All I Want For Christmas Is an Okapi, a Dinosaur, a Herd of Elephants and ...

[MagicalWorldMommy]

Just popping in to say Hi! I am finally caught back up on the report!

Bella's bday party was adorable, Loved the Boardwalk pics, and the PP pics were great!

I will actually be in Nashville this weekend, but it is for a bachelorette party for my best friend. I don't think I can talk them into a detour for a Dis-meet.

Looking forward to reading more. I am going to attempt my first PTR for our May trip, hope you all will follow along!

 

[micandminforever]

If you have time please post Opry Mills pictures of the new Disney store

 

[*dreamit*doit*]

Hi MeMom!!! I actually got caught up! (Now we'll see how long it lasts! ) The girls are growing up too fast!! The photopass pics are awesome! Bella has nooo problem with Minnie! Well, as, I told you on fb, I'd come and share the details of our upcoming trip here...but, first things first:

Jill - I know I'm late to the party, but I have to say: congratulations!!! Hope you're feeling well and everything goes just as you hope it will! And, as I already shared with MeMom, looks like you and I will both be having September Disbabies!

Now, about the trip: it looks like it will be May for us. My parents have agreed to go which is HUGE!!! My dad LOVES Disney, my mom not so much. I definitely got my Disney-love from my dad; he was always the one planning the trips and my mom complained the whole way - I think that's what first got me hooked on your TR, I love to hear about you and Jill sharing this together. Anyway, they haven't gone since Dec. 2005, for several reasons but since 2007 they were taking care of my grandmother full-time and that was the main reason. Since she passed away last May, we figured my mom had run out of excuses and we'd give it a shot and mention it to them - we knew my dad would need no convincing at all, but much to our surprise, my mom said yes! We decided on May because it works out best for us; there's a Florida resident special 3day pass that expires on Memorial weekend, so we're going the weekend before that. It's been a challenging year, financially, and we didn't get passes this year; it will be a year since we last went and that had me Disney depressed for awhile but now I have this trip to look forward to!!! It will be a take-it-easy kind of trip, too, because I'll need it and so will my parents. Anyway, we're staying for four nights at POP!

Have a great weekend together and enjoy the Disney store!! Miren has a cheerleading competition tomorrow, which is part of what is keeping me from the boards...she really enjoys it and we enjoy watching her, but it's no fun when I can't come visit Disfriends, so I'll try to be around again soon!

 

[Charleston Princess]

Have fun at Opry Mills today!!!

Super cute Photopass pictures!!!

 

[MeMom]

Have a great time with Jill this weekend!!

When they came in last night, we had pizza with the family and a friend of Trent's and Jarvis. The girls and I watched Disney movies as they fell asleep. We've just finished pancakes, and we're going to the mall in a little while. Nothing big, but just enjoying being together.

Hi Memom and Jill. It isn't looking good for us to make it to Opry Mills tomorrow. I was really wanting to come say Hi and let the girls enjoy the Disney store together. I woke up with nasty sinus issues and the girls seem to be affected too. Looks like it will be a weekend close to home for us. I'd love to meet up next time Jill is in town.

No problem. Feel better. It seems like everyone around has been having sinus issues this spring. We'll hook up another time.

Just popping in to say Hi! I am finally caught back up on the report!

Bella's bday party was adorable, Loved the Boardwalk pics, and the PP pics were great!

I will actually be in Nashville this weekend, but it is for a bachelorette party for my best friend. I don't think I can talk them into a detour for a Dis-meet.

Looking forward to reading more. I am going to attempt my first PTR for our May trip, hope you all will follow along!

Next time you are in Nashville, let us know, and we'll meet you at the hippo! (Rainforest Cafe in Opry Mills)

I will peek in on the PTR. I usually don't write much on pre-trip reports, as it is enough just to keep up with writing ours and reading the actual trip reports, but I will enjoy checking in on your planning when I can.

If you have time please post Opry Mills pictures of the new Disney store

It's very plain - no decorations, but I'll get some merchandise pictures for those who don't have a Disney Store near them. Even a photo visit is nice when you don't have a store close to you. We know that firsthand.

Hi MeMom!!! I actually got caught up! (Now we'll see how long it lasts! ) The girls are growing up too fast!! The photopass pics are awesome! Bella has nooo problem with Minnie! Well, as, I told you on fb, I'd come and share the details of our upcoming trip here...but, first things first:

Jill - I know I'm late to the party, but I have to say: congratulations!!! Hope you're feeling well and everything goes just as you hope it will! And, as I already shared with MeMom, looks like you and I will both be having September Disbabies!

Now, about the trip: it looks like it will be May for us. My parents have agreed to go which is HUGE!!! My dad LOVES Disney, my mom not so much. I definitely got my Disney-love from my dad; he was always the one planning the trips and my mom complained the whole way - I think that's what first got me hooked on your TR, I love to hear about you and Jill sharing this together. Anyway, they haven't gone since Dec. 2005, for several reasons but since 2007 they were taking care of my grandmother full-time and that was the main reason. Since she passed away last May, we figured my mom had run out of excuses and we'd give it a shot and mention it to them - we knew my dad would need no convincing at all, but much to our surprise, my mom said yes! We decided on May because it works out best for us; there's a Florida resident special 3day pass that expires on Memorial weekend, so we're going the weekend before that. It's been a challenging year, financially, and we didn't get passes this year; it will be a year since we last went and that had me Disney depressed for awhile but now I have this trip to look forward to!!! It will be a take-it-easy kind of trip, too, because I'll need it and so will my parents. Anyway, we're staying for four nights at POP!

Have a great weekend together and enjoy the Disney store!! Miren has a cheerleading competition tomorrow, which is part of what is keeping me from the boards...she really enjoys it and we enjoy watching her, but it's no fun when I can't come visit Disfriends, so I'll try to be around again soon!

So excited about another DIS baby!

You guys will have a great time on your trip, and you can send us some pictures. We're down to ten weeks today!

Have fun at Opry Mills today!!!

Super cute Photopass pictures!!!

We're going to check out the Lego Store and the Crocs store, as well as just really get a chance to see what all the 'new' mall brought back and added.

 

[MHTeacher]

Enjoy checking out Opry Mills and the Disney Store. We were there last weekend (Easter) and the mall is really nice since reopening after the flood. I managed to buy a few things at the Disney store. I went in the Lego store, and it was CRAZY crowded!

Have fun!

 

[Poolrat]

All caught up. So busy here right now and DIS not cooperating. ARRHH they scrambled the emoticons

 

[disneyfan61]

I hope you are enjoying your time at the zoo. What a cute picture you sent. Thank you!! Made my day. I have been busy doing & packing!

Ok I cannot get used to these smilies all mixed up now!!!

 

[MeMom]

Enjoy checking out Opry Mills and the Disney Store. We were there last weekend (Easter) and the mall is really nice since reopening after the flood. I managed to buy a few things at the Disney store. I went in the Lego store, and it was CRAZY crowded!

Have fun!

The mall is nice. It seems more 'upscale' feeling than it did before. I think I liked the more cozy feel of the old one, but I'm sure they did research that showed what people wanted, and people must have wanted this. We were there before it opened, so at first it wasn't crowded. It was plenty crowded by the time we left, though.

All caught up. So busy here right now and DIS not cooperating. ARRHH they scrambled the emoticons

I'm just seeing them. They are in way different order now, aren't they?

I hope you are enjoying your time at the zoo. What a cute picture you sent. Thank you!! Made my day. I have been busy doing & packing!

Ok I cannot get used to these smilies all mixed up now!!!

The kind of packing you are doing is fun stuff!
Maybe they'll add some new smileys, too.

 

[MeMom]

As most of you know, Nashville's flood destroyed the Grand Old Opry/Opryland Hotel/Opry Mills area. All are back up and running now, and they seem to be thriving, from all that I have heard. Yesterday, Jill got her first glimpse of the new old mall. We thought some of you might be interested, since you have lived or traveled in this area, or you plan to travel in this area. If you are making a stop-over for sleep as you travel to Disney World, this is a safe area and a nice mall.

Brooklynn was happy to see Hippo back. Bella didn't remember him, really.

He's a darker hippo than his friend before him.

Bella insisted on seeing the snake.

She is in my left arm, and I am taking the picture holding my right arm back trying to get her and the snake in the shot.

We are so glad to have Rainforest Cafe back, as it gives us a touch of Disney when we need it.

The wonderful aroma of the nut kiosk greeted us.

Since you're in hillbilly country, the Redneck Chef has plenty of souvenirs for you to take back to civilization.

We found Brooklynn's dream store!

These candy boxes are huge.

There was more sugar - this time in the form of some delicious-looking cupcakes.

This place was having its grand opening and was giving away t-shirts and gift cards.

We were on a mission, however, to make 'rope drop' at Disney Store.

After a couple of years of having to travel hours to get to one, this is a lovely sight.

The lamps are pretty much all the decor there is.

I had not seen the Flora, Fauna, and Merriweather before.

They had even more 'lesser' characters, so I thought that was cool.

Unique purses.

 

[MeMom]

It is so good to see the neatly lined rows of Disney friends back again.

Bella carried a Cinderella twisting thing around with her pretty much the whole time.

Bubble blowers.

There was one section of cups and mugs

and a few purses and wallets.

Fun shirts for boys.

And fun things for girls.

Towels.

Kitchen things.

We almost brought a Squirt home.

Muppet representation.

Brooklynn really, really, really wanted Lady, but Jill said it was too expensive and too big.

Which outfit will the baby be wearing in October?

Note that Bella has apparently been attending the Miss Anita Wigd School of Shopping.

Goodbye, Meeko, until next time.

I hope this time the store stays put.

We quickly browsed Build-a-Bear

and peeked in at Lego Store.

Bella was thrilled to see what she called 'Bruise', which she thought was Nemo's Bruce.

It was really just a generic shark, but you can't convince her it's not Bruise!

 

[MeMom]

We browsed the Rainforest gift shop, thinking Brooklynn would choose a friend from there, since she had not made up her mind at Build-a-Bear, and Jill had made up her mind for her about Lady.

Bella saw Mr. Frog - not sure of his official name - but since we kept saying Rainforest Cafe, she called out, "I see Cafe!"

15 for nine bucks. We thought Brooklynn might pick bugs and snakes.

But, she was in a quandry as to who/what would join her band of animals.

Bella wanted to go see Cafe.

As soon as she got beside him to take a picture, a storm started. She started covering her ears and looking around, and so did Cafe.

By this time, Brooklynn had decided she would continue to look for the perfect animal, so she did not buy anything.

We went back to the food court to ride the carousel.

I thought of Italy, Epcot.

Brooklynn wanted to do the spinning ride. At first, she was alone, but then Whoopi Goldberg and her grandson joined her.

Brook was looking a little worried, but after Whoopi found out what that spinner really did, she said she couldn't handle it, so she took her grandson to a regular horse.

Brooklynn was later joined by another little girl, so they worked together to spin happily around during the ride.

The girls each got new purses, because you know they have a shortage of them.

Brooklynn and Jill later went back into RFC to retrieve the polar bear that Brooklynn had decided she would go back and get.

Here is the polar bear, looking much like a clouded leopard.

Can it get any better than this when you are five???

When we got home, there was a package waiting from Wigd and Shocker. It was a neat coral reef stuffed animal display which would have been perfect for Bella's party. The girls called to tell them thank you, and that's when we learned of the storms headed their way. Luckily, they made it through very well, but there is a lot of damage all around them, so we'll look forward to hearing from them on what all the tornadoes did in the days ahead.

Today, we went to Nashville Zoo. Zoo pictures coming after I get them loaded. Hope you are all having a very nice Sunday!

 

[MeMom]

We had beautiful weather for our zoo trip today.

Hyacinth macaws

Some acrobatic gibbons

Shucking corn...

and eating it.

We wanted to see the dinosaur exhibit first.

The girls checked out the first dino while Jill paid for the passes.

In the temporary dino gift shop/tent.

Ready to go!

They do not like they have any fear of dinosaurs....

yet.

As we neared this,

we could hear the roars of dinosaurs.

And then we began to see them.

This one looks friendly enough.

These pretty flowers captured my attention.

Right as I finished getting a picture of them,

this guy

sprayed water all over Bella and me!

I was surprised.
Jill laughed.
Bella was not a bit amused.

She wanted to be held very close for a long time after that, and as I was holding her, her body tensed up as we saw the next several dinosaurs.

This was the most gruesome display.

I might be a bit afraid of him.

I won't bore you with the names and details of all of these.

 

[sunny_stace]

What a nice outing to the mall! It looks like the rebuild went really well! That Disney store is nice and bright and organized! And I want the light fixtures for my own house! I think on Friday I might head over to Michigan to shop for the day and I think I must make a trip to a Disney Store! Those kitchen items are just calling out to me! I might take a lesson from Wigd's school of shopping too!

 

[MeMom]

Bella was okay with these little baby dinosaurs, and after that, she forgot her fear and walked on.

Can anyone not think of Dinosaur at Animal Kingdom walking through here?

I might have said, 'Not our dino!' a time or two.

These guys were pretty big, and we really thought it was a very nice exhibit overall.

There was a teeny tiny boneyard.

Moving on.

But first, there were some red river hogs.
One was up,

and one was down.

Big gray dudes.

A slight Disney connection.

Jackie's friends were just being let out of the back gate and onto the savannah.

This one was running to the food.

The 'meerykats'.

The girls seeing a bearded dragon.

Time to go inside.

The huge anaconda was shedding his skin. I had never seen a snake that large shredding its skin.

That guy is huge!

 

[MeMom]

A caiman

Lookie, lookie!

Some of you got mingoed here.

Cougar

The ringtails were all huddled up.

The clouded leopard has recently had babies, they said. She was pacing in front of the gate, so we guessed she was wanting to get to her babies. I could not get a could picture of her.

It was kind of sad, because she just paced and paced.

We assumed this was the papa.

Red panda

We can't help but think of Mama Odie's neck of the woods when we see this.

This Eurasian Lynx had a mouse.

Yuck!

Tigers.

Zebras

Baby Boy

or Baby Girl

had had his/her first unofficial zoo visit.

Brooklynn was excited to get a dinosaur.

She took him through the trek one time to meet some of his relatives.

At the next gift shop, she decided she would rather have a cougar, because the dinosaur didn't have a mouth, so an exchange was made.

None of us were surprised to see this...

on the ride home.

I took more pictures, but I just wanted to give you the highlights. Nashville Zoo is no Animal Kingdom, but it is getting better and better as the years go by. We had a nice time together, and of course going to the zoo always affords learning opportunities for the girls and for us.

 

[micandminforever]

Thanks for the Disney Store pictures it is always nice to see a little bit of Disney. Between the Zoo and the Mall pictures I am ready for a trip to Nashville. When Opryland was there DH and I would go to Nashville about every other year. Since they closed the park I think we have only been one time.

 

[jillyb]

Looks like a great time was had by all!

 

[Megablocks]

Wowwww, you got some awesome pictures! Nashville Zoo looks awesome. The dinosaur area also looks awesome. I can't imagine taking Kailyn through there...she is SO scared of dinosaurs. It looks really interesting, though!

 

[Charleston Princess]

Hurray for Opry Mills being back up and running! Looks like there was a lot of fun shopping happening on Saturday. Bella with "Cafe" was cracking me up -- she didn't look the least bit afraid of him!

That giraffe was sure in a hurry to get to his food. I have never seen a running giraffe before!

Of course, I also had to laugh when Brooklyn took her new dino through to meet his relatives, and then, I laughed even harder that she exchanged him because he had no mouth.