Disney World - Day 3

We tried to get an early start and headed out for the bus about 10 til 9, but after 15 minutes of waiting, we realized that there wasn't a bus for Hollywood Studios- you have to take the ferry boat! So as we're walking up, one floats away and we had to wait ANOTHER 20 minutes! Nick was not a happy camper.   :-p

Once we finally got there, Nick went straight to Tower of Terror (I think?) and Mom and I took Jack to see Disney Jr. Live! He LOVED it (& so did I)!!! 

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Handy Manny (which we don't watch but is cute), Little Einsteins, and Jake and the Neverland Pirates! It was adorable. Then after that, Jack and I got to MEET Jake! So fun!!

While we were doing that, Mom and Nick got us FastPasses for Toy Story Mania for that evening. Then we did the Muppet 3D Show, which Jack loved - especially when a million bubbles came down!

After the show, we grabbed a bite to eat at the Backlot Express. After getting situated (lunch, diaper change, potty breaks) we went back into the Pixar area and Nick, Jack & I stood in line forever-- 30 minutes to meet Buzz and Woody!

Then it started to sprinkle, so we decided to head back. The boats were closed due to the impending storm, so we had to take a bus back, but there were several families down by the boats who apparently hadn't seem the sign. So Nick ran down there and back (in the rain) to tell them, because he really felt like God told him to. (So sweet.)

Once we got back, Jack and I napped for a couple hours and planned to meet up with Mimi and Uncle Nicky at 5:30 when Jason would be done.

We all headed back into Hollywood and went on Toy Story Mania! It was soooo fun!! It probably wouldn't have been worth it if we had had to wait 1+ hours to ride it, but with our FastPasses, we were in and out in 20 minutes!

Jason and Nick decided to make their way to the Tower of Terror, and we went to The Little Mermaid ride/show! It was probably a little too dark and scary for Jack, but he did good. After a quick pit stop in a Sweets Shop, we met up with the boys for dinner at Sunset Ranch Market. Mimi and Jack walked around while we went to the Great Movie Adventure, then Nick went to the Rockin' Roller Coaster and the rest of us went back to the Muppets 3D. It was a great day and we ended up in bed about 11. 


Off to the Magic Kingdom tomorrow for Jack's first haircut!

Disney World - Day 2

We woke up a little later on Monday morning and went to breakfast at the Captain's Grille in our hotel. Then we headed into the Animal Kingdom for the morning!

We went on the Kilimanjaro Safari ride first and Jack passed out in my arms as soon as it started. Even though it was almost noon at that point, we got to see a ton of the animals!! 

We went to our first Baby Care Center after that to change diapers, feed, and cool off in the AIR CONDITIONING!! :) We watched a few minutes of a bird show...

...and then went to through the walking tour, "Maharajah Jungle Trek" where we saw a few beautiful tigers. Jack finally noticed them too and smiled really big.

By that point it was time to head back to the hotel so Jason could get ready for the conference. We rested a little bit, said bye to Daddy, and went down to the pool for a quick swim. Then it poured down, so we came in and rested some more.

About 7 we met up with Mom and Nick and headed over to Downtown Disney for a while. Mom got their park tickets while Nick and I walked around, fed Jack dinner, ate dinner, and then we all walked around some more. 

(at Legoland in Downtown Disney)

Unfortunately the bus ride is FOREVER LONG (20-30 minutes) and Little Man has a hard time with it, but he did okay. Whew! Then it was time for bed!!

Disney World - Day 1

After an eventful night at the Knoxville hotel without a crib (uhhh... kill me), we woke up early early (about 5) to head to the airport. It didn't take too long to go through security and all that mess, and soon enough we were on the plane, ready for Jack's very first airplane ride. Unfortunately we weren't in the same row as Jason but he was directly in front of us and could give us Mickey on the iPad when we needed it. Jack wasn't scared, the flight wasn't loud, and he just ate snacks the whole first flight. Then on the flight from Atlanta to Orlando, we got a 3 seat row to ourselves! Jack was great on this flight too!

Okay, so it's not even 11am by this point, I'm already tired - are you? Well, Little Man was... He didn't sleep on either flight, but he completely passed out in my arms while waiting for the Magical Express, then slept for about an hour on the way. He was zonked! 

We got to the Yacht Club, settled in a bit and then rode the ferry boat to Epcot.

We had lunch there and then it started pouring!!! And smart mama that I am, I left our ponchos in the room. Whoops. Anyway, we tried to not let it dampen our spirits (see what I did there?) and made it over to Spaceship Earth in the big Epcot ball. This was Jack's first ride ever! 

(gross picture, sweet memory)

He did great and wasn't scared when it got dark. We went on Nemo (so cute!) and "Journey Into the Imagination with Figment", and other than an unexpected pffft of air and loud noise at the end of that one, he did great the whole time.
We shopped a bit and got Jack and autograph book, which came in handy when we met Pooh and Tigger in England!! This was his first encounter with characters, so we had no idea if he would flip out or not, but he thought they were great! We got a couple of great photos with them, and then saw Alice too.

We headed back to our room at that point, to rest and let Little Man take a nap. We all 3 ended up sleeping for about an hour. Once we started to feel human again, we walked through the Boardwalk area. We ate hamburgers at Hurricane Hanna's Grill and shared an ice cream sundae at Beaches & Cream. By then we were so pooped and couldn't believe that we had been in Knoxville just this morning. Time for bed!!

Jack's 1st Birthday Party

We had the most amazing time at Jack's birthday party last weekend! On Sunday, July 8th, seventeen of our family members came over to our house to celebrate our sweet baby (who's hardly a baby anymore!). 

Be prepared for a serious amount of pictures!

all images courtesy of Liz Power Photography

all the yummy food

I made cupcakes with mini Oreos as Mickey Mouse ears! So easy and so adorable!

(idea from: here)

The letters I painted to look like Mickey Mouse characters. I LOVE these! They will live on his bookshelf forever!

(idea from: here)

All Jack's monthly photos, printed out to see the progression. What a big boy!!

Dum-Dum "topiary" shaped like Mickey ears and a simply painted pot - easy and festive! 

(basic idea from: here)

Mickey Mouse!!

Daddy, Mommy, Baby & Mickey

The whole crowd!

Now, look at the birthday boy!!

Time for a CUPCAKE!!!!

Here's a video of the whole escapade. He ate every bite!

one of my favorites

Ooooooh... books!

What a PERFECT day!!