Disney: Anna's 9th birthday trip with Mom

Somehow the 9th birthday has become quite the milestone year in our family as it's when you get a weekend away with Mom.  Sadly this was our very last 9th birthday trip so now I'm thinking about resurrecting it for 16th year old birthdays.  Maybe I should be generous and offer up a dad and daughter trip??

I was thrilled to be able to pick up Anna from school and whisk her to the airport - and thankful that the President's Day long weekend falls around her birthday.  She didn't know where we were going until we got off the plane and made it to Disney's Magical Express bus at the Orlando airport.  So fun to surprise her.

You can see from all the pictures below all the fun and memorable time we had together.  She's a special girl and I'm so blessed to be her mom.  And many thanks to Jake and then Gammy and Poppy for holding the fort down at home so that we could take this trip.

Loving her book so much she's reading in the taxi on the way to the airport

Lunch at the airport - found a yummy Mexican place at Reagan National

More reading while we wait to board - I think she's reading "The War That Saved My Life" which is a wonderful book if you haven't read it.

On the Disney Magical Express bus heading to our hotel.  We put on our magic bands which are great - they let us get into our hotel room, pay for food, track our Disney photos and check in for our Fast Pass rides

Our balcony at the Disney Yacht Club hotel - we loved this hotel.  Our room was on a quiet, green part of the property but we could walk to Epcot and to the Disney Boardwalk.

Our first ride - Aladdin's Magic Carpet.  Anna's not a roller coaster person so this was about as adventurous as we got on this trip.

Had the old-fashioned Disney train at Magic Kingdom almost to ourselves. 

Dumbo!

Teapots!

Getting ready to go for a spin

Anna behind the wheel

Race car selfie

Getting to see Belle close up

Getting to meet Belle

It's a Small World

Anna loved the small world ride

People mover train

Teacups again

Lakeside pizza at the Boardwalk (within walking distance for us)

Anna's birthday gift from the trip.  She saw this in a Disney magazine in our hotel so we had a mission to find it while we were there. Success on Main Street!

Our only big breakfast of the trip - I *think* that is a Mickey Mouse waffle with lots of whipped cream, sprinkles and chocolate chips on top... (breakfast of champions).  

This was Anna's actual birthday - look who came by to wish her a happy birthday??

I got a hug, too.

More birthday attention

And a birthday card signed by all the Disney buddies and a cupcake (again, remember breakfast of champions day...).  Even sweets-loving Anna was too full of sugar and sweets to eat her cupcake.

Tree of Life at Animal Kingdom

Anna absolutely *loved* the land of Pandora (from the Avatar movie).  Even I was impressed with the amazing "world" they built.  She loved seeing all the fantastically creative plants and 'floating' island.  Many pictures from there below.  I don't have any photos because it was dark but we had a FastPass to a ride called Na'vi River Journey.  Anna almost didn't get on (which would have been such a shame because people were waiting in line for two hours to ride it), but luckily a nearby mom heard her and talked her into it.  The boat looked a little like a log ride boat and Anna was terrified it would be a scary ride.  She absolutely loved that ride and I wish we could have done it again.  It was a very tame night journey float down a Pandora river but the lights and the amazing plants and wildlife were just so well done.  Anna was positively entranced the whole time.

Now on to other parts of Animal Kingdom

Checking out some fish

And gorillas

On our safari

Bats during the nature walk!

Time for an afternoon snack!

Next stop: Hoop-De-Do Review.  Fun "He-Ha" like show

They throw your food down on your table in a bucket with a loud clang.

Anna getting birthday wishes from a performer

Kids get to play a musical instrument, too!

All decked out with her new purse again.  This stop: Epcot

Germany?  Great train set

Wonderful German ladder performers.

Panda bush!

Drawing class!

Olaf!

I got to draw him, too.

Mid-day break to take a dip in the hotel pool.  We loved the location of our hotel that enabled this.  Given that it's February, the only time it was warm enough to swim was the middle of the day.

Back to Epcot for Round 2 (evening)

We made it all the way until the fireworks and when the park closed

All worn out - small nap at the Orlando airport on our way home.

Now time for a family celebration

Really fun unicorn birthday card from Uncle Dan and Aunt Susan

A few photos that the Disney photographers took of us:

Look!  Sven showed up in Norway before we rode the Frozen ride

Tinker bell came for a visit!

Foggy start to our day at Magic Kingdom!