Epcot, Day Three, Part One

We got up bright and early on Sunday and headed to Epcot for an 8AM royal breakfast! Addie Kate knew we were eating with some special people, but didn't know the ins and outs of it. We had to drive there, since Epcot doesn't even open that early, but after the night before waiting on the bus, I was happy to drive! We ended up with a fabulous parking spot at Epcot, so at the end of our day, we just hopped on the monorail and rode back to Epcot, got in the car, and drove back to the hotel. 100x better. 

Our reservations were at Akershus Dining Hall, in Norway, which resembles the old Akershus castle. It was beautiful. 

 There was a princess couture shop right outside of it, which entertained Addie Kate during our short wait for breakfast.

 Breakfast was a buffet, but the selection was great. We got our fill and again, were very lucky in seating! The door that you can see in the very back of the picture below was where every princess came out. Then, they did the princess parade right beside us. If we were in that back room just behind AK in the picture below, we wouldn't have been able to see the little parade of precious girls and their idols.

 Then started the princess visits. I was glad that Addie Kate's seat had her back facing them, because I love a surprise, but then she figured out where they were coming from and would keep turning around to look!

 Sleeping Beauty came out first.

 Then Cinderella, whose looks changed a bit from dinner the other night.

 Next was Ariel, and she was one of our favorites! She sat right down with us (Tommy was up from his seat, then stayed up to take pictures) and she thought Drew was a guppy!

Then was Snow White. She was beautiful and Addie Kate loved her! Snow White was the first Disney princess movie that Addie Kate ever watched, so she's always held a special place in her little heart.

 She was just as sweet in person as she is in the movie! 

As she was visiting us, the trumpets sounded and announced that it was time for the royal princess parade. Snow White looked at Addie Kate and asked her if she'd like to walk in the parade with her. Of course Addie said yes, and my mommy heart just melted! I was so excited for my girl - she got to dance with Cinderella and Prince Charming, and now walked in the parade with Snow White - what could be better?

 

 It was hard to beat the breakfast we had just had. All of Addie Kate's precious little girl dreams were coming true right before her eyes. But there was so much more to do and see, so off we went. 

I had picked out a few things for Tommy and me to do as well on our trip. Riding Soarin' in Epcot was one of them. According to my research it was THE ride, and we needed to move fast to ride it. So we booked it all the way across Epcot back to the front where the ride is. I knew we had a chance because we were in the park before it opened. It opened at 10, and that was right when our breakfast was over. As we were walking, we saw the character spot where Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy, and Pluto were. We left Mom and the kids in line to see them, while Tommy and I ran to ride the ride. When we got there, it was already an hour wait and they were almost out of fastpasses. The park had only been open for 10 minutes! We grabbed a fastpass and got excited because this must be some ride! 

We went back to Mom and the kids, and were able to meet all the big characters! So many so that Tommy had to run out and go by a second autograph book! Even the Disney person selling him the book couldn't believe that! I was so excited that we were able to meet so many. For Addie, and for anyone of that age, the characters are the main part of their Disney trip. I had researched that other than character meals, Epcot was the best place to meet them, and it was true. We met these five in one spot!

 

 Drew did better with these characters than the princesses! He liked his ears! Ha!

 

 Addie Kate loved Minnie (and I hated that she didn't have on her precious Minnie outfit!). She taught Addie Kate how to pose (which took a while since AK wasn't wearing a dress and Minnie wasn't talking), and she's been doing it ever since!

The Minnie Pose. 

 

 Next up was Donald...

He wanted Drew's passy, and little man didn't know what to think of that! 

 Precious baby boy, just hanging out and waiting. 

Next was Pluto: 

 Love how he had to sign the book!

 Mimi showing Addie Kate the pictures she took. Turkey, she always has to know what's going on! 

And last up was Goofy. He was a character:

 

 

 After visiting and meeting so many characters, we were ready to do something different. There aren't a ton of rides in Epcot, and we were in the front and needed to stay in the front to make sure to get to Soarin' on time, so we found Tommy a ride called Test Track, Mom and I found a coffee shop, and we let Addie Kate pick out her treat from Epcot, which I'd already planned to be Mickey Ears. Addie Kate opted for a sequined, sparkly Minnie headband instead of the ears, which was a compromise between the two of us. I got Drew the traditional ones with his name embroidered on the back. And he could not have been any cuter in this world! 

We then met back up with Tommy and went to the Seas with Nemo and Friends. It was basically a small aquarium, but had the famous Turtle Talk with Crush that we wanted to see. We waited for it while AK and her daddy looked at the fish.

 

 An already tuckered-out Mommy and her precious Disney babies. 

Turtle Talk was hilarious. Maybe more so for kids a little older than Addie Kate, but fun nonetheless. Certainly shouldn't be missed. After that, we saw that the Nemo ride had opened up (it had been closed the first time we tried, and I was upset because it was one of the only rides [I thought] AK could ride), so we hopped in line for it. Drew had fallen asleep in Turtle Talk, so this was how he waited in line:

And this was how he rode the ride:

 After the Nemo ride, it was time for us to ride Soarin'. I was so excited because Addie Kate was tall enough to ride it, and just in case, we had gotten three fast passes anyway. I was extremely nervous about her riding it, because although I'd researched all of this, I still didn't know what to expect. She was nervous too, and it cracked me up. The little turkey told us she needed to potty as we were waiting. I was so worried because there was nowhere to go, but she was fine. I think it was just the nerves. The ride was great! It was a simulation of hand gliding all across America. It was a 4D experience activating four of your senses. As you glided over the Florida orange groves, you smelt oranges. As you glided over Big Sur, you were splashed with water. It was a great ride and was so fun enjoying something so "big" with Addie Kate! While we were riding, Mom enjoyed sitting in the shade and resting with Drew while we were riding.

After telling Mimi all about our fun ride, we headed back to the World Showcase to glance at each country and meet a few more characters that I'd researched would be there. First up was England, where we grabbed some yummy fish and chips and met Mary Poppins! (The Tigger and Pooh characters were also there, but they aren't Addie Kate's favorites, so we bypassed them. We were on character overload!) Addie Kate loves Mary Poppins, so this was just like meeting a princess for her!

 Addie Kate didn't understand why she was in this outfit - she was used to her in the black dress and umbrella. I explained to her that she wears the white outfit later in the movie, but apparently AK hadn't watched that far into movie yet!

 

 

 The icon of Epcot, so pretty on the skyline from the World Showcase!

We then headed to Morocco to see Jasmine and Aladdin. They were just leaving for a break when we got there, which stunk, but it put us first in line for their return. The landscaping was so pretty, that I just had to get a few pictures of my girl in her ears:

 Then they came! They were fun to talk to!

 

  My mom sat under a tree and let Drew get a little nap. She's going to kill me for putting this picture on there! We made her go by a hat after this. The wind was insane and her hair was crazy!

Next up was our trip to Germany, my favorite country of course. I was looking forward to getting some good lunch there, and was quite disappointed to find out that the only quick dining just had bratwurst. I wanted more variety and you had to have a reservation to eat at the Biergarten. Well, they had an opening right then, but you had to call the Disney reservation line to get the reservation, so when I did that, they told me they couldn't make a reservation for right then, which is ludacris. I proceeded to show my tail, and we didn't get to eat there.

 At that point Addie Kate had fallen hard asleep in the stroller, and we were headed to China to meet Mulan. Addie Kate was counting all the princesses we needed to meet, and Mulan, Pocahontas (who we missed in Animal Kingdom), and Tiana were all that were left. Tommy and I opted to let her sleep though, and I stepped in and got the autograph and picture for her. I hated to do it (and felt like an idiot), but I know to make it through the afternoon, she needed that nap.

 We headed out through Mexico, with a big plate of nachos in hand. It had been a fun day, with fun new rides and meeting special friends. I loved Epcot. It was far less crowded than Magic Kingdom and just as much fun!

 Drewsie here is saying he had a blast!