A very merry unbirthday to you! It's my unbirthday trip! It's Mom's unbirthday too!

[Cin]

Hi Everybody!
I'm Cin, aka Cindi, aka Disney addict and Tigger fan. I love Tinkerbell too. The girl's got spunk and sass. A nice way of saying she's a woman who knows what she wants and is determined to get it... her way. Sort of like me. Okay, just like me.

Oh wow. So this is exciting, my first pre-trip report and first girls only trip with Mom. And we are going to Disneyworld!!!!!

Who's going?
Just us girls.
Me. And Mom.

I'm a rookie empty nester and starting to finally get used to it. Well, it did take a year. And Mom's a pro empty nester with experience.

This will be my 4th trip to WDW. If it hadn't been for Mom I was going solo. This all started last year when I returned from WDW after taking my DH for his first time, and I HAD to go back, so I started planning another trip and DH didn't want to go meaning I had to find someone else to go with. I had originally planned a mother-daughter trip with my daughter and "adopted" daughter but when neither of them were able to go, I was whining to Mom about not being able to find anyone and feeling disappointed, when she asked when I had planned to go. January I answered. And Mom did the most wonderful thing... she said, I'll go. Yay!!!! Now kicking myself, why didn't I think to ask her before??? SO yeah, this is our first ever Mother-Daughter trip and I am really excited.

This will be Mom's second trip to WDW. Her last one was over 20 years ago and only EPCOT and MK were open. They didn't stay on property and didn't see Wishes or any evening events. I have scheduled a lot of BIG things for us and to give Mom a variety and "the best of" what Disneyworld has to offer in the short week we have available and stay within our budget. I think I did pretty good on the dining choices and resort for our needs. I would have preferred the Poly only because it has always been my dream to stay there someday, but POFQ is perfect for Mom and I and I think the POLY would be better suited for a romantic trip with my hubby instead.

When?
January 21st 2012 is when we move to Disneyworld. That sounds so neat. Yes, we will be living at Disneyworld for a whole week.

Where?
POFQ and POP Century! I get two resorts, yay!
We were originally booked for Port Orleans French Quarter for a week, and then after I booked the package we couldn't find seat availability on flights to travel together from our transfer hub, so I looked and after finding us flights where we could be on the same plane if we flew a day earlier I tried to add another day at POFQ. They didn't have any availability so I picked a room at Pop Century for our check in night. We'll be in the fifties section, and requested a quiet top floor room close to the bus stops and main building. So one fun night at POP and then we transfer to POFQ for a week.

Dining:
Pop Century food court or Earl of Sandwich @DD -L
Raglan Road - D
Pop Century food court - B
50's Prime Time Cafe - L
Tangierine Cafe Morocco -D
Port Orleans French Quarter food court - B
Le Chefs de France - L
California Grill - D
POFQ food court - B
AK counter service -L
Boma - D
POFQ food court - B
Liberty Tree Tavern - L
Boatwright's Dining Hall - D
Kona Cafe - B
Le Cellier - L
Via Napoli - D
POFQ food court - B
Roaring Forks @ WL - L
Captain's Grille - D
Main Street Bakery @MK - B
Grand Floridian Tea Room Afternoon tea - L
counter service @MK, undecided - D
POFQ food court - B
Kringla Bakeri og Cafe - L
'OHana - D
POFQ food court -B
Also on the list to try is:

Karmel Kuche snack - maybe caramel corn?
Boulangerie Pastisserie - Napolean
Jalapeno Cream Cheese Pretzel
Kaki Gori ice
Dole Whip - again. Must share with Mom. I had a little cup last time and it was enough for two to share.

I have been to Boma before and loved their soups. I am not a soup person and I fell in love with the corn chowder and the butternut squash soups.

I have changed my ADR's so many times this list is nothing like what I started with a couple of months ago. I made my last change two days ago, now I have to let it alone and go with the flow. Every time I read a trip report with a good review, I'll think, "Oh we have to eat there too!", and start changing things up. And likewise with poor reviews, I want to cancel places, so I just have to not read the dining reports any more. LOL, I tried to make another change last night and the website said it was down for maintenance... so yeah ADR changing is an addiction. So is reading trip reports.

We are both celebrating our Unbirthdays! I call it the Unbirthday trip as I was doing this to celebrate my big 50th birthday (I made it, which considering some of my life choices along the way was questionable at times, lol) so my birthday was August which is dreadfully HOT and humid here in Texas and the same in Florida. Us smarties stay indoors in the nice chilly air-conditioning until the temps drop below 90 anything, so Florida was out for an August trip. So here we come in January, to lower crowds, and budget prices, and we got free dining so the Unbirthday trip is on!!!

Yes, you might see a lot of !!!!. I am excited, so...

We hope to meet up with my stepson and daughter in law who live near Daytona Beach and meet them for dinner and an evening with YeeHaw Bob. Sorry, Bob for not spelling it right but y'all know who I mean. (I'm in Texas, I can say y'all, so quit snickering) Even if they can't make it, we are still going to go see Bob and have an evening full of fun. I have never seen him before only a you tube video. I may have to spend a couple of evenings with Bob as it looks like great fun and we will be staying at Port Orleans.

Mom has never seen Wishes, so I scheduled a dinner at the California Grill and we scored 730 pm ADR's!

Lots of fun going on for us and it all starts in January! I planned out our days using crowd levels and recommendations but I've also decided we could brave the crowds and go against Josh's advice at easywdw and visit MK on our last Saturday only because we want to see the Main Street Electrical Parade. We'll already have had 2 full days at the MK so even if we only go just for the parade, it would be fine as we are not touring park commando style this time. I would, but Mom can't keep up. LOL, so she decided I am to run ahead and get passes and hold her place and she will catch up to me. LOL, I suggested an ECV for speed, but she waved her walking stick at me and said I've got this! Maybe she's gonna whack folks out of her way to make better time??? Or hook it on to someone's belt loop and be pulled. Hmmm, now there's an idea , it looks like Mom is getting wheelie shoes for Christmas! LOL.

So, welcome and help me plan!

 

[Cin]

Okay so here we are:
Me first.

And Mom.

And our theme for the trip.

Here's another pic of Mom and I and my daughter (who originally was supposed to join me) and our youngest and 4th generation.

 

[Cin]

EEK!!!!

Sorry they are so huge. LOL, I will learn how to resize them next time, unless they are food pics of course. Speaking of which, we will be dining in some of my favorite counter service places.
Morocco

and value resort taco salad!

 

[Cin]

So far this is what our schedule looks like:

Sat Jan 21 - fly into Houston, meet Mom, and we fly into Orlando. I'll be excited to see those first Mickey Magical Express signs! Check in to Pop Century, or do they call it Pop Half Century now? Lunch at the resort, some unpacking and resort tour. We'll be in the 50's area iwith Lady and the Tramp, and I requested the Lady building. I thought Mom would find the 50's area fun and it is in theme for tomorrow's lunch at 50's Prime Time Cafe. Dinner is planned at Raglan Road. Window shopping at Downtown Disney. DS and DDinlaw are supposed to meet us for dinner and then we'll take the boat over to Riverside and catch YeeHaw Bob for an evening of fun. They live near Daytona Beach. So we have to wait and see if all our schedules can work out. Fingers crossed on that to happen as I haven't seen them since last year.

Sun - Get a cab after breakfast and check in to Port Orleans French Quarter. Then....First park day! Instead of going with my heart and heading straight for MK like the masses, I followed easywdw advice and am going to DHS today, so I scheduled lunch for us at 50's Prime Time. We are definitely going to have to do the draw with the artist thing, that sounds like great fun. It will be fun and really special seeing the pics we made years from now. Dinner at the California Grill. I hope we can see Wishes. Mom really wants to see the fireworks so I hope for a good seating.

Mon - Off to EPCOT for a 'round the world tour! Lunch at Le Chefs de France. Funny because when I asked Mom about getting ADR's for Cinderella's Royal table she most assuredly replied she wasn't paying to dine with any Princesses. Well, I didn't think this was a character meal and I didn't know about Remy when I booked. But all I can say is Remy the rat is far from dining with a Disney princess!! I am not telling Mom. Dinner will be Rose and Crown Dining Room. I am hoping for a table with a great view of Illuminations.

Tues - Animal Kingdom and a safari today! We'll be off to help save the baby elephant from those evil no good poachers. Lunch wherever we are I guess, possibly Pizzafari, or Flametree barbecue. I do want to check out the decor and theming of Restaurantosaurus though so we may end up there. I do have to find a jalapeno cream cheese pretzel as I think this is the park that sells them. That, and a cupcake from Kusafiri because AJ's pictures of cupcakes on the Disney food blog look sooo good. A little tour of the Animal Kingdom Lodge, some animal viewing, a little shopping and filling our plates with a fun variety of foods with a dinner at Boma. I loved the black olive hummus dip and the roasted red pepper hummus too. That and the butternut squash soup...Mmmmm, so delicious.

Weds - Yay! Finally MAGIC KINGDOM! I feel like a kid again and am really excited about seeing The Haunted Mansion and the new interactive queue, riding Splash Mountain and hope we emerge with minimal splash, Pirates of the Caribbean, the Jungle Cruise and a stop in the Liberty Tree Tavern for lunch. Dinner will be Boatwright's Dining Hall at Riverside at an evening with Yee Haw Bob.

Thurs - More EPCOT and lunch at Le Cellier. Now will I have the famous cheese soup, steak or burger? I am pondering whether I should try Soarin' or not. I have motion sickness and visual cues can cause my stomach to feel queasy, so I have this last chance to get in line for it. Tough decisions ahead. I hope Morocco still gives the free guided tours as Mom and I would love to learn more in depth about this area. I missed it last time but did enjoy the band and the belly dancer who were performing out by the waterfront. Via Napoli for dinner and shopping. I just know I need a new scarf from Italy.

Fri - Can you say Tonga Toast? Kona Cafe for breakfast. And hopefully Mom will order the macadamia nut pineapple pancakes because I want a bite. Or two. Than it's off to the Magic Kingdom today and when we get hungry, lunch at the Roaring Forks at Wilderness Lodge for a counter service meal. While we are there it's supposed to be tradition to rub Humphrey's nose. I also want a little souvenir that is resort specific from WL. Dinner tonight will be The Captain's Grill over at the Yacht Club.

Sat - Magic Kingdom for rope drop and opening ceremonies if we missed it earlier in the week. If we haven't already done so, ordering a Dole Whip is in order. I hope to have had my share of the Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean by then. Enough to hold me over another year or so... At 2pm we are having Afternoon Tea at the Grand Floridian and getting some much needed rest from the parks. That should be a fun elegant afternoon of rest and relaxation! After some R&R we head back to the Magic Kingdom to watch the Main Street Electrical Parade and Wishes. The fun begins trying to get back to our resort afterward... probably a cab will be the easiest for us.

Sun - Wow, that went fast, our last day already. We have dinner at 'OHana and a viewing of the Electrical Water Pageant from the Poly beach and Wishes to end our last night at WDW. Plans that day are to return to any park and get in last minute favorites. Then spend the day touring and shopping. I definitely have to find another plush or other Tigger for my collection, a new Christmas ornament for the tree, a snowglobe, a Tigger coffee mug, a blanket/throw and a scarf and anything cute that has Tinkerbell. So I have a little shopping wish list I will be in search of.

Mon - up early, a last meal of beignets or Mickey waffles, and pack up for our trip home and catch Magical Express for our flights home. Bye Mickey, see you next time!

 

[Dizneydaz]

Great start to your PTR. Going with your DM will be very special. I should know as my DM has gone with me all but one trip-that was my first one many decades ago, in 1983!

You are staying at my favorite value and moderate resorts. I love the feel of POFQ. So much more intimate than POR. We made a trip over to POFQ last month to eat at a different food court and we weren't disappointed. We always make a trip their for the beignets but this was the first dinner we ventured over for. We haven't stayed at POFQ for years now. (long story-running POP fridge swap for past 5 years, etc.) We had the pot roast and my DD12 had the 1/2 chicken. Both were excellent.

I actually came over here to help you post a link to your PTR. Just copy and paste this in your signature

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2830680

Hope this helps. Can't wait to read more. You are going to eat at some of my favorites. It''s almost like we are twins! (Though I'm the slightly older one-52)

 

[Cin]

Great start to your PTR. Going with your DM will be very special. I should know as my DM has gone with me all but one trip-that was my first one many decades ago, in 1983!

You are staying at my favorite value and moderate resorts. I love the feel of POFQ. So much more intimate than POR. We made a trip over to POFQ last month to eat at a different food court and we weren't disappointed. We always make a trip their for the beignets but this was the first dinner we ventured over for. We haven't stayed at POFQ for years now. (long story-running POP fridge swap for past 5 years, etc.) We had the pot roast and my DD12 had the 1/2 chicken. Both were excellent.

I actually came over here to help you post a link to your PTR. Just copy and paste this in your signature

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2830680

Hope this helps. Can't wait to read more. You are going to eat at some of my favorites. It''s almost like we are twins! (Though I'm the slightly older one-52)

Yes, it worked! Thanks.

I am excited about the dining. As a foodie, I can't help it. So there will be lots of food pics as long as I am faster with the camera than Mom is with the fork.

I am going to get lots of resort pics too and take a walking photo tour of both, time permitting.

 

[Dizneydaz]

Yes, it worked! Thanks.

I am excited about the dining. As a foodie, I can't help it. So there will be lots of food pics as long as I am faster with the camera than Mom is with the fork.

I am going to get lots of resort pics too and take a walking photo tour of both, time permitting.

Sounds good! And yes sometimes it is difficult to get those photos before everyone starts eating! By the end of our trip my DM and DD were getting a little tired of the whole pix thing.

If you have a chance to check out my QSDP Dining Report I just started it. You can click on the link in my siggie.

 

[Cin]

Arrrrgh, frustration... Continental changed our flights again!

What a hassle. They already changed them once and resheduled everything and had us on different return flights. A call to WDW travel and after wonderfully fast, easy service, they straightened it all out and got Mom and I on the same flights into and out of MCO again. Yay for Duncan at WDW travel and other agent at Continental (I didn't get his name) who fixed this for us.

So that was 3 weeks ago. Then I send Mom new paperwork and flight numbers and tell her disregard all the previous info. Yay we are all straigtened out and good to go and I have chosen seats for us window for her, aisle for me. Life is great.

Today in the mail, I got 2 blue envelopes from WDW travel. YAY!!! Our trip is only two months off now so it's our first official trip specific paperwork, right? Right? Wrong. It's a notification that Continental has changed our flights. Sigh... here we go again. These are the times I wish I had a travel agent to deal with this. It's not a big deal really, just a phone call and a few minutes, but still... again. And then with still two months to go, why fix it today when it is likely to happen again. I already know that the flight they booked me on departing my home city at 0625 to Houston will be cancelled come flight day. They end up cancelling it at the very last and rebook the 0830 flight. This happened last time and I was glad DH and I drove to the airport and live close because we just went back home and got to have coffee and relax. Anyway I booked the 0830 flight and they rescheduled me for the 0625... silly airlines. Whatever... so bummer that it wasn't the envelope I expected.

On a happier note, I just made my final payment and got my invoice from WDW travel showing my balance due is now $0.00
I love it!

 

[oopsiDAISY]

subbing...headed over here from Eat at Home.

I am excited to hear about your dining too! We are trying Chefs de France on this trip as well as 50's Primetime and Boatright's Dining Hall too since we are staying at POR. I have planned a March 2012 Dismeet at Yeeha Bob's...I too have only seen the youtube video and am looking forward to it. I can't wait to hear your reviews of these experiences since we are trying them too! Oooh, and Ohana too!

 

[Colleen27]

Subbing. We're going to be at POR that same week!

Flight changes are such a headache. I've all but given up on Airtran because of how often they do that to us, but at least we don't have connections to worry about.

Your dining plans look great. You have several of our favorites on your list!

 

[Cin]

subbing...headed over here from Eat at Home.

I am excited to hear about your dining too! We are trying Chefs de France on this trip as well as 50's Primetime and Boatright's Dining Hall too since we are staying at POR. I have planned a March 2012 Dismeet at Yeeha Bob's...I too have only seen the youtube video and am looking forward to it. I can't wait to hear your reviews of these experiences since we are trying them too! Oooh, and Ohana too!

I stayed at POFQ years ago before it was combined with Riverside, as I was too busy being a Mommy to my DD10 and DS5 I don't really remember too much of the actual resort other than the creepy giant faces in the food court. I don't know who they represent but they always made me think of the Four Winds as it looks like they are blowing air.

 

[Cin]

Subbing. We're going to be at POR that same week!

Flight changes are such a headache. I've all but given up on Airtran because of how often they do that to us, but at least we don't have connections to worry about.

Your dining plans look great. You have several of our favorites on your list!

Yay, favorites!!! Meaning you have been there before and loved it. These are all new places for me except Boma.

I have flown Continental many times and with exception of them changing my 0630 flights to the next ones out at 8, (they've consistently done this, so I expect it from our small airport) I have never had any flight changes for later flights in the day going or coming. But I know they just bought out or merged with United, so I'm sure they are working it all out... but still. It gets frustrating as Mom and I desire to travel together on the one flight in and out of MCO AND we want to be seated together.

 

[Cin]

Since I am bored and can't change any more ADR's or make any more plans as our itinerary is full, I am going to do reviews and memories of my last trip which was just a year ago for the 2010 Food & Wine fest. We left day 2 so not really any pics of that per se, but it was soo crowded anyway all I had was people and little else to view.

We stayed 7 nights at All Star Music.

So here is how our trip started and ended, with Magical Express.

On they way to your hotel they show a cute little introductory video, but I was too excited taking pics and chatting to hubby to pay attention and missed most of it.

Favorite sign as viewed from moving bus window at 45-50 mph or so:

Our Disney home, All Stars Music

 

[Cin]

Bus stop, not covered. Seating is under a covered area connected to building. Actual line up though is in the open. No bueno.

View from our balconey:

It was raining hard:

And the room itself:

Our view:

Overall impression? This place was huge on theming and very in your face and screams, "I'm at Disneyworld!" Fun fun fun. There were nightly movies by the pool, activities and games and dances for all ages as well. There was a caricature artist and a hair wrap station as well. The rooms were nice enough for two adults and since we were spending the majority of our time in the parks and more, the amenities and overall comfort wasn't a big deal. I would compare our room in quality and decor to a Motel 6 or Super 8. Not fancy, but clean and a decent place to shower and sleep and refresh from travel and a day's sightseeing. I wouldn't hesitate to stay there again.
My only complaint was the bus wasn't covered so you had to stand in the elements to hold your place in line. It was a small resort and easy to walk the entire property in a short time. Our room in building 3 was quiet and was close to the quiet pool aka the piano pool. Food court was good and we ate there numerous times and never had any complaints except that dry whole grain cardboard flavored hamburger bun that WDW serves everywhere. Turkey and dressing was the best and we had that meal twice, and shared the plate both times as it was plenty of food for 2 adults. I am just as excited to stay as POP, another value as I was to be at ASMu. I hope we'll catch them doing the shuffle or hustle or whatever when we visit. I love the details and special touches like that, that Disney does. Which is why I pay for a Disney room on site instead of going cheaper and getting a car and staying in Kissimmee or elsewhere. I love the Disney magic.

 

[Monny2AE]

I'm here to follow along! What a wonderful trip this is going to be for your mom! So much has changed since her last trip!

 

[Cin]

I'm here to follow along! What a wonderful trip this is going to be for your mom! So much has changed since her last trip!

Welcome! I know, this is really going to be such fun. I hope she can keep up... let's see where can I find wheelie shoes size 'mom'?

 

[GenGen22]

Well looks like we are both going on a mother daughter Disney trip.. How exciting!!! And it's also our first mother daughter trip That Taco Salad looked good. Was that at ASMU? I really wanted to stay there because of the music decor & the Piano Pool. Maybe when I come back next time. I'm thinking spring 2013. I hope I hope I hope.... The weather is probably way too cold for the pool anyhow in a couple of weeks...

 

[Cin]

Welcome! Yes, that salad was from ASMu resort. It was very good and we liked the resort very much. I think the pools are heated year 'round.

 

[GenGen22]

Does POP heat their pool?

Thanks-

Gen

 

[Cin]

Does POP heat their pool?

Thanks-

Gen

Yes Gen, according to the boards here they are heated. Here is the info:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2793105