Disney Vacation

This past week we embarked upon our first official family vacation. A vacation planned and scheduled by us and us alone. Our first vacation (outside of family reunions) since we were married in 2004. Look out Orlando. Here come the Freemans!

DAY 1
After an hour delay and Mike almost missing our coveted Southwest boarding group A slot (he was in the restroom with Emilia), our flight went pretty smooth. We were lucky that the plane was not completely sold out (153 of 157), so we were allowed to keep Abram's car seat on board, which helped with extra room and comfort for all of us.  

Anabelle was thrilled as we took off, but very quickly found out that after the initial excitement, a plane ride is just about as boring as a car ride. There were a few rough patches with all three kids, but in the end the 6.5 hour door-to-door travel time (after an hour delay), HAD to be better then what would have been a two-day car ride. Abe was a trooper, even with his double-ear infection!

We booked a car service to pick us up at the airport. The driver was on time and ready when we reached baggage claim. We encountered only a few minor hiccups - the driver took our bags and walked away so quickly that we lost him and had a minor freak-out thinking he stole our bags. Abram decided to finally have a meltdown as we were trying to place everything in the car, and I butt dialed my Mom so she could hear us, in all our glory, trying to pull ourselves together! 

The check-in to the hotel was also a little bumpy. After one room switch, a second request for a pack-and-play and a polite request for our pre-ordered groceries to be delivered to our room, we were all set! First stop - the pool! Crazy enough, the first family we happened to meet (a mom, dad and four boys) were from Indiana. Plainfield, to be exact, which is only about 15 minutes from Brownsburg.

By the end of our first day it was clear our vacation was going to require a little hard work. Taking care of and keeping track of an infant, a toddler and a pre-teen (ha!) was challenging in unfamiliar places. We were exhausted mentally and physically and a little (ok a lot) irritable. Needless to say, attitudes could have been more positive. Just then the vacation Gods sent us a sign hidden inside our take-out Chinese cookie.....                                      

Day 2
Day two started at the Hilton Parc Soleil. The reason we were able to afford this vacation was because we agreed to sit through an hour long presentation on a timeshare offer for the Hilton Grand Vacation Club. As I'm sure you can guess, the hour-long presentation was actually a little over 2.5 hours long. After two poopy diapers, a handful of temper tantrums, snack crumbs all over the floor and Mike very nicely, then a little more stern, then forcefully telling them, "no thank-you", they were happy to show us the door.  Maybe next time.

We b-lined it to the pool once we made it back to the hotel. Fun in the sun! Abe, Emi and Mike even fit in a nap while Ana and I were down at the pool.

Our plan for Monday night was beautifully planned out in our mind. A quick walk to Downtown Disney, a stroll through the shops and a nice dinner at a seafood restaurant. Funny how you make plans, then life happens. To begin, I wore a skirt. Bad choice. When it's 90+ degrees and your a little (ok a lot) overweight, skin on skin while walking in a skirt is a BAD IDEA. Needless to say, I won't do that again. 

Although our walk was quick, by the time we got to Downtown Disney, Anabelle was complaining of her feet hurting, Emilia wanted a snnnaaaaccckkk and Mike had had it with the crowds. Did I mention it was hotter than hadies? We did have a good-time for a little while. Anabelle found a Lego version of Butler Blue II and we purchased the girls some adorable hats they could wear to Disney the next day.

Because of the struggle we were having with behavior, we decided to skip the nice seafood restaurant (it wouldn't have been enjoyable anyway) and try to catch the bus back to the hotel... emphasize TRY. We weren't lucky (or bright) enough to realize that you had to walk across the parking lot to the bus stop and totally missed it. Instead of waiting for the next bus (about 30 minutes) we instead argued about what to do for about 10 minutes, then decided to walk it. Can I bring up again that I was wearing a skirt? We made the best of it, sang every song we knew and finally had a nice dinner in the hotel restaurant once we got back. The day ended with a little R&R in the room.

Day 3
Our third day started bright and early - breakfast, showers and bags packed for a 9:00 a.m. bus trip to Magic Kingdom.

We chose to take the fairy boat across the lake and there were wide eyes all around as we reached the park entrance.

Once inside we went straight to Cinderella's Castle. Although we entered the park around 10:15, the ride lines were already about 40 minutes long and it was a scorching 90 degrees. We made the best of it and ended up trying out Dumbo's ride, the tea cup ride and the merry-go-round ride. We also explored the Swiss Family Tree House, bought a water spritzer fan and met many different characters. Unfortunately Emilia wasn't a fan of Pinocchio, the Fairy Godmother or any of the Princesses. In most of those situations she ran the other way.

Next was Cinderella's Table, a dinner with the princesses. Our reservation was at 2:30 and couldn't have been more perfect. We were able to get out of the hot weather and met Cinderella, Ariel, Belle, Sleeping Beauty and Snow White. 

The girls were given wishing stars and magic wands and Abe got a sword. Each princess came to our table and visited while we ate. Ana loved it, Emilia was indifferent. Emi was more interested in pulling the table runner off the table, throwing her tomatoes across the room and breaking plates. She may have been a better fit for the Pirates of the Caribbean experience.

Overall, Abe and Emilia were such troopers. It was so HOT and extremely sunny. After our late lunch we decided to take them back to the hotel, then Anabelle and Mike made their way back to the park to see if they could find more characters, possibly watch a parade and the fireworks. They were in luck and got to meet the mouse himself!

While Mike and Ana were off making more dreams come true, I made my way back to the room with my own dreams of a shower, pajamas and a good book. Emilia and Abe had different plans. Emilia, exhausted from the day, didn't know what to do with herself. She threw the biggest and loudest fit I'd ever seen until her body finally gave out.

Although a long day and a lot of work, the Disney experience was well worth it. The kids, especially Anabelle had a wonderful time. We are so lucky to have been able to bring them...

Day 4-5
Day 4 was nothing but rest and relaxation. We spent the day at the pool (in-between thunderstorms) and Mike's old Butler colleague who relocated to Orlando came to visit. In the evening we went back to Downtown Disney and had a wonderful dinner at Paradiso 37.

Day 5 was LONG. We weren't really sure how early we needed to leave to get through the super busy Orlando airport with the kids, so we had the driver pick us up at 8:00 for a 11:05 flight. Let's just say we had plenty of time. We were checked in and through security by 9:00. The kids, understandably, were SPENT making the flight home not nearly as smooth as the flight there. No empty seats this time and Abram decided he wanted to test his lungs for about and hour of the 2 hour flight. Emilia joined in the fun for most of the ride as well. We were SO glad to finally get home and are glad we planned the trip the way we did, giving us four more days off for vacation.