Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party

Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party is something they do each year in Disney on select nights from mid-November to mid-December. They shut down the Magic Kingdom at 7PM on those nights and you have to have a separate admission to get in. The week before Christmas, they do the party every night and it's included in all park admissions. When we decided to tack this onto our trip, Andy and I decided it would be our Christmas presents to each other/ourselves. We had spent earlier in the day at the Magic Kingdom, but went back to the resort at 5PM to get changed into Brady's Christmas outfit and our outfits in similar colors. If you haven't noticed yet, we are kinda color-coordination in all the pictures (I'm that kind of mom).

We made it back to the park around 6:15PM and had to enter through a special gate for the event, where they took our special tickets and gave us wristbands so they could weed out any people later who tried to stay in the park for the party who didn't pay. It was rough getting down Main Street USA to ride a few rides because people were all heading for the exit.

They had the castle all lit up with lights so it looked like it had snow on it. They were also producing snow from the top of the buildings on Main Street. We noticed people were already lining the side of the streets waiting for the parade, so we checked with a cast member and they said the parade wasn't until 8:15PM. There was no way we were going to wait until then, especially since we had dinner reservations at 7:25PM. Since people were going to camp out, we decided we could get a ride in before dinner with minimal wait. We were right. We made it onto the Haunted Mansion with no wait. Brady was really good (probably because he doesn't understand scary things yet). The only time he was a little freaked out was in the room where they have the walls stretch and when the ride took us down backwards. Both of those times, he stopped fussing as soon as it was over.

Our dinner reservation was at Tony's Town Square restuarant, which is the restauarant in the Lady and the Tramp. Brady has a Tramp courtesty of his Nana, and he loves him, so it was cool they had the movie playing in the lobby while you waited for your table.

They also had coloring pages for the kids, which is great because it's hard to keep Brady entertained whenever he has to be patient and wait.

Our table was right next to this fountain, so we had a great view of it during the whole meal, which was delicious!!!

We walked out of the restaurant at 8:20PM, but since we were near the end of the parade route, the parade hadn't gotten there yet. People who had waited for 2 hours were all sitting on the side, so we walked right out of dinner, and as long as we stood, we could see everything perfectly! Not a bad deal.

Part of the party was free snickerdoodle cookies and hot chocolate all night, as much as you can eat. Brady enjoyed his first cookie while waiting for the parade from the best seat in the house (Daddy's shoulders). Below are pictures from the parade, which was so cool.

With Santa being the finale of the parade, it had me thinking this was better than Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (which my parents have gone to but left us kids in Queens). It's not as cold (it was in the mid-70s after the sun went down) and you don't have to wait forever to see it.

A family pic in front of the gorgeous lit up castle. We can't wait to see the inspiration for this castle in Germany this spring!

After the parade, we decided it was time for more rides, so we grabbed some hot chocolate for the walk and headed to Adventureland. We rode Aladdin's Magic Carpet and the Winnie the Pooh ride (second time). When we were done on Winnie the Pooh, we noticed Donald so we hopped in line to see him!

We were about to head over to another ride, when we noticed Tigger and Eeyore walking by. They are always escorted by a cast member and when I pointed them out to an extremely excited Brady, she said to follow her and that all four of them would be together for pictures. We didn't need to be told twice. People really got a kick out of how excited Brady was in line. You'd think he'd be a little less start struck, since this was the third time he'd seen them that day!

Love for Eeyore. Personally, I think he needs love the most.

So excited to see Piglet!

The whole gang!

We saw Duffy again and got some more pics with him too!

The last thing we did was ride It's a Small World. I haven't ridden this since I was 9 in Disneyland. By the time we made it to Disney World, my youngest brother had outgrown Fantasyland, so we bypassed it entirely.

Usually this is multi-colored, but for the holidays, they'd changed it to whites and golds and light blues. So pretty.

France

Germany

Italy

India

Africa

Little surfer dude. So totally Brady ;)

The last room has a few from each country. They'd also turned this to white, gold, and light blue for the holidays. It was beautiful.

The park was set to close at midnight, so by 11:30PM, we decided it was time to head back to the resort. We were so grateful for Brady's great nap that day, so he was good for so long. As soon as the bus to the resort started moving, he passed out.

He was holding onto the bar before he passed out, but kept holding on when the rest of him went limp. We chalk this up to his NYC blood and the fact that New York natives can stay standing while asleep on subways. Thanks Dubby for helping provide entertainment!

He stayed asleep on the walk from the bus to then hotel room and when we got to our room, he got his PJ's on and didn't put up a fight going to sleep. In hotels, Brady sleeps in bed with us. Since he turned 1, he refuses to sleep in a pack n' play when in the same room with us, so we don't even bother to bring one anymore.