Sunday finally arrived and the boys were so excited to begin our adventures in the parks! Josh had a couple more hours of conference to put in. I decided to brave the park for the first few hours alone hoping we could get in some rides before things got too crowded. After a slight delay, the monorail broke down just before we got on, the boys and I made it to the Magic Kingdom. I had tried to read up on all the expert tips. I was prepared for the Rope Drop, but instead this was one of the mornings where you must wait outside the Main St, USA train station before being let in. I had envisioned the boys having a bit of roaming room while we waited, but instead we were just among a big clump of people. They were a bit giddy and wild, but we survived, and those around us didn't seem to mind. I met a nice family from Birmingham, who were seasoned Disney travelers. She gave me some great tips about using our FastPasses.
Once the gates opened we milled onto Main Street USA. There's a city hall a couple stories tall to the left as you walk in. Jack said, "hey, look, it's the castle!" I told him that was most definitely not the castle, so we rounded the circle and positioned ourselves dead center, and I pointed out the castle. His eyes were as big as saucers as he said, "Oh, WOW!"
After the obligatory photos of our first moments with the castle, which the boys were very sweet to comply with, we headed straight into the castle. Directly on the other side, the boys saw Prince Charming's Carousel and wanted to ride it first!
We spent most of our morning in FantasyLand, hitting the new Little Mermaid ride, Dumbo and the Mad Hatter's Tea Party. Then we headed to TomorrowLand and became Galactic Space Rangers on Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin. Not long after, Josh joined us and we repeated a few rides and hit the TomorrowLand Speedway. Sam could hardly wait to race those cars. In FrontierLand, Sam was so excited to ride the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, and Jack couldn't help but love getting scared at the Haunted Mansion. We stopped in on Pirates of the Caribbean and the Magic Carpets before making our way back to the hotel. Somewhere in there, Sam fell asleep. Josh grabbed fastpasses for Peter Pan and we hopped back on the monorail.
When we got back to the resort, Sam just looked so comfy. We hated to disturb him, so we didn't. A little over an hour later, it was time to head back for our dinner reservation and Sam was still napping. After we re-entered the Magic Kingdom he finally woke up. Sweet thing never even knew we left the park. That's a boy who loves (and needs) his sleep.
Dinner was at Be Our Guest restaurant, which is in the Beast's castle and is a recent addition to FantasyLand having opened last fall. The interior was so much like the movie. Our table was right by a window, which simulated snow falling just outside. The food was great, and we had heard to ask for the grey stuff...it's delicious. Don't believe us? Ask the dishes! After we finished up, we had the opportunity to meet the Beast himself. He was quite friendly; thank goodness that Belle came into his life!
We hit several more rides and then looked for a position for the Electrical Parade. People line up well in advance, but that wasn't really our M.O. We were able to find a pretty good spot near the beginning of the route, which worked out nicely because we then followed the end of the parade all the way up Main Street to snag a spot for Wishes. While we waited for the castle illumination and fireworks to begin, Josh got ice cream for everyone. The boys were a sticky mess, but oh so happy.
Our favorite memories from Sunday were...
Jack: "the haunted house" (Haunted Mansion)
Sam: "the big train roller coaster" (Thunder Mountain)
Mom: Jack's reaction when he first saw the castle
Dad: When the boys and I came out of the Monsters, Inc. Laugh floor and he was waiting on us. The boys gave him a big hug! We were so happy he was joining us now!
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