Trip Report Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Brrrrrrrrrr

It's time to report on our first mother-daughter trip to WDW!

If you’ve ever wondered what happens when you take a 4 year old to Disney in early February in record-breaking cold… buckle up.

From 2/2–2/6, we somehow travel with both sunscreen and mittens. We flew out of Boston optimistically thinking things like, “It won’t feel that cold in Florida, right?” Reader: it did. There were puffy coats in the Most Magical Place on Earth. There were goosebumps in line for rides. There were moments when I questioned every life choice that led to me saying, “Let’s go in February!”

And yet.

There were also shrieks of joy. So. Many. Rides. The kind of fearless, hands-in-the-air, “Again! Again!” energy only a four-year-old can sustain on pure adrenaline and Mickey-shaped snacks. Nora conquered attractions like a tiny theme park warrior, equal parts princess and chaos gremlin.

Of course, no toddler-centric Disney trip is complete without the full emotional range of the human experience. We had magic. We had meltdowns. We had tears (some hers, some… undisclosed). We had triumphant parade dancing and dramatic collapses over the wrong color straw.

Here we go!!

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

This was also my first time checking out the renovated lobby. I missed the old one tbh

Same welcome mats though!

We filled up our cups (the design changed the DAY we left ) and the CM also gave us both Mickey rice crispie treats and said happy birthday. Nora was SO excited about this pixie dust.

We sat and ate them in the slightly chilly sunshine, hoping our room would be ready soon.

And it was, yay! But it was in the 90s sections SO DARN FAR AWAY. booooooo. oh well, I was just happy we had a room to go to. First, we went to bell services to pick up our Walmart delivery order with some snacks. It was great funny getting a stroller, suitcases and groceries back to the 90s section.....

But I survived!

Just missing our 2 other members of the family. Can't wait to all be welcomed together at this time next year!

I take room pictures every single trip and truly the only purpose is for reporting - so here you go!!

We took a minute just to sit on the bed and take it all in. We also had to take a couple pictures to remember this moment.

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

Nora really wanted to see her bed pulled down so I happily obliged. She thought sleepy Pluto was hilarious.

We made a quick Facetime call to dad and sissy before we loaded up to head to our dinner at Chef Mickey's.

Big smiles with Goofy on our way out

A MK bus pulled up shortly after we got in line and Nora shouted "MAMA, IT KNEW WE WERE COMING"

Nora was bus art obsessed this trip. Example below of one of many pictures of her with different buses.

I did get a bunch of questions before and after my trip asking if I brought a stroller with Nora being a very big 4 year old. I actually was surprised by that I guess? She is FOUR and doesn't nap. We would last like an hour in the parks if she was walking the whole time. I wasn't offended at all by the questions, just interesting how often it came up.

First monorail sighting!

A CM bus driver gave this wood coin to Nora and she still has it in her purse at home to this day (which is impressive because I don't know where half of her stuff goes missing on a regular basis lol)

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

It was at this point that I realized my baseball cap that had been clipped to the stroller was missing. Y'all.. I was devastated. If you have read my TRs before you know I live in a ball cap at Disney. I HATE worrying about my hair. I had brought a couple others, but my black Red Sox cap is my favorite. I put in a lost and found ticket with a couple tears in my eyes while we were walking and tried to get myself over it. (Spoiler: my hat was never found )

Other than the emotional drama, we enjoyed our leisurely walk over to the Contemporary and walked in with still about 30 minutes until our reservation.

We decided to do a little shopping to kill time.

I did get this hat. It is cute and did the trick, but it didn't hit quite like my Sox cap.

Nora's grandmother gave her a gift card to have spending money on this trip and it was burning a hole in her pocket.

I did remind her that it was day one so we should make note of some things and buy them later if we REALLY want them.

"BUT MOOOOOM I COULD BE SO FANCY WITH THESE"

I was a fan of this sweatshirt but didn't buy!

We checked in for our reservation but it always alwaysssssss is behind at Chef Mickey's.

So naturally it was escalator time - a treasured pastime for my child.

We also went outside for a bit to get this picture!

Until it was time to eat, let's go!!!

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

Side note...

Currently laughing to myself looking back on these pictures and realizing my child has her sneakers on the wrong feet.

 

[meggo819]

Side note...

Currently laughing to myself looking back on these pictures and realizing my child has her sneakers on the wrong feet.

Ha, I’m impressed you even noticed.

I love this one-on-one girl time. I would love to do it with each of my girls, but I don’t know if Dad or the other sisters would let me get away with going without them!

 

[Minnesota disney fan]

I love your girl trip report, and Nora is so cute. Seeing her excitement reminds of when we took our young children. So magical!
I am on my second mother/daughter trip this May. However, my daughter is a grown up We love traveling together and it is still so special to experience the parks (Universal) with her.

 

[erstwo]

I pushed my kids in a stroller until I physically could not do it anymore or they didn’t fit. That heavy duty double jogger rental was a lifesaver.
I - a fully grown adult - would like to be pushed in a stroller I can barely survive a day in the parks - much less an elementary aged child.

More power to all the ‘after age (whatever) my kid won’t be in a stroller’ people but I never cared. And my kids are grown functioning adults so I guess it all worked out!

 

[Piglet_the_brave]

Side note...

Currently laughing to myself looking back on these pictures and realizing my child has her sneakers on the wrong feet.

I was looking at the photos and thinking they were, the Velcro straps are the wrong way round. It’s that age when they insist they can do everything themselves, I’ve been there a few times

 

[Piglet_the_brave]

This was also my first time checking out the renovated lobby. I missed the old one tbh

View attachment 910047

Same welcome mats though!

View attachment 910048

We filled up our cups (the design changed the DAY we left ) and the CM also gave us both Mickey rice crispie treats and said happy birthday. Nora was SO excited about this pixie dust.

We sat and ate them in the slightly chilly sunshine, hoping our room would be ready soon.

View attachment 910049

And it was, yay! But it was in the 90s sections SO DARN FAR AWAY. booooooo. oh well, I was just happy we had a room to go to. First, we went to bell services to pick up our Walmart delivery order with some snacks. It was great funny getting a stroller, suitcases and groceries back to the 90s section.....

But I survived!

View attachment 910050

Just missing our 2 other members of the family. Can't wait to all be welcomed together at this time next year!

View attachment 910051

I take room pictures every single trip and truly the only purpose is for reporting - so here you go!!

View attachment 910052

View attachment 910053
View attachment 910054

We took a minute just to sit on the bed and take it all in. We also had to take a couple pictures to remember this moment.

View attachment 910055
View attachment 910056

Love those photos of the two of you

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

I think Nora's Minnie sweater is adorable. I'm kind of jealous of it actually.

 

[belledream]

What a special experience for your little girl! I can’t wait to see all the fun you have together.

P.S. I will bring the stroller for my kids until it breaks.

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

Ha, I’m impressed you even noticed.

I love this one-on-one girl time. I would love to do it with each of my girls, but I don’t know if Dad or the other sisters would let me get away with going without them!

One thousand percent did NOT notice at the time

I'm lucky that baby sister has zero awareness of Disney World currently. When she is old enough to hear about the time I took Nora to Disney solo... all bets are off and I'm sure she will insist on a trip of her own!

I love your girl trip report, and Nora is so cute. Seeing her excitement reminds of when we took our young children. So magical!
I am on my second mother/daughter trip this May. However, my daughter is a grown up We love traveling together and it is still so special to experience the parks (Universal) with her.

I love that, I hope my girls will still want to do grown up girls trips with me!!

I pushed my kids in a stroller until I physically could not do it anymore or they didn’t fit. That heavy duty double jogger rental was a lifesaver.
I - a fully grown adult - would like to be pushed in a stroller I can barely survive a day in the parks - much less an elementary aged child.

More power to all the ‘after age (whatever) my kid won’t be in a stroller’ people but I never cared. And my kids are grown functioning adults so I guess it all worked out!

THANK YOU! I specifically bought a double stroller recently that fits the regulations for not having to fold on the Skyliner for our first family trip. I'm team stroller FOR SURE!

I was looking at the photos and thinking they were, the Velcro straps are the wrong way round. It’s that age when they insist they can do everything themselves, I’ve been there a few times

Nora when I try to change her mind once she's made it up:

I think Nora's Minnie sweater is adorable. I'm kind of jealous of it actually.

Thank you!! And agreed, I would've loved a matching one in adult size!

What a special experience for your little girl! I can’t wait to see all the fun you have together.

P.S. I will bring the stroller for my kids until it breaks.

Another member of team stroller, welcome!!

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

Before the next installment here.. just sharing that today is Ella's half-y birthday

Time flies!!!

Anyways, where were we?

It was finally time for food and fun.

We always do Chef Mickeys either on arrival day or departure day and it's just a nice way to either kick off or end our adventures. The last time we were here for dinner though, it was still family style and I did NOT love it. I was hoping for better being able to pick my options!

We were seated up by the windows in the back corner of the buffet and got some plates pretty quickly.

Nora got kid classics, no surprises there. She was happy though! I tried a little bit of everything, and it was all very good.

We did some kid faves refills before grabbing some desserts.

Nora was obsessed with the Donald cupcake.

We were able to eat to our hearts content before the gang made their rounds.

Up first was Pluto!

A CM offered to take one with me in it, which I always appreciate.

Donald was next. Nora asked me to do a selfie this time, she didn't like me being left out of the fun which was so so sweet.

They were moving through quickly which was nice honestly, especially since we were done eating.

Our favorite girly next!

And big big hugs for the Mouse himself.

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

Our last visit was from Goofy. Nora was NOT into how tall he was and insisted on sitting on my lap. By the end of visiting with him though, she wanted a hug (while still velcroed to me lol)

All in all, a great start to our trip! We grabbed a photo before heading out.

Time to head back to the MK buses to get back to Pop.

We got back to the room pretty seamlessly, showered up, and got ready for bed.

This was Nora's first ever trip in a hotel in a real bed!! she was so excited to be sleeping right next to me.

So excited, in fact, that she passed out almost immediately

I will talk about this here and probably not mention again for the other nights we were here. Nora suffers from severe night terrors. It started a couple weeks before this trip. If there is something you can think of, I promise I have tried it. Every single night of this trip she would "wake up" (quotes because shes aware but not ACTUALLY awake) screaming, thrashing and completely inconsolable. It would last between 30 mins to an hour every night. I felt so much anxiety about our neighbors but there's really nothing I can do. We did go to the pediatrician after getting home because this truly traumatized me every night. The only thing that works is if I put her to bed and somehow manage to wake up up gently before the night terrors start. That somehow skips them from happening for that night. But I do not always get to her before that happens which stinks and is painful to watch.

ANYWAYS - that truly was the only difficult part of this trip and I refuse to dwell on it. She is a child and things happen!!

She always wakes up in the morning completely unaware anyway. Donuts were how we started our MK day!

And a quick FaceTime call with dad and sissy.

We got dressed, bundled up for the 35 degree weather, and headed out!

 

[k8einwdw]

I will talk about this here and probably not mention again for the other nights we were here. Nora suffers from severe night terrors. It started a couple weeks before this trip. If there is something you can think of, I promise I have tried it.

Oh man, I hate that for you guys. We went through that with Lincoln and it is rough having to see your child go through it. I hope she grows out of them soon.

 

[Swissmiss]

My daughter would get night terrors, but only just before falling ill (it always clued me in that the next day she would come down with something. Not fun at all for the parent.

 

[Minnie1986]

Very excited to follow along!

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

Back to it!

Where were we?

Oh.. freezing our little Mainer buns off.

Southerners... don't let any northerner shame you for feeling freezing in 30-40 degree weather. It truly feels so so much colder than that. We had spent weeks at home in sub zero temps, but this felt so BRUTAL.

The line for the MK bus was long as usual, but we still made it prior to rope drop!

I threw out some RD suggestions to Nora as we were headed in and she declined them all, adament that the only correct answer was Barnstormer.

Okay girl, whatever floats your boat.

I should mentioned that I did purchase LL for every day this trip, being solo with a 4 year old I needed every advantage I could get!!

Arms up, let's do this!!

Lots of happy screams later, the CMs let us stay on for round 2. OMG ... you would've thought Nora won the lottery. She talked about "getting to ride Goofy twice" all day. All week! It was the best to see her so excited about it.

Off to Dumbo next while we are over here!

Gosh I was so cold y'all. After Dumbo we took the long way to teacups so I could walk in the sun for awhile lol

But quickly we were in our teacup with arms up again!

We randomly took a side quest to the front of the castle at this point because Nora said "she didn't see it on the way in"

Yes... yes you did. But whatever you need girly.

We then circled back for a ride under the sea!

She made a mad dash for Triton because Ian, my husband, was Triton for Halloween last year.

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

Got her wave in @Tuvalu

So far it was only an hour or so into park opening and we had done Barnstormer x2, Dumbo, Teacups, and Little Mermaid! Not too shabby.

We decided to grab a snack before our first official LL.

If you see my username, the snack of choice will come as no surprise.

We also grabbed some castle pics that I ended up loving!

We headed off to Haunted Mansion.... which was NOT a win for Nora Bea lol

In fact, it was the only ride she didn't like the entire trip. And spoiler alert - that includes riding ToT!!

I think the spook factor felt rather real to her

Proof:

She didn't cry or anything, just firmly told me NOT AGAIN MAMA.

It was still so cold. As evidenced by the huge line for Country Bears (folks wanting to get inside)

Our next LL was for Tiana's but it had been down all morning. This trip was all about Tiana's. Last year, Nora was just a bit too short and all she talked about was riding it. We were determined not to use our LL for anything else until it came back up.

We headed to Pirates next, which was Nora's first ride at 13 months old!

She LOVES it and will tell you it's one of her all time favorites.

Up next: a bit more moseying around!

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

We grabbed what ended up being my favorite picture of us the entire trip

We always stop at the fountain to say hi to Gus because our goldendoodle is named Gus!

Recently, we also told Nora about how Cinderella's name is actually Ella, just like her sister.

Nora's next request was to "ride the horsies"

Can do!

As we exited the area, we came upon Daisy and Minnie making their way through the crowd as well. Nora was pumped to get a high five.

Next up: we rode what Nora lovingly refers to as the "Poopermover"

Am I allowed to say that here? Lol. She's 4, potty humor is peak.

She took this pic of me!

And then her turn!

We were doing well with impromptu character sightings today, we got another high five from Dale!

It was warming up JUST A TINY BIT, so we decided on another snack.

The snack was to be found in Adventureland.