great values in your kids and you and Morghan have that special Disney bond - you will be able to do it again and have more fun in the future.

 

[mousetravel]

I bought the same mug on our last trip! I love it!!

So glad you're back for updates!! Can't wait to hear more!

 

[Lovemy3babes]

Great pics!

Well, thank you!

Great update - what fun at 1900 Park Fare! Those stepsisters are a hoot!

It is too bad that the kids seem to grow up in about 5 minutes, but I'm sure you have instilled great values in your kids and you and Morghan have that special Disney bond - you will be able to do it again and have more fun in the future.

The stepsisters are so great. I'm so glad I decided to book, even if some aren't too fond of the food. Thanks Sheree! A Disney bond is so right!

I bought the same mug on our last trip! I love it!!

So glad you're back for updates!! Can't wait to hear more!

That mug rocks! Good choice! It's huge and is adorable. What more could one want?! Thanks for reading along with me. Sorry I was MIA!

 

[Lovemy3babes]

When we woke up the next morning we both were a little sad. We had such a fun night prior and this was our last full day. That’s always a gloomy feeling, isn't it? And we had that yucky envelope under our door! I hate that thing.

But first we had a full day to enjoy! Epcot was calling our name! We got ready and headed down to the bus stop so we could make it in time for rope drop.

We made it with plenty of time to spare!



So did lots of others as you can see.





Rope Drop commenced and off we went. I love this pretty ball.



From all angles –



Remember it is February in Minnesota. It is awful. This winter has been depressing and brutal. I opened this picture today and just sighed. We do NOT have these in Minnesota.



Where did we go first you may ask? Well here of course!



Soarin' is always first for sure for our family at Epcot. I will take the a 10 minute wait anytime!!





We had a fun ride like usual. Once off we grabbed a FP for a little later and hoped we could use it for a second ride that day.

Epcot is just so pretty. *sigh* I'd love to be there right now!



Next up was a new experience. I had heard about Sum of All Thrills. It was not there the last time we visited. Or maybe it was but just brand new? I can't remember. I wasn't that excited about it to be honest. Morghan and I love to read books. Video games aren't really our thing. We aren't techy kind of peeps. My son Dimitri on the other hand loves games, designing, stuff like that. But I thought we only get to WDW every other year or so, sometimes even less sooooooo we may as well give it the old college try. I had read great things from others so we both were on board! I thought it was kind of hard to find but I'm a moron who can't read maps.











Morghan loves Art so designing was fun for her!



I let her do the work while I just hung out and took photos.





What was the consensus? Did we like it?! Yes! It was fun. The wait is a little long since only a handful are let in at a time but I’m still glad we did it. We still have the cards that we were given with our ride experience.

Hello beautiful-



What's next? I have to mention that we were going to have a late morning breakfast. It was an ADR meal scheduled for 10:40am. I thought this would be a great way to get into the park, experience a few things and then have a bigger meal. We had done that over in AK on our last trip at Tusker House and it worked perfectly. I was a little worried about getting there in time since we'd be going to a whole new resort we had not yet visited and would be walking to get there. One more before we went to eat. Any ideas? Mission Space! I tricked Morghan and we went into the Green side. Once she figured it out, boy was she mad at me. I get motion sickness really easily while she is a daredevil nut. I got attitude from her for sure! I would have tried it but just didn’t want to be queasy for our meal and waste a dining plan credit.





It was fun! Not super crazy like Morghan would have liked but we still enjoyed it. I am pretty sure she got over being upset with me too. I offered to wait while she went on the Orange side but she declined. At this time I remember feeling a little homesick for my other kids. On our prior trip, Dimitri was six. He was finally tall enough to hit some of those bigger rides. While in Epcot, I let the kids decide what we wanted to do that night. They each got to choose one thing and no matter the wait time, we would do it. Well Dimitri picked Mission Space because he loves that kind of stuff. I remember his little face being all lit up once we got off the ride. He was so excited he had been tall enough and had so much fun! I remember that night and wanting to be nowhere else on Earth but right there with the little people who I love so very much. It was just one of those perfect Disney nights that you will also recall fondly. When Morghan and I got off, right at that moment I remembered that and missed the rest of my kids a lot. But we were having a lot of girly fun together so I just tucked that memory into my heart and we moved on.

We had gotten those three biggies out of the way and then we were ready for breakfast/early lunch/brunch/food! Where do you think we went?

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Loved the update Kelli! I just love Epcot!!

Sounds like a wonderful morning. Three great rides and now off to breakfast. I'm guessing you were walking over to the BC for breakfast.... Cape May?

I'm sorry you were missing your other little ones. That must have been so hard!! You are right - we all have memories of those perfect nights at WDW that will stick with us forever.

 

[Mndisneygirl]

As I sit here looking out at the snow globe in which we are currently living, thank you so much for those palm trees!!!!


Now I have to go shovel snow...

Hmmm, where are you going next??

 

[Lovemy3babes]

Loved the update Kelli! I just love Epcot!!

Sounds like a wonderful morning. Three great rides and now off to breakfast. I'm guessing you were walking over to the BC for breakfast.... Cape May?

I'm sorry you were missing your other little ones. That must have been so hard!! You are right - we all have memories of those perfect nights at WDW that will stick with us forever.

Hey Shelly, thanks! Sorry it was so short. I've been trying to do them in smaller chunks so it doesn't take me so much time between the updates. Did you say Cape May?! Bingo you smart girl! Those perfect Disney nights are what keeps us coming back. You know what I mean.

As I sit here looking out at the snow globe in which we are currently living, thank you so much for those palm trees!!!!


Now I have to go shovel snow...

Hmmm, where are you going next??

I hate Minnesota this winter Sheree. Ok, hate isn't a nice word. I dislike this winter very much! Come and gaze at the palm trees anytime you like!