The Day Nick Gained 5 Pounds

For our family, it worked if we had a late night followed by a not too early morning and vice versa. On Monday morning, we woke up and started walking to Epcot about 8:40. By now, Nick was a pro at rope drops. He scurried to Soarin' and grabbed 5 fast passes. I met him at the ride with the kids & we enjoyed our first ride. I loved it and I think the kids did too. It's a virtual ride (like Star Tours) and Nick prefers the real thing. 

Afterward, I rode Mission Space with Ella (my stomach would only permit 1 ride) and then we met up with Nick (the line at Test Track was too long so he took the twins to meet characters) & let the kids spend their money. Ella picked Perry the Platypus. Charlie picked a Popemobile and Greta picked a cute little kitty in a blanket.

It worked well for us to have a set budget and one shopping stop all week. After shopping, we used our fast passes on Soarin' and headed to France for lunch. It was great timing as Future World (the part of Epcot with 99% of the rides) was super crowded. It was a tough walk. Everyone was tired & hungry & it's a bit of a haul into the World Showcase. Thankfully, there was a character in France. We learned her name is Marie & she is from the Aristocats (and Greta picked out her stuffed animal without knowing it). Everyone was in a happy mood after the visit with the kitty.

Today was the only "table service" lunch that we had. It was so nice to sit & relax & not juggle overloaded trays through a busy restaurant for a change. I picked Les Chefs de France because I knew a little animatronic friend (Remy from Ratatouille) was scheduled to make an appearance. It was quick - maybe 1 minute - but it was a fun surprise for everyone.
I was a bit concerned about choosing a French restaurant over an Italian one. But, Nick had no trouble finding food to eat. He choose the Lobster Bisque and had me order the French Onion Soup. I tried them both. He ate them both. I was surprised that he ordered the macaroni & cheese for his entree. This was not your typical orange mac & cheese. This was mac et fromage. The cheese was decadent. I have no idea how he ate as much as he did. One of Nick's favorite desserts is creme brûlée. So, I was not surprised that he ordered it. I was surprised that the portion size was closer to the size of a salad plate than a typical little dish. My stomach hurts just thinking about all the food he ate. It is good to be tall.
After lunch, we walked about Epcot & stopped for a beer in Germany. Greta waited patiently to meet Snow White for nearly 45 minutes. We were second in line. It started to rain. They temporarily paused the meet & greet. Then, they moved it to the other side of the park (a good 30 minute walk - not going to happen for us that day). And so began the only prolonged tears of our trip. Thankfully, Nick recovered quickly. I kid!
We tried to wait out the rain in Germany, but we finally bit the bullet & made the 10 minute walk to the hotel in the downpour. It quickly slowed to a drizzle. We all needed a rest before our next adventure meal.