"Honey, I want to see the Gin Blossoms. BTW it's at Epcot." Oct/Dec PTR -Update 11/30

[Nemo32]

I learned the hard way don't count on warm weather! I swear to you we watched the MVMCP in winter coats, gloves, hats and scarves and were STILL cold. But then hopped in the pool on another day! Bring all kinds of stuff.

 

[holleypie]

I learned the hard way don't count on warm weather! I swear to you we watched the MVMCP in winter coats, gloves, hats and scarves and were STILL cold. But then hopped in the pool on another day! Bring all kinds of stuff.

That's one big reason I'm glad we're driving down in December instead of flying. I HATE being cold, so I'm going to pack the trunk with...everything, just in case.

 

[holleypie]

FOOD AND WINE MENUS ARE UP! This is pretty much the highlight of my week. I made a list of foods I want to get, but it's not a very long list because on top of not eating meat, I am just so obnoxiously picky.

DEFINITELY WILL HAVE:
-Trick’n Chick’n Curry with Basmati Rice featuring Gardein Chick’n Breast (Terra)
-Chili Colorado with House Made Chips & Cashew Cheese, featuring Gardein Beefless Tips (Terra)
-Greek Salad with Pita Bread (Greece)
-Griddled Greek Cheese with Pistachios and Honey (Greece). I'm impressed with Greece's vegetarian selection! I can't believe I've never tried any of it before.
-Warm Chocolate Lava Cake with Bailey’s Ganache - THE MAIN EVENT. I LOVE this stuff.

-Eiffel Sour Cosmo Slush - I don't know if this is the same exact thing as my beloved Parisien Cosmo Slush I had two years ago, but I just love the word play.

MIGHT HAVE:
-Zapiekanki-Toasted Mushroom, Caramelized Onion and Cheese Bread with House Made Ketchup (Poland) - This sounds interesting. I don't like onions, but I might decide to try this anyway after I've seen what it looks like.
-Spinach and Paneer Cheese Pocket (South Africa) - This replaced last year's bunny chow, which I liked (aside from the dessert shell it came in...I mean "bread bowl"). Cooked spinach generally makes me dry heave, so I'll only get this if I'm feeling very hungry and adventurous as we walk by.
-Belgian Waffle with Berry Compote and Whipped Cream (Belgium) - I thought about trying this last year, but didn't, so maybe it will make the cut this year.
-Dark Chocolate Mousse with Chili and Salted Caramel (Desserts & Champagne)
-Chocolate Cake with Passion Fruit Sorbet and Coconut Foam (Terra)
-Neige Première Apple Ice Wine (Canada) - I don't even drink wine but the words, "apple ice wine" sound delicious.
-Bacardi® Torched Cherry Frozen Cherry Limeade (Caribbean Islands) - I love love love cherry limeade, but the alcohol prices are pretty outrageous, plus I'll be breastfeeding, so I have to be judicious with my drink selections.

In other news:
-Today we're exactly four months away from the December trip!
-Brian ordered our Halloween party tickets yesterday, so we are definitely going. I'm leaning towards Doctor Who costumes so I'll have an excuse to buy a new pair of boots, but that might change.
-I forgot to mention it, but we've actually had our Chrismas party tickets for awhile now.
-Tom booked his flight today for October. Well, I'm assuming he did, or soon will. There was some confusion about whether our flights still had seats left, but I think it got sorted out.

And now here's a gratuitous picture of my baby reading a book at the library:

 

[holleypie]

And today we're still exactly four months away from the December trip. Our tickers are wonky!

 

[Reddog1134]

Here's my list of things I would like to try at at the Food and Wine Festival. I doubt I will get to try all of them (especially since I have so many desserts on here) but I wish they had the prices so I could budget appropriately.

AUSTRALIA
Shrimp on the Barbie with Pepper Berry Citrus Glaze (Come on, it's "Shrimp on the Barbie". Why wouldn't I get that?)

BELGIUM
Belgian Waffle with Berry Compote and Whipped Cream

CANADA
"Le Cellier" Wild Mushroom Beef Filet Mignon with Truffle Butter Sauce (I was debating on whether or not I should get this at our lunch reservation. This will allow my to sample it before making my decision.)

CARIBBEAN
Jerk Spiced Chicken Drumstick with Mango Chutney
Bacardi® Torched Cherry Frozen Cherry Limeade

CHINA
Mongolian Beef with Chinese Steamed Bun

DESSERTS & CHAMPAGNE
Yogurt Panna Cotta with Orange Cake, Raspberries and Pomegranate
Lemon Custard Verrine with Blueberry Compote
Dark Chocolate Mousse with Chili and Salted Caramel
Nesquick Frozen Chocolate Foam
Nesquick Frozen Strawberry Foam
(Lots of delicious sounding desserts here. Nesquick Frozen Foam? Yes, please?)

FRANCE
Créme Brûlée au Chocolat au Lait (I tried Creme Brulee for the first time at Epcot. I love the crunchy texture of the top in contrast with the smoothness of the cream.)

GERMANY
Roast Bratwurst in a Pretzel Roll
Apple Strudel with Karamel-Vanilla Sauce

ITALY
Ravioli di Formaggio All'emiliana
Salsiccia e "Papacelli" Napoletani

JAPAN
Sukiyaki Beef Pan

MOROCCO
Kefta Pocket

SOUTH AFRICA
Seared Filet of Beef with Smashed Sweet Potatoes and Braai Sauce

 

[holleypie]

Here's my list of things I would like to try at at the Food and Wine Festival. I doubt I will get to try all of them (especially since I have so many desserts on here) but I wish they had the prices so I could budget appropriately.

Oooh...I see a couple of things on your list that are also on my "maybe" list. So YOU can get them, and let me have a bite.

 

[Reddog1134]

Whenever we go on vacation there are a few things that Holly and I like to do. They just started out as things to do but became vacation traditions. Some of them became traditions because one of us said "Did you notice that we always (insert activity here) on vacation? We might as well keep doing it."

We'll probably skip the traditions in October since it's a short trip and we won't have a car.

And it's no surprise that a lot of them involve eating.

MINI GOLF

I've always loved playing mini golf. When I was a kid vacationing in Ocean City, I always wanted to play. I think this was our first tradition. I don't think either of us knew Disney had mini golf until just before our 3rd trip together.

Also, as sort of a tradition, I sometimes get a souvenir ball.



SONIC

For several years, the Sonic commercials would taunt me. They constantly played the commercials at home in Baltimore but the closest location was over an hour away in PA. All those delicious looking drinks out of my reach. My cousin and I talked about taking a road trip but we never got around to it.

On our first trip to Florida together, we sought out a Sonic. The one we found wasn't a traditional drive-in location. It was a small counter service location inside a Wal-mart. We didn't get the full experience but at least we got some of those drinks.

This year, we decided to retire this tradition. They eventually opened a Sonic in Maryland. Of course, it was probably further away than the PA location but at least we had them in our state. A while later they opened one about 25 minutes away. We went there during opening week and it was crazy. Finally they opened a location 10 minutes from our house.


CICI'S

Holly LOVES pizza. Like Sonic, there wasn't a location near our house. There was one about 40 minutes away and you had to pay a toll. We usually only went there during family functions with Holly's parents. So, we would eat at Cici's while on vacation. I even scouted out a location in San Antonio while Holly ran a marathon.

This tradition is probably retired, too. They opened a location near us (Sonic and Cici's are now about a block away from each other) so we can go there whenever we want.


HOOTERS

I think this tradition started because there was a string of vacations where this just happened to be the most convenient place to eat. The food is pretty decent and I love the wings. I think there was another reason why I liked going there but I can't recall what it is right now.

Ironically, there is a Hooters practically down the street from us. However, on our first (and last) visit there they were holding some kind of trivia game/contest. I think they had more women running the trivia then waiting tables. Our waitress seemed to have a lot of tables and our service suffered as a result. Holly hasn't consented to go back since.


CHRISTMAS ORNAMENT

Holly likes to buy a Christmas ornament on vacation. She likes to find something representative of where we are (which lately is just Disney). We also buy each other ornaments for Christmas and our collection is expanding rapidly.

 

[holleypie]

As you may have heard, yesterday they announced the official opening date for the Fantasyland Expansion...

and it's my birthday.

At first I thought, "My birthday! That's cool!"

Then I remembered, "We're going to the Christmas party for my birthday, so we'll actually BE THERE that day. Cool!"

Then I realized, "No, wait. This is going to be a nightmare."

I saw some speculation that FLE might not stay open for the Christmas party that night, but I don't understand why it wouldn't? I'm imagining a sold out party and hordes of people, when I'd been expecting low crowds. Argh.

We're also scheduled to go to Magic Kingdom again that Saturday for Luke's birthday, and I'm guessing that day will now be much busier than it would have been. Argh argh argh.

Hopefully it won't be as bad as I'm imagining. I'm definitely excited that we'll be there to see all the new stuff!

(In other news, my big boy is eight months old today. EIGHT MONTHS OLD.)

 

[SAT887]

So excited about FLE opening even though its near the end of our vacation.... The Bonus to being a DVC traveler... There is always next time! Which generally is no more than a year away That's how I see it at least... Now I'm planning 2 trips by winter 2013 hehe...

And about your son being 8 months old- my daughter is 13 months and the other is almost 3- they grow waaaay too quick!!!

 

[Imagineer5]

How have I not seen your PTR until NOW?!?!?! We have so many similar plans it's crazy!!! We are also going in Oct/Dec (will be there same time as you December!) and have a new baby to bring along, though she is 2 months younger than your son!

I will definitely be following along, though I guess I won't get to learn much from your trip before ours hahaha since we leave October 4th!

I can however ask how the next 2 months should go for us! We have just started solids pretty recently, so she's currently just eating oatmeal in the morning, and some sort of fruit or veg at night (trying to introduce new things) along with 5 nursing sessions during the day (or bottles at daycare). I see you are also nursing! IDK how different that will be in 2 months? She JUST (over the last week) dropped her 6th nursing session and 4th nap/day (down to 5 and 3).

Ok I'm going to stop now as I could go on forever and ask a million questions hehehe. Subbing!

 

[holleypie]

The Bonus to being a DVC traveler... There is always next time!

Yep! We've basically got our trips planned out through 2017....

my daughter is 13 months and the other is almost 3- they grow waaaay too quick!!!

Yes, WAY too quickly. I was just updating my blog this morning because I realized I hadn't written about any of his milestones over the past two months and he's done SO much. Eating and crawling and getting teeth...slow down, baby!

 

[holleypie]

How have I not seen your PTR until NOW?!?!?! We have so many similar plans it's crazy!!! We are also going in Oct/Dec (will be there same time as you December!) and have a new baby to bring along, though she is 2 months younger than your son!

I will definitely be following along, though I guess I won't get to learn much from your trip before ours hahaha since we leave October 4th!

I can however ask how the next 2 months should go for us! We have just started solids pretty recently, so she's currently just eating oatmeal in the morning, and some sort of fruit or veg at night (trying to introduce new things) along with 5 nursing sessions during the day (or bottles at daycare). I see you are also nursing! IDK how different that will be in 2 months? She JUST (over the last week) dropped her 6th nursing session and 4th nap/day (down to 5 and 3).

Ok I'm going to stop now as I could go on forever and ask a million questions hehehe. Subbing!

I can't remember if I commented, but I DO remember reading some of your trip report before. I remember the cat dressed up in the baby's clothes! Hahaha. I'm sure I subscribed but I never remember to check my subscriptions. I'll have to go catch up now.

Luke had been nursing about five times a day (~every three hours when he's awake). Then about two weeks ago, he started waking up two or three times a night. He's not awake for long, just eats and/or cuddles and then falls back asleep. But all the sleep interruption has been exhausting! So since then he's been nursing about 7 or 8 times a day, but not as long--maybe 5-10 minutes. I heard that they wake up during the night when they're learning new skills. So, uh, hopefully he'll be over that soon. He usually takes two naps, 2+ hours in the morning, and then another hour in the afternoon. Sometimes he'll also sneak in a third shorter nap in the early evening. He stays up pretty late, until around 9:30 or 10, and we get up for the day around 7:30 or 8.

He LOVES to eat. Usually I give him some frozen fruit in his mesh feeder in the mornings, and then he'll have a vegetable for dinner, and maybe a fruit or vegetable for lunch. We don't really have a strict routine. I can't wait until we can just feed him a little of whatever we're having for dinner. I think some babies his age are already doing that, but I'm just so paranoid he's going to choke. I'm probably going to puree his food until he's ten years old.

Definitely ask any questions you want. He is obviously my new favorite thing to talk about.

 

[Imagineer5]

I can't remember if I commented, but I DO remember reading some of your trip report before. I remember the cat dressed up in the baby's clothes! Hahaha. I'm sure I subscribed but I never remember to check my subscriptions. I'll have to go catch up now.

Luke had been nursing about five times a day (~every three hours when he's awake). Then about two weeks ago, he started waking up two or three times a night. He's not awake for long, just eats and/or cuddles and then falls back asleep. But all the sleep interruption has been exhausting! So since then he's been nursing about 7 or 8 times a day, but not as long--maybe 5-10 minutes. I heard that they wake up during the night when they're learning new skills. So, uh, hopefully he'll be over that soon. He usually takes two naps, 2+ hours in the morning, and then another hour in the afternoon. Sometimes he'll also sneak in a third shorter nap in the early evening. He stays up pretty late, until around 9:30 or 10, and we get up for the day around 7:30 or 8.

He LOVES to eat. Usually I give him some frozen fruit in his mesh feeder in the mornings, and then he'll have a vegetable for dinner, and maybe a fruit or vegetable for lunch. We don't really have a strict routine. I can't wait until we can just feed him a little of whatever we're having for dinner. I think some babies his age are already doing that, but I'm just so paranoid he's going to choke. I'm probably going to puree his food until he's ten years old.

Definitely ask any questions you want. He is obviously my new favorite thing to talk about.

You very well may have commented. my memory sucks! LOL

EEK not excited to hear about this sleep regression! How long had he been sleeping through the night before waking a couple times??

So you aren't too concerned about getting a certain amount of iron-fortified cereal in him? My pedi has told me that's the main thing Aria needs, but I feel like it's a little bit of hogwash. She LOVES the mesh feeders too, we tried watermelon the other day and she loved it! I need to remember to pack them because it will be a good way to let her snack on something through our lunches.

He stays up late! That's nice! Aria is kind of a bear in the evenings, though adding in a feeding of fruit/veg seems to be helping with that (as long as she likes it - I did apples last night for the first time and she loved it!).

It would be nice to be able to just feed her a bit of what we are having. I'm hoping she can eat puffs or something like that by Disney time, so she can snack on that to give her something to do. I've given her Baby Mum-Mums and she seems to enjoy them. Other than those, I've been making her purees which has been surprisingly easy!

Have you tried just putting him back to bed after waking? Aria woke once a week or so ago, in the middle of the night, and we just brought her into bed with us, she let out a huge fart LOL and went back to sleep.

What skill do you think he's working on? Aria has mastered sitting, and has been sitting on her own at daycare but I haven't seen it yet and she is just itching to be mobile!

 

[holleypie]

How long had he been sleeping through the night before waking a couple times??

He started sleeping through the night at seven weeks so I thought we'd gotten off easy.

So you aren't too concerned about getting a certain amount of iron-fortified cereal in him? My pedi has told me that's the main thing Aria needs, but I feel like it's a little bit of hogwash.

Eh, I'm not really concerned about that (although my mother still thinks it's sacrilegious that I didn't start him on rice cereal at four months). I'd always heard that food before one year is just for practice anyway, so I'm sure they're still getting all the nutrients they NEED from breast milk or formula.

Have you tried just putting him back to bed after waking? Aria woke once a week or so ago, in the middle of the night, and we just brought her into bed with us, she let out a huge fart LOL and went back to sleep.

Haha! He stops crying after I pick him up, and I've tried just rocking him back to sleep, but then he cries again when I try to put him back in the crib. He'll usually lie nicely if I bring him into bed with me, but then while I'm waiting for him to fall back asleep, I fall asleep. Then I wake up an hour later and put him back in his crib. Then he wakes up again an hour later. Et cetera.

What skill do you think he's working on? Aria has mastered sitting, and has been sitting on her own at daycare but I haven't seen it yet and she is just itching to be mobile!

I really don't know! I'm not even sure what comes next. He's crawling pretty good now and we still haven't baby proofed the house.

 

[DisneyMomma81]

I'm new here, love your pre trips report! I love the Dr. Who ideas for MNSSHP! Luke sure is handsome!

 

[Reddog1134]

Holly decided we should watch a Disney film every week until our trip(s). I have been buying all the Disney animated films on Blu-ray when they come out. (I'm missing a few, though).

When I asked her which night of the week would should watch them she said "Sunday, because it gives us something fun to look forward to at the end of the weekend."

Yesterday was our first viewing and I would not describe it as a "fun time". Don't get me wrong, I thought it was a good movie. Unfortunately, a relatively "new mother" does not find Dumbo to be a "fun filled romp".

As she described it on Facebook "Dumbo is the worst movie ever. I cried for 63 minutes."

Then, after the movie was over, we watched the deleted scenes. If you have never seen them, the first one was done with sketches and a (I assume) a voice impersonator. It involved Timothy telling Dumbo about giant prehistoric mice teasing and torturing elephants (mammoths). It was somewhat sadistic.

After such "light-hearted fare", we decided to watch one of the included shorts. Elmer the Elephant. It's about an elephant that everyone makes fun of. Needless to say, we didn't finish watching that one.

This Sunday is my turn to pick the movie. I'm guessing Bambi is out of the question.

 

[holleypie]

I'm new here, love your pre trips report! I love the Dr. Who ideas for MNSSHP! Luke sure is handsome!

Thanks so much!

I'm pretty excited about the Doctor Who costumes. I'm wondering if I can get Brian to memorize The Doctor's monologue from Pandorica Opens and deliver it at some point during the night.

 

[Imagineer5]

LOL on the movie night!! I haven't seen Dumbo in YEARS. But I think a disney movie night sounds like fun! We've watched a few with Aria but I think a dedicated movie night will be fun.

He started sleeping through the night at seven weeks so I thought we'd gotten off easy.



Eh, I'm not really concerned about that (although my mother still thinks it's sacrilegious that I didn't start him on rice cereal at four months). I'd always heard that food before one year is just for practice anyway, so I'm sure they're still getting all the nutrients they NEED from breast milk or formula.



Haha! He stops crying after I pick him up, and I've tried just rocking him back to sleep, but then he cries again when I try to put him back in the crib. He'll usually lie nicely if I bring him into bed with me, but then while I'm waiting for him to fall back asleep, I fall asleep. Then I wake up an hour later and put him back in his crib. Then he wakes up again an hour later. Et cetera.



I really don't know! I'm not even sure what comes next. He's crawling pretty good now and we still haven't baby proofed the house.

Haha! Yes Aria started STTN at 8 weeks too! Eek! Not looking forward to middle of the night wakings! I'm sorry you are delaing with it. We haven't "baby proofed" either, and she is definitely mobile and crawling now (as of Monday or so haha). We'll need gates up I guess, and cabinet latches. We DID however lower her crib and pack n play...guess that's something! Aria's first food was avocado! Though we do usually give her oatmeal for breakfast each day.

 

[holleypie]

Two month update!


1. Tom has (definitely) booked his flight for October. He's on the same flight as us, so I'm glad that worked out.

2. My family booked their flight for December. My parents, my aunt, my four sisters, and my youngest brother are all coming. And because it ended up being cheaper, they're actually flying in Wednesday evening instead of Thursday morning. This probably won't change our plans at all, because the most they're going to do Wednesday night is grab a pizza, so we might not even see them. They're leaving Sunday afternoon and plan to spend that morning at Downtown Disney.

3. Brian recently reminded me that, since there will be three grownups in our party when we do child swap for the big rides, someone gets to go twice. He graciously said that he will let me ride twice whenever I want, since I had to sit out all the big rides on our last trip. So I spent some time thinking about it, and here are the rides I want to do twice:

-Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
-Space Mountain
-Expedition Everest
-Tower of Terror
-Star Tours (This is one of Brian's favorites so I would normally give it to him, but he and Tom rode it a few times on our last trip and saw almost all of the different scenarios)

And here are the ones that he or Tom can do twice:

-Splash Mountain
-Kali River Rapids
-Rock 'n' Roller Coaster
-Soarin'
-Mission Space

Test Track is allegedly opening December 1, but I'm not counting on it. Also, this list seems short so I wonder if there are some I'm forgetting.

4. I lost another four pounds this month! If it's true that losing slowly is the best way to keep it off for good...then I'm doing a fantastic job.

5. I've FOR SURE decided on Halloween costumes.

Brian's going to be the eleventh doctor from Doctor Who. He already found a good deal on the sonic screwdriver, so now he needs a tweed jacket, some suspenders, and a bow tie (we can pick up the optional fez in Morocco).

I'm going to be the Doctor's companion, Amy Pond. My 13-year-old sister gave me an old pair of boots that she outgrew (yeah, I get hand-me-downs from my teen sister) that might work. Other than that I'll need a brown jacket, purple shirt, red scarf, red fingerless gloves, and a necklace with an "A" pendant. I actually saw some yarn on clearance at Michael's the other day that would have been good for Amy's scarf, but I didn't get it because (1) I didn't know how much to buy, and (2) I don't actually know how to knit, and I probably will not learn anytime in the next two months.

Luke's costume is the trickiest. I don't want to ruin the plot in case you haven't seen Season 5, but at one point Amy's fiance Rory Williams spends a good bit of time dressed as a Roman Centurion. I've found an adult costume and even a kid's costume online, but nothing Luke's size.

As for Uncle Tom, his costume is both simplistic and a stroke of genius. I wanted Tom to coordinate, but I didn't want to make him dress up in an elaborate costume. I'm just assuming there's a limit to how much he will humor me. One day I randomly remembered a Doctor Who t-shirt I had once almost bought for myself that would be PERFECT for Tom's costume. Long story short, during Season 5 there's a crack in the universe and it causes a whole bunch of trouble. It complements our costumes perfectly. And it's only a t-shirt!

I also couldn't resist getting this t-shirt for myself:

 

[holleypie]

LOL on the movie night!! I haven't seen Dumbo in YEARS. But I think a disney movie night sounds like fun! We've watched a few with Aria but I think a dedicated movie night will be fun.

Haha! Yes Aria started STTN at 8 weeks too! Eek! Not looking forward to middle of the night wakings! I'm sorry you are delaing with it. We haven't "baby proofed" either, and she is definitely mobile and crawling now (as of Monday or so haha). We'll need gates up I guess, and cabinet latches. We DID however lower her crib and pack n play...guess that's something! Aria's first food was avocado! Though we do usually give her oatmeal for breakfast each day.

We watched Treasure Planet for movie night this week, and I really enjoyed it. I'd actually never even heard of it before. My Disney knowledge is apparently more deficient than I realized.

I'm probably going to jinx myself, but Luke has been sleeping so much better the last few days. We've started doing a bedtime routine which we never bothered with before because he was so easygoing, and now he still wakes up once around 3am but instead of picking him up I just lie him back down and hold his hand until he falls asleep which takes about five minutes. Much better than what we were doing before!