Volks' 3rd year bounceback: PTR/Countdown

[kvolk]

my name is katherine (31). i'm wife to brian (36) & mom to DS ADV (6) & DD LRV (4). I live in atlanta where i'm a video producer. two years ago my boss took our team on the backstage magic tour, and i fell in love with disney!

we went with two families last year and stayed at POR. we loved free dining, and bounced-back. this year, we opted for the family suites at ASMu. we leave in six days! coming with us again are our good friends jay & andrea & their kids: DS WM (9), DS SM (6) & DD LAM (3). our families had a lot of fun together last year. plus we're bringing my DBIL matt & DSIL stephanie, neice HGM (5) & nephew BWM (2) for their first trip. it's so fun to introduce newbies to the magic

sunday 9/20: fantasmic!

we're headed down sunday morning, 9/20; due to arrive around 4pm. after checking into ASMu, we plan to head over to studios. now, despite calling at 7:01am 90 days out, we were not able to book the fantasmic dining pkg this time around. so my biggest concern for our trip is the crowd level at fantasmic. somehow we've got to wrangle seats for 13 people at the first show that night. despite being booked for 50sPTC, i have a feeling we're going to end up grabbing a picnic at catalina eddies and eating in the bleachers.

this will be HGM & BWM's first taste of disney, so i think we'll try our luck for TSM fastpasses & then go to MoDA to meet characters. then maybe star tours. i want everyone to be able to play before the F! show after being in the car for 8 hours. at least an hour before showtime we'll grab dinner & picnic while we wait. after the show, we'll head home so we can make the EMH at AK!

Animal Kingdom - a week from today!

we plan to arrive at rope drop & hit the centralized FP machines en route to the safari. my DBIL is a vet & their fam is super-excited to see all the animals. so we want to hit it 1st thing. then we'll head over to the boneyard playground. the adults will take turns riding everest & dinosaur while the little ones play. WM & SM both rode EE last year. i'm hoping they will convince ADV to ride it this time around. i think we can talk the little girls thru dinosaur, but we'll play that by ear.

after hanging out in dinoland, we'll hit the 10:30 Nemo show. we found the music on itunes & the kids are so excited. we're hoping for an aisle seat so we can get up close to the puppets. the show is so beautiful & fun. can't wait. i think this is when steph & matt's family will fall in love with disney...

then i think we'll beat the crowds for an early lunch at pizzafari. followed by ITTBaB. it might freak out the girls, in which case, we'll split up and take the little kids along the trails. after meeting up with the boys, we'll pose for pics in front of the TOL. depending on time we may squeeze in another ride on EE or brave kali river rapids. we'll cap our day at the 1:30pm show of FotLK.

can't wait!!

after pool time & downtime in the afternoon, we'll head to chef mickeys for a 6:30pm dinner. hoping for some cute pics with the mouse & friends. not sure how to end the night... maybe a boatride to the boardwalk? or a trip around the monorail loop?

stay tuned...

 

[kvolk]

Tuesday 9/22 is our Epcot day.

DS ADV is beside himself with excitement over the kim possible adventures at epcot. he has been religiously watching the shows, memorizing all the villains and their weaknesses so that he'll be ready to save the world. i'm hoping we'll have time to do two adventures; it's the top of our priority list for this day.

but i'm getting ahead of myself... the plan is to hit the EMH at rope drop. we'll send the dads to FP soarin' and the moms will take the kids to the character spot for pics while they're still fresh. then we'll meet up with the dads and head over to test track. then we'll move on to mission space where the boys will experience the green ride for the first time.

then it's off to nemo & turtle talk w/crush. last year ADV was the first kid crush spoke to, but he was too busy talking to his friends to answer. but then crush called on WM & it was one of the highlights of the trip. after the seas, we'll go soarin' over cali -- sure to be one of steph's favs. we may or may not have time to hit figment before we check in at the kim possible booth.

while saving the world KP style, we'll eat some lunch. i hope to hit boulangerie patisserie or tangierine cafe... but there's a strong likelihood the kids will be eating at liberty inn. as we loop the world showcase, we hope to see the tigger maze, maelstrom, & the three caballeros. and keep an eye out for princesses. the plan is to hit spaceship earth as we leave, but we may save that for later.

after some rest time and/or pool time, we'll take the miller kids to give matt & steph a date night. they've chosen chefs de france. we ate there on our date night last year. the filet & cheese plate were good. the stand-out was the french onion soup. actually, the stand-out was some time away together! anyway, this year we'll take the kids to biergarten for a german dinner & show. luckily the miller kids eat everything. i'm hoping ADV will not meltdown over german food. but he he thinks it's cool that there's a store in germany with our name on it: volkskunst. it sells cuckoo clocks

another new thing for the kids will be the IllumiNations firework show. hopefully we can meet up with the maurers to experience it together. we are all looking forward to epcot a week from today... but no one more than ADV!!

 

[kvolk]

a week from today we will be in hollywood studios!

the beauty of this day is twofold: 1. no morning EMH, so we hit the park at 9am. 2. date night at citricos!

depending on what we get to ride sunday before fantasmic, here's our rough plan:
FP & ride toy story mania. love to start with a crowd-pleaser! then hit star tours & maybe jedi academy. from there, let the kids run around the movie set playground while a runner FPs rocknrollercoaster & tower of terror. while waiting for our FP windows, maybe hit great movie ride, muppet movie or playhouse disney show.

we definitely want to make the 11:30am beauty & the beast show. it will be a first for all of us. i loved the broadway musical & look forward to seeing what the kept/changed.

lunch: i hear such great things about starring rolls; i'm hoping to try a sandwich. but they only offer pbj uncrustables for kids. so the kids may very well have eddies or rosies again. unfortunately none of these CS restaurants have a/c. so we might hike back to the old fav pizza planet.

if possible, we'll hit TSM again. then the boys will head to LMA stunt show while the girls take in voyage of the little mermaid and magic of disney animation or PHD. i'm not that interested in american idol, but others might be, so we'll play that by ear.

after an afternoon break, the millers will take our kids to whispering canyon cafe for dinner. matt should enjoy this place. i'm hoping the kids don't get too crazy w/all the hoopla & stick horse races. but it looks to be a really good time.

i'm looking forward to my cheese plate. i love the threads that compare all the wdw restaurant cheese plates. from what i've read, citricos is up there. i'm hoping for the arancini risotto, goat cheese salad & filet jardiniere. capped off with the all-important cheese plate & pinot noir. heaven.

yes, i am definitely looking forward to next wednesday

 

[kvolk]

our final day in the parks will be at magic kingdom.

this is sure to be a red letter day in the life of DD LRV. she is so giddy about the prospect of bibbidi bobbidi boutique that she can only whisper the name - it is sacred in her heart!

thursday has EMH at MK. and you better believe we will be there at rope drop. the plan is to stick together and ride peter pan, dumbo, small world, pooh, tea cups, philharmagic & possible snow white.

the girls will split off and go to BBB at 10:30am at the castle. we've got LRV's cinderella, aurora & tink outfits packed & ready. we'll see who she wants to be that day while she knows about BBB, i look forward to surprising her with lunch at cinderella's royal table. all three girls & moms are slated for an 11:45 lunch. the girls are 3, 4 & 5 -- what perfect ages!

after our girls princess extravaganza, we'll hit the carousel & possibly pixie hollow. then meet up with the guys at 2pm at buzz lightyear. i'm hoping to also hit monsters laugh floor with the whole group of 13; that's another attraction new to the kids this year. then we'll break at the resort for the afternoon.

we plan to head back to MK around 6pm. catch pirates or jungle cruise and then grab dinner. i think we'll go for take-out from cosmic rays or caseys and stake out our spot for spectromagic & wishes. last year we were late getting out of crystal palace & had poor views of spectro. i'm hoping we can watch from the bridge to tomorrowland/hub in front of the castle...

i love going to MK on our last day. it's like the whole trip is building toward that grand finale!

 

[bdvolk]

It looks like the pre-trip report only goes through Thursday, but I expect Friday will be a big deal. ADV has been saving his allowance money since early summer and has $50 to take with him to Downtown Disney (including the $$ from grandparents). He can't wait to hit the Lego store and also build his own Lightsaber. LRV also started receiving allowance when she hit 4 and though she's not much of a saver, she'll have some of her own money to spend.

And of course, there's Goofy's Candy Co, where I'll be looking forward to my Mickey Head rice crispy treat with white chocolate, milk chocolate, caramel and various chocolate chips. Sugar rush!!

 

[kvolk]

ahh, hon - you posted to my PTR! you're releasing your inner disney freak too... that's love

yes, next friday we will indeed hit downtown disney. we have our kids wait until then to choose their souvenirs. and it's a great place for mom & dad to spend the left-over DDP credits at goofy's candy co.

ADV is into kingdom keepers; he might get the AK sequel. but odds are it's all going to the lego store. we plan to pick up an advent calendar while we're there. and maybe score some more girl legos for LRV.

LRV is all over the map. the girl likes everything. she oscillates between building her own pink lightsaber to a new sleeping beauty crown to hannah montana gear. who knows where she'll land.

DH BDV will most definitely hit goofy's & build some crazy treat. i'll stock up on candy for cmas stockings.

i'm hoping we eat at wolfgang puck express. the maurers ate their last year & raved about it. BDV & i enjoyed earl of sandwich as always, but the kids were not thrilled w/their choices there. no matter what, DTD eases the transition back to the real world. it's a great stop after check-out but before the long road home.