And we're Back - Our Disney experience

I can't believe that our week at Disney World is over. But, it was the most amazing trip ever.

We stayed at the Walt Disney World Resort's Polynesian Hotel. (also known as the "Poly") and it was this beautiful hotel on the monorail line. Actually, it was a group of longhouses (or mini hotel buildings) that at all had Hawaiian names - ours was Tokelau. At the centre of the complex is the Great Ceremonial House that houses the monorail station, gift shops and restaurants. So, it was pretty neat in that when you arrive you're at this tourist place, but when you leave there you are in paradise. It was absolutely wonderful.
There were 2 hotel pools - the quiet pool which we faced, and the volcano pool that had a huge slide. We loved it!
And of course there was the World itself.
After we arrived we had a swim and unpacked, and then we went to the Magic Kingdom. We decided to hit a couple of rides (Jungle Book!) and then head for dinner with Pooh and friends at the Crystal Palace.
Matt told us that he is far too old for Winnie the Pooh, but we explained that this trip was for him and Coco, and so some things would be more focused on her.
There wasn't much protest, and as it turned out, Matt loved visiting with the Pooh characters as much as the rest of us.
This was Coco first time seeing large characters since she was a tiny baby, and we weren't quite sure how she would do.
As you can see, she was just fine. In fact, she screamed and laughed every time that one of the characters came near. We realized that we have a Disney nut on our hands at the age of 1!
The downside of this dinner is that we realized from about 10 minutes in that as great as it is to meet the characters, neither child was on their best behaviour at the character/buffet meals. It was kind of funny because the restaurants we didn't initially book were the quieter ones where you stay in your seat the whole time.
After a couple of experiences at the quieter restaurants we soon learned that both kids needed the break from the Disney excitement.
So, we stuck with the restaurants with characters we *really* wanted to meet (like Cinderella), and then switched for non-buffets.
The irony? Our family's favourite meals ended up being at the restaurants we didn't expect either child would handle (think a swanky steakhouse at the Contemporary Hotel).
Over the next few days I'm going to tell you more about the trip. There's too much to tell you in one post!
But, for now, one of my favourite pictures!

So Long, Farewell

I have a couple of hours to tie up loose ends at work.
And a birthday party for our nanny.
Of course there are a few odds and ends I need to put in our suitcases. And then we're off...

We'll be hanging out at this pool

And eating this

And hopefully many of these (dole whips)



















Spending our evenings watching these

And, oh yeah, chilling with these guys in our spare time.
We'll try not to miss you too much.
Pray for our sanity while we're gone. Phat Daddy does crazy things like wear Mickey Mouse clothing, poses for photos and wears Mickey ears. Matt is allowed to be himself when we're there - his crazy, enthusiastic non-stop self. And he agrees to hang out with Princesses (for Coco's sake). I go completely insane, and let myself believe in magic, Princesses and all the fairy tales.
And Coco... well, this will be all new to her! We brought her at 3 months, but I'm pretty sure she doesn't remember it. So, I can't wait to see her reactions.
Just thinking about it all makes me cry.
I can't wait to dine with princesses, see Mickey, ride the monorail and stay at a fancy resort. But, mostly, I just can't wait to spend 7 days with my family. Just us!
Disney World HERE WE COME!!!!

Our Heroes

We've been back from Disney for a couple of days now. We've done some laundry and some unpacking, but the truth is that we're still all a little tired, and not quite willing to concede that our trip is over and it's back to reality.
Okay. Maybe Phat Daddy is, but Doodle keeps talking about monorails, the baby keeps cuddling her baby Cinderella and I've been online looking at package deals for another Disney trip. Yes. We loved it that much. Yes, it was totally do-able with a baby.
I've got lots of stories of the magic of the experience, but sometimes pictures say it better.

My Princess with Cinderella.

To Infinity and Beyond

Doodle's Hero - Buzz Lightyear