Week 3 - Part 2 - Disney

So after the medal ceremony was finished, and the goodbyes to teammates and their families said, we headed to the condo to change and go to the Magic Kingdom. We thought it would be best since we had reservations for dinner at the Polynesian Resort. My parents (they are TOO cool - and it's a tremendous blessing to be able to share so many experiences with them!!), my dear hubby, and our three kids are ready to start exploring.

Rain stopped us for a bit, and dear hubby and S decided to head back to the room to watch the US Open for golf. So it was just my parents and the girls and I. We had a ball. Dinner was yummy, and then we stayed for Extra Magic Hours and rode rides, and visited with characters until 2:00 am.

We didn't have to wait long to see these famous

mice. Not too many people there at 1:40 am!

Poor Goofy barely stood a chance

with C attacking, I mean hugging him!

Main St. and Cinderella's Castle are gorgeous

at night. I loved taking photos of the park

at this magic time.

See, Mom, we're still awake!

The next day was our Hollywood Studios day. We walked around and checked out the stunt car show, the Muppets (of course - I CAN'T go there and not see one of the coolest things Jim Henson did before he passed away), and the amazing new Toy Story Mania. I'll have to do a separate entry just on that and the cool Mr. Potato Head animatronic they have. We had a great time, but were still tired from the night before (if you can imagine that!).

C had the biggest crush on Prince Caspian. He

was handsome and charming, VERY much in

character. All the women there (Mom and I

included) swooned a bit when he spoke to and

smiled at us!

The girls got front row seats at the HSM show

and loved dancing with the cast!

The coolest animatronic EVER!! More on

him in another post.

"Aren't you a little short to be a stormtrooper??"

We missed the Star Wars weekend but got to

enjoy part of it with photo ops.

Don't you love my Princess Leia "ears"???

Our last day there was EPCOT, one of our favorite parks. (It's my hubby's fav park.) So we enjoyed the Red Room at Mission Space, set aside for those who work at hubby's work. And Soarin' and Mission Space, and Journey into the Imagination, and the rides at Mexico and Norway. Dinner was good in Great Britain, and we had fun walking around the different countries. The Spaceship Earth ride was fun - they finished a refurb in February and my girlfriend and I got to preview it then. It's changed a bit since then but still fun.

By the time we left for home, we were all tired, rested (if that makes sense) and ready for our own beds. It's funny because S doesn't care for his bed so much but said he LOVED it the first night we were back.

Three week vacations are extremely rare and we were VERY blessed to get this one. It was a special time with our three kids and my parents. With S starting college in the fall, C in 8th grade this year (a HUGE year at her school) and A in 5th grade, it's one of the last times they'll all be able to truly spend THAT much time together. And that's the best part of the trip - the family time. It's what I honestly treasure the most. I didn't take a lot of pictures during the 3 weeks - I was too busy being with my family and enjoying them.