go big and go home (disney days 5 & 6)

After our night of staying at the Magic Kingdom until 2am, you might think we would have taken a break from going back to the parks for a day. But we had 7-Day Park Hoppers, and we were going to milk those suckers for all they were worth. On Monday we hit Disney’s Hollywood Studios, which is similar in feel to Disney’s California Adventure over in our neck of the woods.  It’s a quieter, gentler park, and we spent our time there taking in several shows.  We watched the Pixar parade, we saw the Little Mermiad show, we watched the Beauty and the Beast musical and the Playhouse Disney show, and then caught the Disney Channel street performance. It was a nice mellow day to follow our frenzied evening of ride-hopping.  Meanwhile, Mark and the boys caught the Indiana Jones show and Star Tours. Monday evening, we celebrated Karis’ third birthday at my mom’s house along with all of the cousins.  It was a simple affair – cupcakes, store-bought decorations, and a few presents. She loved it.   After opening presents, the cousins engaged in their favorite game of Pile On Derek.  My nephew Derek is a very, very good sport. On our last day, Mark and I decided to split up. I went back to the Magic Kingdom with the girls, to fulfill a promise that we stop and chat with some princesses. Two of their cousins came with us, so we had four little girls who were very excited about doing Very Girly Things at Disneyland.    Mark and the boys went to the Blizzard Beach water park, and then back to Hollywood Studios for more roller coasters, and then on to Disney Quest where they binged on video games.  I have no photos of this time because Mark does not subscribe to my “pics or it didn’t happen” philosophy. The next day Mark and the kids flew home, but not before a little pool tine at my mom’s house.  I drove a car down to Miami to catch up with the Mom 2 Summit and Mark earned his Lifetime Merit Badge by flying home alone with four children. Fortunately I was allowed to get them through security and onto the plane, on account of Mark’s titanium legs. We all left Orlando completely exhausted, but the kids are still talking about our trip and asking when we can go back.