A Last Hurrah Trip! We just didn't know it at the time. (A Pre-COVID Trip Report)

[Tracy161]

We are booked for our regular annual trip time of Feb. 2022. Fingers Crossed we can keep it. But it is so far away still…

My fingers are crossed for you! As people who are so used to going so often, it's just terrible having to wait this out, isn't it?! The earliest I think I could possibly go at this point is March. I'm starting a new job next month (YAY!), but won't have vacation built up until then

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

I'm starting a new job next month (YAY!), but won't have vacation built up until then

Congrats on the new Job!!! That is exciting!

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Day Three: My Favorite Meal Always!

I left us off headed to dinner. Tonight was dinner at Sanaa. It has become a tradition to go to Sanaa after our day at Animal Kingdom. We left Animal Kingdom a little before 5. And arrived at Animal Kingdom Lodge at 5:15. We always have to double check which resort to go to. But thankfully this time we got off at the right stop. You would think after the amount of times we have done it we would remember but we don't...

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We had a little of time before our resservation, so we sat outside on some rocking chairs for a little and just relaxed.
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We enjoyed the animals and I guess some enjoyed there phones...
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We headed to dinner after a short rest.
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We didn't wait long to be sat at a table.

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We started with some drinks.
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Andy ordered the Spicy Poblano Margarita (on the left)
Patrón Silver Tequila, Ancho Reyes Verde Liqueur, Lime Juice, and Pure Cane Sugar

He liked this enough. But I don’t think he enjoyed the spicy-ness of it. Of course, I would have loved it because of it.

I ordered the Smoked Turkey (on the right)
Wild Turkey 101 Bourbon, Red Stag Black Cherry Bourbon, Grenadine, and Minute Maid® Premium Lemonade with a hint of Hickory Smoke, garnished with Luxardo Gourmet Maraschino Cherries

This has become my go to drink if we are at a restaurant that doesn’t have a specialty drink that I want. WHICH, is my only complaint of Sanaa. It needs a few drinks specifically for the restaurant.

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Cheers to a great day and to a great dinner!

I believe Morgan ordered the Watermelon Lemonade
Minute Maid® Premium Lemonade and Watermelon with wildberry foam.
She has gotten this a couple times here, (even though you can get it elsewhere) But it has become her drink of choice for here. (And only here)

Gwen probably ordered Lemonade.

Morgan decided to try the Seasonal Indian Spiced Tomato Soup with Paneer.
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Morgan LOVED the soup. She didn’t eat the paneer. Well at least not all of it. It had just a slight Indian Spice to it but still tasted like Tomato Soup. I highly recommend if you like tomato soup and are nervous about Indian food, this is a great thing to try.

Andy and I of course started with Bread Service!
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Indian-style Bread Service

Choice of Five Breads and with all Nine Accompaniments - Traditional Naan, Garlic-Ginger Naan, Spiced Naan, Onion Kulcha, or Paneer Paratha. Accompaniments - Cucumber Raita, Roasted Red Pepper Hummus, Mango Chutney, Tomato-Date Jam, Tamarind Chutney, Coriander Chutney, Garlic Pickle, Red Chile Sambal, or Spicy Jalapeño-Lime Pickle

I dream about this! It's so good! Warm bread and all the dips. I love trying different combinations.

We decided to also just order 2 other appatizers instead of main meals.
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Samosas - Potato and Pea Samosas with Tamarind and Mango Chutney (pictured in the center)
These were good. Nothing special but good. These are also something that if you aren't sure of indian food, these are a good thing to try. Not too spicey, lots of mashed potato taste mixed.

We also ordered the seasonal special of Scallop Chana.
Scallop Chana - They were a special, so I don't have an official description. (Pictured on the bottom)
These were SOOOOO good. The scallops were perfectly cooked. And Andy loved them. I think Morgan might have had a piece as well. They were served on what I can best describe as hummus. That isn't quiet right. There was also what I think was a tamarine sauce, which is kind of sweet. And it was so good. Highly recommend!

All three apps was more than enough for Andy and I. It was a perfect amount of food.

Morgan ordered the kids Naan pizza to go with her soup. The Soup helped fill her up. Otherwise, she wouldn't of had enough. But worked out well for her.

Gwen had Naan Pizza with a side of mac n cheese. A strange side but that is what she wanted. And I think she ate every bit of all of it.
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What the girls really like about this place is the desserts. (well now Morgan loves that Tomato Soup)

Morgan went with the Browine Shield.
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She takes the decorating the cookie.

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Foodwise, I don't think it's anything special, it's more about the activity, if you know what I mean.

Gwen decided to try something new and got Pumbaa's Dessert Grub
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Chocolate pudding with crushed oreos, gummy worms and chocolate rocks.

It was a fun dessert. Def not for adults...

Dinner was amazing as always! We left around 7:00. We always seem to take a long time at this restaurant. But it never feels that way. I think we talked about possibly going back to Animal Kingdom to ride Everest at night. But we decided not to, we were tired and call it night.

We call an ubber and were back at the resort by 7:30. We all showered and just relaxed in the room.

I, of course, had to create the most beautiful picture ever! All the bread service!!
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It was a good food day!

We tried out our treats from Suri's, watched some tv and went to bed early.
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These were the chocolates I picked out. Both were delish. I think I ended up liking the banana milk chocolate ones better. The dark chocolate one was SUPER spicy. Good but you only need a little at a time!

I did fine a twitter post about new plush that I knew Gwen would want. And I knew that we would have to let her get it. Good news we would be heading to the right park tomorrow to get it!

Up Next our first day at Hollywood Studios!

 

[Steppesister]

Saana is always such a hit! Lots of simply amazing food! I've busted out of the Bread Service Box many times and have never been disappointed. Loved the scallops but don't think I've had the samosas. Lovely dinner y'all!!

 

[vamassey1]

We loved the bread service when ate here in October. I really want it again.

This really was the perfect ending for your day.

 

[Tracy161]

Congrats on the new Job!!! That is exciting!

Thank you!

Loved reading about your night at Sanaa -- always wanted to go here but haven't made it yet. The bread service alone would be worth the trip!

 

[becauseimnew]

Sanaa looks delicious, I'm still sad we haven't made it over there.

 

[Stasieki]

Sanaa is that one restaurant... well that and Skippers Canteen that I have had reserved many times that we ended up not making. Those two are on the top of my list when I'm there in February for cheer if I can squeeze them in.

 

[Paulaparm]

All of the food looks delicious!

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Saana is always such a hit! Lots of simply amazing food! I've busted out of the Bread Service Box many times and have never been disappointed. Loved the scallops but don't think I've had the samosas. Lovely dinner y'all!!

This winter I will have to make all of the dips again. So, yummy. But it's alot of work.

We loved the bread service when ate here in October. I really want it again.

This really was the perfect ending for your day.

It really has become our perferred way to end our AK day.

Loved reading about your night at Sanaa -- always wanted to go here but haven't made it yet. The bread service alone would be worth the trip!

You should def try it at least once!

Sanaa looks delicious, I'm still sad we haven't made it over there.

You should def try it once. It is hard with it being at a resort but we have found that it's easiest to go on AK day. The bus ride is super short to the hotel. And you can either take a bus back to AK after or just uber home like we did.

Sanaa is that one restaurant... well that and Skippers Canteen that I have had reserved many times that we ended up not making. Those two are on the top of my list when I'm there in February for cheer if I can squeeze them in.

Both are excellent choices! I know it's hard for you with Cheer, so much going on. Hopefully you can make it to at least one!

All of the food looks delicious

We haven't had anything here that we didn't like. Just like some more than others.

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Happy Friday Everyone!

Andy and I are starting a 4 day weekend today! With no real vacation plans, we are trying to just use our days to do day trips and swim. Well, today will be a good day for swimming as we are on day 5 of a heat wave. Today is to be 98 degrees! My sister and husband are coming down tonight as well, so we are going to do some night swimming hopefully!

Day Four: Can we get a Rise of Resistance Boarding Group?

Today was our first full day at Hollywood Studios. And part of the reason we came home after dinner, was that I stressed that we needed to not cut it close to be in the park in time for getting a boarding group.

So, we were up at 6:30 to get ready to go.
Tinkerbell Gifts

Tinkerbell left some hair stuff for the girls today.

Gwen
I think Gwen is laughing before I put the card upside down. Oye...

Gwen reading Tink Card
And she tried to read it upside down as well.

Both girls really liked these and wear them at home too.

Since we all showered the night before, we were out of the room by 6:50!
Headed out nice and early
The sun was barely up!

We took an uber again this morning. This time one came to the right place but the backup of cars getting in was stressing me out. It was long. I was texting with @Stasieki about getting into the park and getting boarding groups. They were leaving today and this was there only chance. And after failing the other day, I was nervous about it as well. @Stasieki was in the same line of cars but behind us somewhere.

Luckily we were through security at 7:35.
Security

We were safely inside before 8:00! Thank Goodness!

The night before, I had saw on facebook a post about a new big footie plush and I knew Gwen was going to want it. And of course, Gwen spotted it the second we were in the park! What is it? you will see in a bit!

We decided to go over by Rocky Rockn roller coaster area. We figured we would get in line to ride once we got a bg.

Right at 8:00, we were ready to try! Andy and I both tried to get one. My hands were basically shaking while trying to grab one! It is WAY too stressful trying to get one. I did not enjoy the pit in my stomach feeling while trying to get the group. Thankfully we got one today! Boarding Group 82. Late but at least we had one.

I was worried that the higher number was going to mess up our dinner plans. We had reservations at Homecoming at 4:15. I tried to push it back but there was no other times. So, for now we left it as is.

The line for RnR was fairly long, so we decided to go do something else. We had fast passes at 9:20 and we were worried we wouldn't make it. So, we headed to Launch Bay instead.

We got in line to meet Chewbacca. The girls enjoyed checking out the helmets again.
Sabine Helmet

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Chewy was very nice. But at this point, I don't remember anything from the interaction!

After Chewy, we went and got in line for BB8.
D-O

We got to see a little droid on the way..

BB8 Meet
I also don't remember much about meeting BB8. I do think it is always a little weird meeting him, since you know, he doesn't talk. But still fun!

We were able to meet both within the hour. So, we decided to get some breakfast since we hadn't eaten anything in order to get to the park on time.

But there wasn't much open just yet, so we headed to Starbucks. There was a bit of a line, and there was a CM holiding one of those end of line signs. We asked how long it would be and the CM said 1 hour! The line was NOT that long!!! So, we got in line anyway.

In Starbucks
We had never been in this Starbucks, believe it or not. Gwen found some switched to try and "switch"

The line was long but it moved fairly quickly. Nothing terrible but it was a bit chaotic in line. As you order and then have to wait for your stuff. I think I saw @Stasieki in there as well but we were on the other side and couldn't get over to say hello.

We walked across the way to find a table to sit. The ones that are by the old Writer's shop.

Crossant
Gwen went with a Crossant. Super exciting..

Carrot Cake Cookie
Morgan went wiht the Carrot Cake Cookie. She loved this! It was super filling, and I think Andy and I got to have a few bites of it with her.

Cold Brew
Andy got an Iced coffee. And I apparently didn't get anything? I guess? Maybe I ate a granola bar or something?

We sat and enjoyed our breakfast. And discussed the plan for the day. We didn't sit too long, as I decided to head out and use our first fastpass of the day!

water mickey
We did see a CM making water mickey on the ground. I just kind of love this. So simple but fun all the same.

water Mickey in the making

We used our first fast pass for Star Tours around 10:10.
Morgan on screen
If you look real close you can see that Morgan's name on the "boarding" screen.

DJ Rex
DJ Rex!

By 10:15 we were already to ride!
Star Tours

I don't believe anyone got to be rebel spy... sigh... Oh well, it was fun none the less!

And then... The magic happened...
Big Footie Ewok
Gwen found her dream Big Footie!!! A Big Footie Ewok!

She carefully picked out "the best one" and we let her pick Plush #4
Plush #5

up next more fun in Hollywood Studios... and more food!

 

[Paulaparm]

Am I the only one wondering how all the plushies are going to make it home?

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Am I the only one wondering how all the plushies are going to make it home?

I always pack two bags that we can use for extra carryons. And let's just say they got used big time this trip!

 

[vamassey1]

Andy and I are starting a 4 day weekend today! With no real vacation plans, we are trying to just use our days to do day trips and swim. Well, today will be a good day for swimming as we are on day 5 of a heat wave. Today is to be 98 degrees! My sister and husband are coming down tonight as well, so we are going to do some night swimming hopefully!

Have a great weekend! I will not pity you for the heat since that is normal for us. But do you have 100% humidity?

The sun was barely up!

Disney is the only place where we will do this while on vacation.

Right at 8:00, we were ready to try! Andy and I both tried to get one. My hands were basically shaking while trying to grab one! It is WAY too stressful trying to get one. I did not enjoy the pit in my stomach feeling while trying to get the group. Thankfully we got one today! Boarding Group 82. Late but at least we had one.

So stressful! Congrats on getting it.

We had never been in this Starbucks, believe it or not. Gwen found some switched to try and "switch"

We're regulars here and I have never seen these switches. Of course kids are going to find them.

Morgan went wiht the Carrot Cake Cookie. She loved this! It was super filling, and I think Andy and I got to have a few bites of it with her.

This is my favorite! I need to get it each trip.

She carefully picked out "the best one" and we let her pick Plush #4

Very cute!

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Day Four: Food and more Food

So, today was busy and I have to admit, I did not pick the correct fast passes for the day. So, after our ride on Star tours, we decided to go check out One Man's Dream

We didn't spend a TON of time in here, although I def could.
One Man's Dream

Jungle Cruise

I do think it's worth poking in even if it is just for a quick peak.
Pinnocchio

Gwen enjoyed showing her new Ewok all the displays.
Castle and Ewok

After maybe half an hour in One Man's Dream, we headed out and decided we needed food! So, we headed to Baseline Taphouse to grab something to snack on and sit a bit before our next fastpass.

We got 2 snacks and some drinks.

We ordered this for the first time:
Beef
Coffee-rubbed Rib-Eye Beef Puff with Olive Salad
This was REALLY GOOD! I was suprised. We are an anti-olive family, so we all skipped the olives.

And we got our go to pretzel:
Soft Pretzel
Bavarian Pretzel with Beer-Cheese Fondue and Spicy Mustard
This is always good. They serve it warm as all pretzels should be.

The girls are not big into contiments and they both decided to try the mustard today.
Yum Mustard
It was a big NO from them both.
Mustard

I ordered a beer flight:
Flight
I love beer flights! I just lover trying different kinds. And really I love ANY kind of flight.
Beer Flight

• Fort Bragg
• Ace Space Bloody Orange Hard Cider
• Los Angeles

I will say that the Blood Orange Hard Cider is my favorite.

Margarita
Andy ordered the Baseline Select Margarita
Patrón Añejo Tequila, Cointreau, Sweet-and-Sour, and Lime Juice

He always enjoys this.

And the girls Split: Wild Strawberry Lemonade
Blood Orange
They always like this as well, but it is very sweet.

While sitting and relaxing, we decided to cancel our dinner reservation. We didn’t think we were going to make it with the higher boarding group #. I was sad, as it was for Homecomin' but it was just not going to happen. We figured we would just figure out what to do for dinner once we knew when we got on Rise.

After we were done eating and drinking, we headed towards Indian Jones. I mobile ordered ONE more treat before we sat down for the show!

Chewy Cookie
I ordered a Wookie Cookie from Backlot Express and another drink for me in the theater.

Wookie Cookie
Two Oatmeal Cookies with Vanilla Cream Filling garnished with a Milk Chocolate Sash on top
This was pretty good! I was basically an oatmeal creme pie. Which I loved as a kid.

I ordered the Rum Island Breeze
Parrot Bay Coconut Rum, Bacardí Superior Rum, Pineapple Juice, Minute Maid® Premium Lemonade, and Grenadine
This was ok. Nothing amazing but not bad.

Believe it or not, but we had never been in Backlot Express. It was WAY bigger than I thought it would be. We sat down for a quick second to try the cookie and check our boarding group. And then headed to the line to get a seat for the show.
Boarding Group 82
We had a ways to go! ;(

We headed in to watched Indian Jones Show.
Trying the cookie
Morgan tasted the cookie and gave it a thumbs up.

Indiana Jones
Indian Jones was good as usual. It's not a must do, but it is fun.

The ball

Indiana Jones

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I had made this as a fast pass because i think at the time it was rumorred to be going away? Maybe? Not really sure. But we enjoyed it, but probably didn't need the fast pass. Oh well.

I am going to stop here, sorry it wasn't the most exciting post...

Up next... hanging with some toys.

 

[vamassey1]

We didn't spend a TON of time in here, although I def could.

I could spend a lot of time in here too but just haven't made in there in a few trips.

Coffee-rubbed Rib-Eye Beef Puff with Olive Salad
This was REALLY GOOD! I was suprised. We are an anti-olive family, so we all skipped the olives.

This looks interesting.

And we got our go to pretzel:

Can't go wrong with a pretzel and I LIKE the condiments.

I ordered a Wookie Cookie from Backlot Express and another drink for me in the theater.

I think I would like this too. Danielle had one and didn't like it.

 

[Steppesister]

Once upon a time a FP might have been a good idea for Indiana Jones. Kinda miss that show. Kinda miss a lot about DHS. Ugh.

I had no idea there was a beef pastry! Looking now to see if it's still on the menu!

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Can't go wrong with a pretzel and I LIKE the condiments.

I like the condiments as well. I am the only one in our house who likes mustard... But the beer cheese is really good.

Once upon a time a FP might have been a good idea for Indiana Jones. Kinda miss that show. Kinda miss a lot about DHS. Ugh.

I think I was thinkingi n my head that, this would "force" us to go see it. Which it did! Just should have gotten rockn rollercoaster. But I guess it doesn't matter anymore....

I had no idea there was a beef pastry! Looking now to see if it's still on the menu!

It's still there! it was really good! Well, at least it was better than I had expected.

 

[kastoney]

Not sure how I fell behind but all caught back up!

Andy ordered the Spicy Poblano Margarita (on the left)
Patrón Silver Tequila, Ancho Reyes Verde Liqueur, Lime Juice, and Pure Cane Sugar

He liked this enough. But I don’t think he enjoyed the spicy-ness of it. Of course, I would have loved it because of it.

I would have been right there with ya. Margaritas can be too sweet for me but add in some spiciness and I'm all over it

This has become my go to drink if we are at a restaurant that doesn’t have a specialty drink that I want. WHICH, is my only complaint of Sanaa. It needs a few drinks specifically for the restaurant.

Either Disney overhauled their typical menu or Sanaa finally got some new unique to them drinks. When we were there in June Jason got a bourbon based drink that I don't recall seeing anywhere

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Morgan LOVED the soup. She didn’t eat the paneer. Well at least not all of it. It had just a slight Indian Spice to it but still tasted like Tomato Soup. I highly recommend if you like tomato soup and are nervous about Indian food, this is a great thing to try.

This looks and sounds delicious. All of the AKL restaurants have the best soups. They do so well at taking something familiar and adding some unique spices to it

Andy and I of course started with Bread Service!

Of course!!! Best Appetizer on Property

Scallop Chana - They were a special, so I don't have an official description. (Pictured on the bottom)
These were SOOOOO good. The scallops were perfectly cooked. And Andy loved them. I think Morgan might have had a piece as well. They were served on what I can best describe as hummus. That isn't quiet right. There was also what I think was a tamarine sauce, which is kind of sweet. And it was so good. Highly recommend!

Yum!!!! This looks and sounds delicous.

I, of course, had to create the most beautiful picture ever! All the bread service!!

Cause what is better than 1 bread, 2 of them!!!

Right at 8:00, we were ready to try! Andy and I both tried to get one. My hands were basically shaking while trying to grab one! It is WAY too stressful trying to get one. I did not enjoy the pit in my stomach feeling while trying to get the group. Thankfully we got one today! Boarding Group 82. Late but at least we had one.

Glad to hear you got one. Being able to try from the room sounds like it is a much better option than in the park, though i didn't love getting up so early. On our first day I was so nervous but thankfully we got it

Carrot Cake Cookie
Morgan went wiht the Carrot Cake Cookie. She loved this! It was super filling, and I think Andy and I got to have a few bites of it with her.

Carrot Cake Cookie how do I love thee!!! What I do not love is the lines at Starbucks so its been way too long since I've had it

Big Footie Ewok
Gwen found her dream Big Footie!!! A Big Footie Ewok!

❤ ❤ ❤ Someone is gonna need a bigger suitcase

So, we headed to Baseline Taphouse to grab something to snack on and sit a bit before our next fastpass.

Can you believe we still haven't been here??? One of these days...

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Either Disney overhauled their typical menu or Sanaa finally got some new unique to them drinks. When we were there in June Jason got a bourbon based drink that I don't recall seeing anywhere

Good to here!!!!

Yum!!!! This looks and sounds delicous.

They really were and should be on the menu all the time!

Can you believe we still haven't been here??? One of these days...

I mean it's no Nomad Lounge... but it's a nice respite in the day!