We got a bit of a later start than anticipated for our second day at Disney World, because E.J. ended up sleeping in a little later than we expected (after a rough night of sleep, so don't think we're all super well-rested over here or anything crazy like that). But, we got ourselves up and moving and soon were at the park for another beautiful day.
As we entered the park we ran into Mary Poppins, so we kicked things off with another character encounter.
Mary Poppins and a penguin
We also caught a little of the "Move It! Shake It! Dance and Celebrate It!" street party on our way up Main Street.
What a peppy start to the day!
We made our way back over to Fantasyland, where we had an appointment for our first FastPass of the day at Enchanted Tales with Belle. Ellie was sort of "meh" on the "storytime," but she was psyched about actually meeting Belle. She still talks about it, always pointing out that Belle gave her a bookmark.
Ellie and Belle
So excited!
After Belle, we walked over to the teacups and met up with Alice in Wonderland and the White Rabbit. Ellie was pumped about this meeting, too, and E.J. enjoyed playing peek-a-boo with the White Rabbit.
The whole gang
By then it was time for our next FastPass, for the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train rollercoaster. Eric and I took turns riding this one solo. We put E.J. in the stroller, and whichever one of us was not riding the rollercoaster was in charge of wearing Ellie and pacing around, trying to get E.J. to nap (unsuccesfully).
Super Dad!
The ride itself was great! The rollercoaster wasn't anything crazy but was fun, and the various theme features were on point. I didn't even notice the Evil Queen (as the old lady) knocking on the door to the dwarves' cabin at the end, but Eric did! He was also fancy and snapped some pictures on the ride. I'm too chicken to try such things!
Eric thinks he's soooo cool.
Inside the mines
Snow White dancing with the dwarves at the end of the ride
The Evil Queen at the door!
In light of his recent YouTube fame, I really wanted to see Gaston (from Beauty and the Beast) out by his tavern. The key to seeing Gaston is that you have to be in line for his next appearance before he ends his prior one. We saw that Gaston was there, and got in line even though the line was technically already "cut off," and waited for the next shift. We were about third or fourth in line for his next appearance this way, which is important because people really want to poke fun at him so their turns can run long. Of course, this meant we waited about 40 minutes to see him. We killed the time with a modest cinnamon roll, apples and caramel and a LaFou's Brew from the tavern.
Clearly, by "modest cinnamon roll," I actually mean "a cinnamon roll bigger than Ellie's head."
Ellie enjoying our LaFou's Brew
Ellie wanted nothing to do with Gaston when we reached the front, so E.J. and I were the lucky ones to meet him. He was very funny, though we didn't do anything crazy to try to get a reaction out of him. Even still, by the end of our meeting E.J. had quite enough of Gaston's egotistical, misogynistic attitude!
Gaston!
E.J. was quite offended.
After Gaston we walked over to the Dumbo ride, which had only a modest wait. Ellie and Eric rode that while I nursed E.J. under the big top tent nearby. (Fellow nursing moms - I was glad to find this spot! It was shady, with comfy chairs and couches and outlets for your electronics.)
Because we didn't have a FastPass for this one, Eric and Elie were given a buzzer when they entered. There's a big play area where you can kill time while you wait for your turn on the ride, and when your turn comes, they buzz you (like at a restaurant).
The play area inside. It was a little intense for Ellie, but looked pretty cool!
Eric and Ellie on Dumbo
Love that little hand waving!
We got in line to meet Donald and Goofy at Pete's Silly Sideshow, but Ellie changed her mind about that encounter and E.J. started fussing so we just left. E.J. fell asleep almost immediately thereafter.
Nap on the go!
We had a FastPass to meet Cinderella and Rapunzel, so we got in line for that. That was by far the longest we waited for any FastPass, and it was a long wait. E.J. woke up while we were in line, and we still had time to wait. When we finally got in, however, it was as worth it as ever. Ellie was, naturally, thrilled to see Cinderella, and they had quite a little conversation. I wish I could hear what they were talking about!
Ellie and Cinderella
Ellie also loved meeting Rapunzel. They "twirled" together!
Rapunzel!
We were all ready for something to eat by this point, so I nursed E.J. in the wrap while we walked to Casey's Corner for a little meal.
A babywearing win: Wearing E.J. in this wrap allowed me to discreetly nurse him on the go, while still having enough hands free to try my luck at the Sword in the Stone! Now that is multitasking.
I have to share a ridiculous story of something that happened at this point. When we got to Casey's Corner, Eric and Ellie went inside to get food while I stood outside and waited for a table to open up, still nursing E.J. in the wrap. While I stood along the walkway, a young girl (roughly 10-12 years old, I would guess) walked by me with her father. As she passed me, she yelled, "BIG BELLY! BIG BELLY! BIG BELLY!" and smacked E.J.'s back/butt in the wrap! Her dad laughed and said, "No, that's not a big belly, that's a real baby!" I just stood there in shock. I was appalled. I mean, look. I don't know this girl's story, or what might have led her to think that hitting a stranger (what she apparently thought was a pregnant belly) and commenting on said stranger's large size was appropriate. Perhaps there are factors at play there that I have no way of understanding from this brief interaction. But what really shocked me the most was her dad's reaction—or rather, lack thereof. I cannot imagine what would have to happen to my head that would allow me to watch my child do that to a person (and in this case, it wasn't actually a pregnant woman, even—it was a nursing infant) and not immediately stop and fall on my own face apologizing to the person. But instead of that sort of response, this father laughed and kept on walking. Unfortunately, I was unable to remove my jaw from the floor in time to say anything before they were lost in the crowd. But trust me, that father has since gotten quite an earful from the angry mama bear in my head.
So after this encounter I was still standing there waiting for a table, generally hating people, when a woman at one of the tables noticed me and motioned me over to take her table before they stood up. Thank you, kind woman, for restoring a little of my faith in humanity. Eric and Ellie returned shortly thereafter with our food and we had a delicious meal (and Puffs for E.J.).
Yummy snack, with the castle behind us!
After we ate there was only a short time left before the afternoon Festival of Fantasy parade, so we hung out on the grass while we waited.
These cuties!
Handsome W. men
The parade itself was excellent! The floats were beautiful and all of our favorite characters were accounted for.
Beauty and the Beast to kick things off
Prince Charming and Cinderella
Anna and Elsa
Rapunzel, with trusty frying pan in hand (Flynn Rider is on there, too)
Ariel and Flounder
The Maleficent dragon
These guys!
Pinnochio
Dumbo
Mickey and Minnie to finish things up
One notable story from the parade: the fire-breathing dragon from Maleficent was a major feature, and I was certain that my scared-of-anything-even-remotely-unsettling toddler would flip. So, I put in some effort to keep it out of her view as it passed us, especially when it was breathing fire. Later, however, she saw a picture of it on Eric's computer and said, "That's Stuffy!" So apparently I didn't have to worry, because she thought it was the dragon from Doc McStuffins. A common mistake, I'm sure.
The Maleficent dragon, as compared to Stuffy. The resemblance is uncanny!
By the end of the parade we were wearing down a bit but weren't quite ready to call it quits, so we rode the train around the park.
Sibling cuddles on the train
A sample of our train ride scenery
E.J. spent most of the ride leaning over the back of our seat, smiling at the girls behind us!
Then, we finally wrapped things up. We took the ferry back to the parking lot and returned to our hotel.
The boys on the ferry
We were beat!
Phew! Long day!
After getting the kids to bed, Eric and I relaxed with some dinner, TV and beer in our souvenir goblets from Be Our Guest/Gaston's Tavern.
That's more like it.
It was a perfect end to a perfect couple days of Disney fun!
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