Pre-Trip The Magic Kingdom and the Brave Little Princess - Two pics Added!

Hi! :)
So excited to write my first pre-trip report! But first things first... the cast!

- Me, aka Sudcaro: happy stay at home mom and Disney fan (especially the princesses - I guess I haven't really grown out of my princess phase!) :p

- My husband, aka Hubby: bread winner, pushed into Disney by his dear daughter as he wasn't raised in Disney at all. :rolleyes:

- Our daughter, aka the Brave Little Princess (BLP): not really a reference to Merida here (although my daughter is a fan), but to the fact that, at not yet 4 years of age, she has already had to face a very wicked villain, known as cancer. Twice. :mad: But hey, she kicked it with a smile on her face, while watching lots of Disney movies (and Disney Junior as well). :joyfull:

This trip to WDW will be the very first for all of us, but a short one: two days only. We'll be there on November 30, and will leave on December 2nd, when we'll be headed to Fort Myers for a beach vacation. And that's how it all began: a few weeks ago, after our BLP was done with treatment, we decided we were long overdue for a vacation and picked Florida, and then realized that it could be a good idea to stop in Orlando while getting there, and surprise our BLP with a little bit of Disney magic! ;)

We decided to stay on site, and spend our two park days in MK, because that's where all the things our little one will like happen to be! But our resort is a little far from there: it's the Animal Kingdom lodge. My husband insisted we stay there because he fell in love with the pictures he saw, the AKL lodge restaurant menus (I agree with that point), and of course because of the savanna animals, that our little one is sure to enjoy! I agreed it was a good choice, though not super close to MK.

Our BLP doesn't know we are going yet, we'll tell her at the last minute - but I guess she knows there is something fishy going on, as she surprised me a few times while I was looking at MK pictures :oops: :joyfull:
I have to be honest, I am super excited, and really looking forward to being there - it's like a dream come true!
Now my hubby thinks I'm crazy... :hilarious:

Oh, and before I forget: I am so happy I found this forum a couple of weeks ago - your posts have taught me so much stuff already, things I didn't know I needed to know, but that are going to be really helpful when we are there. So thanks y'all!
 
Click to expand...
OSUgirl77

OSUgirl77

Well-Known Member
It sounds like your little princess is very brave indeed! I'm sure she's going to love her trip, as will you! Sending good thoughts your way, that your sweet girl won't have to face anymore "villains."
 
mouse_luv

mouse_luv

Well-Known Member
Glad to see you are doing a PTR and can't wait to hear more about your trip. Your daughter is brave indeed, bless her!
Ps. We stayed at AKV-Kidani a month ago and loved it and it's not as far as you think from the MK. ;)
 
Tuvalu

Tuvalu

Premium Member
You will not regret your decision to stay at AKL! It is a gorgeous resort, and your BLP will love watching the animals!

It really isn't that far from the MK. You may end up waiting longer for the bus than the actual bus ride! Even though you only have 2 days, RESIST the urge to rush to get to see everything. Enjoy every moment rather than worry that you are "missing out" on something. Your BLP will enjoy whatever you get to do, won't know what she's missing, and most of all she will LOVE the time spent with her mommy and daddy. I have witnessed too many stressed out parents at WDW, short-tempered in the quest for fun, and the experience ends up miserable for all.

Relax, go with the flow, ENJOY.
 
S

Sudcaro- Sudcaro

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Tuvalu said:
Enjoy every moment rather than worry that you are "missing out" on something. Your BLP will enjoy whatever you get to do, won't know what she's missing, and most of all she will LOVE the time spent with her mommy and daddy. I have witnessed too many stressed out parents at WDW, short-tempered in the quest for fun, and the experience ends up miserable for all.

Relax, go with the flow, ENJOY.
Click to expand...

That's actually our plan! :cat:
Our 2 1/2 + year experience with pediatric cancer has definitely showed us that life is made of little things, that every moment is precious, and that it won't be the end of the world if some things can't be done.
We have booked FPs for things we knew she would really enjoy, mainly meet and greets as there is no way we are going to wait forever just to snap a picture and get an autograph, but want to have a few anyway.
For the things we have no FPs for, well, we'll see, and do whatever comes our way if the line is not never ending. We are taking a vacation, and if we can't do much more than walk around the park, we'll be happy anyway, because there are tons of things to look at in MK!
 
S

Sudcaro- Sudcaro

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
:)Thanks!

So, here's our plan so far:
DAY 1- We're driving from SC but it would be too much for everyone to do the trip in one day, so the plan is to leave the day before, spend a night on the way, not too far away from Orlando, though. And get to the MK around lunch time, if possible after leaving our baggage at the concierge services at AKL.
- We have 3 FP+ for that afternoon - we booked " late", so we did our FPs at -49, so many were of course gone. It doesn't really matter though, we are there for the fun!
FP1- Dumbo
FP2- The many adventures of Winnie the Pooh (I know she is going to love that one!)
FP3- Meet Mickey (this one is more of a default one, but I know she'll want to meet him so, should there be quite a line that day, we won't have to wait too long).
The rest of our time there will be spent just enjoying our surroundings, taking pictures etc. We are planning on going to AKL before we are too tired, have dinner there (probably quick service at Mara), and go to bed as early as the BLP allows us to, lol.

DAY2- Full day at MK! Our aim is to make it to rope drop and wait in line for Enchanted Tales with Belle. That's the one thing we would be annoyed to miss, unfortunately there were no FPs available anymore. We hope to be among the very first guests because the window for our first FP+ for the day starts at 9.20!
FP1- Meet Cinderella and Rapunzel
FP2- Meet Ariel at her grotto
FP3- Meet Tinkerbell
We decided to use our FPs on meet and greets because we don't want to wait too long just for a picture and an autograph, and we know meeting beloved characters is how our little girl will truly feel the magic.
The rest of the day will be spent enjoying whatever comes our way. We are hoping to see the parade, but if our BLP is too tired then we'll take a break. We hope to meet more characters, especially princesses, but anything will be the cherry on the cake, and is not mandatory!
We are not planning on staying very late anyway, so we'll miss wishes but it's fine by us.

DAY3- We're leaving:(. But the drive to Fort Myers is only a couple of hours long so we are planning to stay at AKL for as long as possible, enjoy the place and what it has to offer, and have lunch there. Then, off to the beach we'll be!
 
Last edited:
S

Sudcaro- Sudcaro

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Wonderful day today!
1 - The BLP had a CT scan this morning: all good! :)
2- We received our magic bands! Woo-hoo! :inlove: (it's getting closer now!)
3- I got a phone call this afternoon that confirms we are probably going to travel to... WDW some time next year! :cat: It's a long story, that I will tell you in another pre-trip report when we know more. Just know that it was not the original plan at all, and that it's all because of and for our little princess ;)
 
OSUgirl77

OSUgirl77

Well-Known Member
Sudcaro- Sudcaro said:
Wonderful day today!
1 - The BLP had a CT scan this morning: all good! :)
2- We received our magic bands! Woo-hoo! :inlove: (it's getting closer now!)
3- I got a phone call this afternoon that confirms we are probably going to travel to... WDW some time next year! :cat: It's a long story, that I will tell you in another pre-trip report when we know more. Just know that it was not the original plan at all, and that it's all because of and for our little princess ;)
Click to expand...
Great news!!
 
S

Sudcaro- Sudcaro

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
It has been confirmed that we'll go back to WDW next March! I'm already working on it, lol. But more about this when we are back from our short MK trip... in two weeks! So excited! We can't wait!
The BLP still doesn't know we are going... But she has seen lots of WDW stuff on Disney Junior lately :rolleyes:, and yesterday she told us "you know what? Mickey lives in Florida! And we are going to Florida! So we have to go see Mickey!". I hope this won't kill the surprise, lol.
 
S

Sudcaro- Sudcaro

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
In packing mode! Can't believe we'll be in MK on Sunday! :inlove:
The BLP still doesn't know we are going, of course. We won't tell her anything, she'll see by herself when we get there. So looking forward to seeing her face light up when she sees the castle in the distance!
I found a few cute Disney things at Target yesterday, in the $1-3 bins, perfect for Tinkerbell gifts she'll get on the last day ;) I also wrote a "Tinkerletter" to go with it, I just need to print it now. I realize I'm not sure I have glitter to use as Pixie Dust, but whatever, it's no big deal, I know my sweetpea won't even pay attention to that.
Other than that, everything is ready, we printed all the documents that had to be printed, we just need to pack clothes etc and we'll be good to go! :cat:
 
HouCuseChickie

HouCuseChickie

Well-Known Member
Wish I could lend you some of my glitter! When we take our girls, I usually pack cake glitter. I think Harmony Barber Shop may be willing to sprinkle some pixie dust...but not 100% on that.

Are you going to video the reveal? I'm such a huge fan of surprising the kiddos when we go to WDW. This will be such a wonderful surprise for your BLP!!! I'm sure she's going to have the hugest smile on her face!!! :)

As for AKL, we stayed there in 2013 and LOVED it! The bus rides do take a bit longer, but I think it's worth it. The CMs were amazing and it was so incredible to wake up and go to sleep each day with all of that wildlife off of our balcony.

Have a WONDERFUL trip!!!
 
S

Sudcaro- Sudcaro

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Thanks!

I found some glitter glue in the office, it was hidden under the clutter, ooops... green glitter glue, perfect for Tink! It's not the same thing as actual glitter but I was able to put some all over the envelope, this should be enough. ;)

We're all packed, hoping we haven't forgotten anything... I honestly admire people who fly there, we have tons of things! The car is going to burst or something, lol. :p

Leaving today, first stop: St Augustine, Florida. Love this place!
 

Register on WDWMAGIC. This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.

Back
Top Bottom