WDW Veterans and The Trip of Firsts! There's a First Time For Everything.COMPLETE 6/5

[stimmons]

09/21/2013

Do We HAVE to leave???

We woke up bright and early this morning…scratch that…I woke up bright and early this morning. I had to get the rest of our stuff packed up so that check out would be simple. While sorting dirty clothes and the voluminous amount of shoes (I have a major shoe problem, as in, I pack too many) I would steal glances out our window at that beautiful castle. This trip had been amazing, especially our room, so I did NOT want to leave. Than again, who ever wants to leave Disney World?

Sloan didn’t want to leave either, can you blame her?



Goodbye, amazing room and view!!!




Jonathan finally got up and started to help pack up the room. Once we got Sloan up and ready and our Express Checkout situated we decided to bring our luggage to the car so that when we decided to actually leave it wouldn’t be difficult. (tear)

Once everything was in the car we headed to the Contemporary for our ADR at Chef Mickey’s. We stopped to get a couple of pictures on our way.



I am so happy that we saved this for our last breakfast. It just seemed to sum up our whole vacation. It was fun, yummy, and all about Mickey!



And thankfully Sloan had gotten way better at character interactions. Now, she wasn’t going to let them touch her but she wanted them near to her so that she could watch them.

Here is Donald playing peekaboo with Sloan.



I think this picture with Goofy is well…goofy because Sloan has a whole Mickey waffle in her hand!



Pluto was so sweet!



The Big Cheese himself!



It was so sweet, Sloan watched Mickey go over to all of the tables and just wanted so badly to be near him. Once he went to the other room she dragged me over there just so she would watch him.

After our breakfast we headed to our last day at the Magic Kingdom. We wanted to hit a couple of rides we didn’t get to on the other days and also hit some of Sloan’s favorites. It was fairly empty and we didn’t even get there at rope drop.



We went straight to Buzz’s Space Ranger Spin. After we parked our stroller and walked toward the entrance a very sweet CM named Jim greeted us. He wanted to give Sloan a sticker (her millionth to be exact) and was asking if this was her first visit. We told him that it certainly was and he wanted to get her a First Visit pin. We thanked him but told him that she already had one on her stroller and he said, “Well, does it have her name on it?” We told him that it did not and he insisted that she should have one with her name. Ahhhh!!! I love this place!

Here is Jim, getting Sloan her own personalized First Visit pin. With pink marker no less!



We entered to join the force to fight Emperor Zurg and we suited with our laser guns.



Told you it was empty!

Sloan loved this ride. She especially loved using the joystick to turn us around and around and around. We had to stop her from spinning a couple of times so that we could actually get some points on the board.



I was amazed with myself and the score I got! I ended up with a 207,000 and beat Jonathan even with Sloan on my lap. Booyah! I think I actually said that as we were exiting the ride.

After Buzz we hit the Astro Orbiter which I will never again so with such a small child! I guess I forgot how crazy the centrifugal force pulls you on this ride. (You liked that physics reference didn’t ya?) Seriously, I was holding on to Sloan verrrry tightly and since there aren’t any lap belts for a false sense of security I felt very uneasy. Sloan loved it, of course. It is here when I realized I have a daredevil on my hands.

Once we were safely back on solid ground we went to ride the Teacups. Sloan wanted to help spin which was hilarious. She was having a blast spinning and saying, “whoaaaa!”.









Up Next: Winnie the Pooh and Fun Times Too!

 

[CastleGazerMom]

What a great TR! I really enjoyed reading it and it was great to see WDW from little eyes again! (Mine are 21 and 12).

Jonathan's pictures were AMAZING, especially the ones he went solo at EPCOT. I am a budding photographer/hobbiest and am amazed at the color, light, and composition of his pictures! Tell him he should do a small TR update with his specifics (camera, settings, tips) because I am heading back in November and need all the advice I can get!

Thanks for sharing your trip! Kimberly

 

[stimmons]

What a great TR! I really enjoyed reading it and it was great to see WDW from little eyes again! (Mine are 21 and 12).

Jonathan's pictures were AMAZING, especially the ones he went solo at EPCOT. I am a budding photographer/hobbiest and am amazed at the color, light, and composition of his pictures! Tell him he should do a small TR update with his specifics (camera, settings, tips) because I am heading back in November and need all the advice I can get!

Thanks for sharing your trip! Kimberly

Thank you so much! It's truly a different and fun experience with little ones.

I completely agree with you about Jonathan's pics. I love looking at his work and he gets so excited about it. I will try to prod, poke, elbow, headlock him into a short TR.

We are going back in Novemember too, for Thanksgiving! When will you be there?

 

[stimmons]

09/21/2013

Seriously, What is Pooh On???

After a dizzying start to our day we wanted to get onto The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh since we had missed it on our past MK days. Not exactly one of my favorites and we usually skip this one but Jonathan wanted Sloan to experience it. It’s just kinda trippy to me, especially the Heffalump part. So I sucked it up and we got in line. Again, I love the interactive queues! There is tons of stuff to entertain the kids with while waiting in line.

Here is Sloan playing in line.



Also, there is this cool "wall" (which is like a tv screen) of dripping honey that you can touch and the honey moves. If you "move" most of the honey there are pictures underneath.

Thankfully, since it was still pretty early, it wasn't too long of a wait.

Here is the psychedelic portion of Pooh that I was talking about.



See what I mean??? Just kinda creepy.

Anyways, next up it was one of Sloan’s favorites from earlier in the week Prince Charming’s Regal Carousel. We actually were able to find Cinderella's horse which was cool.



Though we didn’t get any pictures of her smiling, I promise she liked it.



Jonathan then convinced me that we needed to ride IASW again today for nostalgia’s sake. So we went for a round with the singing dolls. This time with no camera so that Daddy could actually enjoy the ride.

After IASW I was on a mission to get a First Disney Trip ornament at Ye Old Christmas Shoppe. There are so many gorgeous ornaments in there! I would love to start doing a separate Christmas tree just for Disney ornaments in my house. I don’t think Jonathan would go for this. Maybe one day...

So we looked and looked and I couldn’t find a first visit ornament anywhere. I thought to myself, I’m just overlooking it, so I asked one of the CMs if they could point me in the right direction. They were so helpful and sweet and searched for me. And guess what? They don’t make First Visit ornaments!!!! I know, I know. So shocking! I was very bummed so I conceded and bought a regular vacation ornament. I decided that I was going to get a silver sharpie to write “Sloan’s First Trip” on it. Boo.

As we headed toward Pirates, another one of Sloan’s favorites, we grabbed some Dole Whips to enjoy while we walked. I was sad because I knew it would be the last Dole Whip until we came back.

Up Next: Stuck on Pirates and a Farewell Train Ride.

 

[Maria Rose]

Really enjoying your trip report!!! We also have a toddler, so can totally relate to your experiences. And the pictures are amazing!

You had asked for resort suggestions for your next trip- mine would be the Boardwalk Villas! We stayed there on our last trip and you cannot beat the atmosphere. One of the best parts for us was the easy transportation (by boat) to both Epcot and Hollywood Studios. When you have a little one in a stroller this convenience makes a world of difference. And you can just wheel it right on- no folding up necessary, so this was awesome when our son was asleep after a long day in the parks- to not have to fuss with him and risk waking him up.

__________
Maria Rose

 

[stimmons]

09/21/12

Yo-Ho, Yo-Ho That’s Enough Pirate Songs For Me

We savored our Dole Whips as we slow poked our way to POTC. We wanted to ride one last time since Sloan enjoyed it so much. As we got close enough to see the entrance Sloan was getting excited. Thankfully the wait wasn’t bad AT ALL.

People we passing us in the queue as Jonathan stopped to take pictures. (of course!)

Here are the two pirates stuck at a stalemate in their game of chess. Who knew pirates played chess???



We boarded our ship quickly, with a row to ourselves. Everything was going great and Sloan was singing along to the pirate music. As we were gathering our things, getting ready for our exit, our ship came to a quick halt and a loud booming voice told us to sit tight. Oh yay….

We could SEE the unloading area in our sights! So for 20 minutes (felt like hours!) We were stuck listening to Johnny Depp sing, “Yo-Ho, Yo-Ho, A Pirate’s Life For Me”



It was about at this time that I thanked God that Sloan wasn’t potty trained because I could just see the disaster that would have been! Finally a voice from heaven (or really, a voice from the PA system on the ride) told us to prepare to start moving again. I think there might have been some cheering. And we were off of the ride.

As we went through the gift shop, we surveyed the pirate booty. We had some funds left on our Disney gift cards and wanted to get Sloan a sword. Here is the one she picked out and attacked me with.





Though the hat was adorable we opted for an eye patch. She thought these were the best toys ever! And to this day still chases us through the house with her sword yelling, “ARRRRGGG!!!”

We then walked veerrryyy slowly up Main Street USA, savoring the atmosphere of being at the happiest place on Earth. Know that feeling?

We decided that the best way to end our trip was to take a ride on the Walt Disney World Rail Road.



While we were waiting on the next Train, Jonathan got this sweet shot from the platform.



The fall decorations were so pretty!

Soon, our Train arrived and we got the all aboard signal.



Sloan settled down after we boarded and acted like she was getting sleepy.



I really don’t know what I was thinking about in this picture but that is quite a frown I have going on! I was probably sad about leaving.

Once we got moving the thought of taking a nap didn’t appeal to Sloan.





Then Sloan was done with Daddy taking pictures of her.



Isn’t there a pop star somewhere that has a paparazzi picture like this????

As our ride came to an end, we walked back to the Contemporary to get our car. Before we left, we needed to go to Downtown Disney for one last meal and some shopping.

Goofy’s was our first stop to spend some unused snack credits. So we loaded up for the car ride home! My favorite is the Mickey shaped cheese snacks. They are like the Goldfish cheese snacks but in Mickey head shapes! Isn’t that precious?

After our sugar spree we thought we might need some actual food before we left. So we headed to Earl of Sandwich. I don’t know if they are normally packed, but it was CRAZY in there. After we ordered I went to find a seat while Jonathan paid.

Even though it was madness, the food was so good! I had the Caprese Sandwich and Jonathan got the Hawaiian BBQ Chicken Sandwich. We devoured both in record time.

It wasn’t long before we were in the car and Georgia bound.


***Overall it was an AMAZING vacation! I’m so glad that we had successfully navigated The World with a little one. And we didn’t go looney! We had some great new experiences and honestly that is one of my favorite things about WDW. You can go plenty of time and there is always something that you haven’t tried before.

Thank you for reading and I hope to see you again at my PTR for our Thanksgiving trip!

 

[cindianne320]

Ah- sorry it had to come to an end!

I love her dress from the last day!

 

[stimmons]

Ah- sorry it had to come to an end!

I love her dress from the last day!

It's ok!

I hope you enjoyed it. Keep an eye out for a PTR soon.

I loved that dress too! She wore it for her first birthday but it was a little too big (intentionally) so she could wear it for our trip too.

 

[stimmons]

Hey Everyone! I have posted the link for my November 2013 PTR to my Chapter Links. Or you can just click here. Thanks for reading and I hope you will join me again!

 

[jenniferreich]

Thanks for the wonderful trip report! I enjoyed every bit of it! Your husband's photos are amazing!

Jennifer

 

[kastoney]

Awesome trip report. Loved following along on what I'm sure will be your daughters first of many trips. You have a beautiful little girl.

 

[stimmons]

Thanks for the wonderful trip report! I enjoyed every bit of it! Your husband's photos are amazing!

Jennifer

Thank you so much! And I will be sure to let him know. He definitely works hard at it.

Awesome trip report. Loved following along on what I'm sure will be your daughters first of many trips. You have a beautiful little girl.

Thank you!!! There will definitely be more. I don't think we will be able to keep her away.

 

[tazdev3225]

I stopped reading TR's for awhile so I am finally all caught up. It looks like you had a great trip. My youngest DD was about that age our first trip and while she usually was good without a nap we had to head out of the park a couple of times for a break. I miss those days. I rememer seeing diapers in sale in the shop my last trip and was amazed at how expensive they were. Talk about sgticker shock.

Thanks for sharing

 

[stimmons]

I stopped reading TR's for awhile so I am finally all caught up. It looks like you had a great trip. My youngest DD was about that age our first trip and while she usually was good without a nap we had to head out of the park a couple of times for a break. I miss those days. I rememer seeing diapers in sale in the shop my last trip and was amazed at how expensive they were. Talk about sgticker shock.

Thanks for sharing

Yay! Isn't is so much fun at this age??? All those nay-sayers saying it was a waste to take a kid so young, they were wrong.

We are definitely going to incorporate more break time in our next trip.

The diaper prices were scary! Lol. I vowed to not ever do that again!