"Everyone! Come see how handsome I am!" *UPDATE* 5/21

[dawnmichele]

Hello fellow Disney obsessed, trip planning, report reading friends!

My name is Shelly and from December 6 through the 13 I had a magical time at that fabulous place we love some much, Disney World. I went with my ex husband and our (kind of) grown daughter on a trip that came about when the DX announced his company was having their annual Christmas Party at the Coronado Springs Resort this year! We added on a few nights there and then, as a surprise to the DD, two nights in the brand new Little Mermaid rooms at Art of Animation and started our planning and dreaming. We weren’t able to add the dining plan, but still managed to make a number of ADRs.

If you’d like more background info, I made a pre trip report called They’re Opening New Fantasy Land Just for Us (http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2920654), where you can learn more than you ever wanted to know about the thoughts and plans that went into this trip!

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day8/Photo1281FourBySix.jpg
Danny, Hannah, Shelly on Main Street USA

In the several hundred days I was planning our December 2012 Disney Trip, I spent countless hours reading all your Trip Reports and could not wait to start my own as soon as we got back. I dreamed of having so many stories to tell and pictures to show, it would be like living the trip all over again.

Now here it is, exactly one month since we got home from our fabulous 8 days at the happiest place on earth, and I’m just starting our report. I didn’t even write a just back report, although I’d been looking forward to that, too. It’s just a little intimidating. I want to write the best trip report Ever. I want to capture all the fun (and not less than fun) moments of magic we enjoyed.

I’m going to try my best.

A couple other things helped with the hold up.
For one, I didn’t take nearly as good of trip notes as I had hoped. I did a lot of bagless days, so I didn’t always have my notebook with me to jot things down. At first I thought, no problem, I’ll just just my phone! Turned out my phone ran out of battery so quickly every day I had to save the juice for things like letting each other know where we were and where to meet up.
Also.
On my last trip in 2010, almost every night my daughter and I would be back in our room with plenty of time to do things like talk about our day, make trip notes and even upload photos to share on the internet. Every night of this trip it seemed I could barely drag myself back to our room with enough energy to take my drugs, change into my Disney themed pjs and order our wake up call before I crashed for the night. After the first few days I didn’t even get to ask about our daily highs and lows. I think this was because we shoved extra fun into every day this trip (definitely not because I am getting older), but it means I had to work a little harder to reconstruct our days.

The other part was all about the photos. So many photos! I pre ordered our Photo Pass Plus a few months ago (when the price dropped) and so I was determined to get enough photos to make it worth it. I think we succeeded. It certainly took awhile to sort through and edit all the photos (Disney’s wonky web site didn’t help), and by the time the CDs finally came in the mail, it took 3 of them to hold them all. Good job! Then there were my photos. After I took out all the miserable ones and the ones that were practically doubles out, I still had a little more than 2,000. Sorting through those and sending them through LightRoom took some time as well.

But now here I am. The photos are all uploaded to PhotoBucket, the days are mostly outlined, I’ve got the Disney playlist going so here I go!

Next up: Introductions (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47188111&postcount=5)

[dawnmichele]

Table of Contents.

Introductions (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47188111&postcount=5) - 1/14
The Day Before (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47198385&postcount=8) - 1/15

Day 1

Getting there is not half the fun. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47213277&postcount=11) - 1/16
The Coronado Springs Resort (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47233046&postcount=15) - 1/18
Mistake #1 = Cafe Rix (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47259251&postcount=17) - 1/21
Off to Animal Kingdom! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47271278&postcount=23) - 1/22
Our first ride. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47282602&postcount=25) - 1/23
Dinosaur, Dug and a Mickey Bar. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47313681&postcount=35) - 1/26
After dark at Epcot. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47317471&postcount=38) - 1/26

Day 2

The start of a fantastic day. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47369683&postcount=44
) - 1/31
Walking towards the castle. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47375335&postcount=50
) - 2/1
New FantasyLand! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47478151&postcount=59
) - 2/11
Something's starting right now. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47479066&postcount=60) - 2/11
Be still my heart... (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47492816&postcount=65) - 2/13
Undersea Journey of the Little Mermaid (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47497416&postcount=68) - 2/13
Rides and a parade. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=48027461&postcount=80) - 4/5
Lunch and the circus! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=48178348&postcount=85) - 4/22
The company party. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=48179375&postcount=86) - 4/22
Extra magic hours at Epcot. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=48191277&postcount=88) - 4/23
Extra magic Hollywood style. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=48221082&postcount=92) - 4/26
Breakfast noms. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=48221741&postcount=93) - 4/26
We ride rides and join the Clean Plate Club. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=48403493&postcount=95) - 5/15
Countdown to a fun surprise. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=48463240&postcount=96) - 5/21

[murmkc]

Great start!!! I can't wait to see all the photos and hear about the trip.

[wiigirl]

Great start....cant wait to hear more. :)

[dawnmichele]

Before I go any further, I should probably let you get to know us a tiny bit more.

First, there’s Danny.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0568FourBySix.jpg

He’s a 50 year old computer programer. A computer genius, really. He’s been doing it since he was in college in the 80s. He visited Disneyland and Disney World several times as a child and twice in the 90s with Hannah and me. He hasn’t been in years because he has Ankylosing spondylitis (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ankylosing_spondylitis). It’s a form of arthritis where the vertebrae of his back fuse together. Because of this he can’t stand or walk for more than a few minutes. He assumed he could never handle all the walking and standing involved in a Disney vacation, but many people had been trying to convince him that with a scooter, he would get around fine and still have an amazing time. When his company announced they’d be sending him there he finally agreed to rent the scooter and give it a try. I can’t even tell you how glad he is that he did.

This is Hannah.

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She’s a 19 year old college student. She started studying Graphic Design but this semester she’s switched to Animation. She loves video games and Doctor Who and metal smithing. And even though she gets tired of my obsessing, she loves Disney. We took her when she was 3 and 4 (which she only partly remembers), and then two years ago in 2010 my brother took us along with him for a week at Bay Lake Tower. She loves Ariel and Simba and Atlantis: The Lost Empire. She doesn’t want me to post any pictures of her, but I promised none of her friends would read this and told her she’d just have to deal. She has Type 1 Diabetes (she uses an insulin pump) and Epilepsy which can sometimes complicate vacation time, but didn’t effect this one at all.

Then there’s me, Shelly.

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I’m 46, but kind of act more like I’m 12 when it comes to Disney. I have always been a Disney fan, but wasn’t able to visit the World until I was 30! Tragic. I went twice in the 90s and on the 2010 trip with Hannah and my brother (there’s a trip report over here (http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2610132)). I’ve always been a big fan of Disney movies and even more so, Disney music. And there’s just so much I love about Disney World - the rides, the themeing, the food, the magic. You guys know what I’m talking about. So I will stop trying to explain and get on with it.

Last but not least, there are the two sweet pups we left in Kansas while we enjoyed the Florida sun. They’re Lhasa Apsos though, so they don’t mind the cold.

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Daisy is 5. She’s a super awesome girl and we love her very much.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disboards/20121003aroundthehouse0082.jpg

Spike is 4, but has only lived with us for a few months. He has some issues, but he’s getting better. We love him lots as well.

Next up: The day before the trip!
(http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47198385&postcount=8)

[dawnmichele]

Great start!!! I can't wait to see all the photos and hear about the trip.

Great start....cant wait to hear more. :)

pixiedust:

Thank you both! I hope you'll enjoy it. I can't wait to relive the magic!

[murmkc]

AWESOME! I am totally using this TR to help get my Disney fix until our December trip!

[dawnmichele]

The day before you leave for Disney is almost as exciting as the day you actually leave, I think. Danny took off from work, and Hannah didnt have school so we were all home. My boyfriend, who would be taking us to the airport and staying at our house to take care of our two dogs was here as well. We were all busy talking and planning and packing.

Speaking of packing - of course I had been packing for a while. I had even made packing lists for Danny and Hannah (at their request, Im not quite that controling.)There was my suitcase I had to work on, and then we had a community suitcase. Usually when we travel, I am a huge proponent of one carry on per person. In fact, last year when my daughter and I went to Europe for 4 weeks, we only took one carry on each. Its party because of the extra bag fee for checked bags, but also because its just so much easier to only have one bag that you have to around and keep track of. But on this trip, neither of those issues applied! Since we were flying SouthWest, we could each check two bags for free (nice!). And because of the awesome Magical Express service, we wouldnt have to worry about picking up our bags or even carting them back to the airport when we were headed home. So we each checked a bag. And as a bonus, we took a small shared bag for all the extras wed all be using. Things like our chargers and the toiletries bag and room decorations and lights for Dannys scooter and etc.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/getting%20ready%20for%20disney%202012/20121122untitled0035.jpg
Heres what it looked like before I packed the stuff all in. Turns out we didn't use the bowls, spoons, 5 hour energies or turquoise tinsel stuff. The lights, however, were a big hit. They helped us find the scooter when it was dark and prompted many "Where did you get those?" questions.

Hannah is in college, and since she was going to miss a few days for our trip, she had been working super hard to get all her projects turned in on time. This meant she wasnt nearly as ready on the day before as Danny and I were. When she opened her suitcase to start packing, she discovered it was full of some serious stink. It must have gotten a mildewed in the garage. There was no time to do anything about it, which meant a last minute, panicked shopping trip for a new suitcase the day before we left.

I have to admit I was cranky about it. She cant drive (she has Epilepsy and has not been seizure free long enough to have permission to drive), which meant I'd be leading the suitcase search and I had much better things to do with my time that day. It also meant a bite out of the Disney budget that I hadn't planned on. We went to four stores before finally returning to the first store where we found a kind of giant hard shell rolling suitcase that she loved and was close to my price range.

We picked up some lunch on the way home (Arbys, and I didnt take a picture.) While we were eating, Hannah realized she had left the tape measure we had taken with us shopping (to make sure we didnt buy something too big) at one of the stores. Really, Hannah? I was even more cranky then and very grateful when my boyfriend offered to drive her back to retrieve it.

Luckily that was the last of the drama. After that we all packed up and relaxed. No one was really hungry for dinner, and since we were waking up way in the middle of the night, we all sent ourselves to bed very early. I was in bed around 8, and with a little help from modern chemistry, had no trouble falling asleep. I set alarms on my phone for 3:30, 3:40 and 3:45, but was surprised how easily I jumped out of bed at the first one.

Ok, not surprised at all. I was finally going to Disney World! It was Disney day and I was ready!!

Next up: Getting there is not half the fun. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47213277&postcount=11)

[murmkc]

Cheers! I can't wait to start packing but we have 10.5 months left still. :rotfl2:

[murmkc]

Subscribing!

[dawnmichele]

So I was UP and ready.
I didn’t even have to pack any last minute stuff, so I had carried my bags up to the front door the night before. I went upstairs and made sure everyone was awake and busy. I wish I would have taken a picture of the big luggage pile by the door before we loaded up, but I didn’t so you’ll just have to imagine. 4 suitcases. 5 carry on items.

Alan and Hannah loaded his SUV and started it warming up. I hadn’t even thought about how much room all of us and all our luggage would take up, but they managed to fit it all in.

We said goodbye to our sweet little doggies. They knew something was up. They’ve learned what bags by the front door mean. I felt better about leaving them knowing they’d be at home and with someone they know and love while we were gone, but I still felt kinda badly for leaving them.

It was cold and dark, but we were all out the door by 4:45 which was exactly on schedule! That meant we had time to drive through the drive through at McDonalds for some McBreakfast since I wasn’t sure when the next time we’d get to eat was. The hour drive to the Kansas City airport went quickly and before I knew it we were being dropped off at the curb and saying goodbye again.

I love the Kansas City airport. It has a super unique set up that I think is fantastic. There are three separate circular terminals, so although the airport is large, it seems really small. You don’t go through security until you are ready to go sit at your gate so it’s easy for your friends and family to come in and wait with you, or be there right when you get off the plane. It also means the line for security is seldom long. I know they’re making lots of noise about totally changing the set up, which I understand will be easier for the airlines, but for the passengers not so much.

Also, John Goodman does the airport’s announcements. Strange, but true.

The SouthWest check in desk was pretty dark and empty when we got there around 6am. There may have been someone in front of us, but we didn’t wait long. We walked right up to an agent. Even though we had done early check in at home and printed our own boarding passes, she printed us new ones. After she weigned our bags we had to roll them over to the bag security check area and after that we headed for our gate.

Now, Danny and Hannah both get a little freaky about planning security strategy. Danny can't move very quickly and worries about being rushed. He's also kinda paranoid and worries a lot about our stuff sitting there unattended while we are distracted with the whole ordeal. Hannah has an insulin pump, and while most times the TSA agents instantly recognize it and know just how to handle it, sometimes they don't and we've had times when it's been a little ... tricky. There are certain things they can do to check it and certain things they can not. Especially when she was younger, she'd be going through and get someone giving her a little trouble, but since Danny and I are going through ourselves, it's hard for her to get our help with explanations. So the whole time we're waiting for our flight, they're making plans for who is going to go first with which bags and addressing wacky what ifs. Eventually Danny was convinced to just take his time and not worry about rushing for anybody, I promised to keep an eye on all the technology and Hannah felt pretty confident they'd just have her do the thing where she touches her pump and then they test her hands for powder.

I am happy to report that's exactly what happened. We went slowly. Hannah got her hands swabbed. And before you can say Bob's your Uncle we were sitting down putting our shoes back on with our all belongings in tact.

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Here's our gate check in.

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And here's our lovely plane, waiting for us to come aboard.

Everyone visited the restrooms (going on an airplane is enver fun). Danny and Hannah bought sodas. Some of Danny’s co workers showed up not long after us and we all chatted for a while about work and Disney. Time passed pretty quickly and it was soon time to start boarding!

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Danny and Hannah, messing with their stuff.

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Me and Hannah, excitedly waiting.

Danny had picked up a little blue card from the gate agent since he definitely needs extra time boarding. Hannah and I don’t but we go along with him because I guess that’s the way things are done. SouthWest has open seating, so we chose a seat near the front. I stored my camera bag in the overhead compartment and shoved my purse under the seat in front of me.

Hannah took the window seat, Danny wanted the asile so I sat in the middle. The crew kept announcing the flight was full so to hurry and settle in so we could take off on time. I guess people complied because before we knew it we were taking off!

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Did I mention the girl is not a fan of having her photo taken?

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We flew over some clouds so lovely it looked like we were sailing on an ocean. From time to time the clouds parted and we could see civilization miniaturized beneath us.

They passed out sodas, peanuts and pretzels. I knew it would be a long time til I headed for bed so I put on the Disney music and tried to sleep. I got a little restless about two hours in and then read a little until we were there.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206_094621.jpg

Hannah’s head had some issues with the descent. It made her head really hurt. She showed me how her soda bottle had gotten compressed and said that’s how her head felt. It was a rough landing for her, but luckily she would be distracted quite soon.

We found a wheelchair waiting for Danny just outside the plane door which was great. He climbed in and we loaded on our bags bags as we headed out.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206_101958.jpg
As always, our first ride was a trip on the mini monorail.

When we made it to the main part of the airport, I was anxious to get on the bus and get to the magic. Danny needed a restroom break though, so I stayed with his chair while Hannah checked out the Harry Potter store. When she came back with news of all the stuff you could buy, I was a little sad we wouldn’t be venturing to Universal this trip. We are huge HP fans but have never made it over to check out his Wizarding World. Maybe next time.

I was back to happy once Danny returned and we found the elevators down to the Magical Express level. It was a long walk and we were all anxious, so I was glad there was no crowd at the check in desk. I handed the man our papers and he pointed us to the correct line. I didn’t take any pictures.

The area as a whole didn’t seem very crowded, but there were several people in our line ahead of us. Right away we noticed the guy in front of us telling the people in front of him all about how his company was flying in their workers from all over the country for a day of meetings and an evening Christmas party. He was with Danny’s company and it was fun to just listen for a while, but eventually Danny introduced himself. They hadn’t really crossed paths (I think the guy was in sales or support or something), but they still found some work stuff to talk about. It helped passed the time until it was our turn to board.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206_113922.jpg
I has excited to see it was a real Magical Express bus. Our friendly driver loaded our bags in the underneath and directed Danny to sit right behind him. We sat right behind Danny and had a pretty good view of things. The best part of sitting up front is not having to pay attention to all the other impatient Disney visitors on the bus, but close seconds are great views of the movie and the signs along the way.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206_114135.jpg

As part of the DecemberDis group, I tried to be a good live texter while I was there. It didn’t work out as well as I hoped due to battery life and connectivity issues, but I did my best. I’ll share my texts with you here, in a lovely different font so you’ll know what’s what. I sent my first one while we were on the bus.

Woohoo! We've made it to Orlando and are on the Magical Express with a great driver! His name is Kenneth Johnson.

Kenneth entertained us and made us quite welcome, and then he started the magical movie. It gets the Disney blood pumping and let’s you know the magic is starting.

He gave us plenty of warning to get our cameras ready for the magic shot when you enter the gates. Since Danny was in the very front, I texted him to get a shot with his phone.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206_120805.jpg

We made it!

Next up: Checking in at the Coronado Springs Resort (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47233046&postcount=15)

[SAT887]

Hi! Subbing - cant wait to read more!

[1stvisit0909]

Im in!

[geckodani]

Woo -hoo! Can't wait to hear more!

[dawnmichele]

Coronado Springs was the first stop. Hooray!

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We followed Danny off the bus. He headed inside to do check in while Hannah and I hung around to grab our bags and tip our fantastic driver. By the time I made it inside Danny was practically done and I was glad we had used online check in.

It was so beautiful inside, and I am sad to say I took a total of zero photos of it. I thought I'd have a chance to go back at some point and take some more, but I didn't. Lesson Learned: Always take the photo when you think of it.

We had purchased our park hopper tickets through Undercover Tourist and I wanted to have them put on our KTTW cards so we only had to worry about carrying one card with us every day. We were directed to another desk where they could take care of that. Danny decided to head over to bell services and pick up his scooter (we rented from Apple) while I took care of adding the tickets.

Now at this point, Hannah had no idea that we would be spending our last two nights at Art of Animation. It was a secret we had tried hard to keep (and almost blown more than once). She just knew Dannys company was covering 5 of our nights, and we were adding on the extra two. But as i was standing there talking to the CM who was trying to add our tickets to our cards, I wasnt thinking of the secret at all. I was thinking of making sure they got the right tickets on the right cards (since Danny had to work one day, his pass was shorter than ours), and how it would work when we checked out there and would the park hoppers be able to be transferred to our new AoA keys. So I straight up told her Were doing a split stay... Yikes. When I realized I just hoped Hannah was either not paying attention (turned out) or didnt understand what a split stay meant.

The CM did a lot of pushing buttons, printing papers to shuffle around, writing on our paper tickets and eventually she promised we were all good to go.

We headed for the lovely fountain we had chosen as a meet up spot, but it was so crowded with the Hair Bow crowd we decided to step outside and see if we could spot him.

Sure enough, there he was, zooming over to us with a great big smile. We headed back through the lobby and out the back doors, to the left and towards our new home. But man! That place was crowded. It was Pop Warner week and lucky us, CSR was one of the resorts they were staying at. Big groups of teen girls with giant hair bows were everywhere. We made it through the crowds and headed off to look for Building 2. We saw Building 1, and Building 3... It took a little searching but we eventually found it back behind the other two buildings. We were just about to head up to the second floor when I got a call from the Wegoshop lady.

She seemed really cranky that I hadnt called her the second we arrived. Sorry lady, but that is a crazy time. Youre finally there after all the (months of) waiting. Youre thinking about checking in and wondering about your room and its location. It is crowded and it is crazy. We were trying to do that ticket thing and Danny was concerned about his scooter and how it would be. We were all carrying a couple bags and in the back of our minds there were loud voices screaming at us to Hurry Up and Get To A Park!! Its stressful and full of feels, so sorry I didnt drop everything and call you about some groceries!

She gave me a little lecture about how if we had called she could have had a guy come and drive all our stuff to our room and I was all Ok, but the time has passed so lets just live in the now. I felt like i had to apologize a million times. Sheesh.

I took a deep breath and send Danny and Hannah (from here on known as D and H) off to see the room while i headed back out front to get our grub. As soon as I saw the big pile next to the lady I knew we had ordered way too much stuff -- and when I paid her 80 bucks I knew for sure. The sodas and water were a good idea, but we could have gone for a little less soda. The apples were good as well as my box of Cliff bars, but Hs Cliff bars, Ds pop tarts, milk for the cereal, yogurt covered pretzels - not so much. Most of it was left in our room when we checked out. The bell services guy said the housekeeping people could take it if they wanted, and I hoped they did.

Wegoshop lady found a CM with a cart who loaded it all and drove me towards our room. His route was a little crazy from trying to avoid the swarms of teen girls, none of whom thought it would be a good idea to get out of his way. We chatted a bit on the drive about where i was from and the crowds. I asked if he knew what area they were staying in and he said they were everywhere.

At one point when we were stopped waiting for a crowd to move, a few girls in matching outfits asked if he could drive them to the pool. I cant, Im working. he said - which should have been obvious from the cart being filled with me and the grocery bags. It doesnt look like it! one of them shouted as we started to drive off. Dang girl, youre a young fit cheerleader, just walk on over.
Eventually we got to the room where D & H had already started to settle in. Our plans of them waiting for me to take pictures and wipe down the surfaces was kind of blown, but after we unloaded the food and tipped our friendly driver, we moved our bags around so I could capture some photos.

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The beds

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This is the one Hannah and I shared.

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The TV, dresser and fridge. The desk (with lots of plug ins) and a nice space for Danny to park his scooter.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120009.jpg
The sink and vanity. Somehow i forgot to take a picture of it with those awesome sliding doors closed. They were great though and provided lots of needed privacy.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120005.jpg
The bathroom.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120006.jpg
The shower.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120007.jpg
Bathroom goodies.

We didn't have any towel animals the whole time we were there, even though we left a tip every night. The rooms were always tidy and clean though, and we had plenty of everything we needed so I have no complaints.

We stocked the fridge, packed a park bag and headed out, trying to decide where to go and what to do.

Next up: Mistake #1 (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47259251&postcount=17)

[murmkc]

Coronado Springs looks awesome!
I always order WAY too much from wegoshop or garden grocer but it is better than going without!

[dawnmichele]

We knew we wanted to head to the Animal Kingdom. Normally we'd do MK first, but it was the 6th - Grand Opening day for the Fantasyland expansion so that was out. Plus they were closing at 7 for the Christmas Party. AK was close, and D had never seen it, so wed go there first, and head for Epcot when it closed.

We left our room and headed back to the main area of the resort.

The view was beautiful. Sadly, we never took a chance to check the place out though. Most days we just saw the parking lot between our building and the bus stop. We didnt even get a glance at the amazing pool! Or any pool, actually. If we stay there again (if his company decided to do another party there this year), we will take some time out to take it all in.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120017.jpg
Walking beside the lake.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120015.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120019.jpg
I am a topiary fan, and I really loved this set outside the back door of the lobby.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120021.jpg http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120022.jpg

But what about food? Everyone was hungry. Hannah just wanted to GO and grab something once we were there. Danny & I werent so sure and wanted to see what the CSR had to offer. Somehow this lead to a little family meltdown. Hannah felt like we werent listening to her since we didnt automatically do what she said. I tried to explain what we were thinking and she got a little crycry. I kind of lost my patience right then and things got stressful. It was a low point as Danny & I tried to manage the crowds and check out the restaurants while Hannah freaked out and I wondered if she was going to be an emotional roller coaster the whole time (she wasn't). In retrospect we should have hopped the bus and headed away from that crazy crowded place. But we didnt. Instead we headed into Cafe Rix.

Mistake #1.

Cafe Rix is tiny. Its a narrow little room with coolers full of cold food and drinks, windows with hot food sitting out, and soda fountains on one side, cash registers on the other and a narrow aisle between them. And the place was packed. You had to make your way along the crowded food side, make your choices, and then squeeze back through the crowds to the entrance to get in line to pay. There was no way Danny was getting through there on his scooter, so he went off to find a table and trusted me to choose his lunch. I picked a bacon cheeseburger for him and chicken fingers for me. Hannah picked up a bacon cheeseburger as well. We grabbed our sodas and struggled up to a register. I gave them way too much money for what we were getting and made our way through the crowded room to a lovely empty space inside the bar that Danny had been led to by a helpful CM.

It all tasted about as bad as it looked, but we just counted it as a good lesson learned early.
http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120023.jpg
Before

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120025.jpg
After.
Obviously not so bad that we couldn't eat it, but when there are left over french fries, that's saying something. At least in my family.

The bar, called Rix Lounge, was pretty nice. I think we were the only ones in there. So even though the food was really bad, the surroundings were lovely. Gotta look for the bright side, right?

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120026.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120027.jpg

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http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120029.jpg
These light fixtures were awesome.

After we threw out our trash, we headed out front and waited for a bus to the Animal Kingdom, which came quickly and was mostly empty. Danny did pretty great at his first time getting a scooter onto a bus, and finally we were on the way to a park!

Next up: Off to Animal Kingdom (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47271278&postcount=23)

[dawnmichele]

pixiedust:
Big Welcomes to you!!

Hi! Subbing - cant wait to read more!

Im in!

Woo -hoo! Can't wait to hear more!

Thanks for joining in and Thanks for saying hi!!
I hope you enjoy it!

[dawnmichele]

Coronado Springs looks awesome!

The CSR is incredibly beautiful. Seriously. I'm so sad we didn't make time to go check more of it out. I know they have tons more to offer than we were able to take advantage of. That's the down side of an awesome place to stay at Disney - I never want to spend the time to enjoy it.

The room was a great size, too. There's not quite enough room for two people to walk between the feet of the bed and the TV/dresser area, but we really never felt cramped at all. Plus there was plenty room for the scooter. I'm a SCR fan.

I always order WAY too much from wegoshop or garden grocer but it is better than going without!
Even with what we didn't use, I know we still saved money with what we did use - especially the water and soda. We'll do it again, but I'll probably write down my order and then take a few things off the list before I place it.

[dawnmichele]

Yikes! My links in my Table of Contents were all off! I hate it when that happens. So sorry, :worship: and I promise I'll check them when I make them from now on.

[gracer9977]

I'm Hooked - looking forward to hearing all about your trip. :)

[dawnmichele]

I'm Hooked - looking forward to hearing all about your trip. :)

Well hooray! I'm glad I hooked you. :cool1:

And welcome. I hope you'll enjoy.

[dawnmichele]

The ride from the CSR to the Animal Kingdom is super quick. It seemed like less than ten minutes before the bus driver was straightening the ramp and sending Danny down it on his scooter. It wasn't quite the same as seeing the train station and going under the tracks into to hub of the Magic Kingdom, but I was Beyond Thrilled to see the gates of a Disney World park!

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120034.jpg

Danny wanted me to take this picture of the sign so we stopped for a split second while I did. Hannah was still kind of cranky and didnt want to slow down even that much. Impatience with me taking photos happened a lot on this trip. I still managed to take a lot of pictures, but truly not nearly as many as I wanted or had hoped to. Next trip, right? Thats why you always have to be planning a next trip. One of my Disney fantasies is to go by myself some time so I can go slow and take as many pictures as I want!

In the rush to leave the room, I had forgotten my PhotoPass+ voucher, but I knew I could add regular photopass pix to my account, so we picked one up and had our first photo taken outside the gate at the big Christmas tree. (Is that tree there all year and just not decorated or is it just an empty space most of the year?)

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/Photo0006.jpg

We took our first turn through the turnstiles and headed to the left.

We just kind of glanced at the animals on display along the walk. The fences are high enough that Danny couldnt see without getting off his scooter and after he looked at these birds, he was ready to skip the rest.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120035.jpg

There was a Photopass guy there on the bridge, so I suggested we post for another shot.
http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/Photo0017.jpg

And then there was the tree.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120044.jpg

I dont think you can really appreciate that tree until you see it. I know I didnt. I had read all about it, watched all about it on Disney shows and even had my brother rant on about its wonder. I thought Yeah I get it, its a giant tree. But then when I saw it and walked all around it I realized I really hadn't gotten It. its truly amazing.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120046.jpg

We got Danny to pull up in front of it and Hannah spent a while pointing things out and telling him how it was made. I just stood there and took in the beauty of the Animal Kingdom. We never did find the time to walk the paths and get a great close up look of the carvings, but we did stand at a distance many times naming all the animals we could pick out. Next time.

Ill say here I do not understand the AK is a half day park crowd. I think its a multi day park! There is so much to see there! Everything is so beautiful and incredibly themed. Its a great place to meet characters, and Dinosaur is one of my top 3 rides. I dont even watch the shows or ride EE, and I can easily stay from rope drop to close without getting bored.

/soapbox

We headed on, torn between going slow to take it all in and rushing to get in line for our first ride. We probably alternated between each.

Next up: Our First Ride (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47282602&postcount=25)

[geckodani]

I’ll say here I do not understand the AK is a half day park crowd. I think it’s a multi day park! There is so much to see there! Everything is so beautiful and incredibly themed. It’s a great place to meet characters, and Dinosaur is one of my top 3 rides. I don’t even watch the shows or ride EE, and I can easily stay from rope drop to close without getting bored.

/soapbox


Next up: Our First Ride

I'm slowly coming around to liking AK more. I think I'm ambivalent because I feel like for a new, planned park they laid it out really awkwardly. And the uneven pavement is killer for anyone with foot/ankle issues.

But... I'm coming around. Slowly, but I'm coming around. Mom and I had one of our best moments at AK at the Nemo show, so it's growing on me.

A bit. ;)

[dawnmichele]

Of course our first destination was the Kilimanjaro Safari. I love that ride! Im an animal lover in general, so there's that part. Plus its different every time you ride! Its like a big mystery to see what the animals are up to when you drive past. Plus this time I had a new awesome camera (a Nikon d5100) and I was excited to use it.

So get ready for too many photos.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120051.jpg

The wait time was only 10 minutes which was fantastic. It was our first time through a line with a scooter. The CM at the front pointed us through the regular line and we walked/drove quickly through most of the queue space. When we got to the part where you park your stroller, D got all anxious and tried to head in. He was really concerned about being a good scooter driver. He was instructed to keep going and someone when let him know when he got to the right spot. Throughout the trip Danny was so worried about not being a bother with his scooter, that he often stressed himself out. But in the end, it all went so smoothly he could have really relaxed. The CMs were always right there to direct him, incredibly friendly and always helpful.

We eventually got to the chair parking spot and a CM opened the gate and led us to a waiting spot. There was one other couple waiting there, so of course we struck up a conversation.

Something I love about being at Disney World (and oh, there are so many) is making Disney friends. If theyre in the mood for chatting, theyre generally happy and having a good time which makes any conversation better. Plus you have this giant thing in common - Disney Love. You talk about where youre from or what youre doing - maybe what you just did or what youre going to do next. Even when youre complaining about the last time you got stuck on the monorail or the ride that just broke down, its fun because youre all at Disney. Sometimes the friendship only lasts 5 minutes while you wait in line, sometimes it can carry on for quite a while. However it works out, I love Disney friends!

So this was our first set of Disney friends - a man in a scooter and his wife. We told them it was our first time and they were full of tips on how to manage the parks. We were super grateful. They also let us know how affordable it is to buy one for yourself. The man had one at home and insurance had covered the full price. They come apart easily and are light enough the lady could load it in the trunk of their car all by herself. D talked about all the things he doesnt do around our town because they involve too much walking and mused about checking into it when we got home.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120057.jpg

After a bit, a vehicle pulled up for us and they loaded us into the back row. We had to wait quite a while for enough chair people to show up and load, but eventually we were full and headed out for a two week (but wait! we only had an 8 day pass!) safari.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120086.jpg
First up, a hippo, hiding under the water.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120094.jpg
Dig the scary birds! And the hippo not hiding. I love it when they're out walking about.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120106.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120114.jpg
Our driver told us how much he loved the view of the savannah. I thought it was pretty nice as well.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120126.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120132.jpg
The giraffes were out enjoying a mid morning snack.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120137.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120145.jpg
The Mandrills were enjoying some social time.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120151.jpg
The big male elephant was on his own, as usual.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120162.jpg
I love the Boabob trees. And I love elephants the most. So here come too many pictures of them enjoying their day at the Animal Kingdom.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120181.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120183.jpg
The momma and her baby!

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120189.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120192.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120194.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120196.jpg
Just past the elephants, we saw the very pink, very pretty flamingos.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120201.jpg
And around the corner, one more shot of the elephants! In case you didn't get enough.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120232.jpg
These guys were close enough to our bus I thought they might try to board. And close enough to the lions it kind of seemed like a big tease. The lions did not seem bothered. (Like Lauren Conrad/Catherine Tate. Does anyone get that reference?)

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120239.jpg
Look! There are two of them!

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120242.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120248.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120254.jpg
And last (but not least), the new zebras. They seem to have made themselves quite at home.

Of course our safari was cut short after that. Before we knew it we were back at the platform full of scooters and wheel chairs. We said goodbye to our driver, Danny climbed back in his scooter and we headed out, discussing what adventure we were ready for next.

Next up: Dinosaur, Dug and a Mickey Bar (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47313681&postcount=35)

[SAT887]

I love the pictures! There are quite a few that stand out to me - great great photos. I can't wait for the day I can put a little more into my pics - I'm usually trying to snap a few before I'm chasing down a child!

[murmkc]

Great photos! You make me want to get a better camera for my next trip.

[SimplyGoofy]

I'm in!

Great pictures of the safari! It's always fun when the animals get thisclosetoyourvehicle! :hyper:

I'm glad you liked CSR! We're trying it for the first time this May, so I'm happy to keep reading postive reviews. :thumbsup2

[dawnmichele]

I'm slowly coming around to liking AK more. I think I'm ambivalent because I feel like for a new, planned park they laid it out really awkwardly. And the uneven pavement is killer for anyone with foot/ankle issues.

But... I'm coming around. Slowly, but I'm coming around. Mom and I had one of our best moments at AK at the Nemo show, so it's growing on me.

A bit. ;)

That's excellent, I'm glad to hear it! :cheer2:
You have a point about the lay out I think. I've spent a lot of time there and still can't always remember what is where or how to get where I want. And I understand about the uneven pavement! I've heard it's especially bad for people in wheelchairs. Luckily for Danny he was able to zoom about on his scooter just fine.

I know it's not everyone's cup of tea over there, but I really love it. I hope you'll have some more great experiences there on your next trip!

[murmkc]

Only 316 days until the next trip... I am plotting and scheming all sorts of fun stuff! Until then I have to get my fix with your trip report!

[dawnmichele]

I love the pictures! There are quite a few that stand out to me - great great photos. I can't wait for the day I can put a little more into my pics - I'm usually trying to snap a few before I'm chasing down a child!

Thank you so, so much! :blush: I really appreciate that.
And I know what you mean about trying to take pictures and be the mom at the same time. My kid is 19 and I still have troubles trying to get her to slow down so I can get a shot! Good luck!

[dawnmichele]

Great photos! You make me want to get a better camera for my next trip.

Thanks brother, but you know, it's not just the camera - it's the photographer! :lmao:

[dawnmichele]

I'm in!

Great pictures of the safari! It's always fun when the animals get thisclosetoyourvehicle! :hyper:

I'm glad you liked CSR! We're trying it for the first time this May, so I'm happy to keep reading postive reviews. :thumbsup2

Thank you! And Welcome pixiedust:

Even though I had done the safari ride several times on our last trip, this was the first time any animal had gotten up close and personal. It happened again later in the trip and I agree - super exciting! The way the ride changes every time makes me want to just ride it over and over again.

Like I've said, we did not give CSR the attention it deserved, but we loved it and definitely look forward to staying there again. I think you'll be glad you stayed there!

[pattyw]

I'm enjoying your TR! We were just at WDW 1/4-1/10 and stayed at CSR for part of the trip. We loooovve CSR!! The pool is our favorite! You must go back and stay there- DH and I love the pool slide! We're just a couple of kids at heart!

Looking forward to your next adventure!:thumbsup2

[dawnmichele]

We talked about walking through the jungle trek or jumping on EE, but decided on Dinosaur! Hannah and I had been talking it up for months so Danny was anxious to check it out and of course H and I were ready. Its one of my top 3 rides so Im always ready to line up for that journey back in time.

It must have been just after 3 because we ran right into the Jingle Jungle parade. There was enough of a crowd gathered around that Danny couldnt really see, so he stayed back enough that he could get a view of the tops of the floats while H and I found a spot where we could see a bit through the crowd. We watched for a few minutes (and I snapped some photos), and then we were off.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120272.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120284.jpg

It was a beautiful walk and we were happy to find, again, that the wait time was blessedly short. We headed into the standby line. There wasn't much of it and soon we were inside the main room.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120288.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120290.jpg
I dont remember what Hannah was explaining to Danny at this point, but she was apparently pretty serious about it.

We took in the sights of the round room that Mrs Crosby calls quaint, and reminisced about the time we took a very young Hannah to see Sue, the giant dino they have in the middle of the room.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120289.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120295.jpg
It's not so easy to take a picture of the movie, but here's my try.

When we got to the front of the line, the friendly CM who had been sending everyone to the right and down the stairs sent us to the left. She put us in an elevator, pushed a button and told us there would be someone to guide us when we got out. She was right. Another CM asked if Danny could transfer to the vehicle and had us wait near the cars on the opposite side of the people who had taken the stairs.

As you probably know, Dinosaur is a rough ride and we were a little worried it might be too jarring for Danny and might hurt his back. He was determined to give it a try though, so after we buckled in and tugged on our straps, we were off.

It was as much fun as I remembered. All the bounces and turns seemed wild that first ride of the trip, and every time Hannah or I screamed I could hear Danny laughing. Awesome. Of course the scary dino scared me and I remember shouting Abort! Abort! along with the crazy scientist who had sent us on this mission in the first place.

We passed up the ride photo since I didnt have my Plus card yet and I didnt realize I could have written down the number and claimed it when we got back, so I did the redneck version like everyone else. I love this picture so I'm sad I didn't get a real one. We're in the back.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120299.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120300.jpg
We headed out happy and found Dannys scooter waiting for us. As we were headed away, one of Dannys friends called and like any good Disney fan, he said Im at Disney World, Ill call you when I get home!

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120305.jpg
We never entered this carnival/sideshow/whatever area, but I did kind of love this giant dino watching over it all.

He was really loving the mobility the scooter gave him at this point. Instead of struggling along and needing to stop after every block, he was mobile! There was no one around us, so he rushed off down the road in front of us and then circled back. He was like a kid in a candy store (or a kid at Disney World!). He saw a bird on the path and decided to chase after it. A couple minutes later he saw some kids doing the same thing and stopped to tell them that wasnt very nice. Hah! Hannah cracked up and that became one of her favorite moments of the trip. It really is the memories and the special moments that make a Disney vacation so fantastic.

We werent sure what to do next. Hannah wasnt in a big hurry to ride EE. We didnt want to see a show and nothing else was really close, so when we spotted an ice cream cart we decided to sit down and talk over our options with a treat!

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120306.jpg
Danny just wanted a Diet Coke, but H and I decided we really needed to share a Mickey bar. Oh my goodness! Now I understand why people love those things so much. The chocolate was so thick and delicious. The ice cream was so dense and creamy! We were in love.

This is when I started to hate the My Disney Experience app. First it could not figure out where we were at all. When I found it myself, I could see all the drawings of the buildings around us from a birds eye view, but none of them were labeled in any way and therefore completely unhelpful. I could touch them to see the label, but it was so slow that was taking forever. I just wanted a quick overview and longingly remembered an app we had in 2010 on the iPhone that showed the map, the labels, and the wait time all in one glance (sadly I dont remember its name). I was grateful Danny had thought to pick up an old fashioned paper map and we consulted it to find our way to meet our favorite Disney dog, Dug!

I still managed to get a little confused and we walked in a little circle before finding our way. We took our time to enjoy the amazing scenery that makes the AK so special.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120311.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120314.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120315.jpg

I seriously love Dug, so I was so excited to meet him for the first time. This is me waiting to meet him.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120317.jpg

There was a bit of a line - mostly little kids of course - but I did not mind waiting at all. I did mind a little that Dug and Russell did not have a Photopass photographer though. Whats up with characters without Photopass photographers? I thought that was the whole point of photopass. Luckily Hannah does not like to meet or have her photo taken with characters, so I handed the camera over to her. When it was our turn I went up first to tell Dug what a good dog he was and give him a scratch behind the ear.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day1/20121206disney120319.jpg
Dug, signing some lucky kid's autograph book.

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My pants are rolled up because it was so hot that day.

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I felt a little bad for kind of ignoring Russell, but theres just no competition there.

After a minute or two, Danny came up to join us. I was pleased he enjoyed meeting characters almost as much as I did!

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We said goodbye to the best dog in the AK and started walking/riding. At that point it was getting late and the sun was starting to set. We were nearing the front of the park and we figured it was a good time to head over to Epcot and beat the crowds at closing time.

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As we were leaving a huge flock of birds flew over our heads. This picture fails to capture the moment but we all (and everyone around us) stopped in our tracks to stand still and watch.

We headed for the bus stops and found the queue for the Epcot bus. When it came we werent exactly sure we were doing the whole scooter on a bus thing right, but the driver (who had CP himself) was super helpful and taught us the ins and outs of waiting and loading. In just a few minutes, we were off to Dannys favorite park - the Experimental Prototype City Of Tomorrow!

Next: After dark at Epcot. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47317471&postcount=38)

[gracer9977]

So happy to hear about your experiences. Love that Danny was having so much fun on his scooter, especially the part about him chasing the bird. :rotfl2:

Great pictures. I just love AK, the rides and just the whole park itself. Hopefully we can meet Dug and Russell when we go next year. They didn't have them when we were there in 2011. :)

[murmkc]

One of those Mickey bars would be so good right now!

[dawnmichele]

It was dark by the time we got to Epcot. We got off the bus and started the long, long walk to the entrance. Why is it so far from the bus stops to the the good part of Epcot? And is it really or does it just seem that way? We were bagless (I love it when we can go bagless!) so once we made it to the entrance we waltzed right in.

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Of course I had us stop for a family photo in front of the giant golf ball of love!!

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I had to snap this shot of the excellent Thumper and Flower topiaries as we were still on the way to the good part. Bambi is one of my favorite Disney movies, and Ive loved those two since I was a tiny girl.
Thumper with his If you cant say something nice, dont say nothin at all and Flower with He can call me flower, if he wants ta. Love them

I can not believe I didnt take a thousand shots of Spaceship Earth up close. I love the ball and I love the ride. I think seeing it for the first time is almost as good as your first glance at the castle in the Magic Kingdom!

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I just took this one.

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There wasnt much of a line so we decided to ride it right then. We tried to get in the regular line but they sent us around to the wheelchair entrance at the side of the building.

Someone met us at the door and led us to an area by the rides exit. We parked the scooter and had a seat with some other people while we waited for another CM to come fetch us. When he came, he led us up the exit ramp and to another waiting area where we stood until we were instructed to climb in a car. Danny and I sat in the front seat and Hannah hopped in the back.

The ride was fantastic as always. I love history and this ride is chuck full of it. Hannah thought she hated it but decided it wasnt as bad as she remembered. What she really hates is the cheesy video of your future at the end, but since she was riding in the back by herself she just skipped it. Since Id done it several times (I like it) on our last trip, I let Danny make all the decisions. I wasnt surprised that he chose pretty much the opposite of what I would.

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Us in our car of the future.

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Im just watching because I hate playing checkers.

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Us floating in space.

We were hungry again at this point, so we walked towards the World Showcase where they keep all the best Disney food. I was trying to take in all the lovely sights of Disney after dark, but sadly no one else wanted to go slowly enough for me to take pictures!

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This is the best shot I got of the amazingly dancing fountains of another color.

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Danny wanted Mexican food, so we stopped at the Cantina de San Angel. It was crazy crowded so I left Danny and Hannah and got in line to grab some tacos. It was a crazy line and took quite a while. I headed back and carried his tray as we walked further around the world looking for more food. We had decided to each get what we wanted and find a central table somewhere to eat it all together.

I knew what I wanted, but Hannah wasnt sure. Probably because I had spent crazy amounts of time reading menus online and she had not. She thought she might want something Asian at first but then decided since she could get that at home all the time she wanted to try something new. I pulled out my phone and read her a list of which countries had what. She chose crepes from France.

I had been headed to Morocco. I wanted to eat at the Tangerine Cafe on our last trip but didnt get the chance so this time I was determined. We walked up and Danny settled at a table outside with his tray of tacos. Hannah headed over to France and I headed inside.

The line was pretty long. I had plenty of time to make up my mind, but already knew I was going to order the Chicken Shawarma platter. I had thought of it every time I played Sims 3 and had my Sim make herself the shawarma, and every time I thought over the Disney food. I aked them to hold the tabouleh and double the hummus which was no problem. While I was standing there I decided to go wild and add on a side of olives because why not! Finally they made my food, I paid them their money but then I still had to stand there and wait for my drink - which was sitting there waiting for someone to hand it to me. Eventually I asked for it and headed to my table and my family.

By the time I got there, Hannah had not only gotten her crepes but she and Danny were both finished eating. Hannah wanted to go back to our room right then for some reason so we let her, with strict instructions to text us when she made it there. Danny told me to take my time, so I did.

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It was so, so good. I thoroughly enjoyed every bite. Its a lot of food though and I couldnt quite finish all the olives. I went back inside to see if I could get a lid but they put them in a drink cup instead. Fine by me. (I put them in the fridge that night and never did finish them :worried:.)

Danny and I walked the rest of the way around the world and back through Future World.

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I took this picture of Pluto and his house,

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and we posed for another photopass picture.

Epcot was closing at 9:30 that night and it was 8:30 when we were walking out. Not bad considering Id woken up far before the break of dawn! Hannah texted us when we were on the bus - she made it back to the resort slightly before we did.

When I learned wed be staying at CSR, of course I checked it out online. It looked beautiful, but my favorite part was probably this long fountain somewhere between two buildings. Imagine my surprise when it turned out that fountain was right outside the door to our room (well, and down a floor)!!

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It was beautiful, especially at night. Every night I swore I was going to go down and take many photos of it the next day -- but sadly I never did. This is the best I ever got.

Back in our room, we unpacked and got ready for bed.

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We turned the table between our beds into our charging station.

I turned Stacey onto the TV (hooray!) and let her tell us all about the magic of Disney until we were ready to turn everything off and sleep until our 6am wake up call.

Next up: The start of a Fantastic day (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47369683&postcount=44)!

[murmkc]

i just finished an awesome dinner.. and this made me hungry for Disney food! :rotfl2:

[dawnmichele]

We loooovve CSR!! The pool is our favorite! You must go back and stay there

First - Welcome pixiedust: and thanks for joining in and saying hi!

I so hope we do get to stay there again! And I can't believe we didn't try the pool. We've been to Chichen Itza in Mexico and were all excited to compare and reminisce. The main problem with Disney World is that there is so much to do. I think I need to go there and stay for a month!

[dawnmichele]

So happy to hear about your experiences. Love that Danny was having so much fun on his scooter, especially the part about him chasing the bird. :rotfl2:

It really was awesome to see him feel so free. I seriously recommend a Disney trip for anyone with health or mobility issues - they really work hard to accomodate everyone. It's great.

Hannah still likes to work "Now that's not very nice," into the conversation whenever she can. I swear it was one of the highlights of the trip for them both!

Also, thanks for the compliment about the pictures :blush:!

[SusieBea]

I'm enjoying your trip! More, please ...

[dawnmichele]

I'm enjoying your trip! More, please ...

Thank you SusieBea! I had intended to post the next instalment last night, but then I watched some Doctor Who that made me way too sad. http://gopher65.com/images/drwho/Doctor.gif It'll be up later today though, promise.

[dawnmichele]

It is very hard to judge such things, but I think this day may have been my favorite of our entire fantastic trip. For many reasons, all of which I hope I do justice in this report!

I woke up bright and early when I got a call from Mickey and that ornery Stitch. I put the call on speakerphone to share the fun and jumped out of bed. Hannah and I wanted to make it to the bus stop by 7am. It was Danny’s day to work (sorry Danny). He didn’t need to be anywhere till 8, but he was ready to wake up with us and take his time getting ready.

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As became a habit (or better yet, a tradition), I turned on Stacey to 1. revel in Disney overload and 2. encourage the girl to get up and out of bed. She does not enjoy Stacey (what??), so it “annoyed” her into getting up. Win/win situation.

We got ready quickly, I grabbed a Cliff bar and a soda and we headed out for bus stop #2.

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From a distance we could see a bus pulling up. We could tell the bus said Something Kingdom, but not if it was Animal or Magic. Hannah decided to run for it and saw it was for the Animal Kingdom. Love that park but not today! No problem though, the next bus that pulled up was for the right place. We hopped right on.

I was super excited. I’m not sure that the Magic Kingdom is my favorite park, but it is certainly the most magical of the four. Plus the Fantasy Land expansion had just opened and I could not wait to see it for myself, up close and personal.

Hannah was not having such a good time, however. She was on antibiotics at the time, and even though the doctor had warned her she’d have problems if she didn’t drink a whole glass of water with the pill -- she did not drink a whole glass of water with her pill. So she was having problems. It’s a long ride from CSR to the MK but there was nothing we could do to make it better but wait.

When we got there, I stood in the middle of the crowd waiting for the opening show and sent H off to where I thought she might get some water. I told her I’d wait right there until she got back. Off to the right near the stroller rentals she found a little shop. They weren’t quite open yet, but told her they could be if she needed them to be. Nice. Before the show even started she was by my side chugging a whole bottle of water.

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The show was fantastic.

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I was so excited to see a train full of Disney characters waving good morning to me.

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The fireworks exploded and the Mayor welcomed us in!

On the bus there, H & I had a long talk about breakfast. Somehow, in all the months leading up to our trip and all the many conversations we had about food, restuarants, reservations and groceries from wegoshop, Hannah missed all the times we talked about eating breakfast in the room to save money and more importantly, time. She was certain she had to have a “real”, hot breakfast every single morning. She thought we’d get there and eat, and I thought we’d get there, take our time checking out the thrill of our first glimpse of Main St.

We came to a compromise. I’d let her get breakfast every morning, and she would participate in every photo opportunity without grumble or complaint. She hates having her picture taken, and I wanted to get our money’s worth out of our pre purchased PhotoPass+. Another win/win for us.

I told her where to find Main Street Cafe and told her I’d meet her there soon.

I can’t even think of the words to describe how it is the first time you’re back in the Magic Kingdom, but I know you know what I’m talking about. It’s all beautiful and magical and full of excitement and promise. I really plan to spend quite some time taking it all in on some trip, but sadly this wasn’t the trip for that.

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I took one photo, and then headed into the theatre to exchange my voucher for a photopass card. The lady who gave it to me was excited for me and told me to show it to any photographer and they’d be sure to take a bunch of photos for us since they knew we’d already purchased the package. That didn’t turn out to be totally true, and I wonder how much was about the individual photographer and how much was about the pre paid pass - but either way we came back with hundreds of pictures in our account so I am not complaining.

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I walked down the street to the bakery and found Hannah having a croissant with some kind of meat and eggs.

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I had been thinking of their cheese danish since our last trip, so I got in line for a one of those and a iced vanilla latte. The people in front of me, a family of 5, did not understand their dining plan and spent a really really long time trying to decide what drinks they wanted. A really long time. Even though there were a bunch of drink workers standing around, no one asked what i wanted until all 5 of them had chosen and changed their minds and rechosen. When I got my coffee I headed straight for the cashier that the family wasn't in.

Now that H was full and feeling better (and I’d had a tasty treat), we headed back to front so I could meet some friends! Marie was at the tree, Snow White was under her apple tree, and Mary Poppins was over by some shops. Plus the Princesses, Mickey and Minnie were all waiting just inside. How could I choose who to meet first? I got in line for Marie. A minute later, when she went inside for a treat, I thought about bailing and heading for Mary Poppins, but H convinced me to stay. She was back soon and it was my turn to meet her.

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She didn’t have a photopass photographer, so H took the pictures for me.

Snow White had gone inside by the time we were done, so we headed off to find Mary Poppins.

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She was practically perfect in every way, just like I’d hoped. She asked where I was from and if I’d travelled by my umbrella. I told her I thought that was a special skill but she clued me in that it’s really about finding the right umbrella. Thanks for the tip, Mary Poppins!

After that, we headed inside to meet the princesses.

Rapunzel was the first princess we came to. She was super friendly, but really low energy and just kind of.. I don’t know. Not really like the princess in Tangled. We liked her, but called her Hangover Rapunzel. She just seemed like she had a rough night. Hannah asked her if Pascal still lived in the tower or liked to stay with her and Eugene in the castle, and Rapunzel told her about how they were moving her castle to the Magic Kingdom. I hadn’t mentioned the castle to Hannah (I wanted her to discover at least a few things on her own) and she definitely thought finding out about it from Rapunzel herself was the best way to find out.

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Aurora wasn’t very friendly. She was smiley, but she didn’t really say anything. Maybe she was hungover too.

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Cinderella was fantastic! “You have my face on your shirt!” she said. She asked if my fairy godmother did it for me and wondered if she could get hers to make on for her. Or better yet make one for Prince Phillip. But his would have to be read, she figured. He likes to wear red.

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She was delightful and as we were walking away I told her she should definitely get her godmother on the shirt thing.

Next up: Heading toward the castle. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47375335&postcount=50)

[gracer9977]

Loving all the pictures!!! Also great the way you got Hannah to agree to not complain about getting her picture taken. :)

When we go in 2014 I am totally making sure that I get my picture taken with a bunch of characters. Last time I was so focused on getting great pictures of my kids and my nieces with all the characters I forgot to get any with me. :sad:All I have is one picture of me with Eeyore (I love Eeyore) but really I totally missed out on the photo ops. :) I am planning on buying the Photopass package this time, seems like it would totally be worth the money.

[Jewelleigh]

Loving your trip report so far! Had to make a run for the grocery for ice cream after the picture of your Mickey ice cream bar! :mickeybar Store bought is never as good as the real thing!!

[dawnmichele]

Loving all the pictures!!! Also great the way you got Hannah to agree to not complain about getting her picture taken. :)

When we go in 2014 I am totally making sure that I get my picture taken with a bunch of characters. Last time I was so focused on getting great pictures of my kids and my nieces with all the characters I forgot to get any with me. :sad:All I have is one picture of me with Eeyore (I love Eeyore) but really I totally missed out on the photo ops. :) I am planning on buying the Photopass package this time, seems like it would totally be worth the money.

Thank you!

I did make a point of getting in as may photopass pictures as possible. When you're the photographer in the group, you get left out of a lot of pictures, and without photopass photographers, you might not have even known I went along on our trip! I know some grown ups can feel kinda weird meeting and getting their pictures with the characters, but for me it's always one of the hilights! When else do I get a chance to pretend like that?

Go for the package - it was SO worth the money for us! And get yourself in those pictures!! And then, make sure you post them when you get back, I'd love to see! :goodvibes

[dawnmichele]

Loving your trip report so far! Had to make a run for the grocery for ice cream after the picture of your Mickey ice cream bar! :mickeybar Store bought is never as good as the real thing!!

Oh my goodness those things are so good! I am literally counting down til my next one. :rotfl:

:mickeybar:mickeybar:mickeybar

[gracer9977]

Thank you!

I did make a point of getting in as may photopass pictures as possible. When you're the photographer in the group, you get left out of a lot of pictures, and without photopass photographers, you might not have even known I went along on our trip! I know some grown ups can feel kinda weird meeting and getting their pictures with the characters, but for me it's always one of the hilights! When else do I get a chance to pretend like that?

Go for the package - it was SO worth the money for us! And get yourself in those pictures!! And then, make sure you post them when you get back, I'd love to see! :goodvibes

I did make it a point to drag people over to every photopass photographer I saw so I actually do have a ton of pictures with me and someone from our group (there were 12 of us last time and will be 12 of us this time too). I just didn't think about character pictures, and they are truly one of my favorite things about Disney. :)

I will get lots of Character and me pictures next year and I will make sure I post them. :goodvibes

[dawnmichele]

As we walked down Main Street, I made time for a couple tweets.

got here for xmh rope drop. breakfast at main st bakery, met marie, mary poppins, rapunzel, aurora and cinderella way before 9.

marie and mary did not have photogs with them however :(

That last part was a big drag. What’s with that? I wish every character always had a photographer with them.

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When we passed the Mayor and a suffragette and I decided I needed to thank her for her work and let her know it paid off. She was hilarious, but the Mayor was kinda creepy. He told me his first wife was a red head. Ok Mayor.

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We stopped in the middle of Main Street for another photo. Notice the horse right behind us?

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When we stepped away, he was right behind us!

I reminded the girl of when she was a tiny one and we had to ride that trolley over and over again because she loved “Black Beauty” so much.

I wanted to take a great picture of the partners statue, but H was in such a hurry! and it was pretty crowded. This is what I managed to shoot before she drug me off towards Tomorrowland.

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Even though we were in a hurry to check out Fantasyland, we had to make a stop to ride Space Mountain. The ride was basically a walk on (hooray for extra magic hours!) and we were in our car in no time.

I don’t know if it was because I am now an old lady or because I was full of danish and latte, but Space Mountain made me feel a little pukey. Dang. I still enjoyed the ride however, and we stopped to order our ride photo when we were done.

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Next up: Fantasyland has new parts! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47478151&postcount=59)

[pld5]

I'm joining in.

I loved your comments about the hungover princesses. :rotfl2:

I'm really enjoying all of your pictures, too.

[gracer9977]

Great pictures!! I love that there is a bird hanging out on Walt's head. :)

So when you have the Photopass Pre purchase plan you get all the ride photos included on your CD?? I spent so much money buying ride photos last time and of course had to just go without getting some since they were expensive. It would be well worth the money to pay for the Photopass plan just to get the ride photos not to mention all the other photos.

Enjoying your TR!! Keep it coming. ;)

[murmkc]

The last trip we took together - you ended up a bit hungover!

Great TR so far! I can't wait to see your New Fantasyland pics!

[dawnmichele]

I'm joining in.

I loved your comments about the hungover princesses. :rotfl2:

I'm really enjoying all of your pictures, too.

Thanks so much!
And they really did just seem a bit hungover, especially Rapunzel. :confused3:lmao:

[pld5]

Thanks so much!
And they really did just seem a bit hungover, especially Rapunzel. :confused3:lmao:

Now I'm going to have to try to meet her early in the morning on our trip in a few weeks. I want to meet hungover princesses too! :sick:

I love your writing style. It reminds me of the conversations I have going on in my head all of the time. A dash of intelligence, a dash of sarcasm, a dash of humor and a lot of heart. :goodvibes

[SimplyGoofy]

I love all the pictures you took of the little statues! I do the same thing! :lmao:

Also, I totally agree about the Photopass pictures. Not only are they easy, it's nice when the photographer gets to be in a picture!

[murmkc]

more please!

[dawnmichele]

Great pictures!! I love that there is a bird hanging out on Walt's head. :)

So when you have the Photopass Pre purchase plan you get all the ride photos included on your CD?? I spent so much money buying ride photos last time and of course had to just go without getting some since they were expensive. It would be well worth the money to pay for the Photopass plan just to get the ride photos not to mention all the other photos.

Enjoying your TR!! Keep it coming. ;)

Thanks!
Yes, you do get all the ride photos! All those, plus if you have any meals where they take a picture, those are included as well. It really is a fantastic deal if you do it right.

The last trip we took together - you ended up a bit hungover!


What? Me?

Now I'm going to have to try to meet her early in the morning on our trip in a few weeks. I want to meet hungover princesses too! :sick:

I love your writing style. It reminds me of the conversations I have going on in my head all of the time. A dash of intelligence, a dash of sarcasm, a dash of humor and a lot of heart. :goodvibes

Thank you very much!! :goodvibes[/COLOR]

[dawnmichele]

With Space Mountain ridden, we knew exactly where to go next. We gawked at StoryBook Circus as we walked past but wanted to save it for later. We were on a mission!

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120398.jpg
Of course you can't help noticing this giant metal contraption that will soon become (I hope) an amazing roller coaster.

I loved the big signs they had along the wall. The 7 Dwarves mixed with another Disney story. Here are a couple.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120400.jpg
Near the tea cups, they're in Alice's story.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120401.jpg
Near Pooh's ride, they're with the honey pots.

At one spot there was a window to peek in on the progress. Of course we looked!

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120405.jpg

Looking good guys (I guess?)! I can't wait to ride this thing - and for the walls to go down so all of the expansion is one big... expansion. I feel the giant construction in the middle really takes away from the overall experience.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120403.jpg

Look! There were the new castle walls I had watched go up in pictures here on the dis! They were Lovely! We turned the corner and there it was...

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120407.jpg

Beautiful.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120408.jpg

We decided not to stop for ETwB. The wait time was long (50 minutes already!). We were anxious and neither one of us was really sure we'd like it. The area around it looked incredible though. I meant to find time to go back and look around it better, but I never did. Another thing for the next time list.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120410.jpg

We stood by the bridge and admired the Beast's castle. I was in love with it. It looks so fantastic up there. I decided to refuse to believe it's not a real, full size (Beast size) castle.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120411.jpg

As we stood there taking it all in, a really fantastic PPP (Photo Pass Photographer) came up to us and asked if we'd like to have our picture taken. Of course!!

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0214FourBySix.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0216FourBySix.jpg

One with the castle.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0222FourBySix.jpg

He instructed us on how to make this Princess pose.
And then without even making us beg, he told us to put out our hands for some magic shots. I thought we'd be holding Tinkerbell and was happily surprised when I finally got a look at these!

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0237FourBySix.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0238FourBySix.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0246FourBySix.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0251FourBySix.jpg

We shot a quick glance at the 2 shops in Belle's village as we checked out Gastons fountain and headed for Erics castle. The Little Mermaid area was what I had been looking forward to seeing the most out of all the new area. Dig it.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120419.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120423.jpg
It is incredible. I want to move in! Can I Ariel? Please. I promise to be good and stay out of the way. You won't even know I'm there!

The wait for Ariels ride was long,

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120420.jpg
(check out the line)

but her meet in the grotto wasnt too bad.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120431.jpg

I was ready to head in but H didnt want to meet her. What? Weird. Ariel was her favorite princess for most of her life. But ok. We decided to head over to Mickeys Philharmagic for Little Mermaid FPs and then split up until it was time to ride.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120434.jpg

Back past the Beast and Belle's place...

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120436.jpg

and out into the boring old Fantasy Land (but dig the tower).

H headed over to tour the Haunted Mansion and I went back to meet the mermaid.

I tweeted this along the way...

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207_100805-1.jpg
I hear he's especially good at expectorating...

PS. I seriously hate Photobucket's new set up, in case you were wondering.

Next up: Ariel (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47479066&postcount=60)

[dawnmichele]

Back through the new castle gates, I tried to soak up the charm, but as you get down towards the Ariel-y bit, it gets pretty congested. All the strollers were parked along the construction wall which doesn't leave much room to maneuver, plus it kind of dead ends down there. It'll get better when it's all opened up I think, or at least that's what I told myself.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120437.jpg

Despite the posted wait time outside the cave, there wasn’t much of a crowd. It was kinda dark in there are definitely humid. It seemed like it might get miserable with the temps were high and the cave was full of impatient kids. Luckily for me, neither were happening.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120438.jpg

The backside of water:
http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120441.jpg

There were definitely some interesting light fixtures in there. I liked them.
http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120446.jpg

You can’t see anything but grotto walls until you’re next in line. When it was my turn I headed up and took a seat next to the Princess. I thought it looked great in there. It's a fantastic little room for meeting mermaid Princesses. None of these photo pass shots really do it justice.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0255FourBySix.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0266FourBySix.jpg

Ariel was sweet, but she talked with a baby voice and kind of acted like she was 12 (when we all know she's 16). She was friendly though. She talked to me about my tiara and said it kind of looked like sparkly sea weed (what?). She mentioned we both had red hair and when I said hers was prettier, she said longer but not prettier. Aww, thanks Ariel. We talked a little bit about our daughters and she asked me to say hi to H, which I later did.

I checked the time and there was plenty of it. I headed off to check out the shops. There’s not much to choose from at Gaston’s Tavern, but it looked like a nice place to eat a snack. I wish I would have went in further and looked around more. The pictures I've seen since look great. Bonjour Gifts was adorable and full of fun B&B things. I especially liked this jewelery box and tweeted a picture of it.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207_101051-1.jpg
It’s not very practical, there’s not much space for any jewelry, but it’s super cute.


http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207_101258-1.jpg
I went back out and noticed this giant line for BOG lunch already queuing up at 9:12 am! I wanted to have some lunch there at some point, but not badly enough to wait in that kind of line.

I was looking around checking things out, and then I noticed Gaston.

Up next: "This is the day your dreams come true. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47492816&postcount=65)"

[SAT887]

Great update :) you know I read somewhere that Mary Poppins doesn't ever have a PPP because of how the "rights" are with the character. Not sure how true it is :)

[dawnmichele]

Great update :) you know I read somewhere that Mary Poppins doesn't ever have a PPP because of how the "rights" are with the character. Not sure how true it is :)

Thanks! Sorry I got so behind in updating. At this rate I might get this thing finished by my next trip in December! :lmao:

Interesting about Mary...

[SAT887]

Thanks! Sorry I got so behind in updating. At this rate I might get this thing finished by my next trip in December! :lmao:

Interesting about Mary...

Dont feel bad about updates... I have day 4 written.. No pictures uploaded so I am pretty behind, maybe tonight hehe... Im hoping to get it done soon though! Before I get too too busy!

[gracer9977]

Great update. Loved all the pictures, especially the ones of you and your daughter with Chip in your hand. :)

Can't wait to read more. :hyper:

[dawnmichele]

&or "This is the day your dreams come true."

It was hard not to notice Gaston standing at the end of the bridge. Not only was he the only enormous guy standing around in a bright red and yellow shirt, he was also surrounded by a crowd and calling out for the attention of everyone passing by.

Its ok to stare...
I see you looking at me. Who can blame you?
I wish I could remember the hilarious things he was shouting, but my favorite was:

Everyone! Come see how handsome I am!!

Now m not really a Gaston fan (I think of him as more of a jerkulese), but I had time to kill and I didn't think I could pass that fun up. He certainly knew how to work a crowd and charm the ladies. He kept me laughing and when it was my turn to meet him - well it turned out to be one of the hilights of my trip!

He showed me his muscles first thing as I walked up. Impressive, of course. But Id heard a rumor about him and I was curious.

I hear youre especially good at expectorating.. I said.
I am, he boasted. Would you like a demonstration?

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0275FourBySix.jpg

Of course I would.

He took a moment to gather his.. um.. expectorant,

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0281FourBySix.jpg

then turned to lean over the bridge and Spit.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0285FourBySix.jpg

!!!
I wasnt expecting that. He looked quite proud of himself and asked how I liked it.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0289FourBySix.jpg

To show how impressed I was I put my hand to my forehead and sighed.
Look! he shouted. Shes swooning. I was sad the PPP didn't get a shot of that.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0294FourBySix.jpg

She got plenty though. I was cracking up through the whole rest of our really fantastic interaction. I had the best time!

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0314FourBySix.jpg

After experiences like this, Of Course I love meeting characters! They are fantastic entertainers no matter what your age!

As I was walking away, I got a text from Hannah. She was waiting for me by the FP entrance for our ride so I was off from the villages of France to it's lovely coast.

Next up: Undersea Journey of the Little Mermaid (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=47497416&postcount=68)

[murmkc]

The villains are always the most fun!

[dawnmichele]

The villains are always the most fun!

Oh, this is why we need to go for the Not So Scary Halloween Party!!

[dawnmichele]

I headed through the crowd towards Ariel's ride (Under the Sea Journey of the Little Mermaid is just too long of a title) and found the girl.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120426.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120427.jpg

It was about 2 minutes before our ride time but the nice CM just waved us on in.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120456.jpg
Oh Eric, I love your castle so much!

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120461.jpg

The waterfall was beautiful from both sides.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120464.jpg

Like in the grotto, it was was kinda cavey and clamy inside and I was glad it wasn't summer. We missed the interactive bits of the queue since we went through the FP line but that was ok with me. We were soon climbing into our own clamshell. I took a lot of photos, but I'm only going to show you my favorites.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120467.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120474.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120477.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120482.jpg
Hannah really liked the way this Ariel's hair moved, as if she were really under water.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120494.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120495.jpg
I thought this shot of Ursula looked especially scary. Watch out! She's trying to steal your soul!

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120499.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120507.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120510.jpg

I really wanted to love this ride. I did like the going underwater effect, with the leaning back, going downhill, temperature change and ceiling full of bubbles. But overall, not so much. Id say its definitely better than Nemo but that's not saying much. I guess I was expecting more fancy modern technology. H liked it a lot more than I did, so that was good. I didnt dislike it, I just wasnt impressed.

We left FantasyLand and headed for the frontier.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120513.jpg
I love this view you get now with the new walls, the castle and the carousel!

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120517.jpg
We got a good look at Rapunzels tower. Hannah could not believe it was just going to be a bathroom. I'm still holding out hope it'll be more than that.

As we walked into FL, H decided it was time for a snack. We passed Chip and Dale

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120520.jpg

and stopped at a cart full of snacks. We decided to share a Mickey head pretzel, a cup of cheese and a Diet Coke. H was upset that they charged us a dollar for the cheese. Be thankful, girl, I told her. Theres not much you can find at Disney for a dollar.

We found a nice wooden bench/platform across the street and settled in for our midmorning snack. We love that spot and came claim it as our spot. It is now our secret emergency meeting spot at the MK.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120521.jpg
I remembered to take a picture just after we devoured its ears.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120523.jpg
This cheeky bird thought he might get a bite if he looked charming enough, but I have charming beggar dogs at home so it didn't work with me.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120527.jpg

As we were finishing, I noticed this trio of musicians walking towards us. I always love a banjo so I was interested. They started to play and sing, stopping to gather a crowd.

Full and entertained, we headed to my most favorite ride in the MK. Maybe in all of The World: Big Thunder Mountain.

Next up: Rides and a parade (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=48027461&postcount=80).

[murmkc]

I check for updates every day! The suspense is killing me!

:badpc:

[SimplyGoofy]

Your interaction with Gaston was hilarious! I love it when the characters really get into character. Ten points for Gaston! :teeth:

Thank you for the excellent pictures of Under the Sea Journey of the Little Mermaid! Yes, I agree the title of the ride is far too long! :laughing: I don't have super-high expectations of this ride (I'm expecting a touch above The Seas with Nemo, but with brighter colors?) but I do look forward to seeing it.

[Mel*Pie]

Just found this thread. Consider me subscribed! Thoroughly entertaining!

[murmkc]

You are totally snowed in - time for the next update!

[murmkc]

The blizzard of Oz is over... I am still looking forward to the next update.


Maybe tomorrow? :confused3

[murmkc]

Yawn...

[dawnmichele]

No yawning, brother!
I admit I have been nearly inexcusable with my delinquency here. Life can get crazy, but I am back in the groove! I will have the next installment up tomorrow and be consistent with the updates until I'm done! So help me Mickey!

[gracer9977]

No yawning, brother!
I admit I have been nearly inexcusable with my delinquency here. Life can get crazy, but I am back in the groove! I will have the next installment up tomorrow and be consistent with the updates until I'm done! So help me Mickey!

Yeah!!! Can't wait to read more!!! :banana:

[Cira]

Hope that Danny liked the scooter enough to get one when you go home. Sounds like he discovered something new and liberating. Am loving your TR! Hannah looks real stressed in that photo; she's a beautiful girl! You look ROCKIN'!! You look like you are a lot of fun and, of course, we already know you are a GREAT photographer! The photos are super! Thanks for sharing!

[murmkc]

When was tomorrow?

[dawnmichele]

Yesterday is... Today!
I know I've fallen quite behind, but it's been a crazy couple months. Blizzards, emergency dog surgery, eplieptic emergencies, brand new Doctor Who obsession to catch up with, holidays... I'm pretty sure everyone knows how life can get. I didn't stop thinking about the trip report, but I have to admit I did even stop checking the boards at all! Sacrilege, I know. But it happens.
Two days ago I had my Disney travel agent (and super long time friend) reserve our rooms for December 13 and that has clicked the Disney obsession back into it's rightful place. So here we go again, and let's all cross our fingers I made it straight through to the end in a reasonable amount of time.
Thanks for your interest, though, and your kind compliments. Nothing makes a girl want to keep up with the report like great comments, so thanks.
Now let's get on with the show!

[dawnmichele]

After our tasty Disney snack, we headed for Big Thunder Mountain Rail Road.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120539.jpg
It is one of my top three all time favorite Disney rides - Tower of Terror, BTMRR and Dinosaur, in case you are curious. On each trip, the first time you ride a favorite again is the best, I think, so I was Excited!

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120529.jpg
I was thrilled at the low wait time, even though that meant we walked through quickly and couldn’t admire all the mine thrain theming I love so well. Of course I still managed to snap a few shots.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120530.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120532.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120535.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120541.jpg

Of course it was incredible. I love roller coasters with big drops and lots of sharp turns, which is BTMRR exactly. Did you know that because of construction delays, it’s one of the first Disney rides to use computers in it’s design? Apparently that helps with how smooth the ride is. Whatever. I just love it.

I wasn’t brave enough on this trip to take any photos while I was on the rides. It seems silly now. For sure next time.

Favorite ride enjoyed, we continued around the road until we came upon Pirates of the Caribbean and jumped in a barely there line. It kinda stunk in the queue like mold and mildew or damp things. And that waterfall like cloud of mist you go through - it smells funky and makes me cough. Neither make me want to ride it any less though. Hannah and I were both on the lookout for the new mermaid bits. We saw the skeleton and heard some song, but didn’t really notice any ruckus in the water. I managed to get a big plunk of water spalsh when a cannon ball “landed” next to me.

We weren’t really impressed with the changes, but since we already loved the ride it didn’t really matter. Hannah looked through the gift shop and reminded me of our second trip when she was so in love with the ride, she convinced us to buy her a pirate hat, flag and sword.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/old%20disney/img339.jpg
If she had any idea I was posting that picture here she’d complain for about an hour. Luckily she doesn’t do the disboards!

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/old%20disney/img349.jpg
Here she is (with Danny) on another day from that trip, right before Captain Hook started chasing her.

Next up was a thrilling ride through the great rivers of the world. It really goes more quickly than you’d think it would (kind of like the African safari at the AK). Especially with this kind of wait time.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120542.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120544.jpg

We climbed aboard the Sankuru Sadie and took off, the quite clever Mary Kate as our guide.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120551.jpg
We saw African elephants,

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120558.jpg
lions so hungry they could eat a whole zebra,

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120566.jpg
beautiful ruins of an ancient holy temple,

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120572.jpg
and my favorite, playful baby Asian elephants.

Hannah really loved Mary Kate and thinks she was the funniest skipper ever. I agreed she was pretty funny. H loved it when she told us to “Get Out”, and we still often say it to each other. Mostly I do, when I’m dropping her off somewhere in the car. I know some people think your Disney vacation is over when you leave, but it really does live on in family memories like that forever.

Heading on, we stumbled upon the Move it! Shake it! Celebrate it! Parade just in front of the Castle.

Lift it up, get loud, start pumpin’ up the party now!

I love that song but we weren’t in the mood for a parade and we just caught the very end, so we only stopped long enough for me to snap some photos.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120581.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120586.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120591.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120596.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120598.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120599.jpg

(Thinking about made me watch it on youtube (http://youtu.be/DhSSW_LUNag). That song will be in my head for weeks now, and I won’t even be bothered.)

Next up: Lunch and the circus! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=48178348&postcount=85)

[dawnmichele]

Hope that Danny liked the scooter enough to get one when you go home. Sounds like he discovered something new and liberating. Am loving your TR! Hannah looks real stressed in that photo; she's a beautiful girl! You look ROCKIN'!! You look like you are a lot of fun and, of course, we already know you are a GREAT photographer! The photos are super! Thanks for sharing!

I keep encouraging him too, but I guess he's not convinced yet. Thanks so much for the compliments!! Especially about the photos! That's my favorite part!

[SimplyGoofy]

Welcome back!

I love BTMRR, too! I am SO EXCITED to ride it in May (as it was under refurbishment during our last trip). It will be great! :banana:

I'm glad Hannah isn't on the DISboards because I love your old-school Disney photos!

[gracer9977]

Hurray!! Your back!! So happy to read your latest report. :dance3:

I too love the old school pictures of Hannah. Especially that really adorable one with her waving her pirate flag. So cute. :)

That parade always makes me happy, how can you not feel like dancing when you watch that parade coming down the street. :goodvibes

[dawnmichele]

Hurray!! Your back!! So happy to read your latest report. :dance3:

I too love the old school pictures of Hannah. Especially that really adorable one with her waving her pirate flag. So cute. :)

That parade always makes me happy, how can you not feel like dancing when you watch that parade coming down the street. :goodvibes

Aww thanks! I wish digital cameras would have existed back then. It seems like I have so few photos of our first two trips, when I know at the time it seemed like I was taking so many.

So I just typed up the next part of the report - and then came here to see I have missed one! I know I wrote up all the stuff about lunch and the circus - but where did I put it??

Things have been Crazy around here the last couple weeks. I discovered a leak in our water main somewhere between the house and the meter, so a bunch of plumbers came. I had to tear down an inside wall, and they totally tore up my front yard installing a new pipe. After that a bunch of guys came to trim up the mess of trees in my back yard, and I had several sets of gutter folks and house painters come to give me estimates on those jobs. Last week the gutter guys fixed all that up and this week the painters came. Mixed in with all that was Hannah's birthday, Danny's birthday and my boyfriend's birthday. And I'm taking my ill behaved dog to obedience classes to try to help him out (luckily it's working). So yeah. Too much and not enough time to obsess about Disney!

However, as soon as I find the missing post and post it, I'll be back on track.

[dawnmichele]

I found the lost post!!

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120601.jpg
Can’t forget the castle!

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120603.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120605.jpg


Merida has become Hannah’s favorite princess, so we were heading to her meeting area, but when we saw how long her line was, we changed our minds.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120611.jpg

Wow. I guess I should have checked on that line. I guess it’s a get in line first thing kind of thing. I managed to snap a shot from the distance, but we all know it’s not nearly the same thing. Next time.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120614.jpg

Hannah decided she was hungry and since Cosmic Ray’s was one of her favorites from last visit, we headed there. I noticed we were going right at lunch time and know that’s never a good idea. H got in line for the avacado burger she remembered having there last time. I knew I’d be having dinner at the company party that night, so I was looking for more of a snack than a meal. For some reason I chose chili cheese fries and I knew as soon as I picked them up it was a bad choice.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120615.jpg

I found Hannah down front, close to Sunny Eclipse.
http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120619.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120619.jpg
She loves that guy. They didn’t have avacado burgers so she just got a regular one and was not loving it. Her fries were soggy and so were mine. The crowd made it crazy loud in there and then to help it out, a large group of CMs were visiting various tables, singing something and clapping along loudly. We ended up leaving without eating much. H was especially disappointed.

We sat on a bench outside for a bit to complain a little and decide what to do next. Pooh and Tigger walked by. Where else does that happen? I waved to them and they waved back. Because we love each other and they know that.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120622.jpg

The Alice topiary, because it's one of my favorites.
http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120624.jpg

More cute 7 dwarves art.
http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120634.jpg

We headed over to the Big Top Circus area since we had skipped it earlier. The wait times made me believe it wasn’t very crowded that day, but trying to get around made me have questions.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120625.jpg

The circus area was adorable. I love the whole look and feel even though I really hate the real circus! I did have to dodge a couple creepy clowns but over all I found it super charming.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120633.jpg

H didn’t want to ride Dumbo or the Barn Stormer (even though she loved it when she was 4 and it was in ToonTown). We checked out Casey Jr’s Splash whatever.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120629.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120630.jpg

Very cute and probably just the ticket on those hot, humid Florida summer days. Not so inviting in December.

We did decide to check out the new restrooms by the train station. We loved the footprints and the peanuts in the pavement, and the bathrooms really were as big and nice as I had read. Hannah was impressed that she found something even cheaper than the one dollar cheese dip - tampons. Good to know.

We walked through the big top tent and were overwhelmed. It’s giant, super colorful and filled with great smells. In the middle of the tent there were about a thousand delicious looking treats. We checked out headgear and pillow pets and swore we’d come back for a treat when we were more hungry. Never happened. Next time.

Of course I was ready to go meet some more characters and Pete’s Silly Slideshow was right there. Hannah agreed to meet one set, so since the boys line was shorter we chose that one.

Goofy was great, but his PhotoPassPhotographer not so much. He took a weirdly timed shot of Hannah as she was just standing in line and then totally ignnored some charming interaction when they first said hi. He redeemed himself with some good shots later.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0327FourBySix.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0349FourBySix.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0358FourBySix.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0335FourBySix.jpg

Donald’s PPP was better but the lighting in that area was kind of crazy. Every photo I’ve seen of that M&G has some weird color thing going on - ours included.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0361FourBySix.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0380FourBySix.jpg

After that, Hannah was starting to feel exhausted and yucky from those antibiotics, plus it was getting close to time for me the head back to the room anyway, so we decided to just head back to our hotation. (Hotation is a world Hannah made up on our first Disney trip when she confused the words for hotel and vacation. “Are we going back to our hotation?” she’d ask. She also called the monorail the "mamarail". Of course I loved that.)

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0396FourBySix.jpg

As we were standing at our bus stop, a giant crowd of cheerleaders filed in behind us. Not surprising since it was Pop Warner weekend. We all loaded and squished onto the bus - and the group started singing their way through the soundtrack to The Little Mermaid. We all love those songs, of course, but not really the North Rockland Cheer version on a long crowded bus ride.

We were relieved when we reached our stop. On the way back to our room we passed these bushes full of beautiful flowers again and I thought I’d show you a few of them.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120635.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120637.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207disney120636.jpg

Up next: The company party. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=48179375&postcount=86)

[dawnmichele]

So we had started the day at the Magic Kingdom and the brand new FantasyLand expansion. We were feeling that first full day exhaustion and decided it was time to head back to the CSR.

If you remember, Danny had spent the day at work meetings, and later that night we were headed for a company dinner followed by a private dessert party at Illuminations! He was napping in his bed when we got back to the room, and we were inspired to do the same thing. A little nap seemed like just the thing for all of us. I set the alarm and crashed out on the bed with Hannah.

D and I got up and started getting ready when the alarm went off, but that girl just slept right through it all. She didn't get up until we were walking out the door. I told her we'd text her later and meet up at Epcot after the party.

We headed out and back towards the main building. They had planned for us to have cocktails outside which sounded perfect at that beautiful resort. Being out by the lake at CSR at sunset on a warm delicious December night with complimentary cocktails? Yes, please. But someone thought it was going to rain so they moved us inside. :( They set up a bar at the back of the room where we were dining. Still better than being back in Kansas.

We found a table and settled in. The work people talked about work stuff and the guests tried not to be bored - isn't that how it always is at company parties? I was disappointed there was very little Disney talk, so I mostly listened and nodded. Danny's boss gave a little speech and they opened up the buffet lines.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207_191000-1.jpg

My first plate = fruit, olive/tomato/mozzarella, salad. All very good. especially the olive stuff. How can you go wrong with olives, tomatoes and cheese?

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207_191004-1.jpg

My second plate = I used to have notes about this food, but they are lost. This is why you should write your trip report as soon as you get back. Or maybe just be more organized with your things. It was some mediterranean chicken with some pearl couscous, some pasta with my favorite veges and some Kalamata olive bread. It wasn't as good as the first plate, but for a buffet in a banquet room it wasn't bad.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207_191008-1.jpg
Danny's first plate.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207_191013-1.jpg
Danny's second plate. He obviously likes meat a lot more than I do. He liked it a lot, but he wasn't in love with it.

So - after weeks of worrying what I could wear that would be dressy enough for the party, yet warm and comfy enough for extra magic hours - not to mention what kind of shoes could work for both - I discovered many folks (mostly the ladies) were making a quick trip back to the room for a wardrobe change. Ugh. Why didn't I think of that? :confused3 I decided to just stay in what I was wearing (I hate to rush and worry about missing the bus!), but later I did want to kick myself for not going back to grab my camera. This part of the report would be so much more visually interesting if I had.

We also found out that our kids were welcome at the dessert party so I texted Hannah to stay tuned for a location.

We lined up for the busses in the lobby. Since D was the only one there with mobility issues, they loaded us on on first right behind the driver. It took 4 Mears busses to fit everyone, but eventually we took off towards Epcot. As usual I was worried about the time, and with all the crazy traffic on the road I was sure we'd never make it in time for the show. I should really stop worrying (especially on vacation at Disney) and just trust the professionals to do their job.

We drove through some gates. There were plain buildings, strange vehicles and bright interesting lights all around. There were a lot of ramps and railings. I was sure I could see part of Test Track. We were backstage! There were lots of giant speed bumps and check points. At one, a lady boarded our bus with a neon blue light stick and told us they'd be doing a bag check. We were all to hold open our bags for her as she walked past. She barely glanced in mine and headed on through the rest of the bus. It went very quickly. I wish I could remember if she was wearing a uniform or what she looked like, but in my defense I was A. texting too much with Hannah at the time and B. kind of over excited by the whole situation.

After the lady was done, we loaded off the busses and headed up a set of concrete steps. Someone held a door open and we all went through into a giant kind of warehouse/garage space. I was trying to take it all in but we were moving quickly, and it was really kind of dark in there. If there was much to see, I missed it.

Someone opened a door up ahead and there was a lot more light. We walked through a back door to the gift shop in China. It was such a contrast I feel like I can't even explain it. You're in a dark, drab utilitarian cold set of hallways where there's nothing to see and it's hard to see it. Then you step through a doorway and it's warm and red and gold and bright. Lights. Music. People. Excitement. It's Disney World! Not knowing what was coming definitely helped the excitement factor. It was one of the best moments and memories of my entire trip.

Hannah, in the meantime, had asked an Epcot CM about where we'd be meeting for the party and was on the Mexican pyramid watching for us. We were a pretty big crowd of dressed up old people being led by a Disney lady holding up a bright blue light, so she didn't have any trouble spotting us. She ran up to meet us and seemed pretty excited. We all were.

They led us to a roped off area between Port of Entry and Disney Traders (the two shops in front of you just as you enter World Showcase). There were tables loaded down with a few desserts and an overly crowded area with some beverages.

Danny got us a place by the rail with his local coworkers while H and I headed for a dessert table. I got one of everything for Danny, some for me, and H loaded her plate. We took them over to our spot and H went to fetch us some beverages.

This was my plate. Sorry these pictures are all so bad. I was way too distracted by fun and adventure to be a decent photographer.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121207_211649-1.jpg

We chatted with the coworkers from our city and caught up on everyone's kids and how our trip was. I think I was probably a little too excited. I mean it was a special party full of desserts and surprises - to watch my favorite Illuminations! - at Disney World! As the kids would say, I died. I was so, so dead.

Oh, and the desserts. I almost forgot about them. Because sadly, they were kind of forgettable. They weren't bad but they were no where near the hilight of the night or even really up to what I'd consider Disney standards.

There was some kind of butterscotch cookie thing that I skipped because I don't like butterscotch. There was a giant pan of strawberry shortcake that I scooped onto my fancy looking but disposable plate. There was a rice krispie treat with a handful of chocolate chips sprinkled on top, and a Boston creme donut with some of those silver candy balls on top.

Danny loved the shortcake and asked for more. Hannah loved it too. My favorite was probably the donut.

Everyone chatted and watched the ducks in the water. We wondered what they thought of all the spectacle of the show. The voice kept announcing the count down and before we knew it, Illuminations was starting. Everyone was amazed and I was in love all over again. I was upset with myself for not bringing the camera, but it was also good to just be an observer, right?

Since I don't have any pictures you'll just have to flashback to your own fantastic memories of Illuminations. If you've never seen it, you have my permission to go right now and watch it tonight. I think it always starts at 9:30 pm. Hurry. I'll wait.

When it was over, everyone was pleased and happy and ready to start extra magic hours at Epcot!!

Up next: Extra Magic (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=48191277&postcount=88)!

[dawnmichele]

Welcome back!

I love BTMRR, too! I am SO EXCITED to ride it in May (as it was under refurbishment during our last trip). It will be great! :banana:

I'm glad Hannah isn't on the DISboards because I love your old-school Disney photos!

It's almost May!! I hope you have a fantastic trip. I'm pretty sure you will :thumbsup2.

I love those old pictures, too. That's one of the best parts of going to Disney again and again over the years I think!

[dawnmichele]

We've been back from our trip for a little over 4 months now, and I'm just about to post the end of day 2. That's normal, right?
Oh, and I just realized I have completely different hair in these pictures. It's just a wig. Even Disney isn't that magic.

Since Danny and I were all dressed up, we stopped for some photo pass pictures!
http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0408FourBySix.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0428FourBySix.jpg

Hannah says she feels like she just photo bombed us in that picture with her Bambi sweatshirt on while we're all dressed up. Silly girl. I just love having pictures of us all together. Have I said yet that I love having pre purchased the Photo Pass Plus? That's a lot of P words! I do. There's one reason why.

We were headed toward Soarin'. Hannah and I both love it, but Danny had never ridden and only heard about it before and was anxious to check it out. We could see from the big times board the wait time was about 45 minutes and we figured it was worth it.

On the way, we were looking for restrooms when I spotted the Character Spot. It was open. I suggested we use the facilities in there and then meet the Fab 3 who were waiting for us inside. Mickey, Minnie and Pluto standing around and there was absolutely no line - so we joined them!

I met the main mouse.
http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0439FourBySix.jpg

I had to show him my Mickey Mouse watch.
http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0444FourBySix.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0447FourBySix.jpg

Danny was next.
http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0462FourBySix.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0483FourBySix.jpg

And Hannah.
http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0491FourBySix.jpg

Pluto was next. He's such a good boy I had to give him a few scratches.
http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0525FiveBySeven2.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0568FourBySix.jpg

And then the sweetest mouse ever.
http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0580FourBySix.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0607FourBySix.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0594FourBySix.jpg

We had the best time at that meet and greet. Even Hannah thought it was fantastic.

I want to mention a little here about how it's different when there's a scooter in your party. It's not always clear what to do or where to go and there is a lot of stopping to ask a CM. Coming in to the Land pavilion was one of those situation. We came in and immediately wanted to go down to the bottom floor. The CM there was great and directed us down past some bathrooms to a small elevator we could take down. It was a small elevator and there was a line of people trying to get back up waiting when we got off. The area outside there was really small and hard to maneuver through and kind of a mess. I wouldn't be surprised if they changed it soon.

So - the wait for Soarin' seemed long, but I doubt it was 45 minutes. As usual somewhere close to the front we split off into a separate line for scooters. We ended up in the middle row which I did not mind. The people's feet didn't bother me nearly as much as the dirt on the lens! People are not kidding. I kept thinking I spotted a UFO. The ride was still really great. It's just so dreamy and relaxing. It smells so good. I love the smelly parts. We all loved it. I'm pretty sure it's Danny's favorite ride now (competing with Dinosaur and Star Wars). That night he found the soundtrack online and listened while he fell asleep.

Just off Soarin', Living with the Land seemed a logical choice. We got in a super short line and got on the ride. I really liked the first part. The midwestern farm house made me all proud to be from Kansas (even though I'm a city girl). It smelled and sounded just like home. The garden part was ok but all the fish kind of freaked me out a little. Seriously.

Also freaky - the tunnel bit. It reminded me way too much of the scary part in Willie Wonka when Gene Wilder sings that song "Is it raining, is it snowing, is a hurricane a blowing…" You know the part. I didn't love it.

Right at the end as we came around the corner to see the loading platform, we got stuck. For about 15 minutes. I didn't love that either. The announcement kept saying the ride would resume immediately, but it did not. It wasn't too bad, but none of us wanted to go on it again for the rest of the trip.

It was getting late so we decided to head out. Of course we stopped for another ride on Space Ship Earth.

And one more photo.
http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/Photo0649FourBySix.jpg

I don't know why I like to take pictures of the queue, but sometimes I do. Right after I snapped this of the line for the bus, we were joined by a group of Danny's office mates.
http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121208_000544-1.jpg

I liked the way the parking lot got all hazy and glowy at night.
http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day2/20121208_001139-1.jpg

We got on a bus and headed back to the CSR at 12:16 according to my very sparse trip notes. It was a truly fantastic night. I was out as soon as I lay down.

Next up: Extra Magic Hollywood Style (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=48221082&postcount=92).

[Grumpy's Wife]

I just found your trip report and I'm enjoying reading along on your journey.

[dawnmichele]

I just found your trip report and I'm enjoying reading along on your journey.

Thank you! :welcome: I'm glad to know you've joined in!

[gracer9977]

Just got all caught up again. Love all the pictures with Goofy at the circus. I would have run from the clowns too, I am also not a huge fan of the circus and not really a big Dumbo movie fan (kills me when the elephants and kids make fun of Dumbo and that when mama gets mad they put her in a cage and seperate her from her baby. :sad:)

Anyway I still have to ride Dumbo everytime and looking forward to trying out the brand new one. ;)

Great pictures, the Epcot Mickey, Pluto and Minnie pictures are great too.

Looking foward to the next update. popcorn::

[dawnmichele]

Thanks to Disney excitement, I was up a little before Mickey and Stitch called at 6. I was determined to get us to the bus stop by 7am and we were!

I had read on the disAbilities board about the ways people decorated and personalized their scooters for the trip, and had stopped at our Target one day to buy Danny a set of battery operated LED christmas lights. (I read they had ones with Mickey heads, but not at my store apparently.) We had forgotten them the first two nights, but Hannah had remembered to grab them that morning. We wove them around his front basket while we waited for our bus.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day3/20121208disney120638.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day3/20121208disney120639.jpg

When it came it was a short ride to the DHS. It was pretty empty and extra hazy when we got there.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day3/20121208disney120642.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day3/20121208disney120643.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day3/20121208disney120646.jpg

The crowd grew behind us as we waited and I was so glad we had managed to get there when we did.
http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day3/20121208_074233.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day3/20121208disney120647.jpg

We ended up the 6, 7, and 8th people through the gate.

None of us had ever ridden Toy Story Midway Mania before, so, like most guests there that morning, that was our first goal. On our last trip, Hannah and I never made it to DHS early enough to ride without a long wait, and it didn't exist last time Danny was there. All of us were looking forward to checking it out.

However, nothing could keep me from making us stop for a picture!

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day3/Photo0659FourBySix.jpg

Hannah went ahead a little bit and got our FPs. Since the standby line was pretty empty still we decided to stand by! There wasn't enough of a line for me to really take in the magic of that queue area and I didn't get a single picture. Oh well, it's better to get through the line quickly than to take some pictures. I think.

At some point the line broke off and we were sent up a ramp and into the loading area for people on scooters and wheel chairs. It's off to the side somewhere, and it seemed like every once in a while the regular loading would send a car off to our area. I never saw the regular loading area so I don't know really.

Danny and I rode in a seat together, and Hannah sat right behind us. We loved it. No wonder it's so popular - it was so much fun!

Here's our score. It was our first time!
http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day3/20121208disney120655.jpg

Danny is a life long geek and was super excited to check out the upgrades they'd made to Star Tours, so we headed there next.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day3/20121208disney120656.jpg

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http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day3/20121208disney120663.jpg

We took the regular line until we came to the stairs part. We were sent down an elevator. From there a CM took us to a line on the opposite side from where you regularly enter. Whe the doors opened, we loaded from one side while everyone else loaded from the other.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day3/20121208disney120664.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day3/20121208disney120667.jpg

We saw - some stuff. We rode that so many times I can not remember which part we saw first. But I know we loved it. We looked around the dump shop after. I thought about buying a Chewbacca hat, but didn't.

Outside the ride, Danny hopped on a pod racer or whatever they're called, and I tried to get him in some kind of fake action shot.

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day3/20121208disney120671.jpg

http://i994.photobucket.com/albums/af66/shellybrewer/disney12day3/20121208disney120675.jpg

By then it was about time for our TSMM FPs so we headed back through the unlit Osborne lights to Pixar Palace. Hannah ran over to RnR to get herself a FP, so D and I took our time making it back to the ride. We sat on a bench and people watched some until she got back.

Here's the wheel chair loading area.

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The CM giving us instructions talked so quickly and so mumbly, we had no idea what she was saying. We asked her to repeat herself, and still had no idea. Since we'd done it before we figured we'd figure it out so we smiled and nodded. The funniest part was when the next family came in the same thing happened. They looked at us and we told them we had no idea. We all shrugged and laughed. Then the car came around and we loaded in. It was just as fun the second time around.

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Danny gets me on accuracy every time, but I get a bigger score. Which is better?
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I loved it so much I suggested we get one more set of FPs for later that day. Hannah already had hers from RnR, but she didn't really love TSMM, so that would be fine. The return time was pretty far out and I speculated that if we didn't get passes then, that we wouldn't end up having a chance to ride it again for the rest of our trip, since this was the only morning we would spend at DHS. That's the crazy thing about this ride. If you don't get there in the first part of the day, you're probably not going to ride it. Unless you like waiting in long times or maybe right before close.

Thing was, the current return times were during our lunch. I needed to wait just a little bit to get the next return time. Hannah was crying for some breakfast, so Danny decided he'd go with her around the corner to the Commissary to get some food, and I'd hang around till the time changed and meet them there.

I've reached my photo limit, so we'll do breakfast in the next post.

Next up: Breakfast noms. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=48221741&postcount=93)

[dawnmichele]

While I was waiting, I took a lot of pictures myself.

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You clever dis people are probably already chuckling at me because you know the Commissary doesn't serve breakfast! We did not. They texted that fact to me and we picked a spot to meet up as soon as I got our passes.

Even though she hates General Hospital, Hannah knows it's one of my life long favorite things, so she texted me this picture. Good girl!

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Danny asked a guy at a cart the best place for counter service breakfast, and he pointed us the way to Fairfax Fare. Danny tried to give him a tip, which of course he didn't accept.

On the way there I happened to notice The Scary Apothecary Shop, which I happened to remember sold the carrot cake cookies I happened to want to try. I told D and H I'd meet up with them and stopped in for my cookie!
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Fairfax Fare is a nice, open place to eat. I approved. Their biscuit sammies looked great,
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but I was pleased to pick off the raisins and enjoy my cookie breakfast and enjoy that!
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It was delicious. I had imagined the cookie parts would be harder, but it was soft and yummy. Also, so rich I could only eat about half of it. Hannah grabbed me some napkins to wrap it in (they didn't say Disney anywhere on them!). I put it back in it's bag and back in my bag hoping it would hold out for later (it did).

The best part of eating there was the view of my beloved Tower of Terror!
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Next up: We ride rides and join the Clean Plate Club. (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=48403493&postcount=95)

[murmkc]

Still over 220 days until the next trip. This report is awesome and is helping me with WDW withdrawals.

[dawnmichele]

We finished our breakfasts, tossed out the trash and headed up the hill to the Tower of Terror.

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H and I were excited! We love that ride. Danny was pretty sure he wouldn’t like it, even after I explained how I used to be so sure I would hate it I vowed to never even try it - but then I did and now it’s my favorite. He still passed and found a spot to park along the wall and wait for us.

It was maybe a 20 minute wait. I left my camera with Danny so I didn’t get any pictures of the gorgeously themed queue. I love that hotel. Somehow I did not remember that little room where fake Rod Sterling tells you a story. I have no idea how I could forget such a thing. I guess the thrill of the drops had wiped my brain all the other times I’ve ridden it. We watched that, screamed when the lights went out (not really) and then headed to our car.

On that ride, once I get in the car and it’s on it’s journey to the front, I start wondering why on earth I got on this ride in the first place. I freak out a little and think maybe I made a mistake and want off! But it’s that feeling of being scared (when you know everything is really ok) that makes me love the ride so much! That and the giant drops and the incredible view of the park flashing by.

We thoroughly enjoyed our first turn on Tower of Terror!

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We met back up with Danny and headed off towards RnR so Hannah could use her fast pass. D and I sat on a bench. It seemed to take her a long time, so we took a lot of pictures. I am only going to show you a few of them.

It's a giant guitar.
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Me and the upside down car.
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Our TSMM fast passes!
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My Mickey watch said it was 10:11.
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Finally, we spotted Hannah. She didn't want her picture taken.
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We had early lunch reservations at 50’s Prime Time Cafe that day. It was new to all of us and we were pleased at the chance to check it out. It wasn’t quite time yet, so we took our time along Sunset Blvd and Hollywood Blvd on our way to Echo Lake.

None of us really remembered that area so we took our time checking out the lake and the giant dinosaur.

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We decided to see if we could check in a little early for our reservations (a recurring trend on this trip). They were happy to send us off to watch TV and wait. It was pretty crowded in there, but the wait was not bad.

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I took a lot of pictures while we waited because it looked so cool in there. Uncle Phil called our name and led us to our table. We got a TV table and I was thrilled.

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We watched some TV and soon Auntie Theresa came over to see how we were and ask if we needed anything to eat. She gaves us napkins that said Disney on them!

Magic napkins.
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Auntie Theresa was great. She was super sweet and friendly, and a little funny. She played along with the set up perfectly but didn’t embarrass any of us. Thank you Auntie.

I got the pot roast with some mashed potatoes and veg:
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Hannah had the fried chicken with mashed potatoes and corn:
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Danny got the combo of fried chicken, pot roast and meatloaf, just as I predicted:
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"This is really good." was Danny's opinion.
We all got clean plate stickers, but we passed on any kind of desert.
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We saw clips from these shows: dennise the menace, I Married Joan, Father Knows Best, The Real McCoys, Dick Van Dyke, the opening of Disneyland, a clip about the kitchen of tomorrow, and a clip about preparing for the Olympics. Danny pointed out that with few exceptions, all the clips were about food! Clever Disney.

I loved the look of this place, and I love that it's like a giant game of pretend. The food was super tasty, but was so heavy it made me feel kind of yuck later. I'd like to go again for the atmosphere, but I will get the chicken caesar salad next time.

Next up: Countdown to a fun surprise! (http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=48463240&postcount=96)

[dawnmichele]

We headed out of the restaurant proudly wearing our Clean Plate stickers and talked about what to do next. We were right by the Indiana Jones show, and since none of us had ever seen it before, we decided it was a good next thing. It would make it kind of tight for making it before our FP for TSMM expired, but - inspired by the daring of Indy himself - we decided to live it up and risk it.

Scooter seating is at the very back along the walkway, so we did not have anything like good seats, but I don't think that really effected our experience. Danny and Hannah really loved it. The fake audience volunteer said he was from Kansas City, my home town (and still less than an hour away), so I was all WooHoo Kansas City, but then later I wondered if he’d made that up along with everything else. Does anyone remember if he's always from Kansas City?

My favorite part was taking photos. It's not every day that I can shoot a few frames of an explosion, or a small plane surrounded by fire.

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By the time we got out of there, it was definitely time to go use our last set of TSMM FPs. We rushed over and this time I got some queue pictures!

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I am 3D ready.
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Dig me, I won.
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Danny and I loved that ride. I can't see either of us ever waiting in the kind of lines it attracts, but it is a lot of fun.

I think it was right around here that Hannah started feeling poorly. She was just finishing up a round of antibiotics and I think they were having a bad effect on her. The first fews days she was feeling crummy and tired a lot, but after the pills were all gone she kind of perked right up. Lesson: never get sick or injured in the last few weeks before your vacation.

We had a bathroom break just outside the Pirate show, then headed for the queue. H and I told again of how dull the Narnia exhibit had been when we were here last. H believes it just seemed bad to us because we had seen a better and bigger touring version of Narnia stuff a few years before. I say the Disney World version was bad either way.

We were all hopeful about the new Legend of Jack Sparrow - and then it was awful. None of us enjoyed it. We were told to stand by the wall so Danny could see, but next to the wall we really could not see or hear anything. Hannah wandered around a little to try to get a good luck, but it was so insanely crowded. There were way too many people in there.

I just didn't get it. I'm sure that was made worse by the fact that I couldn't see or hear any part of the "show". We didn't know there was a mermaid involved until someone told us. And I have to admit I just don't get the whole pirate love. Pirates were bad guys, and I know it's fantasy and pretend but I can't make myself forget that. So of course between all that I didn't really enjoy it, but on the other hand neither did D or H.

Hannah took some pictures for her BFF who loves Jack Sparrow.

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Apparently once when Jack was going on about where the rum was, I muttered “Have you seen yourself?” which Hannah still thinks is hilarious. Thanks, Hannah.

For the second time in as many years, I was super happy to be leaving that building when they opened the doors! I'm going to guess that spot is just cursed in some way, and avoid it in the future. I wonder what was there before Narnia.

We walked along a bit, and Hannah decided she really did feel crummy. She wanted to head back to the hotation for a little rest. I thought about going back with her, but decided I wanted to see the parade first and told her I'd be back after that.

Now I know the 3 o’clock parade is at 3pm., but for some reason I thought the Countdown to Fun parade was later in the day, like the AK parade. So by the time I got to the parade street, some parts had already passed.

Here’s the thing. I am an insane fan of the musician/genius Todd Rundgren. Don’t feel badly if you don’t know who he is, but feel free to look him up (https://www.google.com/#hl=en&gs_rn=14&gs_ri=psy-ab&tok=nbvqV3_-QyLEJCTyDov6TQ&cp=6&gs_id=17&xhr=t&q=todd+rundgren&es_nrs=true&pf=p&output=search&sclient=psy-ab&oq=todd+r&gs_l=&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_cp.r_qf.&bvm=bv.46751780,d.dmg&fp=e16b3377a0a5d434&biw=1224&bih=732). At the same time, as you know, I am somewhat Disney obsessed. So how on earth did I not know that the Countdown to Fun parade song is Todd’s goofy Bang the Drum song! I was so happy to hear it (even though it's not a favorite). They changed the words a bit, and I admit it got a little repetive by the end - but yay for Todd! I would have never imagined Todd and Disney together but what a fun surprise. I hope he got a million dollars out of that deal. And since it's all gone now, I'm so grateful I got to see it while it was still there!

I sang along and took some pictures.

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After the parade, I headed back to the room. Danny wanted to stay and ride Star Tours a few times so we made plans to meet up at the MK later. We had our photo taken and I headed out.

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Hannah was asleep when I got to the room, so I left the lights off and tried to be quiet. I was feeling kinda yucky myself about then. I soaked my feet in the bathtub and appreciated the calm and quiet. I could still feel all that roast beef from lunch in my belly and it was not really agreeing with me. I was happy I had brought along some Alka Seltzer and I had some of that.

After those things and a 15 minute power nap, I felt so much better! I woke Hannah and had a diet DrPepper from the fridge and a square of Hannah’s Hershey bar. A little chocolate is always a good tonic for whatever ails you, I find. Just like how you need a little after a Dementor attack. We changed into something a little warmer and were both ready to enjoy the magic of the Magic Kingdom after dark.

Next up: Was our night magic?

[gracer9977]

Loved all the updates. Been off the Dis for awhile so I was happy to get all caught up. Love all the pictures!!!! :cheer2:

[dawnmichele]

Loved all the updates. Been off the Dis for awhile so I was happy to get all caught up. Love all the pictures!!!! :cheer2:

Welcome back! And thanks! Taking pictures is one of my favorite things to do at Disney World. Of course, the list of favorite things to do at Disney World is very long :lmao:, but taking pictures is definitely in it!