It only took three Disney trips in the past four years, but I finally got smart! 
Rather than a repeat of the 2015 trip where I didn’t see my bed until 1:00 in the morning (yay, late-night, last-minute packing!), I thought ahead and took Wednesday off! It was GLORIOUS to have an entire day to do last-minute errands and laundry and have plenty of (daylight!) time for packing! 
Nice! I wonder where I'll be with packing when I leave next month.
we got pedicures at a fancy salon.
Nice mom/daughter start to a vacay.
Mom and I left the house around 5:00 in the morning
So you were up at 4ish? Did you guys get any sleep?
Mom had not flown on an airplane in a few years, so she was out of practice for all the TSA security procedures. I’m pretty sure the liquid ban was not in place the last time she flew. In addition, she uses a C-PAP machine due to some complications from her auto-immune disease, so we had to figure out how to get the “medical device” through the security scanners. It was more of an adventure than I’m used to in the security line!
Did she bring liquids that had to be tossed?
I love flying Southwest (no baggage fees!) and REALLY love early-bird check-in (you can pick practically any seat!).
Nice.
Cute shot... but, your mom does look a bit "I got up early for this. It better be good."
We didn’t have a very long layover, but I had enough time to grab this on the way to our gate:
Want.
Me too! Very little is better to eat than soft pretzels. Especially when you get them fresh out of the oven.
I made sure to grab my favorite seat:
I couldn't do that last time. Front car was closed for cleaning.
#unfair
I was very impressed how well-coordinated the family in front of us was – it’s hard to make orange and pinkish-purple look good on multiple people!
Ah! Now it's "This is getting good" expression.
Anika responded by sending me a picture of her lunch with the caption, “It’s magical lunch time!” What a goober. 
The entrance reminded me a lot of the Animal Kingdom Lodge (which isn’t a big surprise as I believe they were designed by the same person):
Oh? Did not know that. Interesting. Explains it, too.
What a stunning resort! My initial pictures were little dark, but you can still see how MASSIVE the lobby is:
That place is huge.... and beautiful.
Our destination was Roaring Fork, which I’ve read about in many trip and dining reports and was excited to try:
Haven't been there, though.
Would you recommend?
Mom and I got nearly the same thing, as we were both drawn to the flatbreads. Mom chose the Tomato Basil Flatbread:
And I selected the chef’s flatbread of the day, which was Buffalo Chicken with Blue Cheese:
Wow those look good.
But... how big are they? They look good, but there's no sense of scale either.
I gave Mom the honor of the opening the door with her magic band.
Did she like that? Did you have to explain that was how they unlocked?
Meh, what a lovely service lot and view of construction? 
Meh, is right. How concerned were you at first?
MAGIC KINGDOM VIEW, BABY!!! 
SCORE!!!!
Holy cow, how on earth did we get this view?! I was SUPER excited about it! 
No kidding! <virtual high five>
Mom thought it was nice, but wasn’t nearly as excited. (Doesn’t she understand that paying for a regular view and getting a park view was a BIG DEAL?!)
Newbie!
We didn’t notice the construction (we saw it, but never really heard it and it never bothered us),
That's good.
I know you must be wondering why on earth we didn’t get a rental car at the airport? A few reasons. First, as Mom had never ridden the Magical Express I wanted to provide the full Disney experience. Second, I rather enjoy riding the Magical Express myself as it seems to signify the “start” of a vacation for me.
Okay. All that makes perfect sense.
Third, MAGICAL EXPRESS LUGGAGE DELIVERY
Except... I prefer to gather my bags.
I have used the service, but... I like having (and knowing I have) everything before I leave the airport.
I had to drive outside the Disney gates to go to the grocery store, so you better believe I took these on my way in:
Making up for the bus shots.
(Don't worry - I wasn't as much of a road hazard as it appears!
I noticed that you were able to weave back into the same lane for each photo.
That said, it's amazing there aren't more accidents by that darn welcome sign!
Good point. I wonder if there's any stats on that?
I've never seen that!
I was starting off big by introducing Mom to a highlight from our last trip, the Hoop Dee Doo Revue!
Can't wait to see how she likes it!
But maybe I wasn't the one driving, yeah that's it. 
