Disney Vacay: Day 3

Our third day of vacation was certainly a full one.  We started waking the kiddos up early, getting them dressed and ready, and heading to the bus to go to the Animal Kingdom.  Hubby grabbed breakfast for me, which I was able to somewhat scarf down as we raced out the door.  It is no easy task getting two little ones ready, plus worrying about a group of teenage girls and coordinating all of that!  Thank God for Pop Tarts, which is what I fed the kiddos on the bus (hey, no judging allowed!).  It was a very cold morning - not something I was really prepared for in Orlando!

 

(photo courtesy of www.forbes.com)

We arrived at the Animal Kingdom with so much excitement.  Hubby wanted to go right to Kilimanjaro Safaris, but I wanted to wait for Auntie and her boyfriend.  So, we headed to DinoLand U.S.A..  We discovered that there were not too many rides for T, due to the height requirements, so we had to deal with that!  T certainly did not understand!  We found a few rides (T really enjoyed TriceraTop Spin) and then went to an attraction called The Boneyard, which has things to climb and slides.  Hubby, his right hand man, and Mad Man stayed in one area while I took T over to a bunch of slides.  Now, I am admittedly a helicopter mommy.  I don't let her run free at the playground; I am always right with her.  So, this was no different.  I walked her up to the slide and then ran down to catch her at the bottom.  This worked a few times and then we headed to a different slide. Well, with this one there was no way for me to make it up the stairs and then back down to catch her.  So, I told her to climb up the stairs and I would meet her at the bottom.  There were kids everywhere running around with no real visible parent involvement.  I waited at the bottom, a few kids came down, but no T.  I looked up to the top, but couldn't see anyone.  Then a few more kids came down and still no T.  My stomach started to knot.  I looked around and didn't see her.  So, I ran up the stairs and realized there were several slides for her to choose from up there and she was not near any of them.  I ran to the other side screaming her name.  I was beyond freaking out.  I happened to see her dart around near the stairs looking panicked.  Thank God for the Rapunzel dress she was wearing - she was easy to spot.  I ran down the stairs a few at a time and screamed for her.  She was just about to exit the attraction when I grabbed her up.  The poor girl was so scared.  She was crying and didn't understand what had happened.  I held her so tightly, my heart still racing.  That has to be one of the worst feelings I have ever felt.  We are very fortunate because that could have gone seriously worse.  I shudder to even think of the things that could have happened.  My advice to single parents: do not attempt this attraction on your own!  We found Hubby, who obviously had no idea what had happened, but I have to say I was irritated with him that I had been doing this on my own while he sat chatting - I'm sure about softball.  Needless to say we left that attraction and T was safely in my arms.  She was definitely shaken by the event and kept asking me questions about why it happened. 

We did another ride and then went to the Finding Nemo musical show.  We all loved it, and then headed to lunch.  The softball team met us there.  Pizzafari - it was a super busy restaurant!  Loved the flatbread pizza. Yummy.  Then Auntie and her boyfriend arrived!  We spent the rest of the day exploring the Animal Kingdom.  We did a lot of walking!  It was fun!  Seeing the Tree of Life is always impressive.  Mad Man really enjoyed our stop at Harambe Fruit Market - very yummy fresh fruit!  The safari was awesome - the best I had ever seen.  We were able to see so many animals. Truly incredible.  We also saw Festival of the the Lion King.  Amazing!  Even if I had to nurse Mad Man during the performance!

 

 Auntie, boyfriend, and I went on DINOSAUR!  I love that ride...truly exhilarating!  T met Minnie Mouse at Camp Minnie-Mickey, and even though she was disappointed by Minnie's safari outfit (she wished she had her pink dress on), she was excited to meet her.  She actually picked up flowers on the ground as we waited.  I wouldn't let her give them to Minnie fearing that they would reprimand her for picking their flowers!  T did not care for It's Tough to be a Bug!  Actually, neither did Mad Man.  I had to nurse him in that show too!  We had a quick dinner and headed back to the hotel.  We were exhausted, but overall it was a very fun day!

High:  Auntie's arrival!  Seeing how excited T is to see her Auntie. 

Low:  Losing my baby for those terrifying few minutes.