This was the turning point of the trip.  We approached the park with a plan to deal with the crowds.  Worry only about Fastpass rides, rides with short wait times & entertainment.

At opening we headed straight to the Pirates of the Carribean & waited about 10 minutes.  A little disappointed that after the major refurb that there wasn't more characters from the movie(s).  The 7 yr old appreciated recognizing Capt Jack but the adults were a tad let down.  Still a classic great ride!!  We then took turns going thru the Haunted Mansion, neither of the little ones wanted to do this one.  Wait times were very short & did not take long to get 2 sets thru.

We ate breakfast at the River Belle Terrace.  Definately the best place in the park for a quick breakfast. Very good & hot when we sat down.  We then headed up to Critter Country & rode the Winnie the Pooh ride again.  Down to the rafts to go over to the Pirates Lair Island.  Then we headed back to Critter Country to catch the characters.  We got into line & saw Pooh & Eeyore but no Tigger......  We then did the Jungle Cruise which is usually a relaxing 7 minute ride but with the crowds they sped it up & getting any pics were almost impossible.  We loaded, rode & unloaded in 5 minutes.  We then caught the Enchanted Tiki Room Show.  After this we took the kids out between the parks to run around while we relaxed in the shade.  This is a key hint for crowded days with small children....... take them out & let them run free, their moods changed & we ALL were much happier.  While we did this, we cut Derek (18 yr) free to ride as many rides as he could as a single rider.  While he was gone, a winner of the "Dream Fastpass" was tired & leaving & he gave Derek his passes.  This pass gave Derek a fastpass for everyride that offers fastpasses in both parks.  The guy had only used 2 of them (what a waste) so Derek had a blast.

We went back into the park to stake out a spot for the Parade of Dreams.  While waiting, Adaleah danced & sang in the street entertaining the crowds.  It was soooooo cute!!  We were at the Beauty & the Beast stop which was great.  (last trip we had Pinocchio & Alice).  After the parade we stayed to watch the Flag Retreat ceremony.  Very moving (if you're an American).  Glad we planned this into our trip.

We spent the rest of the evening riding our FastPass rides & going back over to DCA to have dinner at the Pacific Wharf.  It had gotten quite chilly this evening & the hot soup in the sourdough bowls definately hit the spot.

We watched the fireworks from Paradise Pier.  Addy had to see them......anytime she heard them we had to stop dead in our tracks so she could watch them.

**Pixar Play Parade Cancelled again**

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       "A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes...."

I don't suppose you tried ART again  this morning did you?

Leanne

May All Your Days Be Filled With Magic!  And your nights full of Disney Dreams!

Leanne

May All Your Days Be Filled With Magic!  And your nights full of Disney Dreams!

It was day two they never came for us.

After that they were somewhat close to time.  Pick up times started at 7 (6:20 on early entry days) & ran ever 20 minutes.  We were picked up for the 7am pickup usually by 7:15am.  At the Motel 6 we felt like the ugly stepsisters of the motel stops.  We definately were last on the list for picking up guests & we always occupied 90% of the bus.  Very few at the other 2 motels.  They could easily run a bus just for Motel 6 & we told the manager at the motel that.

The entire bus experience was unpleasant & very hard to do with small children.  Balancing a sleeping 2 1/2 & a stroller, bags & young children having to stand as we bounced down the road & cornered was a real struggle.  For people with older children, teens or no children could probably do fine with the current system.  God forbid we had gotten into an accident it would have been ugly.  (there's a reason small children are seatbelted & in car seats)

       "A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes...."

Kristi