Drake Family Florida Vacation- Part 3- Hollywood Studios/Epcot Day

Hollywood Studios day- our second day at Disney World.
This day was full of Star Wars fun for the whole family.
If you can't tell by our shirts, we are just a family of Star Wars Geeks.
(In the second picture, we are attempting to use the force..lol. Some of us are more into it than others)

We got to the park an hour before opening and waited for them to open the gates. The reason for our early arrive was due to us trying to fulfill Tanner's greatest dream. He wanted to complete the Jedi Training offered at the Jedi Temple inside Hollywood Studios. Uncle David came to the park with us because he couldn't stand the idea of missing Tanner's Jedi training. Isn't he a cute uncle?

Aunt Sarah, Uncle Johnny and their family also joined us at Hollywood studios so we could all play together. 

So as soon as the park gates opened, Tanner and uncle David raced to get in line for the Jedi Training. As it turned out, so did everyone else in the park. It was easier for Tanner and Uncle David to race to the line then us with the stroller.

Uncle David and Tanner were victorious and Tanner secured a spot for the Jedi training.  

So after signing up for one of the very limited Jedi training spot, Uncle David and Tanner met us "animation courtyard" so we could use our first fast passes for "Disney Junior Live"

This was a big hit with all the kids 

The showed featured all our favorite Disney junior characters. It was so cute!

The kids were all totally entranced!

At one point during the "Jake and the Neverland Pirates" segment, gold doubloons fell from the ceiling and the kids lost their minds.  

The entire show was so fun and much enjoyed by all. 

Our next stop- some character meets. 

Our first stop- Meeting Jake from "Jake and the Neverland Pirates"

Tanner was pretty cute about meeting this guy. He was shy but so excited. 

Bailey was less shy and more excited about get his autograph. 

 

Tucker was a little more shy but he still gave him a big hug. So cute.

After meeting Jake, Tanner wanted to get in line to meet Chewbacca. So Aunt Sarah offered to stay with Bailey, Tucker and Max while they waited to meet Pluto and Chris, Uncle David and I took Tanner to meet Chewbacca. 

The more characters Bailey met, the more she loved her autograph book. She was quick to pull it out whenever we saw characters around the parks. It was so funny. 

And even little Tucker met the big pup Pluto. 

 As it turned out, the line for Pluto wasn't that long, so then I went back and met up with Sarah, grabbed Bailey and Tucker and we rejoined the line to meet Chewbacca. 

However, on our way back we were stopped by some Imperial Guards. They found our Jedi shirts very suspicious and wanted to question us. 

Tucker was not impressed and kept trying to hide behind me. 

However, Bailey, as fearless as ever, went over to ask for their autographs. The stormtroopers refused, telling her they were on important galactic business. 

Bailey was disappointed, but got over it quickly. 

Tanner also got to meet a Jawa. He tried to trade the Jawa a quarter for something for in his pouch, but the Jawa would take money. lol.  I guess he didn't see the value. 

Then it was time to meet the awesome Chewy. He was seriously so tall. 

We all got to shake his hand and the kids gave him hugs. 

We were so glad Uncle David was there to share in all the Star Wars magic. 

I love these Star War geeks of mine. 

Bailey gave Chewy a very enthusiastic hug. 

Don't you love Bailey's shirt. I made us all coordinating shirts, but Bailey's is my favorite. 

It reads "the sass is strong with this one"

I love this one of Tanner and chewy posing together. So funny. 

And Tucker surprised us all by fearlessly hugging Chewbacca's leg. 

After meeting Chewbacca, we walked over to "Echo Lake" to ride my favorite ride "Star Tours". We used our fast passes and walked right on. We alternated with Aunt Sarah and Uncle Johnny, They watched Tucker while we rode and then we watched their kids for them. 

Tanner and Bailey both loved this ride. It's a 3D motion simulator and it was awesome. 

The entry to the ride has C3-PO and R2-D2 so that was already a great start. 

Here we are waiting to board the ride. 

Once seated, the ride started. We boarded the "starspeeder" but before we are able to take off, a droid stops us and tell us they are looking for a rebel spy. It then projects a picture of the spy for everyone to see. As it turned out, the picture was of Uncle David- who was seated next to Tanner. (The ride picks a different guest every time) The kids flipped out when the the droid tried to stop us and arrest Uncle David. It was so funny. R2-D2 and C3-PO guide the ship out of the launch bay and we blasted off. It was an awesome simulation and we all loved it.
Tanner said later- "Why didn't they try to arrest me? My shirt says "Big Jedi?" lol. That boy always has us laughing. Uncle David played it off by saying, the droid didn't know Tanner was on board and was only looking for him so he could leave them to Tanner. That answer seemed to appease Tanner and all was right in the world. 

After riding "Star Tours", we left Hollywood Studios and hopped on the bus over to Epcot. We had lunch reservations at "Akershus Royal Banquet Hall" and Bailey was so excited. This lunch was advertised as storybook dining and included appearances from 5 different princesses.  

It did not disappoint. 

 Here we are at Epcot. 

As we walked over to the restaurant in "Norway" we were able to enjoy sights from the many other countries in Epcot. It's a pretty cool park. 

We were very hungry when we finally got to Akershus'. They got us checked in and then we immediately got to meet Belle. 

Bailey loved meeting Belle. She was very excited to wear her Belle dress and get her autograph. 

Tanner was too shy to get a picture by himself with Belle, so we got a group shot with all the kids. 

I love how the boy's prince shirts turned out. They were a lot of work but totally worth it.
We got so many compliments- which of course, made Tanner feel even more shy. 

Then we were seated at our table. We enjoyed a buffet style of appetizers and then ordered our meals. Tanner loved the variety of meats and cheeses. The food was totally different than what we are use to, but it was good. 

As we waited for our food, Aurora came to our table to meet everyone. Bailey was thrilled and gave her a big hug!

Our food came out fairly quickly, but before we could dig in, we got another visitor. Ariel (as a human) came to visit. Bailey had met mermaid Ariel the day before, but she was just as excited to meet her again at lunch. 

Midway through our meal, Cinderella came over. Bailey loves Cinderella. She is definitely one of Bailey's favorite princesses. 

They had a sweet little chat before Cinderella had to leave. 

Our last visitor was Snow White. Isn't she a great Snow White?

and big hugs for the princess. 

Tanner didn't want meet any of the princesses because he said "all the pretty girls make him nervous and shy, except for Bailey and Mom". lol. I just love him. 

Tanner and Bailey did both participate in the princess parade. They were able to march around the restaurant with all the princesses and it was so cute. I was too busy keeping Tucker from destroying the table to get pictures, but the kids loved it. 

After we finished lunch, we had to hop back on the bus so we could make it back to Hollywood Studios in time for Tanner's Jedi Training.
Uncle David had stayed behind at Hollywood Studios and played while we ate lunch. When we got back we met back up with him so he could watch the Jedi fun. 

We took Tanner to check in and he got dressed for the part. Isn't he cute in his little Jedi robe? 

Then the kids lined up and marched as a class of padawans over to the temple. 

Once at the temple, the training began. It was so cute to watch Tanner. He was so attentive and completely into it. We were cracking up as we watched him. 

Cheering to show they are ready to begin training with light sabers. The instructor decided they were indeed ready. 

 

And so they began training. I love this boy. He is so enthusiastic about life and the things he loves, he really loves!

Then the training was interrupted by the opening of the temple doors. And who walked out, but Darth Vader himself. The kids were in an uproar. 

Each kid was given the chance to fight Darth Vader so they could prove themselves and show that they had the ability to use the force. 

After each willing padawan fought Vader the Jedi instructor asked the kids to help him use the force and push Vader back inside the temple. 

As you can see, Tanner was very willing to help. 

The young padawans succeeded and Vader left. But then, just as  soon as the temple doors closed, the reopened and Kylo Ren appeared.
Isn't he super creepy??

The Jedi instructors tried to fight him off, but they weren't strong enough. 

Again, they asked the young padawans to help and they also asked everyone in the audience to call upon the force. Working together we were able to vanquish Kylo Ren and the temple was saved. 

I don't know if there has ever been a class of padawans that was able to harness the force so successfully. They completed their training and were very proud. 

Tanner loved the Jedi Training. It was pretty spectacular and we all loved watching it. It was basically a dream come true. 

After finishing his training, we walked over to the Star Wars store and let Tanner spend some of his gift card. He was so excited. First he built a droid. He was able to pick out the different parts and assemble the droid himself. He loved it. 

Then he got to build his own light saber. This was definitely a favorite for him. Chris walked through the assembly line with him and helped him pick out the parts he wanted to use. 

Tanner was so proud of his creation. 

While Tanner was enjoyed Star Wars heaven, Tucker and Bailey rested in the stroller. 

After finishing up at the Star Wars store, we walked over to "Pixar Place" and got in line to meet Woody & Buzz Lightyear. This was probably our longest wait of the day. It took about 45 minutes. Which was fine because both Tucker and Bailey were asleep in the stroller, so I took Tanner in the line and we played while we waited. 

And right before we reached the front of the line, Tucker woke up and so Chris brought him to me in the line so he could meet Buzz and Woody as well. 

He was a little shy and wouldn't leave my arms but he did give fist bumps to both Woody and Buzz. 

After we were done there, we walked across the street to ride "Toy Story Mania". We had fast passes so we walked right on. It was so fun. 

You get on these little carts and ride around with laser guns shooting targets to earn points. 

This was a ride for the whole family and everyone loved it. Tucker was especially into this ride. 

After we finished riding "Toy Story Mania" we decided to grab a cool snack on our way out of the park. How cute are these Mickey Mouse ice cream bars? Love them! And they were delicious. A perfect way to cool off!

We left the park by 8 pm and headed home. The kids were tired and ready for bed and we had one more big day ahead at Magic Kingdom, so we decided to call it a day.
It was such a fun day. So much Star Wars fun and Princess fun. All three kids thoroughly enjoyed our park fun. 

Stay tuned for day 3 at Disney World.