Disney Vacation Day 1
This post might be a little boring to those of you who can't wait to see our Disney photos and hear more about the trip, but since this is our family's virtual scrapbook I want to document the first day of our vacation even though it was mostly just traveling.
Since our trip was a big surprise for Jaden and Sienna, I had to pack on the sly and live as if we didn't have 8 days out of town planned in their near future. A few nights before we left though, I was rocking Bristol to sleep and whispered in her ear, "I have a big secret. We're taking you and your sisters to Disney World in a few days" after which Bristol popped up and the biggest smile swept across her face. It was as if she really knew what I meant. So cute!
Anyway, I started packing for the kids the weekend before we were leaving using lists I'd made weeks prior to that. I'm a type-A list-obsessed person who thinks that being organized about packing will help us not to forget anything :) Packing behind the girls' backs wasn't too difficult until the morning of the day we were leaving. With all of our bags in the master bathroom, we had to tell them they weren't allowed in our room that day. I just blamed it on Scott working on "something" and not wanting them to see it yet. Who knows what they thought that meant, if anything.
It was a good thing that I started packing early because at 9pm the night before we were leaving Jaden yelled down from the upstairs hallway that she'd thrown up all over her bed. Thankfully, I was totally done packing at that point. It still wasn't a good situation though since we wondered how the heck we were going to take a sick child on an airplane to Disney World. I just prayed that it was going to be a one-time incident and that Jaden would be well enough to enjoy our trip from start to finish.
While I started three loads of sheets and blankets laundry, Scott showered Jaden off. She spent the rest of the night in the guest bedroom which she threw up all over and took another shower the next morning. She was still very under the weather at 7am, but four hours later had perked up. Nothing like having a prayer answered in the nick of time!
As you saw in the video in my last post, Jaden and Sienna were shocked and surprised at the news Jaden read from the Mickey and Minnie cookies. They truly had no idea; we had pulled it off! I'll never forget lying down in my bed the night before so excited for the next day and wondering how we'd made it to the last second without them finding out anything. I think that Jaden being sick made the surprise an even bigger one since they never, ever would've suspected that we'd be going somewhere when she was so ill all night.
I'd purchased the princess suitcases 6 or 7 months ago and found the Minnie t-shirts last minute at Target days before the trip. I filled the suitcases with their clothes and their backpacks with lots of activities for the plane and for in the hotel room as well as with an array of snacks. They had more than enough to do, and more than enough to eat since we also packed up the cookies from the surprise reveal. Jaden wasn't up for eating too much since her tummy was still unsettled, but she was done getting sick and was in great spirits.
We arrived at the airport and it was a complete whirlwind trying to unload our entire car of suitcases, carseats and stroller, then check the luggage, get through security and then board the plane. It's tough to travel with 3 children and all of their necessities! Even more tough when one of those children can't even walk yet, still drinks from bottles and has all sorts of extra baby supplies.
Once we finally boarded the plane though, it was time to relax. We'd chosen the flight time based on what would be best for Bristol and I thought she'd just go to sleep. I couldn't have been more wrong though. She launched into total crazy mode--I think adrenaline kicked in (if that's possible for a baby!). Bristol was a wiggly, restless lil monster for about two hours straight. She kept us on our toes and then suddenly gave into her heavy eyelids and passed out. Unfortunately, the flight was almost over by that time though so her nap was short-lived. Silly girl!
Jaden and Sienna were two little angels during the flight. They were excited about the trip, loved all of the new workbooks and things I'd filled their backpacks with and shared the ipad very well with one another. I couldn't have imagined two better little girls on that plane!
Once at the Orlando airport, we somehow figured out how to get three huge suitcases, three carseats, one double stroller, three roller carry-ons, three backpacks, two laptops and one purse out to our rental car. Whew, recounting that is just as exhausting as it was when we did it! Jaden picked out the minivan and while I've always been more of an SUV girl than a mini-van mama, I have to admit that loading everyone and everything up into this thing was so easy that I'm almost convinced we need one as our next family vehicle!
The drive was easy and when I saw the sign for WDW I couldn't help but try to take a picture. I was just as excited as my kids and couldn't wait for the big week ahead.
We stepped into our hotel, the Dolphin, and I immediately said it was the nicest hotel I'd ever stayed in. Our room itself was average, but the lobby, restaurants and the grounds around the resort were AMAZING. We got all checked in, sent our bags to our room and then found a diner-style restaurant in the resort to eat at.
Sienna, who has become so awkward with her fake smiles (see below) ate her way through a hamburger while Jaden quickly got tired as the exhaustion from her eventful night prior set in. Bristol must've had her second adrenaline spike of the day because she was our wild child during that meal! Thank goodness there weren't many others eating at that time for her to bother.
We got back to our room quickly after dinner and the girls put their PJs on. I gathered my stuff to go on a Walmart run (which by the way was the CRAZIEST Walmart I'd ever seen and therefore made my quick shopping trip last three times as long as it should've) to get snacks, drinks and breakfast supplies for the week. I expected that when I'd get back from shopping that this little lady would be sound asleep like her big sisters:
Buuuuut...turns out Bristol did NOT like staying in a hotel. I never imagined she would be so much trouble over sleeping in a hotel portacrib, but she was a major pain in the booty that night. Poor kid wanted nothing to do with that crib, even though I'd packed her own crib sheet and she was sleeping right beside us. She kept falling asleep in Scott's arms and then freaking out when we laid her into her bed. We finally had to let her cry it out for a minute. It had been a long day, but with a FULL schedule ahead of Disney fun, everyone needed a good night of sleep to kick it off!
Since our trip was a big surprise for Jaden and Sienna, I had to pack on the sly and live as if we didn't have 8 days out of town planned in their near future. A few nights before we left though, I was rocking Bristol to sleep and whispered in her ear, "I have a big secret. We're taking you and your sisters to Disney World in a few days" after which Bristol popped up and the biggest smile swept across her face. It was as if she really knew what I meant. So cute!
Anyway, I started packing for the kids the weekend before we were leaving using lists I'd made weeks prior to that. I'm a type-A list-obsessed person who thinks that being organized about packing will help us not to forget anything :) Packing behind the girls' backs wasn't too difficult until the morning of the day we were leaving. With all of our bags in the master bathroom, we had to tell them they weren't allowed in our room that day. I just blamed it on Scott working on "something" and not wanting them to see it yet. Who knows what they thought that meant, if anything.
It was a good thing that I started packing early because at 9pm the night before we were leaving Jaden yelled down from the upstairs hallway that she'd thrown up all over her bed. Thankfully, I was totally done packing at that point. It still wasn't a good situation though since we wondered how the heck we were going to take a sick child on an airplane to Disney World. I just prayed that it was going to be a one-time incident and that Jaden would be well enough to enjoy our trip from start to finish.
While I started three loads of sheets and blankets laundry, Scott showered Jaden off. She spent the rest of the night in the guest bedroom which she threw up all over and took another shower the next morning. She was still very under the weather at 7am, but four hours later had perked up. Nothing like having a prayer answered in the nick of time!
As you saw in the video in my last post, Jaden and Sienna were shocked and surprised at the news Jaden read from the Mickey and Minnie cookies. They truly had no idea; we had pulled it off! I'll never forget lying down in my bed the night before so excited for the next day and wondering how we'd made it to the last second without them finding out anything. I think that Jaden being sick made the surprise an even bigger one since they never, ever would've suspected that we'd be going somewhere when she was so ill all night.
I'd purchased the princess suitcases 6 or 7 months ago and found the Minnie t-shirts last minute at Target days before the trip. I filled the suitcases with their clothes and their backpacks with lots of activities for the plane and for in the hotel room as well as with an array of snacks. They had more than enough to do, and more than enough to eat since we also packed up the cookies from the surprise reveal. Jaden wasn't up for eating too much since her tummy was still unsettled, but she was done getting sick and was in great spirits.
We arrived at the airport and it was a complete whirlwind trying to unload our entire car of suitcases, carseats and stroller, then check the luggage, get through security and then board the plane. It's tough to travel with 3 children and all of their necessities! Even more tough when one of those children can't even walk yet, still drinks from bottles and has all sorts of extra baby supplies.
Once we finally boarded the plane though, it was time to relax. We'd chosen the flight time based on what would be best for Bristol and I thought she'd just go to sleep. I couldn't have been more wrong though. She launched into total crazy mode--I think adrenaline kicked in (if that's possible for a baby!). Bristol was a wiggly, restless lil monster for about two hours straight. She kept us on our toes and then suddenly gave into her heavy eyelids and passed out. Unfortunately, the flight was almost over by that time though so her nap was short-lived. Silly girl!
Jaden and Sienna were two little angels during the flight. They were excited about the trip, loved all of the new workbooks and things I'd filled their backpacks with and shared the ipad very well with one another. I couldn't have imagined two better little girls on that plane!
Once at the Orlando airport, we somehow figured out how to get three huge suitcases, three carseats, one double stroller, three roller carry-ons, three backpacks, two laptops and one purse out to our rental car. Whew, recounting that is just as exhausting as it was when we did it! Jaden picked out the minivan and while I've always been more of an SUV girl than a mini-van mama, I have to admit that loading everyone and everything up into this thing was so easy that I'm almost convinced we need one as our next family vehicle!
The drive was easy and when I saw the sign for WDW I couldn't help but try to take a picture. I was just as excited as my kids and couldn't wait for the big week ahead.
We stepped into our hotel, the Dolphin, and I immediately said it was the nicest hotel I'd ever stayed in. Our room itself was average, but the lobby, restaurants and the grounds around the resort were AMAZING. We got all checked in, sent our bags to our room and then found a diner-style restaurant in the resort to eat at.
Sienna, who has become so awkward with her fake smiles (see below) ate her way through a hamburger while Jaden quickly got tired as the exhaustion from her eventful night prior set in. Bristol must've had her second adrenaline spike of the day because she was our wild child during that meal! Thank goodness there weren't many others eating at that time for her to bother.
We got back to our room quickly after dinner and the girls put their PJs on. I gathered my stuff to go on a Walmart run (which by the way was the CRAZIEST Walmart I'd ever seen and therefore made my quick shopping trip last three times as long as it should've) to get snacks, drinks and breakfast supplies for the week. I expected that when I'd get back from shopping that this little lady would be sound asleep like her big sisters:
Buuuuut...turns out Bristol did NOT like staying in a hotel. I never imagined she would be so much trouble over sleeping in a hotel portacrib, but she was a major pain in the booty that night. Poor kid wanted nothing to do with that crib, even though I'd packed her own crib sheet and she was sleeping right beside us. She kept falling asleep in Scott's arms and then freaking out when we laid her into her bed. We finally had to let her cry it out for a minute. It had been a long day, but with a FULL schedule ahead of Disney fun, everyone needed a good night of sleep to kick it off!
Comments
I love the cookie idea you did for the reveal.
Can't wait to see more pics!