Road Trip To & From Disney World

We left early Saturday morning for Walt Disney World with two very excited children!
On the way there we met Mom and Dad in Monroe, LA and then took I-20 east. We changed it up on the way back, and chose a more southern route, taking I-10 & I-12 through the deep south!

 The Mighty Mississippi on I-20.

I got tickled because as soon as you cross the Mississippi River on I-20 the terrain goes from flat low lands to very hilly. I can only imagine the relief our forefathers traveling west must have felt when they got across that huge river and out of those hills!!

 The Mobile Tunnel

 Emory loved going under the tunnel! Grandma kept her eyes closed the entire time! We stayed the night in Pensacola, FL and after dinner found a little water for Emory to dip her feet in. We were near the bay vs the beach but it was water!!

  We entertained ourselves by watching movies, making silly videos, and taking silly pictures!

 We also slept a little too. We made it to Disney World about 5:00 pm (Eastern time). On the way home we drove a LONG time and spent the night in Baton Rouge, LA.

 Crossing the Mississippi River in Baton Rouge which is to the right in the picture below.

Growing up we traveled quite a bit to my Grandmother's in Illinois and we always played the license plate game. So, naturally we played it on the way to Disney World. We saw 38 states, plus British Columbia Canada.
States: Texas, New Mexico, Louisiana, Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Missouri, Illinois, Hawaii (which I can't believe), Florida, Oklahoma, Tennessee, California, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Maryland, Arizona, Michigan, Connecticut, Indiana, South Carolina, Ohio, Wyoming, Kentucky, North Carolina, New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Virginia, Washington, Kentucky, Iowa, Nevada, & Oregon.
We got home about 1:00 Sunday afternoon (one week later) and here are the kids as we pulled into the driveway!

We had a VERY FUN trip and I loved watching Emory and Cason experience Walt Disney World for the first time! Emory is already planning her next trip. Thank you Grandma and Pawpaw!!!

Walt Disney World Day 5 - Animal Kingdom/Pirate Cruise

Friday we headed over to Animal Kingdom and started the day off in the African Safari.

We rode a jeep like this one through Africa and saw many animals up close.

 We were able to see many hippos!

 Crocodiles

 This is a kind of tree that grows in Africa. I can't remember the name but it grows upside down and is bare of leaves for 9 months out of the year.  

 termite mounds

 This giraffe was so close to us.

I loved the momma elephant and her two babies.

 Flamingos

 This is where the lions live, but we did not see any. They were probably sleeping in the shade, it was HOT! 

I can't remember what these animals were called but they were right next to the road. One even had to be coaxed out of the road so we could continue. There are only 500 of them left in the wild.

The Tree of Life
 It is 145 ft tall and has over 300 hand carved animals on it. We watched "It's Tough to be a Bug" inside the tree.

Emory in her bug glasses before the show started!

We had lunch at the Tusker House in Africa and met up with a  few friends!

 Cason and Donald Duck.

By Friday Cason was over being shy around the characters and asked to have his picture taken with them!

 Mickey Mouse and Cason

The monkey area in Asia. We watched the Monkey's swing around for a little while.

Mt. Everest!

That afternoon we watched Finding Nemo The Musical. Flash photography was not allowed plus Cason fell asleep in my lap but I was able to get a couple decent pictures.



 Emory enjoyed the show and Cason enjoyed a much needed nap! After the musical we headed back to the hotel to rest up because we had reservations for the Pirate Fireworks Cruise later that night!

 

Later that night we headed back over to the Contemporary Resort for the Pirate Cruise.

Emory and Cason giving me an "Arrgh Matey" before the cruise!

The cruise started off inside with all kinds of yummy goodies to snack on, plus Captain Hook and Mr. Smee stopped by!

 Next we headed to the lake to get on our pirate ship!
This was our tour guide!

 The Magic Kingdom from the lake!

 Before the fireworks started we got to see the Electrical Water Pageant, which is one of the oldest attractions at Walt Disney World and you can only see it from/on the lake!

 I only took a few pictures but it is fairly long!

 Then the fireworks began. Watching the fireworks from the lake is the BEST way to experience them in my book! ZERO crowds and just beautiful. I did not take any pictures because I was too busy watching the show!

When returned to the dock this fella was waiting on us.

Cason, Emory, & Peter Pan

It was super late and they were very tired, but we still managed to get a decent picture!

This was the first time we had done the Pirate Cruise and I would definitely recommend it. I really enjoyed it, it was much better than watching the fireworks on a "regular" boat.



Walt Disney World Day 4 - Magic Kingdom

Thursday morning we headed back over to the Polynesian Resort for breakfast at Ohana's! Lilo, Stitch, Mickey, and Pluto joined us too!

Emory and Pluto

(Emory picked out that water cup she is wearing earlier in the week and wore it everywhere!)

 Mickey led a parade around the restaurant. Pluto was in the parade too!

 Emory and Cason in the parade.

Mickey, Emory, Cason

(Cason was no longer scared of the characters!!)

Lilo and Cason.

Emory stayed under the table while Stitch and Lilo came to visit. She has always been afraid of both of them and still refuses to watch the movie.

After breakfast Bradley, the kids, and I headed back over to Magic Kingdom while Grandma and Pawpaw went over to Downtown Disney. We rode a few rides and then headed back to the hotel to swim and rest!

 Emory sleeping with her new doll Pocahontas. She also came home with an Ana doll.

After a little rest we headed back over to Magic Kingdom and rode more rides before our dinner reservation at Liberty Tree Tavern in Liberty Square.

 We rode the paddle boat.

 The magic carpet ride for the umpteen time.

 Emory Grace being silly!

Grandma and Pawpaw bought the kids these bubble machines while shopping at Downtown Disney!

They LOVED them!!

 Bubbles followed us everywhere we went!