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| Early morning - take advantage of resort Extra Magic Hours! |
Just before Christmas, we took our little princess to Disney World. This was her second visit and my fifth. It was especially exciting this time because New Fantasyland, the largest Magic Kingdom expansion in the park's history, officially opened 14 days prior. There were new things to see for all of us!
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| Gaston's Tavern, new Fantasyland |
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| Meeting Belle (while wearing a Belle shirt) |
If you are planning a visit to Walt Disney World for the first time, here are a few items that I have found to be very useful when enjoying a busy day with a child:
Snacks - Disney allows you to bring in drinks and snacks, and these can save you a bundle (both money and time) when your child needs a quick snack in between meals. I usually have a couple small bottles of water, granola bars, and pretzels. Not too much, as you don't want your bag to be too heavy.
Poncho - if your child is averse to being wet but tall enough to ride Splash Mountain, the poncho is perfect. I held one over myself and Amelia, and we ducked our heads under it at the bottom of the ride. I also had spare clothes in our survival bag, but we didn't need them.
Antibacterial wipes - any crowded area with a lot of children becomes a germ factory. Amelia has her hands in her face and mouth all the time, so we were diligent to wipe her down as often as possible, especially after running her hand along handrails or playing in kids' areas.Wipes are also more versatile for other needs vs. liquid hand sanitizer.
Sunglasses for the whole family - the Florida sun can be bright! Sunglasses are useful for comfort, and often a necessity when you want to take photos. Whenever Amelia complained about the light and refused to smile for a photo, we let her don the sunglasses.
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| Watching the afternoon castle show |
Medicine - The last time we went to the Magic Kingdom, I forgot ibuprofen. I ended up with a major headache and had to pay 3x the price for a couple Advil. Now I pack a small bottle for us and a couple children's chewables as well.
Band Aids - Sometimes excitement leads to falls and scrapes. Band-Aids make all boo-boos better!
Pen - We highly recommend the autograph book for character sightings! I bought the fancy matching pen the last time we went, and it ran out of ink quickly. It is a good idea to have a new pen or two in your bag, just in case. (A small scribbling notebook may come in handy as well, to entertain the kiddo while waiting in lines)
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| Stitch is hilarious |
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| New Dumbo in Storybook Circus (two rides + playground waiting area) |
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| My favorite - Thunder Mountain |
