"Are you done with that?!" A photo heavy, gluttonous, Jan 2012 Trip Report! NEW PG32

[katt789]

Love the updates! I gotta say, I love balloon shots too! Especially the ones with the castle in them, fantastic! I can't believe the crowds! I know on my last day in the parks I park hopped over to mk and it was pretty crowded! (and this was january) I would never want to be there during the summer!
That's SUCH a great shot up in the train station w/Rey! I also love the one of the girls lying down, and hey, it's true, you rarely see garbage on the ground in Disney!

 

[jecskc]

Loving your Main Street photos !! Thanks so much for sharing !!!

 

[danimaroo]

BOO TO CROWDS! I truly think this year brought out WAY more locals because of the amazing weather, so it made things way more crowded. Hopefully next January will be a little cooler so the locals will stay home.

I LOVE THE BALLOONS! They make me so happy! And I love you balloon shots! They are excellent! The one of Rey with MS in front of him IS AMAZING! I understand now why you are in love with it.

NOOOOO to your trip being close to over! I said to Matt during our drive into work this morning that I am going to be SO SAD when my TR is over! I don't want it to ever end.

 

[Bethislucy]

I love the balloon shots.

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Holy responses people! This is what I get for waiting all day before going them! I'm so glad everyone is enjoying my TR, it makes me so happy!

Ouch on the crowds. We've had several shots like that on some of our slow times too. Crazy, right? Love the balloon shots and that one of Rey on the train station platform is awesome too. YOu are so talented. Can't wait to hear how the Wave is!

Definitely crazy, but we were so lucky that we managed well with FP's on most days and the waits really were not that bad even with the crowds! Thank you for the compliments! I'm looking forward to doing the Wave review!

SO beautiful. I jumped back in awe.

And I guess you've never seen my TRs - Karen I LIVE for balloon shots.

I'm glad I'm not the only balloon fanatic!

They makes jokes about me - balloons, lighting fixtures, sculptures/statues and furry little wild things.

OMG KAREN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You're killing me. So flippin' gorgeous.

Thanks Lisa!

I absolutely LOVE your pictures!!
What lens do you use for most of your shots?

For almost all of this trip I had my Nikon 35mm prime lens on, you can't beat the bokeh! I did occasionally shoot with my Nikon 55-200mm as well! Do you have a filter on? Nope, no filters!

We are determined to catch a parade this time, since we did not see any of them last time.

Terri

I was glad we did, they aren't something I really look forward to and it's easy to miss them, but I'm always glad when we take the time to stop and enjoy them, it adds to the magic!

Karen - I'm taking three of your pictures over to my come see Karen post. If you have an issue with that - just tell me and I'll take them down pronto. I'm SO excited by these shots. Sorry for not asking first.

Not a problem! I don't mind at all, I'm utterly flattered though, you are too good to me!

Sorry I didn't respond yesterday (we had a bit of excitement at home...our youngest son bought an engagement ring and is proposing to his girlfriend two weeks from today).

I read that on your report and just didn't have time to respond! Congratulations! I can't wait to hear all about it when he pops the question!

WOW! We must have left just in the nick of time by leaving on the 31st! Those crowds remind me of the one and only time we went over 4th of July.

Really?!?!? Wow! I know the weather was partially to blame b/c it was SO gorgeous...at one point we were wishing it would rain so people would leave!

Even September has gotten more crowded which is our favorite time to go.
My first trip was in September and I loved the low crowds, but not the heat so much. I would do it again though if it meant less crowds!

I love the balloon shots--I think they are great.

Thank you!

But my favorite photo in these two updates is the one of Rey at the rail of the Train Station looking out at the castle.

HOLY MOLY THOSE CROWDS!! Ugh, I do not want Jan/Feb to start being crowded.

Those shots you got of the balloons are awesome! That picture of Rey with Main St. in the background is jaw-dropping gorgeous! You MUST frame that!

Mine too! I'm on it, I just have to figure out what size and find a frame before I order the print! It is going to be perfect for our house, which is super colorful. I have a B&W of this shot too, but I love the colors!

Love the updates! I gotta say, I love balloon shots too! Especially the ones with the castle in them, fantastic! Yay! Thanks! I'm glad I'm not boring everyone with my balloon shots! LOL. I can't believe the crowds! I know on my last day in the parks I park hopped over to mk and it was pretty crowded! (and this was january) I would never want to be there during the summer! I kept thinking that if THIS was January, what was summer like? I don't think I could handle the crowds AND the heat!?!?!
That's SUCH a great shot up in the train station w/Rey! I also love the one of the girls lying down, and hey, it's true, you rarely see garbage on the ground in Disney!

Loving your Main Street photos !! Thanks so much for sharing !!!

Thank you!!!

BOO TO CROWDS! I truly think this year brought out WAY more locals because of the amazing weather, so it made things way more crowded. I agree!
Hopefully next January will be a little cooler so the locals will stay home.



I LOVE THE BALLOONS! They make me so happy! And I love you balloon shots! They are excellent! The one of Rey with MS in front of him IS AMAZING! I understand now why you are in love with it.

Thanks! I was hoping it wasn't just that I love both the subjects in the shot that made it so wonderful for me!

NOOOOO to your trip being close to over! I said to Matt during our drive into work this morning that I am going to be SO SAD when my TR is over! I don't want it to ever end.

Yep, in the beginning I was so excited to tell everyone about it and now each morning I'm dragging...not wanting it to end! I think we only have 2 updates left and the souvenirs update and that's it! Wahhhhhhhhhhhh!

I love the balloon shots.

Thank you!!


you guys totally rock! I love that you are all reading and enjoying! I know I already said that, but I thought it needed repeating!

 

[LastLookAtTheCastle]

Hi Karen... I'm in the middle of your report (loving it!) but I wanted to pass along something. As a fellow runner who used to suffer from PF... yes, used to... believe it or not, and I swear it's the truth, I started going to the chiropractor for my hip issues, and not only did those clear up, but my PF too. Within about two months.

Seriously. I thought it was a load of crap, but I've been going for over two years now, and I not only walk, run, get out of bed (you know what I mean... those mornings of a PF attack are the worst to just put your feet on the floor!!!), etc. etc. better, everything feels better. I run 10-15 miles a week, and I'm also a long distance walker (I do the Breast Cancer 3-Day Walks - 60 miles in 3 days.)

Anyway... back to reading. Think about seeing a back cracker. I SWEAR it helps.

 

[monkey30]

I am really enjoying your TR! We were there at the same time and I keep searching your pictures for DH and I as we were at the same places at the same time! We would have been on EE at the same time as DH and I were there at rope drop as well and that was where we headed!

Love the pictures!

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Hi Karen... I'm in the middle of your report (loving it!) but I wanted to pass along something. As a fellow runner who used to suffer from PF... yes, used to... believe it or not, and I swear it's the truth, I started going to the chiropractor for my hip issues, and not only did those clear up, but my PF too. Within about two months.

Seriously. I thought it was a load of crap, but I've been going for over two years now, and I not only walk, run, get out of bed (you know what I mean... those mornings of a PF attack are the worst to just put your feet on the floor!!!), etc. etc. better, everything feels better. I run 10-15 miles a week, and I'm also a long distance walker (I do the Breast Cancer 3-Day Walks - 60 miles in 3 days.)

Anyway... back to reading. Think about seeing a back cracker. I SWEAR it helps.

THANK YOU! I have an acquaintance that is a chiro, I may see if I can talk to her about this! At this point, I'm willing to do just about anything b/c I HAVE to walk for my job...I'm a petsitter (i.e. DOGWALKER) for crying out loud!

I am really enjoying your TR! We were there at the same time and I keep searching your pictures for DH and I as we were at the same places at the same time! We would have been on EE at the same time as DH and I were there at rope drop as well and that was where we headed!

Love the pictures!

HOW cool! I love that! So I guess you saw the tour groups on that day as well?!! Were you at DHS on Wednesday? Did you see the flashmob?!?!

 

[LastLookAtTheCastle]

THANK YOU! I have an acquaintance that is a chiro, I may see if I can talk to her about this! At this point, I'm willing to do just about anything b/c I HAVE to walk for my job...I'm a petsitter (i.e. DOGWALKER) for crying out loud!

I was told it has to do with how your back balances itself, and aligns with your hips, and therefore your legs and ankles. I bet you money it will help. It may take a round of visits, but sometimes it's covered by insurance as just a co-pay.

And my mom has a pet-sitting business too. You people have to walk lots!

 

[Checkers]

What a great TR! The photos are just wonderful and I needed this "fix" right about now. Thanks for taking the time to share it with us!

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

We interrupt your normal programming (and all your bleepin pictures!!!...)

OH NO! I'm pretty annoyed right now, here is the email I got this morning:

Attention twoboysnmygirl

You have exceeded the 10 GB monthly bandwidth limit on your free
Photobucket account. As such, your image and video links have been
temporarily disabled. Your images and videos have not been deleted but
will be reactivated on the 15th of the month, when your bandwidth
usage resets to zero.

If you'd like to re-activate your links right away, you can upgrade to a
Photobucket Pro account.

So, I just had to pay to make my photos show up. I was going to just wait, but the 15th is too far away and I don't want to lose all my readers! Luckily I was allowed to just pay for 1 month, I shouldn't have to pay next month since I'm not trying to upload so many photos next month!

Ok, I just got an email saying that once my payment is confirmed, they will reinstate my photos. Let's see how long that takes...

 

[Twoboysnmygirl]

Last Day Continued- The Wave dinner!

Ok, I believe the photos are all showing up now, let me know if you can see them! I'm nothing without my photos folks!

The boys arrived on the bus to MK and we headed towards the monorail. Rey tried to get me to WALK and I just laughed, there was no way I was walking! It might look short, but any time I was on my feet I was in pain, so no thank you! I took a shot of GF while we waited for the monorail.

Before you knew it we were at the Contemporary...but wait...WHERE was the Wave at?!?! Yep, all that planning and not once did I find out where the Wave was located! We left the monorail area and headed down. At this point I was kind of walking in circles and they were following (fools!) and I jumped on the elevator and we headed up...one floor...and the doors opened and we were back up in the monorail area! At this point we were all laughing and we headed back down and Rey went in the gift shop and asked how to get to the Wave.

We found it!

Pretty cool entrance, but I just snapped fast b/c everyone else was so excited to be there, they weren't going to wait for me to take pictures~

We were a little early and I thought this would be a good thing, we could eat and get out of there and back to Magic Kingdom! I should have known that that thought was going to linger with me the whole meal!

They were not ready, however, and informed us that the restaurant didn't open until 5pm (our ADR time) so we could take a buzzer and have a seat in the waiting area. It was a pretty cool waiting area, it was a big round room with a blue ceiling.

It didn't take long and it was 5pm and they seated us in the very empty restaurant. BIG half-circle booth in the back! Score again!

Our waiter was great, he was really friendly...but slow. Ok, so this may be where the mistake was made from the start. I could NOT relax at an ADR when there were a mere 5 hours until the park closed and my vacation was OVER. I won't do a last night ADR again, I don't think.

We ordered, the chef came out and told me that the curry dish was vegan (yay!) and he would send special bread out that I could eat. We all ordered but our nice waiter argued that Savannah shouldn't get a child's meal b/c it was sub-par (no idea what words he really used) food and she had an adult TS and should order from the regular menu. I have no IDEA why I listened? I think I just wanted the meal to be over.

A few words about the feel of the restaurant in general. I'm GLAD we went, I want my kids to experience all different kids of things, but I thought...to use Rey's words about some of the deluxe resorts...HOITY-TOITY.

My father was an attorney, so I grew up going to lots of fancy restaurants, but not too many hoity-toity ones. My father was a firm believer that even though you had money, you didn't have to throw it around or make a big deal out of it. Anyway, the ambiance of the Wave was nice and it would have been somewhere I would have liked a romantic dinner with Rey, but I thought it was just a little stuffy. Now, I will say that as the restaurant filled up, I saw all kinds of families and kids, and it could have been that I just wanted out and wanted to be soaking up MK, but it didn't do a ton for me at that point.

our food came (I swear it took forever!) and we can start with the worst. Since I had listened to my waiter, the only thing on the menu that Savannah could have other than the curry dish I was having, was salad. Ok, she likes salad. Another server brought out the food and as he set it down he said "your DE-constructed salad" and I knew right then I had made a mistake. It was some lettuce in the middle (I say SOME pretty generously b/v it was barely any) with a little pile of tomatoes in one corner, a little pile of avocado in the other, and I think croutons in one corner? Seriously? Sorry, but hoity-toity.

I didn't get many pics, I'm so sorry, but it was REALLY dark and when I did get the few shots I had, I used my flash and didn't want to disturb everyone else in the restaurant!

So, Dylan, Leslee, & Dallas all got the penne with seafood entree. I cannot find the name of it on the app I have, so it must be new? It had clams and shrimp and all kinds of stuff piled on it and they all said it was good. Rey got the beef tenderloin and said it was good and very tender.

I got a curry vegetable dish and it was VERY good! Had I not been slamming it down, trying to get back to my magical place, I might have enjoyed it a little more!

Savannah didn't eat. Luckily, I think she was still full from that cinnamon roll on Mainstreet earlier! We finished and waited...and waited...I was ready to just ditch dessert, but you could tell Dallas really wanted to try it. I felt bad b/c the meals were HIS experience. He has a budding culinary interest and these meals were all unique and so I tried to calm myself down and let him enjoy HIS last night too! We finally ordered our dessert (I didn't order any) and waited and waited...and waited.

Dessert arrived, most of them got the ice cream trio:

They enjoyed trying each one, each having a pretty unique flavor. Dallas got "Creamy Indulgence" which was a trio of desserts. (not ice cream)

Oh he RAVED about the chocolate mousse! He loved it! He enjoyed the others, but didn't even finish them, saying the mousse was perfect, why have anything else! That was a nice way to finish off dinner!

So, my overall review would be positive for The Wave! We enjoyed it, I just thought it was a little "fussy" at times but the food was good, this is what matters! AND, I would suggest NOT going on your last night when MK is just mere steps away and you want to get back there!

We found the monorail easily this time (yep...reading signs helps!) and took a long and tortuous monorail ride back to MK b/c it went ALL the way around the resorts first while I just stared at the castle longingly!

Well, judging by this picture, dinner DID take way longer than I would have guessed...

but here we were in MK for our last night and the park was staying open an hour later...I was pumped!

Tomorrow's update will be the last! AND, I have petsitting in the morning, so it won't come until around 10-11am tomorrow. Hope everyone has a great Saturday!

 

[giantstoindy]

Looks like the monorail was pretty convenient...glad you got back to MK!! I'm having the same problem with our trip: making sure we give everything enough time. I really like your idea of having at least 2 MK and Epcot days.

NO last days!!

 

[-Hope-]

Stupid photobucket! I think your bandwith also has to do with how many people are viewing your pics or copying them in quotes- that's my understanding from some of the DISigners anyway. Stinks that you had to pay but I'd have done the same thing!

The curry looks great and so do those desserts! If that mousse is anything like the mousse that comes with the slipper then Dallas is right- PERFECTION!

I your shot of Main Street with the clock, the balloons and the castle! You always say you don't have an eye for unique shots but you so do! You are so much better at the "big picture" unique shots- I like the close up, details. Which means our TR is going to be insane with pics!

 

[NikkiLovesWDW!]

Subbing!! Love our intro. Going back to read now. I was there around the same time!

 

[Stringbean&Wingnut]

Ugh, it really does get frustrating when you are stuck at an ADR and you just want to get going! That happened to us on our last day too...

But your curry does look good! And I'm glad you were able to enjoy the meal a bit at least!

 

[okw19]

Sorry Photobucket was being such a pain!
Dinner sounded good food wise, but now I'm reminded why I'm always scared to order salads at modern, hoity toity places. At least Savannah wasn't starving. Those desserts look really good.
At least you guys made it back by 7! I can't wait to see MK at night through your lens.

 

[lexmas]

Well, apparently you're pretty much done, but I can't wait to read about it! I saw you were at disney on Hope's facebook status, and I was so excited that you finally got there...I remember when you were going at the same time as us (we didn't end up going then either) way back in 2010! I was so happy for you, and I'm very excited to read about it!!!

Christa

 

[jecskc]

We interrupt your normal programming (and all your bleepin pictures!!!...)

OH NO! I'm pretty annoyed right now, here is the email I got this morning:

Attention twoboysnmygirl

You have exceeded the 10 GB monthly bandwidth limit on your free
Photobucket account. As such, your image and video links have been
temporarily disabled. Your images and videos have not been deleted but
will be reactivated on the 15th of the month, when your bandwidth
usage resets to zero.

If you'd like to re-activate your links right away, you can upgrade to a
Photobucket Pro account.

So, I just had to pay to make my photos show up. I was going to just wait, but the 15th is too far away and I don't want to lose all my readers! Luckily I was allowed to just pay for 1 month, I shouldn't have to pay next month since I'm not trying to upload so many photos next month!

Ok, I just got an email saying that once my payment is confirmed, they will reinstate my photos. Let's see how long that takes...

This happened to me as well. Once I paid for the upgrade, I have never had a problem.

BTW - I love the Mickey design on the back of Rey's shirt in that Main Street photo. Is that an iron-on ?? It is soooo cool !! Going back to read your latest update now.

 

[mousescrapper]

We had that PB bandwidth problem in the joint PTR/TR I had not so much too many pictures but too many people viewing them

Yuck on the crowds...I do think the weekend days in Jan just pa k them especially the locals...too bad for your last day. I was smiling imagining you trying to figure out how to find the Wave at CR...it is a bit confusing in there...I now know that place quite well w/ BLT being our home resort...

Glad you had a good meal overall, despite the itching to get back to MK

Looking forward to the end