Wanderlust : Disney World 2013 - Day 2

During our trip to Disney World in March of this year, it was unseasonably cold.  I mean, we had to buy a toboggan and sweatshirt for Canon the second night we were there.  F-R-I-G-I-D.  Craig and I LOVE cold weather.  I don't even know why we live in Florida because we both pray for snow every year (laughable, I know).  This trip, however, we were not prepared for the chill in the air.  Thankfully, we did bring a coat each, but when the sun went down each evening, our coats were not enough.  We were so grateful for a stroller that could haul blankets and extra clothing for Canon so that we didn't have to miss the parades and fireworks shows each night!

When we go to Disney World we like to use the dining plan that they have to offer.  One of our favorite parts about Disney is the vast selection of restaurants from which to choose.  The dining plan allows us to eat at these restaurants without spending quite as much as if we were paying for each meal separately.  We also like to plan our dining experiences as far out in advance as possible to ensure that we can eat with characters or see shows with our meal.  We try to experience different restaurants each time we go as well, so no matter how much I want to get the same steak and wine at Le Cellier every time we go to Disney, I force myself to try something new and possibly discover a new favorite.

For our second day at Disney, we began with breakfast at The Crystal Palace with Winnie the Pooh and friends.  As I stated yesterday, we had a birthday celebration with each meal.  Poor Canon.  By the time we left, he was expecting a cupcake with every meal.  So not happening, kid.

We met "Pigley" there.  I couldn't stop giggling long enough to correct him on names. 

"Tiger" (as Canon called him) was the first character we actually met and Canon was pretty unsure of him.  He warmed up quickly though.

After breakfast, we headed to Animal Kingdom.  I should preface this story by saying that we prepared Canon for Disney World by watching the free vacation planning DVD that you get in the mail.  We wanted him to get excited about it, but also know what to expect as far as the size of the characters, types of rides, etc.  The DVD breaks down each park and one of the exhibits for the little ones discussed in Animal Kingdom is digging for dinosaur bones.  Canon honed in on this and decided that, aside from meeting Jake of Jake and the Neverland Pirates, this was the one thing that he wanted to do.  He could not wait.  So when we asked him what he wanted to do when we woke up that morning in Disney, he said emphatically that he wanted to dig for dinosaur bones.  Let it be so.  

Craig and I thoroughly enjoyed this experience as it allowed us to sit and rest in a covered area and listen to a "radio station" piped through the speakers playing songs like "It's The End Of The World As We Know It".  Indiana Canon had so much fun digging that we had to drag him away from his bucket and shovel.  He even made a friend there, though he couldn't remember her name even as we were walking out of the area.  He still looks at the pictures and says "hey, there's my friend!", so apparently it was a magical connection.  Magic is everywhere in Disney World.

Of course, the only way to coax him away from the dinosaur bones was with promise of other dinosaurs so we wandered the prehistoric land a while longer.

 Canon was asked to put together this "puzzle" of jaw bones with the appropriate dinosaur skull.  He got every one of them correct on the first try.  The child is a genius, what can I say?!  He definitely got it from me us.

After prying Canon away from dinosaurs (trust me it was difficult), we ran into a Jammin' Jungle Parade (That is it's actual name.  I don't say "jammin'" in real life.  I promise.) and relaxed while enjoying the show.

 "Enough with the pictures.  Just let me watch the parade."

After the parade, we headed back to Magic Kingdom for the fireworks show (You know, the one we missed on our first night in Disney World. Go us.).  We had some fun, too, when Canon developed a high fever during the fireworks so we spent about 45 minutes in the infirmary waiting for it to drop and for the crowds to disperse.  

Our family knows how to party hard.

(P.S. - See recap of day 1, 3, 4, and 5 here.)