We met up with Brenda and John and Lindsey at "Soarin'" and were among the first group to get in. This is a spectacular ride and we were all blown away by the special effects - we swooped over the countryside in a glider, gentle breezes and scents of the landscape adding to the realistic sensation. Wow. Derek and Nikki and the kids were on their way, so we left Brenda, John, and Lindsey in that area of Epcot to wait for them while we took Ava over to "Spaceship Earth" and "Finding Nemo", until we got a text from Bren that everyone was at the "Test Track" and we headed over. It was great to finally know that we'd all be able to spend some real time together that day! Ava and Alivia both had their princess dresses on, and were absolutely gorgeous - the two nicest and smartest and most beautiful girls in Florida that day!
Derek took Alivia and we took Ava over to the line at Test Track and jumped in. The girls were happy to see each other and it was cute to watch them enjoying each other's company.
We were finally loaded into our car. Speeding, swerving, skidding - what ride!! The girls loved it, and so did the grown-ups! From there, we had to scoot pretty quickly over to Akershus to be there at the reservation time. But, although we got there right on time, there was still a pretty significant wait to get in. Ava went around to everyone for signatures in her autograph book while we waited. Aunt Lindsey had given her and Mason and Livvy brand-new ones before the trip (she brought her own old one from when she was a kid!), and Ava really had fun getting signatures from all the characters she saw. 
The lunch was very exciting for the girls with their favorite princesses making the rounds in the room, and even a parade with Sleeping Beauty, and Mason enjoyed getting their autographs and was a good sport about getting his picture taken with them. Some of them were actually quite beautiful, and the guys joked about getting into a picture or two. The menu selection had something for everybody, and the desserts were phenomenal. 
After lunch, the Wymans and Faulkners went back to their resorts for some down time - we'd be meeting again later for dinner at Ft. Wilderness Trail's End restaurant. Gaffer, Ava, and I spent some time walking around until Ava fell asleep and we decided to go back to the cabin and get some downtime ourselves.
Later in the afternoon, Bren sent a text that she and John were on their way over by bus, so we gave them directions to the cabin, and next thing we knew, we had company! Ava and Gaffer were down by the pool, so Bren and John and I walked over and had a nice visit sitting at a pool-side table until it was time for dinner. When we got down there Derek and Nikki were still a half hour away so we had time for Aunt Brenda to take Ava on a pony ride while we waited.
Dinner was a blast!! The Faulkners had been over at Magic Kingdom and came to Ft. Wilderness by boat, so we met them down by the marina. The kids were able to play for a while on the playground while we waited for our reservation, and they ended up tossing horseshoes like crazy right in front of the restaurant, attracting quite a crowd to watch!
During the dinner, I got to sit with all the kids except Landen and it was so much fun to talk with them - by the end of the meal I wasn't ready to let go of them. Brenda and John were going to spend the night with us, and I asked Derek and Nikki if Mason and Alivia could spend the night, too. She said yes, and the kids were ecstatic to be having a "sleep-over"! They had a lot of fun putting together a play for us later that night (even cut out little "tickets" to get in), and then at bedtime the three of them and me piled into the double bed, Gaffer in the bottom bunk, and John and Brenda out on the Murphy bed in the living room.
The kids and I read a lot of books, and one by one they dropped off, Livvy first, then Ava, and at 10:30 Mason's eyes were starting to droop as we got into "Tearwater Tea" of "Owl at Home", and he was gone. It was an interesting night - Livvy squeezed against the wall, with Mason between her and Ava, Ava pressed up next to me, and me hanging on by a butt cheek at the edge of the bed. I'm not sure how well everyone rested, but we got a fair amount of sleep in between the leg stretching and jostling for blankets. 
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