Our trip to Disney World this year has been several years in the making. My mom said several years ago that she would like all of her kids and grandkids to go with them to Disney for their 35th wedding anniversary. I don't think I thought it would ever really happen. And to think we've added 5.5 kids since the discussions began! We had 20.5 Sudlows all together!
The "big group" trip went really well. Everyone chose what days they went, what hotel they stayed at, and for the most part, what restaurants they ate at. It's very difficult to do things with everyone, so we only planned a couple of things for the whole group. Then two or three families would make plans here or there, but a lot of us were on our own for a lot of the time. It was a good balance. We learned a few things in case we ever do it again. We took A LOT of pictures. Here are some highlights:
Our family spent a half day at Animal Kingdom, where we ran into the Phil Sudlow family, which was really fun!
On the first night, we got to do group teacups:
We all got to watch the light show and fireworks, which was one of the best parts of the whole trip!
Grandma Teresa made matching dresses for all of the girls, even Hazel and Madelyn who must not have been around in this moment:
We got to eat in Italy with Papa Ed and Grandma Teresa:
Hannah got to do the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique again.
She got a gift card from Uncle John and Aunt Becky for her birthday:
We ate at Belle's castle, and all of the girls wore their princess dresses for a picture:
Hannah and Jacob were still into meeting the characters. Aleah did NOT like Pluto or Goofy.
They really scared her, but she liked almost everyone else.
Hannah bought a fan in Japan; she LOVES it!
For the first time ever, we took a 1/2 day to swim at the resort. The kids had a blast. We stayed 8 days this time, instead of our normal 7, so we felt like we had a few extra hours to do this!
I couldn't resist buying these Minnie ears for Aleah:
One of my most favorite moments of the whole trip was The Osborne Christmas Lights at Hollywood Studios. It was the last year they are doing them, so I'm really glad we made it back once more. We actually made it two separate nights, once with everyone and once just with our family. The night it was just our family, the street was empty, and we got to stand in the middle of the street and dance and enjoy. It's a night I'll never forget.
Hannah LOVES the teacups and making them spin faster and faster:
Another absolute favorite of mine is the castle at Christmas time. It is absolutely one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. I cannot get enough of it:
After much deliberation, Jacob's prized souvenir was a Woody doll and a small R2D2.
Our resort was amazingly nice. We upgraded this year and stayed at The Wilderness Lodge. It would be hard to go back down after staying there!
One "big ticket" event that we didn't know if we'd make was meeting Elsa and Anna. We were able to get a fast pass for the last hour we were there on the 8th day! We were so glad because Hannah was so happy!
Another fun night was meeting up with my sisters and their families in Epcot:
Aleah enjoyed Mickey and Minnie. They were the right size for her:
The girls wore their Belle dresses to dinner one night:
Josh and I had fun making silly faces on the Buzz ride since we know where the cameras are ;)
The girls loved Story time with Belle.
We ran into Gaston at Belle's castle, haha!
Jacob enjoyed roller coasters a bit more than Hannah. I couldn't go on them since I'm pregnant. If you closely, you can see Jacob laughing his head off and Hannah looking a bit terrified:
Aleah really liked Tinker Bell, which is who she was for Halloween this year!
Phil, Hayden, and Josh got to ride Expedition Everest 3 times in a row in the pouring rain because there was no line! They said the 3rd time was a mistake. They were feeling a bit queasy by then:
Awesome picture from Rock 'n Roller Coaster:
It was a great trip. Lots of great memories were made. Some of our family even caught the Disney bug and now want to return!
