Disney - Day 3

Well, we just couldn't take it any longer and had to get to a park. We were so anxious, in fact, that we were on the bus and headed out at 7:30 in the morning! Thanks to some helpful tips, we knew we needed to get to the Animal Kingdom early to get the most out of the animals. We were there right as they opened and we went straight back to the safari ride. How awesome that was! Sure, these animals look neat in books, but there is just something about seeing them live. And, riding in a jeep through their habitats, you get a different experience that walking past them at the zoo. Thanks to Grandma's wheelchair (she pulled a muscle in her foot) we had virtually no line. Also, her new camera (although used by Uncle Joel) captured better pictures than I did, but you can still get the idea. Next we took the train ride back to the Conservation Station and got to meet Jiminy Cricket! As well as see other animals up close and personal. They also have a vet station there and were actually performing some procedures on a monkey, but who wants to watch that? Noah was much more interested in the frogs, lizards, and snakes. He even got to pet one. (For some reason, large, fake animals are intimidating, but real slithery ones are just fine.) Benjamin also wanted to get in on the action but no matter how hard he pointed, Grandma would not take him over there. There was also a petting zoo out there but it only had goats and that was not very exciting. We had some lunch then decided to head back to our hotel for some rest. In theory, this sounded like a great plan. However, meandering a large group through a very crowded park, waiting for your bus transport, walking all the way back to your room, calming your boys to the point of resting, etc, it didn't work out very well. We didn't get to our rooms until 3:30. If Noah goes to sleep, he usually rests for 3 hours and if you wake him up early, you are taking your life in to your own hands. We opted to let him watch a movie instead. We had agreed to give ourselves 2 hours and then meet to discuss our next plan. We chose to get a park hopper and went to MGM for the evening. Both parks closed at 8PM. I happen to think that is silly. I can understand that for the animls as I have been told it takes them a full two hours to get everybody put back in their stalls and then they need to be fed and checked by vets and things. But there was no reason for MGM to close that early. Granted I should not have been keeping my boys out until all hours, but who can get anything done in two hours? (Did we mention the crowds were crazy?) Noah fell asleep on the way over and it was time for Benjamin's dinner. So, Grandpa, Grandma, Uncle Scott and daddy went on a ride while Noah slept in the stroller and I found a burger for Benjamin. By the time they were done, we were ready to take on the Muppets (our purpose for going to MGM). Noah woke up just in time but seemed a little confused by the idea of a 3-D movie. He eventually got the hang of it and left his glasses on. Daddy was disappointed that he didn't do any grabbing at the images, but he did enjoy seeing all his friends. Unfortunately, it was too late for any characters so we didn't get to see the Toy Story friends. We did see Pizza Planet, though. And a giant Potato Head. Next we happened on to the 'Osbourne Family Light Spectacular'. Apparently, these are lights that were actually up around their house. A little crazy if you ask us, but then we are not the Osbournes. (Can I get an 'Amen'?) The boys loved it, although Noah thought it was a little loud at times. Lastly, we decided to catch the big firework/laser light show, Fantasmic. Benjamin caught a little snooze on Grandma's lap while we traveled. Again, it was loud but pretty spectacular. It also was a little scary as they really wanted to incorporate the Disney villains, so we were glad that our boys were too young to understand most of the actual storyline. Then it was back to our rooms for a much-needed night's sleep.