Rockin' at the Magic Kingdom

Howdy folks - just a quick thought for you to consider while at the Magic Kingdom,

One of our favorite things to do is sit in rocking chairs at the Magic Kingdom and people watch.  Of course this is only practical if you are really tired and need a break, or are a season pass holder who goes often and can afford to sit on the sidelines and watch the action.  There are a few spots that you can find nice wooden rocking chairs just waiting to be used.
Liberty Square - look for two rocking chairs around the corner from the entrance to the Hall of Presidents - they are up on a little porch.  They provide a great view of the people passing on their way to frontier land as well as a firsthand view of those exiting the Hall of Presidents show.
Tom Sawyer's Island - Look for Aunt Polly's - it's a little sitting area perfect for sitting down to a quick snack.  There used to only be two rockers here, and often you'd have to sit in non-rockers and wait you turn (come mid-day this was quite a comical process - whenever the rocking chairs would empty, the people in the non-rockers would slide down two chairs to the right in a sitting cue).  Disney got wise to the habit though and at last check there were 8 or so rockers sitting out.   One nice thing you can do here, if your kids are old enough, is to grab a seat in your rocker while the kids explore the island - just make sure they know not to get on the raft home without you!
Briar Patch Gift Shop - Located just outside the Splash Mountain area, this rocking spot is special because the rocking chairs are inside where there is air conditioning of course, it is a bit rude to stay here too long and you will likely find them occupied 9 out of 10 times in the summer - but still a worthy spot for a quick rest and rock.  Your view is somewhat limited, however, to what you can see out the front door and to those guests in the shop.

There might be more, but that's all I can remember at the moment - couple of tips for you though, before you begin people watching in your rockers:
Time it right - make sure you have a bit of protection from the sun - our Florida rays get you quite warm, and in a hurry to
Grab a drink - it's nice to sit with a glass of something cool come mid-day or (my preference) a cup of steaming coffee in the early hours.
Attitude is everything - people watching is only fun when the attitudes of your subjects are good - early in the day, before everyone begins to get super tired tends to be a bit more enjoyable - less meltdowns to watch.
So if you want to take a little break from walking, I encourage you to grab a chair and have a look at all the other people who are having the time of their lives - some of the expressions and joy you witness will truly touch your heart.

- George

PS - One of the games we like to play is to sit on the rockers by Hall of presidents and stay perfectly still - you'd be amazed at how many people stop and try to figure out if you are real or not - especially the kids - but you really need to work at it if you want to fool them.

Where in the World Wednesdays

For something fun every Wednesday we will post a picture to see if you can guess where in the World it was taken.  Let's see how good you know Walt Disney World!

Welcome

Welcome to our blog!  We hope you enjoy viewing our photos and reading the tips, reviews, stories and all things Disney.  Our adventure began in October of 2007 with our first vacation to Disney.  We packed up our family of 8 and headed to Florida from Kansas.  That trip was magical and by the time it was over we had already booked another trip for May of 2008.  While we were on that trip we starting joking about actually moving to Florida, it would be cheaper then continuing taking vacations with our large family.  By our 3rd trip in October 2008 we had been on Disney property a total of over 30 days.  That was our last trip.  In May of 2009 we sold most of what we had and headed south.  That is an adventure to tell another time.  Our first house in Florida was beautiful, we were blessed enough to live on a golf course about 20 min from Disney.  We could even see the fireworks from a distance, we thought we would never get any closer.  Well we were wrong! We now live less then 2 miles from the Magic Kingdom and can see fireworks almost over our heads.  We are truly living our dream.  We spend a lot of time at the parks as well as exploring the resorts, Downtown Disney and the other places Disney has to offer.  Our friends are always asking us for tips or reviews on different things we experience, so we decided to start this blog and share our adventures with everyone.  So stop by often and see what new and crazy things we are up to.

If you are getting ready for a trip - or just thinking about taking one - we hope that you can find inspiration and excitement here - as well as some insight to help you get prepped for your trip.  Oh - and for all you locals out there - this blog is for you too!  Like us, we know you have great stories that simply need to be shared.
We don't want this blog to be just about us, so send us your stories and pictures.  We will try to post them as well.  Not all submissions will make it, but we will do our best to put them in.