EPCOT = every person comes out tired (day 6)

This morning we were Tired (with a capital T) These are long and active days we’re pulling, and though fun… we need to watch out that we don’t over exert ourselves (especially the kid)

We not so much got up, as oozed out of bed. We took enough time, so there wasn’t a rush like yesterday. After a nice breakfast of ‘create your own breakfast bowl’ (which is basically a big bowl of scrambled eggs with chosen ingredients, such as diced bacon, chopped tomatoes and onions, etc, on top.) we headed out to Epcot.

Arriving a little earlier than planned, we ended up in the middle of the long line of people who were in time for the opening ceremony. We had forgotten our suntan lotion, so I got some from the little cart that sells… everything.

Elora was fascinated by the people in front of us who had a lot of very cool Disney tattoos. She was especially impressed with the Figment on the lady’s leg. We got to talking to them, and they were lovely. I got a compliment about my Nightmare Before Christmas / Beatles crossover t-shirt. I’ve been getting a lot of compliments for my ‘nerd shirts’ here. I’m definitely amongst ‘my people’. *grin*

I have to admit, I was a little disappointed that they changed it. No more characters, just a voice over the intercom and some confetti. Big whoop.

Normally we would join the masses and run to Soaring, but we had fastpasses, so we gave the ‘running with the bulls’ a miss. Definitely more relaxed. Our first ride was our favorite, Spaceship Earth. It’s the huge silver ball that is the symbol of Epcot. It’s old and cheesy and absolutely wonderful.

Figment was next, and I actually scored a shirt with Figment on it. Yay me! Elora and I went on the mission space and got some dried astronaut ice cream and strawberries. Up next was Daan’s favorite ride, Soaring. It really is very cool. A quick lunch was needed, because we truly are turning into hobbits here. We shared chicken and Mongolian beef, which were both pretty nice. Last, but not least, we found Nemo *snort*

Then it was time to go, because the Noodles were a bit cooked. Elora was so tired, she was actually getting annoying. She was really upset that we told her that she needed to rest. The way she was complaining, you would think we told her to do Hercules’ chores, instead of rest.

After moaning that she couldn’t sleep, she fell asleep for 4 hours… so I guess she was more tired than she thought.

We dragged her out of bed in time for Chip and Dale at the Garden Grill. Still one of our favorite restaurants. It was lovely, though the dessert wasn’t as good as it used to be. The characters were amazing. They really played around with Elora, and she loved it. She felt so special. I had underestimated how much she still enjoys the character experiences. The way she acted before we went, I thought she was getting too big for them, but while we’re here, the little girl in her comes out again. I love seeing that, she’s so adorable.

There was a heart-breaking moment after the meal. We got a birthday card (it was probably for me, since my birthday is coming up, and we sort of mentioned that we were half celebrating that) and Elora said: “Can I have it? I only had 2 birthday cards this year.” I didn’t realize that was so important to her, so next year I’m going to ask a big bunch of people to send her cards. Of course I let her have this one.

After dinner we wanted to go see some of the less popular rides, but they were all closed, so we decided to go home instead. We were still tired, and it was already after 7 pm.

I promised Elora she could get some ‘swag’ for her wristband (I can’t gush enough about those things) and we ended up in the hotel shop. I got some more Christmas decorations (geek squee) and some funky pens for my office. I’m really struggling with this ‘no buying stuff for Elora’. She has her own money to spend, which means I can’t spoil her rotten, and she needs to really decide what she wants and doesn’t want. Her plan is to safe up as much money as she can, and buy a horse ranch when she comes home, for her toy horses. I hope she makes it.

The night ended quiet. Elora got to watch a bit of TV. I think we’ll have some calmer evenings in the next two nights, because we need to recharge. Tomorrow we have Animal Kingdom on our schedule, which should be wonderful.

So far this holiday is a lot of laughs.