Disney World 2021

 We finally made it back to Disney!

The hope was to go in 2019 but I went with work so the kids didn't get to go.  Then I planned on a great trip in 2020 as a "you're amazing for dealing with the divorce and moving and switching schools and I love you" trip. So finally getting to go again was amazing!

Even though we divorced, I thought it was important to invite David and his girlfriend on our trip. Separate but together. Due to some plans they already had, they were only able to join us for the last Disney day but they did invite us to do Universal Studios with them (read more about that here!)

We stayed at the Dolphin Resort, which was walking distance to Hollywood Studios and Epcot. I fell in love with the Boardwalk and Yacht Club hotels in 2017 and loved staying right next to them.  With covid still very much a thing,  being in walking distance and not using the crowded buses seemed like the best idea. 

Surprising the kids was the absolute best idea. Emma's face when she realized we would be in Disney in ten minutes was more than I could have ever asked for. Nick hasn't been in 20 years and watching him fall in love with Disney again was pretty magical.

Our room was gorgeous and thanks to some birthday Pixie Dust, we were upgraded to a hotel room with a balcony that had a view of Epcot's fireworks at night. 

We spent our first day eating at Beaches and Cream (finally!) and then went to Disney Springs for some shopping. Our hotel pool was amazing and we spent a lot of time there.

Our first day was at Hollywood Studios. I haven't been since Star Wars area opened and it was only my second time since Toy Story Land opened. The kids and I were excited to ride Mickey and Minnie's Runaway train for the first time and thanks to amazingly short rides we got to go on everything. We walked on to Toy Story Mania and rode it 4 times in one day! Nick and I divided and conquered and he got to run off to the roller coasters while the kids and I did the more subdued rides. One of the most exciting parts of the day was getting the boarding pass for Rise of the Resistance. Tyler was actually afraid Darth Vader was attacking us but was okay after we got off the ride. 

That night we swam even more. :)

Day Two was Magic Kingdom! Thanks to the Boo Bash parties already starting, it was decorated with Mickey Pumpkins already! Emma and I have always wanted to go for Halloween so this was a great compromise since I won't miss school for a Disney trip. We rode every ride. We introduced Nick to our favorite rides and favorite snacks. Emma conquered her fear of the Haunted Mansion and David and his crew met us just in time for the fireworks!

Day Three started with a character breakfast at Toppolino's. With covid, many character interactions are limited and the big parades don't happen.  You also can't wait in line to meet princesses so this seemed like a great way to see the Fab 4. Since Epcot opens at 11, it was the best way to pass time before it opened. Another great perk was that the Skyliner runs from the Riviera hotel to Epcot so we got to take a quick ride on that!

I was especially excited that the Epcot Food and Wine Festival was going on.  The Food and Wine Festival is another thing I hoped to go to for a while! There is so much construction going on but we still had a great day - we rode so many rides and thanks to the Food and Wine Festival, we had so much good food. 

Our day ended relatively early and we made our way to the Hard Rock Hotel so we could go to Universal Studios for the rest of the week!

Going to Disney always makes me so happy and I loved sharing ti with my kids. Three days was the perfect end to our trip, but I can't wait to go back again for longer!