12/6-12/14/08 at Wilderness Lodge - Our 1st DVC Experience

[Melissa79]

Well, this is my first attempt at a trip report. I've read many others and thought I'd give it a shot this time around. The plan was to start this when I got home from Disney back in December but, things didn't go as planned. I was really busy right after vacation at work and then with Christmas so I thought for sure I'd be starting the trip report in January. Well, I had a couple of months of extreme tiredness and wasn't feeling well...I'm pregnant with our first baby! :goodvibes Finally I have more energy and I have time to write this report!

We spent December 6-14th at the Wilderness Lodge Villas, our very first trip as DVC members! My husband and I bought into the DVC in 2007, we bought resale because we really wanted to own at the Wilderness Lodge.
We invited my parents along for our first DVC experience and we got a two bedroom villa.

So I should really do an introduction...
First, we have me (Melissa) and my husband (Nick).

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0825.jpg

We are both 30 years old (we were both still 29 during our vacation). I'm a cash accountant and Nick is an overnight manager. We live in the South Shore of Massachusetts - actually we are 1/2 way between Boston and Cape Cod. We're just a few towns over from Plymouth...you know, where the pilgrims landed. I've been to Disney 6 times including this trip - all since 2001. Nick has been to Disney enough that he isn't sure on the exact number, he believes it to be around 15 times.

Next, we have my parents Bob and Sue.

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0790.jpg

Mom is a housewife and dad is a clock maker, I know - who makes clocks these days? I must say though that it is quite an art and he is talented! Anyway, before this trip they had only been to Disney once before and that was 2006, with us of course!

[onejellyshelly]

I am on board! How was DVC?

[Melissa79]

I am on board! How was DVC?

Hi! Thanks for joining me!! We loved DVC, our first experience couldn't have been better!

[princess&her4princes]

Hi!
I saw your link on LCAEMoms TR and thought I would join you!! I was there the same time (12/7-14) and we're neighbors!! I actually live in Plymouth!!:goodvibes Looking forward to reading some more....and can't wait to hear more about DVC, it's our dream!!:cloud9:

Congrats on your baby!!! Motherhood is a wonderful thing....best wishes for you!! And glad to hear you're getting your energy back, when are you due?

Looking forward to hearing more!!
Kristen:flower3:

[Lcaemom]

Hi Melissa

Of course, I'm interested in your TR...looking so forward to reading all your details. Your picture of the GF is beautiful!!! Was that part of a photoshoot...or did your parents take it? That came out great! Is the picture of your parents taken at WLV? I'm not sure that I knew you were DVC members back when we were planning our trips...but, how nice that you bought into WL with the resale. I'll have to chat with you soon about that...STILL considering BCV and WLV...just can't officially say yes!?!:confused3 The girls are begging to go back AGAIN...and it certainly wouldn't take much to get me to say yes...I even have a PIN sitting in an email right now, that I still need to call about. But, after three trips, DVC would be almost paid for, almost in full!

[Melissa79]

Hi!
I saw your link on LCAEMoms TR and thought I would join you!! I was there the same time (12/7-14) and we're neighbors!! I actually live in Plymouth!!:goodvibes Looking forward to reading some more....and can't wait to hear more about DVC, it's our dream!!:cloud9:

Congrats on your baby!!! Motherhood is a wonderful thing....best wishes for you!! And glad to hear you're getting your energy back, when are you due?

Looking forward to hearing more!!
Kristen:flower3:
Hi! Thanks for checking out my report! Funny that you were there the same week as me, wasn't it a great week to be in Disney?! Yay we are neighbors! The baby is due September 30th so I'm about 19 weeks now...we are really excited. I hope you get to join DVC too!

Hi Melissa

Of course, I'm interested in your TR...looking so forward to reading all your details. Your picture of the GF is beautiful!!! Was that part of a photoshoot...or did your parents take it? That came out great! Is the picture of your parents taken at WLV? I'm not sure that I knew you were DVC members back when we were planning our trips...but, how nice that you bought into WL with the resale. I'll have to chat with you soon about that...STILL considering BCV and WLV...just can't officially say yes!?!:confused3 The girls are begging to go back AGAIN...and it certainly wouldn't take much to get me to say yes...I even have a PIN sitting in an email right now, that I still need to call about. But, after three trips, DVC would be almost paid for, almost in full!

Hello I'm so excited to have you over here! The pic at the GF was taken by my dad, it's one of my favorites now! You are right, the one of my parents was taken at the WLV. Yeah, we bought into DVC because we were spending a lot on our vacations and thought it would pay for itself pretty quickly, especially buying resale. I can answer some questions for you on that if you've got any! Can't wait to hear if you book anything when you call about that PIN!

[MEK]

Looking forward to your TR. DH and I are new DVC members too. We visited around the same time you were there, but stayed only 4 nights (SSR). This was our first solo trip without kids! We are staying at AKL this June with the whole family.

Congrats on your baby! 19 weeks is a great time. You feel good...almost like normal. When I was 19 weeks pregnant with my first son I traveled to New Zealand. Still can't believe I did that :rotfl::rotfl:

Looking forward to ready more!

[Melissa79]

Looking forward to your TR. DH and I are new DVC members too. We visited around the same time you were there, but stayed only 4 nights (SSR). This was our first solo trip without kids! We are staying at AKL this June with the whole family.

Congrats on your baby! 19 weeks is a great time. You feel good...almost like normal. When I was 19 weeks pregnant with my first son I traveled to New Zealand. Still can't believe I did that :rotfl::rotfl:


Welcome! Another new DVC member! You must have had a great time on your solo trip in Dec. June is coming pretty soon, you must be getting excited for your trip! I started to feel better around 16 weeks...and I'm trying not to think about how I'll feel about two months from now! :laughing:

[Melissa79]

We had decided to ask my parents if they would like to join us on our trip to Disney so we asked them in the beginning of Jan 08. I thought maybe they would take a few days to answer but they said yes right then and there. I was planning on telling them they could think about it for a few weeks if they wanted to. I'm not sure we got the whole question out before they said yes.:rotfl:

Because we wanted to stay at the Wilderness Lodge Villas and that is our home resort, we could book 11 months out which is exactly what I planned to do. So, the day came in January that I could call to book and I was planning on driving home on my lunch break to call Disney since I live less than 10 minutes from work. I don't like to make personal phone calls from work - everyone can hear your business, and I think every time I did it in the past, one of the VPs suddenly needed me and they didn't leave my desk until I was off the phone. Of course this day in January ended up being a snowstorm kind of day so I couldn't drive home to make my call, it would have taken too long and the roads were bad. So, what does a girl determined to make reservations do? I made my way out across the huge parking lot in the crazy snow to sit in my freezing car so that I could make my call.

This was my first call to member services and I wasn't sure exactly how my banking and borrowing of points was going to go. There was NO waiting on hold and I spoke to a really nice guy who explained everything. Before I knew it I had booked a two bedroom villa at the WL Dec 6-13! No problems...I just had to walk back through the storm to get back to work.:eek:

Sometime in Feb to early March we decided to look at the prices of the flights just to keep an eye on them. Nick found nonstop flights through Delta at a really good price (can't remember now how much they were) but it was one of the better prices Nick had ever paid. So, we booked our flights several months before we had planned, yay one more thing done!

In March Nick kept saying that he would like to add on another day to our vacation and make it 8 nights. We both had taken an extra day off from work at the end of our vacation and my mom doesn't work and my dad works for himself so they could stay another day with no problems too. But we didn't mention it to my parents and we kind of let it drop. On my birthday in March I came home from work and Nick surprised me by telling me that he had added that extra day and we would be staying 8 nights! :yay: He took care of everything even changing the flights...which if you know Nick, you know he doesn't make phone calls...ever. I was so surprised!

I made our dinner reservations 6 months out and got everything that we wanted except for Le Cellier in Canada, we still have not gotten a chance to try that one. We were so excited because we had some new (to us) restaurants on our itinerary.

The rest of our 11 month countdown went by without too much going on - we already had our flights and dinners booked. There was of course lots of Disney talk and we really were counting down the days. I think my parents may have been more excited than Nick and I and I wasn't sure that was possible. Everytime I spoke to my dad he told me how many days we had left.:)

If anyone wants to check it out, here is a link to our video that I made from our 2007 vacation to the Grand Floridian. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4w_H9k3gBfc If you watch it in high quality it looks a little better.

[Lcaemom]

Great update Melissa!!! That DVC booking sounds too easy...you're really making me consider the pro side of my ongoing DVC debate. It is so interesting to read someone else's experience...who went at the same time, to and from the same place. I didn't find any flights on Delta...that were reasonable...the nonstop flights on Delta were all over $800pp, until the fall of 08...when they finally dropped...from Boston. Didn't you fly out RI?
I remember calling about ADRs...my whole trip was planned around my CRT lunch...thinking that would be my hardest ressie, I called and ended up having my pick of the whole week. Once that was booked, I called back to book the rest and started with LeCellier...I started asking about each day starting with the 7th and everyday was booked until we got to the 13th...lunch at 1pm. We were 20 minutes early for it...and ended up waiting an hour to be seated! That was way harder to get and deal with than CRT!!!:sad2: Hopefully, on your next trip?!? When is your next trip?!? Any pending before the baby???

[wdwgirl03]

Congrats on becoming DVC members! :banana: We were there in December too, right after you guys were (we stayed at the Beach Club Villas!). I can't wait to hear more about your trip, we are staying at the Wilderness Lodge Villas for the first time in August!

[MEK]

I've also had pretty painless experiences calling member services and booking vacations. I think their customer service is really great. I've only booked three trips so far, but each has involved several calls and changes. They are beyond nice.

I think it is so great that your Dad was so excited about the trip. Your parents will probably be coming on alot of your future trips. You are lucky to have them as your future Disney babysitters!

[Melissa79]

I didn't find any flights on Delta...that were reasonable...the nonstop flights on Delta were all over $800pp, until the fall of 08...when they finally dropped...from Boston. Didn't you fly out RI?
Hopefully, on your next trip?!? When is your next trip?!? Any pending before the baby???
We flew Delta nonstop out of Logan, we must have found the tickets on the right day - I asked Nick and he said we paid $250 per ticket. I don't know when our next trip will be, maybe Dec 2010? By then the baby would be just over a year. Maybe we'll get to try Le Cellier next time!

Congrats on becoming DVC members! :banana: We were there in December too, right after you guys were (we stayed at the Beach Club Villas!). I can't wait to hear more about your trip, we are staying at the Wilderness Lodge Villas for the first time in August!
Hi, thanks for joining in! How were the Beach Club Villas? We'd like to try them sometime, and I'd really like to stay at the Boardwalk Villas. I bet you'll like the Wilderness Lodge Villas, it is so nice and quiet there.


I think it is so great that your Dad was so excited about the trip. Your parents will probably be coming on alot of your future trips. You are lucky to have them as your future Disney babysitters!
Funny that you said my parents will be our future Disney babysitters because my dad said last weekend that they'll have to come along because we will need babysitters. :laughing: I'm sure they'll be joining us in the future, they love Disney and I'm sure it'll be a blast to see their grandchild enjoying it.

[khertz]

I'm in! DH and I will be going with our parents around those same dates this year (the 4th-14th) so I'm eager to read about your experience. :goodvibes

And congrats on the little one! September 30th will be here before you know it!

[Melissa79]

I always enjoy the night before we leave because once I'm out of work I'm officially on vacation...love that feeling! :cool1:

Since Nick works nights, he was officially on vacation Friday morning even before I left for work. My day went as usual, I worked until 5:00 and was home by about 5:15. After dinner I did some cleaning, I have to vacuum the house before we go because I can't stand coming home to anything other than a clean house. I called my parents to make sure they were ready for the morning and my mom says that she hurt her back.:scared1: What? Mom has some back trouble but it had been great for months and she managed to slip a disk (I think that was what happened) while packing for this trip that they have been looking forward to for 11 months! Uh oh. Hopefully some sleep and meds would make it feel a bit better. Plus she was going to Disney in the morning, she was too excited to be worried about that.

I was busy in the evening doing last minute things like charging the camera, video camera, and cell phones, and of course finishing the packing and organizing of the suitcases and carryon.
Here are the suitcases as I was nearing the finish.

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0611.jpg

The plan was to go to bed around 9:00 because we had to be up at 3:00AM the next morning. I don't think I finished with everything until after 10:00 and I believe we got to bed between 10:30 and 11:00, I was going to be tired in the morning but thats ok because we're going to Disney!:yay:

[Melissa79]

Our alarm went off at 3:00 AM but we were both already awake just laying there thinking, yay it's finally here! I got up and headed for the shower first. My mom called at 3:30 to tell us that they were awake and also to make sure we were up. While Nick showered I made coffee and had some toast. We finished any last minute packing, unplugging things around the house etc.

Mom and dad showed up around 4:40. Nick met them at the door with this Mickey groom top hat as a joke. In 2006 when my parents came with us for the first time we were wearing our Minnie/Mickey bride/groom ears (from our honeymoon) when they came to the door and I think they were horrified for a minute thinking that we were going to keep them on. :rotfl:

The limo showed up close to 5:00 and off to Boston we go!

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0615.jpg

We checked into Delta and made it through security pretty quickly. We got some waters and breakfast for Nick and then found our gate. We knew that we had a full flight but there was almost no one at the gate when we got there. Maybe we were just really early!

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0617.jpg

We spent the time talking and watching the sky getting brighter. I took my meclizine - I've got vertigo issues and my doctor has me take that to try to keep from getting dizzy on the plane. Next thing we know, it is time to board!

Our seats were towards the front of the plane, I like that because it is faster to get off once you land! The plane had just two seats in each row on our side of the plane so Nick and I were together and my parents were together right behind us. It's nice not to have a stranger next to you in the third seat. We sat on the plane for a while and were watching them load the luggage under us. We saw one of mom and dad's suitcases being loaded on. They had to de-ice the wings before we could take off but finally we were ready to go!

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0620.jpg

The flight was good, it's almost 3 hours exactly from Boston to Orlando. I watched out the window, did some Sudoku, and just enjoyed being on my way to Florida. Nick tried to sleep and my parents read.

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0625.jpg

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/DSC01463.jpg

We landed around 10:30. We made our way to the Magical Express check in area. There was a pretty long line at the counter, longer than I've ever seen but it moved fairly quickly. A really nice lady checked me in and off I went to find the rest of the family. We got into the Wilderness Lodge line and there was only one family in front of us. I'm not sure how long we waited, it seemed like it was a while but I dont mind waiting at this point because I'm in Florida! The bus driver that we got was pretty funny. He was making jokes that were so bad that you had to laugh. He kept yelling "woo hoo." The bus stopped at the GF and Poly before the WL. We arrived at the Wilderness Lodge at 12:30. We are here!:banana:

[Lcaemom]

It's all coming back to me now...you were flying out of Boston...not RI but, we figured out that we were in different terminals. But, how funny...we got to the airport at the same time...took off and landed within minutes of each other. Did you check out my ME picture in my TR...do you see yourself??? The line WAS huge!!! I remember being checked in by a woman with a Mickey hand...and lots of cheerleaders!!! But, what a great day!!! :love:

[MEK]

Yeah...... You finally made it to Wilderness Lodge. Can't wait to see some Christmas pics!

[onejellyshelly]

It always seem like the night before I do not sleep a wink, but always have the most energy. I wish I could wake up on a Monday like that.

[wide receiver]

What a great start! I can't wait to here more about DVC!

[MEK]

It always seem like the night before I do not sleep a wink, but always have the most energy. I wish I could wake up on a Monday like that.

I second that! :thumbsup2

[dpndka]

Hi Melissa, I'm onboard. Great start so far.

We're going the first week of December this year. So, I'm looking forward to reading about your experience.

[Melissa79]

I'm in! DH and I will be going with our parents around those same dates this year (the 4th-14th) so I'm eager to read about your experience. :goodvibes

And congrats on the little one! September 30th will be here before you know it!
H! Early December is a great time to visit Disney, you will have so much fun. Sept 30th really will be here before I know it...I can't believe I'm half way already!

It's all coming back to me now...you were flying out of Boston...not RI but, we figured out that we were in different terminals. But, how funny...we got to the airport at the same time...took off and landed within minutes of each other. Did you check out my ME picture in my TR...do you see yourself??? The line WAS huge!!! I remember being checked in by a woman with a Mickey hand...and lots of cheerleaders!!! But, what a great day!!! :love:
I did look at your ME picture - I don't see myself but I'd imagine I was around there somewhere since we landed at the same time!

Yeah...... You finally made it to Wilderness Lodge. Can't wait to see some Christmas pics!
Yay, finally there! I feel like getting there is half the fun and check in is great because you find out what your room will be like.

It always seem like the night before I do not sleep a wink, but always have the most energy. I wish I could wake up on a Monday like that.
I know, me too! I wish I could wake up ANY day like that!

What a great start! I can't wait to here more about DVC!
Hi! Thanks for joining in!

Hi Melissa, I'm onboard. Great start so far.

We're going the first week of December this year. So, I'm looking forward to reading about your experience.
Hello! We went in early December two years in a row...it is so nice! Where are you staying?

[khertz]

Great start so far! I love that y'all got a limo to bring you to the airport, what a way to start of the excitement of going to Disney!! Can't wait to read more.

[Melissa79]

We got off the bus and headed into the lobby. I just love the Wilderness Lodge, I could hang out in the lobby for hours! There were Christmas decorations all over and a huge tree in the middle of the lobby. Since there was no one in line at the front desk, I went over to check in while Nick and my parents looked around the lobby. It was only 12:30 so we didn't think our room would be ready. I had heard that the villas are often not ready until close to check in time (4:00) so I was surprised when the lady told me our room was ready. When I was done checking in I found the family and we headed over to the villas to find our room, number 5553.

We were excited to see what a "dedicated" two bedroom is like. We stopped outside our room and tried the key but it didn't work. Oh wait - we were at the wrong room number! :rotfl2: Our real room was on the 5th floor and was the second to last room from the end of the building. When we went in the room my parents headed to see their bedroom, Nick went to see the master bedroom and I went straight for the balcony to see what kind of view we had. It was a great view, it did have a lot of trees but you could see the water and we were close enough to hear the boats.

This is looking straight out from the balcony.
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0635.jpg

This is looking left towards the WL main building.
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0636.jpg

We all met up and did the official tour of the kitchen, living room, master bedroom and bathroom, and 2nd bedroom and bathroom. I wasn't expecting it to be as big as it was.

The kitchen
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0630.jpg

2nd bedroom - mom & dad's room
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0626.jpg

Bathroom off of the 2nd bedroom
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0628.jpg

Sink area outside of mom & dad's bathroom
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0627.jpg

Master bedroom - me and Nick's room
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0631.jpg

Tub in the master bedroom
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0633.jpg

Bathroom attached to the master bedroom
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0634.jpg

Here is a video tour of our 2 bedroom villa
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/th_20081206135517.jpg (http://s677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/?action=view&current=20081206135517.flv)

We hung out on the balcony for a few minutes and decided to get a snack. We went to the Roaring Fork and grabbed fruit cups for mom and I and cookies for Nick and dad and found a table outside. It was a beautiful day to start our vacation.:cloud9: After our snack we walked around outside - we went down to the dock, by the pools, and also checked out the lobby in the main building and in the villas.

We went back to our room and sat on the balcony, something we did a lot of this vacation! I couldn't decide if I wanted to go swimming or take a nap. I was sooo tired but I didn't want to miss anything, we just got here! Mom and I decided to lay down for a while and Nick and dad sat on the balcony talking while we rested.

I did fall asleep for a little while and was glad that I got that little recharge. When I got up Nick and dad said there had been deer in the woods below our balcony while I was asleep. I thought they were joking because Nick and I had stayed at the WL three other times and never saw a deer there. So, I watched for them and there really were deer down there wandering around eating!

Here is a video of one of them.
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/th_20081206162741.jpg (http://s677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/?action=view&current=20081206162741.flv)

We need to back up for a minute. The reason that I woke up from my little nap was because I heard the door close - ever notice that those hotel doors can be loud sometimes? Anyway, I heard the door and then heard Nick talk to someone and I thought...ooohh our luggage must be here now, I can shower before dinner. Well, it was 1 suitcase...out of 4. It actually was the one that we saw being loaded onto the plane before we took off from Boston. We waited a while but no other suitcases, the luggage had never taken this long and why did we get one but not the others? We called the front desk to find out if we should be calling Delta yet and they said it was a little too early, they were not necessarily lost yet.

Instead of waiting around for our luggage we decided to go over to the Contemporary early, we had 6:00 dinner reservations at the Wave. So, we headed down to the dock to wait for the boat.

One of the things that we love about the WL is that you can take a boat to the Contemporary and also to the Magic Kingdom. We would rather take the boat than the bus. Well, my dad LOVES to take the boats. He loves everything about them, he likes the ride on the boats, the sound of the boats, the breeze on the boats, and he remembers most of the boat "drivers." After his first trip to Disney and WL in 2006, that was what he always mentioned...the boats. :laughing: So, our ride to the Contemporary was the first boat ride of the trip.:woohoo:

We walked around the hotel for a while and went in the gift shops. Normally Nick and I eat at the Concourse Steakhouse on our first night but that closed so that's how we ended up picking the Wave. Dinners are one of the things that we look forward to the most on our trips, we make dinner reservations for every night because we like to top off our day with a great meal.

It was still really early so we decided to go down to the Wave and get some drinks. They said we could check in early, so we did. We sat in the waiting area which was kinda neat, it had blue lighting and orange candles on the tables. We didn't wait very long before we were seated. We all very much enjoyed our meals. I had the chicken pot pie, Nick and mom had the beef meal, and dad had pork. At the Wave they have organic beer and like to try to match the beer to your meal and the waitress was recommending different beer for Nick and my dad. They tried several and liked some but not all. This trying new beer and drinking beer in general became a recurring theme during our dinners this vacation. Nick and dad enjoyed having a few drinks to relax at the end of the day.

After dinner we took the boat back to the WL. We sat around in the lobby of the villas in some of the rocking chairs. Dad ran upstairs to check on our luggage - the other three suitcases showed up while we were gone. The lobby in the villas was so quiet, we barely saw anyone while we were sitting there. I was so comfortable in my rocking chair, by the fire, looking at the Christmas tree, thinking I can't believe vacation is finally here! Everyone was pretty tired after our long day so we headed up to bed.

[wdwgirl03]

Ooh, I love the pictures of the WL! I seriously cannot wait to stay there!

So how did you like the 2 BR villa? We stayed in one of the 2BR at Saratoga Springs and it was awesome! :thumbsup2

[Lcaemom]

Hi Melissa

Happy Mother's Day...hoping you're enjoying your first official Mother's Day. I love all your pictures. Is there really a separate lobby for the WLV, with it's own rocking chairs and fireplace and tree...wow!!! You're really selling me on this DVC thing...I'm getting closer!;) I can't believe how big a "designated 2 bedroom" is either. I love your description of your dad, regarding the boats...must have been a nice, relaxing time for him and Nick to sit on the balcony, watching the deer and listening to the boat horns.:cloud9: I remember you commenting on that, before our trips...turned out to be one of my favorite things about that whole area. Can't wait to read more...great job so far!:thumbsup2

[wide receiver]

Dinners are one of the things that we look forward to the most on our trips, we make dinner reservations for every night because we like to top off our day with a great meal


Yeah! We are the same way...Now I'm looking forward even more to your TR! Stories about food always warm my heart.:lovestruc

Hope your feeling well on your first Mom's Day!

[MEK]

So excited to read an update, but I have to wait until I get home to see the pics. I am eating at the Wave in June. Looking forward to it!

[Melissa79]

Ooh, I love the pictures of the WL! I seriously cannot wait to stay there!

So how did you like the 2 BR villa? We stayed in one of the 2BR at Saratoga Springs and it was awesome! :thumbsup2
We thought the 2 bedroom villa was great. I loved having the nice big bathroom in the master bedroom and it was nice to have the living room to sit in together at night.


Hi Melissa

Happy Mother's Day...hoping you're enjoying your first official Mother's Day. I love all your pictures. Is there really a separate lobby for the WLV, with it's own rocking chairs and fireplace and tree...wow!!! You're really selling me on this DVC thing...I'm getting closer!;) I can't believe how big a "designated 2 bedroom" is either. I love your description of your dad, regarding the boats...must have been a nice, relaxing time for him and Nick to sit on the balcony, watching the deer and listening to the boat horns.:cloud9: I remember you commenting on that, before our trips...turned out to be one of my favorite things about that whole area. Can't wait to read more...great job so far!:thumbsup2
Thanks, I did enjoy my first official Mother's Day. I hope you had a good day too! There really is a separate lobby for the WLV, and there are actually two fireplaces in there! Loved it!! I bet you'll end up buying into DVC!


Yeah! We are the same way...Now I'm looking forward even more to your TR! Stories about food always warm my heart.:lovestruc

Hope your feeling well on your first Mom's Day!
Gotta have a good meal at the end of the day! I was feeling well on my first Mother's Day...hope you enjoyed your day.


So excited to read an update, but I have to wait until I get home to see the pics. I am eating at the Wave in June. Looking forward to it!
I would definitely eat at the Wave again, I hope you enjoy it!

[Melissa79]

I think it's time for a little update since I've been missing for a bit! I've been busy around here and we went on a little get away before the baby. Can anyone guess where we went???

Disney - of course!:banana:

Nick and I had been thinking about taking a last vacation before the baby and we decided on a mini trip to Disney while I could still fly. We stayed at Animal Kingdom Lodge for 4 nights and did a lot of relaxing, it was great! We had never stayed at AKL before but found a good deal through Expedia - $170 per night when the room is normally $290 a night right now. If we had some DVC points available we probably would have stayed at the WL. So, even though I've barely got my Dec TR going, I'm going to tell you a bit about our 4 night visit to AKL. Here we go!

On Friday May 15th I worked until 4:00 and headed home to have dinner and make sure we were ready to go. We ate and I changed and next thing I knew, it was time to leave for the airport! The car picked us up at 5:45 and we got to Logan with out any trouble. Our check in and security adventure was quick and painless and we sat waiting to board our plane which was scheduled for 8:10. I couldn't believe we were heading back to Disney again! We flew Jet Blue - I love that airline! The tvs in every seat are great and Nick and I watched one of the Bourne movies which took up two thirds of the flight. I was so tired and really wanted to nap on the plane but the doctor told me I had to keep moving my legs and get up as much as possible. We landed in Orlando, grabbed our luggage, and headed to Magical Express. The airport was empty! They showed us to a bus and we sat there for a long time and only two other groups of people got on the bus before we were on our way. When we got to AKL to check in it was after midnight, we checked in and found our room - number 4007. After a quick look at the room we went to bed, it was after 1:00AM:eek: That is late for a pregnant person who had been up since 5:00AM and had a busy work day! Not to worry though, we were determined to do nothing but relax on this vacation!

Saturday May 16th
I woke up at 7:00 and Nick wasn't in the room so I sent him a text to tell him I was up and went out to see our view off the balcony. We were at the front of the resort and our balcony was very small, the door had to be opened out and you couldn't open it all the way because it would bump into the chair our there. This is what I saw when I looked out that first morning.

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_1060.jpg

Nick had been wandering the resort looking for animals but he didn't see any this morning. We got ready for the day and waited for a bus to the Magic Kingdom...we didn't go in but headed for the monorail so that we could get to the Poly. We had breakfast reservations at the Kona for 10:15, we were really early so we walked around before checking in. Our breakfast was great as usual, we both got the Tonga Toast, love it! After breakfast we walked out by the pool and sat at a table and enjoyed the beautiful weather.

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_1065.jpg

Me and my belly starting to get hot walking around the Poly:laughing:
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_1072.jpg

After a while we decided to go back to the hotel to take a nap before heading to Epcot. So, we got on the monorail and got off at the Magic Kingdom and walked over to the bus area. I really wanted to go into the MK! The bus came after a short wait, we had no problems with waiting for the buses, as usual. Back at our hotel we walked around looking for some animals and did see some off in the distance. It was 2:00 when we got to the room and decided to set the alarm for 4:00 but I really didn't expect to sleep that long. The alarm went off at 4:00 and we were both still sound asleep! So, we got ready and off we went to Epcot.

There were lots of topiaries, which I just love! Here are just two...
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_1079.jpg

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_1081.jpg

We pretty much just walked straight to the world showcase, since that is our favorite part of Epcot. We started on the Canada side and made our way around slowly. I was getting hungry (I feel like all I do is eat snacks these days) and we didn't have dinner reservations until 8:30 so we looked for something to eat. I decided to try the funnel cake in America. By the time we got it I was starting to overheat - it came on so fast! We found a spot in the shade and I ate my snack while Nick went looking for something for himself. He was gone for a bit and ended up getting some gelato from Italy. We finished our snacks and I was really hot so we decided to watch the show in America, we love it and it is in the AC. Jose Feliciano was singing on the stage across the way and I was enjoying it even though I didn't know any of the songs he was singing - I've only heard his Christmas CD from a long time ago!

After the show in America we continued our walk around the countries and had a seat in front of China for a while. It was a bit cooler and the sun had started to go down.
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_1091.jpg

As it got closer to our dinner time we headed back towards Italy so that we could wander through the shops before we ate.
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I checked in for our 8:30 dinner reservation and we were seated after just a few minutes. We had a wonderful dinner there, as usual. I think that is my favorite restaurant in Disney! After dinner we headed for the exit. It was almost 10:00 and the park was EMPTY! It was so strange walking by the countries seeing almost no one! When we got back to the hotel we went to bed, even with the nap I was really tired.

Sunday May 17th
Today we had no breakfast reservations so we ate at the Mara, the counter service at AKL. I had slept later today and was starving by the time we got down there! Our plan for the day was to just hang out by the pool and go to the Magic Kingdom in the evening, it was open until midnight with extra magic hours. The day was going as planned, at least the first half. It was sooooo relaxing, we sat by the pool and went swimming and sat some more until about 3:30 when it started to get cloudy. We headed back to the room to get ready for our evening at the Magic Kingdom.
Here are a few pictures of our room...
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http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_1108.jpg

We had a handicapped bathroom and there was a lot of room in there.
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Before we went to the bus stop, we went looking for animals again. We did see several animals this time, including a baby giraffe that was taking a look at us as well.
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_1112.jpg

Off to the Magic Kingdom we went...and wouldn't you know, within 5 minutes of being there it started to rain?! We went on the Pirates ride and the haunted mansion before it got heavy. Then it was raining more and you could hear thunder, I was hoping it was going to pass. We waited for Winnie the Pooh even though it was about a 30 minute wait, we wanted to stay out of the rain for now. After that ride we headed for the closest food place which was Cosmic Rays and thought we'd find something to eat. But, neither of us felt like anything there so we walked a bit further and sat at a table in a covered area, I don't know what it's called but it is huge and has tons of tables and sometimes they serve food in there but it wasn't open today. Anyway, we sat there for a long time looking out at the castle as it was changing color and the lighting was zig zagging accross the sky. We both got a bit hungry so we headed towards Main Street and decided to go to the bakery and the ice cream place. Nick got an ice cream and I got a chocolate croissant...healthy dinner, I know. After we ate we decided to call it a night, we were wet, tired and I can't walk all that fast right now and didn't want to be wandering through the rain so we headed for the exit. We sat in the lobby for a while when we got back and we could see the lightning through the huge windows at the back of the lobby. I was so happy that we got to have our day by the pool because the next two days were looking like all rain.

[princess&her4princes]

WOW...you snuck in a quick trip!! Good for you guys! :thumbsup2And how smart to do it now before the baby comes.....but I will tell you, it's SO easy to travel with a newborn, too!! We took our youngest at 2.5 mos and it was the best trip for us!!!:goodvibes Looks like you had a nice time so far, looking foward to hearing more!!

Btw, you look so cute pregnant! How are you feeling? Will you find out what you're having?:confused3

Can't wait to hear more....:surfweb:

[Melissa79]

Monday May 18th
The plan for Monday was to have breakfast at the Kona, hotel hop, and have dinner at the Grand Floridian Cafe and that is exactly what we did. It rained ALL day so we didn't do anything outside and it was a good day to hotel hop! So, we started off at the Poly and had breakfast at the Kona at 10:15. Nick loves the Poly!

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_1139.jpg

We hung out in the lobby for a while after breakfast and then took the monorail to the Contemporary. There we wandered through the shops and sat in some seats by the windows that overlooked the dock area. When we felt like a change, we got back on the monorail and took it to the Grand Floridian. At the GF we got a snack for me and looked through the shops, Nick got a GF sweatshirt and I was looking for a sweatshirt for myself but didn't find anything. We found a seat in the lobby and Nick read the newspaper and I hung out and wandered the lobby at times.

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The piano player came out and started playing at 3:00, not long after we had sat down. I love sitting in the Grand Floridian lobby listening to the music:cloud9:
Here is my view of the piano player from my seat.

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_1151.jpg

He played for an hour and then the band started up and I believe they played for an hour and then it switched back to the piano. We checked into the Grand Floridian Cafe for our 5:35 dinner reservations and were seated almost right away. We had another good meal and talked about how we couldn't believe we were going home the next day already. We headed back to the Animal Kingdom Lodge and we sat in the lobby for at least an hour before going to bed.

Tuesday May 19th
We got up at 7:00, got ready for the day, and packed up our things. By 8:30 we were in line at the resort air line check in. Once we checked in and passed on our suitcase we went down to the bus stop again. It was still raining! This morning we were heading to the Kona again!:woohoo: We had yet another delicious breakfast and wandered the lobby for a little while before heading back to our resort.
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_1157.jpg

The Magical Express was coming at 2:30 and we had a couple of hours to kill so we walked all around the hotel looking out a lots of animal viewing areas. At the end of one wing we went outside and found several animals...here a few of them.
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_1177.jpg

We spent the last hour or so talking and entertaining ourselves by taking pictures.
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_1184.jpg
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_1181.jpg

We boarded the Magical Express and headed back to the airport. Our flight back was ok, I didn't like the take off, it was pouring and it was really shaky and bumpy for a bit. The plane would climb a little, then drop a little.:scared1: But once we got above the storm it was a smooth ride back to Boston!

We were so happy that we got to take a final vacation, just the two of us!

My next update - hopefully tomorrow, will be back to our December vacation!

[Melissa79]

WOW...you snuck in a quick trip!! Good for you guys! :thumbsup2And how smart to do it now before the baby comes.....but I will tell you, it's SO easy to travel with a newborn, too!! We took our youngest at 2.5 mos and it was the best trip for us!!!:goodvibes Looks like you had a nice time so far, looking foward to hearing more!!

Btw, you look so cute pregnant! How are you feeling? Will you find out what you're having?:confused3

Can't wait to hear more....:surfweb:

Hi! I'm so glad we were able to sneak in a quick trip! We did see LOTS of young babies while we were there so we were feeling better about maybe booking a trip for next year! I'm feeling great these days! I was hoping to find out what I'm having but when I went for my 18 week ultrasound, the baby was not cooperating and they couldn't see! So, I may not find out because the doctor doesn't think I'll need another ultrasound! A surprise will be nice though!

[princess&her4princes]

Hi! I'm so glad we were able to sneak in a quick trip! We did see LOTS of young babies while we were there so we were feeling better about maybe booking a trip for next year! I'm feeling great these days! I was hoping to find out what I'm having but when I went for my 18 week ultrasound, the baby was not cooperating and they couldn't see! So, I may not find out because the doctor doesn't think I'll need another ultrasound! A surprise will be nice though!

It's so nice to be surprised, we didn't find out with our oldest two boys but found out our last time since the boys were born in the Wintertime and our last was born in the Summer, we needed to know if it was going to be a girl or not so we could plan. Either way, it's nice!!!:lovestruc Yes, traveling next year would be fine...we did it with two toddlers and a newborn....it was the best trip!!!!:goodvibes

[wdwgirl03]

How fun you got to go to Disney again! The Animal Kingdom Lodge is awesome. Love all the pics too!

[wide receiver]

Its great that you were able to enjoy a vacation with hubby before baby comes! You lucky duck!

[Melissa79]

Ok, back to my December TR - our first full day in Disney! I woke up somewhere around 7:30 and was doing some unpacking when Nick came into the room. He and my dad had been walking around the WL, standing out on the dock, and sitting in the lobby, which became a morning ritual. Normally, Nick is up really early and goes to the hot tub before I get up but the mornings on this vacation were too cold for that. I took a shower and got ready. By the time I was done, everyone was ready and waiting for me...I've always been the slowest one in the family.:rolleyes1 They were all hanging out in the living room and I decided to take a picture before we left the room, here we are ready for our day. Why are we all wearing blue? No reason, just happened that way.:rotfl:

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0638.jpg

We took the boat to the Contemporary and got on the monorail and went over to the Polynesian. We love eating breakfast at the Kona and the plan was to do that about 4 or 5 times this vacation. Last year when Nick and I stayed at the Grand Floridian it was great because we walked over to the Poly 4 out of the 7 mornings. I believe we got to the Kona around 10:00 and it was really busy. I put our name in (no reservations) and they said the wait would be 45 minutes. We wandered the shops upstairs and it wasn't long before the buzzer went off. Mom and I had the ham and cheese omlet, Nick had the Big Kahuna, and dad had eggs. It was all soooo good!

We took the monorail around to the Magic Kingdom and made our way into the park, I can't believe we're here! I noticed the big Christmas tree was not there, turns out they filmed the Christmas parade the day before and don't keep the tree up during that.

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/DSC01474.jpg

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We walked down Main Street and took a left and headed towards Pirates.

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/DSC01477.jpg

The wait time for Pirates said 10 minutes...yay, maybe it will be just like last December with really short wait times! The four of us went on, I could do that ride again and again, ok, maybe that's the case with most of the rides. After Pirates, we moved towards Splash, the wait time was 20 minutes. Nick and I did it while my parents waited.

Quick clip of the area before we got on Splash.
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/th_20081207133726.jpg (http://s677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/?action=view&current=20081207133726.flv)

From there we walked through Frontierland and stopped in Liberty Square.

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/DSC01482.jpg

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http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/th_20081207141222.jpg (http://s677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/?action=view&current=20081207141222.flv)

Our next destination was the Haunted Mansion which is a favorite for all of us. The wait for this was also 20 minutes.

Waiting for the Haunted Mansion
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/th_20081207141822.jpg (http://s677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/?action=view&current=20081207141822.flv)

After that we went to Peter Pan and got fast passes because the wait was pretty long. Next up was Mickey's Philharmagic which I enjoy but the 3D wasn't working for most of the show. Last year the same thing happened and everyone got a fastpass to anyride on the way out. We got in line for Snow White and I believe the wait time said 30 minutes but the line was short. I don't remember how long we waited but it wasn't 30 minutes. Buzz Lightyear was the next ride and we waited a while for this one because we all love this. Nick and I rode together and he won as usual.

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/DSC01488.jpg

When we came out of Buzz we were trying to decide where to head to next. We saw Carousel of Progress and decided to give that a try. Nick had been on this years ago but the rest of us had never seen it before. We all really liked it. I can't say it has become a favorite but I'll definitely do it again...that song is always in my head.:laughing: Nick wanted to do Space Mountain so we went there next. Mom, dad, and I sat outside and waited for Nick.

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/DSC01489.jpg

I was fascinated by all of the people walking around on their cell phones. You are in Disney people - listen to the music around you, talk to the people you are with, and pay attention to all of the detail in the parks! So I was pretending to be on my phone and my dad thought it was funny and took my picture.

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/DSC01490.jpg

We talked about what we wanted to do next. Mom said her back was really bothering her so we decided to leave and head over to the Grand Floridian a little early, we had reservations at the GF Cafe for 6:10.

Continued in next post...

[Melissa79]

So we headed up Main Street towards the exit and admired some of the decorations before we left.

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0642.jpg

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/DSC01493.jpg

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http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/DSC01494.jpg

We took the boat from the Magic Kingdom to the Grand Floridian

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We hung out in the lobby of the GF, which is one of my favorite things to do. We checked out the giant gingerbread house and all the Christmas decorations. Everything was almost exactly the same as last year, so pretty.

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We found a couch and hung out there listening to the band until it was time for dinner.

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http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/th_20081207182715.jpg (http://s677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/?action=view&current=20081207182715.flv)

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0681.jpg

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0655.jpg

We had a great dinner at the GF Cafe, I had the New York Strip, I don't remember what anyone else had...but I know they all enjoyed their meals. Our waiter was Donald, he was a nice guy - he really seemed to like Nick;), but he kept disappearing for long periods of time. Everytime we needed something he was nowhere to be seen and we were all joking around calling out for our pal Donald, but not loud enough for other people to hear. After dinner we took the monorail to the Contemporary.

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0691.jpg

And from the Contemporary we took the boat back to the Wilderness Lodge.

Looking from the Contemporary dock back at the hotel
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0695.jpg

Nick being really goofy walking down the dock to wait for the boat
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0692.jpg

We sat in the Wilderness Lodge main lobby for a while enjoying the decorations before heading over to the villas.

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0697.jpg

Walkway to the villas
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0700.jpg

The elevator was not working to get upstairs and a cast member took us in a service elevator so we could get up to our villa. It was funny to see what it looked like "behind the scenes" in the hotel.

Back in our villa, we sat in the living room talking and having fun for a while before bed.

Dad has a toy Tinkerbell cell phone that I gave to him a while back as a joke and he pulled it out of his suitcase that night
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0710.jpg

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0709.jpg

I always get excited when I hear the electrical water pageant, so when I heard the music start up this night, I ran to the balcony and opened the door...you could see part of it from our living room. Oh the excitement. Haha
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_0708.jpg

Our first full day in Disney had come to an end and we were all tired so we headed to bed.

[MEK]

How great that you got to go on a minitrip last week. I have always wanted to go to Disney in May, but its mostly impossible because of my kid's school/sports schedule. That's a great rate you got for AK. I loved reading your mini trip update.

Now....back to your December trip......looks like it was COLD. As I recall, it was pretty cold when DH and I got there December 13. Your view of the electric light parade is nice. Your pics definately make me want to stay at WLV. It looks like such a beautiful, relaxing place to visit.

[joelp]

Hi!
I saw your link on LCAEMoms TR and thought I would join you!!

Well - I saw your link on princess... new ptr and ...

I was there the same time (12/7-14)

... us, too (we were at AKL ...) :dance3:

and we're neighbors!!

... but we're not neighbors, cuz I live in Jersey ...

I actually live in Plymouth!!:goodvibes

But I've been to Plymouth - a looooong time ago ... (but not before the Pilgrims!! :lmao: )


Looking forward to reading some more....and can't wait to hear more about DVC, it's our dream!!:cloud9: Me, too!!

Congrats on your baby!!!

I'll second that!!

Motherhood is a wonderful thing.... so is fatherhood!! :)

best wishes for you!! And glad to hear you're getting your energy back, when are you due?

Looking forward to hearing more!!
Kristen:flower3:

... great minds think alike ...

Now to read your TR ... :surfweb:

[joelp]

Well - on Dec 6 we were in The Contemporary around 6 pm for dinner, too!!!

But at Chef Mickey's (where you - and your kid!! - will probably be next trip ... :3dglasses ...)

... don't remember seeing you, though ... :rolleyes1

... and we were in the MK on Dec 7!! ... and I'm thinking in Tomorrowland - and on Buzz - at about the same time ... cuz we left the park around 6:00 for our dinner ressies at Boma!!

... but I don't remember seeing you, though ... (am I gonna have to check my videos to see if you guys magically appear?? ... )

[Melissa79]

How fun you got to go to Disney again! The Animal Kingdom Lodge is awesome. Love all the pics too!
We were excited to be able to get back there for a quick trip! We liked the Animal Kindgom Lodge - isn't my favorite but it was nice to try a new place!

Its great that you were able to enjoy a vacation with hubby before baby comes! You lucky duck!
We thought that we should just go for it when we came across the deal and things fell into place! Now I can't wait to go back with the baby!

How great that you got to go on a minitrip last week. I have always wanted to go to Disney in May, but its mostly impossible because of my kid's school/sports schedule. That's a great rate you got for AK. I loved reading your mini trip update.

Now....back to your December trip......looks like it was COLD. As I recall, it was pretty cold when DH and I got there December 13. Your view of the electric light parade is nice. Your pics definately make me want to stay at WLV. It looks like such a beautiful, relaxing place to visit.
Yeah, the rate we got for the AKL was great for May...couldn't pass it up! There were some really chilly days in December, made for some cold boat rides but that's ok! WLV really is beautifull and relaxing, you are right!

Well - on Dec 6 we were in The Contemporary around 6 pm for dinner, too!!!

But at Chef Mickey's (where you - and your kid!! - will probably be next trip ... :3dglasses ...)

... don't remember seeing you, though ... :rolleyes1

... and we were in the MK on Dec 7!! ... and I'm thinking in Tomorrowland - and on Buzz - at about the same time ... cuz we left the park around 6:00 for our dinner ressies at Boma!!

... but I don't remember seeing you, though ... (am I gonna have to check my videos to see if you guys magically appear?? ... )
Hello! Thanks for joining me! Funny that we were on the same schedule on the first days...great minds think alike!

[Melissa79]

Hi! Just checking in...been away for longer than I expected, sorry about that but I was sooo sick!:sick: Doctors think it was a bug, but that was not fun! Lost 7 pounds in just two days and had to keep checking in with the doctor because they thought I might need to go to the hospital for an IV because of dehydration but I managed to avoid that! I'm feeling much better now and I'm feeling the baby move more than ever! The baby is strong enough now that I can see my belly move when he/she kicks:goodvibes It cracks me up for now, I'm sure I won't think it's so funny later when I get kicked really hard!:laughing: Thought I'd post a picture of me and my expanding belly at 23 weeks.

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/IMG_1234.jpg

Well, back to my trip report!

[Melissa79]

I woke up before 7:00 and got ready for the day and yes, I was the last one ready! We all wanted an earlier start than yesterday if we were going to the Kona again. We took the boat to the Contemporary and then the monorail to the Polynesian. I believe we got to the Poly around 9:30 and I put our name in at the Kona for breakfast. It was not as busy today since it was a little earlier, but we still had to wait for a while.

Here we are waiting to be called for breakfast.
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Love the lobby
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Our breakfast was great as always. I believe this was the day that Nick and I got the Tonga Toast. I had never had it before and it was soooo good!

After breakfast we walked out to the walkway between the Polynesian and the Grand Floridian. Someone that Nick works with has a brick with their name on it and we wanted to find it.

Looking for the brick.
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Found it! Video of our findings.
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/th_20081208115141.jpg (http://s677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/?action=view&current=20081208115141.flv)

Once we found the brick we decided to continue the walk to the GF. There was a wedding going on at the wedding paviloin as we walked by.

Some pics from our walk to the GF
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The building Nick and I stayed in during our Dec 2007 vacation! Third floor, second room from the left...we had a great view!
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We took the monorail from the GF to EPCOT. I was so excited to be going to EPCOT, I love the countries and our dinner tonight was going to be in Italy!
Pic looking down off the monorail platform at GF
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We're here!
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Our first stop was Spaceship Earth. It said the wait was 20 minutes so Nick and I rode it while my parents waited out in the beautiful weather. Last year we saw some of the changes but the movie at the end didn't work. It was up and running this year and I thought it was cute. We met mom and dad as we walked out the door and headed over to the Living Seas. Last year there was no wait for the Nemo Ride so we walked right through the line area. This time there was a line and I realized the wait area is designed to look like you are under the water, I loved it.

Next up was the Land. Mom and dad had been looking forward to this forever. This is their type of ride and it was closed in 2006 on their first trip to Disney. I have NEVER seen a line for this ride but there was a 15 minute wait this time! After the land we decided to head into the World Showcase.

Canada was up first.
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We still have not eaten dinner in Canada, we tried to get reservations for this trip and no luck, once again. Maybe next time!

We slowly made our way around and sat on a bench between France and Morocco. We didn't stop in all of the countries on the way because we still had a lot more EPCOT time coming up. Dad went to get mom a wheelchair but he decided to do this when Nick was in the bathroom and before I could think to stop him. He went all the way to the front of the park and he could have gone to the entrance on the other side of France. The three of us were talking about how we would have to send out a search party because he easily gets lost. He did make it back ok and actually made great time.:laughing:

Hanging out in our spot between France and Morocco.
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/th_20081208160437.jpg (http://s677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/?action=view&current=20081208160437.flv)

Continued in next post

[Melissa79]

We wandered over to America and saw the show over there. Some people think it's boring but we love it! After America we went to Germany and walked through the shops.

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We moved on to Italy and looked around there, I think Italy is my favorite pavilion. Nick bought a small mask for decoration.

Here is the mask hanging in our house
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Shortly before dinner
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We sat around outside the Italy area until we checked in to Tutto Italia for dinner close to 6:00. Not long after we sat down for dinner I saw my dad jump a little and then reach his hand to the back of his neck. When he pulled his hand back he had something red on his hand, my mom jumped up and I thought something was really wrong. Well, turns out my dad got attacked by some flying spaghetti.:rotfl: One of the managers came over to see if dad was ok, not sure if he just saw it happen or if he saw my mom making a scene:rolleyes1 Other than the spaghetti attack, our dinner was great. Haha. Nick got the Lasagna al Forno, mom and dad got the Sacchetti (I think, it was like ravioli) and I got Bucatini Gratinati which was a bowtie pasta with peas and ham and a cream sauce. It was about 8:00 by the time we got out of dinner.

After dinner we decided to head to the Magic Kingdom because it was an EMH night from 8-11 and mom and dad wanted to see the MK decorations at night.

A few pics of Christmas decorations from our stroll out to the monorail.
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We took the monorail to the MK and as the monorail pulled up we noticed that they had put the big Christmas tree up at the top of Main Street.

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/th_20081208214051.jpg (http://s677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/?action=view&current=20081208214051.flv)

Lots of people were leaving, I love seeing that when I'm heading into a park! We walked down Main Street and sat in front of the castle. The decorations are just so pretty!

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Video of the castle
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/th_20081208215806.jpg (http://s677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/?action=view&current=20081208215806.flv)

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv134/melissasue79/DSC01559.jpg

I'm not sure how long we sat there but it was for a long time! We decided to head back to the WL so we walked back down Main Street to the boat area. We waited for the boat for a long time but it was a nice night so we didn't mind. My sister called while we were waiting and said that it was just 11 degrees back in Mass. :eek: Glad we were in Florida!

Once we got back to the villa we hung out in our living room area until we went to bed. Another great day in Disney!

[wdwgirl03]

Great update! Love the castle with the dream lights. It's so pretty! That's funny how your sister called and said how cold it was at home...that's pretty much how it was for us on our trip too. Our first night there my dad, sister and I were sitting out by the pool eating our ice cream while it was snowing here in WI. :laughing: We felt kind of bad about that but oh well!

[joelp]

:lmao: :rotfl: :rotfl2:


We were in Epcot on Dec 8, too!! ... and since we had lunch at The Coral Reef, we spent the morning in the same general areas you did ...!!

... but I don't remember seeing you ... :laughing:

(if this keeps up, we're bound to show up on each other's photos/videos at some point ... :) )

[khertz]

I love the pictures of the Christmas decorations at night! Absolutely gorgeous. I can't wait to see it all in person! And can't wait for your next post. :goodvibes