Flowers, Segways & DIS Meets, Oh My! - Updated 10/26, Final Thoughts-FINALLY!

[AlexJB]

Joining in! Your room looked great, very nice

 

[Spartangirl]

Joining in! Wow...your room was really nice at CSR, even though you didn't get the building/area that you requested......

I think it's so great that you and your mom were able to take this trip together.....I can't wait to hear about your adventures!!!

I still can't believe what you mentioned about the crowds and weather....I would have thought it to be less-crowded and a bit cooler.

 

[Lovemy3babes]

I love that room! It definitely has more of a deluxe feel too I agree. That bed runner is gorgeous!!

 

[dvc at last !]

You are off and running ..great TR ---
waiting for more !

 

[LilAnn]

Hi! Joining in for the ride. We were there around the same time as you gals and had the same thoughts on the crowds and the heat. We went in August last year, but I think we were more prepared for the heat and humidity then as opposed to this trip. Definitely changed how we did things. Looking forward to see if any more parts of our trips overlapped! Unfortunately we missed the Cinco de Mayo dis meet as I think we had to take a daily pool break by that point. So it'll be fun to see those pics too!

 

[kschafer]

Mickey head on the desk lamp

HOW in the world did I miss this detail! I swear, the entire week I never noticed this (I may have to steal this picture )

So how did you end up feeling about the Ranchos? I was really glad I moved to the Casitas but it was pretty easy since it was just me and I hadn't been there long!

 

[Happydog]

Really like the look of CSR! My DH thought the decor looked nice too, we may stay here on another trip when we plan one, I have heard such good things! On the way to the pool, looking forward to that!

 

[SoonerGirl]

Hi there! I followed you over from Becky's (ladybugmom) PTR.

You have such an adorable family!

You know, I have never had any interest at all in staying at CSR, but your room looks NICE! My opinion has definitely been changed! I can't wait to see more.

Hi and I've seen you on Becky's report, so glad you came over!

They just recently remodeled all of the rooms at CSR and they are soooo much nicer than they were before.

Yay for arriving-- sorry you didn't get the section you wanted :-/. Did you find it to be problematic for the rest of the trip?
I've never stayed at CSR, but that pool is so cool! I'm sure you guys had fun there.

No, I was bummed about not getting the area I wanted at first, but we were fine with where we were. I think if we had had more of a desire to spend alot of time in the main building, shopping or eating, then it may have been a problem, but since we didn't, our location was fine.

The pool there is very nice!

Ahh, four pages already?! I'm here!

Hey there Sarah, glad you made it over!

Way to go, Justin! He and Rachel are the same age---I sure wish she focused on her academics as much as she did her social life!

My teacher friends and I have a little line we use for girls around school who are pretty,but shall I say, a little clueless----"Good thing she's pretty. That'll get her far in life." In the south, this line is preceded by "BLESS HER HEART! Good thing she's pretty." (Because in the south, we can say anything about anybody, as long as we bless them! )

SO, all I can say about Rachel is "Good thing she's pretty."

Justin has a couple of friends, who are girls, whom I think that about as well! Rachel is very pretty, and you never know what age will bring, she might surprise you and end up being smart too

There is one girl that he has gone to school with for awhile, the girl is gorgeous! She's smart and a good Christian girl. I keep telling him that he needs to ask her out, but he leans towards the ditzy girls........

Sorry you didn't get the building you requested, but hopefully, you came to enjoy the building you were placed in.

I love all the pictures of the new rooms at CSR. Those little Hidden Mickeys on the bed cover are too cute, and I love the idea of that sliding door. The curtain doesn't do much for blocking out light-- I'm sure that door works much better.

Since Mom and I were up at the same time, we didn't use the doors, but they would be great when we go as a family. I'm always up at least 30-45 minutes before everyone else, and you're right, those curtains don't block the light very well at all.

 

[SoonerGirl]

Checking in for your TR. I'm really looking forward to hearing the details of your trip. I've got a short mom and daughter trip coming up in July. We'll be staying at the BWI...a first for both of us. We are going to be redeeming our GAD passes for a day at AKL and then spending a day at Epcot. I haven't really done any planning for this trip (I save all of my neurotic, controlling behaviors for my DS and DH.) We are just planning on eating at CS and doing a lot of things that men/boys don't love to do...strolling slowly through the gift shops, taking in all the details in the different Epcot countries, people watching and some resort hopping. I'm dreading the heat, but really looking forward to a more leisurely pace.

Hi, thanks for coming over!

Ahhhhh, BWI, I'm so jealous! I really need to stay there.

I had visions of taking our time as well, but I'm afraid that changed some once we got there and I saw the crowds. I wanted Mom to experience so much that I sorta forgot about the taking it slow part......

What a beautiful room!!! Love the dark wood and the duvet covers!!
I will never forget a few years ago my niece...she may have been 9 or 10 at the time..we were on our way back from Disney and we were in some pretty nasty turbulence....she puts her hands in the air and says see...just like Space Mountain! I always try to maintain a manner of composure when the flights are "interesting" when I am traveling with them so that I don't show my inner

Tracy

Oh my gosh, that is sooooo funny! Except, of course, that I don't worry much about plummeting to death when I'm on Space Mountain.......

Joining in! Your room looked great, very nice

Hello and welcome aboard, glad you're here!

Joining in! Wow...your room was really nice at CSR, even though you didn't get the building/area that you requested......

I think it's so great that you and your mom were able to take this trip together.....I can't wait to hear about your adventures!!!

I still can't believe what you mentioned about the crowds and weather....I would have thought it to be less-crowded and a bit cooler.

Hiya Lynne!

Mom and I did have a good time, even with the unexpected warmth and crowds. We just had to adjust to it

I love that room! It definitely has more of a deluxe feel too I agree. That bed runner is gorgeous!!

Doesn't it though? They did a really good job with the remodel.

 

[KatMark]

HOW in the world did I miss this detail! I swear, the entire week I never noticed this (I may have to steal this picture )

So how did you end up feeling about the Ranchos? I was really glad I moved to the Casitas but it was pretty easy since it was just me and I hadn't been there long!

I wonder if either of you noticed this during your stay at the CSR (look close):

 

[SoonerGirl]

You are off and running ..great TR ---
waiting for more !

Hello & welcome to my TR! I've started anyway, don't know how much I'm running yet though!

Hi! Joining in for the ride. We were there around the same time as you gals and had the same thoughts on the crowds and the heat. We went in August last year, but I think we were more prepared for the heat and humidity then as opposed to this trip. Definitely changed how we did things. Looking forward to see if any more parts of our trips overlapped! Unfortunately we missed the Cinco de Mayo dis meet as I think we had to take a daily pool break by that point. So it'll be fun to see those pics too!

Hi there, thanks so much for joining in!

I know what you mean about being more prepared for the heat in the summer, I've been twice in July and though it was HOT, I seemed to handle it better then. I just wasn't ready for it this trip at all!

Sorry you missed the meet, but I totally understand the need to get back to the resort for a dip in the pool!

HOW in the world did I miss this detail! I swear, the entire week I never noticed this (I may have to steal this picture )

So how did you end up feeling about the Ranchos? I was really glad I moved to the Casitas but it was pretty easy since it was just me and I hadn't been there long!

Steal away my dear! That was one of the first things I noticed when I put my stuff down on the desk, I thought it was such a cute little touch.

We were okay with being in the Ranchos, I think if we had wanted to spend more time in the main building it would have been a problem, but as it was, it worked out just fine.

Really like the look of CSR! My DH thought the decor looked nice too, we may stay here on another trip when we plan one, I have heard such good things! On the way to the pool, looking forward to that!

If you can tear yourself away from those DVC resorts! The pool can't compare to SAB, but I bet your boys would love the slide they have at CSR.

I'm hoping to get another update up today, I just have to get outside and work on the pool though - Memorial Day is right around the corner and it HAS to be open by then!

 

[SoonerGirl]

I wonder if either of you noticed this during your stay at the CSR (look close):

Oh my gosh Kathy! No, I didn't notice that, how awesome is that little detail?!

 

[not_Joanna_eggs]

I totally lurked on your Christmas TR, so I figured I should sign up and be official for this one!

Great start so far!

The room at CSR looks nice! The little details are just awesome. Can't wait for more.

 

[kschafer]

I wonder if either of you noticed this during your stay at the CSR (look close):

Actually, that one I caught!

 

[SoonerGirl]

I totally lurked on your Christmas TR, so I figured I should sign up and be official for this one!

Great start so far!

The room at CSR looks nice! The little details are just awesome. Can't wait for more.

I'm so glad you came out of lurkdom, thanks for posting and welcome!!

Actually, that one I caught!

I can't believe you saw those teeny tiny Mickey's but missed the one on the desk lamp!

****************

A little non trip update, followed by a real update.

For those of you who followed along on my PTR and know about the tornado damage we got last Monday, the insurance inspector was out yesterday. He was VERY thorough, spending about 3 hours going over everything and walking every inch of our roof. He did his estimate right here on his laptop and wrote us a check. He said if anything runs over his estimate just to send the receipts in and we would be reimbursed. It was much quicker and easier than I thought it was going to be! Now we just need to get going on the repairs.......

OK, real update coming right up!

 

[SoonerGirl]

The pool was a relatively short walk from our building, which was very nice. But, when we got to the pool I was shocked to see that it was PACKED! We had a bit of trouble finding a couple of chairs, I commented to Mom that it had been easier to find a place to sit the last time we stayed at CSR and that was in July! This disappointed me as well, and had me nervous for the rest of the week......

When we finally found some chairs, we dropped our stuff and headed over to grab something to eat, we were both starving! I got the Siesta nachos and Mom had chicken strips & fries. We got bottles of water as our drink with our CS meal, but we saved them for later and filled our mugs to have with our lunch. The dessert options here leave a lot to be desired, you have your choice of a small pack of Oreo cookies or a bag of chips. We got the cookies and brought them home for the kids.

Finally settled, we began to eat our lunch and after the first few bites I realized that there was about a half inch of grease in the bottom of my plate - seems they don't use a strainer when putting on the meat - yuck! I ate what was on top and threw the rest away, sad that I had wasted a CS credit on that meal. See - I told you our trip didn't get off to the perfect start that I had envisioned!

It was also unseasonably hot and we were melting by this point, so into the pool we went - that made everything much better! It was very cool and refreshing. Then it was time to grab a frozen cocktail and relax. And, relax we did. I read my book, sipped my drink, and got into the water when I got too hot. I didn't take my camera to the pool, Mom did, but didn't take many pictures, here are a couple.

About 4:30 or so we decided to leave the pool and go back to the room to shower and get ready for dinner. I had been texting back and forth with Katie (kschafer) hoping that we would be able to meet up for a quick hello when she arrived. I sent her a text when we left the pool and apparently she had just been there - we barely missed each other!

When we got to the room we saw that our luggage had arrived, so we took a bit of time and unpacked, then hopped into the shower. I tried to take this pic of us in the mirror after we were all dressed up and ready to go - silly, I know!

We made our way to the front of the resort. I took this from the bridge on the way over

We then grabbed a cab to Animal Kingdom Lodge. It was totally worth the money to do this, just a $9 fare before tip and it was sooooo much faster than taking a bus to a park and then catching another bus to AKL! Soon we arrived, I just love this resort, it's so pretty! One day I will stay here!

We had some time before we had to check in, so we wandered around outside and watched some of the animals.

Then we went to check in for our dinner at Jiko

Very cool wine rack!

I was really excited for this meal, and it did not disappoint! You all are in for a treat too. If you've read my previous TRs, you know that I do not take food porn pics, but Mom encouraged me to do it, so I did! All of them were taken without a flash however, to avoid disturbing other diners, so some may be a bit dark.

I started off with a cocktail

Mmmmm, love Cosmos when they are made right, and this one was. So many places put too much cranberry juice in them, but they did not - it was perfect!

I forgot to take a picture of the bread, but it was very good as was the spread that it came with. I've completely forgotten what it was, but it was tasty! Mom and I both ordered the filet with mac & cheese - it was delish! I ate every last bite.

I tried to take a picture of the cool light fixtures they have that look like birds flying, but it kept coming out blurry - again, didn't want to use a flash!

For dessert we also had the same thing, pistachio crème brulee. It had a bit of chocolate in the bottom of the dish - yum, yum, yum! Not surprisingly, I ate every bite.

Our waitress was kind enough to take a picture of Mom & I together after our meal, then we rolled out of the restaurant. Stuffed and very satisfied!

Up Next: OMG! That guy was naked!

 

[MeMom]

Past the firepit, down that hall, press the elevator button, and go up two floors. That's the route we took to our paradise last weekend.

I hope you will get to stay there sometime. You'll love it!

For dessert we also had the same thing, pistachio crème brulee. It had a bit of chocolate in the bottom of the dish - yum, yum, yum! Not surprisingly, I ate every bite.

Do they have this at Boma, I wonder? I know it is so good, and we have a Boma ADR for this summer.

So cool that you got to spend time alone with Mom. Even when our kids have kids, us moms like to have one-on-one time with our kids still.

 

[BippityBoo]

GREAT start to your vacation (aside from a few bumps in the road )

The pool looks amazing! I am sure it was nice on a hot day!

Jiko looks awesome!! Your food seemed very, very yummy I am just dying to find out if the guy was naked...oh my goodness

 

[KatMark]

Love the update! I love the pool at the CSR (sorry it was crowded though). You and your mom look so pretty at your dinner at Jiko. I love the pic of your mom in front of the giraffe on the wall. We've got breakfast ADR's at Boma, and I want to find that wall and have my pic there...I love giraffes.

 

[stace208]

First, I gotta say, you and your mom are so pretty! I just think it is so wonderful when adult children do things like this with their parents. I lost my dad when I was 9 and my mom when I was 29. Although I was very close to her, we never traveled together and I wish we had. I plan on making it a priority with my two!

Ewww to the grease in the chips. That's just nasty.
The pool does look crowded. Almost like ours at spring break week.

Jiko looks really nice! John caught a glimpse of your food porn and was like "where's that???"

Naked...guy....