Show Me Your Smolder! October 2012 B-Day TR NEW 4/1 Trip Wrap Up & NEW PTR LINK!

[Nermel9]

Great DHS morning! I'm impressed with your 2 rides on TSM before 9:00!

Glad DS liked the Muppets this time! That theater is SO cute, I love all of the adorable little details! I have to check for that key under the mat, I always forget!

I loved seeing Ducky Momo too! Phineas and Ferb are so cute, I love that the characters take kids by the hand and bring them out, that's adorable!

My DH gets a lot of joking from CM's about liking the Red Sox, but nothing mean! That CM with your DH sounds like he took it a little too far!

 

[debrapagliasotti]

How rude with that CM at TSM. That is definately taking things too far!

On a positive note -- Love TSM and how exciting you got to ride it several times that day

Super cute pics with Sorcerer Mickey.

Phineas & Ferb are so fun! We met them in Dec, but had to wait a bit longer than you did.

 

[khertz]

Great DHS morning! I'm impressed with your 2 rides on TSM before 9:00!

Glad DS liked the Muppets this time! That theater is SO cute, I love all of the adorable little details! I have to check for that key under the mat, I always forget!

I loved seeing Ducky Momo too! Phineas and Ferb are so cute, I love that the characters take kids by the hand and bring them out, that's adorable!

My DH gets a lot of joking from CM's about liking the Red Sox, but nothing mean! That CM with your DH sounds like he took it a little too far!

I was pretty excited about that too! I couldn't believe we were able to get on twice before opening. We thought about going for 3, but didn't want to get stuck in a longer line.

I loved seeing Phineas and Mickey come take Paxton by the hand and walk him out to the photo area. It was so cute, and Paxton loved it.

That CM definitely took it too far. Like I said, we are used to a little good natured ribbing, but that was a bit much.

How rude with that CM at TSM. That is definately taking things too far!

On a positive note -- Love TSM and how exciting you got to ride it several times that day

Super cute pics with Sorcerer Mickey.

Phineas & Ferb are so fun! We met them in Dec, but had to wait a bit longer than you did.

I thought it was taking it too far too! To refuse to give him FP's because of the hat he was wearing...uh, excuse me?! I was so annoyed, but I didn't want it to ruin my morning.

I think it was our record for riding TSM in such a short amount of time! The new opening procedure is so great for families like us who are at the turnstiles so early.

We loved all the character meets at DHS this year! He is so into so many different things now that he really enjoyed all of the characters we met.

 

[afwdwfan]

Well, I read the first update right after you posted it, but finally got around to getting back to part 2...

Also, it was just the three of us that morning, since my parents were taking the day to go to Islands of Adventure (I am a HUGE Harry Potter fan, and it kills me that my parents have been to WWoHP twice now and I haven't been at all!!).

So why didn't you go with them?

And by the way... it's pretty awesome.

Two rides in before 9 am! Great way to start off our morning. I can't remember if it was before our second ride or after, but DH did stop and get us some FP's for later. Then we headed off towards the backlot area.

That is the perfect way to start the day in DHS!!

He actually left his glasses on during the movie! And he again tried to grab at one of the 3-D images, this time the floating cream pie. So cute! I was worried he might get scared when Sweetums comes out into the theater, but he didn't even seem to notice. He really liked the show!

That's great!!! I'm glad he enjoyed it!

We decided to go for the photo first, THEN have them sign the autograph book (Why didn't we think of this on day 1?!).

Because thinking of it the first day would have been too easy.

I really love how they have the area set up for the Phineas and Ferb meet. I would have liked to have met them myself, but that's ok...

The CM at the merge point looked at DH and said, "I thought I told you not to come back?" DH replied, "Well, they keep letting us in!" I thought that was kind of strange, so as we walked up the stairs I asked DH what that was all about. He said that was the CM at the FP machine he had gone to use this morning (since the CM's take your tickets and get the FP's for you), and he had told DH he doesn't give FP's to Saints fans. I asked DH what he said back to him, and DH said he just got in another line because the CM really wouldn't give him the FP's! It is fine to say stuff like that to us jokingly, because we get it, a lot of people don't like the Saints. We get teased about it all the time. But to REALLY refuse to give FP's?! Sounds like a CM that needs some retraining, if you ask me.

He really wouldn't give him the FPs?????? Really?????? How does he get by with that?????

I can see being that way with a rivalry team or something, but I don't know of that kind of just general hate towards a team. Aside from the Cubs, I have a hard time even coming up with professional teams that I consider rivals and hate that much. I can understand something like this happening more with like a spirited college rivalry than an NFL thing. Did your DH ever find out what team that guy liked? Maybe he was related to Brett Favre or Kurt Warner.

 

[khertz]

Well, I read the first update right after you posted it, but finally got around to getting back to part 2...


So why didn't you go with them?

And by the way... it's pretty awesome.

We just didn't think we were ready for a day at Universal/IoA with Paxton yet since he is still too small to ride most things but old enough to not want to sit in the stroller all day while DH and I ride. We are rectifying it on our next trip!!


That is the perfect way to start the day in DHS!!

I know, I couldn't think of a better way to start the day myself!


That's great!!! I'm glad he enjoyed it!


Because thinking of it the first day would have been too easy.

I really love how they have the area set up for the Phineas and Ferb meet. I would have liked to have met them myself, but that's ok...

Right?! I think most times it was because the handlers are out there telling everyone to have their books and pens out for the characters to sign and kind of "forcing" you to do that first. The P&F meet area was so great. I'm glad Paxton likes them too so I had an "excuse" to meet them!


He really wouldn't give him the FPs?????? Really?????? How does he get by with that?????

I can see being that way with a rivalry team or something, but I don't know of that kind of just general hate towards a team. Aside from the Cubs, I have a hard time even coming up with professional teams that I consider rivals and hate that much. I can understand something like this happening more with like a spirited college rivalry than an NFL thing. Did your DH ever find out what team that guy liked? Maybe he was related to Brett Favre or Kurt Warner.

He REALLY would not give him FPs!! The strangest thing I have ever come across with ANY cast member!

He was probably a Falcons fan.

Now that I'm recapping it in the TR, I wish I had gone back to get the guy's name so I could mention that to Guest Relations. Not that I like tattling on CM's, but that really was not Disney appropriate behavior! If he had said exactly what he said, but still given the FPs, totally different story, and we probably would have had a good laugh about it. I'm glad this guy didn't see us on game day when Paxton was in his jersey, he probably would have told him Mickey wasn't real!

 

[Holly324]

I just found your trip report...great fun!!! Your little boy is so sweet...we took my boys when they were 2 and not quite 1 for their first trip, and it was a great time. Your report is reminding me of that sweet time! Looking forward to hearing more!

 

[khertz]

I just found your trip report...great fun!!! Your little boy is so sweet...we took my boys when they were 2 and not quite 1 for their first trip, and it was a great time. Your report is reminding me of that sweet time! Looking forward to hearing more!

Thanks for joining in!

I am so happy we decided to take him young instead of what we were planning to do, which was waiting until he was 4 or 5 for his first trip. It's still so magical when they are toddlers!

 

[khertz]

Day 6 Continued: Thursday October 25th

After a fun time at the Animation Building and meeting Sorcerer Mickey, we tried again to get into Voyage of the Little Mermaid. The next show was starting in just a few minutes, and the line looked REALLY long, but we decided to try for it anyway. No dice. We were cut off from the preshow with just a couple of families in front of us. We didn't feel like waiting all the way until the next one, so we got out of line. Spoiler Alert: We never ended up seeing the show!! Just gotta plan better for next time, I guess.

By that time, we were hungry anyway, so we figured we'd head off in search of food. DH was still grousing a bit over the fact that we had gotten an ADR for 50's Prime Time earlier in the week in place of our usual Sci-Fi ADR, so I suggested we go over there to see about getting a table as a walk-in since it was just about opening time for the restaurant.

Success! The CM informed us if we were okay waiting about 10 minutes, they could get us in without an ADR. Of course, that was fine, so we went outside to wait and took some pictures in the car.

In no time, they were calling us in! We were seated to the right of the movie screen in the front seat of a car. All three of us squeezed into the bench, with DS in the middle of DH and I in a booster seat. It was a LOT easier this way compared to last year when he was in a high chair next to the car. DH got his usual, The Famous All American Picnic Burger - Flame-broiled Angus Burger Patty topped with Grilled Hot Dog. I got a regular burger, and we got the hot dog with fries for DS because at that point in the trip, we discovered the only thing he was eating consistently well was hot dogs! We hardly ever have them at home, so go figure this was all he wanted to eat all week. His meal also came with dessert, so we got the ice cream sundae and split it between the three of us.

DS was so much better for this meal compared to last year! The movie reels kept him busy for a little while, but eventually we did have to break out some Thomas the Tank Engine on YouTube on my phone at one point to keep him quiet.

After filling up with lunch, we walked over to the store outside of Rock'n'Roller Coaster to get some shirts my parents had wanted for themselves and my sister, but they didn't have the right sizes so we didn't buy anything. Instead, we just took a picture of Tower of Terror and mused to ourselves that we had been in Disney World for 5 days and hadn't used a Rider Swap for any rides yet and we weren't even bothered by that! We had just been enjoying the fact that DS was a little older and more enthralled by the attractions he could ride, and enjoying those rides and character meets with him instead.

We were about ready to leave DHS for the day, but we stopped in one more store on the way out to pick up a Donald T-shirt DH had seen at the PhilharMagic dump shop the day before and now decided he wanted.

It was around 12:30 pm when we left the park and went back to Bonnet Creek to put DS down for his nap. Naptime was uneventful, we washed some clothes and watched TV and I probably took a nap myself. lol We got DS up around 3 pm and left for 3:15 pm to head to our next park of the day, one we have NEVER hopped to in the afternoon before!

We stopped for a PhotoPass photographer at the front of the park, and wouldn't you know, his scanner thing wasn't working! He took a picture with our camera, and also took a picture of our Photopass card number, and assured us the photos would make their way onto our account. But they didn't.

We had a very specific reason for going to AK in the afternoon, and that was to see the parade! Usually, we are not in the park at the time of day the parade is going, and with DS enjoying the afternoon parade at MK so much earlier in the week, we thought it would be something fun and new for us to try. Since there was still some time before the parade got to the beginning of the park, we shopped a bit in Island Mercantile, and I bought two AK shirts for myself.

After we shopped, it was parade time! We walked outside the shop and found a great spot with only one family in front of us. We were standing behind the mom, and she actually ended up going across the street so she could take pictures of her kids enjoying the parade, so we saw most of it unobstructed.

(The lady with the red backpack is the one who moved)

DS really enjoyed the parade, and could be heard saying "oooh!" for some of the animal floats, and loved giving more high 5's to the CM's and characters in the parade!

Continued in next post...

 

[khertz]

Day 6 Continued: Thursday October 25th

Once the parade ended, we walked over to Camp Minnie-Mickey to see what characters were out. We ended up only going down one character greeting trail to see Baloo and King Louie. As big as they both are, I thought DS might be a little scared of them, but not this kid! He ran right up like they were long lost friends. He made a beeline for Baloo, and then King Louie was standing there with his arms out like, "What about me?" and DS went right over to him next.

We let Baloo sign his book, then went for some group photos. Baloo could not get enough of DS! He kept wanting to kiss him and touch his head.

Being such a large character, he is probably not used to kids DS's size just running up for hugs and not being a little hesitant or scared of him!

We wanted to go to the second to last Festival of the Lion King show, so we didn't have time to meet anyone else since the show was about to start at 4:30 pm. DH ran across the bridge to drop off the stroller at the stroller parking while DS and I made our way over to the theater. Soon enough we were let in and seated in the Lion section. Perfect for DS, since he LOVES roaring like a lion! We were excited to take him to see this show since last year the times never seemed to work out for us and we missed the show.

DS really enjoyed the show, for the most part. At the beginning, he was having a blast clapping and smiling. Towards the very end, he started getting a little bored. But overall, a great experience, and DH and I enjoyed getting to see it again since it had been awhile for us. This year, we might have to decide between this show (if it's still there) and the Finding Nemo musical. DH and I saw FN on our honeymoon, and haven't since because we both thought that while good, it was a little too long and we didn't need to see it every trip. Right now, DS is NUTS about Nemo, so we may give it another try with him. I think he would love all of the puppetry and big characters! Anyway, I digress.

When we came out of the show, it was POURING. Like torrential downpour, get soaked in a second rain. And we only had a single poncho in the bag, the rest of them were in the bottom of the stroller. And oh yeah, that stroller parking area waaaaaay far away from the theater? Not covered, of course! So DH took the only poncho and ran over to get our now completely soaked stroller that was pretty much unusable anyway.

We retrieved the rest of the ponchos and I had to carry DS under the poncho (Yep, he just LOVED that! NOT!) first to the bathroom to change his diaper, and then we trekked over to the thankfully nearby Pizzafari to stop for some dinner. We hadn't really planned on eating in the park since it closed so early and thought maybe we could ride the Safari or walk one of the trails, but the rain changed all that!

Pizzafari was EMPTY when we got there since people were leaving the park in droves or seeing shelter elsewhere. I took DS to a table to get him ready to eat while DH went to get the food. That took FOREVER! Since they were so slow, they were cooking the food to order, so we had to wait for the pizzas to actually cook. It was hard to keep DS entertained, but at least we had hot, fresh pizza. DH got a pepperoni and I got cheese, and we shared with DS who didn't eat much. Lucky we were the only ones in that dining room anyway because DS felt the need to keep saying "Poo poo!" over and over again and LOUDLY! It made us laugh, but could have been pretty embarrassing if there were other people around. And his diaper was clean too, by the way! lol

By the time we finished eating, it was too late to do anything else before park closing. We did stop for a couple of Photopass pictures though on the way out.

(I love DS's smile in this one! We used it on our Christmas card this past year!)

Compared to last year, DS was pretty uncooperative for almost all of our Photopass photos, but these few came out perfect!

We went back to Bonnet Creek and my parents were there soon after from their day in Universal, and they offered to keep DS for the night so DH and I could go out on our own for a little bit. We were happy to take them up on their offer!

UP NEXT: Date night!

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

What a great afternoon in AK!

Just to give you some reassurance, I've been reading (on the internet of course ) that FotLK will go on but will be moved to a new location in Africa near Tusker House once Avatar construction begins. Public works plans were submitted by Disney to local agencies for this site so most people are presuming that's where they'll go. Plus, they just renewed the contracts for the FotLK performers. I was worried there for awhile that they would do away with the show but it's one of the most popular shows in all of WDW if not THE most! The only question is whether there will be a period of no shows if they they decide to "evict" them from current site before new site is ready a la Dumbo.

I just love all of the live entertainment at AK. The parade is fun. And for this past trip, for the very first time we saw all three shows on the same day and had a great time!

 

[afwdwfan]

After a fun time at the Animation Building and meeting Sorcerer Mickey, we tried again to get into Voyage of the Little Mermaid. The next show was starting in just a few minutes, and the line looked REALLY long, but we decided to try for it anyway. No dice. We were cut off from the preshow with just a couple of families in front of us. We didn't feel like waiting all the way until the next one, so we got out of line. Spoiler Alert: We never ended up seeing the show!! Just gotta plan better for next time, I guess.

So close, yet so far away. Sorry you never got to see it.

Success! The CM informed us if we were okay waiting about 10 minutes, they could get us in without an ADR. Of course, that was fine, so we went outside to wait and took some pictures in the car.

Nice!!! I've had good luck there too in the past doing a walk up at lunch time.

Instead, we just took a picture of Tower of Terror and mused to ourselves that we had been in Disney World for 5 days and hadn't used a Rider Swap for any rides yet and we weren't even bothered by that! We had just been enjoying the fact that DS was a little older and more enthralled by the attractions he could ride, and enjoying those rides and character meets with him instead.

So what you're saying is you just walked clear across the park, walked around Rock n Rollercoaster and ToT, and you didn't ride either one?????

We had a very specific reason for going to AK in the afternoon, and that was to see the parade! Usually, we are not in the park at the time of day the parade is going, and with DS enjoying the afternoon parade at MK so much earlier in the week, we thought it would be something fun and new for us to try.

That idea was actually tossed out there for the afternoon I just wrote about in my TR. We just didn't have enough desire to go back to AK, I guess.

We ended up only going down one character greeting trail to see Baloo and King Louie. As big as they both are, I thought DS might be a little scared of them, but not this kid! He ran right up like they were long lost friends. He made a beeline for Baloo, and then King Louie was standing there with his arms out like, "What about me?" and DS went right over to him next.

Awesome!! I'm glad he seemed to have such a good time with them.

We wanted to go to the second to last Festival of the Lion King show

Yeah... another thing we kind of wanted to do at AK, but didn't get around to. Oh well, one of these days...

When we came out of the show, it was POURING.

The dreaded afternoon storm. Gotta love it.
That just makes it even worse that the stroller was left out in the rain. Not fun at all.

Lucky we were the only ones in that dining room anyway because DS felt the need to keep saying "Poo poo!" over and over again and LOUDLY! It made us laugh, but could have been pretty embarrassing if there were other people around. And his diaper was clean too, by the way!

What did we do before we had toddlers for entertainment???

We went back to Bonnet Creek and my parents were there soon after from their day in Universal, and they offered to keep DS for the night so DH and I could go out on our own for a little bit. We were happy to take them up on their offer!

If you insist. Ok, cya, bye!!!

 

[skier_pete]

Boy, you hit some of my favorites that day! The Sci-Fi, the JJJ parade, and FOtLK! Great stuff all. Looks like paxton did really good without taking a break either.

As far as Finding Nemo musical: we've seen it three times now. The first two times we were way at the back, and I was unimpressed. Last time, we had the FN fastpass from eating at Tusker House (which they've since eliminated) and we were way up front, and I enjoyed the show a lot more. It is still really, really, long, though. And the songs are just...not great. I guess if he is really into FN in October, I would maybe give it a try, but be prepared for him to get bored of it way before it's over.

 

[khertz]

What a great afternoon in AK!

Just to give you some reassurance, I've been reading (on the internet of course ) that FotLK will go on but will be moved to a new location in Africa near Tusker House once Avatar construction begins. Public works plans were submitted by Disney to local agencies for this site so most people are presuming that's where they'll go. Plus, they just renewed the contracts for the FotLK performers. I was worried there for awhile that they would do away with the show but it's one of the most popular shows in all of WDW if not THE most! The only question is whether there will be a period of no shows if they they decide to "evict" them from current site before new site is ready a la Dumbo.

I just love all of the live entertainment at AK. The parade is fun. And for this past trip, for the very first time we saw all three shows on the same day and had a great time!

Great news about FotLK!! It is easily the best stage show in WDW in my opinion, so I was really saddened to hear that it might be going away. Especially in favor of the Avatar expansion, which I can't get myself excited about in any kind of way. Hopefully we are not there during the changeover and miss it, but I will just be grateful it is not going away permanently!

So close, yet so far away. Sorry you never got to see it.

I don't think DH was too upset because he is not interested in that show, but I love it! And I think DS would like the music and the bubbles. Hopefully next time.

Nice!!! I've had good luck there too in the past doing a walk up at lunch time.

The food is not the best, but you can't beat the atmosphere there!

So what you're saying is you just walked clear across the park, walked around Rock n Rollercoaster and ToT, and you didn't ride either one?????

I KNOW!! We were surprised too!!

That idea was actually tossed out there for the afternoon I just wrote about in my TR. We just didn't have enough desire to go back to AK, I guess.

I really liked going for the afternoon. The park had a whole different vibe. I'm thinking about doing that again when we go this year, hopefully without the rain.

Awesome!! I'm glad he seemed to have such a good time with them.

He has no idea who either of them are, but I don't think you could tell by the way he ran right up for hugs! I think he has seen parts of The Jungle Book maybe once? Guess my boy just loves characters, no matter who they are!

Yeah... another thing we kind of wanted to do at AK, but didn't get around to. Oh well, one of these days...

It's a good show, but sometimes the timing just doesn't line up. Hopefully we can catch it again next time. I really love the music and those monkeys!

The dreaded afternoon storm. Gotta love it.
That just makes it even worse that the stroller was left out in the rain. Not fun at all.

Ugh, it was the worst! Luckily the stroller dried out enough by the next day since we left it sitting out on the balcony in the sun.

What did we do before we had toddlers for entertainment???

I ask myself that ALL THE TIME!

If you insist. Ok, cya, bye!!!

Were you watching on a hidden camera? That's exactly what happened!!!

Boy, you hit some of my favorites that day! The Sci-Fi, the JJJ parade, and FOtLK! Great stuff all. Looks like paxton did really good without taking a break either.

As far as Finding Nemo musical: we've seen it three times now. The first two times we were way at the back, and I was unimpressed. Last time, we had the FN fastpass from eating at Tusker House (which they've since eliminated) and we were way up front, and I enjoyed the show a lot more. It is still really, really, long, though. And the songs are just...not great. I guess if he is really into FN in October, I would maybe give it a try, but be prepared for him to get bored of it way before it's over.

It was a really fun filled day, which was a nice change from our DHS time last year when it seemed like we couldn't find enough to do with Paxton. Now that he can sit through shows a little better and loves any and all characters, that park was a lot more fun. And the parade at AK was a first for all of us, and it was SO cute! I really liked it. The floats are so unique! The only thing that got to me was that song getting stuck in my head.

That's what got me about the Nemo show the first time...it's SO long! If we did take Paxton, we'd definitely have to make sure we could make a quick exit if needed and bring plenty of distractors that won't bother anyone else. I didn't think the music was all that great, but maybe it will help keep him entertained.

 

[xoSamma]

love love love the sci fi! The theming is awesome and the food is wonderful. It is always hard for me to choose between 50s and sci fi.
I really like those AK tshirts!
The parade looks like so much fun, I've never actually stopped to watch it. Then again I normally don't stop to watch parades. the picture with Baloo and king louie make me so happy. DS could be the new mowgli.
FoTLK is always a good choice. Such an entertaining show, although I LOVE finding nemo the musical. I have the soundtrack and everything. But I do agree that it is on the longer side.
Bring on that disney rain!!!!
Pete's safari yummmmmm...how I could go for some disney pizza right now.
Let me just take a minute to soak up the cuteness of those family photos

 

[Nermel9]

Yum, Sci Fi! My DH doesn't really like Sci Fi so we haven't been back yet, but on our next trip, we're going! I just love the theming in there!

The parade at AK looks so adorable! I love the pics you guys got of your DS with Baloo, so adorable!

I love FOTLK!!! It's probably my favorite show at Disney, it's just so perfect! Ugh, sorry it was raining when you came out though, I don't mind some rain at Disney, but when it's pouring, it's annoying!

 

[khertz]

love love love the sci fi! The theming is awesome and the food is wonderful. It is always hard for me to choose between 50s and sci fi.
I really like those AK tshirts!
The parade looks like so much fun, I've never actually stopped to watch it. Then again I normally don't stop to watch parades. the picture with Baloo and king louie make me so happy. DS could be the new mowgli.
FoTLK is always a good choice. Such an entertaining show, although I LOVE finding nemo the musical. I have the soundtrack and everything. But I do agree that it is on the longer side.
Bring on that disney rain!!!!
Pete's safari yummmmmm...how I could go for some disney pizza right now.
Let me just take a minute to soak up the cuteness of those family photos

I enjoyed going back to 50's after not being for many years, but I think Sci Fi will probably win out for us for awhile. By that day, we were really regretting not making an ADR for there, but luckily it is not too difficult to get a walk up if you go early enough!

The blue shirt actually has a little hood on it that I was unsure about at first, but it's really comfortable!

The parade is cute, if you ever catch it! We were never parade people either until Paxton came along. I guess he could be the new Mowgli if I put him in a red diaper and dyed his hair black. That would be a sight!

I could go for some Disney pizza anytime!! Yum!

Thanks, those were some of my favorite Photopass family photos of the trip!

Yum, Sci Fi! My DH doesn't really like Sci Fi so we haven't been back yet, but on our next trip, we're going! I just love the theming in there!

The parade at AK looks so adorable! I love the pics you guys got of your DS with Baloo, so adorable!

I love FOTLK!!! It's probably my favorite show at Disney, it's just so perfect! Ugh, sorry it was raining when you came out though, I don't mind some rain at Disney, but when it's pouring, it's annoying!

The theming is so great! DH really loves it there, and I can't complain. We always stick with the burgers so we have never had a bad experience.

Thanks, the pictures with Baloo came out so cute! He was all about running up for hugs from characters by the end of the week.

FotLK is DEFINITELY my favorite stage show at Disney! The singing, the acrobatics, the fire twirler...I love it all!

When it's pouring, it's annoying...SO TRUE!!!!

 

[wdwgirl03]

Cute AK t-shirts!

I'm glad you got to see the parade. I love that one so much! FOTLK is awesome too.

Ugh, the rain doesn't sound fun at all! A couple years ago when my sister and I were there we experienced some rain like that at DHS where it just started coming down. And that rain ended up lasting all day (and there was another day that trip where it rained pretty much nonstop too ).

 

[MEK]

Score on the walk-in ADR! That's awesome. Cute picture of the three of you in the car.

And afternoon break sounds perfect. I love going into AK in the afternoon to watch that parade. I absolutely love it, but when I start the morning there I rarely stay long enough.

Boo to the rain, but it looks like you guys dried off just fine for your final photopass pictures. Great choice for your Christmas card!

 

[skier_pete]

It was a really fun filled day, which was a nice change from our DHS time last year when it seemed like we couldn't find enough to do with Paxton. Now that he can sit through shows a little better and loves any and all characters, that park was a lot more fun. And the parade at AK was a first for all of us, and it was SO cute! I really liked it. The floats are so unique! The only thing that got to me was that song getting stuck in my head.

That's what got me about the Nemo show the first time...it's SO long! If we did take Paxton, we'd definitely have to make sure we could make a quick exit if needed and bring plenty of distractors that won't bother anyone else. I didn't think the music was all that great, but maybe it will help keep him entertained.

Actually, We're big fans of the holiday overlay of that parade, even moreso than the regular version. The same issue though - now I got "Jingle Jangle Jungle full of holiday fun" stuck in my head. Dang it!

And yeah, I picture Paxton really enjoying the Nemo show for about 10-15 minutes, then just wanting to be outta there.

 

[amazingact21]

I like the idea of going back to AK in the afternoon to see the parade. Like most everyone else, I usually hit up the park in the morning and leave after lunch, meaning I've never actually seen the JJJ parade before. Based on your photos, though, it looks really good. Lots of CM and character interaction...


FotLK is great, but it had to stink to walk outside afterwards and see that it was pouring rain. Kind of puts a lot of the usual AK activities on hold.