That would be great!
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Adorable pics!
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Oh my cuteness! Cousin trips are the best!
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Such adorable kiddos 
. How special to be with cousins. Have fun!!
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I am on the east coast. I live in Pennsylvania.
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I was wondering if this was a classy way of saying bathroom break! 
But should have known with little girls it was literally a ballet break. 
The cuteness is real and I love it! Sounds like a perfect first day.
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Whew. Today was a reminder of how planning for such a large group is challenging. Epcot, grabbed Remy BG 91 (was a bit slow on the tap) and Soarinâ LL for 1200. I debated Soarinâ vs TT, but my DD5 had seen videos on Soarinâ and was super excited for it. We did a decent job getting out, but still not quite enough for that Epcot monorail change at the TTC. However, was super glad they no longer make you go through security again after arrival at Epcot! I remember that being a huge time suck. We tapped in around 0915 or 0920 and my dad immediately declared he had to have a picture of him and the grandkids sitting on the fountain. Of course we stopped, but when they saw the sea of humanity that ended up beating us to FEA, they all developed a new understanding for why I was being so serious about this.
So, we ended up those poor suckers at the end of the RD crowd getting in the FEA line inside the China pavilion. CMs told us about an hour, and they were right, however, the line moved almost continuously, so it honestly wasnât that bad. The kids stayed in good spirits and LOVED seeing Oaken in the sauna. I bought ILLs for 1445 while we were in line. Should have bought Remy, details to comeâŚ
FEA was a hit, souvenirs were acquired in the Frozen gift shop, as always, and we headed out to acquire food on the WS while making our way to Soarin. It worked pretty well, getting food and spotting princesses. We saw Snow White, Belle, and Jasmine. Got the beef tenderloin in Kenya, falafel and beef skewer in Morocco, and a couple of other things I honestly canât remember right now. My brother and his wife were set on getting food in France, which is where the plan went to die. Les Halles of course had a 30 minute line itself, so we fed the kids PB&J from the backpacks while we waited in the center benches, but my DD1 threw the biggest shitfit I have ever seen out of her. So, if anyone heard about a toddler just facedown on the ground in the France pavilion, screaming, today, that was my kid. Both times. My parents kept the others entertained while we walked her around and I tried nursing her a little in the carrier, but I think she just wanted her nap but couldnât do it in the stroller. She did finally settle down and ride in the stroller and eat some more. So after everyone ate, we headed on to The Land.
When we got there, DD1 was calmed down, but my nephew was asleep in the stroller, so my parents volunteered to just sit outside with them both while we took the big girls on Soarin. This ended up being a good idea, my DD ate some more and watched Winnie the Pooh catch butterflies. My parents have done Soarin many, many times and were fine. The girls loved it, so that was a great moment. Then we got LL for Nemo and headed over there - always a fun one. We walked straight into Turtle Talk after and were the last group in, so it started right away. My niece asked Crush how fast turtles can swim. DD5 declared it her favorite ride of the day at the end of the night.
Then we headed back to The Land and grabbed a ton of random food at Sunshine Seasons and took a break. This was a good idea. Then it was back to Norway for the FEA LL, which went well, everyone was still happy. My girls both got foam Viking swords they are overjoyed with. However, at this point, it was almost 1600, DD1 had not napped, our Remy BG estimate had already been pushed past 1700, and DD5 started crying that Mulan wasnât out in China. We cautiously pushed on, but now WS was mobbed (had been very pleasant on our morning run up until France), the sun was in the kidsâ eyes, and they wanted ânormalâ food. We plied them with snacks and pretzels, saw a few repeat princesses and saw Aurora, but our BG kept getting pushed back. I wasnât really watching the downtimes, so I donât know if that contributed? I didnât count on how hard it really is to try to pay attention to all the different factors in the park. So, I convinced everyone to just bail on Remy, we grabbed fish and chips in UK, but then while I was taking DD5 to the bathroom, our BG finally got called at 1735, the others had all decided to turn back. I didnât want anyone to feel like I was forcing them, so we went along, though DD5 insisted that she âwill be angry the whole time because I hate rats, and I hate this ride because they wouldnât call us earlier.â
DD1 had finally fallen asleep in the stroller somewhere in there, so DH volunteered to sit out with her while we braved the line. I tried to explain that it would not be a walk on with the BG, but ⌠oh well. Definitely a 40 minute wait, at least. I did LOVE the ride! Very cute, very fun. I was impressed. Of course, I havenât ridden MMRR or ROTR yet⌠Even DD5 was in a better mood and admitted she enjoyed the ride.
Apparently DD1 woke up while we were in line and had another meltdown on the streets of Paris, but was finally just cuddling my DH when I got there, so we started the trek back. That was 1830. It took over an hour and fifteen minutes to get from France to our room. I mean, I knew it would, but dang, that monorail switchover really does a number on you at the end of the day. The SSE beacon of light was truly magnificent, though. I am really glad I got to see that. And the kidsâ moods were great the whole ride back, thankfully. Then the big girls put on their princess dresses and had us all ask them questions, like the distanced meets in WS. Canât get a LL for that magic. 
I had a TON of IT issues this morning after my iOS updated in the night. Luckily the BG was fine, but when I went to reserve LLs, the app kept trying to make me log back in, emailing me a code, but then getting stuck on spinning sparkles. Had a force close several times and finally used my husbandâs phone to make the LLs. Then manually logged out of MDE, back in, entered new code, and finally got it sorted. So frustrating! Just glad it wasnât a HS day!
So, again, didnât do a ton of rides, but rode the things that we knew mattered to us, and the princess encounters on WS were really great and just what our girls wanted. Sure, I have TPs, we make plans, but I feel like weâre also doing a decent job of centering the trip on what the kids want to do, which is what really matters.
Tomorrow is MK morning, an afternoon break in the room for naps (SO NEEDED), and then HS. Will post pics from phone from today below.
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- Sorry.
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Sounds like you are all having an awesome time and that you are pivoting well when necessary! My favorite pic so far is face down on the grates in France. Iâm not joking when I say you should consider framing that one!
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Isnât it just a classic Disney tantrum??
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Literally the only thing that could have made it more epic is if she was in full princess regalia.
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The cousins and their hand-holding
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Youâre right about this! 
Question, do princesses wield Viking swords? Those are my kind of princesses if they do!
This is convincing me that my plan to buy ILL for Remy and FEA instead of Genie+ is spot on.
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If you can already see the humor and itâs only been one day, then thatâs okay. She looks adorable even pitching a fit.
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This has happened multiple times to me on our trips. Iâm like âweâre burning morning hours, people!â and everyone just wants to take photos of 50th statues or whatever.
But looking back, I donât regret that we stopped. When I just go with the flow, even if we end up waiting in longer lines, more magic tends to happen. You get tired later in the day, and never end up getting that photo at the fountain if you donât do it right then.
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100% agreed. After I get home, I plan to sit down and write some more thoughts about Genie+ and schedules and letting magic happenâŚ
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I really think itâs what I would recommend. Sure, the LL was nice for Soarin, but itâs by no means necessary there, especially if you have a whole day in the park.
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Oh, and, yes, I feel confident there will be a princess or princess/superhero hybrid at our house wielding it soon. DD5 is talented that way.
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