Lake Buena Vista, Florida (aka Disney World)

Yep, we did it. We officially lost our minds. At least that's what I thought when we decided to take the kids to Disney World.

It all started with cocktails...as so many of our adventures do...the kids were in bed and we were discussing our options for our next few stops around the coast of Florida.

First let me preface this with we have never been to Disney. We almost broke down last Christmas and stopped by Disney for a day. (You can tell how much we knew about Disney with that comment. Now we know that no one just pops in by Disney for just a day! There are plans to make. Strategies to develop. It should take weeks, if not months, to properly prepare for your Disney experience.)

Second, did I mention, I strongly dislike amusement parks, big crowds and large groups of whiny children? I really didn't want to go but I didn't want to be Debbie Downer and prevent my kids from this so-called "experience of a lifetime" either.

By my second adult beverage, I was agreeing to go to the Magic Kingdom and the reservations were made for four nights at the Fort Wilderness Campground at Walt Disney World. (By the way, you need to make reservations at least 3 days in advance. Mickey doesn't embrace spontaneity!)

We agreed to surprise the kids and not tell them until we were pulling into the park. Here's their reaction as they finally realized what was going on. (And let me tell you, it took them a while to figure it out. You would think all of the "Welcome to Disney World" and "Magic Kingdom" signs would be a dead give-away.)


"Yes! We're goin' to Disney World!"

I have to admit, I had fun. We all did and I'm really glad we went. I have even gone so far to make comments like, "The next time we come here..."

Here are some more shots from the Magic Kingdom.