Day 2: Animal Kingdom

As I stated before, I learned quickly that I would not try to rush to the parks for opening, rather we would let the kids sleep in and get there when we get there. We arrived at animal kingdom around 10:30am, and it was crowded! At least it felt crowded. We didn't do much at this park, but we had a great time.

First, we wandered around a bit, then decided to go on the Safari. There was an hour wait in line, or the fast passes were for an hour later. Obviously, we got the fast passes. We used the hour to just explore, and see this cool thing:

The kids also spent a lot of time playing bongo drums that were set up. The "do ALL THE THINGS!" part of me wanted to get something accomplished during this time, but I realized that this was exactly what we should be doing- letting the kids play and be kids. :)

The hour flew by and it was time for the safari. It was fun; you totally forget you are at Disney. I mean, when does your car get held up by a giraffe walking in the road?!

After that, I knew I wanted to see the Festival of the Lion King. Everyone said it was not to be missed. We went straight there, but not before stopping for some of these:

The show was fantastic. And the coolest thing happened. When we were walking in, a cast member motioned to us, and directed us to the front row! I have no idea why, but we took it. We had such a great view of everything. I have to say, things like that do not happen to me, ever. But that wasn't the last time something wonderfully unexpected happened this trip.

Toward the end of the show, a few performers got some children from the audience to participate in the show. One of them came and asked Kadence and Gavin if they would like to be a part of the show. Of course they did, and she whisked them away. They got to play a little instrument and dance around the entire hall. It was priceless, especially since Kadence told me before the show that she wanted to be IN the Lion King, not just watch it. Wish granted, sweetie. Wish granted.

Lunch was next at Restaurantosaurus. Great atmosphere, good food. And don't judge, but we let the kids have a coke here, while Luis and I enjoyed adult drinks. :)

When lunch was over, we hopped in line for the Triceratops Spin. Don't tell my kids, but it's basically the Dumbo ride with Dinosaurs instead of Elephants. They loved it.

By this time, we were all tired, but the kids were relentless. We took them over to The Boneyard (playground area). It was huge! We let them run around here for about 45 minutes.

Dylan had an especially great time going backwards down the slide

It was now 3:00ish, and we were done. We had to go so we could get ready for the night (which is a separate post). We bribed them with Mickey ice cream bars and headed out.

Though we did not do many rides or attractions- 2 rides and 1 show only, we had a great time here. I loved the look and feel of the park, and the kids really enjoyed the freedom they had to just stop and play whenever/wherever they wanted. And of course, being in the Lion King show made it extra memorable.