"It's Fast! It's a Blast! It's in the Past!" - A Nov Solo Trip - The Finale

Sounds like a great party so far!!!

I'm jealous of your DISmeet!!!

Hope the rest of your night goes well!

I didn't know that Cosmic Rays served food during the party. I thought it was just cookies and cocoa.
 
Great updates!

I'm scanning all your pictures to see if we appear -- no sightings yet!!

Great luck with the bus/boat!

You never know - I always look at TRs at the same time as my trip too, just wondering if I might pop in somewhere!

I couldn't believe the bus/boat combo. That's a one in a million shot!

Way cool that your mom came 3 1/2 hours just like that to hang out with you at MVMCP!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ha, really she came about 6 hours! They were in Marathon driving to Palm Beach and ended up leaving Palm Beach to come to Orlando. It was a super fun surprise, plus she got to see my one-bedroom room. I was glad I had the extra room!
 
How cool that you got to meet Wendy and Johnny. I just missed them this past trip and I was SO bummed.

How nice that your mom came to meet you at the Christmas party. I love the Christmas party. It really is such a fun time.

And yay for a DISmeet on Space Mountain!

I have two girl cats that are 13 and are in great health, so I am sure your boy has many more years in him. My guy, Max, just had a lot of health problems right from the start - FUS, a ruptured anal glad, several resp infections and several bites (cause I let him out from time to time and he was a hunter). I knew when he got diagnosed with diabetes he wasn't going to live much longer. Supposedly cats can and I took care of him meticulously. I even checked his blood sugars twice a day and dosed his insulin much like a human does. But all along I had this sense that he wasn't going to live much longer, even though he seemed stable most of the time. And then *bam* he suddenly got sick and the vet said his one kidney was terribly enlarged, most likely from cancer. It didn't matter what the cause, I knew it was time. Thanks for letting me babble about my cat. I doubt I'll ever find another as great as him.

My neighbors just fostered two preemie kittens. When their last cat died they said "no more", but the foster kittens won them over and now they have two adorable brothers. :goodvibes

I was so happy to meet someone I "knew" from the forums. It was really cool because I followed her PTRs from when I first started being interested in them and read all her TRs too, so you feel like you know someone - even though you don't! Plus - Space Mountain!

It's ok, you can "babble" about Max. My cat was born on the street and his sibling died right after they were taken to the shelter. I almost took home another cat, but ended up spying him and knew from the way he acted - scared and sick - that he was mine. When he was seven, he had crystals in his urine and he almost died; they said his life might be shortened. But I feed him specially and watch him closely and so far, so good!

Sounds like a great party so far!!!

I'm jealous of your DISmeet!!!

Hope the rest of your night goes well!

I didn't know that Cosmic Rays served food during the party. I thought it was just cookies and cocoa.

Yes, but I don't know if they were still serving because it was fairly early? It WAS a cookie and cocoa spot! And there was a dance party with some special guests... but more on that later! :goodvibes
 
Phew! I fell a little behind over the holiday, but I'm all caught up!

I was so excited when I read about your mom calling to say she was coming for the party! That is just so AWESOME!!! I can't wait to read more about how you two enjoyed the event. It sounds like your time together is off to a great start (despite the bus situation). :woohoo:
 


Oh wow, your vacation sounds excellent! Wineries, DL, and "Saving Mr. Banks"? How was the movie? I want to see that!

It was definitely underwhelming, and that's a good word for it. Nice animatronics, but the story was lacking. :(

LM was stopped for >12 minutes according to my pictures. I know SE and also HM may stop to load disabled Guests, but this was definitely longer!

"Saving Mr. Banks" was excellent! I went with 2 other adults, 1 is not a huge Disney fan, and they both loved it as well. I highly recommend it, especially to Disney fans!

Yeah, 12 minutes is a long time - I would've been starting to get nervous as well!
 
That is sooooo cool that your mom met you there!! What an awesome surprise!!! :goodvibes
 
Phew! I fell a little behind over the holiday, but I'm all caught up!

I was so excited when I read about your mom calling to say she was coming for the party! That is just so AWESOME!!! I can't wait to read more about how you two enjoyed the event. It sounds like your time together is off to a great start (despite the bus situation). :woohoo:

I'm falling a little behind just because I have been busy in my daily life. Christmas shopping is taking up my lunches (I'll write updates sometimes at lunch) and after work there's a lot to be done as well! But I'm going to get back at it, hopefully today and tomorrow.

I was so shocked that my stepdad would be willing to do that - but like I said, he likes to drive. I asked my mom later if she would have come had I not bought the ticket, but she said she'd have come up either way. :) I wasn't taking the chance!

"Saving Mr. Banks" was excellent! I went with 2 other adults, 1 is not a huge Disney fan, and they both loved it as well. I highly recommend it, especially to Disney fans!

Yeah, 12 minutes is a long time - I would've been starting to get nervous as well!

I do really want to see that; thanks for the positive recommendation!

That is sooooo cool that your mom met you there!! What an awesome surprise!!! :goodvibes

It was so unexpected; I just couldn't believe it until I saw their car pull up.
 


(I have discovered, after looking closely, that I am missing about 15 pictures or so from the party. I'm not sure what happened to them, but they're gone - pics of us on a few rides, the crowds, and the mine train being built. :( There will probably be more words than there will be pictures in this segment.)

Mom and I happily stopped at Cosmic Rays. We both got a chicken sandwich - she got fries, I got apple slices - and found a seat in the same room in which you order. From our seat, we could see there was a dance party going on in the other room, with Christmas music and some special guests!

We DEVOURED our mediocre chicken and sides and then stopped in the dance party room to watch the festivities!





It was now almost 8:30, and we had plenty more to do. We headed back across the park in hopes of riding LM, IASW, and PP, as well as HM (of COURSE, we LOVE HM) and BTMRR. Plus, I had my GWTS ears on, so we wanted to catch the fireworks and then go on to ride POTC and the Jingle Cruise!

As we walked toward LM, we heard the sound of... a roller coaster! They were running the new coaster in New Fantasyland! We had to stop and watch, but we didn't see another go-round and decided not to waste any more time watching for something we couldn't ride. We headed straight to LM and straight through the queue right onto the ride! We were stopped for just a moment (there was a wheelchair Guest right behind us) but then we were off under the sea.

Mom seemed to like the ride ok, but we both decided once was enough. We went on to IASW and PP. PP was still at over 30 minutes, so we went through IASW and then headed to ... The Bathrooms! (Again!) Those Tangled bathrooms are just gorgeous.

After HM, we jumped in a short line for:



It was just after 9 and the lines were very short. We loved seeing all the snowflakes and Christmas stuff projected on to the buildings. Mom and I kept pointing it out to each other.



I think the new queue here is pretty cool; I'm glad, however, that I don't go during a season that needs all that overflow room! YIKES.



Once we got off the ride again, if I'm remembering correctly it was time for fireworks, but we couldn't get over there fast enough. We stopped to watch from the area right next to Rivers of America. I asked Mom how my ears looked; she said they were "very cool" to watch. I was the only one in the area with them on!

Before the fireworks finale, we decided that it would be a good time to jump in line for the Jingle Cruise. We couldn't see the fireworks very well anyway; bad planning on our part. :( But we were still having a great time and wanted to catch one of the parades, so we headed over to Jingle Cruise to see how the line was.

It was a walk on! The fireworks had drawn everyone away, so we enjoyed a nice trip in De Nile. I know I had a few pictures, but can't find them. We had a good skipper, very sarcastic and just a nice, dry humor with good delivery. We enjoyed our Jingle Cruise!

Next we ran over to POTC. My mom has the beginning stages of emphysema due to smoking (she quit smoking right away when diagnosed, but of course it's too late) and this ride makes us both a little nervous due to the the scene with the cannon fire - the thick air can cause her problems, but this ride was seamless.

By now, we were tired. It was almost time for the second parade, so we staked out a spot next to the funnel cake place and helped a family take a few family pictures. We didn't have a front row view of the parade, but it was still good enough for us!



Look at all these characters at once! They did a cool dance together too!



Frankly, all my pictures of the parade are pretty bad, since I was watching and not worrying about pictures so much. Sorry, guys!

We finally went over to Fantasyland for PP. We were tired, and wanted to shop before leaving, so it was time to get in line, regardless of the line time!

It was STILL at 30 minutes! Oh well! In line we went! All the exhausted kids around me were staring at my ears as they flashed in the night. The little boy in line in front of us was mesmerized and sleepily watched my head through the entire queue. It was adorable.

It really did take 30 minutes to get on the ride, and after we were done we were SPENT. Mom and I both wanted a pin, and Mom wanted a shirt, so we went shopping.

It. Was. A. Madhouse. It was like Black Friday in the Emporium. Lines were long, people were arguing over product. They had the pins behind the register, so you couldn't even look at the pins without being in line. We asked how much they were, and were told they were $12.95 - not too bad, right? When we finally got up in line and got to pick them, the ones we picked were $14.95! We bought so much we didn't even know until later that night! I was annoyed at that, but what is $4 in the scheme of things, really? I also got the purchase with purchase WDW throw, which I'll show you at the end of my TR.

Next up, the buses. *cue ominous music*

As we were walking up, the bus was loading. We were about 7 people from the front when they stopped letting people on. Bummer. After about 2 minutes, the person in front of us turned to me and said "oh, they're still letting on people for standing room only." Oh, ok, well we don't have a problem with that! The people in front of us moved aside as we walked up. As we turned to get on the bus, the guy closed the doors and just took off with us standing right there! *sigh*

"Oh well, I guess we'll just stand here instead!" I said, and pretty much everyone in line laughed and made way for us to walk back. A lot of discussion about my GWTS ears ensued, and a new bus arrived within 15 minutes to take us back "home."

Once at BWV, we found my stepdad snoozing on the couch. Mom and I took the king bed - she went right to sleep, but I soaked my feet in the jacuzzi tub first. Even though today was a long day, tomorrow was going to be a long one too - I was doing rope drop at HS and EMH at Epcot! I finally went in to bed, falling asleep to the sounds of must-do Disney!
 
So glad that ya'll had a great time at the party!!

Seeing the coaster testing?!?!? How cool!!!

Your bus pixiedust: just continues.... :crazy2:
 
So glad that ya'll had a great time at the party!!

Seeing the coaster testing?!?!? How cool!!!

Your bus pixiedust: just continues.... :crazy2:

I was so very excited seeing the 7DMT going - I think I squealed out something and pinched my mom as I grabbbed her arm and said "LOOK!! LOOK!!"

I can't wait to try it next year. I love a new ride. And since we're rope droppers, we'll be able to ride it for sure. :)

I couldn't believe the buses. At least we all got a good laugh over it.
 
The official abbreviation is......LM. :lmao:

I agree with your assessment that BTR and SM lines are the most memorable for the same reason! I think we waited the longest in those lines back in the day.

Awesome scoring the Glow with the Show ears!

I always take pictures of signs! It's actually exactly how I remember what I ride when I'm writing the trip journal at the end of the day.

I know who your surprise visitor is! But that was so awesome too when I saw it on FB!


What cool way to help write your daily journals...so remembering that.

You trip is so so fun to read about and well I am getting super excited about my holidays now. How cool that Mom got to join you...amazing things (magical things) happen at Disney!
 
What cool way to help write your daily journals...so remembering that.

You trip is so so fun to read about and well I am getting super excited about my holidays now. How cool that Mom got to join you...amazing things (magical things) happen at Disney!

I'm so jealous that your trip is yet to come. My CM friend has offered me a couch if I want it, so I'm starting to consider a "quick spring trip" to get me through this "wishing I was in Florida" season of blues I've been facing the last week or so.

I agree - magical things happen at Disney! :goodvibes
 
That dance party looks fun!
You guys got so much more done than us. If I had that night to do over I would change so much! We got stuck in the hub! Lol
It sounds like you guys had a really fun time together that night!

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards
 
The dance party looks fun and I love Goofy in his Santa suit!!

Really cool that you got to see/hear them testing the new ride!! It's interesting waiting to see whether or not it will be up and running when I go. It kinda seems like it might be a possibility.

Glad POTC didn't bother your mom. Sending out hugs and prayers for her.
 
That dance party looks fun!
You guys got so much more done than us. If I had that night to do over I would change so much! We got stuck in the hub! Lol
It sounds like you guys had a really fun time together that night!

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

We *really* wanted to see the fireworks from the front of the castle, but we actively chose a second ride on BTMRR instead. We knew if we got back in line, we'd miss the chance to go find a place, but we were having so much fun on the ride that we just decided to forgo a spot in the hub. I'm not sorry. :)

We did have a lot of fun; it was so different from what I was expecting, because I expected to be ALONE!

The dance party looks fun and I love Goofy in his Santa suit!!

Really cool that you got to see/hear them testing the new ride!! It's interesting waiting to see whether or not it will be up and running when I go. It kinda seems like it might be a possibility.

Glad POTC didn't bother your mom. Sending out hugs and prayers for her.

Did you see Pluto off to the left? He was cutting a rug along with Santa Goofy! (You can see him better in the second photo)

I've seen so many options for soft openings of 7DMT, but the earliest I've seen that even seems plausible is late February. Who knows what Disney will do - it's already dragged on so long that it better be SPECTACULAR or there will probably be some vocal Disney fans!

I think about my mom's situation and I am SO GRATEFUL I quit smoking when I did. It will be six years smoke free for me in February! :thumbsup2 God willing, I'll never have to worry about emphysema - because it's scary. Very scary.
 
The party sounds like so much fun. I'm so glad you were able to do that with your mom.

Those ears sound like they are really cool. I am going to be on the look-out for them at DLR next month - I'd love to see them in action.
 
The party sounds like so much fun. I'm so glad you were able to do that with your mom.

Those ears sound like they are really cool. I am going to be on the look-out for them at DLR next month - I'd love to see them in action.

We're definitely more Christmas people than we are Halloween. We went to MNSSHP in the past and liked MVMCP better. HOWEVER, we are discussing the possibility of going to another MNSSHP this year in the fall when we go for our next trip together. We had a bad experience at MNSSHP when we went two years ago, but I had just had a surgery and my mom was newly diagnosed with emphysema so we were quite a pair; I think this one would go better! Plus we loved the shows and the fireworks.

This shows the ears in action at DLR: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lr18V3grRYs

Every kid I saw stared at my head. LOL! But they were a lot of fun. I wouldn't have bought them if I hadn't won them, but once I won them, I would have bought them. Does that make sense? Had I lost them or something, I would have bought another pair - they were that fun. But I didn't know how much I'd like them until I had a pair. ;)
 
This morning was a little sad. My mom and stepdad had to pack up early and head out, so once we were all up we got everything together and talked to my stepdad about what he'd done the night before. He's not a Disney fan, but he did go down and walk on the Boardwalk - he got two slices of pizza at MY pizza window and said the special (mushrooms and spinach) was probably one of the best slices of pizza he'd ever had in his life (and he's a foodie!).

He talked about walking in and out of the stores, and then he came back to the room and went to bed early. He didn't pull out the couch bed so I can't attest to its' comfort, but he was perfectly comfortable sleeping on the folded up couch.

Ok, the FP+ for today:



I got ready to go to HS while they called bell services. My stepdad had left some coffee in the pot, and I drank my very first partial cup of coffee (I had never had more than a sip before). I walked down to the lobby with them, and said goodbye. I'd be seeing my mom again in two weeks for Thanksgiving; still seemed impossible she'd been here with me!

After we parted, I took off for the boat. I liked leaving from the Swolphin.



I got on the boat a half hour before HS opening, so I hoped that would be enough to get me into TSMM!



My FP+ for this day were all for Epcot this afternoon. The above says I had an Illuminations FP+ but I think I switched it - I can't remember! I'm sure I'll remember as the day goes on; I know I kept my TT and my Soarin' FP+.

I noticed a large crowd as I walked up, but I still had to take a tree picture:



The nice thing about being solo is how fast you can walk without worrying about other people keeping up with you!

I got up to the front, and here's the gathered crowd at a quarter til.





I'm surprised they weren't letting people in early like I'd heard they do! Oh well, I'm still doing the TSMM dash. But was I going to get a FP for TSMM or not?



Heading towards TSMM.

I made the fatal error of bypassing the long FP- line to get directly into line.





The photo of me and everyone else walking in was taken at 8:53, and my TSMM score picture was taken at 9:15. Between those times, the return FP- for TSMM had gone to after noon. I knew I wouldn't be there that long (gotta get that Disney nap!), so even after thinking about it several times, I just decided to move on to ToT.





I just wasn't feeling HS this morning. I kind of wished I'd gone back to MK, but I was going there tomorrow. I contemplated going to AK, but I knew I'd be walking right into the thick crowds, so I decided to just call it a day after a couple rides on ToT and head back to the resort. So many early, busy days had made me tired, and my feet and legs were SORE.

I did manage a little bit of shopping here, but nothing really interested me so I passed.



I decided to stay on the boat all the way to Boardwalk today - my first time not getting off at the Swolphin (not counting when I came directly over from BC/YC).





It was 10:30, and even though I'd only been up for a bit I was tired. I decided to do a bit of shopping on the Boardwalk, then do some packing. After getting pretty much comopletely packed up, I decided to take a quick Disney nap and then head out to Epcot.

One more time, I listened to the must do's as I drifted off to sleep.

I was awake at 2:15 and HUNGRY. I packed up my park bag and headed out the door. I was going to Epcot!
 
Glad you got to ride Toy Story even if you couldn't get FPs for it. The FPs on our trip were gone by 9:28 a.m. on at least one morning. CRAZY!!!

I wish my nice family would let me Disney nap. It hasn't happened since the first trip when DH was uber sick. They don't think that Disney is "vacation". Glad you got in a nice nap.
 
I would have been amazed if I was at a park when I least expected it.

Awesome that you met Wendy and Johnny!

Ugh, that sucks that you're missing pictures! I can't stand it when that happens, because you know you took something, and yet they are nowhere to be found. It's so annoying.

The Emporium is always INSANE at the end of the day. I honestly really hate shopping in MK at night. But you gotta do what you gotta do, right?

How cool that they were testing the coaster though!

I'm all about Disney naps. I always take a midday break.
 

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