Dabbling with Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom

We just got back from our three-year old's first trip to Disney World. Since it was his mommy and daddy's third trip, it's safe to say it won't be his last. While Disney World isn't really a lace for card or board games, we did get in one gaming experience.

Disney World's Magic Kingdom has an interactive card game called  the Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom that Carrie called a cross between a Disney LARP and Magic the Gathering. 

Every day, you can pick up a booster pack of five cards per person near the front of the park that's included in the admission. (It's at the fire station and I have no idea if it had any function before then, other than looking pretty)

Each card is a spell, themed around a specific character. For instance, Snow White has a cleaning spell that apparently beats the heck out of bad guys with a broom. (And people have to ask why she is the least empowering princess ever?)

The story is that Hades from the Hercules movie is trying to take over, using different villains from the movies to help him. Merlin from the Sword in the Stone is trying to stop him. I'm sure James Woods willingness to voice Hades whenever asked had a lot to do with the plot.

Through out the park, there are video screens with cameras that you activate with your guest ID and hold cards up to the cameras to cast spells. At the most basic level, you are sent from site to site and flashing any card at the camera will do.

However, you can have the game set to a higher level. From what I can tell, you then get hit points, specific spells are more effective against specific villains and you can use card combos.

We just played a little at basic level but I saw one guy wandering around with a wizard hat with Mickey Ears and an elaborate leather binder of cards. So some folks take the game seriously. Frankly, that says to me that there's some heft to the game when you take it past the basic level.

And, like Magic, there is rarity to cards and you can buy booster packs. There aren't a lot of cards but most of the players do have very limited access to play. Having the game tied to the park isn't going to support a huge catalog of cards.

I doubt we will ever seriously pursue Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom. I mean, you have to go to Disney World to play it and that's on the other side of country from us. However, I do think it's really neat that it exists.

Our Doodle's First Disney Adventure: Day Six

We had originally planned on spending the morning before we flew back to Arizona at Epcot. However, by now, it was clear that the Magic Kingdom was the bomb for toddlers. We had already canceled our reservations to eat at Epcot we were totally set to spend the morning at the Magic Kingdom.

We did what little packing we hadn't gotten done the night before. The resort could check our bags for us so we got our luggage to meet us in Arizona so we wouldn't have to worry about it.

At this point, we decided just hit what had proved to be tried and true favorites. Buzz Lightyear, where the doodle spun the car around so much we couldn't hit any of the targets. The Mad Tea Party, which had proved to be a surprise favorite. Dumbo twice with some time in the play area that is attached to the ride. (They give you a pager and your child can run crazy for a while instead of waiting in line)

We also played some more of the Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom and used the last of our  snack credits for snacks for the plane ride before going back to the resort to have one last quick service meal and get on the shuttle that would take us to the airport.

The doodle handled the long journey home well. Which wasn't a surprise, seeing as how he has been a good traveler and good on planes. This time, he slept a good chunk of the way. But he didn't have any problems going to bed after we got home late that night.

We've been on a couple road trips in Arizona and several trips to see family in the Midwest. But this was our first big vacation with the doodle as well as his first trip to Disney. (Since this was our third, we're not fooling anyone. We will be back) it was a big deal for us. 

And, while he wasn't an angel all the time, he behaved pretty well and took on a lot of new experiences well. He was shy but not scared of the costumed characters. He was willing to go on a lot of different rides. And he cheerfully played with other kids. This was a great vacation for us and a great experience for him.

Our Doodle's First Disney Adventure: Day Five

This was the one day we used our Park Hopper pass, going to both the Magic Kingdom and Epcot. This was because, while we had Epcot plans, we got breakfast reservations at Be Our Guest. Early enough that we actually got into the park early.

We did another round with the Mad The Party and Dumbo breakfast. This time, we sat in the East Room, which we had never been in before. It had a giant music box in the middle, lots of fun pictures and a warm pallet. Afterwards, the doodle said it was his favorite room. And the open face ham and greyre sandwich was amazing, one of the culinary highlights of the trip.

After playing a little more Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom card game, we went to Epcot.

Now, we've really liked Epcot in the past. And we were looking forward to a lot of things there. The Frozen Ever After ride, since the doodle loves Elsa. The Elsa and Anna Meet and Greet, same reason. The February Festival of the Arts which had a lot of neat food for snack credits. And our long-awaited quest to get a crushed France penny, since we had ones from all the other countries. (The France machine had been broken last time)

And Epcot is an amazing park for adults. So many different foods. So many different shops. We aren't really into alcohol but it has the widest array of drinks of all the parks. But it is big and so little of it will interest a toddler. He ended up spending a lot of time being bored.

Oh, and the France penny machine was broken again.

We did go on the Three Caballeros ride, a boat ride in the Mexican pavilion that I have a fondness for. I saw the movie in grade school and it stuck with me, although Heaven knows what I'd think of it if I saw it now. I swear it may be the least advertised ride in all of Disney World. We practically stumbled over it on our second trip with no idea it existed.

And we did the wait for the doodle to get his pictures taken with Elsa and Anna, which practically overwhelmed him but we got through it.

He then fell asleep in his stroller, giving his parents a chance to eat some of the festival food, which really was quite amazing. He woke up in a cranky mood but we jollied him back enough to go on the Frozen Ever After ride.

I'll be honest. I think Maelstrom, which was refurbed into Frozen Ever After, was a stronger ride. And we knew it went backwards and had a drop so we were worried he'd get scared. Which he didn't. He loved it. Maybe we should have tried our luck and gone for Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion and Thunder Mountain.

I will also say, comparing it to the Little Mermaid ride, ride technology has gone leaps and bounds forward. The special effects and animatronics were quite good.

This is where the day started to get rough. The doodle started to get cranky and fussy again. We were headed to Nemo when we passed a touch fountain. Which he had to play with. We told him not to get wet and he was good about that for a good ten, fifteen minutes. Then he got soaked. Well, we have been doing this parent thing for three years. We had a spare outfit and we hauled him to the baby care center to get him changed.

We'd visited Nemo and the aquarium the night we arrived but it was good to do it again with the doodle more rested. We love aquariums so we were glad he had a chance to see one. In particular, we were glad he got to see manatees since they are featured in one of his favorite television shows, Sarah and Duck.

Now, we had originally planned on using our last Table Service for breakfast at the Garden Grill in Epcot on our last day. But by now we knew the morning before we flew home would have to be at the Magic Kingdom and another buffet with costumed characters seemed overkill so we switched to reservations the Rain Forest Cafe at Disney Springs. Make our last supper the last big meal.

But as we were going to bus to Disney Springs, we found the doodle had emptied an entire water bottle on himself. Second outfit already on him. It was already starting to get colder. And we didn't have time to go back to the resort and get him a third outfit.

But Disney Springs has a lot of stores. So cuddling him to keep him warm, we frantically searched for a store that had toddler clothes. Turns out that's not a hot ticket item there. Finally, at Uniqlo, we found clothes in his size and for a better price than we'd been afraid of. In time to make dinner.

Which turned out to be a great choice over the breakfast buffet we had swapped it out for. The hour before had been frantic and frustrating but the Rain Forest Cafe made everything better.

We spent a little more time at Disney Springs (we had no idea we'd end up spending so much time there or liking it so much but we did) but got in relatively early for packing and a good night's sleep on our last night at the Pop Century Resort.

Our Doodle's First Disney Adventure: Day Four

The fourth day was our big Magic Kingdom Day. We went before and after but this was our serious day, as well as the one that convinced us that THIS was the park for toddlers.

First of all, it's almost a a fifth the size of the Animal Kingdom. There's just less walking to do. Second, it's full of frenetic stuff. Bored with one attraction? Walk fifteen feet. Third, it has easily most kiddy friendly rides.

We started with the Mad Tea Party, where you sit in giant tea cups and you can turn a wheel in the middle of the cup to make it spin like an old-school round about. It's one of the older rides and something of an icon. We, as grown ups, hadn't been on it before. But the doodle really liked it and it was fun for us too. 

That is a trick that the Magic Kingdom pulls off well, as we learned on this trip. Making rides for the little ones that the adults can have fun on too. 

After that, we had our second Dumbo ride, the first for the day. It's another one of those iconic ride that actually turns out to be fun and one we'd go back to a lot.

Since the doodle was in such a good mood and the line was short, we took one of the few real chances we took on his limits on the trip and got him to go on the Goofy Barnstormer, which was right next to the Dumbo ride, also part of the Story Book Circus, which was one of the corner stones of our Disney experience.

The Goofy Barnstormer is a little roller coaster but still a roller coaster. The doodle had made it clear he didn't want to ride any roller coasters. We had to convince him planes weren't roller coasters, even though he's flown close to twenty times in his three years. 

And, while it never gets very high, I have to say that the Goofy Barnstormer was actually a real roller coaster. But he was in such a good mood from Dumbo, we took the chance. And it worked. He had fun. He didn't want to ride it again after he calmed down but he wasn't scared and he had first roller coaster.

Our last ride before lunch was the Little Mermaid Ride, which is a gentle ride through an animator retelling of the movie. The doodle knows who Ariel is but he isn't his princess/queen (Hi, Elsa!) so he was simply amused.

Lunch was at the Beauty and Beast-themed Be Our Guest, which is probably the king of the quick services. Very thematic, higher-end food, and actually requires reservations. We managed to get a table in the West Room, which is dark with the magic rose and tastefully shredded pictures and tapestries.

Leaving Be Our Guest, we got one of our biggest surprises of the entire trip. We saw two of our favorite YouTube celebrities, George and Ken of Crafting by Two getting their pictures taken. After they were done, we had to go over and meet them.

They specialize in Cricut crafting. My wife does a lot more than I do but even I do paper craft with the Cricut. Those two have made a real difference in our Cricut lives. Meeting them and getting pictures of them was a legitimate big thrill.

After that, the doodle started asking about getting ears so we went to the hat shop near the front of the park. Remember how I mentioned his special princess/queen was Elsa? Can you guess what kind of ears he ended up demanding?

We then decided it was time to do the ride that you always have to do, even though I personally dread it because the low seats make my back ache. It's a Small World. Although I have to admit that learning the song started out as a plea for peace after the Cuban Missile Crisis is cool.

Fifteen minute wait in line. Not too bad. Doodle falls asleep in my arms in line and sleeps through the entire ride. Which was just as surreal as I remembered it. I can't imagine what it must be like for people who have full color vision.

After he woke up, we split a kitchen sink sundae three ways while watching the Flight of Fantasy parade again, this time with him awake. 

Our next Fast Pass was for the Winnie the Pooh ride. We were worried he would be scared by the times the car shakes or the nightmare sequence with the Huphalumps and the Woozles but he enjoyed it enough that he was disappointed we couldn't go on it again.

But we used a Fast Pass to go back on Buzz Lightyear where this time, the doodle realized he could make the car spin around with the lever in the middle. Let's just say that a little knowledge can go a long way.

In relatively rapid succession, we rode on the People Mover again, Dumbo again and Peter Pan again.

What made this day our _big_ day was we stayed late enough to watch the closing show. Which started with an animated movie projected onto Cinderella's Castle and ended with the fireworks show which is yet another icon of the Disney.

The doodle has seen fireworks before but never so close or so many. So this was yet another time we were holding our breath to see how he would react. Which was with glee, thankfully. 

We looked at the lines to get on the buses to the resorts and decided to go to Disney Springs again. This time, the Lego Store got a lot of attention and the doodle fell asleep waiting for the bus to the resort from Disney Springs and I carried him to our room and he never woke up.

 

Our Doodle's First Disney Adventure: Day Two

Day two of our Disney Vacation was spent at the Magical Kingdom, which is the park that you think of when you think Disney. It's the one with the castle. If you're taking a small child to Disney World, you have to spend time at the Magic Kingdom. And our doodle has already come to associate Cinderella's Castle with Mickey Mouse. For him, it's real name is Mickey's Castle. This was Disney for him.

For those of you who aren't into Disney, they have a system called Fast Pass, which lets you make reservations for rides, helping you skip the long lines at least occasionally. And our first Fast Pass was for the Peter Pan's Flight, which is infamous for long lines due to low capacity.

You board a boat that has a track on top, so you fly over London and Never Never Land. The doodle continued to have fun on the rides, enjoying the experience of being on a flying boat in the darkness. We had fun looking at the ancient animatronics and wondering how much they'd look like a room in House on the Rock in bright lighting.

After we got off, the doodle saw the Cinderella-themed carousal. Now, that is a kind of ride that he has had experience with and likes so he wanted to go immediately. Fortunately, there was no line so we were able to get on almost immediately and he said later that was his favorite ride of the day.

Our next Fast Pass was for Dumbo the Flying Elephant. Despite this being our third trip, we had never been on that ride despite it being one of the icons of the park. So I was surprised by how nice it was, particularly the fountains at the base that I had no idea existed. It was a good balance of being slow enough for him and fun enough for us.

While our last scheduled Fast Pass was for the Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin, we got on the People Mover before then, again since the doodle was interested. It's a slow elevated tram around that part of the park. It's not an exciting ride but it is nice to get off your feet and get a tour of Tomorrow Land.

Buzz Lightyear combines a dark ride of science fiction images with an infra-red shooting gallery. As usual, my wife got a much higher score than that and we still hadn't found a ride that scared our toddler.

Our big meal for the day was going to the Contemporary Resort for brunch at Chef Mickey. Since this is the first time we've taken a small child to Disney World, we'd never even considered Chef Mickey's before. Actually, I don't think I knew it existed.

So, here's what it is. It is a brunch buffet that has Mickey, Donald, Goofy, Minnie and Pluto periodically parade around in aprons and chef hats. It also the meal that made us switch to the meal plan (and add a bunch of table services)

The doodle has been kind of cranky by the time we got seated. Then Donald Duck banged out of the kitchen and his face lit up. After that, things went well. He was a little shy around the big headed costumes but he was cute shy, not scared shy. We got to take pictures of him with all the characters.

The food wasn't bad. I'd compare it to your average Vegas buffet. The only surprise item was caviare, which the doodle tried and liked. Without the dining plan, I'd consider it pricy but you're playing for a lot of costumed characters, not food.

We took the monorail back to the Magic Kingdom and the doodle started to crash. He took a nap in his stroller while his parents watched the Flights of Fantasy parade. Disney has regular parades and this is apparently the current big one. The best part, by far, was the Sleeping Beauty Float which was a fire-breathing dragon (yup, real fire) made of thorns and spinning wheels. It was cool looking and so thematic.

The last thing we did before a groggy doodle made us decide to make it an early day was start playing the Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom card game. My wife described it as a cross between a Disney LARP and Magic the Gathering. Each day you play, you can get cards showing Disney-themed spells that you can use at different locations throughout the Magic Kingdom, fighting the minions of Hades from the Hercules movie. Each location has a movie screen and cameras so the show can react appropriately to the cards.

We went back to our resort, where the doodle got his second wind. So I decided that I would take the doodle to the playground I knew was at the resort. Which was small and unlit so plan B was doing a walking tour of the Pop Century Resort.

Which was well worth doing. The resort has a lot of giant statues of either cultural icons like eight track cassettes or Disney properties like Lady and the Tramp or combinations of the two, like a giant Mickey Mouse phone.

There is also a bridge across a lake to the Art of Animation resort, which we went across just because it was there, only to find a Finding Nemo-themed playground that was far superior to the one we didn't bother with and the doodle spent a lot of time playing with other kids there.

At that point, we had a late dinner of pizza at the resort cafeteria and called it a day.