Afternoon with the Princesses

Today was our big Princess day. Beginning with the Princess Fantasy Faire, the kids got to hear stories told by some of the princesses. Then they made crowns and learned princess etiquette as well as some new dances. Zander was a real trouper and didn't mind one bit. Of course Natalie couldn't have been more excited to see the princesses.
She was a little star struck and shy at first, but she soon warmed up to everything. There was a beautiful May pole dance in addition to the other dances they learned.

As soon as the Faire was over it was off to California Adventure for our lunch at Ariel's Grotto. Our reservations were for outdoor seating, as the inside was already filled up all week. I prayed for nice weather and although it was a little breezy, the sun was out and it looked like the rain that was forecasted wasn't going to give us any trouble. By the time we got to our table, the wind picked up a bit, but fortunately, we all had jackets.

When I made the reservations, I mentioned Ariel was her favorite princess...this really paid off, as Natalie got to spend extra special time with Ariel. When she first came to our table, she took Natalie aside for a little dance. The two twirled around and I just knew Natalie was having the time of her life...again, totally could have cried...but then who would take the pictures, right? Before we left in the morning, I asked Natalie if she wanted to draw a picture for Ariel. She got right on it and as a result, got extra hugs from her favorite mermaid. Ariel told her she was going to keep it in her special treasure chest and reminded Natalie to eat all her seaweed (veggies)...after that, the green beans were gone. Every last one.
The autograph books really came in handy and we got 5 princesses autographs all in one sitting. Much better than waiting in line for them!
When I made the reservations, I also mentioned we were celebrating Natalie's birthday (even though it was really in December) They brought out a dish of ice cream w/ a candle for Natalie, but had a hard time lighting it due to the wind. Ariel helped Natalie blow it out. Just as we finished our lunch the wind really picked up, by the time we left the restaurant, it started to rain...The timing couldn't have been better. We walked back to our hotel for some much needed rest.

Later that night we returned for the parade and went on the It's a Small World ride...then we called it a night. It was truly a magical day!