I knew Patrick was the perfect age for Disney but I really wondered whether Melkamu would care at all about it. As it turns out, about 60 miles from Disney we passed the first sign--and from the backseat I heard a little voice call "MEEKEY!" He enjoyed Disney every bit as much as Patrick :-)
OK, Disney pics from the evening we got there and our first day!
It was EMPTY at Disney that week. Look at the drive in! We could not have picked a better week to go. I think our longest ride wait might have been 20 minutes.
The kids' first visit! (Photo courtesy of Patrick.)
We stayed at one of the Disney value resorts, the All-Star Music Resort. It wasn't beautiful but worked fine for our purposes. Patrick's only regret was that we had to ride the bus instead of the monorail.
We got to the park and immediately got caught in the Wishes parade. The joy on Patrick's face made me cry. That's what I wanted for the kids with this trip.
Kamu was thrilled to see Mickey on one of the loats and then danced with Donald Duck (though I couldn't get a picture of him dancing)!
Hey look, it's Cinderella's Castle with some random people in front ;-)
The first ride we went on was It's a Small World. I take this picture every time. It reminds me of Siobhan and Aaron.
They've redone a lot of the rides since Jason and I were there over senior year spring break (1999) and they were great--much longer and very nicely done. The kids loved them!
Then we went into the Haunted Mansion, despite my misgivings. They had so much fun and Patrick is still talking about the ghost that came home with us.
We found Donald holding a photo op and stopped for a quick picture. Neither of the kids was afraid of the characters.
Kamu and I went to Tom Sawyer's Island while Patrick and Jason went on Big Thunder Mountain. Can you see the joy on his face? He was practically skipping with glee!
After a quick trip into the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse, it was time to go back to the hotel for naptime for a certain 2 1/2 year old...and his mom.
After dinner, we went back to the Magic Kingdom for an evening of fun. Just as a note, the kids didn't get to bed before 11 any of the nights we were there and we don't regret it in the slightest :-)
The Magic Carpet ride at night was lots of fun, but I have to admit that it was even better the next night when we were up in the air during the fireworks finale. Spectacular!
By the end of the parade, Patrick was a little crazy...
...and Melkamu's eyes were glazed over, but he wasn't about to close them and miss something!More pics from our trip in a day or two!
