We started our last day of our trip at Ben’s favorite park, Epcot. Test track is his favorite ride and he just likes the feel of Epcot.
We were moving a little slowly because we stayed in MK too late the night before but we still made RD, just the back of RD rather than the front. No worries though, it was a crowd level 3 which I have to say is awesome. We usually travel to WDW the first week in June which is much more crowded. The day my daughter and I were there it was a 9. I sure could tell the difference.
We rode Soarin at RD, my favorite ride at Epcot. We walked right on. I would have gone again but Ben was being drawn to Test Track. We rode that with only a 20 minute wait and then again single rider which was walk on. We even got lucky and got in the same car. We then used our FPP to ride again. I actually wish I had saved my FPP for MK for later in the day as this was the only FPP we used at Epcot and it still wasn’t very necessary. Live and learn.
We headed to Sum of all Thrills. There was a small line which I actually welcomed because I needed the time to check into the flight for the next day. If your flying Southwest and haven’t paid for early check-in, set the alarm on your phone or watch because it is so easy to lose track of time. Check-in was successful, A56 and A57.
I was worried after we finished our coaster because I forgot to set the thrill level at the bottom but the default must be set to be more thrilling because the result was fine. When I had done this with DD, she set it at 3 and that was totally boring. Ben liked it but was ready to move on.
Off to Club Cool and then Piggy Bank. He may be getting a little old for Piggy Bank but it is a sentimental favorite. Then a trip on the Land, another favorite of his.
One more trip on Test Track single rider and then some shopping. He hates to shop but I had to bring something home for the other two kids. DD14 wanted the Winnie the Pooh ears even though they only come in a youth size and she is as big as I am now. She has grand plans for Disney bounding for next June when we take our family trip. I got Olaf for DS5. He wanted Ham from Toy Story but I couldn’t find him. He’s been happy with Olaf though. He takes him everywhere. All Ben got was the die cast Test Track car and gummy characters. He is not a souvenir kid.
That was it for Epcot. We were off to Art of Animation to finish up the arcade card and pick out his prize. He may not like souvenirs but he is a sucker for arcade prizes and he liked the arcade at AoA better than POP. That was a good opportunity to try out Landscape of Flavors at AoA. We each got the make your own pasta. It was pretty good. He finished up the card and we waited out the rain that came through before walking back to POP for a short rest.
We finished our night in MK. I grabbed a Space FPP as soon as we got in the park. Space is now his favorite MK ride so even though we had a FPP we still headed that way to check out the line. No wait times were being shown on MDE so I wasn’t sure what was going on. When we got there, there was a line outside of it and the ride was closed. We decided to wait a few minutes to see what would happen. Five minutes later it reopened and we walked right on!
Then it was the Laugh Floor, again! I don’t know what it is about that, but he loves it as does my DD14. He dislikes all other shows but not this one. He even likes the little preshow while waiting to go in. Whatever makes them happy.
He wanted a corn dog for dinner (I ate so much better when I took my daughter) but they were out of corn dogs at the cart in Frontier land and the cart over by Magic Carpets was closed so it was off to Casey’s for corn dog nuggets. At least this time I knew to only order one.
For dessert, he wanted a churro – too many times at the Laugh Floor, he had to know what a churro was.
Final ride was Space using our FPP. Good thing we had it because the wait was 110 minutes, probably from it being down earlier. It took 20 minutes using FPP. The line for standby didn’t look long, but they were going nowhere. The only people riding were FPP.
With that, we said goodbye to the Magic Kingdom and headed back to pack.
Back in the room, I remembered to check the Bible and I found a liner note from @mezzmouse from December 2013. That was very cool and I left one for another liner to find.
And so completes my solo trips with my kids. Yes, I have one more but he’s only 5 and I’m not taking him on his own trip for a while. The vacation funds are dried up and all he says is “I don’t want to ride any scary rides” (his definition of a scary ride is Dumbo) so I’m in the clear with him for a while.
I am enormously blessed to have been able to take both of my kids on their own trips this summer. My DH had extra money from a project at work and not only did he let me take that for these trips but then he held down the fort while I was gone. Honestly, I had more fun when I went with my daughter as she and I are like minded and I got to do with her so many things I had always wanted to do, but I think this trip with my son was more important. He is my middle child and he has a lot of struggles. He has been diagnosed with anxiety, depression and ADHD inattentive. His social skills are not the best either. He has a very dramatic, high maintenance 14 year old sister and a demanding 5 year old brother. I spend a great deal of time and energy worrying about him and trying to provide him with all of the tools he needs to survive and be successful but what I realized on this trip was that he fades to the background way too much in the crazy home we live in. I love him with every fiber of my being but I need to talk to him more and not just about whatever problem he is having but just showing more interest in what he likes and what is going on in his head. This trip showed me that and that is priceless.
We first took our kids to Disney when he was 3 and his sister was 6. Until this year of multiple trips, we have taken an annual trip almost every year since then. Yes, the rest of my family thinks we are crazy, but this is our place to escape, just for a little while, the tremendous stress of life and most important, gives us time to just be together and in a place that everyone can find something they like to do be it rides, games, shows, arcades, swimming, eating, an afternoon nap and so much more. It is more than just making memories. It is recharging for what is ahead and it is learning more about each other and that is so important.
I have subscribed to TP for years but only discovered chat in January. I am thankful for all I have learned, everyone I have met and the ability to share.
Thanks for reading and best wishes for magical and meaningful trips for everyone!
