Jackiemarie21
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2012
The Poly is the best place to stay with a toddler! The monorail is priceless with strollers! You will LOVE it!
This is Literally The Best Trip Ever! *Complete 11-10*
- Thread starter Jackiemarie21
- Start date
The Poly is the best place to stay with a toddler! The monorail is priceless with strollers! You will LOVE it!
Jackiemarie21
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2012
Day 2
Friday July 26
Okay on to our first full day! If you read my PTR you may recall we were not going to MK until our 5th day. About 3 days before we left some ADRs opened and allowed me to change my plans so we could spend the AM half of our first day in MK. Friday July 26
That made me very happy!We decided to wake up naturally (no alarm clocks) so that we could all get as much rest as we needed. I was up at 7:00, which is super early, I was just too excited to sleep!
I watched Stacy and updated my trip journal as I waited for my family to wake up. At 9:30 DH finally got up and about 10 DD woke up. They were getting ready slooowly! DH can not start the day with out coffee so he headed to Captain Cooks for some coffee for him and juice for DD. Everyone was finally ready at 11, so we set out to catch the monorail.
Charlotte was refusing to sit in the stroller and and wanted to be carried. I was pretty certain she was catching a cold and was crabby so I just gave in and carried her. We it up to the monorail and we on within 10 minutes. It was so awesome! Seriously, there is no better way to travel. Within no time we were at the MK!
We went trough bag check and got in line. On one side they were taking tickets the old way(where you stick your ticket in), and then the other side the new touch way. The line was shorter for the old way so we jumped in line, it was taking FOREVER! So we went to the other side and got in with the new way in no time. When we were inside words can not describe my feelings, I was so overcome with joy! I was trying so hard to see DD's reaction, but I kept crying. DD kept pointing out characters, balloons and other stuff, but she did not notice the castle. We stopped for a photopass picture:
And finally after the picture she saw the castle. She said "WOW!" she was really excited and did not want to take her eyes off of it. I was pleased with her reaction. After our quick photo shoot we headed to our lunch ADR at LTT. At this point DD thought everyone was a celebrity. She was pointing to costumed CM and saying "wow!". She was just as happy to be there as I was it was cute!
We arrived at LTT at 12:15 and checked in. Our ADR was at 12:30. DD colored while we waited for our table:
We were called to our table in about 10 minutes. I was pretty excited about this ADR, I have always heard such great things and it did not disappoint! Our servers name was Ed, he was fast and very friendly. DH really wanted to try the spinach and crab dip for two as his app, so we ordered that, but since I have a shellfish allergy I only ate a few bites of the bread, it was good and DH said the dip was amazing! For our entrees, DH had the pot roast, and I had the Colony salad. DH defiantly made the better choice. That pot roast was amazing! The salad was very good, but not as good as that pot roast. I got the salad because DD loves salad so I thought she would eat some of that, but all she wanted was the mashed potatoes that came with DH's meal and chocolate milk. I saved room though because I was really here for dessert, I could not wait to try the ooy gooy toffee cake! DH did not take my advice and got the chocolate cake. He tried mine and realized what a huge mistake he made! I am pretty sure the toffee cake was the best dessert I had the whole time we were there. It was fantastic.
After lunch we wanted to get a few rides in before heading back to the Poly for a nap. I had planned for our first ride to be Dumbo, a classic great for toddlers. DH, however had a different plan. We have always started the MK in adventure land with our first ride always being the jungle cruise one of DH's favorites. Since we were closer to adventure land anyway we headed over that way. The wait time for the jungle cruise was 60 min. It was about 1:15 and the FP return time was between 1:55-2:55, so it was a no brainier to grab the FP instead of waiting stand-by.
While we were waiting for our Fast Past return time we decided to ride the Magic Carpets of Aladdin. I though this would be a fun ride for DD to get her started. DH wanted to ride in the back with me and DD in the front. He was holding DD and sat her down on the carpet. He did not pull her dress down and sat her bare legs on the burning hot seat. She got mad and was then determined to not enjoy the ride. She cried, a lot! I was pretty disappointed with our first ride experience.
After the awful first ride we went to find a shady spot to wait until our Fast Pass return time. I put some more sunscreen on DD and gave her some sunglasses which seemed to put her in a much better mood!
We people watched for a few minutes and then it was time to head back to the Jungle Cruise! The FP wait was about 5 minutes which was great! We all loved the ride. DH loves the corny jokes and repeats them all the time. I like that it is a nice relaxing ride! Charlotte was even happy on this one.
So we will just pretend this was our first ride.
After the Jungle Cruise DD decided that she did not want to ride in the stroller but someone else did:
I am so glad we lugged this thing all the way to Disney to hold stuffed animals!
We decided we could not leave adventure land with out one of these:
Pretty much the best thing ever when it is hot outside. We found a shady spot (again) and shared this treat. We can get dole whips at our local zoo so DD has had that before, but the float just makes it so much better! Yum! We decided to head back to the resort, DD was tired and needed a nap.
On the way out we stopped for another PP pic:
DD would not put that stinking water bottle down!
And then I tried to find the place to get my PP+ card since we had not done that yet. I went to city hall and they said it was on the other side near Tony's. There was a parade coming so we quickly ran across to the Photo area near Tony's and they said it was in City Hall. I did not want to run across again so we just left. We went to get on the Monorail DH got on the one going to the TTC not the resort one. I told him it was the wrong one but he insisted he was right. Sometimes, I don't argue with him and just let him be wrong. I love that moment when he realizes he should have listened to me.
When we got off at the TTC he was angry and we did not know how to get on the path to walk to the poly so he insisted we get on the resort monorail. Again, I just went along even though I knew better. We got back to the room and all took a rest!
STLMickeyMom
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jun 2, 2013
"I love that moment when he realizes he should have listened to me."
Lol!! I love that moment too!! Is that wrong?
You all looked so cute for your first day. Love Charlotte's big bow! I'm so sorry she didn't like the carpet ride, but I'm glad she had fun on the "cruise". We love that one too
I can't believe you didn't leave your room until 11. My DH would have been bouncing off the walls or just plain left without us. I love to take it easy on vacation--he loves to cram in as much as he can. We have such different ideas of what vacation should be....
I did not know you can get dole whips at the zoo! I'm going to have to keep an eye out for those!
Can't wait to hear more about your first day!
Lol!! I love that moment too!! Is that wrong?
You all looked so cute for your first day. Love Charlotte's big bow! I'm so sorry she didn't like the carpet ride, but I'm glad she had fun on the "cruise". We love that one too
I can't believe you didn't leave your room until 11. My DH would have been bouncing off the walls or just plain left without us. I love to take it easy on vacation--he loves to cram in as much as he can. We have such different ideas of what vacation should be....
I did not know you can get dole whips at the zoo! I'm going to have to keep an eye out for those!
Can't wait to hear more about your first day!
Denovagirl
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jun 25, 2013
Oops for the monorail mix up 
glad you have the patience I woulda went crazy on te hubs, lol!
Looks like a great first day!
glad you have the patience I woulda went crazy on te hubs, lol! Looks like a great first day!
Jackiemarie21
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2012
"I love that moment when he realizes he should have listened to me."
Lol!! I love that moment too!! Is that wrong?
You all looked so cute for your first day. Love Charlotte's big bow! I'm so sorry she didn't like the carpet ride, but I'm glad she had fun on the "cruise". We love that one too
I can't believe you didn't leave your room until 11. My DH would have been bouncing off the walls or just plain left without us. I love to take it easy on vacation--he loves to cram in as much as he can. We have such different ideas of what vacation should be....
I did not know you can get dole whips at the zoo! I'm going to have to keep an eye out for those!
Can't wait to hear more about your first day!
I know I feel like a bad person for loving that moment so much, but I do!
11 is ridiculous, I know but I knew our day would go more smoothly if I gave everyone time to relax. Later in the trip I rushed everyone around more and it turned out bad. I learned my lesson, give and take is best! But, we have very different vacation styles as well.
Yes, you can get dole whips at the STL zoo, right by rivers edge. We go there all the time because it feels kind of like Disney. We take a train ride get a dole whip and see some animals. It helps with post Disney depression.
Oops for the monorail mix up
Looks like a great first day!
I know, I just like being right so much I held it in, but it was hard!
Jackiemarie21
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2012
This update will have a lack of pictures, I will explain why eventually!
So where we left off we were headed back to the Poly to rest and get ready for our dinner!
DH and I hung around the room and rested while DD napped. I got up and started to get ready around 5:15. At 5:45 we woke Charlotte up. Her naps were all over the place the entire week. I felt really bad waking her up, she still seemed so sleepy and I was afraid she would be cranky! I got her diaper changed and dressed and we were headed out to the monorail by 6:00, right on time! This time we found the path to the TTC so we could take the EPCOT monorail. I really rubbed in how easy it was to find and how close it was to our room, to make DH feel even worse about this afternoon. (I am a meanie I know!)
We got to Epcot at 6:30, perfect timing. I still needed to get that PP+ card and at EPCOT I knew exactly where to go. DD was still determined to walk or be carried anything besides the stroller. We were trying to prevent a meltdown so we let her have her way. She was walking next to the stroller, but she was sooo slooow and the bag check line was really long! So, I told DH to take DD and go through the line with out bags and then head back to Canada. I waited in the bag check line, then got into the park and headed straight to the PP store. I traded in my coupon for my PP+ card and the cm told me all about PP+. I also stopped and used the restroom. I wanted to take some pictures along the way, but sure enough, DH had the camera around his neck and of course he did not use it, hence why there are no pictures. I exited the PP store and headed back to Canada. I could see DH walking not so far ahead of me (he is really tall!). I could not believe how slow they were going! When I caught up with them they were at a kiosk buying a beer and popcorn, why popcorn before dinner? Because DD asked for it. (seriously who does that?
) I put the popcorn in my backpack to save for later. DD didn't even know I did that.
We went to LeCelliar and checked in for our ADR right about 7:00. ( our ADR time was 7:15) DD was a little antsy so DH took her outside for a minute. About 7:05 they called our name. I looked outside and DH and DD were nowhere to be found. The CM said she could not seat us until we were all there. So, I ran all the way up the path and they were standing there. I told them to come back into the restaurant and we were seated.
Charlotte was really tired and not feeling well with the cold, and wanted to sit on my lap. Because I wanted a peaceful meal I allowed this to happen. She ate well! We started with a bread basket. I love those pretzel rolls! Charlotte liked them as well. I ordered the Cheese soup as my app, DH had the cheese plate. DD loved the soup and ate most of it. What I got I really liked too! DH thought his cheese plate was great as well. For our entree we both got the mushroom filet. It was delicious! Even DD liked the meat and ate some of mine. For dessert I had the maple creme brulee and DH had the cappuccino napoleon. I LOVE creme brulee but did not want to try it last time we ate there because I am not a maple fan, but this time I decided to be adventurous and give it a try. I am so glad I did! It was so good and the maple flavor added to the the taste without being overpowering! DH liked his dessert a lot as well. After dessert DH took Charlotte outside while I paid the bill. The service throughout the meal was wonderful, but once it was time to pay the bill our server took forever to come back with what I needed to sign. After I finally paid I went outside and it was lightly raining. DD was still tried and crabby. I decided that it was time to sacrifice the plan. We were supposed to walk around world showcase, meet Winnie The Pooh, do pick a pearl and watch Illuminations and then head back. Instead we decided to get a PP pic and head back to the resort.
We got back to our room right around 9:30. We gave Charlotte a quick bath and put her to bed. We then took showers ourselves and sat on our patio for a while before heading to bed ourselves. I was a little disappointed with how little park time we got this day, but I knew what was best in the long run. DD needed to kick that cold so she could have fun the rest of the week and sleep was necessary to the process.
I am sorry for the lack of pictures. Since we spent so much time apart it was hard to get any! I promise I got better about taking pictures as the week went on. DD did start to feel better which made everything easier!
Thanks again for reading!
So where we left off we were headed back to the Poly to rest and get ready for our dinner!
DH and I hung around the room and rested while DD napped. I got up and started to get ready around 5:15. At 5:45 we woke Charlotte up. Her naps were all over the place the entire week. I felt really bad waking her up, she still seemed so sleepy and I was afraid she would be cranky! I got her diaper changed and dressed and we were headed out to the monorail by 6:00, right on time! This time we found the path to the TTC so we could take the EPCOT monorail. I really rubbed in how easy it was to find and how close it was to our room, to make DH feel even worse about this afternoon. (I am a meanie I know!)
We got to Epcot at 6:30, perfect timing. I still needed to get that PP+ card and at EPCOT I knew exactly where to go. DD was still determined to walk or be carried anything besides the stroller. We were trying to prevent a meltdown so we let her have her way. She was walking next to the stroller, but she was sooo slooow and the bag check line was really long! So, I told DH to take DD and go through the line with out bags and then head back to Canada. I waited in the bag check line, then got into the park and headed straight to the PP store. I traded in my coupon for my PP+ card and the cm told me all about PP+. I also stopped and used the restroom. I wanted to take some pictures along the way, but sure enough, DH had the camera around his neck and of course he did not use it, hence why there are no pictures. I exited the PP store and headed back to Canada. I could see DH walking not so far ahead of me (he is really tall!). I could not believe how slow they were going! When I caught up with them they were at a kiosk buying a beer and popcorn, why popcorn before dinner? Because DD asked for it. (seriously who does that?
) I put the popcorn in my backpack to save for later. DD didn't even know I did that.We went to LeCelliar and checked in for our ADR right about 7:00. ( our ADR time was 7:15) DD was a little antsy so DH took her outside for a minute. About 7:05 they called our name. I looked outside and DH and DD were nowhere to be found. The CM said she could not seat us until we were all there. So, I ran all the way up the path and they were standing there. I told them to come back into the restaurant and we were seated.
Charlotte was really tired and not feeling well with the cold, and wanted to sit on my lap. Because I wanted a peaceful meal I allowed this to happen. She ate well! We started with a bread basket. I love those pretzel rolls! Charlotte liked them as well. I ordered the Cheese soup as my app, DH had the cheese plate. DD loved the soup and ate most of it. What I got I really liked too! DH thought his cheese plate was great as well. For our entree we both got the mushroom filet. It was delicious! Even DD liked the meat and ate some of mine. For dessert I had the maple creme brulee and DH had the cappuccino napoleon. I LOVE creme brulee but did not want to try it last time we ate there because I am not a maple fan, but this time I decided to be adventurous and give it a try. I am so glad I did! It was so good and the maple flavor added to the the taste without being overpowering! DH liked his dessert a lot as well. After dessert DH took Charlotte outside while I paid the bill. The service throughout the meal was wonderful, but once it was time to pay the bill our server took forever to come back with what I needed to sign. After I finally paid I went outside and it was lightly raining. DD was still tried and crabby. I decided that it was time to sacrifice the plan. We were supposed to walk around world showcase, meet Winnie The Pooh, do pick a pearl and watch Illuminations and then head back. Instead we decided to get a PP pic and head back to the resort.
We got back to our room right around 9:30. We gave Charlotte a quick bath and put her to bed. We then took showers ourselves and sat on our patio for a while before heading to bed ourselves. I was a little disappointed with how little park time we got this day, but I knew what was best in the long run. DD needed to kick that cold so she could have fun the rest of the week and sleep was necessary to the process.
I am sorry for the lack of pictures. Since we spent so much time apart it was hard to get any! I promise I got better about taking pictures as the week went on. DD did start to feel better which made everything easier!
Thanks again for reading!
STLMickeyMom
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jun 2, 2013
Poor Charlotte! I feel bad that she wasn't feeling very good. Disney is no place to be sick.
We've never tried lecelliar but that maple creme brûlée is sounding delicious! At least Charlotte ate something. Both our kids are in a Mac n cheese/hot dog/chicken nugget phase. It's driving me crazy, but it won't last forever.....I hope!
You PP pictures are too cute! I love how you & Charlotte are a little matchy!
We've never tried lecelliar but that maple creme brûlée is sounding delicious! At least Charlotte ate something. Both our kids are in a Mac n cheese/hot dog/chicken nugget phase. It's driving me crazy, but it won't last forever.....I hope!
You PP pictures are too cute! I love how you & Charlotte are a little matchy!
Jackiemarie21
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2012
Poor Charlotte! I feel bad that she wasn't feeling very good. Disney is no place to be sick.
We've never tried lecelliar but that maple creme brûlée is sounding delicious! At least Charlotte ate something. Both our kids are in a Mac n cheese/hot dog/chicken nugget phase. It's driving me crazy, but it won't last forever.....I hope!
You PP pictures are too cute! I love how you & Charlotte are a little matchy!
I know it was really a bummer off and on for our trip, but we still had lots of fun
I am thankful for now that Charlotte has an adventurous palate. What drives me crazy is what she loves today she hates tomorrow. Two year old are so unpredictable! My brother was the pickiest eater ever! But he outgrew it, it took until he left for college, but he now eats stuff other than hot dogs.
Thanks I am going with the matchy thing as long as I can.
Jackiemarie21
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2012
Day 3
Saturday July 27
Saturday July 27
On our 3rd day I woke up about 8:00am. While my family snoozed I checked Facebook and email and starting getting ready. I was all ready at 9:00. I woke Bob and Charlotte up and then ran out to get some coffee and juice while they started to get ready. After I came back I finished getting Charlotte ready and we were out the door by 9:45. Only 15 minutes behind schedule!
We walked to the bus stop. Let me say that I think Tokelau is the perfect location! The walk to everywhere was so short! Anyway, we made it to the bus stop and waited for a bus to Animal Kingdom. Why is that when you are waiting for a bus it always seems like 15 buses to other destinations arrive before the one you are waiting for gets there? Compared to the wait for monorail the bus seemed like forever. Its so easy to get spoiled. Anyway, a bus fin-a-lly arrive and we hoped on. We got to the AK by 10:20. We headed straight back to the safari and planned on getting fast passes. The stand-by line was only 10 minutes so we just went on it. It was a pretty good safari we saw lots of animals. Charlotte loved pointing out all of the animals. Here are so pics:
I thought all these hippos lying together was neat.
This guy came so close to our vehicle you could touch him!
Charlotte was excited!
I find ostriches so interesting!
After our fantastic safari Charlotte sat on this rock while I went to get the stroller:
She liked looking at the birds there so much she did not want to get up
Since I rushed everyone out this morning and no one had a chance to eat breakfast, we were hungry! We headed straight to the Yak and Yeti for our lunch ADR to see if they could get us in a little early. We arrive at 11:30 about 30 minutes early and they sat us right away! We sat in the first dining room, but I was so impressed with this restaurant! It is so pretty. We ordered our drinks Bob got a coke, I got a frozen lemonade, and we let Charlotte get a sprite. I don't know if it was because I was really hot and thirsty, but that frozen lemonade was one of the best drinks I have had in my entire life. I highly recommend it! Then we ordered appetizers I got the egg rolls and Bob got the pot stickers. I actually took a picture of this, please excuse Charlotte's hand, she was letting us know which pot sticker she wanted.
These were fantastic! The dipping sauce for the egg rolls was amazing! Charlotte had one of each and seemed to like them.
Next, we ordered entrees. I got the crispy Mahi-Mahi and Bob got the beef and broccoli. The fish was great! I really liked it a lot. Charlotte ate all of my rice. I only got a fork full, but I liked it. Bob also liked his a lot and ate all of it. After all of that we ordered dessert. Bob got the sorbet trio and I got the cream cheese wontons. I was so excited to try them. The pictures I have seen them looked so delicious. Honestly, I was a little disappointed with them. They were just not my favorite dessert. Charlotte did not like them either. Bob on the other hand thought his dessert was perfect. Charlotte was getting a little antsy so I took her outside while Bob paid the bill. Overall, I would go back, but its not on our must do list.
After lunch we stopped for a photo pass photo:
I am not the biggest fan of AK, but the tree of life photos are always some of my favorites!
Then, we went to Expedition Everest. Since I am the only person in my crew who does roller coasters, I went into the single rider line. If you don't know about the single rider line, it is so awesome. The stand-by line was 60 minutes, fast pass return was away after we needed to leave, but the single rider line was only 15 minutes! I got put with this family of 5 who did not really understand English and totally did not get that if you have an uneven number of people in your party you get put with a random single rider. The mom was sitting in the front row with one child, the Dad was riding in the second row with another child and then a third child was in the third row alone. The CM told me to go to row three with the child. The dad gave me a strange look and then told his daughter to go to another row. They kept changing their seating arrangements, at least four times. Finally I ended up in the second row with the dad. I totally understand being protective of your child, but really its a minute long ride? I was only doing what the CMs told me to. Anyway, I have never been that close to the front on EE. It was awesome! So much fun! I did not get my picture loaded on to my PP+ card because the card was with Bob, what a fail! While I was riding Bob and Charlotte walked around looking at all Asia had to offer. Charlotte really loved this park!
After the ride we started heading towards Dinoland. We didn't ride anything there, but it was fun to look around. We started to head to It's Tough to be a Bug. I was torn on doing this attraction. I have heard some small children get scared during the show. DH really wanted to do this one, so we did it. At first, DD loved it! (she was going through a Bug's Life phase). She took off the 3D glasses and just watched it that way. Then, when hopper came out made it seem like they were hitting us with fly swatters she got scared. She did not cry or anything, she just turned away. She spent the rest of the show with her head buried in Bob's shoulder.
After the show we needed to do a diaper change and restroom stop so we went to the baby care center. These are awesome for families with young children! I took Charlotte in a changed her diaper and then went to the restroom myself. And then the most amazing thing happened. Charlotte pulled down her shorts and took her diaper off, I started to say "what are you doing", but Charlotte said "I go too". So, I sat her on the potty and she went! I have done no potty training, this was totally on her own! Disney really is magic!
After that excitement we met back up with DH. We headed down to camp Minnie Mickey to find some characters. I really wanted her to meet Pocahontas, because she liked that movie a lot and this was the only place to see her, but she was gone. So, we jumped in line for Baloo and King Louie. Charlotte has not seen Jungle Book yet, it was one of my favorites as a kid. I have never met them before so, I would be lying if I said I wasn't a little excited about this! While we were in line it started to rain. It was not pouring but just a light annoying rain. I was really interested to see how Charlotte would do with the characters. When it was our turn Charlotte wanted nothing to do with either one! She cried. So I held her and told her I wanted to hug Baloo and DH high fived King Louie.
After our turn was over she wanted to go back and see them again. It gave me hope that our dinner would go well, since we were having a character dinner. It started to rain harder after that, so we decided it was time to head back to our resort. We found our bus stop and and a bus pulled up almost immediately. The bus was pretty crowded. I found a seat in the back and Charlotte sat on my lap. Bob stood in the middle of the bus with the stroller. At first Charlotte was okay on the bus, but then she wanted to sit on the floor and when I would not let her, she threw a major temper tantrum. The back of a crowded bus is the worst place for a two year old meltdown. She was so hard to control. It felt like the longest bus ride of my life! I felt so bad for the people around us but most of them were pretty understanding. We got off the bus and headed back to our room, where Charlotte went straight down for a nap. After that bus ride I needed one too, so I took and nap also. DH decided he would take a swim while we rested.
I am going to stop there for now, I will be back soon with the details of our great night!
BeckyEsq
Mouseketeer.
- Joined
- Oct 13, 1999
You know who else literally butchers the word literally? The Kardashians. It makes me scream at my Tv.
Enjoying your report. We also travel in summer as DH is also a social studies teacher! We just took our DD on her first trip (she's almost 3) and she also had to have her own mug, loved the food at 'Ohana, and had an understated reaction to the castle. I also took a lot fewer food pictures this trip. When the food came I had to cut it up for DD and it was a little too hectic for photos.
I love all the outfits you made! I am jealous of your skills!
Enjoying your report. We also travel in summer as DH is also a social studies teacher! We just took our DD on her first trip (she's almost 3) and she also had to have her own mug, loved the food at 'Ohana, and had an understated reaction to the castle. I also took a lot fewer food pictures this trip. When the food came I had to cut it up for DD and it was a little too hectic for photos.
I love all the outfits you made! I am jealous of your skills!
STLMickeyMom
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jun 2, 2013
Another gorgeous bow on your sweet little Charlotte!! Love it! She looks adorable in the safari picture.
Only 15 minutes behind schedule? I call that right on time!
I took our girls into the bugs life show too. I wasn't sure because I knew it might be a little scary. I kept saying how funny it was and making a big deal laughing when we'd get sprayed, etc. They actually were really into it until the very end when the bugs run under you. I said "oh my gosh! There's bugs under your tushie!" and our youngest burst into tears. I felt horrible since she wasn't crying until I said that, but our oldest found it hilarious, at least!
Yeah!! Charlotte went on the potty!!! You're right-that IS magical!
This has nothing to do with your trip, but have you guys ever gone out to Marceline? We've never gone, but we really want to. They are having some kind of fair in September that looks so cute. We can't go this year but we're putting it on our to do list for next fall. Since I know how much you all enjoy Disney I just thought I'd mention it in case you hadn't heard about it.
Only 15 minutes behind schedule? I call that right on time!
I took our girls into the bugs life show too. I wasn't sure because I knew it might be a little scary. I kept saying how funny it was and making a big deal laughing when we'd get sprayed, etc. They actually were really into it until the very end when the bugs run under you. I said "oh my gosh! There's bugs under your tushie!" and our youngest burst into tears. I felt horrible since she wasn't crying until I said that, but our oldest found it hilarious, at least!
Yeah!! Charlotte went on the potty!!! You're right-that IS magical!
This has nothing to do with your trip, but have you guys ever gone out to Marceline? We've never gone, but we really want to. They are having some kind of fair in September that looks so cute. We can't go this year but we're putting it on our to do list for next fall. Since I know how much you all enjoy Disney I just thought I'd mention it in case you hadn't heard about it.
Jackiemarie21
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2012
Great update!
Thanks! AK was a fun day for us!
Well, at least in Parks and Rec the word butchering is scripted and for comedy, but it defiantly makes me want to scream!
Sounds like we had a similar trip! It was not too bad going in the summer this time, I actually kind of liked late July! Those toddler girls sure can be high maintenance! I know what you mean about the food. I after Y&Y I totally didn't even try to take any more pictures, DD was usually so hungry by the time our food came an extra second was unbearable!
I really do love sewing for my DD, thank you!
Another gorgeous bow on your sweet little Charlotte!! Love it! She looks adorable in the safari picture.
Only 15 minutes behind schedule? I call that right on time!
I took our girls into the bugs life show too. I wasn't sure because I knew it might be a little scary. I kept saying how funny it was and making a big deal laughing when we'd get sprayed, etc. They actually were really into it until the very end when the bugs run under you. I said "oh my gosh! There's bugs under your tushie!" and our youngest burst into tears. I felt horrible since she wasn't crying until I said that, but our oldest found it hilarious, at least!
Yeah!! Charlotte went on the potty!!! You're right-that IS magical!
This has nothing to do with your trip, but have you guys ever gone out to Marceline? We've never gone, but we really want to. They are having some kind of fair in September that looks so cute. We can't go this year but we're putting it on our to do list for next fall. Since I know how much you all enjoy Disney I just thought I'd mention it in case you hadn't heard about it.
For us 15 minutes behind schedule is a miracle!
You just never know about how kids will react to attractions. Its funny how the adult reactions have such an influence over how the kids react. I tried really hard to keep my preconceived notions to myself so Charlotte experienced things with an open mind. Its hard to do that though!
I never even thought of going to Marceline, but I just googled it and it looks so fun! I am totally taking to DH about that one. We can't do it this year, it is DH's homecoming weekend, but like you its going on a to do list for next year!
Jackiemarie21
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2012
So, where I left off we were heading back to our resort room for a nap. Charlotte and I took a nap while Bob went for a swim and had a beer at the pool bar. We got up and started getting ready for our dinner ADR around 5:00, and by 6:00 we were out the door. We headed up to the monorail and had a quick uneventful ride. Charlotte was really starting to love the monorail by this point:
She was also starting to be a little more well rested and back to her normal self although that cold was still hanging around
We got to EPCOT at 6:20 which gave us plenty of time to get to our dinner and make a pit stop on the way there! The night before on our way out of EPCOT Charlotte memorized with the big ball, she kept pointing to it and really got a kick out of going under it. I thought maybe she would like to go inside it. So I asked her if she would like to go up in the ball, she said "YES!" the wait was only 5 minutes so away we went. The ride went well Charlotte seemed to enjoy most of it. Except the part where it gets dark and looks like the stars are shooting past you. She jumped in my lap and was holding on super tight. This was the point in the trip when I realized she was afraid of the dark. I know we have to have a nightlight at home, but I just didn't realize how intense her fear of the dark really is. This really helped me to deal with some of the night time battles we have been having. See, a Disney trip is more than just fun, its helps you to understand your family better too! Anyway, back to the TR. We got off the ride and headed to The Land where we were having dinner. That's right we were eating with Mickey, Pluto, Chip and Dale at the Garden Grill! I was really excited about this ADR, I wanted to try it on our last trip, but I talked myself out of it. I was a little nervous about how Charlotte might act with characters since she did not love the Jungle Book friends earlier today but, I was determined to try!
We checked in about 15 minutes before our ADR time and I requested a booth. The CM said the wait would be a little longer because a lot of people had requested a booth, but she could not give me an estimate of how long. That was annoying, but I wanted the booth so we would have a buffer between Charlotte and the characters if necessary, so I said we would wait. We were given a pager and told to wait off to the side. Charlotte was really wound up! She was running all over the place and acting like a crazy child. I was starting to miss the exhausted child who just wanted to be held all day the day before. We started making laps around the top of the land while Bob waited near the restaurant with the pager. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity (but was actually like 15 minutes) our pager went off and we were shown to a nice booth. We had a great server, but I can not remember his name. He was so nice and patient with our rowdy two year old. We ordered drinks, Cokes for Bob and I, chocolate milk for Charlotte. (Just a side note here, but it is so nice how Disney allows kids under three to have a drink at no charge. I would have no problem paying the $2 for the drink, but over the length of the trip that would add up and it was a nice touch). With our drinks the salad and bread came out. Disclaimer: I have to say we are all salad lovers, all three of us could make a meal out of salad alone, so my review of the salad may not be the same as a non-salad lover. But, we all LOVED the salad. We ate the whole bowl and wanted to ask for seconds but decided not to. It was awesome! The bread was good too, but the salad wow! You can really taste the freshness of it and even though it was amazing, it was not our favorite salad of the trip so stay tuned for that! While we were eating our salad Pluto came by. Charlotte did not know what to think. So, I followed advise I read on here. I got up myself and hugged Pluto and posed for a picture:
I asked Charlotte if she wanted to come give Pluto a hug she said "No", but did wave bye to him. We kept eating our delicious salad, and I was enjoying the fact that Charlotte was in a great mood and participating in the meal without sitting on my lag. Then I noticed Mickey was headed to our table next. Now, I have to give you a little back story here. We had been telling Charlotte for weeks that she was going to "Mickey's House" and that she would get to meet Mickey. We used the concept like Santa. When she was acting up we would say do you think Mickey wants a little girl acting that way at his house? and she would usually stop what she was doing. In restaurants we would practice how she was supposed to eat at Mickey's house. It really worked. But, I was a little afraid of how she would react when she actually saw the main mouse. I thought she might be a little afraid since he has such a high standard of behavior and all. But, when she spotted Mickey she was excited! I asked her if she would like to get up and say hello and she said she wanted to. So, I got up with her. Here are our pics of Charlotte's first encounter with Mickey:
I was giving him five
She was still a little nervous but very happy!
Then, Chip came by. Charlotte is not really familiar with Chip and Dale but, she was wearing a Chip and Dale shirt, so she had an icebreaker. She got right up when he came by our table. I initially still had to be in the picture, but Chip was giving her lots of attention and she quickly became very comfortable with him:
Dale pointing himself out on Charlotte's shirt
Group shot!
Now we are getting the hang of this!
So, at some point between all this fun we ate dinner. We had turkey and stuffing, beef and mashed potatoes and tilapia. They also gave Charlotte a kids plate with a baked chicken leg, broccoli and macaroni and cheese. She LOVED this! The macaroni had gold fish on top and Charlotte thought that was really neat. She ate most of her plate. Bob and I both really liked the adult selections as well. Everything was cooked perfectly. My favorite was the beef and Bob's the turkey. Our sever kept trying to bring us more, but we were stuffed so we declined seconds. Dale never did come by our table. He was pulled away just before our table and then skipped us when he started making his rounds again. Charlotte did not even notice, so it was not that big of a deal. After our meal, dessert came. It was fantastic as well. It was a berry cobbler sort of thing, very yummy. Charlotte got a cupcake in a cone, which she liked but she had it all over her face. It was near dessert when Charlotte started thinking she could get up and run around. I don't know if it was the rotating or the fact that we was able to get up and greet the characters, but she was all over the place! It must be something about that place because there were three other toddlers doing the same thing. It was driving me nuts! Pluto dropped back by as we were finishing dessert, this time the meeting went a little differently:
Please excuse the frosting all over her face, she could not stop for one second for me to wipe it.
After Pluto I decided it was time to get DD out of there. Bob stayed back and paid while I took Charlotte to the restroom to clean her off and change her diaper. On our way out we finally got to meet Dale, but we did not take a picture.
My thoughts on this meal: This is now on our must do list! We loved it. The character interaction was not the best of the trip, but we needed the more low key interaction to ease DD into meeting the characters. I would do this one again in a second!
After we joined back up with DH we wanted to ride the Land to see what we just had to eat being grown. But, it was already closed! At 8:30 when the park didn't close until 9:00. What a bummer. We decided to just move on to World Showcase so we could take care of some very important business!
I had to have a Grey Goose slush! So, we headed straight to France! I got the Grey Goose and DH got the Grand Mainer, so we could try both. I liked the Grey Goose better and DH like the Grand Mainer better, perfect! DD saw us drinking slushies and she wanted one too. I felt bad about having the treat in front of her, so I set out to find DD a frozen beverage. In Morocco there was a little stand with a nonalcoholic slush. I got her a pink lemonade one and met back up with my family. It was pretty good but of course she didn't drink it all. Soon after that Illuminations started. We watched it between France and Morocco which was just an okay spot, but we still enjoyed it. DH loves Illuminations, I like it too, just not as much as him. So, I held Charlotte so she could see better. She really liked this show:
Please ignore the goofy look on my face, Charlotte was showing Bob where the fire works were going off.
That was my only picture during Illuminations. Since, I was holding DD it was too hard to take pictures and DH likes to experience fireworks in the moment not taking pictures.
After the show we took our time heading back to the monorail. We knew the line would be long, so we did not rush. I would rather be wondering around the park than stuck in line. Then we stopped for a photopass pic:
And then headed to get in line for the monorail. It was long! But we only wait about 15 minutes. We were back to the resort by 10:30. We gave Charlotte a quick bath and put her to bed. After showers for us we turned in as well. It had been a great night, but we were sleepy.
She was also starting to be a little more well rested and back to her normal self although that cold was still hanging around
We got to EPCOT at 6:20 which gave us plenty of time to get to our dinner and make a pit stop on the way there! The night before on our way out of EPCOT Charlotte memorized with the big ball, she kept pointing to it and really got a kick out of going under it. I thought maybe she would like to go inside it. So I asked her if she would like to go up in the ball, she said "YES!" the wait was only 5 minutes so away we went. The ride went well Charlotte seemed to enjoy most of it. Except the part where it gets dark and looks like the stars are shooting past you. She jumped in my lap and was holding on super tight. This was the point in the trip when I realized she was afraid of the dark. I know we have to have a nightlight at home, but I just didn't realize how intense her fear of the dark really is. This really helped me to deal with some of the night time battles we have been having. See, a Disney trip is more than just fun, its helps you to understand your family better too! Anyway, back to the TR. We got off the ride and headed to The Land where we were having dinner. That's right we were eating with Mickey, Pluto, Chip and Dale at the Garden Grill! I was really excited about this ADR, I wanted to try it on our last trip, but I talked myself out of it. I was a little nervous about how Charlotte might act with characters since she did not love the Jungle Book friends earlier today but, I was determined to try!
We checked in about 15 minutes before our ADR time and I requested a booth. The CM said the wait would be a little longer because a lot of people had requested a booth, but she could not give me an estimate of how long. That was annoying, but I wanted the booth so we would have a buffer between Charlotte and the characters if necessary, so I said we would wait. We were given a pager and told to wait off to the side. Charlotte was really wound up! She was running all over the place and acting like a crazy child. I was starting to miss the exhausted child who just wanted to be held all day the day before. We started making laps around the top of the land while Bob waited near the restaurant with the pager. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity (but was actually like 15 minutes) our pager went off and we were shown to a nice booth. We had a great server, but I can not remember his name. He was so nice and patient with our rowdy two year old. We ordered drinks, Cokes for Bob and I, chocolate milk for Charlotte. (Just a side note here, but it is so nice how Disney allows kids under three to have a drink at no charge. I would have no problem paying the $2 for the drink, but over the length of the trip that would add up and it was a nice touch). With our drinks the salad and bread came out. Disclaimer: I have to say we are all salad lovers, all three of us could make a meal out of salad alone, so my review of the salad may not be the same as a non-salad lover. But, we all LOVED the salad. We ate the whole bowl and wanted to ask for seconds but decided not to. It was awesome! The bread was good too, but the salad wow! You can really taste the freshness of it and even though it was amazing, it was not our favorite salad of the trip so stay tuned for that! While we were eating our salad Pluto came by. Charlotte did not know what to think. So, I followed advise I read on here. I got up myself and hugged Pluto and posed for a picture:
I asked Charlotte if she wanted to come give Pluto a hug she said "No", but did wave bye to him. We kept eating our delicious salad, and I was enjoying the fact that Charlotte was in a great mood and participating in the meal without sitting on my lag. Then I noticed Mickey was headed to our table next. Now, I have to give you a little back story here. We had been telling Charlotte for weeks that she was going to "Mickey's House" and that she would get to meet Mickey. We used the concept like Santa. When she was acting up we would say do you think Mickey wants a little girl acting that way at his house? and she would usually stop what she was doing. In restaurants we would practice how she was supposed to eat at Mickey's house. It really worked. But, I was a little afraid of how she would react when she actually saw the main mouse. I thought she might be a little afraid since he has such a high standard of behavior and all. But, when she spotted Mickey she was excited! I asked her if she would like to get up and say hello and she said she wanted to. So, I got up with her. Here are our pics of Charlotte's first encounter with Mickey:
I was giving him five
She was still a little nervous but very happy!
Then, Chip came by. Charlotte is not really familiar with Chip and Dale but, she was wearing a Chip and Dale shirt, so she had an icebreaker. She got right up when he came by our table. I initially still had to be in the picture, but Chip was giving her lots of attention and she quickly became very comfortable with him:
Dale pointing himself out on Charlotte's shirt
Group shot!
Now we are getting the hang of this!
So, at some point between all this fun we ate dinner. We had turkey and stuffing, beef and mashed potatoes and tilapia. They also gave Charlotte a kids plate with a baked chicken leg, broccoli and macaroni and cheese. She LOVED this! The macaroni had gold fish on top and Charlotte thought that was really neat. She ate most of her plate. Bob and I both really liked the adult selections as well. Everything was cooked perfectly. My favorite was the beef and Bob's the turkey. Our sever kept trying to bring us more, but we were stuffed so we declined seconds. Dale never did come by our table. He was pulled away just before our table and then skipped us when he started making his rounds again. Charlotte did not even notice, so it was not that big of a deal. After our meal, dessert came. It was fantastic as well. It was a berry cobbler sort of thing, very yummy. Charlotte got a cupcake in a cone, which she liked but she had it all over her face. It was near dessert when Charlotte started thinking she could get up and run around. I don't know if it was the rotating or the fact that we was able to get up and greet the characters, but she was all over the place! It must be something about that place because there were three other toddlers doing the same thing. It was driving me nuts! Pluto dropped back by as we were finishing dessert, this time the meeting went a little differently:
Please excuse the frosting all over her face, she could not stop for one second for me to wipe it.
After Pluto I decided it was time to get DD out of there. Bob stayed back and paid while I took Charlotte to the restroom to clean her off and change her diaper. On our way out we finally got to meet Dale, but we did not take a picture.
My thoughts on this meal: This is now on our must do list! We loved it. The character interaction was not the best of the trip, but we needed the more low key interaction to ease DD into meeting the characters. I would do this one again in a second!
After we joined back up with DH we wanted to ride the Land to see what we just had to eat being grown. But, it was already closed! At 8:30 when the park didn't close until 9:00. What a bummer. We decided to just move on to World Showcase so we could take care of some very important business!
I had to have a Grey Goose slush! So, we headed straight to France! I got the Grey Goose and DH got the Grand Mainer, so we could try both. I liked the Grey Goose better and DH like the Grand Mainer better, perfect! DD saw us drinking slushies and she wanted one too. I felt bad about having the treat in front of her, so I set out to find DD a frozen beverage. In Morocco there was a little stand with a nonalcoholic slush. I got her a pink lemonade one and met back up with my family. It was pretty good but of course she didn't drink it all. Soon after that Illuminations started. We watched it between France and Morocco which was just an okay spot, but we still enjoyed it. DH loves Illuminations, I like it too, just not as much as him. So, I held Charlotte so she could see better. She really liked this show:
Please ignore the goofy look on my face, Charlotte was showing Bob where the fire works were going off.
That was my only picture during Illuminations. Since, I was holding DD it was too hard to take pictures and DH likes to experience fireworks in the moment not taking pictures.
After the show we took our time heading back to the monorail. We knew the line would be long, so we did not rush. I would rather be wondering around the park than stuck in line. Then we stopped for a photopass pic:
And then headed to get in line for the monorail. It was long! But we only wait about 15 minutes. We were back to the resort by 10:30. We gave Charlotte a quick bath and put her to bed. After showers for us we turned in as well. It had been a great night, but we were sleepy.
Jackiemarie21
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2012
Day 4
Sunday July 28th
Sunday July 28th
Alright so those of you who have read my PTR may know that I went to painstaking efforts to make plans that I thought would work with my family's comfort level and still get us to see as much as possible. I did not however, take into account DD getting a pretty bad cold, or losing so much sleep because of excitement/the cold. It was my intention on this trip to be flexible as possible and try to work around everyone's comfort level. I did this successfully as I realized that my crew is never going to make rope drop and if I forced them to, it would not be much fun for me either. I also realized that we would miss some things that have been "must-do's" for us in the past, but, we would be doing some things we normally miss because of trying to get everything in. Up until this point, I tried to keep on my pre-planned schedule and force everyone to go with the plan. And, so far we were having a good time but not a great time. So, it was this morning I decided to stop thinking about the plan and do what feels good to us, and you know what, this is where this trip starting becoming "Literally, the best trip ever!" Day 4 was a turning point for sure!
I was supposed to get up at 8:00, but I was still sleepy so I decided to skip some primping and sleep an extra 45 mins, good choice! I quickly got ready and got the rest of my crew up. They got ready pretty quickly and we were out the door by 9:50. Only 10 minutes late, so my new laid back approach was better! We were headed to the Contemporary for breakfast at Chef Mickey's! Then, when we got all the way up to the monorail station and I realized I left the PP+ card sitting on the desk in our room! Uh oh! I did not want to miss our photo package, the restaurant photo packages were a big part of the reason we went with the PP+. So, DH and DD went ahead an got on the monorail and headed to the Contemporary while I ran back to the room got the card and caught a different monorail. It was times like this where I felt the deluxe resort was worth its price tag! I love how easy it is to hop on the monorail! While I was on the monorail DD and DH checked us in and I enjoyed a few minutes by myself to relax. It was a lovely start to the morning. As the monorail pulled into the Contempo. I was so happy with our choice to stay at the Poly. The atmosphere there is more our style. The Contemporary is really neat, but I was pleased with our choice. I found my family and we hoped in line for our picture. I am pretty sure the photographers were the two slowest moving human beings on the planet. They took forever!! While were in line our pager started going off. I was determined to get that stupid picture after running back to the room and everything so we stayed in line. It was finally our turn. The pics turned out okay:
After the two photographers figured out how to get our pictures on our card (which was a ridiculous amount of time for a very simple thing). We check in with the CM and were seated at a great table. We were in the back room in a half booth type table. It was close to the buffet and we could see all the characters coming out so you knew if you had time to get to the buffet or not. It was perfect! Our served came by to get our drink orders and tell us we had plenty of time to get food before the fab five started their rounds. Bob got coffee and juice, I got OJ and Charlotte chocolate milk. Bob went straight up to the buffet and made a plate for DD. She had fruit, eggs and sausage. She really seemed to enjoy the eggs and fruit, but she was there to meet some characters so she was too busy looking around to eat much! Bob made his plate and then I went up to make mine. Most of the food was pretty standard, but the potato casserole was really tasty and I enjoyed the wide variety of fresh fruit.
Charlotte was patiently waiting to meet her "friends":
Donald came by first:
Donald was perfect! He had lots of great interaction with DD!
Next came Minnie:
Minnie was okay she seemed a little rushed, but Charlotte was happy, so I was too!
When Mickey was a few tables away from us they did the dance and napkin thing so we took a break from character meetings. This was really fun though. At first Charlotte could not believe it was okay to wave your napkin around, but she quickly caught on and enjoyed herself:
After the brief dance break, the characters went back to making their rounds. We got to meet the main mouse again:
Next up was Pluto:
Pluto was DD's favorite of the day!
And finally Goofy came by:
After we met everyone, we paid and headed out. It was a very magical meal! Charlotte had a wonderful time, the food was pretty good, and we had pretty good character interaction! All of our breakfasts expect 1 were on the later side 10-10:30. I really enjoyed the later meals. Most of the restaurants were practically empty towards the end of our meal and there were times we got to meet characters two and three times. Since two of the three of us are very laid back this was perfect for my family.
Since I arrived on my own, I went down the escalator after getting off the monorail. But, now that I was with my family we had the stroller so we had to use the elevator. I asked DH how we get back to the monorail via elevator (since he and DD had used the elevator when they arrived) He lead me to an elevator and we got in and he pushed a button. (I was not really paying attention since again, they used the elevator when they arrived so I ASSUMED DH knew what he was doing.) We got off the elevator and were very clearly in the hotel, NOT the monorail, oops I should have known not to listen to DH, he is awful with directions! So, we waited for another elevator to take us down. One came and we got on. Two people who looked important were in the elevator when we got on. DH seemed a little starstruck, so when we got off he told me we were in the elevator with Mike Golic, who used to play for the Philadelphia Eagles and is now the host of ESPN radio's Mike and Mike in the morning. (DH is a huge sports fan) It was a little magic for him! I told him he should have said something to him. He said he was too nervous. It was cute, but out of character for DH, he is usually very outgoing! You just never know where you are going to find a little pixie dust in WDW. Sometimes even when you get on the wrong elevator!
We got on the right elevator and started discussing what we wanted to do. Today was supposed to be a rest day, but DH really felt like he did not get enough EPCOT time and we would not really have another chance to get back there so, we abandoned the plan and headed to EPCOT! Would that be a wise choice...find out soon!
STLMickeyMom
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jun 2, 2013
Chef mickeys was the very first character meal we ever did. We went at dinner but I keep hearing how great breakfast is. Maybe we should add it......anyway, I'm so glad you all had a great experience there and that your DH got a little pixie dust too!!
It looks like you had a great time at Epcot and the garden grill too. I'm glad to hear the food was good. Maybe we'll have to put it back on the list for the next trip. Charlotte was very cute in the Mickey picture and hugging dale. I love her skirt! Did you make that one?
I'm going to have to find these slushies I keep reading about. They sound fantastic!!
So Epcot isn't my favorite park but the PP picture in front of the lit up ball is great! That's an awesome family picture!
Can't wait for more!
It looks like you had a great time at Epcot and the garden grill too. I'm glad to hear the food was good. Maybe we'll have to put it back on the list for the next trip. Charlotte was very cute in the Mickey picture and hugging dale. I love her skirt! Did you make that one?
I'm going to have to find these slushies I keep reading about. They sound fantastic!!
So Epcot isn't my favorite park but the PP picture in front of the lit up ball is great! That's an awesome family picture!
Can't wait for more!
RGirl
Change Is Good
- Joined
- Jan 7, 2010
So glad you posted on my TR - caused me to follow your link to your TR, and I am joining in! What a great trip so far. Charlotte is so cute, and we had some of the same ADRs - always so fun to read about someone else's experience. I'm sorry Charlotte had a cold though - that's no fun. 
Jackiemarie21
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2012
We really did enjoy CM and I am so glad you guys are going to do it! It really encompasses Disney magic if you ask me!
You NEED a slushie, I would like on right now LOL!
Thank you, I liked our night Epcot pics. DH loves Epcot but, its not my thing either really, but we made some good memories this time.
Yay!So glad you posted on my TR - caused me to follow your link to your TR, and I am joining in! What a great trip so far. Charlotte is so cute, and we had some of the same ADRs - always so fun to read about someone else's experience. I'm sorry Charlotte had a cold though - that's no fun.
I am glad to have you along! It is really fun to read along with someone else's TR. I have learned so much from reading about other people's experiences!
Jackiemarie21
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2012
When I last left you all, we had made the snap decision to head to EPCOT after a wonderful breakfast (actually brunch) at Chef Mickey's. While we were on the monorail DH and I were discussing what our plan for day would be. We knew this would be our last time in EPCOT this trip and we knew we had to leave between 2-3 to get DD back to our room for a nap because we had fun evening plans. So I told DH realistically we could do WS or FW not both. It would mean no Test Track or Sorin (which are some of his favs) but, DH has always wanted to "Drink the World", so he chose WS. Now, please understand, DH enjoys a few more adult beverages than normal while we are on vacation especially when we are at Disney since there is no driving. But, he is a big guy and can drink quite a bit before he hits his limit. He would never drink so much that he would put me or DD in harms way, but, he did indulge in a few this day in EPCOT. After this trip he has tried a beer in every country in WS! He met his goal. Next time he plans to start over and try new things!
Okay back to the TR. We arrived at EPCOT around 12:30. I love how the monorail takes you all the way around the park before dropping you off, its really fun. We went through security and through the turnstiles quickly and stopped for a PP pic right away.
I am not sure why DD looks so miserable here, she really was in a good mood!
After that stop we went straight back to WS.
Our first stop was Mexico where I wanted to try a blood orange margarita. I love blood orange and margaritas so I had to try this. It was very good, but very strong and pricy, I did not take note of the price but I think it was like $13,
! Then, we stopped in Norway DH got a beer there and we picked up a Voss water for DD. I scoffed at DH buying a stupid expensive water for a two year old but he assured me it would be worth it. Well, it was Charlotte thought the cap which is big enough to be a cup was so neat! She loved pouring the water from the bottle into the cap and drinking it. So, I kept refilling the bottle. She insisted her bottle was full the entire day and was well hydrated! It was the only day of the trip I was not worried about her not drinking enough water. You just never know what will amuse a toddler! Good call DH!
So on we went. We have always just walked around the perimeter of WS, we had no idea what we were missing. We decided to go in a few of the countries we normally pass up and it was really fun! We kind of breezed by China. We had spent lots of time there on our Honeymoon and Mulan was not out, so there was no real reason to stop. We did stop and look around a bit in Germany. We stopped in Karmel Kuche, this is the first time we have been back since it opened. We were not hungry yet, but decided it was necessary to get some treats for later. I got a Sea Salt caramel, DH got a caramel bar, and Charlotte got a small bag of caramel corn. We used snack credits for all of them. When we ate them later they were fantastic! DH wanted to get a beer here so we stood in a very long line and he got one:
We stopped in America to sit in the shade for a bit. I thought Charlotte was getting a little too much sun so I reapplied her sunscreen and we took a little break. I really wanted to try an American Dream from the Fife and Drum. So I went to get one and the CM said the Slushie machine was broken!
Bummer! So we sat for a few minutes and then went on to Japan. I really wanted to do Pick a Pearl. I had no idea it even existed but as soon as I found out about it, it seemed super fun! I also got this idea that Charlotte should pick a pearl for each Grandma to set in a necklace for Christmas. So we went into Japan, we never actually went in this one before but it is really interesting. We headed into the store in Japan and straight to the pick a pearl counter. I purchased three they were around 17 each with tax. There was no wait so we went right up to the case. Charlotte (with a little help from momma) picked three ugly, hairy, large oysters.
The CM had us count down in Japanese 3,2,1 and then opened each one of our pearls. Charlotte loved this!
I thought we got three really nice pearls. One was 7mm, one 7 1/4mm and one 7 3/4 mm.
I decided to get them set there, so I took the largest one and had it set in a ring for me:
Then we had one set in this pedant for my mom:
And this one for MIL:
This was a really fun experience and I want to do it again when DD gets a little older and can pick one for her.
It was going to be about 30 minutes before our pearls were ready so we decided to head next door to Morocco while we waited. We have never gone inside this one before and it was really neat! There were tons of things to look at. I really admired all the details. DH said he felt like he was in the middle of the market scene in the movie Argo. It was neat. We saw that Aladdin and Jasmine were out. I really wanted to DD to meet them. She really liked meeting the characters and it was the last movie night we had before we left so, I thought she would like to meet them. We jumped in line and one other family got in line behind us and then the line was closed. We barley made it! The line took about 20 minutes but we really enjoyed talking with the people in line behind us. When we got up there, Charlotte would not go up to meet them! I was shocked! I really thought she would be afraid of the costume characters and love the face characters. It was the exact opposite! I had to hold her in the pictures:
Oh well! So it had been a little over 30 minutes. DH and DD went over to France to get another beer and some waters and I went back to Japan to get our pearls. I met back up with my family and we enjoyed our beverages in France. We saw a PP photographer and decided to stop for a pic. He took lots of great pics of the three of us and some really cute ones of DD alone. But this was the only one that showed up:
What a bummer! When I tried calling to see if they could locate the other photos they could not
DH wanted to get one last beer in the UK so we stopped there. Charlotte and I took a potty break and then Charlotte had to make some calls:
Someday, she will ask me, "What are those for?" how sad is that?
After our break DH was finished with his beer and we decided to head back to the future
It was about 3:00 but DD had done so good sitting in the stroller while we toured WS, I wanted to let her ride a ride or two. We went to the Nemo ride and the line was 5 mins, so we hopped on. Does that ride ever had a line? It takes forever to get all the way through and as soon as you do you walk right on. And we always go in the busy summer! Anyway, we went on it and DD loved it! She loved trying to find Nemo in each scene. After Nemo I really wanted to try Living with the Land since we had eaten at Garden Grill. It also had no wait so we jumped on. Charlotte liked this as well. DH also always enjoys this one. At this point it was time (probably past time) to head to the resort. We had to wait a bit for a monorail and then we were back at the Poly. DD would not take a nap, we probably kept her out too long. She did rest and watch some cartoons. Hopefully that would be enough because we had BIG dinner plans...
Okay back to the TR. We arrived at EPCOT around 12:30. I love how the monorail takes you all the way around the park before dropping you off, its really fun. We went through security and through the turnstiles quickly and stopped for a PP pic right away.
I am not sure why DD looks so miserable here, she really was in a good mood!
After that stop we went straight back to WS.
Our first stop was Mexico where I wanted to try a blood orange margarita. I love blood orange and margaritas so I had to try this. It was very good, but very strong and pricy, I did not take note of the price but I think it was like $13,
! Then, we stopped in Norway DH got a beer there and we picked up a Voss water for DD. I scoffed at DH buying a stupid expensive water for a two year old but he assured me it would be worth it. Well, it was Charlotte thought the cap which is big enough to be a cup was so neat! She loved pouring the water from the bottle into the cap and drinking it. So, I kept refilling the bottle. She insisted her bottle was full the entire day and was well hydrated! It was the only day of the trip I was not worried about her not drinking enough water. You just never know what will amuse a toddler! Good call DH!So on we went. We have always just walked around the perimeter of WS, we had no idea what we were missing. We decided to go in a few of the countries we normally pass up and it was really fun! We kind of breezed by China. We had spent lots of time there on our Honeymoon and Mulan was not out, so there was no real reason to stop. We did stop and look around a bit in Germany. We stopped in Karmel Kuche, this is the first time we have been back since it opened. We were not hungry yet, but decided it was necessary to get some treats for later. I got a Sea Salt caramel, DH got a caramel bar, and Charlotte got a small bag of caramel corn. We used snack credits for all of them. When we ate them later they were fantastic! DH wanted to get a beer here so we stood in a very long line and he got one:
We stopped in America to sit in the shade for a bit. I thought Charlotte was getting a little too much sun so I reapplied her sunscreen and we took a little break. I really wanted to try an American Dream from the Fife and Drum. So I went to get one and the CM said the Slushie machine was broken!
Bummer! So we sat for a few minutes and then went on to Japan. I really wanted to do Pick a Pearl. I had no idea it even existed but as soon as I found out about it, it seemed super fun! I also got this idea that Charlotte should pick a pearl for each Grandma to set in a necklace for Christmas. So we went into Japan, we never actually went in this one before but it is really interesting. We headed into the store in Japan and straight to the pick a pearl counter. I purchased three they were around 17 each with tax. There was no wait so we went right up to the case. Charlotte (with a little help from momma) picked three ugly, hairy, large oysters.
The CM had us count down in Japanese 3,2,1 and then opened each one of our pearls. Charlotte loved this!
I thought we got three really nice pearls. One was 7mm, one 7 1/4mm and one 7 3/4 mm.
I decided to get them set there, so I took the largest one and had it set in a ring for me:
Then we had one set in this pedant for my mom:
And this one for MIL:
This was a really fun experience and I want to do it again when DD gets a little older and can pick one for her.
It was going to be about 30 minutes before our pearls were ready so we decided to head next door to Morocco while we waited. We have never gone inside this one before and it was really neat! There were tons of things to look at. I really admired all the details. DH said he felt like he was in the middle of the market scene in the movie Argo. It was neat. We saw that Aladdin and Jasmine were out. I really wanted to DD to meet them. She really liked meeting the characters and it was the last movie night we had before we left so, I thought she would like to meet them. We jumped in line and one other family got in line behind us and then the line was closed. We barley made it! The line took about 20 minutes but we really enjoyed talking with the people in line behind us. When we got up there, Charlotte would not go up to meet them! I was shocked! I really thought she would be afraid of the costume characters and love the face characters. It was the exact opposite! I had to hold her in the pictures:
Oh well! So it had been a little over 30 minutes. DH and DD went over to France to get another beer and some waters and I went back to Japan to get our pearls. I met back up with my family and we enjoyed our beverages in France. We saw a PP photographer and decided to stop for a pic. He took lots of great pics of the three of us and some really cute ones of DD alone. But this was the only one that showed up:
What a bummer! When I tried calling to see if they could locate the other photos they could not
DH wanted to get one last beer in the UK so we stopped there. Charlotte and I took a potty break and then Charlotte had to make some calls:
Someday, she will ask me, "What are those for?" how sad is that?
After our break DH was finished with his beer and we decided to head back to the future
It was about 3:00 but DD had done so good sitting in the stroller while we toured WS, I wanted to let her ride a ride or two. We went to the Nemo ride and the line was 5 mins, so we hopped on. Does that ride ever had a line? It takes forever to get all the way through and as soon as you do you walk right on. And we always go in the busy summer! Anyway, we went on it and DD loved it! She loved trying to find Nemo in each scene. After Nemo I really wanted to try Living with the Land since we had eaten at Garden Grill. It also had no wait so we jumped on. Charlotte liked this as well. DH also always enjoys this one. At this point it was time (probably past time) to head to the resort. We had to wait a bit for a monorail and then we were back at the Poly. DD would not take a nap, we probably kept her out too long. She did rest and watch some cartoons. Hopefully that would be enough because we had BIG dinner plans...
Jackiemarie21
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2012
After Charlotte relaxed but did not nap, it was time to get ready for dinner! Tonight we would be going to the Hoop Dee Doo Musical Review! I never really thought about trying this one, but I read a few reviews on here and decided to try it. After I told DH that we would be trying it, he told me that the only part of Disney he enjoyed as a child was the HDDMR! We were are pretty excited for this one!
We left about 7:00, which was a little later than I wanted to. I really wanted to spend some time looking around Ft. Wilderness, but everyone was moving slow! We took the monorail to MK (it seemed like every time we need a monorail from the poly is was right there waiting or there with in a few minutes). Then we took a boat from the MK to Ft. Wilderness. The boat took a looong time to get there! Charlotte really liked riding the boat. I had never been to Ft. Wilderness before so it was a neat ride. I was seeing something totally new to me too! We got off at Ft. Wilderness and I have to say it was like landing on the moon! Ft. Wilderness has a very different vibe to it than any other place in WDW. It is so laid back and homey. It reminded me of going to my great grandma's country house. I *almost forgot I was in Disney while I was there! I could totally see us getting a cabin there one day.
We got in line to check in for the HDDMR and it was pretty long. The people behind us did not understand the concept of a line. They kept sending members of their party up to the front to check in. Each time the CM would patiently tell them they were in the right line to check in a send them away. That got old, fast! We finally got up to the front checked in and got our pic:
They wanted DD to sit on the barrel in front of us, but that was not happening! After our pic we walked around and I took a few pics of DD:
This was my favorite of all the outfits I made for the trip, so I took lots of pics of Charlotte in it.
Then it was time to line up to go into pioneer hall:
When we see crowds like that and it doesn't make a difference if you are there first or last, we hang back. We don't like to fight crowds. So we let DD walk around some more and look around. She found some horse and kept trying to climb in and see them:
Then, we decided to get in line to go in:
I know I have mentioned many times we are night people and DD often stays up late. We decided to do the last seating 8:30 so we could get category 1 seating with the DxDDp. This worked well as we had plenty of time to get to Ft. Wilderness and we got great seats really close to the stage. When we sat down, salad and cornbread were waiting for us. Our sever took our drink orders right away. DH got a beer, I got the sangria and Charlotte got a sprite. We liked that the price included everything drinks and tip! We started with the salad, and it was soo good. This was our favorite salad of the trip!
The show started and it was a hoot! We love corny jokes and this was the show for that! Charlotte wanted to sit in my lap since we were kind of sitting the middle of the action but she loved it as well!
Then the show took a little break and we had the main course, fried chicken, ribs, corn, mashed potatoes, and baked beans. Everything was great! The beans were a little spicy Dh and liked that but Charlotte did not. Charlotte loved the corn and fried chicken. I could not cut chicken up fast enough for her, so she just took a whole piece:
After DH snapped that picture I took that away from her and cut it up, don't worry. I didn't let her have the whole thing. We just thought it was funny!
Then show went on and Charlotte was having so much fun! She loved clapping along with the songs. She got so into it when they asked who was celebrating a birthday she threw both arms up in the air. I mouthed to the performers she wasn't, then they asked who was celebrating an anniversary and again both DD's fly up in the air. The lady who was playing Dolly almost broke character laughing at my DD. It was kind of cute! There was more napkin waving which Charlotte loved again! She was having so much fun dancing and clapping she did not even want dessert! This was my favorite dessert of the whole trip! Strawberry shortcake is one of favorites and this one was really good! It was all gone when we left the table, I am not telling who ate most of it.... Towards the end of the show they brought out washboards and told the kids to make noise with them. No problem for Charlotte, she's a pro at noise making:
When it was over we stopped for a potty break and then went out to find a boat the MK waiting for us! Perfect! Again Charlotte enjoyed the boat a lot! She told me on the boat she wanted to ride all the boats! So when we got to MK and the monorail line was super long, and there was a resort boat waiting so, we decided to make Charlotte's goal and take the boat back to the poly. She was happy! We got back to the room around 11:30. We skipped a bath for Charlotte since she was crashing fast and put her right to bed. I called home to check on the dogs and then crashed myself. We had a great day, but our trip was officially half over.
So would we do the HDDMR again? YES! It is now a must do for us! It was awesome. We really had a great time! If you are on the fence about this one, try it!
We left about 7:00, which was a little later than I wanted to. I really wanted to spend some time looking around Ft. Wilderness, but everyone was moving slow! We took the monorail to MK (it seemed like every time we need a monorail from the poly is was right there waiting or there with in a few minutes). Then we took a boat from the MK to Ft. Wilderness. The boat took a looong time to get there! Charlotte really liked riding the boat. I had never been to Ft. Wilderness before so it was a neat ride. I was seeing something totally new to me too! We got off at Ft. Wilderness and I have to say it was like landing on the moon! Ft. Wilderness has a very different vibe to it than any other place in WDW. It is so laid back and homey. It reminded me of going to my great grandma's country house. I *almost forgot I was in Disney while I was there! I could totally see us getting a cabin there one day.
We got in line to check in for the HDDMR and it was pretty long. The people behind us did not understand the concept of a line. They kept sending members of their party up to the front to check in. Each time the CM would patiently tell them they were in the right line to check in a send them away. That got old, fast! We finally got up to the front checked in and got our pic:
They wanted DD to sit on the barrel in front of us, but that was not happening! After our pic we walked around and I took a few pics of DD:
This was my favorite of all the outfits I made for the trip, so I took lots of pics of Charlotte in it.
Then it was time to line up to go into pioneer hall:
When we see crowds like that and it doesn't make a difference if you are there first or last, we hang back. We don't like to fight crowds. So we let DD walk around some more and look around. She found some horse and kept trying to climb in and see them:
Then, we decided to get in line to go in:
I know I have mentioned many times we are night people and DD often stays up late. We decided to do the last seating 8:30 so we could get category 1 seating with the DxDDp. This worked well as we had plenty of time to get to Ft. Wilderness and we got great seats really close to the stage. When we sat down, salad and cornbread were waiting for us. Our sever took our drink orders right away. DH got a beer, I got the sangria and Charlotte got a sprite. We liked that the price included everything drinks and tip! We started with the salad, and it was soo good. This was our favorite salad of the trip!
The show started and it was a hoot! We love corny jokes and this was the show for that! Charlotte wanted to sit in my lap since we were kind of sitting the middle of the action but she loved it as well!
Then the show took a little break and we had the main course, fried chicken, ribs, corn, mashed potatoes, and baked beans. Everything was great! The beans were a little spicy Dh and liked that but Charlotte did not. Charlotte loved the corn and fried chicken. I could not cut chicken up fast enough for her, so she just took a whole piece:
After DH snapped that picture I took that away from her and cut it up, don't worry. I didn't let her have the whole thing. We just thought it was funny!
Then show went on and Charlotte was having so much fun! She loved clapping along with the songs. She got so into it when they asked who was celebrating a birthday she threw both arms up in the air. I mouthed to the performers she wasn't, then they asked who was celebrating an anniversary and again both DD's fly up in the air. The lady who was playing Dolly almost broke character laughing at my DD. It was kind of cute! There was more napkin waving which Charlotte loved again! She was having so much fun dancing and clapping she did not even want dessert! This was my favorite dessert of the whole trip! Strawberry shortcake is one of favorites and this one was really good! It was all gone when we left the table, I am not telling who ate most of it...
. Towards the end of the show they brought out washboards and told the kids to make noise with them. No problem for Charlotte, she's a pro at noise making:
When it was over we stopped for a potty break and then went out to find a boat the MK waiting for us! Perfect! Again Charlotte enjoyed the boat a lot! She told me on the boat she wanted to ride all the boats! So when we got to MK and the monorail line was super long, and there was a resort boat waiting so, we decided to make Charlotte's goal and take the boat back to the poly. She was happy! We got back to the room around 11:30. We skipped a bath for Charlotte since she was crashing fast and put her right to bed. I called home to check on the dogs and then crashed myself. We had a great day, but our trip was officially half over.
So would we do the HDDMR again? YES! It is now a must do for us! It was awesome. We really had a great time! If you are on the fence about this one, try it!
Share this page
-
Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery Announce Disney+, Hulu, Max Bundle
-
Disney's New The Lion King at the Hollywood Bowl To Join Disney+
-
New Specialty Dish at Morimoto Asia for AAPI Month!
-
Five Summer Tips for Dealing With Rain at Walt Disney World
-
Small Bytes Pool Bar Now Open at Pixar Place Hotel in Disneyland
GET A DISNEY VACATION QUOTE
Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.
Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!
Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.
Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!
