This morning we got up, ate breakfast, and finally got ourselves out the door to see the world of Disney. Things went pretty well up until lunchtime, but then Judah started to get tired and the rest of us were needing something different. We decided that I would take Judah, Miguel and Isaac back to the motel room for a while, and the others would stay and enjoy the park with a leaner crew. That worked very well. Judah and I napped, Isaac and Miguel played and de-stressed, and the folks left at Disney enjoyed being able to move around more freely.

After I woke up from my nap, I made four double-cheeseburgers, wrapped them in foil, grabbed some cookies and mini-sodas and we headed back to Magic Kingdom. Michael, Laura, Luke and Amelia were so glad to have warm food delivered to them.

We did a few more things as a family, but then Michael decided he’d had enough of the great land of entertainment, so he took everyone but Amelia and headed back to the motel. Amelia and I joined up with my sister’s family (Steve, Joyce, Nathan & Josiah) and we had a lot of fun hitting the last few rides before the park closed. Then we got some ice cream on “Main Street” at Magic Kingdom, and after that we rode the monorail to catch our bus to Old Key West Resort.

By the time we got “home”, we were pretty tired. Amelia didn’t protest at all to going straight to bed.

Highlights of the day?
1. When we boarded the bus this morning, we were followed by a trio of blind folks who had a German Shepherd guide dog with them. We enjoyed visiting with them and watching the beautiful dog do her job. We hope to see them again!
2. The weather was nice and the crowds were manageable at Magic Kingdom. That’s a big deal here at Disney World!
3. After losing part of my day at the park to children who needed attention, I felt my day was redeemed by getting spend the last few hours with Amelia. We really enjoyed our “special date” together. We even got to see some fireworks. During the show, Amelia leaned over to her cousin, Josiah, and said excitedly, “Dreams really do come true here!”

We are all exhausted. Michael commented toward the end of the day, “I think our kids are more ‘Hilton Head’ kids.” Last year we went to the Disney resort on Hilton Head Island, and the activities there are much more low-key and focused on nature and learning. While I’m sure we will remember this family vacation for years to come, I don’t think it’s going to be the type of vacation we’ll be ready to repeat right away. We have to recover from all this entertainment!