Day three of our Disney adventure was different than the rest.
The parks were open later that night to because it was Christmas kickoff! That meant that they were doing the official lighting of the castle and a new fireworks display. It was also the first day for the brand new Christmas parade. We were all super excited. We decided that since we were going to be staying at the park so late we would stay home for the morning and let the kids have a short morning nap. We ate a very early lunch and hit the road.
I had saved the best outfits for the last day. We all wore Peter Pan themed shirts, Sydney had a tinkerbell hair clip that I made for her and I also made the boys Peter Pan hats. They looked super cute! Our last day at the park was also the hottest day at the park with temperatures reaching 37C!
Our first stop was to meet Rapunzel and Flynn Rider. The kids are massive fans of Tangled and Rapunzel is easily Sydney's favourite princess. Henry started making friends in the line up immediately. He was so excited to show off all of the autographs he had collected over the first two days in the park. When the kids met Rapunzel and Flynn they freaked out! Sydney wanted to tell Rapunzel all about our time at the parks and Henry was trying to talk to Flynn about how funny he is. So cute.
We moved on to the Royal Fair to meet some of the classic princesses next. It was nice to be in an air conditioned building and we were able to meet so many all at once. It was a nice opportunity for photos and for the kids to meet some favourites.
Because the park was so busy for the Christmas kick off we knew we would be spending more time in line ups. We chose to get the kids set up in the line to meet Jack Skellington and Sally while someone else went to get some fast passes and I headed to grab some candy cane beignets as a treat for the kids. Dave hung out with the kids in the line which was in a nice cooler area of New Orleans Square. It was so beautiful all decorated for Christmas. The kids had the best time joking around with Jack and Sally and the pictures are proof of that.
Our first ride of the day on day three was actually the Jungle Cruise. It had been closed since we arrived so that they could turn it into the Jingle Cruise and have everything Christmas themed. It was Hugh's first ride too! There are no fast passes for the Jingle Cruise so it was also our first major line up. It was about 20 minutes and the kids did great!
There were a few times throughout the day that we knew we would have to divide into two groups to get everything done and keep the kids away from line ups. While I went to feed Hugh and get a spot for the parade, everyone else went to play in Tarzan's Treehouse.
This may be one of my favourite photos from the parks. We did not tell the kids that there was a big drop in Splash Mountain. We wanted them to go on the ride and we didn't want them to be afraid. Sydney was ok with it but Henry was not. The best thing about this photo is Jim's face. So serious!
Hugh's second ride was the Haunted Mansion. We had taken a break to have dinner and wait for our Fast Passes to kick in so that we didn't have to wait in line. It was massively busy because the whole ride was set up as the Nightmare Before Christmas for the Holiday season. It was actually the only way we could get the kids to go on the ride. They were terrified until we told them that it was Christmas town. Hugh had no idea what was going on.
The lighting of the castle was stunning! They had a dramatic music and light kick off and the entire area was an absolute gong show. You almost couldn't move it was so packed. We quickly moved on to It's a Small World which had also been closed to prepare for the Christmas kick off day. It is another ride with no Fast Passes and the line up was 45 minutes! We decided that it is a must do at the park and hopped in line. At a certain point Henry gave up so I went to sit with him where we could still see our group in line. It was the begin of the decline for Henry. The kids really enjoyed the ride and it was so beautiful all decorated for Christmas.
When we got back to the chariot Henry lost his battle with sleep. He passed out! I have never seen him fall asleep like that. At this point it was only 9pm but he was done. We fought through the crowds to find a spot at the end of Main street to watch the fireworks and Dave ran to grab our Mickey ears and have our names put on them. It was the perfect way to end an incredible three days.... and we were all exhausted.
Disney is expensive but totally worth it. I feel like we created life long memories for the kids, Jennilyn and Dave's parents. I honestly had more fun than I ever though I would and the kids didn't complain once or have any meltdowns. It really was magical. We are going to try to go back in five years when Hugh is old enough to go on most of the rides and the older two will actually remember. Put it on the calendars!
Mrs. E
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