Those words came straight from Nemo's mouth and into my heart. Let's just say that my children have more than bought in to the magic and wonder that is Walt Disney World, and we are proud parents. I'm doing exactly what everyone joked that I'd do when I had kids, and that is taking them to Disney World "every year", and proving to them that I am, in fact, true to my word.
Who: Me, Husband J, Nemo (4yo, almost 5, son), and Boo (2yo, almost 3, daughter)
What: Our 3rd trip in 365 days (May to May counts!)
When: April 29th - May 6th
Where: Pop Century Resort, because if we didn't have Skyliner, hearts would be broken.
Why: Our last big off-season hurrah before we become of school age, Flower & Garden Festival, Tron, the Walt Disney World Railroad, and because my kids ask me every single day when we're going back to Disney.
As always, I am writing this trip report to preserve my memories of this whirlwind of a week. There is nothing like going back through all my pictures and videos and remembering how each moment made me feel. Sometimes, writing something down unlocks a new memory that I would've otherwise forgot. I gave myself 48 hours to settle and am so eager to dive in because I'm still holding on to every bit of magic I can possibly grasp. If you can't tell, I am very emotional about this trip for so many reasons and you bet I'm going to let it all out in my writing. So with that forewarning, I hope that you enjoy a few more tales of the Adventures of Nemo and Boo.
We had a 6am flight. That's just how we do things around here. And the kids are all for it! Nemo asked me before bedtime, "Are we going to Disney after sleep?" You bet, bud. When I woke him up at 3:45am, I said, "Disney" and he smiled in his sleep. When our plane was taxing, Nemo looked out the window and said, “Look! That guy has a lightsaber!” Big Star Wars fan on our hands here. Both Nemo and Boo gave me several glowing smiles on the plane whenever they were pleased with something: the view, the iPad, or the orange juice. Boo fell asleep on the Sunshine Flyer wearing her conductor hat and holding her Frozen book. We arrived at Pop Century around 10am and it immediately hit me: Pop was our home. It used to just be the cheapest place for us to stay, but it has become so much more than that now. I wanted to bottle up that lobby smell, but instead, settled for huffing it very deeply... Our room was unsurprisingly not ready, but I went to Guest Services anyways to make sure we could get a room on the Ground Floor and get the crib/bed rails and all the jazz, and was surprised when the Cast Member assigned me a room right then and there. A Preferred Room in the 60's Building, no less. I'm not one to complain about walking, but our room last time was at the very edge of the 90's and it was prohibitively far. Like, so far that we packed our swimsuits to change into after park days because we didn't want to hike back to our room to change. We skipped outside and told the kids, "Welcome home!"
Room 4146. Could not have been better. It was in the hallway adjacent to the Skyliner, so when we walked under the giant Playdoh can (became a thing we had to do every time), we were hit by the gentle breeze from Hourglass Lake. Furthermore, there was no noise from the pools, yet they were just a hop, skip, and a jump away. We were thrilled.
The kids sat at the table and watched some Mickey cartoons while we unpacked a little, but eventually ended up jumping into the "pillow pit."
And the walk to the Skyliner station? 45 seconds, tops.
All four of us were giddy with excitement over our first Skyliner ride of the trip. Walking into the station, hearing the "doon, doon" sound, watching them run into the cabin, hearing them go "woahhh" as we took off...
It was all very familiar, and yet I have been craving these little things so much.
Who: Me, Husband J, Nemo (4yo, almost 5, son), and Boo (2yo, almost 3, daughter)
What: Our 3rd trip in 365 days (May to May counts!)
When: April 29th - May 6th
Where: Pop Century Resort, because if we didn't have Skyliner, hearts would be broken.
Why: Our last big off-season hurrah before we become of school age, Flower & Garden Festival, Tron, the Walt Disney World Railroad, and because my kids ask me every single day when we're going back to Disney.
As always, I am writing this trip report to preserve my memories of this whirlwind of a week. There is nothing like going back through all my pictures and videos and remembering how each moment made me feel. Sometimes, writing something down unlocks a new memory that I would've otherwise forgot. I gave myself 48 hours to settle and am so eager to dive in because I'm still holding on to every bit of magic I can possibly grasp. If you can't tell, I am very emotional about this trip for so many reasons and you bet I'm going to let it all out in my writing. So with that forewarning, I hope that you enjoy a few more tales of the Adventures of Nemo and Boo.
We had a 6am flight. That's just how we do things around here. And the kids are all for it! Nemo asked me before bedtime, "Are we going to Disney after sleep?" You bet, bud. When I woke him up at 3:45am, I said, "Disney" and he smiled in his sleep. When our plane was taxing, Nemo looked out the window and said, “Look! That guy has a lightsaber!” Big Star Wars fan on our hands here. Both Nemo and Boo gave me several glowing smiles on the plane whenever they were pleased with something: the view, the iPad, or the orange juice. Boo fell asleep on the Sunshine Flyer wearing her conductor hat and holding her Frozen book. We arrived at Pop Century around 10am and it immediately hit me: Pop was our home. It used to just be the cheapest place for us to stay, but it has become so much more than that now. I wanted to bottle up that lobby smell, but instead, settled for huffing it very deeply... Our room was unsurprisingly not ready, but I went to Guest Services anyways to make sure we could get a room on the Ground Floor and get the crib/bed rails and all the jazz, and was surprised when the Cast Member assigned me a room right then and there. A Preferred Room in the 60's Building, no less. I'm not one to complain about walking, but our room last time was at the very edge of the 90's and it was prohibitively far. Like, so far that we packed our swimsuits to change into after park days because we didn't want to hike back to our room to change. We skipped outside and told the kids, "Welcome home!"
Room 4146. Could not have been better. It was in the hallway adjacent to the Skyliner, so when we walked under the giant Playdoh can (became a thing we had to do every time), we were hit by the gentle breeze from Hourglass Lake. Furthermore, there was no noise from the pools, yet they were just a hop, skip, and a jump away. We were thrilled.
The kids sat at the table and watched some Mickey cartoons while we unpacked a little, but eventually ended up jumping into the "pillow pit."
And the walk to the Skyliner station? 45 seconds, tops.
All four of us were giddy with excitement over our first Skyliner ride of the trip. Walking into the station, hearing the "doon, doon" sound, watching them run into the cabin, hearing them go "woahhh" as we took off...
It was all very familiar, and yet I have been craving these little things so much.
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Our family is small, so we really do lean on each other for support (and entertainment) and Disney is 100% the highlight of our year, so we definitely cherish these moments. You said it so well. At the end of the day, Disney is where still where we want to be, and it makes us happy. And so, we go. 
J feels vindicated now. He was like “I can’t tell the difference between freakin’ lions!”