Day 5--Wednesday evening--October 19, 2005--The Magic Kingdom--Dinner at Cinderella's Royal Table. This evening the girls dressed up as princesses. Kara is Belle from Beauty and the Beast, and Kailey is Ariel from The Little Mermaid. We are so excited because tonight we're having dinner in Cinderella's Castle at the restaurant Cinderella's Royal Table. We arrived at the Magic Kingdom at 8:30 p.m., and our reservation is at 9:20. We thought we had plenty of time. As we made our way towards the castle, people became thicker and thicker. In front of the castle there is a roundabout with a raised curb, and there was such a sea of people that you didn't know where the road ended and where the sidewalk began. Making our way through the crowd with the stroller proved very difficult, but eventually we found ourselves close to back entrance of the palace, where we ran into a roadblock. Literally. The area was roped off and it was only 8:50 p.m. The fireworks began at 9. Raymond talked to a security guard who refused to let us in. Raymond explained how we had a reservation at 9:20 and the children are afraid of fireworks...being outside during the show was not a good idea for our family. A manager came and talked to us (which would turn out to the the first of two unhelpful "managers" this trip.) They told us it was a safety issue and no one was allowed past the barrier until the display was finished and the area had been cleared. So, Kara was crying, Raymond was mad, I was mad, and Kailey was about to be sad. We found our way to the Starlight Cafe and waited the fireworks out. Then, we stood by the barrier while two people with flashlights very slowly looked for debris. FINALLY, we were allowed into the castle at 9:30. Raymond was right...they held our reservation and the fun commenced. We were ushered to the royal parlor where we were promptly announced, "We are now seating the Royal Owens family." Kara loved this! Then we walked up the very winding, very long staircase to the top of Cinderella's castle. Raymond asked for a table by the window, so we had to wait a little longer. We were seated in the middle of the room by the center window. The view was spectacular. We overlooked the Magic Kingdom, and the carousel was in the middle. Kailey of course wanted to ride the "horhees." Then Kailey saw a spider outside the window and started screaming, "BUG, BUG!" I had as much as I could take at that moment, thinking my dinner would be ruined, so I calmly asked Kailey to PLEASE let Mommy have a nice dinner and I distracted her with water and bread. She did sit in her high chair after I moved it from the window (Kara & I had the nice view now.) Wouldn't you know that the rest of the meal was exquisite. No screaming kids and good food added up to a wonderful meal. We stayed until there were only a few people left eating. Our appetizers were shrimp cocktail and a spring roll. My main course was a queen cut prime rib; Raymond had a steak, and Kara had chicken tenders. Kailey shared Kara's meal, and she enjoyed the bread. We all had coke to drink. (Sweet tea is such a regional thing...we always get it in Charleston when we eat out, but it's not in Florida!) For dessert, Kara had ice cream, Raymond had chocolate, and I had key lime creme brulee (delicious!). [Final tab on the Disney Dining Plan: $129. It'll be hard getting back to reality!] After the meal, we took pictures in Cinderella's castle. The castle tour was closed, and we never made it back this trip. But we got to see beautiful mosaic murals that the girls are posing in front of in the pictures to the left. We also took pictures in front of knights and a royal chair. I bought a souvenir mug to remember our dinner at the royal table. Tonight is Disney's Extra Magic Hours benefit for guests staying at Disney resorts, so we were able to enjoy the Magic Kingdom until Midnight (then we turn into pumpkins). Kailey was eager to ride the carousel, and since it's about the only ride my baby girl will go on, we rode the carousel three times. Daddy was getting tired of this though, so we thought we'd give It's a Small World a try. Kailey surprised me and actually went on the ride without hysterics. There were a couple of times she wimpered, but we pointed out fun things so she calmed down. It was a joy for me to be on that ride with my family. Afterwards, Daddy and Kara went on Peter Pan (twice) while Kailey and I went to Pooh's Playground (what a wonderful find! Kids Kailey's age can run and play instead of looking at exhibits or riding scary rides. Such fun!) At 12:00 a.m. on the dot, Daddy and Kara walked up as the attendant said, "we're closed." What great timing, and I'm so glad it worked out that way. I could just imagine having to pull Kailey away from the playground and wait for them while she screamed. But it all worked out. A very tired Owens family walked to the buses and two sleeping princesses arrived safely to their beds. We truly did have a magical evening.
