Wednesday, we set out for our final day in Disney World.  Russ's conference had officially ended, and he was able to spend the entire day with us!  We planned to let Millie Janalee set the start time for our day since we kept her out until nearly midnight the night before.  We all slowly got ready and loaded our purses and bags for the day.  Millie Janalee was ready to roll!

While we waited on a shuttle to pick us up for Animal Kingdom, Miss Priss kept herself busy by walking around with her daddy and watching the horses.  There are several things our resort offered that I was sad we didn't get to take advantage of: pony rides, carriage rides, and wagon rides.  Millie Janalee found the horses at the stables and kept a close eye on them.

We could immediately tell that our day would be extra warm, which seemed to fit Animal Kingdom perfectly.  Again, I was worried there wouldn't be much for a 19 month old.  And there wasn't a whole lot.  But, there was plenty for us.  And plenty for a half day for sure.  We arrived close to lunch time.

Me, Millie Janalee, and Russ

Susu, Millie Janalee, and Pawpaw

We randomly chose a path after we entered the park, and it led us to loud and fun music.  We found a little street dance party that Millie Janalee just loved!  She danced along, took some time to pick up all the leaves off the ground, and met new friends.  I didn't post a picture on here, but she found a little boy sitting down (probably 6 or 7 years old) and kept going over to him saying something very important.  Then she would go dance and return to him.  This continued several times.  We are pretty sure she was trying to get him to dance with her.  He did wave at her once, but then completely ignored her.  Bless her.  She didn't give up easily for sure! Ha!

Russ and Millie Janalee enjoyed a little father/daughter dance time too.  Millie Janalee was very uninterested.  She prefered dancing alone.  Finally, Russ just picked her up and began dancing.  It was hilarious to watch her mouth wide open crying while Russ tried to figure out the dance moves.  Eventually, Millie Janalee realized it was actually very fun to dance with her daddy.  We have the whole scene on video, and it was hilarious!  Poor Russ!

We had a FastPass+ to visit Mickey and Minnie again.  I mean they are dressed differently, so it's almost as if we are seeing them for the first time.  Plus Millie Janalee loved meeting them, so I knew she would enjoy this.  She ran right up to them, hugged them, watched them sign her book, hugged them again, and posed for a picture.  Then, as expected, had a meltdown when we had to say "goodbye."  She waved through wails as we exited their outpost.

We took a stroll over to Dinoland USA to see a few more favorite characters.  Goofy and Pluto were there, and Millie Janalee was so excited.  We stopped to feed her a little lunch before getting in line with lots of snacks and juice.  This time, she didn't hesitate to take her autograph book right up to them and give good hugs.

We had a FastPass+ in the next 30 minutes or more, so we stopped at Restaurantosaurus for lunch.  It was yummy, and we enjoyed eating our meal at an outside table.  We scarfed our food down, so we wouldn't be late for the Finding Nemo musical.  Here's my review of this.  First of all, our FastPass+ didn't get us any better seats than those arriving last minute.  So we were seated in the bleachers at the very back of the auditorium.  Several families got up and left as the show started, because kids couldn't see over everyone else.  We stayed.  Millie Janalee was approaching bedtime, so I just used the dark room and music to rock her to sleep.  The show was very cute (I had forgotten what it was like from our last visit.) and Millie Janalee got a good 30 minutes of sleep in.

We raced from there to the parade route to catch the Mickey's Jammin' Jungle Parade.  It was wonderful, and I may or may not have woken Millie Janalee up when it started.  I can't help it.  I didn't want her to miss it.  And she loved being up close and personal.  She got lots of hugs and high fives from characters passing by.  I always love this parade!

It was HOT at this point.  Millie Janalee and I were pretty wet seeing as how we had been cuddled up together for the last hour or more and sitting in direct sunlight during the parade.  We made our way over to the Kilimanjaro Safari to use our final FastPass+ for the day and cool off as we rode through the jungle.  Millie Janalee loved watching the buses drive by while we waited.  We enjoyed our ride and seeing all the animals so close up.

After our safari, it was nearing 5:30.  So all the animal attractions would be closing soon.  My plans to visit the petting zoo didn't surface.  Maybe next time.  We walked around a little bit, changed a diaper, and took in the sights.  Millie Janalee loved trying to catch and talk to the ducks walking around on the trails.

The perfectionist in me wanted to fill up her autograph book.  She only had two pages left, so we looked for more characters.  A cast member directed us to hidden trail by the Tree of Life where we found Pocahontas.  This may have been Millie Janalee's first introduction to Pocahontas.  She was very kind.

On our way to our next ride, we saw Dug and Russell from Up.  As you can see, Millie Janalee wasn't afraid at all!  She ran right up and began her rounds of hugs and high fives.  It would be her final character encounter at DisneyWorld.  Tear. So we took a family picture this time.

As the sun set, we headed back over to DinoLand USA to finish our day.  Russ and I took Millie Janalee on her last ride - TriceraTop Spin.  She "Weeeee!" and "Whoa!"'d her way through the entire ride.  We went up very high and low. 

Before leaving, Russ, Mama, and I rode the Primeval Whirl while Daddy kept Millie Janalee.  I think they pretty much parked it by Pluto and Goofy and watched them sign autographs the whole time.  It was our only "big people" ride all week.  It was also my first time to ride.  It was very fun.

We walked out of the park around 8:00 Wednesday night...our final day of Disney magic.  Sad to see it go, but exhausted from our day.  And, honestly, I think all our feet and muscles were feeling the week too.  Ha!

I called on our way out to make reservations for dinner at Downtown Disney.  We caught a shuttle over and at at Wolfgang Puck.  Millie Janalee fell fast asleep on the shuttle over to the restaurant, slept through dinner and a few shopping stops, and slept all the way home.

When we got to the cabin, I changed her diaper and put pajama pants on her, but she was still asleep. So she slept in her pajama bottoms and her top from the day.  The girl NEVER WOKE BACK UP until the next morning!

I'd say that was a fun-FILLED day of Disney!  Actually, a FULL WEEK of fun at the happiest place on Earth!  By the time we loaded the plane the next day, I was ready to go back.  And we will.

See ya real soon, Disney!

To see our day at:
Magic Kingdom click here
Our Day off to Play and Recover click here
Magic Kingdom Take Two click here
Hollywood Studios click here 
Downtown Disney click here

Magic Kingdom Magic

After a day off to recoup, we were ready to give the Magic Kingdom one more try!  Millie Janalee felt much better, and we kept her up to date with her cough meds throughout the day.  It was a beautiful day in Disney World with the highs in the 80's.  The family was dressed and ready as we waited on Miss Priss to wake up.  As soon as she woke up, we began dressing her and feeding her and getting her out the door.  I will say she didn't appreciate that part.  She's like her Mama...we take mornings slowly.  Ha!

When we got to the Magic Kingdom, we decided to begin the day with a train ride around the park.  We had already missed our first two FastPass+ experiences, so I rescheduled them for later in the day.  I wasn't able to reschedule Enchanted Tales with Belle, but after looking into it...I'm not sure it would've been a favorite for a 19 month old anyway.  It's the newest attraction, so it was also the one with the longest line.

We enjoyed a leisurely ride around the park to help get Millie Janalee pepped for her big day.  She enjoyed pointing to things we passed and saying "choo choo" every time we stopped. 

We had a FastPass+ to meet Mickey at the Town Square, but it wasn't quite time yet.  In the courtyard, we spotted Pluto and Marie from Aristocats.  I knew Millie Janalee would love to meet Marie.  We watched for a bit, and she was fighting to get down and go see them.  So, I decided to stand in the long line to see Marie while Pawpaw took her walking around.  While they were walking, they were able to watch the Move It, Shake It, Celebrate It Street Party.  I was able to watch it from my line too, since they ended right next to the courtyard.  By the time Pawpaw and Millie Janalee made it back to the line, it was our turn.

I admit, I did not know who in the world this "white cat with a pink bow" was, but I knew Millie Janalee would love her.  And she did.  Kristin texted me after this asking what we were doing, and I told her we met a white cat with a pink bow.  She immediately texted back, "That's Marie from Aristocats!"

Oh.  My bad.

We tried our best to wait on Russ before going in to meet Mickey for the first time, but our FastPass+ was running out.  So we went without him.  He really didn't mind.  I was even surprised by what we found!  Mickey talked.  His mouth moved and everything!  It was the real live thing!  Which threw Millie Janalee off at first.  He talked us into bouncing with him and blowing him kisses.  He politely signed her autograph book while we looked on.  Then, I was able to ease her into approaching Mickey on her own.  She even gave him a hug.

And, of course, she cried when we had to say "goodbye."  Bless her!

Russ joined us a few minutes later as we were grabbing a bite to eat at the bakery.  We strolled the streets making our way to It's a Small World again (Russ didn't get to ride the last time we rode it) with our FastPass+.  Millie Janalee was much more into it this time too, now that she felt better.

We also rode the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh with our FastPass+ and stopped by the Mad Tea Party teacups.  I think the teacups ranks very high on Millie Janalee's list.  The line is never too long for this, so we spent some extra time slipping this in.  I had already instructed Russ not to spin us...we would just ride naturally in our little teacup.  Yeah right!  He immediately began spinning us.  Yuck!  After I talked him into calming down, Millie Janalee tried to spin us herself. With all her might.  She kept yelling, "Weeeee!" and "Whoa!"  I'd say it was a successful ride.  Ha!

We didn't have a FastPass+ for Dumbo, but we wanted to ride.  The wait was only 35 minutes, so we gave it a try.  Susu and Pawpaw sat this one out.  This is where I will sing praises to the Dumbo ride.  My all-time favorite wait!  If all rides were like this, it would be heavenly!  So, you get in line for Dumbo, and it takes you into a big top circus tent.  Inside, they give you a buzzer (like at a restaurant) and you go into a playground area for the remainder of your wait.  When it's time, your buzzer will go off and you get in line to ride.  Millie Janalee had a blast!  Oh my!  There was a flying Dumbo above us, a little fire engine, baby slide, and another big puzzle thing.  This area was kinda closed in for the littles, so Russ and I were able to just sit and watch her.  There were huge climbing and sliding contraptions for the older kids all around our little closed in area.  Very well planned.

This was Millie Janalee's first flying ride.  She was a little unsure.  Maybe because, once again, Russ couldn't resist taking us all the way to the highest level right when the ride started.  (You control your own Dumbo.)  I'm scared of heights, so I promise I was encouraging him to bring it down a notch.  Ha!  We had lots of fun, and Millie Janalee was sad to get off.  I think she had mixed emotions actually.

We walked over to Ariel's Grotto to meet Ariel next.  Millie Janalee loved sitting with Ariel in her clam shell.  They talked about life under the sea and blew kisses of course.

Millie Janalee enjoyed walking on her own a good bit this trip as well.  She took in the sights and met all kinds of new people.  She also got sleepy and took a nap at this point.  We found a shaded area in Sleepy Hollow Refreshments to sit her stroller, and we all ordered a funnel cake and other treats to pass the time.  Sleepy Hollow is right by Cinderella's castle, so we were able to watch the Dream Along with Mickey show too.  Mama and I left Millie Janalee with the guys and went for a walk down Main Street where we caught the street party again.  We checked on our photos at the Town Square and picked up our mouse ears we ordered when we first arrived at Chapeau Hat Shoppe.  We had her name embroidered on the back.

Millie Janalee was asleep for nearly two hours when we decided to stroll her over to Adventureland.  We wanted to ride the Pirates of the Caribbean ride.  The wait wasn't too terribly long, and Millie Janalee was still asleep.  So we didn't mind waiting in line while she finished her nap.  I carried her through and she woke up when we got pretty close to the boats.  She enjoyed our little boat ride, and it was quite exciting for her (and us) with a little big drop during our ride.  I had forgotten about that part, so it was a fun surprise.

Afterward, we jumped in line for Aladdin's Magic Carpet Ride.  Russ rode in the front and me and Susu rode with Millie Janalee in back.  Russ videoed her whole ride, and it was pretty funny.  Another flying ride.  Such fun!  Pawpaw sat this one out and watched the stroller.

Our last ride for the day was the Haunted Mansion.  My parents talk about scarring me for life when they took me on this ride during my first visit at age 5.  It was the very first ride we rode.  Ha!  Millie Janalee really had fun.  Her eyes were wide open.  She pointed to the ghosts dancing and constantly looked around.  I think she's too young to realize it was scary.  Ha! 

We had spent our entire day exactly how we wanted.  We played it all by ear, Millie Janalee got in a good nap, and we rode everything that was on our list.  We saw shows and characters.  We enjoyed yummy meals and treats.  And Millie Janalee set the pace of our day.  Around 8 or so that night, we found spot for the electric light parade and ate supper there.  Millie Janalee had a veggie pack and veggie sticks while the rest of us had corndogs or whatever else we could find on the go.

Waiting patiently

Resting his feet with such enthusiasm

The parade didn't start til 9.  When you are 19 months old and wait for an hour on a parade, your daddy will buy you a $15 blinking balloon.  This was a terrific treat!  And it kept her well entertained all night.  My parents also said it nearly gave everyone behind us an epileptic seizure.  Ha!

Pawpaw and Susu scoped out even better seats right before the parade started, so Russ and I took her down to the front row.

(The seats we had been saving since 8 weren't even on the parade route we soon found out.  Ha!  So our secondary spots weren't superb.  Apparently, the grandparents had been scoping it out ever since looking for the perfect spot for the baby.)

(I wish you could've seen the scene when a little spot opened up on the front row.)

She loved the new seats! "Cheeesh!"

The parade started and we were up close and personal.  She was even able to wave at Minnie and Minnie waved back. She gave a few high fives too.  After the parade, we hung around for the fireworks and light show on the castle.  And, of course, we saw Tinkerbell fly from the top of the castle into Tomorrowland.

Scenes from the night

Mesmerized

When all these festivities ended, Millie Janalee was still in good spirits.  It was around 10:30 or so at this point, so we headed over to see the princesses.  It was the only thing left on our list.  Pawpaw and Russ entertained the idea and stood in line with us.  The princesses used to be all in a row and you stood in one line to see them all.  Now, they are separated.  We stood in one line to see Cinderella and Aurora.  Then, we walked out and stood in another line to see Snow White and Rapunzel.  The princesses were very good with Millie Janalee and knew just how to take pictures with her. 

(I should also admit that I caused Millie Janalee to fall flat on her face when she walked up to meet her first princess.  I was trying to fix her pants.  The entire crowd in line behind us let out a big "Ooooooh!"  It was kinda funny, but I felt so bad!  The first time I embarrassed my daughter in public is now documented.  Millie Janalee had to take a second to recover.)

We exited the park as the last electric light parade was going on, so we were able to beat the crowd.  We loaded the ferry for a boat ride back to the resort.

It was a magical completely FULL day at the Magic Kingdom!  Take two.

Play Day to Recover

After our day of low grade fevers, we decided to take Monday off to play and explore.  We all slept in as late as Millie Janalee wanted to, and we were in absolutely no rush to leave the cabin.  Breakfast and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse was our morning activity.  As lunchtime approached, we made a plan for the day.  We took our internal shuttle down to one of the restaurants on the grounds near the playground and ferry dock. 

After eating lunch, we spent some time playing on the resort playground.  Mama and I strolled through the trading post while Millie Janalee and Pawpaw played.  Millie Janalee was having so much fun that we just let her play until Russ returned from his morning conference.

Susu and Pawpaw watching Millie Janalee swing

Sliding down the big slide

"Let's slide again, Pawpaw!"

Once Russ joined us, we caught the ferry over to the monorail at Magic Kingdom.  We were all curious about some of the other resorts, so we spent the afternoon riding the monorail to different resorts.  First the Contemporary, then the Polynesian.  We stayed at the Polynesian for awhile and walked around the grounds, talked to a travel club rep, and shopped some.  It is definitely on our list of resorts we would like to check into.  Last, we caught the ferry over to the Wilderness Lodge.  It was also very nice and rustic.  A beautiful lodge with lots of character.  Millie Janalee had fallen asleep at this point, so we all settled into comfy chairs and couches in the lobby to rest.  We love people watching anyway, so it was quite entertaining.  I think Russ took a little nap too actually.  Ha!

Millie Janalee woke up in perfect time for us to catch a fun gathering at our resort, The Cabins at Fort Wilderness.  Every night, Chip and Dale show up for a campfire sing along and movie.  I dragged the rest of the group to the event, and we all had such fun!  Just like I thought we would.  Ahem.

It was a cool evening, and I knew we wouldn't be staying for the movie.  But, it was perfect for children of all ages!  Many of the children were gathered around a campfire making s'mores.  There was hot chocolate and other goodies for sale.  A man played his guitar and led us in songs that everyone knows!  Traditional campfire songs.  Chip and Dale made their way through the benches to visit each child and adult as we sang along.

There were stand up, sit down songs.  Clapping songs.  Dancing songs.  Foot stomping songs.  And, of course, the Hokey Pokey!

Even the adults were into it!  Dancing and singing along! 

After the sing along, Chip and Dale led everyone in a dance session out in the open area.  Children ran up to make a circle around Chip and Dale and danced to the Macerena, the Twist, and other fun dance songs.  The ground was like an old playground filled with rocks and pebbles.  Millie Janalee did NOT like walking on it.  I don't know if it made her feel unstable or if it hurt her feet.  But I ended up holding her and dancing with her the rest of the evening. 

For a day off at DisneyWorld, we sure did fill it up!  Everyone rested back at the cabin, and I think we even ate supper at the cabin this night.  I can't remember exactly.  I began organizing my tote bag for our next full day of Disney magic - Magic Kingdom!  Take two.