One more Disney Story…

Our hotel was on the boat route.  There was a boat to and from the Magic Kingdom instead of having to take the bus.  The boats probably seat about 50. 
On the 2nd day in the afternoon we were going back over to the Magic Kingdom after our nap.  We were on the boat and Erin had her iPad.  (We knew there would be downtime waiting for the fireworks to start.) 
Erin put the movie Frozen on.  She and Annabel started singing “Let it Go”.  In typical Erin fashion it was in a very loud stage voice.  Everyone on the boat was turning around to watch them.  They sang the whole song!  When it was over people on the boat clapped for them.
Tommy got some of it on this video.

What a Great Trip….

We’re back from Disney and totally exhausted.  We had the best time ever!  A big shout out to our “tour guide” Craig White.  He has been to Disney more times that I can count and he knew exactly what to do and where to go and when to be there.  Annabel is almost 4 so her and Erin were into the same things.  (Please read that as Princesses…all the Princesses…)

Erin did okay on the flight there because it was so early.  She was excited and patient and pretty much sat still and watched her iPad.  The plane ride home was a little different.  We were in the next to the last row and seemed like we sat for 45 minutes before the plane took off.  She just wasn’t ready to sit still and was fighting going to sleep.  It was a long 2 hours back.

We got there and used the Disney Magical Express for our luggage.  They mailed luggage tags to us before we left.  We put them on and checked our bags in Houston.  We didn’t see them again until we got to the hotel.  They magically show up in your room.  Disney has it down too.  They send you a text when your room is ready and you just use your Magic Band (aka – room key and wallet) for the door.  Our room was ready before we got on the bus to the resort so when we got there we just went straight up to our room.  The room itself was nice but pretty small.  I guess at Disney they know you’re not going to be in the room for very long.

We played in the pool Sunday afternoon and then hit up Chef Mickey’s.  It’s a restaurant in the Contemporary resort that has all the classic characters.  They each come around to your table while you eat.  We saw – Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy and Pluto while we were there.  Erin got her autograph and picture with all of them.

The next 2 days were the Magic Kingdom.  We opted to go there both days rather than park hop.  Most of what we wanted to do at Disney were there and we built in time for a nap mid-day.  We would go back to the resort to lay down after lunch.  Craig took care of all our FastPasses so we didn’t have to wait in line for the big rides.  Erin loved the roller coasters.  The Seven Dwarf’s Mine Train ride was a pretty big roller coaster.  We thought she might get scared on it but in typical Erin fashion she was begging to do it again when we got off!

I think one of the highlights of the trip for me was Breakfast with the Princesses.  It was amazing.  We got into the park an hour before it opened and headed straight to Cinderella’s castle.  We met Cinderella downstairs and then went upstairs for breakfast.  While we were eating each of the Princesses came out and we got autographs and pictures with Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Jasmine and Aerial.  It was great.  Erin wore her Belle costume and her Little Mermaid necklace and they all commented on them.  She was beyond excited.

What trip with Erin would be complete without a meet and greet with Anna and Elsa?  So we used one of our FastPasses for the line with them.  We got to walk thru and they took pictures and autographs with the girls.  We also did a story time thing with Belle and she did the same thing.

I was a sucker and bought the Magical Memory Maker package from Disney.  They scan your Magic Band after their photographers take your picture and they go directly to your account.  We got a ton of pictures with the Princesses and in front of Cinderella’s castle.  They take them on some of the rides too and you never even see the camera or scan your band.  It just knows you by some sensor in your band.  It’s crazy.  Tommy and I got plenty of good pictures but they take the professional looking ones and this way all 3 of use could be in pictures together!  I would do it again in a heartbeat. 

It was hot while we were there but the temp here had been 100+ for several weeks.  We got to Disney and it was in the low 90’s.  It felt like a relief!  The humidity is the same so we were used to it. 

I wasn’t the only sucker on the trip.  Tommy gave into Erin’s every whim in the gift shops.  She came home with 3 new stuffed animals.  4 bracelets and 8 necklaces.  I also bought a t-shirt and visor for myself.  I never saw anyone in the visor I bought.  That either means it’s really, really uncool or I’m a trendsetter.

Tommy also thought I was crazy to buy a new umbrella fold down stroller.  It turned out to have paid for itself many times over.  You can rent them at Disney but we needed it at both airports and walking around the resorts.  It was a lifesaver and by the end of the trip, I had actually learned how to break it down and put it back up.

All in all a fantastic trip and one that we will have a hard time topping.  Our plan is to do a Disney trip every other year mixed with a trip to Destin.  Florida will continue to get our vacation money one way or the other for years to come…

Pictures from Disney…...

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

  

 

 

 

 

Disney or Bust…

We leave for Disney tomorrow!  I am beyond excited!

Say What…

Erin was referred to a Speech Therapy assessment by our pediatrician at her 5 year check up.  She is smart as a whip but the doctor was worried about some of her pronunciations.  She has trouble saying “v”, “b”, “l”, “w”, and the “sh” and “th” sounds.  She knows words with these sounds but just can’t say them well.

The woman that did the assessment was goofy, goofy, goofy.  Tommy went with us and she stepped out of the room and he was making the hand gesture for crazy.  I had to laugh because I was thinking the same thing. She was good at her job, just Looney Tunes.

She had Erin sit at a flip chart and tell her what the pictures were.  They were testing her cognitive ability and her vocabulary and her speech.  She got a 114 out of 115 on her vocabulary and cognitive ability, but got a 62 on her pronunciation.  So, the recommendation is speech therapy once a week to get it corrected.

We did the testing at Texas Children’s in the medical center but they have a branch in The Woodlands.  We’ll do our therapy there and won’t have to go back to TCH hospital again for anything speech related.

She would probably have grown out of some of these, but not all of them.  We’re doing it now so it doesn’t impact her reading ability.  The doctor said her hearing loss is likely to blame for the poor pronunciation.  When you can’t hear, it’s difficult to pick up the subtle sounds of the English language.  We’ve gotten the hearing corrected so now it’s time to work on our speech.  Poor baby!