We nailed it with a newborn, why not tackle it with a toddler?!? Updated with Trip Video!!

Chipmunks, Yeti, and a Duck...Oh My!

We were headed out of Rafiki's Planet Watch ready to get back on the train. But first, Luke saw something that he insisted we do. He may not have known Rafiki, but he recognized Chip and Dale and he wanted to see them! What is a parent to do? So we hopped in line and waited about 10 minutes before we were visiting those mischievous chipmunks!






















Clearly Luke loves Chip the best! :laughing: After our visit, we tore Luke away from his friends and got back on the train. Before long, we disembarked and were passing this beautiful view:




Next we headed over to one of our favorites to come face to face with a Yeti! We used rider swap and took turns riding.






We loved our expeditions and were able to narrowly escape the Yeti by employing an evasive reverse maneuver. Sometime during our rides, Luke drifted off to sleep. We decided to start leisurely walking towards our favorite quick service restaurant to get some lunch. We absolutely love Flame Tree Barbecue! I honestly think my dad would be happy if we only ate here and at Le Cellier! :rotfl:I am bummed that it doesn't look like it will be open for our May trip. Originally, the dates had it reopening before we went, but it has been pushed back. I guess we will be forced to try something new. :rotfl2:

On our way to some delicious barbecue, we came across a Photopass photographer so we had to stop!










I was super excited to see that last one when we got home! I love the magic shots, and we had never seen that one. Plus, since we didn't have to do a special pose, I had no idea it was going to be a magic shot until I saw it! Super cute photobomb. :thumbsup2

Before long we were carrying our yummy meals to a table with a nice view!








This restaurant is an awesome value on the dining plan since it is more expensive than lots of other quick service places and it is a lot of food! Plus it is one of the few quick service places that accepts Tables in Wonderland, so I'm pretty excited about that. During lunch Luke woke up, so we all shared our food with him and I supplemented that with some other snacks I had packed.

With our bellies full, we were ready to hit up our next area! But on our way, there was a cast member advertising a 5 minute wait to see Daisy. We couldn't pass that up! Shortly after we got in line, Daisy had to take a break, so the wait ended up being more like 15 minutes. But it was totally worth it. Luke loved her!!!


























He was so smitten with her and he was flirting big time! :love::cloud9: This was such an awesome meet!


Up next: more Animal Kingdom fun!
 
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On this trip, we tried to just go without breaks on most days. We would either leave early, start late, or take a rest in the parks. We liked it much better! We are planning to repeat this same strategy for our May trip. For October, things may be a little different though. Since we are staying at Beach Club, it will be a lot easier to get back to the resort quickly. So the strategy will likely change for that trip.
That's how it was for us on Izzy's first trip. We'd planned to take naps at the resort, but it just worked out better to have her nap in the stroller and stay in the parks. But, same thing for May - we're at Boardwalk and plan to spend a lot of time at DHS and Epcot, so there are a couple opportunities to return for a midday break. We'll see.

We definitely enjoyed the views of the savanna from the resort. I really liked this resort. The theming and the animals were right up my alley!
Love AKL! Agree about the location, though. I think it would be the perfect resort for a visit where you don't have park tickets - like a Disney cruise.

he called all animals "Oscar". Oscar is our dog's name, and he thought "Oscar" was the word for animal!
:rotfl2: Love this! I had forgotten, but Izzy used to be certain that everything was either a dog or cat - that's it! :rotfl:

Clearly Luke loves Chip the best! :laughing:
Aw, he sure loves his character meets! Who can resist chipmunk hugs? :lovestruc

AK_EVRST4_7087672640_zpsigr9kf45.jpeg
That is hilarious! :lmao: I've never seen that one before either, but I LOVE it!

But on our way, there was a cast member advertising a 5 minute wait to see Daisy. We couldn't pass that up!
Same thing happened to us last trip.

Shortly after we got in line, Daisy had to take a break, so the wait ended up being more like 15 minutes. But it was totally worth it. Luke loved her!!!
Same right down to that. I think that Luke and Izzy had very similar character meet experiences on these last trips. AK was character cuddling central for us. :hug: All his pics with the characters are adorable!
 
Luke had some serious chipmunk love going on. I'm surprised you all were able to pull him away.

Love the everest pics. We were able to do rider swap on one trip with my parents and it was a real coup.

Count us in on the flame tree lovers too. It was shut down last time we were there too, but I think they are serving some of the food at various kiosks. We did Yak and Yeti instead and it was a pleasant change. While we missed Flame Tree, it was nice to sit inside and enjoy some air conditioning.
 
That's how it was for us on Izzy's first trip. We'd planned to take naps at the resort, but it just worked out better to have her nap in the stroller and stay in the parks. But, same thing for May - we're at Boardwalk and plan to spend a lot of time at DHS and Epcot, so there are a couple opportunities to return for a midday break. We'll see.

Exactly! If you are at an Epcot or monorail resort, I think it is probably worth it to go back to the resort. But for us, if we aren't staying at one of those it takes too much time and effort getting back and forth. Hope you will write a trip report for your May trip. We almost stayed at Boardwalk for our fall trip, but there were no available studios so we went with Beach Club instead.


Love AKL! Agree about the location, though. I think it would be the perfect resort for a visit where you don't have park tickets - like a Disney cruise.

Yes! A non-park or very few park trip! It would probably be my dream resort if not for location.
:rotfl2: Love this! I had forgotten, but Izzy used to be certain that everything was either a dog or cat - that's it! :rotfl:

Hahaha! Kids say the darnedest things!

Aw, he sure loves his character meets! Who can resist chipmunk hugs? :lovestruc

He really loved characters on this trip! I hope he still does on our upcoming trip!

That is hilarious! :lmao: I've never seen that one before either, but I LOVE it!

I really loved that magic shot!


Same right down to that. I think that Luke and Izzy had very similar character meet experiences on these last trips. AK was character cuddling central for us. :hug: All his pics with the characters are adorable!

Thank you!

Luke had some serious chipmunk love going on. I'm surprised you all were able to pull him away.

It was pretty tough. And I imagine it may be worse on this trip. He is at that age where he is trying to come to grasp with sharing and taking turns. Pulling him away may result in some meltdowns.

Love the everest pics. We were able to do rider swap on one trip with my parents and it was a real coup.

The rider swap was very nice. It was great to have the grandparents there so we could all take turns but not have to ride alone. It is so helpful to have them along on trips, plus we all really enjoy it. At this point, it is hard to imagine doing Disney without them!

Count us in on the flame tree lovers too. It was shut down last time we were there too, but I think they are serving some of the food at various kiosks. We did Yak and Yeti instead and it was a pleasant change. While we missed Flame Tree, it was nice to sit inside and enjoy some air conditioning.

Thank you for this! I had forgotten they were serving some of the menu items at the kiosks. This may be a good option if we really need our barbecue!
 


Dinos and Water Fun!

After our fabulous meet with Daisy, we continued on to our planned destination. We headed over to Dinoland USA. We had another fastpass coming up that we needed to use. But first we made a stop for Luke! We figured he would like to take a ride on Triceratops Spin. Spoiler Alert: we were right! He loved this ride. So much in fact, that we wound up coming back after we used our fastpasses! I don't know which of us he rode with which time, so I will just post them all together for your viewing pleasure.
























After our first ride on Triceratops Spin, we headed over to use our fastpasses for Dinosaur before they expired. We also utilized Rider Swap again. We enjoyed our trip back in time and were able to bring back a dino in the knick of time!






After we each took a turn, the standby line was basically non-existent. And since Luke was happy, we sent my parents off for a second ride!



In the meantime, DH and I took Luke into the shop to look around. Just like on our last trip, we decided that since Luke was too little to ride, we should re-enact part of the ride for him. We acted out the part where the dino tries to lunge at you. He looks terrified, doesn't he?!? :rotfl2:



After that, we took the previously mentioned second ride on Triceratops Spin. Obviously, it was a hit the second time too! Up next, we had to get a repeat ride in on our favorite Animal Kingdom ride!







Delightful as always! After our expeditions, I had one more stop I wanted to make. I had booked us fastpasses for Kali River Rapids. This ride isn't a favorite, but I do like it and since we missed it on the last trip I wanted to make sure we hit it this trip! (Especially since we skipped Backlot Tour on the last trip, and now I won't get another chance! :sad: Good thing we rode Maelstrom!)

While DH and I rode, my parents took Luke to discover a water play area! Talk about a happy kiddo!! This may have been one of his favorite attractions of the whole trip!



























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When we came out, he wanted to play some more. So my dad and I went back and rode Kali together. By the end of this second ride, my mom was the only one who was even remotely dry! Fortunately they conveniently sell towels next to the Kali exit and the water play area. :laughing: So we purchased a couple as souvenirs and got everyone dried off.

Next up: one more character meet, dinner, and swimming!
 
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What great pictures this update. Clearly Luke loved the triceratops (aka the dinosaur dumbo in our house), but I"m not quite sure he is a water fan ; )

9 days. So envious. Have an amazing trip. :yay:
 


Aw, so cute! They both look like they're having a great time!

Just like on our last trip, we decided that since Luke was too little to ride, we should re-enact part of the ride for him. We acted out the part where the dino tries to lunge at you. He looks terrified, doesn't he?!? :rotfl2:
Hahaha, so fun! Love it!

While DH and I rode, my parents took Luke to discover a water play area! Talk about a happy kiddo!! This may have been one of his favorite attractions of the whole trip!
Wow, I didn't even know that was there. He looks like he's having the time of his life, so cute!
 
What great pictures this update. Clearly Luke loved the triceratops (aka the dinosaur dumbo in our house), but I"m not quite sure he is a water fan ; )

Yeah. He really didn't like the water at all. In fact, he really doesn't seem to be enjoying anything on this trip. I can see why people say not to bring toddlers, we were all clearly having a rotten time! :rotfl2::rotfl:

9 days. So envious. Have an amazing trip. :yay:

I'm so excited. We are down to 7 days (4 work days) now. Not that I'm counting or anything!

Aw, so cute! They both look like they're having a great time!

Absolute blast! It was awesome!

Wow, I didn't even know that was there. He looks like he's having the time of his life, so cute!

I didn't realize it was there either! At MK and Epcot I packed a rolled up Shamwow in the bag for water play, but I didn't even know this existed (hence the impromptu towel purchase). But it was an awesome find. He loved it so much! It would definitely be worth checking out with Izzy! It is tucked away near the entrance to Kali.
 
"The heated pool can't be that cold, right?"

After our fun water adventures, we got Luke dried and changed and headed out of the park. But on our way out, we happened to see a character meet I really wanted to go to! Luke has never seen Up, but I had just had the privilege of watching it and loved it! (I want it to be known that I tried to watch it with Luke, but he had no interest so I just finished it during his naps. I don't want anyone thinking that I'm trying to keep all the Disney/Pixar movies to myself! :rotfl2:) So when I saw Dug and Russell out meeting, I let my inner child get the better of me and started jumping up and down and dancing and stuff. Even though Luke didn't know them, who could resist a giant Oscar? So he was game. The wait was about 15 minutes (they went on break once), and soon it was our turn!


















This was another great meet. Luke loved Dug. He was a little more tentative about Russell, but in the end he wound up giving Russell some hugs too. And of course, I got plenty of hugs! :rotfl2:

And since we are on the topic of childlike giddiness (and in the spirit of full trip report disclosure), I feel I must show you the following picture of myself about to try my first jalapeno cheese pretzel.




I think it's clear from the picture that to say I was excited is an understatement! :rotfl: I had heard great things and this snack was right up my alley as pretzels and jalapenos and cheese are like three of my favorite food items! I am very happy to report that unlike some of the previous items, this one did not disappoint! Spoiler Alert: It was so delicious I wound up getting another later in the trip!

Characters met and pretzel devoured, we were finally ready to leave Animal Kingdom for our next adventure!

We were traveling offsite (gasp!), to eat at Boston Lobster Feast! We love this place! The lobster is not the best in the world (not as good as Narcoossee's), but it is really good! Plus, for half the price of Narcoossee's, I can eat my body weight in lobsters if I choose! :rotfl2:I didn't though. (I only ate half my body weight. :thumbsup2) Plus, their other items are really good. Lots of variety and everything is hot and fresh!




It is safe to say that anytime we are in Orlando, this place will be on our must-do list!

Bellies stuffed, we headed back to the room for some relaxation. Luke wasn't quite ready for bed yet, so we decided to check out the resort pool. It was a really chilly night and we nearly froze on our way there. But we figured it was heated, so how cold could it really be? Answer: pretty darn cold! :laughing: Luke played in the baby pool for a little while and then we went into the regular pool together.






Luke enjoyed the water sprays, but we didn't stay in the big pool too long. It was pretty chilly compared to the baby pool (larger body of water to heat I suppose). When we go during this time of year again, I may only swim during the day when the sun is nice and warm! After our swim (wade?), we were all relaxed and ready for bed.


Up next: another two park day and checking another DIS recommended item off my list!
 
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Yeah. He really didn't like the water at all. In fact, he really doesn't seem to be enjoying anything on this trip. I can see why people say not to bring toddlers, we were all clearly having a rotten time! :rotfl2::rotfl:
Yes, clearly you have a very difficult toddler on your hands. No chance you will be returning to disney anytime soon ; )

And since we are on the topic of childlike giddiness (and in the spirit of full trip report disclosure), I feel I must show you the following picture of myself about to try my first jalapeno cheese pretzel.

This picture totally made my day. You are officially the jalapeño pretzel mascot ; )
 
Aw, love the Up meet! :lovestruc Obviously, he loved the "Oscar", but he even gave Russell a hug! :thumbsup2 I love that Dug is sitting like a dog in your group shot!
 
Your AK report is making me want to redo my plans and make time to visit! Looks like so much fun.

Loved the pics of Luke and the chipmunks - Paige preferred Dale. I love how they got all fussy when she liked one more than the other!

I can't believe you leave in a few days! Have a great trip!!
 
Day 6 - Forgotten Belongings and Closed Attractions

On this morning we were up and ready early for our second day at Hollywood Studios! Our first stop was for some Photopass pictures. Gotta get my money's worth! :rotfl2:





They were really big on the "arms open" pose this trip. I have this same pose from every park! :rotfl:

After that, our plan was to go line up for the single rider line for Rock N Roller Coaster. But part of the way down Sunset Boulevard, my mom realized she had left her phone in the room. If it had been any of the rest of us, this probably wouldn't have been a big deal. But my mom uses her phone for work and has to be able to accept and make calls even on vacation. Plus I had forgotten my camera and I definitely needed that! So she headed back to the room to grab our things. Since she doesn't like Tower of Terror anyway, we decided we would ride that until she got back. We noticed on our way to the ride that Rock N Roller Coaster was not open yet, but the cast member said they would be open any minute, so no worries.

In the time it took my mom to get back, we were able to get in 3 rides taking turns on Tower of Terror. I believe we did one standby, one fastpass, and one rider swap. Here are those wonderful ride photos:







It appears we managed to use every combination of pairing so that everyone got a chance to ride with each person and we all got to have the same number of rides. We are so good and fair like that! :thumbsup2 Plus, you can see that none of the rides had all three of us on them, so apparently we remembered to have someone stay with the baby each time! :laughing: Also, I want it known that I love the sunglasses family in the third photo. If you are on DisBoards, please know I think you are awesome!

After those three rides, my mom had returned and we headed over to Rock N Roller Coaster. Which was still closed. :sad: The cast member still had faith that it would definitely be opening that morning and that it should be in the next 20 minutes or so. So we decided to head back up Sunset Boulevard and check back later.



Our next fastpass time was coming open, so we headed to..... Disney Junior Live! Which was also closed. :sad::sad: The cast member there said that they were planning to re-open by the next showtime and we could use our fastpasses for any showing. So I got on the Disney app and moved up our Star Tours fastpass time and we headed over there. We stopped on the way for a few more hat photos.








By the time we did our photos and leisurely walked to Star Tours, our fastpass time was starting. :thumbsup2 So we got a rider swap pass and my parents hopped in the fastpass line. But I was starting to feel a little hungry and we were close to another DISBoards' favorite that I had yet to try. So we walked over to Writer's Stop and I ordered the famous carrot cake cookie. DH ordered a double chocolate muffin. I thought I had taken a picture of these tasty treats, but I looked through all my pictures and I can't find one. Sorry guys! But I can tell you these were both delicious. They were both huge, though, and the cookie was very sweet. I would probably share it next time!

After enjoying our snack, we headed to the Star Tours dump shop and waited for my parents. My mom wanted to go again, so she tagged along with DH and I using the rider swap pass. This sequence was the best one I've had! I'm sorry I can't describe it in detail, since it was 6 months ago. But I know it involved some water scenes and that it was way cooler than any of the other sequences I have had. I even started to feel a little motion sick (which never happens to me!), but it was totally worth it!

Afterwards, we had a cast member call and check on Rock N Roller Coaster and it was still closed, so we walked over and got in line for Great Movie Ride. The wait wasn't bad this time (I think the posted wait was 10 or 15 minutes?) and soon we were traveling through the movies. I was a little nervous about this one for Luke due to the scary alien scene and the gunshots, but he did great and actually really enjoyed this ride!














When we exited, Rock N Roller Coaster was (shockingly!) still closed. So what will we do next? You will just have to wait and see!
 
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:wave2:Catching back up!
[
QUOTE="DisneyParkLover, post: 53511859, member: 479643"][/QUOTE]What a great picture! :thumbsup2

But even if we didn't do anything else except ride the train out and back it would be a win in Luke's book - the boy loves trains!
Sounds like Little MIss!::yes:::rotfl:
I am bummed that it doesn't look like it will be open for our May trip
:sad1: ME Too! Now I'm not sure where we will eat! :rotfl:
Plus, since we didn't have to do a special pose, I had no idea it was going to be a magic shot until I saw it! Super cute photobomb. :thumbsup2
:thumbsup2 Love it!


LOVE these!
While DH and I rode, my parents took Luke to discover a water play area!
Oooo Where is this?
SINGLE DIGITS!!! We leave for the World in a mere 9 days! So excited! That is all. :goodvibes:hyper::banana:
Yay for SIngle Digit days!!!:dancer:

:love:

And since we are on the topic of childlike giddiness (and in the spirit of full trip report disclosure), I feel I must show you the following picture of myself about to try my first jalapeno cheese pretzel.

Do you remember where you found this beauty?
 
Yes, clearly you have a very difficult toddler on your hands. No chance you will be returning to disney anytime soon ; )

Hahaha! Hopefully he is equally good on this trip and I don't have to eat my words!

This picture totally made my day. You are officially the jalapeño pretzel mascot ; )

Thank you! Thank you very much!

Aw, love the Up meet! :lovestruc Obviously, he loved the "Oscar", but he even gave Russell a hug! :thumbsup2 I love that Dug is sitting like a dog in your group shot!

This meet was really more for me than Luke, but I'm glad we did it. It was super cute!

Your AK report is making me want to redo my plans and make time to visit! Looks like so much fun.

I definitely don't like to mess with people's plans, but if you have time to visit you definitely should! I love this park and wouldn't miss it. As a park, I like AK much better than DHS. (We never skip DHS either, though, since our two favorite rides are there). But this trip we are just doing a half day at DHS and a full day at AK.

Loved the pics of Luke and the chipmunks - Paige preferred Dale. I love how they got all fussy when she liked one more than the other!

I can't believe you leave in a few days! Have a great trip!!

Thank you! SOOOO excited! According to my countdown clock, we are about 2 days and 7 hours away from our flight time!
 
:wave2:Catching back up!
What a great picture! :thumbsup2

Thank you! :goodvibes

:sad1: ME Too! Now I'm not sure where we will eat!

We may try to get some of the items from the Beastly Kiosk, since they are supposed to be carrying the Flame Tree items. And we will probably get Luke a kid's meal from Restaurantosaurus so that we can the sand pail and shovel that he can use at the Boneyard.



Thank you!


LOVE these!

Thanks again!

Oooo Where is this?

The water play area is by the exit to Kali River Rapids and the entrance to Maharajah jungle trek. It is next to a locker area.

Do you remember where you found this beauty?

I remember it was at one of the kiosks by the Tree of Life. According to AllEars, they have them at Isle of Java next to Flame Tree, so that is probably where I got it.
 
My husband and I were there the same time as your family! We don't often go to Disney without some of our kids &/or grandkids, but that trip it was just us! We stayed at Beach Club and had a fantastic time. I'm loving reading your trip report.
 
We had the same thing last trip that the spray from Fantasmic! upset my youngest - we were even outside of the spray zone but I guess the way the wind was blowing it got back further. Glad Luke enjoyed it so much!


I love the above picture - Luke is kinda like "OK, I think I've had enough fun, can we call it a day?" :rotfl:

AKL really is a cool resort. It's a bit isolated but definitely something that would be cool to do at least once - glad you enjoyed your breakfast there - and Luke seemed to enjoy letting his animal side out a bit!

I definitely like the theming at AKL better, but being able to walk to Epcot during Food & Wine is awesome for us!
... you could just bring a few bottles of wine/beer and pretend that the theme or the resort is Food and Wine ;)

It seems like a love of trains is a universal truth for little kids (at least boys). Guess it makes sense that Walt had such a love for them as it seems like his inner child never left :goodvibes

I love that spot on the bridge by Everest for PP pictures ... I've never seen that magic shot before - very cool!

Oh well, if there is anything that competes with trains it is water - my son got soaked in that area while we were taking turns on Kali river rapids. Luke definitely seems to have enjoyed himself!

You got some great character meets in this trip!

so apparently we remembered to have someone stay with the baby each time!
... well that is good. Now that would have been a tower full of terror if you realized mid-trip that no one was with the baby! :scared1:

Bummer about RNRC still being down --- glad you enjoyed your Star Wars sequence though!

GMR is definitely one I worried about the kids being scared with. Some tense moments but not as bad as other rides if I recall correctly.

Gave a great trip by the way!
 
My husband and I were there the same time as your family! We don't often go to Disney without some of our kids &/or grandkids, but that trip it was just us! We stayed at Beach Club and had a fantastic time. I'm loving reading your trip report.

It really is a small world! You will have to pass along any Beach Club tips for our fall trip!

We had the same thing last trip that the spray from Fantasmic! upset my youngest - we were even outside of the spray zone but I guess the way the wind was blowing it got back further. Glad Luke enjoyed it so much!

He definitely had a great time, but we will sit a little further back next time!

I love the above picture - Luke is kinda like "OK, I think I've had enough fun, can we call it a day?" :rotfl:

We definitely pushed him to the limit! He just partied until he crashed!

AKL really is a cool resort. It's a bit isolated but definitely something that would be cool to do at least once - glad you enjoyed your breakfast there - and Luke seemed to enjoy letting his animal side out a bit!

Sadly I don't know that we will have time to do a lot of resort hopping this trip, but we will definitely do some in the fall!

... you could just bring a few bottles of wine/beer and pretend that the theme or the resort is Food and Wine ;)

Now that's a plan!

It seems like a love of trains is a universal truth for little kids (at least boys). Guess it makes sense that Walt had such a love for them as it seems like his inner child never left :goodvibes

I don't think mine left either! And coincidently I love trains too!

I love that spot on the bridge by Everest for PP pictures ... I've never seen that magic shot before - very cool!

I was excited to see it! My favorite magic shot so far!

Oh well, if there is anything that competes with trains it is water - my son got soaked in that area while we were taking turns on Kali river rapids. Luke definitely seems to have enjoyed himself!

We may not be able to pull him away this trip!

You got some great character meets in this trip!

Thanks! Looking forward to seeing how Luke feels about the characters now.

... well that is good. Now that would have been a tower full of terror if you realized mid-trip that no one was with the baby! :scared1:

Bwahahaha!

Bummer about RNRC still being down --- glad you enjoyed your Star Wars sequence though!

It was awesome. Wish I could give a better description!

Gave a great trip by the way!

Thanks!!!
 

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