"Stop squeezing Mickey's nose!" - An October 2014 TR *COMPLETED!*

[hokieinpa]

On our last trip I made, and canceled, and ADR for Liberty Tree about a hundred times. I decided to pull the trigger this year specifically for that dessert, but then I remembered they will be closed for refurb

You are so right about the transitions throughout the lands. It is so well done. I'm also loving all the fall decorations in your pictures!

LTT was a last minute ADR for us - I wanted something in MK for lunch so it was between that and the Plaza. I had been reading about the Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake so it seemed like the perfect chance to try it! I'm so sorry they are closed during your next trip! But it does seem like a good reason for ANOTHER trip when they are open!

The fall decorations were great - I would love to go at Christmas sometime too!

Liberty Tree looks yum! I'm glad you got your dessert!

I adore the picture of your family on Aladdin, very cute how it's set up.

The DDs!! They're the best!

Can't wait to see how the letter to Mickey reappears!

The Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake was my favorite dessert of the entire trip! Or maybe tied with a Mickey bar...

I was so glad we were able to get carpets close together! It made the ride so much more fun!

And I loved the Dapper Dans. They are so much fun!

Ooooh, I’ve never been to LTT, but someday I need to make it there for that dessert, since everyone raves about it. Very curious how the Mickey placemat comes into play later. Glad you had a good meal!

Aw, that’s too bad that the other passengers didn’t get into the whole Jungle Cruise spiel as much. We’ve had that happen too. Oh, well, still fun.

Love the Dapper Dans! (And cute little fairy that walked by at the end).

Can’t wait to hear about Talking Mickey!

LTT was a last minute ADR - literally the week before we left I decided we needed one more TS meal at MK to break up the day some. Totally worth it for the toffee cake!!

I still really enjoyed the Jungle Cruise even though it was totally ::crickets:: at times. Even the backside of the water joke!! How is that no funny?

I was so glad I was able to catch the Dapper Dans! I loved their little show even if I only got to see a few minutes of it. Now just to see a Trolley Show - next trip!

What is the name of your Liberty Tree Tavern dessert? It looks so good!

Whoops! I guess in my excitement over just the memory of the dessert I forgot to mention the name! Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake! Totally delicious!

Sounds like a good lunch - with great dessert! And so nice of your waitress to do that! I am intrigued by your tease for the rest of that story

They do a great job with most of the transitions (the water and bridges help with that) - but the one to Adventureland is the best I think.

Love the Jungle Cruise but when no one else on the boat is into the puns it does take away from it a bit.

Always tough to leave but sometimes breaks are needed - even if painful at the time

I really appreciated the waitress giving us the tip on the large portions! I'm not big on taking leftovers all over the park and the boys aren't big eaters. They seemed to have plenty of room for dessert though!

I still enjoyed the Jungle Cruise but no one laughed at the backside of the water joke! Seriously?

Breaks saved our trip! As much as I wanted to stay in the parks we were all happier with a quick nap!

I just found your report and am enjoying reading it. I've only gotten through a few post, but I can tell your boy's are going to love it! Can't wait until I can get back and get caught up!

Thanks for following along! We had a great trip! My oldest asks at least once a week when it's time to go back!

Your little man is absolutely adorable. Enjoying your trip report. I have never seen SSE with a SB wait of 60 min. fP was not an option for it prior to FP+ so I imagine that has something to do with it.

The stroller parking for Soaring annoyed me when my older ones were younger. Last time we went we only had our youngest who was 8 weeks old at the time so we used the carrier more. I'm taking him myself in Oct & can't wait. I thought about AoA or WL, but ended up going with a moderate

The SSE wait was crazy! I followed some advice on a planning site and got FP+. I think the wait times tend to peak after lunch/early afternoon.

The Land is so hard with young kids and strollers! But it would have been crazy trying to organize stroller parking inside somewhere. Now I wish I had brought my Ergo for my youngest to save our arms.

Sounds like a fun trip for you and your son this fall!!

Yum, I'm glad lunch was so good! And what a sweet CM! Can't wait to hear about what happens with the Mickey Mail

We had some seriously good pixie dust with great CMs! And lunch was really good! I like lunch ADRs in the park - so nice to sit down and relax instead of fighting lines and crowds at a QS!

 

[ememtingle]

I totally agree with you about 7DMT being a beginner ride. We had so much fun on it and the details are great! I just wish it was a little longer...
But looks like you guys had so much fun on Winnie the Pooh, one of my all time favorite rides. The Tigger part has always been my favorite.
I love that Nate had such a special CM moment! What a great memory! Also, I've always wanted to try Liberty Tree Tavern but never get around to it. That dessert looks amazing, and I always see it on the Disney Food Blog and I drool over it.
I love the Jungle Cruise, especially the queue and all of the details. I loved going to the MK around Halloween in 2013, all of the fall decorations and displays were so great.
I can't wait to read about the rest of your night!

 

[hokieinpa]

I totally agree with you about 7DMT being a beginner ride. We had so much fun on it and the details are great! I just wish it was a little longer...
But looks like you guys had so much fun on Winnie the Pooh, one of my all time favorite rides. The Tigger part has always been my favorite.
I love that Nate had such a special CM moment! What a great memory! Also, I've always wanted to try Liberty Tree Tavern but never get around to it. That dessert looks amazing, and I always see it on the Disney Food Blog and I drool over it.
I love the Jungle Cruise, especially the queue and all of the details. I loved going to the MK around Halloween in 2013, all of the fall decorations and displays were so great.
I can't wait to read about the rest of your night!

I think I rode 7DMT a total of 4 times last trip (rider swap with the youngest worked out well for us!) and by the end I was in love. Of course, the ride through the mine was the best part! I totally got chills hearing that "Hi Ho..." called out!

We really loved Winnie the Pooh! All the boys are big fans so they really enjoyed seeing parts from all the movies played out on the rides.

LTT was so yummy! The meal was good but dessert was the best part for sure!

I loved all the fall decorations! We're doing F&G next time and then probably Christmas after that so we're going to be hitting all of the special events!

 

[hokieinpa]

“Mommy, he called me his PAL!”


After our yummy lunch, fun in Adventureland, and shopping on Main Street, we headed back to AOA for a break. When I was planning, it drove me crazy that we would be missing 3 hours of park time each day between travel time and naps. But I really think it saved us from some major meltdowns at night.

We had a 5:20 FP+ to meet Town Square Mickey so we headed out to the bus close to 4:45. Colin enjoyed a snack in the stroller while we waited for an MK bus.




MK was looking lovely with the fall decorations as we walked up!




We entered bag check and the park with no issues and headed right over. The stand by wait was 40 minutes so I was glad to have a FP+! We headed down the hall and only had one family ahead of us.

While we were waiting to enter Mickey’s room, I was chatting with the CM. She asked about our day and I told her about our delicious lunch at LTT. Nate was standing with me (he’s not shy about joining in on conversations) and he jumped in and told her all about his special drawing and letter for Mickey. I said “Yes, and we even dropped it off to be delivered to Mickey!” The CM responded with “Well our mail is pretty fast, I’m sure Mickey has read it by now.” Nate was practically jumping up and down at this point, waiting to meet the big guy!

The CM opened the door and it was our turn! At this point, the CM I had been chatting with whispered something to Mickey’s handler who then in turn whispered something to Mickey...I could sense something special was about to happen!

In awe of Mickey!



Especially when we greets you with a “Hi there! Thanks for your special letter today, pal!” Yay, yay, yay pixie dust!! Nate’s jaw dropped and he whispered to me “Mommy, he called me his PAL!”




Big hugs all around!




And of course, the inspiration for this TR title - nose squeezing!



TS Mickey was the first one who didn’t nicely push their hands away. He was super patient with them and just let them explore!

We got some nice group shots!




Including a picture of me with all 3 boys, looking at the camera and semi-smiling! A rare shot for sure!




We said our goodbyes to Mickey (complete with high fives and hugs) and we were all high on Disney magic!

What better way to continue that magic than to stumble right into a parade! Only in Disney, right?



Next up


A Surprise Parade and A Friend from Neverland

 

[TheMaxRebo]

How awesome! And a little thing like that I am sure meant the world to Nate!

Great picture of you and the boys with Mickey!

 

[MissMaryQC]

Totally got teary eyed at the pictures of the boys meeting Mickey; he's my favorite, always has been.

And the letter!! I just can't! Your little. Nate must have been so star struck and giddy, I mean I would be NOW, and I'm a grown up (or so I'm told).

Nothing like walking out of a magical moment into another, can't wait to hear what you thought of the parade!

 

[ememtingle]

What an awesome meet and greet with Mickey! Such a magical experience for y'all!! I love the group shots too! And the nose squeezing made my day!

 

[collcass]

what a fantastic meet & greet!

 

[RunnerMommyof4]

Oh thats the best! WDW will be new for us but growing up in Orange County, most of my friends work for DL in some way. I always loved watching them make wishes and dreams come true for kids of all ages! Bet your son remembers that trip forever!

 

[lauraleh]

I'm enjoying your TR! You have precious boys! Can't wait to hear about the rest of your trip!

 

[missangelalexis]

Wow what an awesome moment with Mickey!! That is awesome!! Great pics too!

 

[MnNsmom]

I love the boys' shirts. And holy pixie dust! That made me a little misty eyed. Moments like those totally justify the cost of the trip for me, everything else is just icing on the cake.

 

[hokieinpa]

How awesome! And a little thing like that I am sure meant the world to Nate!

Great picture of you and the boys with Mickey!

It really was a special moment for Nate (and me!) and is something he still talks about almost daily. Disney World is a topic of discussion quite often in our house!

And I love that picture - thanks!

Totally got teary eyed at the pictures of the boys meeting Mickey; he's my favorite, always has been.

And the letter!! I just can't! Your little. Nate must have been so star struck and giddy, I mean I would be NOW, and I'm a grown up (or so I'm told).

Nothing like walking out of a magical moment into another, can't wait to hear what you thought of the parade!

It really was a magical moment! I was so touched that each one of the CMs went out of their way to make it special for Nate!

And it was such a Disney moment. You met Mickey and had an experience you'll remember forever? Why not stumble into a parade too?

What an awesome meet and greet with Mickey! Such a magical experience for y'all!! I love the group shots too! And the nose squeezing made my day!

The boys were all over the nose squeezing! And it turns out they didn't limit it to the furry characters either!

It really was a special moment - total Disney magic!

what a fantastic meet & greet!

One of the best of our trip...but now it seems like I said that a few times already! We had some great meets but this was special because it was MICKEY!

Oh thats the best! WDW will be new for us but growing up in Orange County, most of my friends work for DL in some way. I always loved watching them make wishes and dreams come true for kids of all ages! Bet your son remembers that trip forever!

Nate still talks about Mickey getting his letter - "Remember when Mickey got my mail and read it and called me his pal?" Too cute!

Disney CMs are so special - I really appreciated how so many of them went out of their way to make that special moment for Nate!

I'm enjoying your TR! You have precious boys! Can't wait to hear about the rest of your trip!

Thank you for following along!!

Wow what an awesome moment with Mickey!! That is awesome!! Great pics too!

It was an amazing meet! Mickey? And he talks? And he got my letter? And called me pal? It can't get much more special for a 4-year old!

I love the boys' shirts. And holy pixie dust! That made me a little misty eyed. Moments like those totally justify the cost of the trip for me, everything else is just icing on the cake.

Thank you! I spent lots of time tracking down Disney shirts on clearance and for cheap! Time to start looking for next trip since they have outgrown those...

It was such Disney magic for us!! Totally worth every penny and moment of planning!

 

[hokieinpa]

A Surprise Parade and A Friend from Neverland

After our awesome, pixie-dusted meet with Town Square Mickey ( ), we headed back out to head down Main Street toward Adventureland.

Now after such a special moment with Mickey, what else would you expect other than stumbling right into Move It, Shake It, Celebrate It?? This is Disney, after all and there seemed to be an ongoing theme for the evening.



I had wanted to catch this but I figured it would be something we worked in on our way out for a break, no concrete plans to sit and watch it. But Disney magic timed it perfectly!



And it was super special for Colin! If you remember, we was sporting his Woody ears.



Guess who else noticed?



Yep, that’s Woody pointing to himself and then to Colin! Partners!

After our surprise parade, we walked/danced our way down Main Street and over the bridge to Adventureland. And Colin still totally riding the high from his Woody nod!



Our first stop was to meet Peter Pan. We made it just in time because we were the last group before the CM cut off the line!

Our wait wasn’t bad, especially considering we were the last family. We waited for about 20 minutes. We passed the time looking through our autograph book. And snacks, of course!

One odd happening in line - we were officially the last group in line. But there was a guy (about 20-22 years old) dressed in a full on Peter Pan costume with a lanyard full of Peter Pan pins. He let everyone else in front of him so he could be the last one to meet Peter. Since it was close to Halloween, I could understand the costume but there was no MNSSHP that night. We didn’t stick around for his meet but I kind of wish I would have…

It was finally our turn and Nate and Colin were super excited to meet one of their favorites!



Posed pictures first. Peter tried to get them to sit like him but Colin hasn’t really gotten the concept of bending his legs like that yet. Peter was too cute and said “That’s ok, be a pirate. Do your own thing.”

My shots






And the PhotoPass shot



I think the boys were starstruck!



After the posed shots, Peter talked about the pirate Mickey on Colin’s shirt. I’m not sure either boy said more than 5 words - totally in awe!




Next, it was an Adventureland classic - one Nate was super excited to finally experience!



Next up

Pirates, Taco Salads, and Space Rangers

 

[MissMaryQC]

I'm so glad Colin had a special moment with Woody! You guys got some good Disney magic this trip. *tearing up AGAIN it's just so special to hear*

What a peculiar thing about the Peter Pan man in line; I'd be curious to see what happened there as well...?

Ha! I love it when the little ones clam up when they meet their favorites. Meeting a Disney character aS a squirt is likely the greatest moment of their lives. I just love it!

 

[RunnerMommyof4]

Love the photos of Peter Pan with the boys...so cute! Our DS's would flip over Woody! I didn't even think about him being at WDW.

 

[MnNsmom]

Very cool that Woody recognized Colin and Nate looks totally starstruck in those Peter Pan photos. I kind of wish you had gotten a picture of the guy dressed as Peter Pan, lol.

 

[missangelalexis]

What an adorable moment with Colin and Woody!! Glad you got to catch the parade! And such cute pictures with Peter!

 

[hokieinpa]

I'm so glad Colin had a special moment with Woody! You guys got some good Disney magic this trip. *tearing up AGAIN it's just so special to hear*

What a peculiar thing about the Peter Pan man in line; I'd be curious to see what happened there as well...?

Ha! I love it when the little ones clam up when they meet their favorites. Meeting a Disney character aS a squirt is likely the greatest moment of their lives. I just love it!

We did have some serious Disney magic! I know it seemed like a great trip while we were there but it's only looking back and writing this TR that I realize just how many little special moments we had!

I really wish I had gotten a picture on the sly and then slowly made my way out of the meet area so I could find out what that Peter Pan guy was all about...

Love the photos of Peter Pan with the boys...so cute! Our DS's would flip over Woody! I didn't even think about him being at WDW.

Yes, Woody was great! We saw him in the parade and then met him at DHS too! Peter Pan was great - he was so on point with everything he said and his mannerisms. They boys were totally in awe!

Very cool that Woody recognized Colin and Nate looks totally starstruck in those Peter Pan photos. I kind of wish you had gotten a picture of the guy dressed as Peter Pan, lol.

We had some very starstruck boys with all the heroes they were meeting that day! Mickey, Woody, and Peter Pan? It doesn't get much better!

And I SO wish I would have gotten a picture...it was really something else with the tights and everything.

What an adorable moment with Colin and Woody!! Glad you got to catch the parade! And such cute pictures with Peter!

I was so happy we caught the parade by chance. Such a fun little moment and the Woody nod was just perfect!

I love the Peter Pan pictures too - the boys were totally starstruck that they had no idea what to do with themselves!

And I just saw your signature countdown - 1 month!!

 

[hokieinpa]

Pirates, Taco Salads, and Space Rangers


After our meet with Peter Pan, we continued into Adventureland to experience a Disney classic!



The posted wait was 30 minutes. We decided to go ahead since this was a must do for us! We had gotten off quite easy so far with little to no waiting. We passed the time in line looking at the cool pirate gear!



Nate was getting into the role of swashbuckler!



Our wait was pretty true to the posted 30 minutes. Soon we were boarding our boat to meet our pirate friends. I made sure to warn the boys about the drops so we were all prepared!

We looked around the dump shop briefly. I saw the same Pirate Mickey shirt Colin was wearing for sale!



It was $16.95 in the store. I paid $2.99 at a kids consignment shop so I felt like a total bargain hunting queen right then!

We were all hungry so of course we headed across to Pecos Bill! I was ready to try the taco salad!

We walked in and it was PACKED! There were no tabled in the lower seating area. I remembered reading that the upper dining room were often empty so we headed there and the rope was up - closed!



We were all beyond hungry at this point. I was at a total loss when a super, amazing, awesome CM named Ebony saw us all standing there stricken and said "Come on up! You can have the room to yourself!"



Ebony just became my all time, most favorite CM right in that moment.

So we settled in, Jim and my dad went to go get food. The boys were all complaining about being hungry/tired/bored, etc. and Ebony just came in and saved the day again. This time she saved us with sheriff's badges and straw cowboy hats for each boy. She was seriously awesome and totally exemplified what I think of when I picture Disney CMs. She went totally above and beyond to make our experience not only pleasant but magical!


*I sent an e-mail to Guest Relations when we got home about our amazing experience with Ebony!


After filling up our belly's (burgers for the big boys, a shared taco salad for my mom and I, grilled cheese for the little boys) we headed clear across the park to another favorite!

Nate was ready for another ride on Buzz!



We had such a great time and the line was non-existent so we took another spin!

After that, we decided no trip to Tomorrowland would be complete without a spin on the People Mover!

Zooming by a city of tomorrow!



People Mover selfie with Colin!



At this point, it was shortly after 9. Everyone was worn out so we decided to head back to AOA.

We headed down Main Street and were herded along the construction walls and behind the parade crowd. We caught a quick glimpse of MSEP as we walked out.

Sad foreshadowing - I told everyone we would get a chance to watch this front row later in the week...not everything goes according to plan.

I remember a fairly short wait and uneventful ride back to AOA, where I'm sure we quickly crashed! We knew we had to prepare for our WILD day!

Next up

"Don't hold your child up like Simba!"