Trip Report Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Brrrrrrrrrr

It's time to report on our first mother-daughter trip to WDW!

If you’ve ever wondered what happens when you take a 4 year old to Disney in early February in record-breaking cold… buckle up.

From 2/2–2/6, we somehow travel with both sunscreen and mittens. We flew out of Boston optimistically thinking things like, “It won’t feel that cold in Florida, right?” Reader: it did. There were puffy coats in the Most Magical Place on Earth. There were goosebumps in line for rides. There were moments when I questioned every life choice that led to me saying, “Let’s go in February!”

And yet.

There were also shrieks of joy. So. Many. Rides. The kind of fearless, hands-in-the-air, “Again! Again!” energy only a four-year-old can sustain on pure adrenaline and Mickey-shaped snacks. Nora conquered attractions like a tiny theme park warrior, equal parts princess and chaos gremlin.

Of course, no toddler-centric Disney trip is complete without the full emotional range of the human experience. We had magic. We had meltdowns. We had tears (some hers, some… undisclosed). We had triumphant parade dancing and dramatic collapses over the wrong color straw.

Here we go!!

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

Nora's first time on Guardians! I was pretty nervous, but I also know my girl so not TOO worried.

Similar to ToT, she did NOT like the pre show portions, but survived lol

She was pumped that she got the same row as her age!

How did we do?

She looks concerned but SHE LOVED IT. Oh my gosh she was hopping around like a jumping bean as we exited and could NOT stop talking about it. She is so fearless and fun - it's so amazing to experience with her. (and crazy.. wasn't she JUST a tiny little baby?!)

Next up, LL for Spaceship Earth!

She was excited but didn't remember how slow of a ride it is LOL

We tapped in and waited... and waited... and waited...

The ride was stopped but not closed. 5 minutes, 10 minutes. And it was COLD. And WINDY. and naturally.. the 4 year old had to pee.

So, I went to the CM and they luckily put a LL back on our account to ride later.

Bathroom break completely (with more stress and tears TBH but we somehow survived), we grabbed a couple pictures before we headed to the Skyliner to take an afternoon break.

Nora also LOVES Encanto so we stopped to listen to the music for awhile on our way out.

Nora also requested participating in painting the mural.

As we were about the exit the park, one of Nora's wishes came true. She had been sad that Daisy hadn't been at any of our character meals yet, and there she was with no line!

She showed Daisy that she was on the back of her sweatshirt

We had some ups and downs, but overall a successful first half of the day at Epcot1

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

Once we made it back to Pop, Nora decided that the gift cards from Christmas were burning a hole in her pocket.

This was her selection:

We headed to our room just to relax in the warmth for a bit. Nora played with her new toy while I caught up on some work emails and looked at Ella updates from our daycare app.

I also remembered that I had taken home my dessert from Sci Fi. This was the Cerulean Moon

Chocolate Mousse Dome with Strawberry Filling on a Graham Cracker Tart with a Hibiscus Sponge, Green Space Dust, and Chocolate-Caramel Sauce

It was pretty good!

After a little break and playtime, we headed back to the Skyliner. It was still COLD but much brighter.

We had a LL for another round on Soarin' but had time so made a loop around World Showcase with thousands of our closest friends.

We made sure to grab some photos along the way.

Finally it was ride time. Nora was SO excited to get a round 2 here.

I took the cutest video of her this go around for Ian to watch. She just kept gasping and smiling so big.

Up next was our LL for Test Track. This would be Nora's first time ever and my first since the refurb!

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

We tapped in and within 3 minutes we were at a standstill. I eventually sat on the ground with Nora to avoid whining, and the dead stop lasted about 15 minutes before we were finally on the move!

She was a little nervous but happy to finally be on the ride!

And how did it go? ...

ARMS UP!!

She loved it, naturally.

Up next it was finally time for SSE after our failed attempt earlier in the day.

No issues this go around.

Except that I didn't make it into our future

It was time to head out and back to the Skyliner after this, but first some pictures (DUH)

I loveeee this last one.

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

I grabbed some maple popcorn on our way through. Nora wasn't a huge fan which meant I didn't have to share!

Once we made it back to Pop, I mobile ordered a quick dinner for us to take back to the room.

It was busy in there, so we killed time with selfies lol

Once we made it back to the room, we ate our dinner (Italian sandwich for me and chicken for Nora) while watching the recording of HEA on TV.

I finished up quickly so that I could get us packed up. All too soon the next day was leaving day. We would check out in the morning before heading to AK!

 

[RememberWhen]

Love the Disney themed Polly pocket toys!! Nice choice Nora.

 

[Minnesota disney fan]

I've been following along this whole TR. First, I can't believe how brave Nora is. She is a little daredevil, lol. I am hesitant to ride some of the rides that she loved It is so special that you could take this Mother/Daughter trip with her and make such special memories!

 

[Tiki Traveler]

Nora also requested participating in painting the mural.

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Very cool to see more of a finished mural! I think I was off before w/my comment re: MK at night. We were there Wednesday night. Oh well, I was close.

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

Back from some work travel and ready to wrap this TR up!

Final day

Luckily we had packed up the day prior so after getting ready and bundled up we brought our luggage to bell services.

It was COLD once again, so we were excited to hop on the bus to AK asap.

We made our way in shortly after early entry had begun.

We took our time because we did not have much on our agenda that required running about.

Nora admired the Lion King statues.

We grabbed some photos before it got too busy.

Loved the smile on Nora in this one but... missing the feature piece behind us lol

Guess we will settle for this "wild" one

We decided to get Nora measured at Everest because if she was tall enough, she wanted IN on that excitement.

Looking at this picture feels warm and cozy.... it was not.

How did we measure up?

The CM couldn't even fit his finger between the height marker and the top of Nora's head but could still see it wasn't touching

I told her that is what is so exciting about going to Disney year after year - always something new to try and experience!

After that disappointed, we decided to do Zootopia. Nora is a big fan of both movies so was pumped for this.

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

We had lots of fun picking out the animals depicted on the ToL.

I was taking lots of pictures as this was my first time since the refurb!

Nora: OH MY GOSH MOM CLAWHOUSER

It was good fun, nothing crazy, but good to get out of the wind and cold and not scary for my 4 year old.

It was time for our first LL. And yes, with barely a need for it I got us LL at AK. Because I am alone and tired with a todder. 'Nuff said.

We were Africa bound.

I told Nora we were going on a safari.

Nora: BUT HOW LONG WILL WE BE GONE FOR? WHAT ABOUT DADDY AND SISSY?

From the mouths of babes I tell ya lol

We had a good safari, BUT SO SO COLD. Like painfully cold. And that coming from a Mainah

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

Our favorite part was getting nice and close to the elephants.

Nora: HI ELLIE!!
Me: Ellie?
Nora: I named her that, duh

I was so happy that our next order of business after our frozen adventure was breakfast at Tusker House! Time to warm up and fill our bellies. We were sat almost immediately, and the characters were already making their rounds.

Donald on deck:

Nora loved their outfits!

I loved my POG juice.

Up next was Goofy. Once again, Nora was a bit intimidated by his size, but very quicky he got down on her level and she was much happier!

Even gave big hugs.

After Goofy we loaded up our plates. Character breakfasts were such a win on this trip for us. Entertaining AND she ate very well.

Showing off her waffle!

My first plate:

Daisy was next and Nora was tickled pink by getting to see her!

More "huggies"

Finally the big cheese himself.

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

Nora insisted that the final photo needed Mama in it!

We had a perfect meal, ideal character pacing, and also warmed up. Nailed it.

Next up, LL for FotLK

Nora had a bit of trouble seeing everything from her height and vantage point, but still enjoyed the show.

We did a Disney first for both of us next: the Nemo show! Mostly because we were limited on what we COULD do, and we were wanting to be indoors!

I thought it was pretty cute, and Nora like the bubbles at the end.

Our final LL was for River Journey so we headed that way.

I asked Nora if she wanted to go say hi to Kevin and she said NU UH.

Photo zoomed in from FAR away.

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

We grabbed a quick photo before our ride.

The standby line was LONG so I was grateful for our LL.

We were on in about 10 minutes.

Nora is kind of nervy on this one. I think she thinks it's a big weird lol

Wrapping up our River Journey ride meant it was finally time to head out.

Nora used the last of her gift card money on an Encanto toy. She LOVES Mirabel.

On the bus home Nora looked as dazed and tired as I felt on the inside lol

Once back, we grabbed some lunch to fill our bellies and use our last dining credit.

And had enough time to get some wiggles out before the airport.

 

[MickeyPretzelEnthusiast]

We eventually got our Uber and headed to MCO.

Where, 15 before arrival, Nora took her one and only nap of the entire trip LOL

Security was a bit long, but we had plenty of time.

Once through, Nora was distraught because we hadn't bought Ella a present.

We rectified that at the Disney Store with a Buzz duckie.

To end our first ever mother daughter trip we got a pre flight ice cream too!

And before long we were off!

She did great, just watched movies and snacked for the 3 hours!

My dad picked us up in Boston around 9 PM and drove us home to Maine.

This trip was everything we needed and so SO special for both of us. All of the time together, giggling, snacking, swimming in the freezing weather, I will never forget. I hope and pray I can do this with Ella when she gets older too. Our first trip as a family of 4 will be probably March of next year!!

But in the meantime... Ian and I are officially booked for a QUICK weekend trip for my birthday in November. The 6th through the 8th (my bday is the 7th!)

Thank you all for reading along!!

 

[Wicked Sisters]

Thank you for sharing such a brilliant trip. You take beautiful photos and Nora is so photogenic. Gutted we will just miss you as we arrive on the 9th November.

 

[Zipadeelady]

Even with the few hiccups you had, it really looked like a great trip. Thanks for taking us along.

 

[Tuvalu]

Mother/daughter trips are the best!

 

[MinnieM123]

What a joyful vacation you both had! Thank you and Nora for sharing all the highlights with us!

 

[Minnie1986]

So glad that you guys got to have some special one on one time; I'm sure it meant the world to her

 

[mpaulam]

Thanks for sharing. It looks like a wonderful trip!

 

[riverside]

Great TR!! Sorry the weather was so cold but it looks like you made the best of it. Thanks for sharing!!