When we got to Saratoga Springs, we walked around the main building and explored the gift shop!
My mom and I loved the lights at Artist's Palette! I remember thinking, "Wow! I really want to stay here someday!" Little did I know that I was going to the following May! It was awesome!
Mom bought a really beautiful address book from the gift shop, and I may or may not have flirted with a gorgeous cast member from France. We had a nice...uhh...little, 20-minute chat. This was a recurring theme on this trip!
We walked around outside and checked out the pool! I really wish I would have gotten the chance to swim there in May. Ahh well. There's always next time!
I really liked how the pool was set up on a cliff, almost. It was really scenic! And so close to everything!
After that we walked over to the check-in area. I loved this guy!
Look at the detail in his saddle! It's the old (sniff) DVC logo:
We decided to go inside and look at the main lobby area. On the way, and throughout the whole time we were at SSR, I noticed that all the CM's were really friendly! They all said "hi" or waved to us. Definitely a nice touch to a resort with a very friendly feel. I loved it there!
Before we went in, we took this lovely photo with the awesome carriage outside!
See? How nice they are to welcome me home.
I love resort rugs. LOVE 'em! I wish I could collect them all and put them everywhere in my house. What an awesome souvenir, right?
We walked in and I immediately loved it! The decor, colors and theme were so charming and inviting. And I loved the lobby's centerpiece with the carousel horse and chandelier!
We enjoyed the view a bit and then walked through the main building to the back porch of the Turf Club, were we were able to walk right down to the boat dock! We didn't wait too long for a boat, and we were on our way back to DTD!
As you can see, Scott was really excited about this:
What up, Disboards?
The boat took us over to Paradise Island/West Side first, so we got of there and decided to walk back to the Marketplace.
On the way, we saw these reggae-ish musicians performing and singing outside Fulton's, so we watched for a little while! They were awesome!
After that, we stopped in the T-REX store to look around, and I ended up running into my friend Lauren from grade school. We caught up for a few minutes and then went our separate ways. She was on vacation with her family, and they were staying offsite. It was her first night too!
It was so cool to see her! We went to the
Lego store next, but it was CRAZY in there so we decided to settle for a pic of Woody and Buzz reachin' for the sky outside:
From there we went to World of Disney, which was also kind of crazy, but we maneuvered through the crowds pretty easily. Mom bought a Cinderella Carriage bead for her Pandora bracelet, and I got a charm necklace with a DHS Sorcerer Hat charm for me and a Figment charm for Sarah's charm bracelet that she already had.
After those very successful purchases from the
Cartier of Disney stores, we were feeling a dessert craving coming on, so we headed to Ghiradelli's!
Unfortunately, it was dark at this point, so I don't have any good pictures of our ice cream, let alone ones that you could discern it from a flower arrangement, but I know that Sarah and I split a banana split
laughing
and Mom and Scott split a hot fudge sundae. We watched the stage show from the tables by the water while we ate, and Sarah and I danced along a little! Our ice cream was FABULOUS, but it's Ghiradelli, so DUH. We thoroughly enjoyed them. It's a first-night tradition!
After that we partied some more, and Sarah and I went to dance to such classics and popular songs as "Thriller," "Dynamite," "The Cupid Shuffle," Firework," and my personal favorite, "Party Rock Anthem." I even taught my mom how to fist pump! Pauly D and the Situation would have been proud.
We could see Illuminations from our table, so that was awesome as well!
After quite an eventful time, we decided to finish up our shopping and head back to CSR.
We went to Team Mickey and bought Mike the Grumpy-golfing bobble head that he had liked in July. See
this update.
Then we walked to the bus stop.
On the way, a REALLY good-looking guy bumped into me, and I sort of stumbled a little. He kept saying 'Oh my God, I'm so sorry!" and he helped me regain my footing. I thanked him, but really I just wanted to tell him that he could bump into me anytime!
Oh my lanta!
Once my "tragic" accident was over, we made it to the bus stop and waited about ten minutes for a CSR bus.
When I was getting off the bus at CSR, a lady that my mom had been talking to held up the operation because she was so excited about my nails! She thought they were awesome. I thanked her a million times and she totally made my day!
We got back to the room, showered, and fell asleep watching Stacey.
Up next: A most life-changing breakfast!
Continued in Next Post
Food of the Day 
