We took a 2 year old and a 2 month old to WDW! Updated 2/3 MK and Crystal Palace!!

[DreaGirl]

Welcome to our trip report! This is our 3rd time going to WDW in 2 years. Yes, we are crazy, or that is what our friends and family tell us. I worked as a castmember in 1997, and hadn't been back since. In 2007, my DH told me he wanted a relaxing vacation, so I suggested WDW. To my surprise, he said yes. I found the Disboards, and the rest is history.

We did not plan on going back to WDW so soon. When we left in May, I had the major Disney blues because we honestly didn't know when we would be back. I was around 20 weeks pregnant during that trip, so we kept calling that our last trip as a family of 3.

About 3 weeks before my due date in late August, we got an elusive e-mail code. Free Dining on a 4 night, 5 day stay at a value resort. I couldn't believe it. Of all times! I didn't even mention it to my DH because I figured he wouldn't go for it. So...later that afternoon he forwarded me the same code. It seems he had gotten it in his e-mail as well. He said we should just go for it. We were going to be up all night anyway, we may as well be up all night at WDW! So I called and booked it!

We decided to stay at Pop. We had never stayed there, or any value, so I was a little nervous. I was also so nervous about ADRs! I figured we would NEVER get in to the restaurants that we wanted. So I sat down and made a list of restaurants.

When planning the meals, I only had two things I was looking for: loud and characters. You see, we had made the mistake of eating at quiet restaurants. When we ate at LeCellier, the food was wonderful, but trying to keep DD quiet was not. So I made a long list and told DH he couldn't be picky this time because we most likely would not get our first choice. I called later that day and got all my ADRs! I didn't even have to alter a time that I wanted. I was so excited!

So, all we had to do now was plan our days, have the baby (we didn't know if it was going to be a boy or a girl), and hope that this one didn't have colic!

Don't you want to know what happens? Well, read the next post to find out.

 

[DreaGirl]

Before we move on, let me introduce you to the cast members.

Drea (your hostess):

I'm the one on the left. This is from our trip in May when I was pregnant. I am a lover of all things Disney. I worked in MK in 1997 as a cast member in the County Bounty and the dreaded cart. It was a wonderful summer, and I hated going back up north for the winter. I'm a professional Mommy who likes to scrapbook, take pictures of my kids, and troll the disboards.

Rob, DH:

This is him trying the Beverly on our first trip together in October of 2007. He went to Disney once as a child and still calls Magic Kingdom, WDW. I think he does it to annoy me, but whatever. I know how to annoy him too.
He has fallen in love with WDW and enjoys going on our trips. They aren't relaxing AT ALL, but we have a fun time. He works hard and enjoys this time with his family.

Princess A, DD:

She's a crazy 2 1/2 year old. She's always been crazy, since birth. She is really a good girl who loves to play and help her Momma.

Baby B, DS:

Perhaps the cutest baby boy that has ever existed! He was born on his due date and started sleeping through the night at around 6 weeks. Loves to watch his big sister run around the house and cuddle with his Momma.

So...Baby B arrived right on time, the little Virgo that he is, on his due date in September. I was hoping that he would hold out for 2 more days so we could share a birthday, but he had to be right on time. He was a great baby right from day one. We are very lucky, we know. Princess A had colic for the first 3 months of her life, so we don't take anything for granted!

The two months from his birth to our trip flew by in the blink of an eye. We heard we were crazy more times than I can count, but we were all so freakin' excited!!

I made this to help us keep track of the time before our trip:

I was on the Disboards more than I should have been at this time, but I had a trip to plan! We were packed and ready to go!!

Coming up next: Day 1...A king size bed for a family of 4?

 

[*DisMom*]

Just came across you TR and I can't wait to read more!!!

 

[IluvXU]

Excited to hear all about your trip. I totally understand loud is necessary for eating out with 2 year olds!

 

[DreaGirl]

Just came across you TR and I can't wait to read more!!!

Welcome! Thank you! I hope to have Day 1 up tonight.

Excited to hear all about your trip. I totally understand loud is necessary for eating out with 2 year olds!

I see you got my e-mail! All the restaurants we picked worked out well this time. I have a lot of pictures to post.

 

[DreaGirl]

Here's a helpful hint to start this installment. Diapers take up a lot of room in your luggage!

When I first started packing I thought we could get away with one large suitcase, one small, and one carry-on. As Princess A. would say "Not so fast!" After packing and re-packing many times, we finally ended up with two large and one carry-on, a diaperbag, and Princess A. suitcase/carry-on. That my friend, is a lot of luggage. Thank goodness we were using ME and we didn't have to get it off the luggage carroussel. ANYWAY....

Our flight was scheduled for 8:00 a.m. sharp! I woke up at 4:30, Rob shortly after and we were all four out of the house by 5:45. After a short drive to the airport we were in the new terminal by 6:00. There was no line at Southwest, so we quickly checked our bags and headed to security.

I don't know why I am always the lucky one that gets Mr. Ants-in-his-Pants behind me, but I do. Listen Mister, I'm traveling with two small children and a husband, don't stand right behind me sighing. Pick a different line. I promised myself that I wouldn't stress. I'd take my time, and remain calm. I'm proud to say that I did remain calm and take my time. Mr. Ants, I can't say the same about him. I thought he was going to run down Baby B.'s stroller trying to his things on the other side.

So we made it through and were heading to Mickey Donalds for some breakfast. Is it bad that Princess knows Mickey Donalds? Oh well. I'm not worried about it. Here she is with her suitcase.

When we got to Mickey's, I got the order from Rob and went to stand in line while he tried to keep Princess under control. As I got to the counter, I noticed a lot of commotion. I look down and see a worker laying on the floor! She had passed out and it was business as usual in Mickey's. I ask the cashier if the woman is okay and she says "Yeah, she just passed out." *cough* What? I asked if they were still open and she gave me a look like I was crazy, of course they were still open. So, I order my food, all the while looking at this woman who is passed out on the floor! I get my food, still on the floor. After half of my Bacon, Egg, and Cheese biscuit is gone, the Manager asks if anyone has called 911 about the woman. I'm not even joking. She had been passed out for who knows how long on the floor of Mickey's and no one thought to call?! We finish our breakfast and EMS arrives. It has been a good 1/2 hour. Poor woman!

We head to our gate, and get our gate check tags and a lapchild ticket for Baby B.
Baby B. chillin' at the gate.

Who knew climbing in and out of chairs could be so much fun!

We board the flight and are in the air by 8:05! The flight was smooth and we had no troubles. We land and head downstairs to find ME. After a little detour, we find the ME counter. Holy Line Batman! I should have taken a picture. I was shocked. This was the "slow" time of year, right? I immediately start to panic. Are the parks going to be crowded? How did we get all of our ADRs if it is going to be crowded. I get brought back to Earth when Princess starts running around saying she wants to hug Mickey Mouse.

Rob watches the kids and I go stand in line. The line moves a lot faster than I thought. I think I stood in line for about 1/2 hour. We get our tickets stamped and head over to stand in line. We walk up and find the line empty. Rob thinks this is great, no line. I know otherwise. The bus had just left. So, as I'm thinking about how we are going to keep Princess occupied for another 1/2 hour a Castmember comes over and tells us to "hurry because the bus is getting ready to leave." We run and make it on the bus!

After a short trip we arrive at Pop.

We walk in and the music is so freakin' loud! I had to shout to Rob to take the kids to watch TV while I go check-in. There are only 2 people in front of me so I make it up there and check-in goes smoothly. Our room is ready, so we get our Key to the World and head to the 70's building 10.

On the walk over we decide to take a nap and head to Epcot after for dinner. Tired, we open the door to find...a room with a King size bed.

I call the front desk to let them know and they seem confused as well. Why wouldn't we want a king size bed. We are two adults traveling alone...umm...no we are two adults traveling with two small chidren. So, Rob heads down to the front desk and we chill in the room. If anyone finds a water bottle in their room, it's ours.

Continued...

 

[DreaGirl]

He comes back and we head down the hall to our new room. We all lay down and fall asleep. I set the alarm ahead of time. So, we got up around 3:30, freshed up, and headed to the bus. We had a 5:45 date with Mickey at Garden Grill.

We usually rent a car. I really missed our rental car. The buses were fine. We only had a long wait twice, but I missed the freedom of the car. We didn't miss carrying around our carseats, but I'll make that sacrafice for a rental car next time.

Here we are on our way to see the "big ball".

The "ball"!

Some Christmas Decorations.

An artsy shot.

As we are walking in, I remember that we didn't change Princess after her nap. In our rush to catch the bus, I had forgotten. We stop at the restrooms and I realize that I had 2 diapers for her. I DID NOT want to buy diapers! I had packed a ton, so all I could hope for was that our luggage would be in the room when we got back. Fingers crossed.

We make it over to the Living with the Land Pavilion and get our buzzer. We have a short 10 minute wait and head to our table. This is our first time at Garden Grill. It met both of my requirements, characters and loud. The past two trips Princess has not been to hot on the characters. She says she can't wait, she gets excited, then we get this face.

We reassure her that she said she wants to give Mickey a hug. To which she hides her face in her napkin. Oh well, we'll see how Baby B. does. The first guy to come to our table, you may recognize him.

Princess wants nothing to do with him. But Baby B, he is lovin' it!

Then this guy stops by...again Princess hides in her napkin, but Baby B is all about it!

Our dinner arrives next. No food porn. I forgot, sorry!

As we are eating Pwoto stops. Princess loves her some Pwoto. But again, hides in her napkin. Baby B, havin' the time of his life.

After a visit from this guy, we get our dessert. It's okay. Not the best. The dinner was great! Loved it. They need a new dessert though!

We leave there and go to ride Living with the Land. I'm sure you are going to be shocked to hear this, but there was no line. I know, we were so lucky!

At this point, Princess has had enough. She's melting down, and fast. We go to ride her favorite ride, Nemo. She loves Nemo.

It puts her in a better mood and we stay for Turtle Talk. She loved it. When we leave, it is dark. We are all tired, with full bellies, so we decide to head back to Pop.

Here is a picture of the tree. It was so pretty!

And of course, this:

Right after I took this pic, I felt a raindrop. Before we took 10 steps it was a downpour! I mean, it came out of nowhere! We ran to get some cover and get our ponchos out. We were going to wait for it to slow down, but if you have ever had a tired 2 year old, you know that waiting isn't always an option. We run to the bus and luckily there is one there waiting.

We make it to our room and....

Chapter 2: Is the luggage there? Are we going to run out of diapers?

 

[*DisMom*]

Sounds great so far. We took a short trip to Disney this past October and for the first time I didn't have to carry diapers around....it was magical!! I really hope you didn't run out! Waiting for your next installment!!

 

[kkayluvsdis]

What a cute family! I totally understand about the diapers! Packing for little ones is such a challenge. I hope you had a wonderful trip. I guess I'll need to stay tuned to find out! -Kelly

 

[Crystal824]

Loving your TR so far.

 

[DreaGirl]

Sounds great so far. We took a short trip to Disney this past October and for the first time I didn't have to carry diapers around....it was magical!! I really hope you didn't run out! Waiting for your next installment!!

I cannot wait for the day of no diapers! I am so tired of changing diapers. I've got a while to go though.

What a cute family! I totally understand about the diapers! Packing for little ones is such a challenge. I hope you had a wonderful trip. I guess I'll need to stay tuned to find out! -Kelly

Welcome! I'll give you a spoiler, it was a wonderful trip. Please don't leave now that you know how it ends!

Loving your TR so far.

Thank you!

 

[DreaGirl]

Hey all! I wanted to do another update tonight, but I don't think I'll have time. I went shopping tonight and I have some chores to do...boring, I know!

I'll update as soon as I can. Thanks for joining me!

 

[jmrdavis99]

We went in May when I was pregnant and returned in October with a 6 week old! I can certainly understand the "diaper anxiety"!

 

[DreaGirl]

We went in May when I was pregnant and returned in October with a 6 week old! I can certainly understand the "diaper anxiety"!

How was your trip? Isn't it crazy the amount of diapers we have to pack?!

 

[DreaGirl]

Let's see, where did I leave off...oh yeah...

We make it back to the room and open the door to find no luggage! We have one diaper left for Princess and 2 left for Baby B. If you have ever been around a breastfed baby, you know 2 diapers aren't going to last that long.

I call down to the luggage service and they say they have our bags and they will be right up. I'm so happy. About 10 minutes later our luggage arrives and we get ready for bed. Not surprisingly we all fall asleep really quick.

Fast forward to 5:30 a.m.

"Momma, time to get up yet?" Yes, that's right. Our 2 year old was up before our 2 month old! At home, she is never up before 8. Sometimes I have to wake her up at 8:30. Not today. As hard as I tried, I couldn't get her to go back to sleep. So, by 7:00 we were all up and showered. Rob went down to get breakfast (we really missed having a mini-fridge) and I stayed back with the kids.

He returned and reported that the food court was empty and it was really humid outside. A quick check of the weather showed that we were in for another rainy day.

We were out of the room by 8:30 and at the bus stop. Princess already looked tired, so I knew this could be a rocky morning. We arrived quickly and entered my happy place, the Magic Kingdom.

As you can see from the pictures, the sky was scary. It looked like it could downpour at any minute. Our plan for the morning was to ride the rides in Fantasyland, head over to Tomorrowland and ride some rides, finish the morning with a ride on Goofy's Barnstormer and head back to Pop for lunch and a nap.

So we walked to the back, took a left here,

and headed to Dumbo. Dumbo is always our first stop on the first day in Magic Kingdom. With a 2 year old, lines are not our friends. On this day, the park was not crowded at all. The wait sign said 10 minutes, it was more like 5 though. While we were waiting we saw Princess do this:

This is never good. When the thumb comes out, so does the bad mood.
Baby B. was content, as always.

Almost our turn!

A happy Princess on one of her favorite rides.

I was starting to get worried about the weather. We had only brought the single stroller, so I was worried about Princess walking in her poncho in the rain.

After Dumbo we decided to head over to Pooh. Princess loves Darby, I mean she LOVES her. While we were waiting in line she said "I see Darby in dere." I told her I didn't think Darby was in there, but I didn't convince her. While waiting, this happened.

We knew we were in a time crunch, so we decided this was our last ride in Fantasyland and we were headed over to Tomorrowland.
Here we are on the ride.

When the doors open at the end, Princess was very confused. "Where Darby? Mama, where Darby?" She was very upset that there was no Darby. I told her to take it up with Mickey Mouse.

As we were walking to Tomorrowland, she spotted the Tea Cups and wanted to ride. Since Rob isn't a big fan of spinning rides, that meant it was just the girls. We enjoyed ourselves.

After the ride, Baby B. was hungry, so Rob and Princess went to ride this,

,
and Baby B and I went to find a cozy spot in the shade. While I was nursing him, Push the talking trashcan came out for a spin. It was fun to watch all the kids.

Rob and Princess were only gone maybe 15 minutes, so they headed over to talk to Push so Baby B could finish eating. Princess was very confused and kept trying to push Push away.

After Baby B was done, we headed to Auntie Gravity's Galactic Goodies
for a smoothie. They are so good! I highly recommend getting one. Yum! Princess was in a better mood after her smoothie, so we decided to sit and finish our smoothie and then ride Buzz.

After a quick bathroom break/diaper change, we were on to Buzz. I'm happy to report I beat Rob! I couldn't believe it. I can't remember my score, but we were both shocked I had won.

We knew we were playing with fire, but we decided to go to Toon Town.

We were there to ride one ride: Goofy's Barnstormer. Princess loves this ride! She rode it back in May and talked about it for weeks. She rode with Rob, then I rode with her. She wanted to ride again, but she got distracted by Minnie's house. She walked through with Rob and Baby B. and I had another nursing session.

As we were walking out of Toon Town, she had a meltdown. We expected it and put her in the stroller to make a quick exit. We were afraid she would fall asleep on the bus, so we stopped at Casey's for lunch. It was okay. I probably wouldn't eat there again, but it was fine for a quick lunch.

As we were walking out after lunch, I couldn't believe how pretty Main Street was with all the Christmas Decorations. I thought it was pretty during the fall around Halloween, but this was wonderful! A must see, for sure.

We waited for about 10 minutes for a bus and headed back to Pop. Princess did fall asleep on the bus, and slept all the way back to the room. When we got back to the room, she was still passed out so we all got to enjoy a nice nap before our evening in Magic Kingdom.

Will it rain out Spectro Magic? Tune in to find out!

 

[disneymagicgirl]

great TR! I saw you heading about being there w/ a baby and had to read...we will be heading down in march and DS will be 12 months. We were going to be going next week, but thought it might be better when he can walk and weather is warm enough for swimming. It worked out b/c of the 4/3 deal and new DCL kids free deal. 2 in 1 vacation for us! Can't wait to read more!!!

 

[Leleluvsdis]

 

[DreaGirl]

great TR! I saw you heading about being there w/ a baby and had to read...we will be heading down in march and DS will be 12 months. We were going to be going next week, but thought it might be better when he can walk and weather is warm enough for swimming. It worked out b/c of the 4/3 deal and new DCL kids free deal. 2 in 1 vacation for us! Can't wait to read more!!!

We took our first trip as a family when DD was 17 months old and it was so much fun!! She could still nap in a stroller, so most of her naps were in the stroller. We also planned a "down" day where we stayed at the resort and a morning off and a night off. We ended up not needing the morning off though. You are going to have so much fun!!!

I wanted to update sooner but photobucket was acting up for me! I didn't take that many pics because we video'd a lot of it. I'm trying to upload the videos but they are taking f-o-r-e-v-e-r.

 

[DreaGirl]

After we all got up from our nice nap, we freshed up and headed to the bus stop. We really never had a long wait at the bus stop on the way to the parks, which was nice.

When you are traveling with two kids under the age of 3, you have a lot of stuff with you. I carried a backpack diaperbag, and I had a bag under the stroller with an extra set of clothes, extra diapers and wipes, an extra "ga" (Princess' comfort item), ponchos, sunscreen, and all that extra little stuff. Looking back, I wish I would have brought another backpack instead of a bag. I always felt like something was falling out of the bag (because it is a rush to get on and off the bus), then DH could have just put the backpack on and we could have both had 2 free hands to help with the kids.

Here are some pics of us in line.

We were headed to Magic Kingdom for our ADR at Tony's Town Square. I was nervous about this one because it seems like people really like it or really hate it.

I checked us in and then we saw this:

Rob and I looked at each other and knew we were in trouble. When the thumb and "ga" comes out, that means that Princess is tired and is not in the mood for much. We really wanted to stay for Spectro and Wishes, but we weren't sure if she would make it.

Our pager went off and we headed back to our seat. We got a nice hal-booth. The best thing though was that it was nice & loud. Which realy worked in our favor because Princess had a major meltdown. All of a sudden she said her shirt was itchy and wouldn't calm down. This is where the extra outfit came in handy. Rob ran to the stroller, we changed her shirt, and all was well.

Here is me & Baby B after the shirt incident.

I ordered the Chicken Parm. & I can't remember what Rob had, but we both liked it. It was good, not great, but good. We would go back there again.

After dinner we headed to Main Street and saw the beautiful castle, as the lady that was walking beside me called it "Cinderella's Palace".

We headed to Liberty Square to mark our spot for Spectro. We were lucky to get a spot right in front of Hall of Presidents (which was closed for rehab). I don't have any pictures from this point on because Rob was using our new video camera so I was in charge of the kids.

I'll try to post a video later. We met some really nice people while we watched the parade, and Princess LOVED it. She was tired, but loved pointing out all the character.

After the parade, Princess asked to be put in the stroller. So, she went in the stroller and I put Baby B in the pouch. We went to go find a place to watch Wishes.

It was so crowded that we stopped right after the bridge and put the stroller between us. We watched Wishes, I cried, Princess and Baby B fell asleep.

We were smushed in there like sardines so we thought we would just wait until it cleared out a little to move. Well...not everyone had our idea. People were trying to walk both ways and then it happened. A man with a double stroller almost took my DD's leg with him. He was barreling through, yelling at peope to move. I kid you not. So he gets to us and there was a crowd of people standing in front of us. He went behind the crowd and crashed right into the stroller. Rob tried to move our stroller (not possible) and he just kept pushing. Rob was telling him to stop, Princess started to cry, and even the guy beside us was telling him that he was hurting her. What a jerk! He backed up and went in front of the crowd.

After that we decided to call it a night. We were all pretty upset about the entire thing so we headed to the bus stop.

They had opened up two bus stops for Pop. Of course the line I picked was the slowest one. If you ever see me in line, choose the other one!

We waited for about 45 minutes and finallly got on a bus. Princess had calmed down, and she fell asleep on the bus. We made it back to the room and I got the kids ready for bed while Rob ran and got us some drinks in our mug.

The next day was Animal Kingdom day! We LOVE that park.

Do we encounter more rude behavior? Will Princess actually interact with the characters at Tusker House?

 

[tr-ray]

Love your TR so far!
We're taking our DD to WDW in February, and she will be just over 4 mos then!

I'm anxious to see how the rest of your trip went!