Remember how I said yesterday that our first night ended magically?  With a parade, fireworks, and two mesmerized children?

Yeah, by the next morning (which was early, thanks to Extra Magic Hours at the Magic Kingdom), it was raining, the buses were beyond crowded, and the two mesmerized children were the walking wounded with their sore feet.

None of this was enough to stop the Faulks, though.  Onward we went!

We hit up Winnie the Pooh and were the first ones on the ride. We hit up the Mad Tea Party and were one of only a few teacups filled out there.  We hit up the Tomorrowland Speedway, where cast members were still getting the rest of the cars lined up.  We were there EARLY.  (And for the record, we really hate the Speedway.  Neither of our girls ever want to drive but they insist on riding, which means Wes and I get to drive a car. Which is not such a novelty, you know.  Especially since the rubber on those steering wheels was coming off on our hands that particular morning, leaving us grimy and nasty until we could get to a restroom to wash our hands.  Which didn’t take long, fortunately, seeing as how Ana and Emma needed to go potty approximately every fifteen minutes of this vacation.  Unfortunately.)

From there, Emma told Wes she wanted to ride Space Mountain, and Ana, proclaiming that it would likely be even more horrifying than Big Thunder Mountain, joined me in line for the People Mover.  Em never took off on her space voyage, though, because the ride broke down before they could get in line, and by the time it was back up and running, Em had figured out it was in the dark and was having no part of that foolishness.  (You’ll get to ride it again one day, Wes.  Maybe.)

We hit the rest of the rides in Tomorrowland, then went to Storybook Circus and that amazing indoor playground they have for kids to play on at Dumbo.  They give you a pager, tell your kids to go play, and buzz you when it’s your turn to ride.  This sure beats the old Dumbo line, which was in the blistering heat and was one of the longest waits at the Magic Kingdom.  God bless the Imagineers for coming up with this!  (And kudos to the costume people for the super cool Dumbo cast members’ costumes.  More about that in a couple of days…)

At some point, we managed to sneak in lunch and a snack break at Main Street Bakery.  Probably, you know, within thirty minutes of one another. (Welcome to the Disney Dining Plan, where you eat not because you’re hungry but because you have the food credits!  Eat, eat, eat!)  I’m still undecided on how I feel about Starbucks at Walt Disney World, even if the baristas are still dressed in their Main Street costumes.  But since I’m not a coffee drinker, Wes says I have no room for an opinion either way.  And his opinion, AS a coffee drinker?  That life couldn’t get better, smack dab in the middle of the Magic Kingdom with a Starbucks cup in hand. 

Eh.  I’m not impressed.  But whatever.

When we booked the trip during the girls’ birthday week, my parents offered to send them to the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique in lieu of presents.  The girls jumped on the opportunity, and so we headed to the castle that afternoon to be transformed into glamorous princesses with over-the-top hair.  And how.  Ana decided to be Ariel, complete with red hair, and Emma decided to be Aurora… with pink hair.  Huh?  Oh, well, they looked good, and as soon as they were beyond beautiful, we jumped on the monorail and headed over to Epcot, where we had a princess dinner booked at Akershus in Norway.  Oh, how we love character dining, where Wes and I can eat a meal in peace while Ana and Emma jump up and kiss, hug, and love on each and every character that comes their way.  They walked through the restaurant in a “princess parade,” were told happy birthday by all the princesses, and were in princess girl heaven.  Emma convinced Wes to keep going back to the cheese buffet and ended up dipping her cheese in her chocolate dessert later, proclaiming, “Oh, Papi!  It’s chocolate-covered CHEESE!”  (Yeah, Mommy would catch the dividends from this the next day.  Stay tuned.)  The princess dinner was a big hit with the girls, especially paired with their makeovers, and I think the trip could have ended here and the girls would have counted it as a huge win.

The walk BACK to the front of Epcot might have put that “win” status in jeopardy, however.  Ana and Emma learned the hard way on this trip that sometimes cute shoes come with a significant amount of pain.  And the cute shoes they got at the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique?  Weren’t made for walking so far.  (Curse you, Faulks, for leaving your strollers at home!)  Luckily, I had their Crocs with me, but when they put them on, they rubbed against the ouchies created by the princess shoes.  We were left with no choice but to buy way over-priced Walt Disney World socks and commit a serious fashion faux pas.  Yes, we were rocking Crocs and Socks… with giant princess dresses and big Texas hair.  In Florida. 

Oh, yes, we did!  (And we looked fabulous with our expensive faux pas.  Thank you VERY much.)

Up next… the Lord blesses Emma with another year of life, and Emma blesses the Animal Kingdom with all of that chocolate-covered cheese.  Hooray!