Disney Day Two... Animal Kingdom

On day two we woke up just as excited as we were on day one!  We couldn't wait to get to our next adventure in Animal Kingdom!!!

On day two, we also had a new game plan!

After doing some research prior to our trip, we had decided that the things that WE wanted to do in Animal Kingdom could probably be accomplished in half a day.  Soooo... our plan was to do Animal Kingdom Wednesday morning until around lunch... then we would go back to our resort for lunch/swim/nap (haha - we got to the lunch and nap part) and then we'd hit Epcot.  We very much enjoyed the mid-day break!

This Daddy was all about videoing (and the video of the trip turned out like a PERFECT 45 minute movie) and about navigating!  Here is a tip for future Disney goers... GET THE AP!  There is a Disney Ap that has interactive GPS maps, shows all the food and vendor locations with menus, shows the wait times for all the rides, everything!  As I am directionally challenged, Chris navigated and coordinated the whole trip!

On the advice of our dear friend, Lauren, a professional Disney vacationer, lol, we headed first thing to the safari!  She suggested this so that we would be more likely to see more animals... and boy did we!

We saw animals I have never seen in person before, and NEVER so close!  We saw both white and black Rhinos!!

Hippos!!!!

Different types of Giraffes - some of which walked right past our truck!

Check it out... the one with the fat horns is the boy and behind him with the skinnier horns are the girls!

Here is the male elephant of the herd (as if I have to point that out).  I was going to try a fig leaf or something to cover his, well, you know... but there wasn't one BIG enough! lol!!!  We enjoyed joking about this the entire trip!  Funny thing, not a single child (Lily included) even noticed his "5th leg"... sweet innocence!  We got to see the babies he'd been making two... a one year old and a six week old - so cute!

Pumbaa?  Is that you?

A warthog!

We have TONS more pictures from our safari, but I don't want to bore you.  The safari was "not recommended for expectant mothers" but after talking to Lauren and Megan about it and speaking with the attendant, I decided I would be okay.  Chris manned the camera, and I braced my belly, but it turned out to be just fine!  Basically the attendant told us it was like riding a school but on a dirt road and I figured that couldn't be much more bumpy/jerky than riding in a golf cart with Chris Hooper, lol, and I was right!  I was SO glad that I decided to go and didn't stay back - it was REALLY neat!

After the Safari, we headed to the Tree of Life for "It's Tough To Be a Bug!"

HOW FUN!

This was probably our second favorite in the Animal Kingdom!  It was interactive 3-D multimedia show hosted by Flick from A Bug's Life.  Complete with being sprayed by a stink bug, lol.  We laughed a lot and had a big time!

We also saw the Lion King.

What an AMAZING show!

I have to take a break here to tell you what Chris and I had decided about souvenirs!  We had discussed what we would do about buying things before the trip, because we were sure that Disney would be an overload to all the senses, especially the "buy me!" sense. lol.  So, on the plane ride, we explained to Lily her budget.  She got $10 each day of our trip to spend on anything she wanted.  She could save it over all four days and have $40 on the last day or use it up each day.  She is such a good little spender!  She had calculated each day how much she would have if she didn't spent it... she would look at something a deduct the price to see how much she would have left!  She put a lot of thought into it.  Day 1 she just looked, but Day 2 in the Animal Kingdom, she was ready to buy!  She made the best purchase of the trip, by far, as her first purchase!  An autograph/photo album with matching pen!  And wouldn't you know, right after her purchase we found a character...

It was Flick!  He was the first signature in her book!  This began a scavenger hunt for characters and was, by far, one of the most fun things about her trip!  Lily wanted to fill every page of her book and it was a challenge we were all up for!  :-)

Pocahontas got  the second spot!

Followed by Meeko!

While we were there at the Animal Kingdom we wandered through Asia and Africa soaking up the sights and sounds!  They make it so real, it's as if you have been transported!  We did a jungle cruise down the Amazon and walked some trails that led us to otters and fish and all kinds of little critters!

The Animal Kingdom was great, but by lunch we were ready to rest our feet, feed our tummies, and take a break before we geared up for a LATE night of Extra Magic Hours at Epcot!

(Day 2, part 2 coming up...)