Who Invited My Mother In Law? A Moderately Deluxe TR All New X 3 & PTR Link 2/3 !!

[SoNotAPrincess]

It's a shame that the food at Akershus is so underwhelming. I'll be enduring it in December with my niece...and will load up on the salami and skip the potatoes!

Maddie's Merida dress is beautiful, and she obviously loves it...she's glowing!

[Cinderella909]

You did beautiful work on the Merida dress! Maddie is adorable in her new dress! All she needs now is the Merida attitude! Maddie is so fortunate to have a mom that is so crafty and willing to let her live her dreams!

Thanks for sharing, Karen

[ladylyons]

Awesome job on the dress!!! Looks great on such a pretty little girl!!

[merbobear]

Aw I am so sad that you didn't have a fabulous meal at Akershus! I haven't had breakfast there, but I have had lunch & dinner, and both times we were very impressed.
I had this: Mushroom-stuffed Pasta - with Swiss Chard, Oven-roasted Shiitakes, and Parmesan Cream, and actually think about it from time to time longingly..lol.

We had a friendly & charming Ariel there this year, she kept calling my dd "Little Angel Fish." I really wish there was more consistency, but at least Maddy didn't notice or mind!

Sorry but my dd wants to type for a minute:
qwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwq adisonnnnnnnnbbgw3erhfterbhenrrf

[ronnmel]

I may end up buying my daughter as much princess stuff as you buy Maddie, but I will never make her a dress like this. I will never make her a dress at all actually. You got skills! (and I don't. None. Zero. )

[cindianne320]

Originally Posted by ronnmel

I may end up buying my daughter as much princess stuff as you buy Maddie, but I will never make her a dress like this. I will never make her a dress at all actually. You got skills! (and I don't. None. Zero. )

Yeah, that!

[ronnmel]

Originally Posted by cindianne320

Yeah, that!

OMG, I love the picture of your daughter in your avatar. She is so cute!! I have the same onesie for my daughter and she was actually wearing it today!!!

Sorry Shan for being

[katylady]

I've been gone for a little while, but I wasn't as far behind as I thought I'd be. Great updates. We will be going to Akershus on our next trip and I hope we have a good experience. Maddie is adorable, as always, and you are awesome with your sewing skills!

Originally Posted by ronnmel

Sorry Shan for being

ronmel - every time I see your avatar out of the corner of my eye I see a scary clown face! I think to myself that it is the strangest choice until I really look at it and see the palm trees and hammock dwellers. Sorry again to be , I just felt compelled to share!

[ronnmel]

Originally Posted by katylady

ronmel - every time I see your avatar out of the corner of my eye I see a scary clown face! I think to myself that it is the strangest choice until I really look at it and see the palm trees and hammock dwellers. Sorry again to be , I just felt compelled to share!

Sorry to scare you with the what-looks-like a clown face. You're the second person to tell me this, maybe I should have a bigger close-up on Stitch and Angel...

ETA I changed it, is that better?

[afwdwfan]

I completely agree with all of your "phrases I never thought I'd say."

I didn't get a good breakfast this morning and now I'm suddenly craving a Krispy Kreme and a Pepsi.

It is a shame that the potatoes weren't good. I'm kind of curious about how they were because, I don't know how you could mess something like that up.

I guess the important part is that Maddie had a good time with the princesses and we all know that's why you booked that meal to begin with.

[katt789]

Yay!! Somehow I missed these updates, guess I've been busy not on the dis

Akershus is....well...very underwhelming, especially for the price. We did breakfast there on our first trip and it's safe to say I won't be back until I have a little princess in tow. I didn't find the food very good, the atmosphere was bleak, but the princesses make that meal a lot better.

I've met that Snow & Ariel, and Snow was amazing, she's great! I usually don't care for meeting her, but I do like that friend. And Ariel I know I've met and she was super good. Maybe it was just a rough day? She doesn't like doing meals? Who knows?

That dress is gorgeous!! I love the Merida dresses (and wigs ha!) that Disney has. Ugh, I just want to buy ALL the dresses. I was running around Walmart yesterday and saw that they had the pink Cindy dress! ACK! I love that one!

Also, did you know that they have costumes like Briar Rose, Tiana's waitress gown, and others kicking around?!?! I seriously want to see those dresses out in the parks!!

[shan23877]

Originally Posted by ladylyons

I love getting to see the Princesses and so does my DD. Glad that Maddie got to se Ariel and get the matching dress picture. That's always something my DD loves to do. Why can Disney have such a big variety of how food tastes from one place to the next. At least you had a great experience with the Princesses even though the food wasn't the best.

We have a lot of fun at the Princess meals, and yes-Maddie was delighted to be twins with Arial. I figure that people want to know the truth about how the meals were, but that won't stop us from going back! Not as long as DD loves those princesses!

Originally Posted by smidgy

well, this wouldn't have been anywhere near considered with Jackson, but hopefully in a few years with kaylee. I would LOVE me some salami for breakfast!!!!

I bet that wouldn't have been Jackson's cup of tea. You'll have a great time taking Kaylee though. Salami for breakfast is awesome!

Originally Posted by Stringbean&Wingnut

That's strange that they wouldn't let you guys in until exactly 8! Epcot really does take some time to trek across!

I had no idea Cinderella wouldn't be at Akershus anymore!!! I mean, not that I don't like Mulan, but that seems like a bit of a random choice - is her movie still that popular?

Isn't that weird? I wonder why Cindy got pulled? Mulan is still popular with the littles, you just never know who they're going to get hooked on, but not so popular that you'd replace Cinderella with her.

I'm all in favor of Disney letting some of the 'newer' princesses into the character meal game though. In fact I was hoping that Be our Guest would be a character meal and that some of the newer girls would appear there. Maybe some day though!

Originally Posted by hstrickland

Well....did you think I had forgotten about your fabulous TR?! No way!! Like you, we've been ridiculously busy. Back in 2008, we did the F&G and loved it!!! It's amazing what Disney can do with flowers and shrubs. Too bad Stephen, 7 at the time, couldn't appreciate all the work that goes into such displays. We haven't been lucky enough to go again during this time. We liked Akershus, too, but probably won't go back again for the princess breakfast. One aspect that we really loved was getting into EP early! We had an 8:05am ressie, so we were like the second car in the parking lot that mornng...no lie! Here's the proof



We did get some wonderful pictures while walking in...think they allowed us to go in at 7:30ish. Being in the parks when they're empty is so very different...love it!

You got some awesome shots Keep the pictures coming!!!
Heather

Thanks Heather! I was so happy to get there for F&G-it's amazing what they can do with those flowers! I wish that we'd had more time before breakfast to take pics, but the PP CD was loaded with F&G shots. I plan to share those in the next couple of updates!

Originally Posted by danielle79

Great upates! We went to Akershus for lunch last time we were there and my middle daughter ate her weight in salami! My husband and I had the cauliflower soup as part of our lunch and it was to die for!!!!! Cindy was there when we were there and my girls were happy, don't know if they would be thrilled with Mulan or Mary Poppins.

Thanks! If I'd know there was cauliflower soup I may have enjoyed my dinner there more-that sounds yummy! From what I can tell on AllEars, the Cindy replacement is a new thing. She's been there both times that we went. Maddie would be happy to see any characters, but Mary Poppins would seem a little out of place to me. I really do wish that they'd start rotating some newer princesses into the meals though. It would be nice to see Jasmine, Rapunzel, Mulan, even Merida make some appearances!

Originally Posted by ronnmel

I'm very much looking forward to her first BBB trip as well. I'm even more looking forward to her first WDW trip, which I hope will be this January but it's not certain at all. That's why I don't even have a ticker. Trying not to get my hopes up.

Here are the rest of my comments. I think I was at Hollywood and Vine. (Speaking of, so far I've been watching Mickey Mouse's Clubhouse and Special Agent Oso with her. I like it!)

I can just picture Maddie telling you to “hurry up and get going” for her oh so important date with Jake. 20 minutes with characters for a 30 minutes breakfast? Awesome! I’ll keep that character meal in mind for when Claudia is old enough.

That’s a good thing that you did not listen to that CM in the restaurant, otherwise you would have missed the early start to get to TSMM! First riders of the day??? Wow, awesome! I wasn’t sure what to think of this new thing of soft opening DHS, but so far it seems great, especially since we’d usually get there around 8:30.

Maddie would make a great CM one day, warning others about possibly getting wet, and no flash photography!

Ooooh, those PP pictures of Maddie in front of Beauty & the Beast are very pretty!

I think it would be quite funny to dine at 50s Prime Time, but Ron would disagree with me. Still, I insist that we at least try it out if we ever make it there with a big group of family members or friends. Haha, so funny that Bryan kept his elbows on the table on purpose. I’m glad Uncle Tony took notice!

I’m not a big fan of the Great Movie Ride at all. In fact, I almost fell asleep on it when we rode it 3 years ago. I do want to give it the benefit of the doubt though, and say that maybe we just got a boring narrator, but Ron insists that the ride just plain needs a major refurbishment.

Yay! Good job Maddie for being brave enough to go on TOT!! It’s the only ride that DD13 (then DD10) refused to ride back in 2009. She had ridden it at 7 and hated it. We told her that since she’s much older now, (and since there are so many other things that she was “scared of” that became her favorite attractions), she has to try it again one more time. If she truly hates it, we won’t bother her again. It may not become her favorite, but I have a feeling she won’t hate it. Especially since at the fair this summer she went on a similar ride (well, just the drop part). I made sure to wait until she was strapped in and the ride had started to rise to point out the similarities and that if she could do that one, she could do TOT. At the end she pretended not to like it, even though I clearly saw her smile.

LOL @ you wearing a Queen’s shirt while Maddie has a princess one.
I always love it when the PP makes the parents kiss while the child covers their eyes. Cute!



Oh Maddie! She’s such a funny and spunky little girl.


And now the newest update : It takes a while to walk through Epcot, but you don't really notice it because there is just so many nice things to look at.
Character meals are really all about said characters. Great food is a bonus, but certainly not a requirement. I'd love to see Mulan at Akershus!

Mel, I'm heading over to your TR to get caught up as soon as I'm done here!

Thanks for taking so much time to comment on everything. I really appreciate it.

I can't wait to hear all about Claudia's first trip. I hope that January works out, but i know what you mean about not wanting to get your hopes up. Our summer trip is almost certainly a go, but I'm not counting on it until it's booked.

I like Disney Jr! You should try Little Einsteins for Claudia. Lots of classical music. It's not Maddie's fave now, but maybe if we'd started sooner. It's a fun breakfast for the Jr. Crowd.

We were so proud of her conquering ToT! She swears that the Yeti is next!

The soft open seems to work pretty well-the stampede was much less dangerous.

I'd like to see Mulan at Akershus too. I'd like some variety in my princess meals (but then we do more than the average park goer I'm sure). I've always liked Mulan's girl power message too.

[shan23877]

Originally Posted by Fantasyland Mom

Oh, how the honesty of a TR stings!
We discovered a love of breakfast and a disappointment in CRT this trip (just wait 'til THAT update in my TR), and for next year we were discussing a change in Princess meals and of meal time. Now I am greatly reconsidering, at least meal time. See, the thing is that I don't quite enjoy lunch or dinner at Akershus, either, so I'm kind of stuck. And I just don't know if I can bring myself to do CRT next trip. Perhaps salami makes up for it, but who screws up potatoes!?!? Even I don't screw up potatoes, and that's saying a lot!
Also, that one picture of fingerprints on Maddie's seat kind of creeps me out, since I know there was no one there before you and the chair hadn't been wiped down from the day before. Leave it to me, with my house days past needing a cleaning, to find fault in someone else's cleaning job!
(PS--I've never seen Mulan or Mary Poppins there, not in person or in anyone else's pictures. Way to go, Allears.)

OH NO! I don't want to hear about CRT being bad either!

We really didn't think that CRT was worth it for breakfast, but we did enjoy dinner there (and I made that ADR based on your lunch review! ) Akershus dinner was not good for us, so that's why we settled on breakfast. It's not bad, but it's really not great. The princess interaction is always fun though, and you know that's why we do these meals.

Maybe we have opposite tastes in meals? I know that you love Crystal Palace... I'm interested to hear how you liked H&V.

I've never seen Poppins or Mulan there either. Maybe AllEars is reporting a change that's about to happen.

Originally Posted by KatMark

Shannon, great update. We did NOT like our lunch at Akerhaus back in 2008 (Mark insisted we go as a celebration of my successful cancer surgery...he thought I should be with the Princesses ). Breakfast doesn't sound too bad, except I don't eat scrambled eggs, but I sure would love that Salami!

When we were there, Cinderella was not. We had Aurora, Belle (at the entrance), Snow White, Ariel and Jasmine and Aladdin. So they seem to change it around which is good.

And congrats on passing the test and enjoying the new job.

Thanks Kathy! What a nice idea for a celebration meal!

We didn't love the food there for dinner. Princesses are always fun though.And so is salami!!

That's a fun line up! I've only ever seen Charming representing the boys at the meals. I think change is good too. I can't wait until they start to integrate Jasmine and Rapunzel more.

Originally Posted by petals

I love Maddie's Ariel Dress.

Thank you! It's been a favorite of hers since last years BBB visit!

Originally Posted by mickeystoontown

Well, it sounds like Akershus (did I spell that right?) was sorta kinda a good reservation to have had. You went into the meal with the right frame of mind.....we're there for salami, Princesses, and salami.

That's exactly right!

You'll have to keep that in mind for when you have a grandprincess to take!

Originally Posted by Captain_Oblivious

Sorry breakfast wasn't all that spectacular. I remember doing that one when my daughter was 4 years old, and we pretty much felt the same way--we're glad we did it...once. At least Maddie had a nice time.

It was a nice morning since we met Maddie's favorite people, but the food just wasn't great. Glad that we aren't the only ones who felt that way. Honestly-we'll probably be back though. Only so many years to princess gaze.

Originally Posted by amandaw

Sorry the breakfast wasn't wonderful! Especially the potatoes.

Maddie looks so cute in her Ariel dress. And I'm sure she loved meeting the princesses....again.

And no, you're not the worst food photographer. That would be myself....just wait.

Thanks Amanda! Luckily the average food was overshadowed by princess friends.

HAHA! I can't wait to see! (or not see )

Originally Posted by CandleontheWater

Sorry that Akershush (sp?) didn't live up to expectations. We ate there once, for dinner, back in 2006 or something, and I didn't find it to be all that spectacular either.

I'm glad that the Salami saved the day and that Maddie had fun with the princesses. The pics of her and Ariel are very cute! I'm also sad to hear that the potatoes were a disappointment, it seems like such a simple thing to make!

And wow, in and out in 30 minutes! You guys are buffet pros! I can't wait until Everett gets to the point where he will eat without being constantly prodded and not need to be watched like a hawk. Speaking of which, I need to go intervene with lunch...

Seems like most people have had the same Akershus opinions. That's too bad.

Salami always saves the day!

We are pros at not lingering. That doesn't mean that DD gets a balanced meal in. We spend most of our real life reminding her to eat and bartering for bites. On vacation we don't fight.

[shan23877]

Originally Posted by marDgreen88

Oh man, sorry Akershus wasn't all that great. I'm pretty sure we met the same Cinderella when we went!

I actually think it's a really pretty building on the inside! Our waiter said it was modeled after the real Akershus castle in Norway, but modified. I guess it's not all that castle-like though.

I really should be more worldly Marissa. My DH appreciates the history and detail of these places. I tend to be more imbecilic.

Akershus is always saved by salami.

Originally Posted by cindianne320

Thanks for the Review! I finally have a little princess, so I'm assuming we'll be visiting in the future!

Don't let the review keep you going! I think that seeing your little ones meet their heroes is always worth bad food.

Originally Posted by Cinderella909

Well, as I was reading about Akershus, I realized that we didn't get all the photos in the photo package that you listed. Then, I realized that we had actually walked over to Norway and canceled our reservation, as we were still too stuff from lunch at Le Chefs! No wonder we didn't get the photos! I was amazed my DGD never said a thing about dining with the princesses. Maybe she didn't remember. My DS doesn't like Akershus as we a problems with our reservations both times we ate there which resulted in very long waits. If we go back next year, we'll go there to again, as you said, it has princesses!

Thanks Karen

That's funny! I hope to try Les Chefs next trip. We'll probably have done Akershus for breakfast that morning, at least I know I won't be too stuffed to enjoy Chefs.

Akershus does always seem to have a wait- I wonder what that's about?

Oh yeah, I intend to do princess meals as long as DD wants to.

Originally Posted by TinksThree

Such pretty pictures with the princesses! This is one restaurant I will not make it to until I have an all girl's trip!! I will not risk the wrath of Keith!!

Thanks! I think that's a wise choice. Keith may never trust you again! It would be fun for you and Madison to do together though!

Originally Posted by Caretames1

Salami Rocks! We had very good potatoes there, but the eggs were kinda runny.
Kadence loved it there, I think because they were pretty chatty with her there. It's already is on our list for next year.

Maddie looked thrilled to see Ariel and to be dresses like her must have been cherry on top.

I can't wait to be there! 2 weeks!

And we had good eggs, but bad potatoes. Can't win 'em all I guess.

Mads loves princesses no matter the location. We'll be back next year too.

I can't wait to hear about your trip!

Originally Posted by KatMark

Great job on the dress, Shannon. And such a pretty model too.

Thanks Kathy! Watch for a shout-out to Mark in the next update-I referenced him while we were on the trip too!

Originally Posted by amandaw

Great job on the dress! Maddie is such a beautiful little princess!

Thanks Amanda! She's ready for me to make the 'adventurer dress' now.

[shan23877]

Originally Posted by SoNotAPrincess

It's a shame that the food at Akershus is so underwhelming. I'll be enduring it in December with my niece...and will load up on the salami and skip the potatoes!

Maddie's Merida dress is beautiful, and she obviously loves it...she's glowing!

I hope that you enjoy your visit to Akershus. We really always have despite the food. I think that character meals are really about the experience anyway. Be sure to load up on salami!

Thank you! She loves it!

Originally Posted by Cinderella909

You did beautiful work on the Merida dress! Maddie is adorable in her new dress! All she needs now is the Merida attitude! Maddie is so fortunate to have a mom that is so crafty and willing to let her live her dreams!

Thanks for sharing, Karen

That's so nice of you Karen. Thanks.

I wanted to learn how to sew, so 3 years ago I decided to teach myself my making dress up clothes. And now here we are.

I honestly really enjoy making them for her. I'll be so sad when she doesn't want me to anymore.

Originally Posted by ladylyons

Awesome job on the dress!!! Looks great on such a pretty little girl!!

Thank you!

Originally Posted by merbobear

Aw I am so sad that you didn't have a fabulous meal at Akershus! I haven't had breakfast there, but I have had lunch & dinner, and both times we were very impressed.
I had this: Mushroom-stuffed Pasta - with Swiss Chard, Oven-roasted Shiitakes, and Parmesan Cream, and actually think about it from time to time longingly..lol.

We had a friendly & charming Ariel there this year, she kept calling my dd "Little Angel Fish." I really wish there was more consistency, but at least Maddy didn't notice or mind!

Sorry but my dd wants to type for a minute:
qwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwq adisonnnnnnnnbbgw3erhfterbhenrrf

Now that meal sounds great! Maybe I've just ordered the wrong thing?

That's so great that you had a good Ariel. Mads has never noticed an attitude from her, but DH and I have. It's just so different from how she acts in M&Gs

Originally Posted by ronnmel

I may end up buying my daughter as much princess stuff as you buy Maddie, but I will never make her a dress like this. I will never make her a dress at all actually. You got skills! (and I don't. None. Zero. )

Thanks Mel.

Originally Posted by cindianne320

Yeah, that!

Originally Posted by ronnmel

OMG, I love the picture of your daughter in your avatar. She is so cute!! I have the same onesie for my daughter and she was actually wearing it today!!!

Sorry Shan for being

No worries! Some one has to keep my TR going!

Originally Posted by katylady

I've been gone for a little while, but I wasn't as far behind as I thought I'd be. Great updates. We will be going to Akershus on our next trip and I hope we have a good experience. Maddie is adorable, as always, and you are awesome with your sewing skills!



ronmel - every time I see your avatar out of the corner of my eye I see a scary clown face! I think to myself that it is the strangest choice until I really look at it and see the palm trees and hammock dwellers. Sorry again to be , I just felt compelled to share!

Thank you!!

I thought that about her avatar for a long time too. And that her TR is called Zombie apocalypse made it work!

Originally Posted by ronnmel

Sorry to scare you with the what-looks-like a clown face. You're the second person to tell me this, maybe I should have a bigger close-up on Stitch and Angel...

ETA I changed it, is that better?

Originally Posted by afwdwfan

I completely agree with all of your "phrases I never thought I'd say."

I didn't get a good breakfast this morning and now I'm suddenly craving a Krispy Kreme and a Pepsi.

It is a shame that the potatoes weren't good. I'm kind of curious about how they were because, I don't know how you could mess something like that up.

I guess the important part is that Maddie had a good time with the princesses and we all know that's why you booked that meal to begin with.

I knew I could count on you to have similar feelings about food! Krispy Kremes and Pepsi is one of my favorite breakfasts!

Yup, that's the main goal. We'll keep going as long as she wants to. I can always have salami!

Originally Posted by katt789

Yay!! Somehow I missed these updates, guess I've been busy not on the dis

Akershus is....well...very underwhelming, especially for the price. We did breakfast there on our first trip and it's safe to say I won't be back until I have a little princess in tow. I didn't find the food very good, the atmosphere was bleak, but the princesses make that meal a lot better.

I've met that Snow & Ariel, and Snow was amazing, she's great! I usually don't care for meeting her, but I do like that friend. And Ariel I know I've met and she was super good. Maybe it was just a rough day? She doesn't like doing meals? Who knows?

That dress is gorgeous!! I love the Merida dresses (and wigs ha!) that Disney has. Ugh, I just want to buy ALL the dresses. I was running around Walmart yesterday and saw that they had the pink Cindy dress! ACK! I love that one!

Also, did you know that they have costumes like Briar Rose, Tiana's waitress gown, and others kicking around?!?! I seriously want to see those dresses out in the parks!!

No worries Kat!

OMG the pink Cindy dress!!??!! Maddie would die!!! I am thinking of making that one for her next, but she would adore getting a "real one"

Maddie wants the dark Merida dress next, because until I make it she won't have them all.

Mads would HAVE TO HAVE all of those dresses! She even wants them all for her Barbies! Maybe I'll go on a 'secondary' dress making spree before our next trip. She'd get such a kick out of it.