Disney Trip {Part 1}

I am so eager to post about our Disney trip but there are so many pictures and things I want to remember that it's overwhelming and I've been avoiding sitting down to sort through it all! We had so much fun! I had so many people tell me that Landon was too young {at 16 months} to take to Disney but I totally disagree and I think he was the perfect age for a first visit!

We flew out on a Monday and back the following Monday. I was the MOST anxious about the plane ride. I knew that once we got to Florida we could be flexible in terms of picking activities that Landon was interested in, but there's no exit strategy for the plane. I spent a lot of time on Pinterest and brainstorming ideas and activities to keep him entertained. We did not buy him his own plane ticket because I thought that may make him more eager to get down and want to run around. We packed an entire backpack of supplies and small toys that were new and interesting to him. We ended up not needing any of it!! He slept almost the entire flight for all four legs of the trip! He had so much fun looking out the window at the baggage vehicles moving around that we were able to keep him still for the boarding and then for each flight I was able to hold him and he easily fell asleep. So awesome!

We landed early on Monday so we decided to visit Epcot first because I knew that wouldn't be a park we'd want to visit for a full day. I actually loved Epcot! The last time I was at Disney World I was 16 and didn't enjoy Epcot at all. I just wanted to ride roller coasters! This time I loved walking through the worlds and tasting foods from all over. We ended up getting fish & chips in "England" and sitting in the little garden there and people watching for a long time. It reminded me so much of London. Love!!

At one point we were wandering around and we happened to see that ALL of the Disney characters were having a meet and greet! We didn't even have our SLR camera on us since we had just landed off the plane but we waited for only 10 minutes and met Mickey! Landon was really excited until we actually got up to Mickey and then he panicked a little. But it was so neat! And I could not have planned a better start to the trip! I think Epcot must be a good place to meet the characters because we saw much longer lines at Magic Kingdom all three days we were there.

On Tuesday we got up early and went straight to Magic Kingdom! I was SO excited driving up! When we walked down Main Street USA for the first time I got teary because I loved showing Disney to Landon for the first time. It is so magical and at 29 I still believe in the magic there!! Main Street USA is my favorite part of Magic Kingdom! You have the best view of the castle and the sidewalk singers are out and everything is patriotic and old fashioned. I love it so much!

 

 Magic Kingdom is so toddler friendly! Landon was able to ride so many of the rides like the Tea Cups, Dumbo, It's a Small World, Peter Pan, the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh and the Carousel of Progress. There may have been more but that's off the top of my head! The best thing we did was get Fast Passes for the rides and come back during our allotted time so there was no wait. We learned that waiting in line with a small toddler was really the most challenging part of visiting the parks.

riding It's A Small World

Landon napped in his stroller and we would either walk around or sit and take a break and people watch. That part was so easy! We did go home for naps one day and then came back in the afternoon and that worked great too.

My most favorite part was just watching Landon point to things and get excited about running around and exploring the park. We tried to let him walk as much as possible when it wasn't too crowded. I know he didn't really know who the characters were but there's still so much he looked at and loved :)

on Tom Sawyer island

It was SO hot, even being the end of October. I think we will try to go back next year in early December when it's quite a bit cooler and I've also never seen Disney at Christmas :) We spend A LOT of time at the Tiki hut getting Dole pineapple ice cream and Dole Whips. Dole Whips are my favorite thing to eat at Magic Kingdom. I think I had seven across the week! Hah!

We had the best time! Next time I will share about going to Universal Studios, Hollywood Studios and the beach for the first time! :)