As we watched Sportscenter on Monday morning (the only part of the "real world" we keep up on while in WDW ;)), we hoped the Columbus Day crowds had started to thin out. The plan was to try and catch Tinkerbell at the MK and her friends this morning, and otherwise hang out at the hotel until later in the afternoon. If we had a car, it would have been SUCH a great opportunity to pool hop (ie to SSR with a better toddler area)... but you know we didn't.
We made it to the Magic Kingdom at about 8:30. We took Emmersyn and Hartley on their first Mad Tea Party ride, then headed over to wait for Toontown to open!
The wait for the fairies (after getting run over by rude parents who knew they were far more important than my family) was a much more manageable 15 minutes. Even after the fairies, the princess line was still just 5-10 minutes so we said hello to them again, too! My girls are so weird, and were still super put off by the seemingly least intimidating characters on property. Whatever :)
We made sure to get our (last?) picture of the girls on Minnie's Couch, and spent some time in her Country House in case it really is the end of Toontown! :'(
Next, we walked through Fantasyland and Liberty Square shops while the girls took a nap, and had a wonderful conversation with a sweet older lady at the Christmas shop. It's so refreshing to be in a place where even all the retail workers love their job :)
Lunch was at Columbia Harbour House, where we did a few more Treasure Hunts and let the girls relax in the air-conditioning.
Before leaving the park, we played with some cast members and then rode a lap all the way around on the Railroad, which the girls adored.
One of the girls' favorite songs (at the time, and to a lesser extent now) was an old Gymboree favorite, "Here Comes the Choo Choo", so they got a kick out of the bells and whistle on the Real Train!
After our RR ride, we headed out to the bus stop. We got there just in time to see the Old Key West bus pull away, so it took us quite a while to get back to the room. Because their morning nap was not a great one, the girls were super crabby. This made for a bit of a plan change to make time for an earlier afternoon nap. Almost as quickly as we made it back to the hotel, we headed back to Epcot for the afternoon/evening. While Emmersyn and Hartley slept, Zach and I enjoyed some Kinley (of course!) and some of the Food & Wine Festival offerings. We didn't want to spoil our dinner, so we settled on splitting a few different items. Holy crap, we need to spend more time doing this the next time around! We had Spanakopita and Chicken Souvlaki from Athens, and Cheddar Cheese Soup & Maple Candy from Montreal - and each thing was to die for!
Later in the afternoon, we went back to Innoventions to try and make the Chase Visa Meet & Greet again. We'd been unsuccessful on most of our attempts, and we were running out of days! Hartley had just woken up (barely), so she was a bit more apprehensive. Emmersyn loved Goofy, though! They also loved their first frozen, chocolate-covered banana! :)
We finished up just in time to walk to Italy and make our dinner reservations at Tutto Italia. The wait was just a few minutes, and the meal was the best we had eaten all trip - SO yummy! The portions were perfect, the food authentic (and delicious), the service wonderful, the girls well-behaved - it was an absolutely delightful evening!
We finished up just in time to walk to Italy and make our dinner reservations at Tutto Italia. The wait was just a few minutes, and the meal was the best we had eaten all trip - SO yummy! The portions were perfect, the food authentic (and delicious), the service wonderful, the girls well-behaved - it was an absolutely delightful evening!
The girls and I wandered the Piazza for a little while as Zach paid for dinner. We strolled around the World Showcase one last time (you know, this trip!), picked up our free picture and said goodbye to my favorite park. We did NOT get to spend enough time there!
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Back at the hotel, I planned to do some more laundry (why not, since we had the detergent and the machines were both free and right by the pool?). Zach got the girls ready while I started the journey up to the front of the resort. A sweet CM gave me a lift on his golf cart, so as Zach got Hartley and Emmersyn ready to swim, I got to the pool area in plenty of time to start the laundry AND enjoy a few minutes (alone!) in the hot tub. Sweet!
The girls were SO good in the water, loving it again. They went under water, jumped off the walls and had a blast. Unfortunately because we're always on a man-to-man defense at best, I just have one video, taken when Hartley was all done.
Finally, whether they wanted to or not, it was time for Zach and Emmersyn to join us out of the pool. It was getting late... and it was time for the campfire!
We walked along the resort property to the fire ring, where we found CMs with free S'mores kits. It was so disgustingly hot that the marshmallows were too gooey to even put on the stick to roast, so we mostly ate the pieces individually and enjoyed the company of other DVCers until it was time to pick up the laundry.
When that time came, we all strolled back to the room together, and the girls fell asleep in no time flat!
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