we made it...

to disney, that is!

i mostly want to recount every moment of our trip...because i NEVER want to forget it! it was magical to say the least...we are home, trying to get settled and rested - because life resumes WAY too quickly...but not a day has gone by since we left orlando that i haven't thought about our trip and smiled...it was just that wonderful!

we left on thursday morning, bright and early, and headed to monroe to catch our flight! all three girls were dressed in these precious little dresses...like little royalty waiting to meet mickey himself!!!!

our flights went off without a hitch. the girls ate the WHOLE time...but hey, that's what vacations are for right?!?! we took the "mickey express" from the orlando airport right to the front door of our resort - saratoga springs! this is what maddie & ava looked like when we arrived:

bless their precious hearts...they just couldn't stand all the excitement!!!! all of our girls were issued their first visit buttons and ella was given her "it's my birthday" button (which would prove to be the equivalent of disney celebrity status) and we were off to take a quick peek at our room before we headed to the magic kingdom! with only a few days at disney, we had no time to waste!!!!

entering the park for the first time was SO exciting for me! i don't think the girls quite knew what to expect, but for an adult visiting again for the first time in over 20 years...all those memories came flooding back! everything looks the same! we walked down main street, taking in all the sights and sounds, and somehow made our way to frontierland...home of thunder mountain railroad!!!! remember that birthday button...well, a disney employee just happened to notice that it was ella's birthday (did i happen to mention that i'm in complete denial that i have a six year old...well, yes - i am...) and gave us three fast passes to ride immediately!!!!! it was a BLAST!

seeing ella's face during her first BIG roller coaster ride is just one of the many moments i will never forget!!!! the very first word we heard out of her mouth when it was over was "AGAIN"! we had to get to our dinner but we promised her we would ride it AGAIN when we got back!

dinner was scheduled for chef mickey at the contemporary! during the course of our meal, the girls were able to meet mickey, minnie, donald, goofy, and pluto! ella's face was priceless...she loved every minute...while madeline was a bit more skeptical! it wasn't until minnie mouse came on the scene that she would have anything to do with those "things"!

once again, the birthday girl was treated like a true princess and thus began the obligatory cupcake at every meal!!!! even breakfast! it was really sweet...all the characters came out and everyone sang happy birthday to all the little people! ella's smile was so sweet! she was very gracious...even though she doesn't eat cake!

there's another tiny person in our family that most certainly does...and she was happy to partake!!!!

once our super fun supper was complete, we headed back to the magic kingdom so that we could see the fireworks and watch the spectromagic parade! it was spectacular! when we walked into the park, one of the employees directed us to liberty square where we could get "front row" spots! this is where the girls got their first glimpses of the princesses...snow white even walked right up to them and blew them kisses...i truly don't think they knew what to do with themselves!!!!!

did i mention the parade didn't start until 11 pm?! we figured that we only live once, rain was expected during the only other time the parade was going to occur while we were there (it did end up being rained out on sunday), and WE WERE AT DISNEY WORLD...normal rules don't apply!!!!!!! the girls had a blast playing and waiting for the parade...it was so very worth the experience!

when the parade was over, we decided to ride thunder mountain one last time! mom, dayne, ella, and i sprinted through the line and rode it together! oh the laughs...but poor little maddie was heart broken. if only we had teased her hair, she would have been tall enough to ride! well, her daddy was not going to let that vertical challenge defeat him...while we were zooming through the mountain, jeffrey took maddie and ava to one of the gift shops and found some minnie mouse high heels that he felt like would give her the boost she needed to be tall enough! he bought them...and you'll just have to wait to find out if his plan worked!!!!!!

we said "goodbye" to the magic kingdom for the night...assuring we would be back in the morning...well, in a few hours...because by now it was after midnight! all three girls fell asleep in various laps on the bus...and got snuggled into bed to catch some zzzzz's in order to prepare for another full day of disney!

what an awesome way to begin our amazing vacation...day one...definitely a success!!!!

to be continued...