part 1 of disney adventures!

where to begin...
Last week we took a little vacation down to Walt Disney World with our friends, the Bormet family, Carl, Rachel and Carl N. It was a good time despite having too little time like everyday to fit everything we wanted to do in it! We started off leaving Chicagoland Sunday evening with a couple of new firsts for Alicia. Alicia got to ride in a limo on the way to the airport from the Bormet's house and then she got to take her first airplane ride! Alicia did great on the airplane except for the part when they were getting ready to land and you had to put away all electronic devices and such..she really disliked that part, and decided to throw a mini temper tantrum cause she wanted to continue watching her dvds. She's got an addiction already, which is a bit scary! :~/

So after landing late Sunday night in Florida we got to our "new home" as the kids were referring it as, which was Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa. We stayed on a Disney property which was really a nice feature, which we used the free shuttles to/from the airport and around the different parks. We didn't even have too many long waits or problems using the buses down there, plus the kids seemed to enjoy the bus rides and monorail rides as well, too!
We had a 4 day stay at Disney World, which we jammed packed every day, visiting all 4 theme parks- Hollywood Studios, Magic Kingdom, Epcot, and Animal Kingdom.
Just a quick look-- we did this...

Monday-we went to Hollywood Studios that morning which worked well, since it was a bit soggy and rainy that morning, a lot of Hollywood Studios stuff is inside, so it was a good combination. There Alicia was in hog heaven with the Disney Clubhouse Live attraction, where she was enjoying it alot. Earlier in the morning, she was a bit scared of the Cars characters and the Muppet 3-D vision movie, which really freaked her out. We felt horrible that she got so scared...but it got better as she finally got to meet Mickey Mouse later that day! Later that evening we enjoyed some supper at the Polynesian Resort near Magic Kingdom. Afterwards, we traveled over to the Magic Kingdom, where Alicia really liked the Winnie the Pooh ride, where we heard her phrase of the trip, "that was fun!" it was pretty cute.. we got to see a few minutes of the evening parade there, and then enjoyed the fireworks show, some enjoyed it more than others... Alicia and Drew camped out inside the railroad station and watched from inside as the noise was too much for Alicia to handle. They sure looked pretty cool though.

On Tuesday, we went to Epcot in the morning and then headed off to the Animal Kingdom. At Epcot, the older kids (hehe.. the parents) enjoyed riding Test Track and Soarin' while the little ones explored Nemo's backyard. I think the best part from that afternoon at Epcot was Alicia and mommy's first Mickey Mouse ice cream bar! We each got to share the ears :) After leaving Epcot, we had enough time to explore the Animal Kingdom and go on a Safari! It was amazing to see those animals just roaming around and chilling out in their habitats. That was definitely a highlight of our afternoon! Well we've hit almost halfway through our trip, and 3 parks, so I think it is time for a break. Come back maybe tomorrow for the last half of our adventures!

For those curious minds, lots of pictures are located here---here---and here---
:)

http://picasaweb.google.com/drew.kluesner/1stNightArrivalAtSaratogaWDW?authkey=Gv1sRgCJ3e3Z_-gfb9fw#

http://picasaweb.google.com/drew.kluesner/1stDayAtWDWHollywoodStudiosMagicKindomNight?authkey=Gv1sRgCKSKu66Zkee_iQE#

http://picasaweb.google.com/drew.kluesner/2ndDayAtWDWEpcotAndAnimalKingdom?authkey=Gv1sRgCNSMh4r3n_e0sgE#