Vacation: Disney World!

Magic Kingdom- here we come!! On the ferryboat, waiting for the castle to come into view. We were all so excited!! The birthday girl getting a birthday button
No way was Cade going to be seen in Mickey ears! haha!
Getting our first glimpse of all the magic. We spotted Daisy Duck, Pluto, and Pinocchio right away!

On the train riding to Mickey's Toontown Fair. Ella was insistent that we meet Mickey first thing, and, hey, it was her special day, so she got to call all the shots. =)

Meeting her best pal, Mickey. What a special moment for Ella! Cade kept flirting with Minnie Mouse. It was super cute! =)

One happy, little girl here! Riding Cinderella's Golden Carousel with Pappaw

Wearing our 3-D glasses before Mickey's Philharmagic

Goofy's Street Party The day was just starting, but poor Cade was already ready for a nap!
Family pic

Dad, Jared, and Katie on "it's a small world"

Ella loved this blue hippo!

Cinderella's Royal Castle during the day

Walking around the castle with Pappaw

The 3 o'clock parade! We had front-row seats and Ella couldn't get enough of Mickey and Minnie! Cade was in awe, too!
Beauty and the Beast

We met lots of characters after lunch. Ella was napping in the stroller by this point, but they signed her autograph book for us anyways! Cade didn't mind getting all the attention. He started squealing and pointing when he spotted Pooh and Tigger.

Honking Pluto's nose

With Chip 'n Dale (or Chicken Dale, as Ella calls them =) Once Ella was refreshed, we headed to AdventureLand! First up, the Magic Carpets of Aladdin! Waiting in line for Pirates of the Caribbean. It was such a neat ride, but we weren't allowed to take any pictures. Ella didn't like it, because it was "dark and too scary", but it was one of our favorite rides.

Walking through the Swiss Family Treehouse

Spinning in a teacup at the Mad Tea Party

In front of the fireplace at Minnie's Country House

The perfect nightcap to the perfect day- ice cream!

The Royal Castle lit up in Ella's favorite color

Watching the light parade on Daddy's shoulders

Cinderella's carriage in lights

Watching the fireworks with Gram and Pap. What a fun place to celebrate birthdays of all ages- Ella's 4th and Dad's 60th!

We were there pretty much from open to close and managed to take in 15 different rides and attractions, watch 3 parades, and meet 7 characters. I thought that was pretty good, considering the crazy amount of people that were there. We were told before and during our trip that May is the best time to visit, because it is the slowest month of the year. If that is truly the case, I would hate to be there during the busy months! Granted, we didn't wait more than 35 minutes for any one thing, but there were times we were pushing our stroller and literally walking shoulder to shoulder with other people.

Anyways, we had mapped out the park before we arrived and managed to take in all but three rides that we wanted. There were all these adorable, little princesses walking around that had been pampered in the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, but Ella was absolutely uninterested. I tried to talk her into at least a little glitter in her hair, but she would have none of it- "No, I'm fine. I just want to ride rides!" And as much as she loves all the Disney princesses and was looking forward to meeting them, when we headed back to check on the wait for the second time and found it was still 60 minutes, she declared, "It doesn't even matter!" Instead we headed to the Barnstormer roller coaster and ended up getting to ride it three times! She decided that and the teacups were her favorites of the day.

It was so fun to watch Ella enjoy the day. She's at the absolute perfect age to get wrapped up in all the magic and excitement of Disney World. Cade rode a few things, but was more entertained with all the parades and music and lights. It was so nice to have my parents along. I know they treasured getting to experience this with the kids, plus they were such a huge help. I'm not sure the two of us could have coordinated lines and rides and meals and naps all by ourselves, at least not without losing our minds! Jared and Katie were so great, too. I mean, how many college kids would want to follow us around and ride kiddie rides all day? We kept telling them to go off and do their own thing, but they stuck by our sides all day and were as excited to watch Ella and Cade as we were. We were lucky to have them with us. What a special, special time to share as a family. We are already excited about going back in a few years, maybe when Cade is Ella's age. I already can't wait!!