Tuesday was the day we finally got to go see the castle at the Magic Kingdom. Lily’s reaction to seeing the castle for the first time was about as I had expected – quite loud and so very excited! 

Pixie Dust.

As soon as we entered the park we went to the Barber Shop where Lily was treated with a special dose of pixie dust sprinkled onto her hair by a silly barber.  Let the magic begin!!  

As we made our way on Main Street toward the castle, we stopped briefly to watch a horse drawn carriage, with characters singing and dancing.  

Beautiful Christmas decorations done only like Disney could do them we’re everywhere you looked.  Instant holiday spirit.  Grinch wouldn’t stand a chance at Magic Kingdom during Christmas season.  

We had a little time so Jay took the kids on the Carousel, and both kids attempted to pull the sword from the stone.

Brekky.

We had a 10:00 reservation at the Royal Table to have breakfast inside the castle with several princesses.  We were greeted by Cinderella.  Lily told her that we saw her evil stepsisters outside the castle.  Ty got a little embarrassed and shy so he didn’t want a solo picture with Cinderella, but he reluctantly joined the family photo shoot.  

We climbed the spiral staircase and were seated in a beautiful dining room at the top of the castle.  Breakfast was delicious – but really how could it be anything but amazing when you get to meet Snow White, Ariel, Aurora, and Jasmine.  Even Prince Ty got wrapped up in the magic of it all.

A trip to the Magic Kingdom wouldn’t be complete without a spin through the It’s a Small World ride.  We had fun trying to figure out which countries were represented.  We especially enjoyed the continent of Australia.  🙂  After we travelled the Small World, we were ready to take a trip to Never Land.  The kids LOVED it – they really felt like they were flying in a pirate ship.  So cool.  Memaw and Jay took the kids on the flying Dumbo ride.  Going around in circles isn’t really my thing, and I didn’t want to blog about that one time at Disney World when I puked after a kiddy ride…  So my feet stayed planted firmly, albeit boringly, on the ground.

Ty had made a “good deal” with Memaw and Papa the day before.  He would get a toy yesterday and a hat this morning.  Nice negotiation skills, son.  Once we found the Star Wars shop, the decision was pretty easy.  

With new hat in hand, it was time to go have a few laughs at the Monsters Inc Laugh Factory.  Kirk was sporting his Goofy hat and I thought for sure he would get picked to be on the big screen, but luck wasn’t in our favor for that one.  Despite their poor choice in audience participation, it was a pretty funny little show.

The kids (and adults) were ready for a little down time, so we hopped on the People Mover.  It is a great way to get a taste of some of the rides I would never go on (see puking comment above), like Space Mountain, from the comfort of a slow moving vehicle.  The old school fun continued when we hopped on the Carousel of Progress.  As has been our luck, the ride had a slight glitch and we had to listen to one of the segments twice.  Future Disney-goers take note…if your baby is crying during the Carousel of Progress, sit still and wait it out and whatever you do, do not go out the emergency exit unless it truly is an emergency.  Your fellow Carousel riders will thank you.

I feel the need for speed.  I thought that speed was going to be from racing around a track at the Speedway.  Unfortunately Lily the Gymnast had other plans.  Lesson of the day – if there is concrete instead of mats underneath it, it is NOT a gymnastics bar.  I felt her head hitting the concrete, and then I felt her instant “goosebump” as she calls it, and rushed to the ride entrance.  As luck would have it, there were not anymore ice packs in their first aid kit (hmmm…guessing this wasn’t the first time this has happened), so I grabbed Memaw and we literally speed walked across the park to the First Aid building.  Not quite the speed I was planning on…  The nurse checked her over and didn’t think she had a concussion.  She gave us an ice pack and a Nurse Minnie sticker, and sent us on our way.  Crisis averted.

If there was ever any place to make you forget about your pounding headache, the parade route at Magic Kingdom just might do the trick.  We lucked out and were able to find a good spot to stand and watch it go by while holding an ice pack on the goosebump.  No more tears (and thankfully no later signs of concussion).

Exhaustion might have had something to do with Lily’s accident, so she finally was able to fall asleep in the stroller.  As we were walking along I looked up and saw a sign that reminded me of Steven.  I wasn’t blessed with the ability to carry a tune, so whenever I sang around Steven, he would say, “Hey Nic, what’d you do with that money?”  

“What money?”  

“The money I gave you for singing lessons.”  Ba-doom-boom-CHING!

Jay stayed with her while Memaw, Papa and I took Ty on the Haunted Mansion ride.  He wasn’t too sure about it at first but ended up really getting a kick out of it.  🙂

A quick run back to use our Buzz Lightyear fast pass, which of course Jay won by a landslide again…maybe next time I should try sticking my tongue out while I shoot the targets like he does.

We had a Tex Mex dinner at Pecos Bill’s before making our way back to the castle. We set up camp in a prime location for Mickeys Very Merry Christmas Party, Elsa & Anna’s lighting of the castle, and the parade.  We arrived a little more than an hour before the shows began, and quickly built an alliance with our neighbors to prevent any late arrivers from trying to sneak into our Boardwalk and Park Place properties.  I am constantly in awe of how the folks at Disney can completely transform what you think you know and see into something unexpected and incredibly beautiful.  Music and lights and dancing and characters and costumes and makeup and of course, magic, made for an unforgettable evening.  And snow (a little 77 degree weather won’t stop Disney from celebrating the holidays with  snow).  And Tinkerbell.  And marching Toy Soldiers.  And fireworks.  Ooooooh and ahhhhhhh don’t quite do it justice.  It is more like holy moly what is happening how did they do that where do I look did you see that I LOVE DISNEY WORLD THIS IS THE BEST CHRISTMAS GIFT EVER!!!!!!  Yeah, that kind of captures the feeling….  the pictures don’t do it justice either, but it’s the best I can do with my iPhone.

This was our longest day by far, and somehow the kids were incredibly well behaved.  Such good little travelers.  So blessed.  Must be the magic of Disney.