Balancing Parks, Rest and Birthdays! A July 2023 Trip Report

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Day Four: Rest Day!

Today was our first true rest day! And there was only 1 official plan for the day. Dinner.
Untitled
Everything else was up in the air.

We all slept in and slowly all started to wake up around 8:30. This is sadly late for us. We are all natural early risers. We always joke that Disney is the only place we sleep in.

Andy I went to the main building to get the treats that I ordered.
Birthday Breakfast
I found a former CM who makes baked goods and delivers them to your room. This was to be Gwen's second birthday surprise.

We just had to go down to the lobby and pick it up. So, Andy and I did that while the girls were complete lumps in bed.

I ordered 6 Beignets, 6 Mickey Waffles, 6 Chocolate Covered Strawberries and a giant Happy Birthday Mickey Sugar Cookie.

I also ordered some coffees while we were in the lobby.

Andy ordered a Cold Brew French Roast and I ordered a Cold Brew Shakin Jamacian with Carmel. And I will say, we got better value of our drinks at the Jofferies stand by the Skyliner. These drinks were clearly smaller and not filled all the way!

With drinks and treats in hand, Andy and I headed back to the room.
Beignets
There was a pound of powdered sugar with the beignets. they were ok, not becasue the person didn't make them good but more so they were just cold, since they weren't just made.

Mickey Waffles

Lazy Gwen and her Waffle

Mickey Cookie

Gwen was already starting to feel overwhelmed the snacks and attention. She doesn't do well with being the center of attention. Sigh.

Tinkerbell Gifts
The girls didn't want to get out of bed to check on tinkerbell gifts... I apparently didn't get a good picture. But it was bathing suits. Something they actually both needed new ones of.

We all relaxed and ate some breakfast in the room with our new treats.

I finally rallied everyone to go to the main pool for a bit. It was about 11:00 when we headed to the main pool.
Heading to the pool
See those clouds, it was sunny but def was looking like rain was coming.

Pool

Swimming

Got in the pool. I snapped a few pictures before I got in.

Pool

Mo in the Pool
Don't they look excited to be swimming?

We probably floated around for about half an hour, before the sky’s started to really look like it was going to rain.
Sure enough another 10 minutes and they were closing the pool.

Andy and the girls headed back to the room. They all wanted to get back before it started to rain. I wanted to grab some food for lunch. So, I headed to the Pool Bar, Banana Cabana.

I got to the bar just in time. It started to poor almost right after. I was able to grab a stool and order food. A lot of folks flooded in as the rain started, but thankfully I was already there.
Cabannas

I ordered some food and a drink for myself as well, so I sipped on that while I waited.
Kraken Punch
Kraken Black Spiced Rum and Blood Orange Sour with Pomegranate and Orange Juices
I have no photo of it and don't really remmeber what this tasted like which means it was fine. Nothing amazing but also not gross.

Thankfully, the storm wasn’t long, and it had died down to a drizzle by the time I had the food. So, the walk back wasn’t too bad. I was also still in my bathing suit and cover up, so it didn't really matter.

We all snackedin the room.
I had ordered the Caribbean Pull-Apart Rolls
served with Guava Butter and Onion Jam
Pull Apart Rolls
These were good. We didn't actually like the guava butter. It was too sweet for us. Which I feel like I never say.

Jerk Chicken Wings
with Pickled Vegetable Ribbons and Cilantro-Lime Crema
Jerk Chicken Wings
Sorry for the half eaten picture... we were hungry and I totally forgot to snap before pics. I love these! I don't know why but I do. And really the reason why I wanted to get food.

Andy and Morgan also ate some of the leftovers from Homecomin’. And Gwen had pringles... the lunch of champions!

We relaxed more in the room. Everyone showered, napped and just watched whatever.

up next an evening in Disney Springs!

 

[amazingact21]

Sorry it rained on your pool day. That's always disappointing when you can't take advantage of the pool. But it sounds like everyone was resting and relaxing, something that's necessary at WDW!
Those chicken wings sound really good.

 

[vamassey1]

Sorry for the rain, but your rest day does look like it was relaxing.

It's amazing how the kids don't care as much for swimming as they get older. When their little that all they want to do is swim.

We only stayed at CBR once and I didn't use the Joffrey's near the Skyliner. It sounds like they have a better selection of drinks, Do they also have some grab and go breakfast treats?

 

[missjackiemcg]

You're so smart to always build in rest days on your trips--I bet my family would like that, too....too bad I keep them jumping the whole trip!

Your treats looked tasty, despite cold beignets. I've seen lots of great reviews from that business online. Would you order from her again??

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Sorry it rained on your pool day.

It was kind of to be expected. It was summer...

Sorry for the rain, but your rest day does look like it was relaxing.

It wasn't that bad. It did feel a little like a waste, as we barely swam in the big pool the whole trip. But we did relax which was the main thing.

It's amazing how the kids don't care as much for swimming as they get older. When their little that all they want to do is swim.

So true! I thought for sure they would want to swim more this trip. Oh well

Do they also have some grab and go breakfast treats?

Very basic stuff, donuts and generic pastries.

Your treats looked tasty, despite cold beignets. I've seen lots of great reviews from that business online. Would you order from her again??

I would. THe beignets being cold, there is nothing you can do about that. Everything was nicely packaged and good. The chocolate strawberries were good. I just wouldn't do it again but because we tend to grab snacks in the parks and just didn't really need the extra snacks. If that makes sense.

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Day Four: Rounding out Rest Day at Disney Springs

I left us off relaxing in the room. Around 4:00, we headed out for dinner.
Off to Disney Springs

We were headed to Disney Springs for dinner tonight and Morgan wanted to get Gideon’s. So, I said we needed to leave enough time to wait if needed. So, off we went at 4:00 PM!

We headed to the bus stop and got a bus shortly after getting to the bus stop. We headed straight for Gideon’s once we got to Disney Springs.

We got to Disney Springs and headed straight to Gideon's.

We got there at 4:23 PM and we lucked out! There was a short line for Gideon’s once we got there. So we hopped in line. In Line for Gideon’s. We have had good luck at getting in line at this time of day. It seems like they have a lull from the folks who come first thing and before the evening rush.

4:34 PM we were Inside Gideon’s! Just a 11 minute wait!
Gideon's Bookshelf

It always feels “exciting” when you get into the store. We had talked about how many to get, but once we were inside, we saw that some of the cookies had coconut and walnuts in them. We don’t like either, so we changed our plan.
Gideon's Photos

Buying way too many cookies

We ordered 2 Chocolate Chip, 2 Peanut Butter Crunch, 1 Coffee Cake, 1 Cookies and Cream, 1 Key Lime Chocolate Chip and a piece of Key Lime Pie Cake. And 2 Cookie Butter Frostings. Always get the frosting!!! Morgan was hoping for peanut butter frosting but they didn't have any that day.

I wanted to try the cold brew but I knew it would fill me up too much before dinner. So, I sadly refrained.

Gideon's Card
Here is the card for the day.

After we made our purchases we talked about what we wanted to do. Dinner wasn’t till 6:00 PM and it was still before 5:00 since it was so fast at Gideon’s!

I suggested we go to the Coke Store and go to the rooftop bar to try the tasting flight. Gwen didn’t want to walk that far but Morgan said that sounded fun and Andy agreed, so Gwen got out voted. So, we headed there.

We checked out some of the merch on the first floor once we got there. It was kind of silly, it felt like, if there was something they could put there logo on, they did. And I just kept thinking that you had to REALLY love coke to want anything there.

WeF finally headed up to the top floor. (We skipped the middle floor, so not sure what they had but we weren't intrested in any merch)

It is really nice up there, and when we got there it was still pretty empty, so we had lots of choices to sit.

Andy and I ordered the drinks and Morgan and Gwen found a table. Morgan choose the table the closest to the middle of the building. She didn’t want to be on the edge and see the nice view. Sigh.

Drink Flight
We went with both tasting menus to share between the 4 of us.

Soda Key

The tasting was alot of fun. It was basically doing Club Cool, but paying for it. But there were other options and you could taste at your own speed and not feel like we needed to rush.

Morgan taste testing Soda
Morgan tasting a soda....

Morgan not sure she likes it.
Deciding if she likes it or not.

Me taste testing soda
She wasn't sure, so she made me try it.

Cheers
It was nice to do the tasting sitting down. And relaxed.

Andy taste testing

Gwen only wanted to try the still drinks, which there were a few options. But Gwen also started making “New Drinks” with the leftovers. She found that Beverly over powers just about anything.

....And 2 sprites make sprite.

Speaking of sprite, the cucumber sprite was so refreshing! I wish we had it here!

Me drinking one. Not so bad if you don't smell it
There was one soda that smelled so strongly but tasted so different. So we started drinking trying to drink it without smelling it.

We finished up our drinks and decided to just head to dinner. So, we slowly walked over to Morimoto Asia.

We got over to our dinner location around 5:40, so 20 minutes early for our reservation.
Heading into dinner
Where were we having dinner?!? Morimoto Asia!

We checked in and waited maybe 5 minutes to be seated! Not long at all. I was surprised, but I guesss it was still early-ish?
Inside Morimoto

We were brought upstairs to a table up again the clear railing. Morgan picked a chair away from that.

Our waiter came over eventually, and it turned out to be the same guy we had last time we were there. He was great then and again this night as well. I want to say his name was Eric.

We started with some water and he answered our questions.

I ordered a drink:
the Roku and Chill
Roku and Chill
Roku Gin, hibiscus syrup, yuku, cherry bitters served with fever tree lime and yuzu on the side

The was really good! It was basically a japanese mule. When I ordered it, the waiter said it was a nice and refreshing drink. And it really was! I will def order it again, if it is still on the menu.

Morgan ordered Strawberry Boba and Gwen ordered Mango Boba.
Andy went with good old Diet Coke. (no photos of any of that)

We ordered a half rack of ribs to share as an appetizer.
Ribs
Morimoto Spare Ribs, Half-Rack, 6-rib
pork ribs, cilantro, hoisin sweet chili glaze

These are sooooo good. And honeslty half the reason we have come here. We each got one rib, Gwen included! And then Andy and I split one and Morgan and Gwen split one.

We ordered our main dishes shortly after.

I went with the Morimoto "Buri-Bop"
My meal
korean style yellowtail rice bowl, served in a hot clay pot and finished with egg yolk

This was really good. Last time the clay pot wasn’t hot enough but this time, you could hear things sizzling while the server “prepared” the meal table side. Gwen thought it was super fun that they mixed it up table side.
Sizzle
And she's not wrong... It adds to the fun having it "cooked" table side.

Andy went with a special
A5 WAGYU LOCO MOCO
Andy's Loco Moco
house blended burger with a-5 wagyu and filet mignon, served over sizzling rice bowl topped with a sunny side up cage free egg and teriyaki mushroom gravy
Andy's Loco Moco

Andy really enjoyed this. His was served in more of a cast iron skillet and had a sauce that they poured on table side and it started to sizzle as well. So, they def had there pots heated properly this trip.

Morgan and Gwen both ordered the Tonkotsu Ramen. And when they ordered it, they actually said Tonkotsu properly and the waiter was very impressed. But I said it's only because they watch so much anime.
rich pork bone broth, wheat noodles, roasted pork, woodear mushroom, pickled ginger, scallion and soy marinated egg
Gwen Ramen

These are HUGE bowls of Ramen!!! They both enjoyed there ramen.
Gwen's Ramen

Mogan and her Ramen

I tried gwen’ broth, and it is very good broth!

Gwen also ate some of Andy’s rice from his dish. She like that it was crunchy and salty from the sauce they put on it. Andy’s rice did taste different than my rice. His was slightly sweeter than mine.

We were all very happy with our meals! And we were all full but not so full we felt gross.

At some point, we had mentioned that it was Gwen’s birthday tomorrow. And the waiter brought out a small bowl of raspberry sorbet. Gwen was very happy to get this little surprise.
Gwen and her Birthday Sorbet
The sorbet was perfect for Gwen. She enjoyed that much more than a cupcake.

We were all very happy with our meals. Morimoto has become a favorite of ours... but sadly we may be skipping it this next trip!!!

We left Morimoto Asia around 7:30. And headed out straight to the bus stop. We waited just a little bit, as when we got to the bus stop there was no one there. So we proably just missed a bus.

7:45 PM: We were back at Caribbean Beach AND at our stop. It does take a bit of time to go around the resort but only 5 mintues? Worth saving the steps if you are tired.

We walked back to the room and all settled in for the night.

Once we were all settled in PJs and clean (and bellies had slightly digested), we cracked open the Key Lime Pie Cake.
Key Lime Pie Cake
This was sooooo good. The cake was nicely flavored with Key Lime and the icing was really amped up. Soooo good if you like Key Lime Pie. I am dreaming about it right now!
Cake
And in fact, Morgan and I found some reciepes for this kind of cake and make it over the summer. So good.

Morgan said now she wants to try the different cakes! Everyone talks about the cookies, but the CAKE!!! Give a slice a try!!

We all shared the cake, watched more Bleuy and went to sleep at a reasonable time. It was a successful rest day. but tomorrow was a BIG day!!! Gwen's Birthday!!!

Coming up Next! Gwen turns 13!!!

 

[SEAGULL59]

Day Four: Rounding out Rest Day at Disney Springs

I left us off relaxing in the room. Around 4:00, we headed out for dinner.
Off to Disney Springs

We were headed to Disney Springs for dinner tonight and Morgan wanted to get Gideon’s. So, I said we needed to leave enough time to wait if needed. So, off we went at 4:00 PM!

We headed to the bus stop and got a bus shortly after getting to the bus stop. We headed straight for Gideon’s once we got to Disney Springs.

We got to Disney Springs and headed straight to Gideon's.

We got there at 4:23 PM and we lucked out! There was a short line for Gideon’s once we got there. So we hopped in line. In Line for Gideon’s. We have had good luck at getting in line at this time of day. It seems like they have a lull from the folks who come first thing and before the evening rush.

4:34 PM we were Inside Gideon’s! Just a 11 minute wait!
Gideon's Bookshelf

It always feels “exciting” when you get into the store. We had talked about how many to get, but once we were inside, we saw that some of the cookies had coconut and walnuts in them. We don’t like either, so we changed our plan.
Gideon's Photos

Buying way too many cookies

We ordered 2 Chocolate Chip, 2 Peanut Butter Crunch, 1 Coffee Cake, 1 Cookies and Cream, 1 Key Lime Chocolate Chip and a piece of Key Lime Pie Cake. And 2 Cookie Butter Frostings. Always get the frosting!!! Morgan was hoping for peanut butter frosting but they didn't have any that day.

I wanted to try the cold brew but I knew it would fill me up too much before dinner. So, I sadly refrained.

Gideon's Card
Here is the card for the day.

After we made our purchases we talked about what we wanted to do. Dinner wasn’t till 6:00 PM and it was still before 5:00 since it was so fast at Gideon’s!

I suggested we go to the Coke Store and go to the rooftop bar to try the tasting flight. Gwen didn’t want to walk that far but Morgan said that sounded fun and Andy agreed, so Gwen got out voted. So, we headed there.

We checked out some of the merch on the first floor once we got there. It was kind of silly, it felt like, if there was something they could put there logo on, they did. And I just kept thinking that you had to REALLY love coke to want anything there.

WeF finally headed up to the top floor. (We skipped the middle floor, so not sure what they had but we weren't intrested in any merch)

It is really nice up there, and when we got there it was still pretty empty, so we had lots of choices to sit.

Andy and I ordered the drinks and Morgan and Gwen found a table. Morgan choose the table the closest to the middle of the building. She didn’t want to be on the edge and see the nice view. Sigh.

Drink Flight
We went with both tasting menus to share between the 4 of us.

Soda Key

The tasting was alot of fun. It was basically doing Club Cool, but paying for it. But there were other options and you could taste at your own speed and not feel like we needed to rush.

Morgan taste testing Soda
Morgan tasting a soda....

Morgan not sure she likes it.
Deciding if she likes it or not.

Me taste testing soda
She wasn't sure, so she made me try it.

Cheers
It was nice to do the tasting sitting down. And relaxed.

Andy taste testing

Gwen only wanted to try the still drinks, which there were a few options. But Gwen also started making “New Drinks” with the leftovers. She found that Beverly over powers just about anything.

....And 2 sprites make sprite.

Speaking of sprite, the cucumber sprite was so refreshing! I wish we had it here!

Me drinking one. Not so bad if you don't smell it
There was one soda that smelled so strongly but tasted so different. So we started drinking trying to drink it without smelling it.

We finished up our drinks and decided to just head to dinner. So, we slowly walked over to Morimoto Asia.

We got over to our dinner location around 5:40, so 20 minutes early for our reservation.
Heading into dinner
Where were we having dinner?!? Morimoto Asia!

We checked in and waited maybe 5 minutes to be seated! Not long at all. I was surprised, but I guesss it was still early-ish?
Inside Morimoto

We were brought upstairs to a table up again the clear railing. Morgan picked a chair away from that.

Our waiter came over eventually, and it turned out to be the same guy we had last time we were there. He was great then and again this night as well. I want to say his name was Eric.

We started with some water and he answered our questions.

I ordered a drink:
the Roku and Chill
Roku and Chill
Roku Gin, hibiscus syrup, yuku, cherry bitters served with fever tree lime and yuzu on the side

The was really good! It was basically a japanese mule. When I ordered it, the waiter said it was a nice and refreshing drink. And it really was! I will def order it again, if it is still on the menu.

Morgan ordered Strawberry Boba and Gwen ordered Mango Boba.
Andy went with good old Diet Coke. (no photos of any of that)

We ordered a half rack of ribs to share as an appetizer.
Ribs
Morimoto Spare Ribs, Half-Rack, 6-rib
pork ribs, cilantro, hoisin sweet chili glaze

These are sooooo good. And honeslty half the reason we have come here. We each got one rib, Gwen included! And then Andy and I split one and Morgan and Gwen split one.

We ordered our main dishes shortly after.

I went with the Morimoto "Buri-Bop"
My meal
korean style yellowtail rice bowl, served in a hot clay pot and finished with egg yolk

This was really good. Last time the clay pot wasn’t hot enough but this time, you could hear things sizzling while the server “prepared” the meal table side. Gwen thought it was super fun that they mixed it up table side.
Sizzle
And she's not wrong... It adds to the fun having it "cooked" table side.

Andy went with a special
A5 WAGYU LOCO MOCO
Andy's Loco Moco
house blended burger with a-5 wagyu and filet mignon, served over sizzling rice bowl topped with a sunny side up cage free egg and teriyaki mushroom gravy
Andy's Loco Moco

Andy really enjoyed this. His was served in more of a cast iron skillet and had a sauce that they poured on table side and it started to sizzle as well. So, they def had there pots heated properly this trip.

Morgan and Gwen both ordered the Tonkotsu Ramen. And when they ordered it, they actually said Tonkotsu properly and the waiter was very impressed. But I said it's only because they watch so much anime.
rich pork bone broth, wheat noodles, roasted pork, woodear mushroom, pickled ginger, scallion and soy marinated egg
Gwen Ramen

These are HUGE bowls of Ramen!!! They both enjoyed there ramen.
Gwen's Ramen

Mogan and her Ramen

I tried gwen’ broth, and it is very good broth!

Gwen also ate some of Andy’s rice from his dish. She like that it was crunchy and salty from the sauce they put on it. Andy’s rice did taste different than my rice. His was slightly sweeter than mine.

We were all very happy with our meals! And we were all full but not so full we felt gross.

At some point, we had mentioned that it was Gwen’s birthday tomorrow. And the waiter brought out a small bowl of raspberry sorbet. Gwen was very happy to get this little surprise.
Gwen and her Birthday Sorbet
The sorbet was perfect for Gwen. She enjoyed that much more than a cupcake.

We were all very happy with our meals. Morimoto has become a favorite of ours... but sadly we may be skipping it this next trip!!!

We left Morimoto Asia around 7:30. And headed out straight to the bus stop. We waited just a little bit, as when we got to the bus stop there was no one there. So we proably just missed a bus.

7:45 PM: We were back at Caribbean Beach AND at our stop. It does take a bit of time to go around the resort but only 5 mintues? Worth saving the steps if you are tired.

We walked back to the room and all settled in for the night.

Once we were all settled in PJs and clean (and bellies had slightly digested), we cracked open the Key Lime Pie Cake.
Key Lime Pie Cake
This was sooooo good. The cake was nicely flavored with Key Lime and the icing was really amped up. Soooo good if you like Key Lime Pie. I am dreaming about it right now!
Cake
And in fact, Morgan and I found some reciepes for this kind of cake and make it over the summer. So good.

Morgan said now she wants to try the different cakes! Everyone talks about the cookies, but the CAKE!!! Give a slice a try!!

We all shared the cake, watched more Bleuy and went to sleep at a reasonable time. It was a successful rest day. but tomorrow was a BIG day!!! Gwen's Birthday!!!

Coming up Next! Gwen turns 13!!!

That cake sounds yummy!

 

[mi*vida*loca]

Gideon’s cakes are better than their cookies. And I love cookies!!

 

[rdkeim]

Sounds like an awesome day! Perfect combination of RnR and a trip to DS. I'm not a very adventurous eater but your meals look and sound very good. Oh my, the cake! That will be a must for me next trip! Anxious to read about the big day - your DD is a lucky girl!

 

[missjackiemcg]

What a nice relaxing day!! We still haven't managed to try Gideon's yet. We just don't seem to make Disney Springs a priority anymore on our trips the last few years, but I really need to do that next time. I also had no idea they even had cake there, so taking note of that, too!

Can't wait to hear all about the birthday girl's big day!!

 

[vamassey1]

I need to give the Gideon's cake a try too. I've never had it.

Morimoto's is another place I need to try. There are just so many options in Disney Springs.

I love the idea of trying all the different cokes. We've done Club Cool but not this.

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

That cake sounds yummy!

It was soo good. Key Lime was a seasonal choice I think. But I am looking froward to trying whatever other flavor they have!

Gideon’s cakes are better than their cookies. And I love cookies!!

I guess maybe we should keep it a secret, so people don't take all of the cake!

Anxious to read about the big day - your DD is a lucky girl!

Thanks! I need to pull photos still, so I need to get on it!

e just don't seem to make Disney Springs a priority anymore on our trips the last few years, but I really need to do that next time. I also had no idea they even had cake there, so taking note of that, too!

It was sooo good. I liked it more than the cookies.

Morimoto's is another place I need to try. There are just so many options in Disney Springs.

It's worth going just for the ribs!!!

I need to give the Gideon's cake a try too. I've never had it.

Morgan loves the cookies. I am probably going to bring plastic zip lock bags so we can seal them up properly this next trip. they have become a good post-vacation treat!

I love the idea of trying all the different cokes. We've done Club Cool but not this.

It was on our list forever to try. It's just something fun. You know... Would I tell a person on there first visit to go, no but for us seasoned vistors, it is nice. And the views were great up there!

 

[amazingact21]

We have had good luck at getting in line at this time of day. It seems like they have a lull from the folks who come first thing and before the evening rush.

That does seem to be the magic hour. Probably not many other people want to be out in the FL sunshine in the heat of the day.

Always get the frosting!!!

I've never done this before, but I'll have to give it a try in April.

It was nice to do the tasting sitting down. And relaxed.

I'm sure it was much calmer. Less people to work around and no sticky floors.

Roku Gin, hibiscus syrup, yuku, cherry bitters served with fever tree lime and yuzu on the side

This sounds really, really good!!

These are HUGE bowls of Ramen!!!

Whoa, those are some huge bowls of ramen!

Gwen was very happy to get this little surprise.

That's a great photo.

This was sooooo good. The cake was nicely flavored with Key Lime and the icing was really amped up.

We only had the Key Lime cookie, but it was sooooo good. It's Alex's favorite now.

Morgan said now she wants to try the different cakes! Everyone talks about the cookies, but the CAKE!!!

Same, Morgan. I like the cookies, but I go for the cakes. If she's a red velvet fan, that one is great.

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Day Five: Gwen's Birthday!!!!

Untitled
Here is the "plan" for the day. It wasn't much of a plan.

I guess I should say up front that Gwen actually has a lot of anxiety. She hids it really well, so when it bubbles up it is tough. Gwen was SUPER excitied to have her birthday in Disney but it also meant she wanted it to be perfect, which equals her getting anxious about it being perfect.

Gwen cried at literally every Christmas Eve because the build up of the day gets to her and she is sad the day is over before it even started. Much like adults dreading the weekend being over all day Sunday, instead of enjoying it.

ANYWAY, let's get to the morning...

I believe I set an alarm so, we would have time to make LLs and get ready without rushing today. So, around 6:30 Gwen was up and checked out her stuff.
Tinkerbell Gifts for Gwen's Birthday
Tinkerbell left birthday goodies of course!

She got the Marie I bought the night before.
Birthday Ears

Weighted Marie Present
She loved her Marie and the ears. She did tell me I needed to wear the ears in 2 days...

I could already see the anxiety sinking in. She also doesn't like to be the center of attention. And was feeling it looking at the shirts! Gwen didn’t want ot wear the shirt I got her. She said had already picked out what shirt she wanted to wear but she did say she wanted to wear the ears and button.
Tinkerbell Gifts for Gwen's Birthday
But when she put the button on, she was afraid it was going to put a permanent hole in her shirt. Her cotton shirt.. her shirt from Kohls... but ok... She was clearly fairly anxious about the day.

After Tinkerbell gifts were fully reviewed, I went ahead and purchased Genie+ for the day. And booked a ride. Gwen wanted me to get a Runaway Railway one, but I figured we would be able to get on that during Early Entry. So, I grabbed a Tower of Terror instead.

Birthday Cookie Breakfast
To help calm Gwen and bit, we settled back in bed to drink coffee, eat some breakfast and just chill a tiny bit. Gwen ate her birthday cookie for breakfast. That seemed to help a little with her mood.

Around 7:30 we head out and Gwen was still a little anxious.
Setting off for the day

Our short walk to the skyliner took ony 5 minutes, we really did enjoy our room location.
Untitled

When we got off the Skyliner, Gwen was on the verge of melting down. I tried to tell her that the day would be fun and to not worry but she wasn’t having it.
Hollywood Studios

We sent through security and Gwen got pulled to check her bag and that was the last straw, she just started crying. I tried to make Gwen feel better but sometimes Gwen just needs to work it out herself. Trying to sonsole her just makes her angy. Sigh...

So, we probably looked like awful parents, but we just let her get the cry out and we forged on. We got into standby line for Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway. Gwen didn’t want to wait because the line was outside. But I told her that the park didn’t actually open till 8 (it was 7:50), so it would move fast once it was 8:00.
MMRR

Shortly after I said that, they started letting folks into the building, We were inside the building at 8:00 on the dot.
Chinese Screen in MMRR

Mural in MMRR
When you first walk in, there is alot of the stuff from the before times. Which I took a million photos of.

MMRR Ceiling

By 8:10 we were In room for pre-show.

Our CM wasn’t the best at the presentation of the hole in the show. They were very monotone, But we kind of thought it was funny how NOT energetic the person was.
Untitled

MMRR Pre-Show

Once we were through, Gwen had started to calm down, the day had gotten under way and she cried out the nerves.
Ready to Ride

By 8:12 AM we were Ready to Ride!
We got a seat towards the front, which made Gwen happy. She said she wanted to see Goofy. You def see different things depending where your car is. I don’t think there is a bad place, just different things to notice.
MMRR Goofy

We got to the carnaval room, and poor Mickey... He was "Special F"
Special K

Special F
This made Gwen's day! She thought this was hiliarous and was a topic of conversation all day as to what in the world Special F stood for.

The End
Gwen was feeling better after riding one of her favorite rides.

Walt Disney exit MMRR
I noticed this on the way out. It is such a sweet little thing, and I was so glad I noticed it.

We checked out the “store” on the way out. Morgan found ears with elastic and was excited that Disney was making more that way. She doesn’t like to wear headbands with her glasses.
Morgan with Ears
Gwen looked at a shirt and bag that she liked, but we moved on for now.

Gwen needed something else to eat, she was still a little off. So, we walked over to the Marketplace by the entrance to Toy Storyland. We tried to get a churro. But they didn’t have any yet. She got a banana instead. Which probably was better. And honestly did the trick.
Birthday Bannana

Andy got a coffee from Jofferies as the line was long.
Coffee
Morgan and Gwen sat down on the bench to eat the banana and wait for Andy to get his coffee. I ran to use the bathroom and came out before Andy had finished prepping his coffee.

The bannana helped regulate Gwen's blood sugar levels and she was finally ready to really enjoy the day! Andy and I shared the Cold Brew Coffee and we headed to our next destination!

Up next, Gwen's request to Rope Drop....

 

[smilie]

Awww, Gwen. Sweet girl. My daughter is the same and it just breaks a Momma's heart. I can't believe she's a teenager. I hope she got to really enjoy her day and her anxieties let her do that.

 

[rdkeim]

A rough start to your day but sounds like you found your family mojo I hope the rest of your day is full of fun - 13 is a special birthday!

 

[SEAGULL59]

Glad Gwen's day was starting to get better! Sweet girl!

 

[vamassey1]

My heart feels for Gwen.

Both my girls have anxiety to a certain level. I'm glad she was able to get it our and move forward. We all enjoy MMRR too. It brings a smile to everyone's face.

 

[ThreeBoyMama]

Ugh, perfectionist with anxiety here too so totally feeling Gwen! We’ve celebrated my older kids birthdays at WDW before and experienced similar tears but they were from Mom . Glad things are looking up after a fun ride and some healthy carbs

 

[Mollydolly334]

Poor Gwen!! I can totally relate to the anticipatory anxiety and just wanting everything to go well. You are so right that she hides it well- every time I see her she is just this bubbly little pixie You would never be able to tell!

It was funny, I actually spent my 29th birthday in Magic Kingdom back in July at my bachelorette party (first birthday I've ever spent at WDW). I had built it up so much, was so so excited, and it was an AMAZING day- but it didn't feel like my birthday!! The day was so busy and fast-paced, and I didn't really get to stop and savor the "it's my birthday" feeling. It was definitely the combination of a busy park day and being around so many of my favorite people/having my attention pulled in all different directions. I remember being a touch disappointed at the end of the day! So it's totally normal. If I do spend another birthday at Disney, I'd rather just have it be with Jake and/or my mom, and have it be a more relaxed day!