A Disney Dream Come True - Nov/Dec TR ~ Oct10 Another TR :)

[Daddy_of_Princesses]

OK, I'm in. Read all the PTR's now I get to read all of the TR's.

 

[20thingamabobs]

Aw, I'm so glad Ariana got her hair cut! I hope she lets you have it cut at home now too!

 

[Mickey_Mom]

Great Update!!! That parade always seems to pop up whenever I enter MK too.

That's great that she let them do her hair and she looked beautiful!!!

Thanks The 'princess hair' reference seemed to be the trick we needed - I'm not sure why I didn't think of it before!

Oh, the princess hair was so cute! I totally wish I could do that with mine!

The sparkles and confetti were so much fun for her. Little bits fell out here and there but they lasted the rest of the day!

Another awesome update! So glad to hear that Ariana went through with her haircut!!!! It's amazing what Disney will do to/for a child! Would you believe that in all the time we have spent at MK we have never seen the Move it Shake it Celebrate it parade either?! I think we have only seen the 3:00 parade once! Doesn't it feel great to finally get that first ride of a trip in? After that ride I really feel like the trip has begun. Can't wait to see what else the first full day had in store for you guys!

I'm so glad we went thru with the appointment! If you remember from my PTR, I'd considered it when I first heard the Barbershop was taking appointments but then decided against it, only to change my mind again when I saw on another PTR they'd booked it. I took Ariana this weekend to a salon to see if she'd do it again -- and she did!!

I'm glad the parade popped up when it did, otherwise we may have missed it again this trip. I think we saw the end of it one more time. It's fun!

great update! Glad to see the hair cut went well!!!

I was super close to tearing up when she sat in the chair like a 'big girl'. Huge step for her and something I wouldn't have thought possible not that long ago.

WOOT WOOT!!!! YAY for Arianna getting her haircut, her hair looked gorgeous!!

I love all the window decorations!!! Mickey's Christmas Carol was one of my favorite movies of all time!!!

Jungle Cruise is such a great ride!!!!

I kept telling her how beautiful she was.... The window decorations were very cool - parts moved too, like when he was sitting in the chair and ghost Goofy was visiting, he was shivering in the chair from fright.

Yay!! Another great update!! I love all the Christmas decorations at MK!! They are sooooo pretty!!

Wow! I can't believe all that you saw...and you just arrived. So glad that you got to see the Move it Shake it Celebrate it parade!!! Wasn't it cute?

I'm so happy that Ariana decided to get her haircut! It turned out so good!! She looks like a princess!!

You got some really amazing pictures!! The boys looked at them with me and they were oohing and ahhing. I (we) can't wait to see and read more!!!

I'm estatic she lets the professionals do her hair now! Hey I'm glad you guys enjoyed the pictures. I've got TONS more!

Nice update. Even though you only got in one ride so far it sure seems like got to see a lot! Looking forward to more!

That's pretty much how we felt too, we'd done so much already but had only gone on one ride. We definately had an emphasis on character meets this trip, much to George's grumbling displeasure.

Your welcome, hope the coins didn't break or break the card

Finally up to date, sorry it took so long.

I lol'd at George wanting to make detours, didn't he do something similar on your last trip when he went to get the rental car?

Loving all your photos, looks like you had a blast at Ohana too, Stitch is so much fun isn't he

Loving MK all decked out for Christmas, esp the Christmas Carol window display, so cool

Looking forward to more

Last year worked out well when George got the rental car from the airport instead of Magically Expressing in, but he did get lost then too.

Stitch is a lot of fun, one of our favorites to meet. We had a chance meeting with him on another MK day and he pulled a stunt that had the entire line laughing....

Yay for Arianna & her princess hair!!

The Christmas Carol windows are great!! And Santa looks so tan!

Santa was awesome. In Alex's picture he's laughing -- Santa was telling us stories of all the big burly guys he's had on his knee over the years. Alex had been concerned he would be a bit heavy, LOL.

OK, I'm in. Read all the PTR's now I get to read all of the TR's.

Helloooo and Now we all get to relive our trips -- can't wait to read yours too!

Aw, I'm so glad Ariana got her hair cut! I hope she lets you have it cut at home now too!

She does and I couldn't be more thrilled! The hairdresser was wonderful with her and kept praising her for doing so well.

 

[mrsksomeday]

Your MK day was awesome, you sure had some pixie dust hitting Santa, the parade, and the castle show so quickly.

I am so happy Ariana let the barbershop cut her hair . It looks great!

We love the Jungle Cruise, I am really enjoying your pictures they are so vibrant!

 

[mickeysmyboy]

Great start to your trip! Ohana breakfast sounds fabulous and delicious!! Woo hoo for Ariana going through with the haircut!!! She looks so beautiful!!!

I'm so sorry we didn't get to meet up! But with all the drama that surrounded our trip it was probably best! I wouldn't want you to have met the cranky me

 

[ZeroToHero]

Would you believe that I've never noticed the window decorations? I think I'll go early before work tomorrow and check them out.

I love the princess hair! It looks great.

 

[Mickey_Mom]

Your MK day was awesome, you sure had some pixie dust hitting Santa, the parade, and the castle show so quickly.

I am so happy Ariana let the barbershop cut her hair . It looks great!

We love the Jungle Cruise, I am really enjoying your pictures they are so vibrant!

We'd been so far behind starting at 'Ohana, it was great to get all those things done so quickly. Thanks for the compliments on the pictures! I was having some early problems with my camera -- I have to learn how to take night shots better.

Great start to your trip! Ohana breakfast sounds fabulous and delicious!! Woo hoo for Ariana going through with the haircut!!! She looks so beautiful!!!

I'm so sorry we didn't get to meet up! But with all the drama that surrounded our trip it was probably best! I wouldn't want you to have met the cranky me

Hey Melissa! Thanks for the compliments -- I think she's beautiful too!

Uh oh... drama eh? Next time for sure!!

 

[Mickey_Mom]

Would you believe that I've never noticed the window decorations? I think I'll go early before work tomorrow and check them out.

I love the princess hair! It looks great.

Hey Danica! Really? They're really cool!

Thanks!

 

[brookelizabeth]

All caught up now - wonderful start! Your family sounds like mine - we love to sleep in and often find ourselves rushing to the 10 am breakfasts. However, some of that has changed this past year since our little one likes to wake up early now. I'd rather be rushing and late and well-slept.

BIG CHEERS for Airana!!!!!! I bet you were grinning ear to ear!

 

[Lady Lallie]

What wonderful updates!

I am cracking up over the characters lifting up Simba and then Pluto putting him in his mouth!

 

[Mickey_Mom]

All caught up now - wonderful start! Your family sounds like mine - we love to sleep in and often find ourselves rushing to the 10 am breakfasts. However, some of that has changed this past year since our little one likes to wake up early now. I'd rather be rushing and late and well-slept.

BIG CHEERS for Airana!!!!!! I bet you were grinning ear to ear!

I'm going to have to seriously rethink the breakfasts next trip. We had a few late nights to start and it seemed we never really caught up after that.

I totally had a goofy grin the entire time Ariana was getting her haircut. I was kinda half waiting for her to change her mind part way through ....

What wonderful updates!

I am cracking up over the characters lifting up Simba and then Pluto putting him in his mouth!

That was definately the running theme for the whole trip. She frequently would ask them to kiss Baby Simba too.

 

[Daddy_of_Princesses]

10 am breakfast? Geez, by 10 we had already eaten breakfast and rode a few rides. The parks were pretty empty in the mornings.

 

[Mickey_Mom]

10 am breakfast? Geez, by 10 we had already eaten breakfast and rode a few rides. The parks were pretty empty in the mornings.

Are they? I wouldn't know, never seen them.

 

[jenseib]

WE have to sleep in too. Well not me, but my other 2 do. LOL!

I love the Move it shake it parade too. Last trip we saw it a few times and really enjoyed it. I have a thing for parades. I think years ago when I tiik my older 2, we never once saw a parade, and now we make it a priority when we go. Espeically the AK one. I LOVE that one.
The window decorations are beautiful. I wish I could've been there to see them in person.

 

[brookelizabeth]

Are they? I wouldn't know, never seen them.

I love it! It's what works best for your family.

 

[Mickey_Mom]

WE have to sleep in too. Well not me, but my other 2 do. LOL!

I love the Move it shake it parade too. Last trip we saw it a few times and really enjoyed it. I have a thing for parades. I think years ago when I tiik my older 2, we never once saw a parade, and now we make it a priority when we go. Espeically the AK one. I LOVE that one.
The window decorations are beautiful. I wish I could've been there to see them in person.

I love stopping for the parades too. We used to plan them in firm to our days but then seemed to get away from them for a bit. Its been a while for some of them, they'll feel brand new again!

I love it! It's what works best for your family.

It does So much will be new for me on the Spectrum Moms trip -- early mornings, park hopping, tiaras

 

[Mickey_Mom]

Sunday, November 28th
Day 2 – MK Day & Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party Day
Weather: high of 77 degrees, low of 53 degrees
What we wore: pants and t-shirts


What is it about Pirates of the Caribbean that I like so much? The easy drifting boat ride? The dip at the beginning I always forget about? The fact that I find a new detail everytime I ride? Or maybe it’s a secret wish that Johnny Depp would walk out of one of the scenes and finish the ride next to me on the boat? Hee hee.

Our boat stopped a few times and a few people were taking flash pictures. No one minded so I snuck in two myself. Shhhh!

The dump shop for Pirates is usually a store we like to look around in at least a little bit, but after just a quick sword fight…..

…. we moved on towards Splash Mountain – it was next in our circle!


One small problem. As we went past the drop point, Demetri noticed a boat was sitting up at the top not going anywhere. Can you imagine getting all the way to that part of the ride and coming to a halt? I would think it wouldn’t be any fun to climb out of the boat and make your way back down. We double checked by approaching the CM standing at the entrance and yes, the ride was currently down so we moved on to Big Thunder Mountain.

A blast as usual!


Splash was back up and running so we headed over.

Ariana’s princess hair before…..

…. and after

I LOVE this bootleg picture of our first Splash ride. Huge smiles all around, Demetri looks absolutely thrilled and even Kathryn has a touch of oh-my-gawrsh on her face.

Can you believe this is our fifth trip but only the first time I have these pictures?

Approaching Columbia Harbour House, I renewed my request to eat here sometime on this vacation. It was a little early for dinner yet though so we moved on, but not before the bell ringer outside the place let the kids ring the bell. Personally, I’m not sure how long I’d be able to stand there and ring a bell all day long.

Moving on to the Haunted Mansion, the lines were moving steady so for the first time we didn’t use the GAC to go through the alternate access.

CONTINUED IN NEXT POST....

 

[Mickey_Mom]

Of course it figures we’d get to the front of the line and they closed the doors but luckily Ariana was OK with the short wait.

When it was our turn we headed through to the stretching room where the familiar spiel started. There was a couple standing right next to us that were reciting the lines right along – loudly. Very loudly. Gotta say, it was really distracting but they were having fun, so whatever.

My first time finding Mr. Toad!


Making our way to Fantasyland, we got in line for Peter Pan’s flight but it too had broken down so we crossed over instead to It’s a Small World.

Notice the time? We didn’t.

There is just one moon and one golden sun…. (The where were we sneak peak picture!)


These have always been my favorites.

Gotta get the traditional photo of the greek “goodbye”.

Peter Pan was back up and running so we hopped on for a quick visit to Neverland….

Ariana and I rode together and we had such fun putting our arms out as if we were flying!


As we departed Peter Pan, we realized it was very close to the time to start lining up for the Seven Dwarfs character meet. All the strollers had already been moved out of the stroller parking area to get it ready and we’d been planning on lining up at 6pm to be one of the first to meet them at 7pm. The Dwarfs were a must do and then we’d have the rest of the night to do anything else in the party we could get to.

One problem with this plan. We hadn’t yet gotten our party wristbands and after a quick check with a CM on where to go to get them, she let us know we couldn’t wait in line for the Dwarfs without having them and everyone in our group had to go to the designated area to get them. In other words, we had to boot it from Peter Pan’s Flight to Stitch’s Great Escape and back before we could get in line.


First super important thing forgotten!


So off we went to get our wristbands. I liked the system they’d set up designed to keep the lines moving and they had several CMs that quickly put the bracelets on you once you’d confirmed earlier in the line you had purchased tickets. Heading back to Fantasyland, we got in a line that had maybe ten people in front of us…..

George volunteered to stay in line while the rest of us headed back out for some more rides – no sense all six of us waiting an hour – and he liked having the quick rest time to himself. We headed on over to Dumbo and I opted out so the kids could ride together.

Standing in the exit waiting, I had another moment to myself when I just looked all around me with a wistful smile on my face soaking everything in. I tried to get all artsy and snap a picture of the Castle in the background of the Carousel….

But I wasn’t quite satisfied with the picture and zoomed out to try and include the Dumbo’s ‘zooming’ by in the shot.

I got what ended up to be one of my favorite shots but soon realized the Castle had significantly changed in the moments it took me to zoom out and snap another picture. We’d missed the Castle lighting! I’d completely forgotten about it. Waaaa! I sucked it up knowing there were to be other MK days.


Time to introduce one more new ride to Kathryn before heading back to rejoin George in line, and we chose Mickey’s Philharmagic. The next show was just starting and as we ran through the queue section we paused long enough for one quick pic….

….. before running straight into the theatre to sit down. I LOVE Philharmagic. We softly sing along and reach out for the jewels. We laughingly jump at the champagne corks and smell the delicious smells. Always a favorite!


Heading back to the Dwarfs meet, I got out the Santa hats for the kids and we all eagerly awaited seeing the characters.

Ariana was beside herself with excitement and after a short wait, out they came. In character they took their time getting all set up and I took a few test shots with my camera to see which setting worked best. I really, really wanted this picture but nothing seemed to be working. It was finally our turn and the kids moved in to say hello to each of them. Time for the photo..... and I couldn’t be happier. My absolute favorite picture from the entire trip!

We spent an inordinate amount of time visiting the Dwarfs at the CMs encouragement. George and I moved in for a picture too but the person who used my camera unfortunately didn’t focus first so we’re waiting for the Photopass pics to come in for that one. It takes a long time for six people to meet seven Dwarfs but we loved every moment of it.


Next up - Just what exactly is the pickle barrel? You want to ride what ride right now? And what does it take to make six people breathless? Hope you continue along…. for now, here’s a sneak peak at my next update.

Please proceed toward final boarding….. See you then!

 

[jenjolt]

AAwwwww....what a great update!!! YAY for meeting the 7 dwarves!! That is so cool and you are right that is a great picture!!!!!

Your Dumbo and Castle picture is gorgeous!!! Very nice!!!

 

[Tinkermom76]

Love the Dwarfs pic!!! Nice job with the flash shots on pirates! I took a lot in there but only a few turned out good