Riding Rides and Meeting New Friends

Bradley's first ever Walt Disney World attraction?

Peter Pan! Despite the blurry photo, I think he liked it.

We used a stroller to walk around Magic Kingdom, then I put him in the Baby Bjorn for the lines and rides-- that way he couldn't somehow squirrel out of my arms! It worked well.

Bradley was pretty serious on all of the rides:

Even when I tried to get him excited:

 (Although, after Dumbo I put him in the "fake Dumbo" for some photos. There was a line, so Bradley had a bit of an audiance... and wow, did that little guy perform!)

Peek-a...

 Boo!

On the rides, though he was very observant. Wasn't scared of anything, but didn't really clap and laugh, either.

Until... the TIKI ROOM!

This kid LOVED those animatronic birds!

Really, really loved them.

It took him 15 minutes to calm down after we saw the show!

It was, by far, the highlight attraction for Bradley.

He also met a princess, which he didn't mind:

And the big cheese himself, which didn't go quite as expected:

It almost looks like he's smiling in that photo, but trust me... that's a squirm and a whimper.


All in all, Bradley was a TROOPER and his first visit to the Magic Kingdom was a success! He was there for the opening (9am) and stayed through until it closed (7pm)-- with two snoozes in the stroller. No major meltdowns lots of rides! Now there's only one thing to do... plan our next trip!

Animal Kingdom Lodge- Kidani Village

For Bradley's first hair cut trip, we decided to stay at Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge-- Kidani Village. We chose the Kidani side because it's the "vacation club home" side. That means we had a mini-kitchen which is so nice to have when traveling with a toddler!

But, the real reason we wanted to stay there was the balcony:

It overlooks the Savannah... meaning you get to see...

Animals! Lots and lots of animals!

I was pleasantly surprised with how many animals there were (and how close)! Bradley made a noise while we were on the balcony and a zebra stopped eating and looked up at us.

Another perk of the resort? A great pool!

Bradley loved walking into the pool himself and kept going until he'd plunge face-first into the water. I'd panic, but he always came up laughing!

Then we checked out the splash pad:

Which he also loved, of course:

A short walk to the other side of the resort gave us access to a great playground:

Bradley has just discovered the joys of slides... and this one had FIVE different ones for him to run to, point at, then grunt until Daddy agreed to pick him up and let him fly!

This was a great resort that I'd recommend anyone-- but we especially found it convenient for traveling with our little guy.

Behind the scenes at the Magic Kingdom

Adorable photo, right?

My sweet baby boy, walking up to the castle.

How about this one?

Mother and son walk up mainstreet.

So yeah... here's what's going on behind the scenes:

Not quite the magical moment...

Ah well... he cheered up pretty fast!

Bradley's First Hair Cut

He turned one, he started school... it was about time for my little guy to get his first hair cut.

So, we did what any responsible parent does... we took him to the Harmony Barber Shop for a trim! Of course, the Harmony Barber Shop is on Main Street. The Main Street of...

The Magic Kindgom!

Yep. We went back to Disney World.

My little Mickey was ready to walk down Main Street and meet his barber:

And she couldn't have been more wonderful with him!

Bradley was a dream.

Like he's been doing this all his life:

Of course we had some toys, just in case:

And daddy recorded the whole experience (including me crying through the whole thing):

When it was all done, Bradley was awarded with a special hat:

And I was awarded with a sweet smile:

So maybe every hair cut will be this easy... if every one of them is at the Harmony Barber Shop at Walt Disney World!

Bradley's First Day of School

I was excited for Bradley to start "school" this semester.

He was excited, too! Really excited:

When that Monday rolled around, however... he was sick! Thankfully he had a quick recovery and was ready to learn on Wednesday.

Bradley loves school. I drop him off in his classroom and he never looks back! He usually runs straight to the station with the little people figures... or to the xylophone.

I miss those squishy cheeks while he's there, but he's always full of smiles and ready to play when I pick him up!

Bradley Turns One

A few days after Bradley turned one we had a small party with family and close friends. It was delightful.

Bradley's favorite toy is a ball... so we invited friends to have a "ball" at his party!

Literally.

That's our backyard. And that's 144 beach balls.

To keep with the theme, all of the food was round:

I put up all of Bradley's monthly photos:

And I still haven't been able to take them down!

We took a few family photos:

Then is was time for CAKE!

(Surrounded by the party hats.)

At first Bradley was a little confused:

But after his sweet cousins jumped in to show him the ropes:

He was hooked!

My sweet Birthday boy passed out shortly after the sugar rush.

It was a very special (and emotional!) weekend for me as my little baby is looking more like a toddler every day! (And of course, I missed taking many photo opps-- like B with his Papa P, Papa T and Mimi! Or more shots of the food... Oh well...)(Next birthday I'm making a "shot list"!)

That night Chris and I toasted to our first year of parenthood... and we look forward to many more birthdays with our little guy.