Disney 2012: Last Night and Going Home

We spent our last evening at WDW at Epcot.  The Magic Kingdom closed at 7 again for Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party.  I had toyed with the idea of going one night, but we decided to save it for another trip when the kids are older - plus, we knew we'd be up late packing.  Epcot seemed to be our best option.

Spaceship Earth was our first stop.  There had been a 20+ minute line when we went on Monday, and it was walk on when we got there that night - glad we skipped it the first time!  Claire and I rode together.  The ride has an interactive feature where it asks questions about your lifestyle and predicts what your life will be like in the future.  The camera didn't pick up Claire's face, but we were both entertained by the ride's results.

We ate dinner at the Mexico quick service restaurant - in hindsight, we should have gone a little further into the World Showcase since apparently everyone else had the same idea.  The place was packed.  It was a little stressful, but we found a table and got some food in our bellies.

We had time to visit one pavilion, and we went to Mexico to let the kids get in one last ride.  It was a gentle boat ride featuring Donald Duck (one of Will's favorite characters).  Afterwards we took our time walking out, enjoying the Christmas decorations and soaking up the atmosphere for one last time.

The next morning we got ready to leave and had time for a relaxed breakfast downstairs - the Mickey waffles were very tasty!  We got on our bus to leave, and about 10 minutes before we got the airport, I got a message from Southwest that our flight was delayed by at least 2 hours.  It was a bummer, but it worked out okay.  We had plenty of time to eat lunch, and both kids (and Robert!) took naps in the terminal before the flight.  Once again the portable DVD player came in handy - "Tangled" kept them entertained for most of our flight - and we still made it home in time to go through our usual bedtime routine.

Checking out the topiaries while waiting for the Magical Express to take us home

Money!  Between the penny press machines and her new Mickey Mouse bank, Claire got obsessed with change during our trip.

Sweet sleepers

Watching them get our plane ready before we boarded - we were able to spot two of our bags on the luggage cart

Thank you, Technology!

For days after we got back from our trip, Claire would ask when we could go back, and one of the kids' favorite activities was to pack a small bag with stuff and pretend that they were going to Disney World.  If that's not a sign of a successful trip with two kids under 5, I don't know what is.  :)  All of the planning and the navigating the logistics of traveling with two small kids were totally worth all of the smiles, excitement, and memories we made.

So long, Mickey & Friends - see in (probably) in a few years!