I turned 30 on November 20.
Pretty early on, I knew how I wanted to spend my 30th birthday - I wanted to stay in one of the resorts at Disney and go to the Magic Kingdom with our family. The fact that Disney was doing a 'get in free on your birthday' promotion just sealed the deal. Originally it was going to be just me and Rosemary going to the park, but after a friend gave us a ticket, it worked out so that all of us could go. I was so excited.
We booked two nights at
Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort since it was one that we hadn't stayed in before. Since we've been married, Jonathan and I have stayed at I think nine of the different resorts...this was ten for us.
When we checked in, we took all of our things to the room to settle in. Rosemary walked in and asked, "Where's the kitchen?" and "Why are the beds in the living room?" I think she's gotten a little too used to staying in the condo with my parents.
It was warm enough, so we decided we'd go for a quick swim before we met my parents at Planet Hollywood for dinner. The main pool at the resort was amazing. There are pools in every area, but the main one at Old Port Royale has two slides. One of the slides in enclosed and is completely dark, the other's a bit more mild. Jonathan and I enjoyed them, while Rosemary chickened out at the top of the mild one--twice. (There's also a kids pirate ship pool, but Rosemary wasn't too keen on playing in it). And there's a zero entry side that was great for the kids. They even had foam life vests for Rosemary.
While it was pretty warm for November and the water was heated, it was a little chilly getting out. But we had so much fun!
We met my parents for dinner at Planet Hollywood. I hadn't been in years but it was a good dinner, even if it was really hard to hear! Afterwards we walked around Downtown Disney and had dessert at Ghiradelli. (My hair is shorter again...I got it cut the Sunday before my birthday).
Rosemary was in a 'mood' and didn't want a family picture.
At least she's looking in the correct general direction.
We headed back the resort and got the kids in bed.
In the morning, we got up and started getting ready and Jonathan and the kids gave me my gifts. It was so funny though because Jonathan had taken the kids earlier in the week to get me a card and a little something to open and had sworn Rosemary to secrecy. Rosemary, however, can't keep a secret and had already told me about the candy and the Mickey and Minnie Mouse card I was getting. She's so cute. My real gift from Jonathan was a necklace that had arrived in the mail before we left.
Right before getting in the shower Friday morning, Jonathan turned and hurt his neck, so much so that he couldn't really move. As a result, we decided it would probably be best for Jonathan to stay at the hotel with Ben. Rosemary and I would do the Magic Kingdom on our own. I was pretty disappointed, but hoped that we'd be able to all go together at some point.
Rosemary and I drove over to the park. I've never been good at remembering where I park (even when I go to the mall I usually park at the same entrance regardless of where I have to go because I'm so bad at remembering) so I made sure to make note of our lane number. We rode the tram to the Ticket and Transportation Center. I got our tickets then Rosemary picked the monorail over the boat to take us over to the park. We were in the park within half an hour from leaving the room. I thought that was pretty good.
We were there early enough to walk through the castle on our way to Fantasyland. Rosemary thought that was fun.
Dumbo was our first ride.
After that, we did Peter Pan and it's a small world.
We were two of five on the entire boat.
Next, we got in line to meet Ariel. Rosemary was so excited!
Then we headed to the castle to watch "Dream Along with Mickey." Rosemary really liked the shows this time so we made an effort to see as many as we could.
Princess Aurora and Prince Phillip.
Wendy and Peter Pan...and Donald as Captain Hook.
Next, we went to hear Story Time with Belle. This was so cute. I thought it would just be Belle standing there telling a story, but it was really interactive.
Does Belle look familiar? It's Catherine from Fireproof.
After story time, we went back to the castle to see the Move It! Shake It! Celebrate It! Street Party. Rosemary just wanted to watch and not dance, but I think she had a lot of fun watching. We saw the Genie, Lumiere, Sebastian...
...and Woody!
We went back to Fantasyland and rode Snow White and got fastpasses for Winnie the Pooh (which we ended up not using) then went to Cosmic Ray's for some lunch. Before we ate, Rosemary found some hula hoops so we hula hoop-ed a bit in the restaurant.
Rosemary ate her entire lunch!
After lunch, Rosemary was ready to ride Aladdin's Magic Carpets. While waiting in line, I saw a friend from MOPS--crazy to run into someone from Gainesville at Disney!
We headed back to Fantasyland (can you tell where we spent most of our day?) to ride Cinderella's Carousel.
After the carousel ride, we watched Philharmagic then were ready to see Mickey and Minnie. We parked the stroller at the entrance to Mickey's Toon Town Fair and off we went.
The way you see characters now is so much nicer than the way I remember doing it when I was little. We 'toured' Minnie's home then Mickey's home, then went to meet them.
Rosemary played a little bit on the little playground in Mickey's Toon Town while I called to check in on Jonathan and Ben. Then we went to get the stroller and I couldn't find it. I'm horrible at remembering that kind of thing (it's like parking spaces for me) so every time we parked it I really tried to concentrate on where I put it. Thankfully, after walking away then walking back, we did find it.
Then it was time to line up for the parade. We got some ice cream then found our seats on the curb. While we were waiting, the barber shop quartet came up and sang Happy Birthday to me. Wearing the Happy Birthday pin certainly was an experience. I've never been wished Happy Birthday so much in my life!
Waiting for the parade.
Waving to the characters. If you know Rosemary, you know this is a BIG deal. Rosemary typically watches shows quite seriously.
One of the mice came over and Rosemary kissed her nose.
Once the parade was over, we caught the train back to Toon Town to see the princesses. That was our longest line of the day...30 minutes...but we got to see Aurora, Cinderella, and Belle. That was a pretty big event for Rosemary. And each one was so kind. They had a short conversation with her and didn't rush her through at all.
Each commented about their pictures on Rosemary's shirt.
Cinderella asked about Rosemary's favorite color (blue).
Next we headed to the Tomorrowland Speedway. I thought Rosemary would like to drive while I did the pedal, but she insisted on just riding. Then we rode the PeopleMover.
On our way back to Fantasyland, we stopped for a ride on the Tea Cups. Then rode the Carousel one more time.
We ate dinner at the Pinocchio Village Haus, just before it closed, then headed around the corner to ride Small World one more time.
Finally, we wrapped up the day just like we started with a ride on Dumbo. The park was all lit up so it was a pretty ride.
We headed out of the park as the Very Merry Christmas party was starting so it was pretty packed. We'd had such a great time though. On the way back to the room, Rosemary fell asleep, but we'd been going the entire day. It was one of the best days I've ever spent at Disney, even though it wasn't the day I was expecting.
The next day, Jonathan's neck was still tender so we had to limit what we did. We decided to ride one of the buses over to Downtown Disney for lunch. Rosemary had seen the buses when we first got there and was so excited to actually ride on one.
Ben hung out on the beds while we packed up.
Rosemary played a bit in the water before we headed to Earl of Sandwich for lunch.
Ben watched.
Me and Ben waiting for our bus ride back to the car to head back home.
- Rosemary's Photos -
Below are a few of the pictures that Rosemary took on her disposable camera.
Waiting in line for Peter Pan.
Rosemary took this one of me in front of the castle. Budding photographer?
Waiting for the parade.
Self portrait.
Jonathan and me waiting for the bus.
The Disney bus.
Finally, because I think that birthdays should be celebrated for a week, we met up with the Strode's to see New Moon a few days after we got back for another birthday celebration. Jonathan and Brian were nice enough to endure the movie too...Brian even donated blood to get me another Edward shirt.
So I ended up having a great birthday even though things were a little different than I had imagined. Thanks to everyone for the birthday wishes. It was wonderful.
Singing (or rather standing there and shaking the bells to) Jingle Bells. Rosemary just stood in her place and smiled...no singing. Since then, she has treated us to solos of each of the songs that were sung that day.
And here's what I got Charlie for Christmas. He's started watching The Office and I couldn't resist. It didn't quite turn out as I'd expected since the Jello settled around the mug, but it was still pretty funny.
Our friend, Kent, on the bus over to the build site. I couldn't take pictures the days I volunteered so the kids and I went over one day as spectators and Kent was volunteering that day.
This was Friday at about 10:30 am. When I left on Wednesday at noon, they were just starting to pour the foundation. It's amazing how much gets done. While we were there on Friday, they were finishing up installing the drywall.
Didi, one of the show's designers, came out while we were there, production crew in tow. Kent strolled on by...he's looking all ready to work with his tool belt.
The kids were all ready to eat.
Janice did most of the cooking. Here she is getting the noodles that she made...her mom used to make them at Thanksgiving too.
The entire Peine family...17 plus one on the way (Tim and Michelle are expecting a baby boy in the spring).
When we checked in, we took all of our things to the room to settle in. Rosemary walked in and asked, "Where's the kitchen?" and "Why are the beds in the living room?" I think she's gotten a little too used to staying in the condo with my parents.
It was warm enough, so we decided we'd go for a quick swim before we met my parents at Planet Hollywood for dinner. The main pool at the resort was amazing. There are pools in every area, but the main one at Old Port Royale has two slides. One of the slides in enclosed and is completely dark, the other's a bit more mild. Jonathan and I enjoyed them, while Rosemary chickened out at the top of the mild one--twice. (There's also a kids pirate ship pool, but Rosemary wasn't too keen on playing in it). And there's a zero entry side that was great for the kids. They even had foam life vests for Rosemary.
While it was pretty warm for November and the water was heated, it was a little chilly getting out. But we had so much fun!
We met my parents for dinner at Planet Hollywood. I hadn't been in years but it was a good dinner, even if it was really hard to hear! Afterwards we walked around Downtown Disney and had dessert at Ghiradelli. (My hair is shorter again...I got it cut the Sunday before my birthday).
Rosemary was in a 'mood' and didn't want a family picture.
At least she's looking in the correct general direction.
We were there early enough to walk through the castle on our way to Fantasyland. Rosemary thought that was fun.
Dumbo was our first ride.
I took this picture because I have one every year of Rosemary on Small World sitting beside Jonathan. It's not quite the same without him there.
Next, we got in line to meet Ariel. Rosemary was so excited!
Then we headed to the castle to watch "Dream Along with Mickey." Rosemary really liked the shows this time so we made an effort to see as many as we could.
Next, we went to hear Story Time with Belle. This was so cute. I thought it would just be Belle standing there telling a story, but it was really interactive.
After story time, we went back to the castle to see the Move It! Shake It! Celebrate It! Street Party. Rosemary just wanted to watch and not dance, but I think she had a lot of fun watching. We saw the Genie, Lumiere, Sebastian...
After lunch, Rosemary was ready to ride Aladdin's Magic Carpets. While waiting in line, I saw a friend from MOPS--crazy to run into someone from Gainesville at Disney!
We headed back to Fantasyland (can you tell where we spent most of our day?) to ride Cinderella's Carousel.
After the carousel ride, we watched Philharmagic then were ready to see Mickey and Minnie. We parked the stroller at the entrance to Mickey's Toon Town Fair and off we went.
Rosemary played a little bit on the little playground in Mickey's Toon Town while I called to check in on Jonathan and Ben. Then we went to get the stroller and I couldn't find it. I'm horrible at remembering that kind of thing (it's like parking spaces for me) so every time we parked it I really tried to concentrate on where I put it. Thankfully, after walking away then walking back, we did find it.
Then it was time to line up for the parade. We got some ice cream then found our seats on the curb. While we were waiting, the barber shop quartet came up and sang Happy Birthday to me. Wearing the Happy Birthday pin certainly was an experience. I've never been wished Happy Birthday so much in my life!
One of the mice came over and Rosemary kissed her nose.
Each commented about their pictures on Rosemary's shirt.
Cinderella asked about Rosemary's favorite color (blue).
Next we headed to the Tomorrowland Speedway. I thought Rosemary would like to drive while I did the pedal, but she insisted on just riding. Then we rode the PeopleMover.
Rosemary played a bit in the water before we headed to Earl of Sandwich for lunch.
So I ended up having a great birthday even though things were a little different than I had imagined. Thanks to everyone for the birthday wishes. It was wonderful.
