Day (High-)FIVE


This was it. The final leg of TT Dad’s running adventure.  Over 48 miles in 4 days.

Did he make it?

We’ll get to that later.  For now, we’ll just say that he certainly documented his attempt quite well…

Photo Cred: Disney Photo pass

Photo Cred: Disney Photopass

Photo cred: Disney Photopass

Meanwhile, The rest of us made our way over to Magic Kingdom, again, via boat.  Ahhh the boat.  It was one of the main reasons we chose Wilderness Lodge, and I’d do it again in a heartbeat for the same reason.   There was an absolute difference when we started our day with a pleasant boat ride…  Words can’t explain well enough.

Anyway.  This particular morning was overcast, and a little chilly.  Hearty New Englanders that we are, we toughed it out, and we were rewarded with a nearly empty park.  Did you catch that?  Nearly Empty.  I never thought I’d see the day.

We made a beeline to the Tea Cups, where we had a FP+.  Completely unnecessary.  Of course, by this point, we knew our ‘Park MO’ which was not to race from ride to ride, so we didn’t cancel & replace them, though we easily could have. After three (yes, THREE) consecutive rides on the spinning cups, we broke away check out some other rides.  We were able to fit a couple of consecutive rides on the flying elephants.  It was a toddler’s dream day at Magic Kingdom.

What could possibly make the morning even better for the duo?  A ride on the train!  We took the train all the way to Frontierland, where I took the kids to the potty as Nonie & Pops got in line for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.   They were still in line when we were done in the potty, but we stumbled upon a little play area, tucked in near the restrooms close to the Frontierland Railroad station.  This area was not fully enclosed, but enclosed enough that I felt comfortable there with myself and the two toddlers.

Perfect.  

It wasn’t long at all before Nonie & Pops were back.  Pops and I decided to take advantage of the 5 minute wait (lies-  we walked right on!) for Splash Mountain, while Nonie took the kids for a snack and a walk.
Photo Cred: Ride Photopass
Soon enough, we decided to grab some lunch at the Columbia Harbor House, another Quick Service restaurant we’d heard great things about.  This time, the raves were in regard to the food, and for good reason.  While I will most likely never say that anything in Walt Disney World is reasonably priced, I will say that the serving sizes were generous, and we were all pleased with our selections.

We finished lunch just as TT Dad let us know he was on his way over, on a boat.

Hoping to get the kids into some ‘sleepy undies’ so they could settle in for another stroller nap, we met him at Rapunzel’s restrooms in Fantasyland.  We found our way there quite often.  After a round of high-fives, hugs, and kisses, to congratulate our Dopey Challenge Survivor, we broke the news to TT Dad that we had already eaten.

Nonie & Pops went to take a break in the sun (as opposed to the break in the shade every other day!), TT Dad went to find some food, and I took the kids on a very purposeful walk.  It wasn’t long at all before they were sleeping soundly, so I found TT Dad and we sat together.

Once he finished, we dropped the still napping kids off with Nonie & Pops and went off to find Gaston.  They cut the line just as we got there, but we did sneak in for pictures with Ariel, who happens to be TT Dad’s favorite.  Mine, too.

Photo Cred: Disney Photopass

Back to reality, the kids had been sleeping for a bit, so we went back to check on them.  It wasn’t long before they started to wake up, so we headed over for our next FP+…  The Tomorrowland Speedway!  TT Dad and Pops took the kids for a spin, and then Nonie & I took them for a second round.  The bonus of the under-three crowd!  It was a hit!

While walking back, we decided to check out the Country Bear’s Jamboree, which was fun.  The kids enjoyed it, too.  As we were leaving, we literally stumbled onto the Festival of Fantasy Parade.  We had a fantastic viewing spot for about half the parade.  We couldn’t have planned it better.

After the parade wrapped up, we decided to head back to the hotel. TT Dad was ready for a rest, and I certainly don’t blame him!  As we were leaving, however, we walked by Princess Fairytale Hall.  Rapunzel and Tiana were inside, with a very short wait.   Rapunzel is a favorite in our house, so we decided to give it a shot.

The kids did really well, considering this was probably the longest line they’d had to wait in all week.  Snacks, toy cars, songs.  We were finally heading in to meet the ladies.

First up was Tiana.  She was fantastic.  She told Garrett that she had a princess for him, whenever he was ready.  He laughed and smiled for her.  It was a very cute exchange.

Photo Cred: Disney Photopass

Zoey was too busy waiting for Rapunzel.

Don’t let their faces fool you.  They loved meeting her, but they weren’t happy that we made them pose for a photo, instead of continuing the conversation!  Rapunzel was also incredible with two character-shy kids. We were very impressed.

Photo Cred: Disney Photopass

We finally made our way back to the hotel, where we had a quiet dinner in the room.  It was really the perfect last full day of our vacation.

Time to pack up and get everything cleaned up for our departure.  We had plans to enjoy our last (half) day, starting at Hollywood Studios, with a breakfast reservation at Hollywood & Vine, and ending in Epcot for a late-ish lunch.  The Magical Express  would pick us up around 3pm, so we wanted to make the most of our morning!