I WENT THERE, MOMMY!!! :-)

Many people are surprised to learn that Harry has already been to Disney World---let alone that he has been there THREE times! People ask if he gets anything out of it. People ask why we didn't wait longer. People ask weren't you already there this year? Well, he has a blast. We went the first time because we needed a vacation and wanted to go to a place we could enjoy and not worry if Harry screamed. He had so much fun before he was a year old that we went back just after his 2nd birthday. He loved it all once again, and that was before he knew any of the characters. Now he watches Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, has Stitch sneakers and wears Buzz Lightyear Pull-Ups, so he knows who's who. I took him as a single parent this time, but it was still a blast, even though we missed Kevin. When we got back, Kevin commented that Harry sounded like a different kid. I think it is because Harry's new experiences broadened both his horizons and his vocabulary.
Harry and I left out of Philly so that we could travel with my family. There were 16 of us in total: 5 kids, 11 adults. Harry and I drove up to the airport Sheraton on Thursday. We chatted the whole way. When we got close, I told him to look for Island Avenue. He said okay and said there'd be frogs. Frogs? I asked. Coqui! was his response. Coqui Island! This guy misses nothing. Coqui is a frog from Dora the Explorer that lives on an Island.
We got to the hotel and had dinner with everyone before heading to the pool to jump in and flip into the water. First, I noticed a major mistake I had made. Snoedel was missing from our group! I ran back to the car and found him in the middle of the parking lot! Luckily, no one had run him over in the course of the hour he was out there! Whew!
So, we flew Southwest and got to Orlando at 9:30 AM. Went to our Disney resort. Waited for our bags. And waited. And waited. Harry wanted desperately to get in the pool...but only with me. Kayla wouldn't do. None of us had bathing suits, but we at least had a few swim diapers. I held Harry in by his arms and ended up soaked while wearing jeans. Yuck.
Dinner at Chef Mickey. Lots of characters that Harry was only comfortable saying good-bye to. He was very proud of that, however. After all, it was a big step. And he did come close to an actual interaction with Dale. He was happy to interact with humans, and was also proud of himself when he said hi. I said Hi, Mommy!
Next day Harry slept in after getting a cold. We missed breakfast with the princesses, but he was well enough to go to Animal Kingdom. He rode some dinosaurs, played with a water bottle fan, and enjoyed the safari.
Next day we did Magic Kingdom (I may have reversed this). Harry insisted we all ride the train first, and half of the group did. That half of us missed the Space Shuttle launch by about 3 minutes. The other half said it looked like a bullet shooting into the sky!
Harry rode the Indy cars and walked around. I found a cool play-doh like substance called Mars Mud. It's awesome and occupied him a lot.
Dinner at Ohanas at The Polynesian was, well, annoying. Harry cried the entire time. But, he did it while sitting on my lap with his head over my shoulder. I was able to finish my dinner a nd escort him out...at which point he perked up and actually went about singing for the rest of the evening (his repertoire includes Twinkle Twinkle, Mary Had a Little Lamb, Row Row Row Your Boat and ABCs)! Instead of strangling him, we hopped on a boat, went back to Magic Kingdom, rode the traina nd got some ice cream. Brown. It started raining, Harry didn't want to see the parade so we headed back to the shuttle buses (his absolute favorite part of the trip). We somehow managed to score 3 seats on the crowded bus. Adults tend to feel uncomfortable about having an open seat when others are standing, but Harry put his head on my lap, strectch out and fell asleep. Luckily people thought he was cute and I had no less than 5 offers to help me get my things off of the bus, which I accepted.
Didn't mean to spend the whole next day at MGM, but we did. Harry mostly walked around. He found a cool sorcerer's hat at the store beneath the big sorcerer's hat. He looked adorable. He went to the Stunt Show with everyone, but it was very loud and he held my hands over his ears for 3/4 of the show before I left. He liked it, but he doesn't like loud noise. The next day when we were watching the hotel channel, he was thrilled as could be to see the stunt show on TV and exclaim I went there, Mommy! I went there! He sounded like a little Will Ferrell, excited that he knew Santa.
That night we left early and played at the pool with the Decker kids and Toni & Dom, but not before my dad went on Tower of Terror. We convinced Harry to tell everyone PopPop screamed and cried. Of course, it wasn't a joke to Harry. Harry was worried that it made him (PopPop) feel bad and feel sick. He is a very considerate child...when he is not hitting me and screaming Get Me Out Of Here! from his stroller. The kid loves to walk and run. He will "Take a Break" and sit in the middle of the pavement every now and then, but mostly he walks the entire day. He loves it.
AFter a quick trip to Epcot where we watched O, Canada! and rode the Maelstrom, we headed back to the hotel, back to the airport, to BWI and home again. Harry had fun, we enjoyed the family time, and I realized I could take Harry to Dinsey pretty much by myself...even though the family support was invaluable...especially from Kayla and the little kids!