4 Parks + 5 Staples in the Baby's Head = 9 Magical Days!! (9/17 The Last Hurrah!)

Wow! Finally caught up 2 days and 44 pages later!!!

Your TR is great!

Love that you folks have Disney Gear everyday! Now if I can only get my DH to do that for me!

Can't wait to hear about the rest! :banana:
 
I am super jealous of you. You got a picture of Buzz's face. Every pic I have you can't see his actual face.

That was very nice of those ladies to move for the kiddo's. And that family to move and take your pic.

Your description of Stitch actually makes me want to ride it again and I have said I would never ride it again. My DS so wanted to ride it because the Disney Video makes it look like the actual seats move or something. He still thinks there is another Stitch ride somewhere.:laughing:

Yeah - I lucked out on Buzz' face. It actually turned out pretty good.
And we were definitely treated with some Disney magic when the ladies moved for the kiddies
and another family took that Goofy shot. We made sure to pay some magic back later.

As for Stitch, I still don't see why everyone hates it.
It's not the most amazing ride ever, but for what is, it's actually fun!
And that's basically a ride for boys who will be boys.

Great update. I am thinking about rereading your TR since our very first trip is next month and you did a great job of planning and have great tips!

We are letting DS go on the Pirate Cruise as well. Just a question... how early should we show up to get him on the boat? His cruise is at 9:30 and we have 8:05 ressies at 1900 Park Fare.

We arrived at about 9:00/9:15 or so.
I believe our Chef Mickey's reservations were 7:30 and we ate fairly quick and then hopped the monorail.
But since you are already at the Grand Floridian, you won't have the travel time so you'll be fine.
And feel free to PM me if you have any questions!!
I love helping others plan their trips as well - I'm kind of psychotic that way...
 
Wow! Finally caught up 2 days and 44 pages later!!!

Your TR is great!

Love that you folks have Disney Gear everyday! Now if I can only get my DH to do that for me!

Can't wait to hear about the rest! :banana:

Thanks and glad to have you aboard!
And glad you like the outfits!
We're even starting to "gear" up for our upcoming trip!
We need to get all the new outfits ready for our new experiences!!
And yes, we are very sick...
 
So we arrive at the resort launch and get in line.
It was about 4:45 or so.
Dinner was at 6:30 – we were going to Mickey’s Backyard Barbeque.
However, everyone on the DIS recommended we arrive at 5:30.
Which, of course, meant a 5:00 boat.
So here we were.

I called Mom to see where she was and they were just getting onto the bus from Pop Century.
Around then, a boat appeared for Wilderness Lodge and they announced that there were some issues with the Ft. Wildnerness boat.
They recommended everyone take the bus.

Great – I was avoiding the bus since I knew the bus stop for Ft. Wilderness was on the other side of the resort.
We would have to take an internal bus to the BBQ once we arrived.
More travelling with grumpy kids. :headache:

Everyone left and we were now at the front of the line.
I wasn’t sure what to do but finally I gave up.
So we headed towards the bus stops.
We got to the info desk and I talked to a CM there.
She said the boats were fine and another one was on its way.
Love the mixed messages.
So we headed all the way back down to the boats.
Which is not so close - especially when I'm pushing a stroller along with two grumpy kids.

Now we were about 10-20th on line.
But there was no CM telling people that the boats were shut down.
However, it was clear that one of the boats was taken offline.
When the boat finally arrived, they announced it would be the last one for quite some time since it was the only one running.
Great.

I quickly called Mom and told her to get over here NOW.
I got the kids settled and waited for the rest of the line to board.
Then I began to plead my case with the captain stalling for as much time as I could.
Finally I saw Mom in the distance, pointed her out, and begged the captain to wait for her.
She finally arrived huffing and puffing and not in a good mood.
But, if she missed this boat, she wouldn’t have made dinner (since I had the tickets).
It was a nice boat ride, but with all the excitement, we arrived about 6:00 at Ft. Wilderness.
This was much later than expected so we headed off fairly quickly towards the pavilion.
Of course, there’s always time for a photo spot:
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DS began to inform us that he was here on his Pirate Cruise and knew the way.
So we “followed” DS (and some signs) and headed towards the BBQ.
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Chip and Dale were outside taking pictures but when we arrived, the CM said the line was closed.
We could have picture opportunities later.
That sucked (and just for the record, there were no opportunities later).
So we headed along with the rest of the masses to the cabins outside the eating area.
They held everyone up here but provided games and drinks.
DS played some checkers
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But we had heard horror stories about getting seats, so we made sure to head over to the line.
There was one small gate and LOTS of people pushing and shoving to get a better spot.
Mom had parked the stroller and had the kids with her.
My job was to get a spot.
Sure enough, the rope dropped and everyone charged.
And I literally mean charged.
It was insane and totally un-Disney like.
I was able to get us a table close to the dance floor/stage with Mom close behind and we sat down.
Then a rude family showed up and started pushing us over.
Um, excuse me – we were here first.
They didn’t seem to care and kept pushing my children.
I swapped places with the little ones since I KNEW they were not going to push me.
Needless to say, this meal did not start off very well.
When everyone was mostly seated, I headed off to get some food for everyone.
Food was slim pickings for the little ones – hot dogs were all they (and I) would eat here.
Mom was a little more adventurous but the food was not good at all.
They had alcohol which is their way of saying water mixed with a little wine or some horrible thing they attempted to call beer.

Anyway, I figured the show & characters would be worth it (Again, for the record, they weren't).
Mickey and the hosts took the stage so we settled in.
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They talked a bit and then invited everyone up to dance.
I ran up to get a picture since the kids were not interested.
I snapped Mickey
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And Goofy
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Before the entirety of the kid population basically attacked the characters. And then, DS and DD decided to go dance.
It was insane. There were walls of children surrounding the characters and trying to dance with them.
Big kids were pushing little kids.
Adults were pushing big kids and little kids.
I had enough of this.
The kids went to sit down as they announced dessert and I decided to see if I could get X to meet the chars.
The best I could do was this pic.
If you look close you can see DD and DS
but you can also see the masses surrounding Mickey even here.
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Dessert was the best part of this meal as the ice cream cabinets were stocked with ice pops and Mickey Bars. :mickeybar
And you know how much we love a good Mickey Bar.
Everyone got their own this time around:
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And here are the “after” shots:
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Nice mess eh?
DD’s fell towards the end and she was about ready to lose it.
So we went back for another treat.
This time she chose the ice pop
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About now, they gathered all the children around the stage for some roping demonstrations.
That was pretty cool but I was ready to leave already.
Finally it was about about 7:45 and I think we’d had enough.
The BBQ goes to 8.
We were finished with our desserts, had no desire to attempt the dancefloor anymore,
and were done waiting for the chars to make their rounds for pics like other character meals.
And yes, the CM’s promised this would happen.
It didn’t.
On our way out (7:50), we saw Minnie just starting to talk to some tables (far away from ours).
But the rest of the chars were still on the dance floor.
Since we passed Minnie on our way out, we snuck in and grabbed a quick pic.
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I know that’s uncool but I was so frustrated by this point, I didn’t care.
We stopped for pitstops on the way out and DS found some blocks to go building.
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Of course our own X-zilla knocked down the tower.

So, DS built another
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And kept building until it was taller than him
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Finally, we headed back to Pop.
We had to take the boat back to Magic Kingdom and then transfer to a bus to Pop.

Bottom line – Mickey’s Backyard BBQ is NEVER something we will do again.
The food was average at best, the CM’s had no control, and it felt like I was at a low-class chain restaurant.
This was the first time we really didn’t feel like being in Disney (other than seeing the characters).
There was no organization, poor planning, poor food, and average entertainment.
If you are not a pushy person, you will not get a seat from which you can see nor will you meet the chars.
And this was 2 Table Service credits.
I was thoroughly disappointed as the only things we enjoyed were the Mickey Bars and the blocks.

We got home frustrated, put the kids to sleep, and tried to finish packing.
Mom had packed a bit when she was home earlier in the day so we tried to finish up.
I headed down to the lobby and settled up the bill applying the last of our Disney Rewards Dollars to the room balance.
I also dropped off the postcards I wrote to families heading to Disney shortly.
I love the Fairy Godmailer board on the DIS – I had to do this once I saw how happy our kids were to receive personalized postcards.

One more day to go and some BIG surprises are still yet to come.
To start it off, please join us for breakfast in the Polynesian!
It was definitely a much better experience than this waste of time.
ALOHA!
 

We have never done Mickey's Barbecue and it looks like we were not missing anything but a huge headache. Thanks for the warning! I can't stand places like that. I get cranky and darn near hostile when people are rude and shoving.
Glad that wasn't your last experience of your trip. Can't wait to hear about breakfast!
 
I'm surprised that the CM's didn't have more of an orderly way to sit people down...that would totally annoy me! :mad:

I have heard very mixed reviews about this place, and your review pretty much put Mickey's BBQ on the "No way!" list.
 
I've been reading all day! Love the TR, especially when Mom comes on and gives her side!

Can't wait to hear more.
 
I found your TR last night at about 11pm and read it until about 3am and started back up today to finish it! It is so amazing!!! I have been debating doing one for our upcoming trip Sept 26-30, and then Oct. 1-24, and reading your's just may have convinced me! Keep up the awesome job! Your kids are all ADORABLE!!! I will be anxiously awaiting the rest of the TR!
 
We have never done Mickey's Barbecue and it looks like we were not missing anything but a huge headache. Thanks for the warning! I can't stand places like that. I get cranky and darn near hostile when people are rude and shoving.
Glad that wasn't your last experience of your trip. Can't wait to hear about breakfast!

Yeah, it was the first time all trip that just didn't feel like Disney.
Definitely spend your time elsewhere...

I'm surprised that the CM's didn't have more of an orderly way to sit people down...that would totally annoy me! :mad:

I have heard very mixed reviews about this place, and your review pretty much put Mickey's BBQ on the "No way!" list.

I was honestly pretty surprised at how unruly and chaotic it was.
I expected it to be similar to other buffets where you get taken to a table and go from there.
And I was honestly surprised at the masses that basically "attacked" the chars on the dance floor.

I've been reading all day! Love the TR, especially when Mom comes on and gives her side!

Can't wait to hear more.

I promise to write some more when we get back home.
I need to gather our Day 9 pics.

I found your TR last night at about 11pm and read it until about 3am and started back up today to finish it! It is so amazing!!! I have been debating doing one for our upcoming trip Sept 26-30, and then Oct. 1-24, and reading your's just may have convinced me! Keep up the awesome job! Your kids are all ADORABLE!!! I will be anxiously awaiting the rest of the TR!

Welcome and I'm glad it could keep you up all nite! ;)
You should definitely do a TR - it's a great way to document all the little things.
I expect to save it all off and maybe print it out one day/
Then the little ones can read it when they grow up.
It also gathers all my pics together so I can make a slide show out of them when I'm done.
And it lets me reminisce about Disney!!
 
Oh, so sorry you had such a bad experience here! I say if you can't deliver the goods in great food, you'd better pony up with something else than more than makes up for it! Apparently they didn't.

Maybe they should do like they do over at the Hoop; seat people hostess style. Yeah, takes more time, but it may prevent an accident or fight.

Looking forward to following you over the the land of paradise!
 
Oh, so sorry you had such a bad experience here! I say if you can't deliver the goods in great food, you'd better pony up with something else than more than makes up for it! Apparently they didn't.

Maybe they should do like they do over at the Hoop; seat people hostess style. Yeah, takes more time, but it may prevent an accident or fight.

Looking forward to following you over the the land of paradise!

Sorry paradise had to wait so long - things were hectic once we got back from NY and we all were sick.
We're recovering now and here comes alot of pics since you had to wait so long... :banana:
 
We rolled out of bed for our last day, dressed in our Polynesian finest, and called up for a bellman.
Soon after we loaded the cart and headed towards the buses.
We checked our bags in using Airline Check-in and confirmed our Magical Express time of 6:30.
And then it was off to find our Breakfast Bus.
The Bus driver didn’t offer door-to-door service as they had done back in 2006 so we had to go straight for the monorail upon arrival at Magic Kingdom.

For the record, the Polynesian is my favorite resort.
And it is so picturesque!
My Dream Disney Vacation is staying at the Poly on the Concierge Level.
Alas, this trip we were merely visitors.
But I managed to grab this exterior picture and then spliced a logo on it:
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The monorail doors opened and off we went.
Aloha!
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We headed around to ‘Ohana and checked in.
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Now it was picture time!
Since ‘Ohana was one of our favorite breakfasts back in 2006, we have lots of pictures that I wanted to re-take so we could see how the kids of grown.
First up - DD’s favorite spot in 2006 was the bamboo chair:
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So here she is again in 2008:
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Then it was time for the family (‘Ohana) shot.
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And here’s us back in 2006:
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After a short wait, we were seated over by the windows and Stitch was already making his rounds.
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First, DD jumped up
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Followed by Mom and X
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And then DS and myself
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X even got a high five before Fuzzy and Blue headed off
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Then the food arrived and we started to eat.
Breakfast is served family style here but has all the essentials…
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The servers start with a bread basket which has a great selection of breads.
Next up is the fresh fruit platter with delicious pineapples and other tropical delicacies.
Then comes a huge platter of eggs, bacon, sausage, and potatoes.
(We special ordered cheese on our eggs and you can see it in the above picture)
Lastly, they wander around with Mickey waffles and X was two-handing ‘em!
And that’s not even including the awesome juice that is served here
(along with the Jamba Juice from Donald’s Safari Breakfast at the Tusker House this is the best juice in all of Walt Disney World!)
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Around then, the kids were invited up for the parade.
Armed with maracas and X, I joined in the fun!
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Upon our return, Lilo was making her rounds. Here’s the girls:
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And then Mom joined in. Aloha!
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DS and I then got our chance!
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X could hardly contain himself.
Followed closely behind Lilo was Pluto!
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We split up to get pics with Mickey’s best friend.
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But as Mickey rounded the corner, I proposed to the table next to us that if they take our family with Mickey, I’ll do the same for theirs.
I hope their picture turned out good because I’d argue the one they took of us is the best picture of our entire trip:
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I LOOOOVE that picture. :love:
Almost as important as Mickey, the “waffle guy” was close behind and you know what that means…
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Uh oh - I've reached my picture limit for one post.
Stay tuned, there's more Breakfast Fun to come...
 
Great update! I'm glad your breakfast on the last day turned out better than Mickey's BBQ!! I am trying (unsucessfully) so hard to get an Ohana's ADR for our last morning but nada. Even with our LAST minute trip I have been able to get every ADR I wanted including a Fantasmic package but no Tusker House or Ohana!
 
Great update! I'm glad your breakfast on the last day turned out better than Mickey's BBQ!! I am trying (unsucessfully) so hard to get an Ohana's ADR for our last morning but nada. Even with our LAST minute trip I have been able to get every ADR I wanted including a Fantasmic package but no Tusker House or Ohana!

That's too bad.
'Ohana on the last day was a great end to a great trip!
In fact, let's get back to it!
 
As if we weren’t having enough fun by now, the server then came by with a birthday cupcake for DD that perked her up even more!
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And she even got a certificate signed by Lilo, Stitch, Mickey, and Pluto:
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After the cupcake, another parade was forming. We were having too much fun not to join in once again!
First X wanted to shake his maracas like the statue:
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And then he posed for a nice shot
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Before the Pineapple Princess entered the room
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I then managed to switch X back to Mom and take some video of the festivities.
First, our Pineapple Princess joined Lilo at the head of the processional


The next section was led by Mickey himself dancing and shaking


Here’s a quick still of the Big Kahuna strutting himself:
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Mom and X came down the line next


With Pluto and DS bringing up the rear.
Once X saw Pluto again, he ran after him…


After the parade and finishing off our plates, we decided to have some fun with the ambiance.
I started taking pictures of the statues and tikis around the restaurant:
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And then Mom started making fun of them.
Look - A Full Moon!!
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That’s all the kids had to see. DD ran over to one and mimicked it calling for me to take a picture:
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Then DS followed and DD jumped in yet again:
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Then it was my turn
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Then we finally & begrudgingly headed out of the restaurant.
We really love it here – it’s just so much fun and festive and a great place to have a blast!
 
Before leaving ‘Ohana for good, here’s a quick breakdown of the portfolio you get if you buy the picture.
The cover is really cool:
Ohana001.jpg


As is the inside cover. It has the same bamboo border with tikis but you get a great stock photo of Mickey and Pluto with Lilo and Stitch.
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As with the other portfolios, you can slide the photo out and it has a second mat around it (also of bamboo):
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And last, but not least, the photo itself:
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The other side of the portfolio is your picture:
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And it also has a bamboo border that can be removed from the portfolio
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And the picture itself:
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Lastly, the back cover is simple yet elegant with a smiling tiki seemingly saying “good-bye”
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What a great!!! last morning breakfast you all had! Sounds like you had great eaters, smooth dancing action, and goofy personalities for everyone!! Such fun!

Sad to know we're almost at our end, too.
 
What a great way to start your last day! It looks like breakfast was very fun and memorable! I love all the silly tiki pics!
 
What a great!!! last morning breakfast you all had! Sounds like you had great eaters, smooth dancing action, and goofy personalities for everyone!! Such fun!

Sad to know we're almost at our end, too.

No worries - I plan to jump right into the Spring Break Detour trip report once this one is complete!

What a great way to start your last day! It looks like breakfast was very fun and memorable! I love all the silly tiki pics!

We've loved 'Ohana since the first time we went.
In fact, we usually make it a staple of our trip.
However, for our upcoming trip, we opted to try the dinner menu instead of breakfast which is a first!
I'm really looking forward to it!!
 
Sorry you had such a bad time at the BBQ. I really dislike the way Disney does this and on some of the rides like HM when you leave the stretching room.

Ok, you now have me wanting to go to Ohana's. Sounds like a great time! And that one picture of the family is fantastic.
 












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