The Liner Disney Adventure - the beginning

Yes, I am crazy enough to think that taking not quite 2 year old triplets and a 4 ½ year old to Disney is a good idea….did I still feel that way in the end? Let’s find out.

I got this crazy idea that I wanted to take the boys to Disney. You see, Chase went to Disneyland in California due to special circumstances of us being there visiting my grandmother right after he turned 2 and had a great time. I figured that Jason couldn’t argue with me when I explained that this would be the cheapest trip to Disney we would ever take – the triplets are free for everything and Chase is a child rate. Let the planning begin.

There is a brand new, as in just opened about 6 months ago, resort called the Art of Animation. The sections of the resort are based on different characters – Little Mermaid has traditional rooms while Lion King, Finding Nemo and Cars are all family suites that would fit my needs in terms of size (3 adults – including my mom, and 4 kids – 3 who need a pack and play to sleep in) along with a mini-fridge, microwave and ‘living’ space. I called and booked the rooms in Radiator Springs (aka Cars) first, over 1 year out.  You see, I booked so far in advance that the vacation packages weren’t even available. So I then waited until I could book the flights…this is why we went before the triplets turned 2 – they fly for free on adult laps – THANKS MOM for being a lap and extra set of hands on this one! We used companion tickets, points, miles, you name it to get the flights for free (or as close to free) as we could. Check that off my list – now I had to wait for the packages to be announced.  I had already decided that we would take advantage of a package and get the dining plan and our park tickets in one bundle – great plan! Then, I watched the website for any deals or special offers. I have heard that there are times when they offer the dining plan for free. Too bad for us it didn’t happen but we did get a great discount on our package in late fall which saved us even more money!

Now you can begin to understand why I was so upset about everyone being sick at the start of the new year. I had the good sense to buy travelers insurance for the adults on the trip but I really didn’t want to have to use it. I wanted to go see Mickey! Good news, everyone decided to be healthy and we started our adventure early Sunday morning – as in a 7:15 AM flight early – thanks for that schedule change Delta! We packed the kids and the car and off we went.

We had decided to take the first day (our arrival day) and avoid the parks – meaning the kids could run and play in the warm weather and sunshine at the pool. The weather was great, the pool was awesome and the kids spent the first 2 hours in awe of the resort designs and activities.

    

Everything is painted in bold colors that capture your attention and your heart. We spent most of our pool time in the Finding Nemo pool area because it has a zero entry pool right next to a ‘splash and squirt’ pool where the triplets spent all their time chasing water spouts from one side to the next.  I was at ease because I didn’t spend the whole time worrying about water depth and who was where. They were perfectly happy where they were.  I will get some of the pictures from my Mom and upload them soon I hope to really show you what I mean but for now you can see what adorned the outside walls of the resort as we walked back to our room in Radiator Springs. Each wall was about 40 feet high and about 20 feet wide and boasted a picture of a character featured at the resort.

Lightning McQueen (or Queen to the triplets)

Ariel

Simba

Nemo

We decided later in the afternoon to venture over to Downtown Disney and wander the shops and get some dinner. Mom and I took all 4 boys while Jason dealt with some ‘grocery’ delivery items for us and then he and some friends met us for dinner.  We used the free resort bus to get there and back and were delightfully surprised at how easy it was! Quick ride and we were there. Benefit of staying on property that I intended to take full advantage of! Once there, the boys listened to some live Irish music and clapped to the beat both before and after dinner and then they rode a train and a carousel before we headed home to bed.

Waiting to ride the train

 

 

Choo-choo

Chase, Graham and Jack on the carousel

The best part of the trip for Chase – in terms of the hotel – he got sleep in a table. Why? The table in the room was a Murphy bed that opened up as a place for him to sleep. All the boys thought this was great fun but we had to end the fun quickly because the next morning we were off to see Mickey at the Magic Kingdom!

Boys will be boys!

Playing on the bed/table. The boys weren't too sure what to make of this fun thing!

Chase asleep on/in his table/bed - notice Mater is asleep too!