Is Mickey a Captain or a Jedi? Both! - May '15 Land & Sea ~ Updated 6/14: Trip Report Started!

[Majordis]

Hello -your plans sound so exciting. I wanted to pop in and say that we stayed in 8100 on the Dream in February 2012. It was a great location and we were very happy with the room. You will love the Dream. There were 4 of us (2A2C) and we had tons of room to unpack and didn't feel cramped at all. We didn't participate in the FE, but saw lots of pretty FE's hanging in the hallways. I have seen threads on favorite FE's received, maybe you could get some ideas there - but I like the little notebook

 

[Tracy161]

Hey there! You're certainly a familiar face on many of the TRs I follow so I had to join up, too! Especially since our trip dates overlap!!! All your plans sound great so far! Excited to follow along!

 

[Dugette]

Ahh I love your plans. They sound very similar to what I have in store for Epcot. I can't wait to just soak in the atmosphere. I too am excited to see the amazing flowers and topiaries at Epcot. I think the Kidcot stations would be fun to do with Izzie plus bonus souvenirs. The cronut is so yummy warm, you have to give it a second chance. I am intrigued by the a la mode option didn't know that existed. BTW we will be at HS on the 15th so our days may overlap, maybe we'll run into one another.

I'm pretty sure I could just wander around Epcot every day for like a month (or more) and be happy. Especially during Flower & Garden! Izzy's been really into coloring lately, so I think the Kidcot stations would be a win with her. If Dug is busy with Star Wars shows, I can see bringing Izzy over to World Showcase and she can color while I drink things. Oh, and eat a Cronut, of course. I heard about the a la mode option from the DIS (other TRs) and it sounds like people love it! Sweet, I'm sure we'll be around there on the 15th. Once our plans firm up, we'll have to see how they compare. (I think you have a PTR - I should go over and look, but I'm having trouble keeping up with my own stuff right now, so it may be a bit...)

Oh, I'd love to go to F&G sometime. And yes, the food booths only make it that much more appealing!

It got like 1000% more appealing to me when I found out about that. I like flowers and such okay, but we are big fans of Food & Wine.

I love this idea!!! Even though a Disney trip is all about family and having fun together, there is nothing quite like having a few hours to myself to just go to a park and do whatever I feel like doing, whenever I feel like doing it!!!!!

I am super excited for this! On our last family trip (Dec. 2013), we had planned for a late solo night at the MK for each of us. Dug had his first and had a great time. And then we both got our days mixed up and I ended up missing mine! So sad and still clearly trying to make up for it! Though I've realized that this might be tricky, what with the late-night things at DHS (fireworks and Fantasmic). Hoping we can at least have some late-night Epcot. The MK is also open late a couple nights, so that will be awesome too!

Looks like you've got it well thought out.

Eh, sorta.

I got excited with the details coming out as well!

And now they have all the info out and there is SO MUCH I want to try! Man, 8 days is not enough.

Also fun and something else I am looking forward to.

Can't wait to see all the fun topiaries!

I've read that that Butterfly Garden is a confirmed coming back.

That is great! Izzy seems to like butterflies. (mandatory I use that smilie, of course)

I think your Epcot plans sound great!

I'd love to see all the F&G topiaries one day - there's usually a few left by late May, but seeing the whole lot would be great! Also, I'd love to eat at the booths!

I hear that both things are great, so really looking forward to it. I hope you get to experience it someday as well!

You should definitely make up for missing Test Track and Spaceship Earth! I'm sure Izzy will be thrilled to see all of her favorite characters again (and I'm glad you're keeping Akershus! I really think you'll love it!).

Yep, must do Test Track. And would really like to do SE, but I'd live if we missed it for something better. I think Izzy is going to get a kick out of the princesses. We were just playing with all of her (Barbie-style) Disney princesses tonight and she knows all their names and was having them carry on conversations with each other. Also...they can fly.

Karamell Kuche is at the top of my "must-do" list as well - every time I walk by that shop I'm always too full! This time, I'm going to make sure I get a treat!

The nice thing is that you can get a lot of things to go, as long as they don't melt. If I'm too full, I will try to grab my favorite (a dark chocolate sea salt caramel) to go and bring it back to the Boardwalk for later. Mmmmm.....

 

[Dugette]

Your Epcot plans sound great! Being able to walk or boat there will be awesome!

I can't wait to be so close to two parks! We stayed at the Beach Club Villas during Food & Wine in 2010 and it was so nice to just stroll over to World Showcase and back. Boardwalk has never appealed a lot to me as far as the resort itself, but the location can't be beat for those two parks!

I have you to blame (or thank?) I think for my recent interest in a DCL cruise... I don't think it's because you are doing it but it's been in my head and I know Imagineer just did one, right? Well DH and I looked into it today and I think it's in the works. October 2015 or February 2016. Neither one of us has been on a cruise though so just doing a 3 day to get our feet wet and make sure we don't hate it. I don't think that's going to be a problem though. I definitely cannot wait to hear about your trip now for sure! It's funny when I first read your PTR when you started it (not that long ago) I was like yeah, SOMEDAY a DCL would be nice. Didn't know someday was coming so soon, lol.

Yes, Imagineer5 just did one too. And it seems like a lot of other DISers with toddlers have recently too. It was always on our "someday" list too, but somehow "someday" comes sooner than you think with Disney stuff. I'm sure you'll love it. When we did our Royal Caribbean cruise in 2008, Dug was not sold on cruising and didn't think he'd really enjoy it - he went for the excursions, really. But he ended up loving everything and is totally okay with just staying on the boat for this cruise (and Castaway Cay). There's so much to do and I love that you go places and do things and your room comes with you!

I am very excited about the Flower and Garden. Especially now with the outdoor kitchens!!!! Epcot is very beautiful during this time!!!

I want to be there RIGHT NOW!

Google fish extenders, pinterest, even disboards has tons of not crafty ideas. Like earbuds for teenagers, arcade game gift cards on the cruise ship, eos with a Mickey head sticker on it for teenagers. Target dollar finds, party city goodie bag items for little ones, Adults can get cups, bags, etc. Look at etsy as well to get ideas! Hope this helps! I have a whole list of ideas (been collecting them for a year for our trip in December! ). Message me if you need help! Be glad to help! My group is very active!

Thank you! I've gotten a few things now and have more ideas in mind. I also went through a thread on "best FE gifts received" and picked up some ideas there too. The hard part is that my group is not finalized, so there's a chance that numbers could change and I don't want to end up with wrong quantities of things, so I'm trying to hold off on more until I know what I'm working with.

Sounds like you have some great Epcot plans! I'm totally excited for your trip. I'm glad you are hanging on to Akershush - we have done it every trip, and will be doing so again this summer. Garden Grille with Farmer Mickey, Pluto, and Chip and Dale we did for the first time on our last trip to WDW in 2013. It turned out to be one of the best character meal experiences we have ever had (and, as you might know, we have done pretty much all of them ) - we will definitely be doing it again this year. I hope you manage to be able to fit it in. The food is actually very good, and at least when we were there (despite it being the very height of summer), the character interactions were WONDERFUL! So excited to see how much Izzy enjoys all these great character meets!!!!

I think Izzy will get a kick out of the princesses as Akershus. And I've always wanted to try it. Dug is okay with going along or letting us go, depending on the Star Wars celebs that will be there that day. Still waiting on that info. We've actually done Garden Grill twice - once pre-Izzy and then in June with Lauren and Aria (no Dug). Both were great, but it wasn't spinning in June and I'd love to enjoy the rotation again, since I remember how cool that was way back when. But we are intrigued by the Garden Grove option that another poster recommended too. Decisions, decisions. But I agree - the characters at Garden Grill were great both times - and came around multiple times too.

 

[Dugette]

So I'm still here! I've been reading along and totally forgetting to come back and comment. I'll have an update on my ptr sometime today or tommorrow as to why.

So, your plans for EPCOT look good! How exciting to go to a new event!
I highly recommend Garden Grill! It was one of our standout meals last time and I can not say enough good things about it! In fact I have been thinking about adding it to our line up as well...so much for not having many ADRs! Lol!

I want ALL.THE.ADRs! Ha, yeah, Garden Grill has been a good one for us and I have a strong urge to do it again. But still debating if it's our best option. The timing isn't great and it's not cheap. But Izzy does LOVE Chip and Dale. At least she did in August and in Hawaii in November.

For your fish extender gifts...I think target stuff would be fun! I had a friend that worked at target HQ about 8 years ago and she would give us target stuff from time to time and I loved it! I think the water bottles would be a good teen/tween item. They are kind of hard to shop for. You could put a pen and some gum/candy and get a tough age group out of the way. And then you won't have too many of those to carry! But they are too good of a deal not to get a least a few!
I love the high five highlighters! But I am a sucker for office supplies!

Thanks for all your suggestions! I loved the thought of getting the water bottles for the teens/tweens - like you said, they are hard to buy for and I had nothing in mind. I counted up all the kids in that age range and it was 6, so I got 8. Since our group's numbers are not final, I wanted some wiggle room. And thought the extra ones might be nice for us, if it ends up being just 6. And they were so cheap, so why not stock up?

I really like those highlighters too, but I decided to skip them for now. They're not super cheap when you multiply by all the cabins. And they could come loose and make a mess, potentially. But they are so cute and could be useful with the Navigators, so I'm keeping them in mind anyway.

Are the luggage tags plain red on the outside? Because if they are you could get some paint and put a Mickey head on each one. It would be very simple you could print out a simple three circle Mickey head trace around it and fill in with black paint. Even though it will be too late to use it for this trip, most likly anyone participating in FE will be going on anther Disney trip at some point.

Just some thoughts!

Love you crafty people! Great idea and also keeping it in mind.

I love the ideas!!! Water tumblers would be perfect for everyone on the cruise!!! Highlighters for the navigators, notebook for writing memories, and if you had Target reusable bag that can be how you package it!

Thank you! I ended up getting the notebooks (for each cabin) and the tumblers (for the teens). Highlighters are still in mind, if I want to add more. The reusable bags are a good idea - might do that, depending on what all I end up with.

I like this notebook thing a lot - plus having the post-it notes makes it really useful

Thanks, I ended up clearing them out! (Seriously, she had to go in the back and get more for me). I really like them. They are handy and cute AND cover a couple "Minnesotan" things.

The wate rbottles are nice, but I would thinking carrying 15 of them would be a bit much

I ended up just getting 8 and will bring 6-8, depending on how many teens and what fits. They are pretty bulky. But a bargain!

not sure about the luggage tag - probably wouldn't need them for that trip but could be something useful for future trips and a reminder of this trip - so kinda torn on that one

Yeah, not my top choice, but a good backup idea.

They have play areas for kids during F&G? Awesome!

Yes, there are playgrounds! They really should keep them up year-round.

Good call on possibly walking over to TT during EMH. I'd do it!

I can't wait!

You WILL fit a hot cronut into your schedule. Perhaps on your way to TT???

Haha, if you say so!

I know Italy sells single candies for, I thought 15 cents? Maybe a few cents more? But then again, I don't know how many families are participating but that could be an option.

That is a good idea! I want to keep in mind small things that I can pick up in the parks. I like having a Disney World touch in the gifts. The other idea I had is the Mickey straws - they are 59 cents each at Columbia Harbor House. I was thinking of picking those up for all the kids.

Speaking of FE, love the pad and the water tumbler! I know they would be harder to pack, but if you got smaller items (like candy!) you could stuff it into the tumbler as well?

Sounds like a plan! I got the pad for all and tumblers for the teens/tweens. Probably will fill with candy too.

I love your plans for Epcot. Flowers, food , & playgrounds for Izzy = fun for all.

I think it will be a great time and just hope we'll have enough time to do what we want to do.

I love the small Mickey &Minnie planners. I buy one each year for myself and it makes me happy when I look at it.

Oh, I love hearing that! (since I have 20 of them in my closet...) Hope they enjoy them! I was thinking of putting one of the post-its from the notebook into the planners to mark the week of our cruise for them.

The note pad and sticky notes would work for FE. I like the water tumbler but I can see that being harder to pack.

Yes, I ended up with a big stack of notepads and a bag full of water tumblers on my trip to the Bullseye Boutique (really, that's what it's called).

this won't be a helpful reply, but I LOVE all of the Target logo items. The post it notebook and Hi five highlighters are my favorites.

That is totally helpful to me! I'm glad that people would enjoy them. I got the notebooks and skipped the highlighters, though I really loved them too. Maybe I will get a set for us to use...

Loved the Boardwalk on our stay this month, walked to Beaches and Cream for dinner, no sundae for me this trip though....

Great to hear! Aw, no sundae?! So nice to be able to walk over to B&C, though.

 

[Dugette]

Love you Epcot plans! And how great will it be to be able to pop over for EMH or Illuminations!!

I am so excited to be walking distance from two parks (and monorail from a third). We will probably not need to ride many Disney buses this time.

I think you should do Akerhus for sure - Izzy will love it! I would love to try it too - maybe I'll just overrule all the males and book a princess ADR anyway next trip!

Why not? Good food, pretty ladies, what's not to like for the guys?

Our next trip will be May 2016 ( so far away) so I'm excited to hear about F&G - the topiaries!! And the kids play areas look like so much fun!

Make sure you get there by mid-May, if this year is any indication. Our first weekend is the last weekend for F&G, so we're just barely catching it. Wish we had more time! I hope your trip is here before you know it!

Maybe while you are in Japan you can find something small (cheap!) in the big department store for FE gifts? Or you can grab some packs of Disney pencils to put in the water bottles? That's what we got to bring back to Nate's class during our trip.

That's a good idea too - World Showcase has lots of potential gifts in the shops. Where did you get the pencils? The other thing I was thinking of is Fun Finds in Downtown Disney, as it's kind-of the dollar store of Disney and might have some good stuff for cheap.

Hi there! I just joined in your TR so now I'm hopping here too.

and glad you are here too! Sorry I've been so slow on updates and replies lately, by the way.

Have you checked Pinterest? There are all kinds of inexpensive but cute Fish Extender ideas on there, even if you aren't very crafty. Just type in Disney Fish Extender. Here a a few of my favorites:

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/51509989461418606/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/59039445088266840/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/292804413243423235/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/173599760605898080/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/245868460879258330/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/235735361721218355/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/22869910581571908/

Great ideas! I really like the one for the ice cream sundae kit and I think I might do that for the little kids. But I want to find Mickey sprinkles to put in it!

Also, do you have a Dollar Tree near you? Everything there is only $1 & they normally even have some Disney themed stuff.

I've been keeping that in mind too, but haven't gotten to one yet.

What about a cheap photo album? You could print the Disney Cruise Line logo on sticker paper & adhere it to the front.

Not a bad idea, either. Will keep that in mind too. But these ideas are making me realize that I am really crafting-lazy. (Because that still sounds like a lot of work to me ).

This, this and this!

I think they'd be a great idea. It's something that is useful for everyone, and kids would probably have fun with them too.

I liked the water bottle idea too, but those would definitely be a pain to pack and haul to the ship with you.

Thanks, I did end up getting notebooks for all the cabins. And water bottles for just the teens/tweens, so a bit less to haul with us.

Love the highlighter for the navigator and the little notebooks

Thanks, I love the highlighter, but skipped it in favor of the notebooks. But if I see it go on clearance, I'm getting a bunch...

Hello -your plans sound so exciting. I wanted to pop in and say that we stayed in 8100 on the Dream in February 2012. It was a great location and we were very happy with the room. You will love the Dream. There were 4 of us (2A2C) and we had tons of room to unpack and didn't feel cramped at all.

How awesome that you stayed in the exact same cabin!!! So glad to hear that you were happy with it. A couple questions, if you don't mind:
1.) Beds - is it the main one (queen?), the top bunk, and the couch? Or is there a murphy bed too? Hard to find clear info on that. I think we will probably use the couch with bed rails for Izzy, but wanted to verify what my options are. Is there room to set up a Pack 'n' Play without being in the way? We were thinking that would probably be tight, hence the couch idea.
2.) What views did you have (at ports)? Can you see anything of interest or fireworks from the balcony?
3.) Any best routes to get around from the room? Which elevators did you use (if any)?

We didn't participate in the FE, but saw lots of pretty FE's hanging in the hallways. I have seen threads on favorite FE's received, maybe you could get some ideas there - but I like the little notebook

I actually read a big thread on favorite FEs, so that helped a bunch! And I ended up getting a stack of the notebooks! Thanks!

Hey there! You're certainly a familiar face on many of the TRs I follow so I had to join up, too! Especially since our trip dates overlap!!! All your plans sound great so far! Excited to follow along!

I see you on a lot of them that I follow too! When are you going to be there? Maybe we'll cross paths.

 

[Tracy161]

I see you on a lot of them that I follow too! When are you going to be there? Maybe we'll cross paths.

I'll be there May 17-24

 

[Majordis]

.

 

[Majordis]

8100 does not have the Murphy Bed but it does have the ceiling bunk, queen bed and fold down couch. In Nassau the view was a NCL ship lol but we relaxed on the balcony watching everyone return to the ship. Castaway view is also the dock but it was still fun to watch them unload everything. I think you can fit pack and play. Midship elevators were closest but they are crazy busy. We used the stairs or Aft. Watch fireworks on Deck 12 for best view.

 

[Dugette]

Hi, all - headed to bed and hope to do a real post sometime soon (late night of work tonight, then staying up to check in!), but this is what I just posted on my cruise meet thread. Thought I'd share with you too:

Well, got the online check-in done tonight (first time DCL cruisers). Got an early PAT (10:45am), so that was good. Got super annoyed, though - I had a Palo brunch in my cart (only 1 time left to pick), then added some nursery time to my cart before checking out and the brunch disappeared! And there are no more. Apparently others can take things out of your cart?! I know that we can likely get the brunch reserved after getting on the boat, but I was really hoping to have this all set in advance and have one less thing to deal with once we board. I did grab a Palo dinner, just in case we are totally out of luck on brunch. Hope you all got what you wanted and can't wait to cruise with everyone!

 

[Nermel9]

Hi I'm here! I have to go back and get caught up, just wanted to be sure to sub!

 

[Dugette]

8100 does not have the Murphy Bed but it does have the ceiling bunk, queen bed and fold down couch. In Nassau the view was a NCL ship lol but we relaxed on the balcony watching everyone return to the ship. Castaway view is also the dock but it was still fun to watch them unload everything. I think you can fit pack and play. Midship elevators were closest but they are crazy busy. We used the stairs or Aft. Watch fireworks on Deck 12 for best view.

Thanks so much for all the info! How handy to have someone who's stayed in the exact same cabin! Sounds like we picked a good one!

Hi I'm here! I have to go back and get caught up, just wanted to be sure to sub!

Hi, Jen, glad you're here! I can't believe we are just missing each other! We're both getting in on Flower & Garden (with a side of Food & Wine), though, so that's awesome!

 

[Dugette]

Thought Hodgepodge

Okay, so this is going to be quite the hodgepodge of thoughts about our trip and the things I’ve mentioned so far. And some pictures, some of which are relevant. Just need to get this list of stuff out of my head and recorded. So, here goes!

First off, I saw this on Facebook the other day:



So, yeah, add that to the “to eat” list for Epcot! I cannot tell you how much I’d like to be eating that RIGHT NOW. Looks SOOOO good!

Speaking of eating in Epcot, the full list of Outdoor Kitchens and their menu items is now available. There is a lot of stuff that sounds great. Also, I think I am going to have to make a lot of visits to Epcot just to have all the drinks that I want! I will have to do a full post about the Outdoor Kitchens some other time, once I have time to sit down with the list and discuss it with Dug. It’s like the old days of making “Food & Wine Touring Plans”.

I was reminded in another TR recently (Rob’s!) that we should make time to see the Voices of Liberty while in Epcot. We love them, but it’s been a while and I think Izzy would enjoy them (she loves music – side note, she was watching Madonna perform on the Grammys and, at the end, said, “I LOVE her!”)

Because this is already getting text-heavy, here’s a random Izzy picture for you:



Doesn’t it look like she’s twins?! That’s in her tumbling class that we do on Saturdays. She LOVES it!

So, other Epcot ponderings. I was thinking about the late Epcot nights and realized that the possible Star Wars Weekends meal with Fantasmic Package could cause us problems. Both Fridays of our trip, Epcot is open until 9pm with EMH from 9-11pm. I was thinking that we each could have one of those to do our own thing while the other stays with sleeping Izzy at the resort. But, by the time we see Fantasmic on that first Friday (if we keep that package ADR), that’s not much time to spend at Epcot. Even if the person who goes skips the fireworks at 9:45pm (and sees them another night), they wouldn’t be leaving DHS until about 9:30pm. So, not a lot of time for aimless wandering of Epcot. However, MK is open until midnight that day, so they could just cut through Epcot, hit the highlights, and head over to the MK to close the night. I don’t know. I was hoping to do the American Adventure and maybe the Canada movie in that time, as it’s been a long time and I don’t want to do them with Izzy in tow. Not really time to do that and the big rides too, though. Will have to think this all through some more. If I am at Epcot earlier that day, I could try to use Izzy’s Magic Band to get a Soarin’ FP+ for that night, possibly. Could help a bit.

Speaking of FP+, we can start booking ours on March 15th, so coming up soon! And, of course, we still have no clue what we’re doing, due to the darn SWW lack of info. According to the big SWW thread on the DIS, we likely won’t know what the celebrity line-up is (and therefore which shows Dug might want to FP+) until mid-April or later. This is freaking my Disney-planner side out!

So, as far as Star Wars Weekends, I’ve got some very random thoughts. One is that I wish there were more Star Wars shirts for toddler girls. Target had a whole bunch for boys, like this for instance:



Cute, but WAY too big for her. Oh, well. Dug has some shirts (including the one I got him for Christmas that says, “Come to the dark side…we have bacon” to wear at the SWW breakfast with Darth Vader and company). I have one Star Wars shirt that Dug got me as a gift for Christmas. (Speaking of Star Wars gifts, I just got Dug a Death Star Bluetooth speaker for his birthday, which he loves!)

Despite the lack of shirts, Izzy is very into Star Wars. She challenges Dug to lightsaber duels, loves it when he reads “Vader’s Little Princess” to her, and she plays with all sorts of Star Wars figurines (some were Dug’s from childhood). She puts on little skits with them and I heard her having one character tell another, “You’re my Darth Vader.”

Some bedtime reading with Dug and Minnie, for your random viewing pleasure:



I am thinking that Izzy and I will do a lot of things in DHS on our own while Dug is in shows or autograph lines. For sure we will do Disney Junior, as she will probably get a kick out of it now (unlike at 14 months, when she just didn’t care). Character meets galore. Probably the Honey I Shrunk the Kids Playground. We’ll do the Frozen sing-along with Dug. I’d consider seeing other shows, if she’s up for it (Voyage of the Little Mermaid, Muppets, Beauty and the Beast). Probably above her skill level, but this picture seems to indicate we should do the Animation Academy (not really):



Okay, I actually drew Mickey and Minnie at her request. And I used her shirt as a model to copy:



Izzy’s been enjoying Disney headwear lately. She pulled out her First Haircut ears:



She made me wear her First Birthday Minnie Ears tonight while she wore two headbands (one Minnie, one Anna/Elsa) that I found in the Target One Spot today:



Bailey also got to wear the ears:



I also found three pairs of Disney socks in the One Spot: Minnie, Lightning McQueen, and Cinderella. Izzy was holding her Cinderella doll when I showed her the Cinderella socks tonight and she had the doll say, “Oh, it’s me?!” and then snuggle the socks.

Let’s move on to the cruise portion of the trip now! I did get some Fish Extender gifts – thank you all for the helpful advice and feedback! These are for each cabin:



Either just a Mickey or Minnie, except for cabins with multiple sets of adults (I have a few extra). And here’s a closer look at the notebook:



I also got the water tumblers for just the older kids/teens. More things still to come, once our groups are firmed up and I know for sure who I’m shopping for.

On a side note, Jackie – you asked about the luggage tags:



So, not solid and might need to be creative to make a Mickey? I’ll probably pass on them, since I’ve got some decent things now and more in mind.

Also, these are way to much for FE gifts, but thought I’d share these from the Target company store (Izzy has the Minnie one already to go with her Bullseye Mickey):






Other cruise news is that I was able to do our online check-in at 11pm Central last night. I wanted an early Port Arrival Time, as we have a rental car and can get there early and want as much time on the ship as possible. And the pre-crowd time is ideal to dine and swim. I got 10:45am, so I was very happy with that!

I went to get a Palo Brunch reservation next. There was only one time available: 12:30pm on our sea day. Not really ideal that late, but I snagged it and put it in my cart. Then put nursery time for Izzy in my cart. Then went to check out – and it all disappeared! I guess others can take things from your cart, as I tried to get it again and ALL times were GONE! I’ve been checking back, but no luck yet. So, we will have to get a reservation once we board, most likely. Along with getting character meet tickets and maybe more nursery time, etc. I did grab a Palo dinner, even though we didn’t have that in the plans (um, ADR hoarder here ). In case we can’t get brunch, I figured it was a good back-up option. But now I kind-of like it: it’s Pirate Night so we don’t miss a Main Dining Room in our rotation, it’s right between the Pirate Night show and fireworks, so we could see the regular show, the Pirate Night show, eat, then fireworks. And I have the nursery reserved too. I’d kind-of love to keep it, if we could swing it. I mean, chocolate soufflé! We’ll see…

I guess that’s about it with my randomness for now! See ya real soon (or, you know, eventually).

 

[Gracefulskinny]

First off, I saw this on Facebook the other day:

I saw that too! I think though that the strawberry shortcake from here will still win out.

There is a lot of stuff that sounds great.

I know I can't wait for reviews to start pouring in about everything.

I was hoping to do the American Adventure and maybe the Canada movie in that time, as it’s been a long time and I don’t want to do them with Izzy in tow.

I would double check, but I thought I remembered that these attractions are closed during EMH. I bet that you could get away with the Canada movie in the least with Izzy. Its not that long and with the screen 360 its will give her plenty to look at.

Speaking of FP+, we can start booking ours on March 15th, so coming up soon!

Wahoo! Ours is Saturday!

According to the big SWW thread on the DIS, we likely won’t know what the celebrity line-up is (and therefore which shows Dug might want to FP+) until mid-April or later. This is freaking my Disney-planner side out!

This is why I am somewhat relieved that DH decided to skip sww. I was worried at first now I'm just grateful that my plans aren't in limbo.

One is that I wish there were more Star Wars shirts for toddler girls. Target had a whole bunch for boys, like this for instance:

They do have some cute stuff don't they. I almost bought a pj set recently even though it was for boys.

 

[afwdwfan]

First off, I saw this on Facebook the other day:

Thanks. It was all I could do to keep from licking my screen.

And now I'm hungry.

Also, I think I am going to have to make a lot of visits to Epcot just to have all the drinks that I want!

I'm always in favor of more visits to EPCOT. And drinks.

Doesn’t it look like she’s twins?! That’s in her tumbling class that we do on Saturdays. She LOVES it!

Our kids are doing a tumbling class too. They have an absolute blast. I always feel sorry for the instructors though. You turn 15 2 - 4 year old girls loose in a room and it's like herding squirrels.

So, not a lot of time for aimless wandering of Epcot. However, MK is open until midnight that day, so they could just cut through Epcot, hit the highlights, and head over to the MK to close the night. I don’t know.

Ooooh... tough call. I'm sorry, I've got nothing constructive to add, but I feel your pain.

And, of course, we still have no clue what we’re doing, due to the darn SWW lack of info.

According to the big SWW thread on the DIS, we likely won’t know what the celebrity line-up is (and therefore which shows Dug might want to FP+) until mid-April or later. This is freaking my Disney-planner side out!

Yeah, I hate that. This is my biggest pet peeve with the 180 day ADR's and 60 day FP+. They always want us to plan before they tell us what their hours will be and what events we'll have to plan around.

Dug has some shirts (including the one I got him for Christmas that says, “Come to the dark side…we have bacon” to wear at the SWW breakfast with Darth Vader and company).

Best. Shirt. Ever.

I am thinking that Izzy and I will do a lot of things in DHS on our own while Dug is in shows or autograph lines. For sure we will do Disney Junior, as she will probably get a kick out of it now (unlike at 14 months, when she just didn’t care).

Oh, I'm sure she'll have a blast in there!

I did grab a Palo dinner, even though we didn’t have that in the plans (um, ADR hoarder here ). In case we can’t get brunch, I figured it was a good back-up option. But now I kind-of like it: it’s Pirate Night so we don’t miss a Main Dining Room in our rotation, it’s right between the Pirate Night show and fireworks, so we could see the regular show, the Pirate Night show, eat, then fireworks. And I have the nursery reserved too. I’d kind-of love to keep it, if we could swing it. I mean, chocolate soufflé! We’ll see…

Looks fantastic for what was just a fall back option.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Sounds like you are getting things pretty settled with the cruise - bummer about that Palo brunch though. Definitely hope it works out that you can get one once on board. Though glad you are happy with how the diner reservation works out with Pirates night.

BTW - do you know when you find out what meal time you get?

For the fish extender when I saw those luggage tags I thought it might be neat if you could turn the Target bulleyes into Mickey ears. Took a quick crack at it:



Oh and speaking of making images - not to add more things to your list but you could make some star wars shirts if you don't find anything you like. I had made this one for Olivia a few trips ago:



And then last year I had made this one for myself:

 

[Tracy161]

We're getting SO close to being able to book FP+!!! I really need to get organized so I'm prepared and ready to go!

So happy to see that you scored an early port arrival time! Woohoo!!!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Your fish extender gifts look great! (And I love Phil's idea about turning the bulleyes on the luggage tags into a Mickey - hidden or otherwise!)

Yum - that brownie looks delish! Darn Epcot and their multitude of tasty snacks...

 

[hokieinpa]

That's a good idea too - World Showcase has lots of potential gifts in the shops. Where did you get the pencils? The other thing I was thinking of is Fun Finds in Downtown Disney, as it's kind-of the dollar store of Disney and might have some good stuff for cheap.

I'm pretty sure I got the pencils at the Ink & Paint shop at AOA but I think I remember seeing them at the Emporium and MouseGear too! Stickers might be nice if you have any younger kids to get gifts for. You can buy big packs in the party favor section!


So exciting that your FP+ window is approaching!! But super frustrating that you still have to wait for more SWW info!

I totally get the Epcot evening troubles. No matter how long your trip is, it never seems like enough time to squeeze everything in! I really want to see all the movies in the WS. That's one of my goals on my solo trip (in 1-2 years... but making a must do list already) - watch all the movies and catch as many performances as possible. And enjoy a few adult beverages along the way!!

I'm totally lost on all the DCL info - we took a cruise for our honeymoon (now I wish we had done a Disneymoon!) on Carnival. But DCL is a whole other world! It sounds like you got a great PAT! Can't wait to hear more about your cruise plans!

 

[Jackiemarie21]

You could totally turn those luggage tags into something Mickey! Too bad those bullseyes aren't a little cheaper, they are too cute and perfect!
The last couple years I got one of those Mickey planners and LOVED them. This year I couldn't find one despite looking everytime I was at Target for months!

CUTE pics of Izzy as always!

I can't believe how quickly your trip is coming up! They really should release the SWW details before your FP+ comes, I mean come on Disney, people have to plan!