Basking in the Glow of the (not so) Creepy Clown -2/11-Pictures, Final Thoughts, PTR!

[brookelizabeth]

The next morning we woke up and readied ourselves for a day at DHS. We had decided the previous day we would take the boat from the Boardwalk over, just to experience the ride.

My 3 Things for the Day were:

1. Toy Story
2. Honey I Shrunk the Kids Playground - tradition picture of Henry on the red slide
3. Star Tours - refurb is tomorrow, get lots of pics!
   

At 9:01 we were on the boat - so we didn't make RD, but we were close!

One of the boat captains offered to take our picture.

It was a great ride! Henry LOVED being in a boat, and it didn't take long at all, we were at DHS by 9:21. 20 minutes -- I have read the walk from the Boardwalk to DHS is about 15 minutes.

As we were walking up to the gates I said, "I'm excited for today, we always have a great day at DHS!"

Would my words come back to haunt me, or would it truly be a great day?

Dum, dum, dum!!!!

By this time Henry was becoming a pro with the ticket machines and since it was a slower season and we were never in a big crowd while entering the gates, we let him run his own ticket through.

We said our hello's to Bo

Henry wanted his Coke!

And of course, had to visit the tow truck.

Eventually we started into the park

I love you palm trees.

Little boy, big hat!

We really enjoy the architecture of DHS, but never stop to really soak it in like Main Street - we tried on this trip, but I still don't think I got as many details as I wanted.

We stopped for a couple PhotoPass pics

And where where we we off to first thing at DHS?

Toy Story Mania, of course!

Joe went to grab the FPs while Henry and I browsed the shop.

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[brookelizabeth]

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How many Buzz Lightyears are in one shop?

Pook-A-Looz Buzz

Baby Buzz.

Tough-not-quite-a-stuffed-animal-Buzz.

Puff Ball Buzz.

Tag Buzz.

Which was purchased for the Little Mister.

He insisted on wearing this necklace for a good 3 weeks. He hasn't worn it now for a while, but I want to make it habit to put on him when we go out...just in case.

FastPasses acquired

(FP pose stolen from Glenn )

It was time to say good-bye to Pixar Place

Henry got this game for Christmas, it's cute!

and hello to the Backlot Tour!

We had never done this before, we had wanted to on previous trips, but it never worked out for one reason or another. I had read many, many poor reviews on the DIS, so I wasn't expecting much.

Waiting in line

I knew this first scene was something with water, I have seen a few pics here on the DIS, but I wasn't all quite sure what to expect.

The actors they chose were absolutely TERRIBLE! As you can see there are bombs going off in the water and everyone is just standing there. It was hilarious! The director kept shouting, "Run around! Act scared!" and they just stood there!

Still standing around. Not ducking for cover. The guy in the ship was still looking out his binoculars.

"Oh look, fire."

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[brookelizabeth]

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Overall, the scene was very cool! We loved it! Henry was WAY into it and not at all scared. The poor acting just made it all the better.

We continued on with the tour and loaded into our tram cars. Ours leaked on us.

As we approached what I found out to be the Prop Room we saw this

I told Joe he was blessed that he was color blind. I think this was from Hannah Montana?? I cannot imagine WHAT it was for though!

Into the Prop Warehouse we went - Joe and Henry just buzzed right through, I lingered a bit more and kept calling them back to look at various things. There was so much in that little space! It was a lot of fun to look at everything.

Back on the leaky tram car we continued on

All these cranes made Henry pretty excited.

The costume shop! Very cool.

Into one of the scene shops

You think all those TVs are for 50's Prime Time?

Another big hit with the boy.

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[brookelizabeth]

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Entering Catastrophe Canyon

I can't remember what they said the spiel was--I think we were entered a "live movie set" as a tour group. I read here on the DIS that this recently changed either from this, or to this? Regardless, we didn't care and we didn't know at all what to expect, I couldn't remember this scene at all from what I had read. I just knew something big was going to happen and told Joe to take the camera and just shoot away!

I cannot recall the storyline, but it started to drizzle a bit

And then suddenly the truck was on fire!

Of course it's an oil truck, so soon the whole thing is engulfed in flames and water is needed

A LOT OF WATER!

It's amazing how Disney has designed this so the passengers don't get soaked. Truly amazing!

I am one of those types of people that often overreacts. I was screaming during all this! It was intense! It all happens so quickly and it's so powerful. We loved it! Henry didn't get scared at all and was very excited by it.

And no wonder the tram car was dripping wet!

Onward we went

The backstage to the backstage.

I saw this across the row

And got very excited. I LOVED the movie Flight of the Navigator as a kid, I leaned all over the place trying to get a decent shot of it.

Lights! Motor! Action! set

And two minutes later we drove right past the Flight of the Navigator pod. I promptly apologized to my husband for practically crawling over him in attempts for a picture earlier and quickly snapped a close up.

Looking down the Streets of America

We really enjoyed every minute of the Backlot Tour! I know it gets a lot of poor reviews because of what it used to be, but being that we had nothing to compare it to, we thought it was great. I can see how it isn't a must-do for every trip, but we will be doing it again!

After the tour was done we, of course, were put right into a gift shop. Disney has an incredible knack for that, don't they?

While we browsed the gift shop I noticed the Monster's Inc. Meet & Greet area

And also noticed in the Times Guide that we only had a short wait before Mike and Sully were to appear. This just might work out quite perfectly!

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[brookelizabeth]

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Details of the shop

While we were browsing, our stomachs were growling. It was snack time. I knew just what to get. The boys kept busy in the gift shop while I headed down the Streets of America.

For what it's worth, there is no W or D train at 18th Street. And the W and the D aren't on the same line as indicated by the yellow circles. The only train that stops at 18th Street is the 1 train, and that should be red. However, the W train used to come to where I live, but they got rid of it back in June. So, the W doesn't even exist anymore! Otherwise, the stop looks quite authentic.

And speaking of stops, here is where I was headed

I had never been in here before and was very pleasantly surprised by how adorable it is! What a treasure! I wish I would have taken a couple pictures inside other than

Iced Mocha

Carrot Cake Cookie. Oh yes.

On my way back to Joe and Henry I got a phone call. Henry found something he wanted.

Ya, I'm not surprised either.

Joe was just letting me know he was going to let him get it.

There are my boys, a very happy Henry with a bag in hand.

What could he have found?

BUT OF COURSE! The buses!

He was ecstatic. And he assigned a bus to himself, one to Joe and one to me. His became his lovey. I'm not even kidding! He slept with that bus for WEEKS.

Then we lost it.



Daddy's bus (the cruise line bus) became the "substitute bus" for quite a while. But eventually we found Henry's! There was much rejoicing that day.

He doesn't carry them around anymore, but they still do get a lot of play. They were a GREAT purchase!

After the exciting purchase we got in line to meet Mike and Sully. Henry had been very into Monster's Inc at the time and was pretty pumped about meeting them. We all munched on the delicious cookie while we waited in line. The mocha was also VERY good - one of the best Disney coffees I've had.

Waiting.

And very soon it was our turn!

Henry meets Mike & Sully (1 minute, 5 seconds)

He was very reserved at first, but really enjoyed it!

(and yep, he's wearing manpri's! )

Where did my kid go?!?!

And this was the "hug" from Mike--as a CM says in the video, more of an eye rub!

It was a GREAT meet! Very fun!

Across the way was the hottest area of the park--which also happens to be every child's favorite playground...

Sigh.

I love it, yet I hate it.

It's 40 million degrees in there, but it's just so cool!

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[brookelizabeth]

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Once inside Henry followed the same path he does every trip, and turned to the left.

Up to the slide

And tradition picture captured!

He went down a hand-full of times but then completely lost interest.

He spied this one instead:

Yep, he's graduated to the film slide. A sign of the times with a growing child. I wonder if he'll even give two hoots about the red one next trip...methinks my tradition picture is going to have to change! Before I know it he won't even want to go in to the playground!!

He was a bit timid on the slide at first, but was soon going down like a pro!

Henry on the slide (16 seconds)

I cannot even count how many times he went up and down. He LOVED it!! It was a lot of fun to watch him. The kids would kinda pile up at the bottom which made it even more fun for them all!

We eventually peeled him away and we explored the rest of the playground.

He tamed Anty.

Seriously, such a cool playground!

One happy child!

Spelunking.

The tube slides were a big hit...but only if Joe or I would go with him.

He begged and begged...so...

A few times down that slide was enough! They are truly not made for adults!

80 pounds of water weight lost, we made our way out of the little hot cage.

Where to next? Would we make it to Star Tours?

 

[Charleston Princess]

Yeay! So many fun things to comment on!

Your day started off great with the boat ride! I bet that was nice and relaxing!

Oh, I hope you had as good a day at DHS as you normally do -- so far, it seems to be holding true!

I ADORE the picture of Henry looking up at Bo! Sheer cuteness!!!

LOL! Who knew there were so many Buzzes in the gift shop!

I think the Backlot Tour is a good time -- like you said, it's not something you need to do everytime, but Catastrophe Canyon is really cool.

I never would have known the subway stop was inaccurate!

Yum! I would really like a carrot cake cookie right about now!

Ah, I just melted over the picture of Happy Henry with his bag of buses!

Sully really gives big hugs, doesn't he?

 

[IluvXU]

Hannah just got home saw the slide and playground pics and said, "Where is that?" I confessed and it is added to the must do! I have never been in the TSM store or seen the Monsters Inc meet and greet area.... add those to the list too!

 

[blessedby3]

I have not seen that meet and greet area either....we will have to find it on our next trip. Henry looked so cute with Sully....it looked like he was devoured by him! Adorable and great that the photopass photographer caught it! Alexa looked a bit nervous watching that video. Hopefully she will actually go up and meet them when we are there She did really enjoy seeing the pictures and video of Henry on the playground. We are making that a must do for our next trip.

 

[bellebookworm9]

Allow me to wow you with my Hannah Montana knowledge That is a chicken coop. It used to be a rundown plain wooden boring shack. But Miley's grandma tells her cute farmhand/Miley's crush that he can be in charge of the chickens and sell the eggs. So they decide to fix it up together. Then they get in a fight, and Miley stays up all night painting it so he'll forgive her. I personally love that Chicken Coop, and it was my favorite thing on the Backlot Tour! We hadn't seen the Tour in any previous incarnation either, and thought it was okay, but we probably won't do it again for awhile. I love the pictures of the HISTK playground-we saw part of the water gun while eating at Studio Catering Co., but that was it.

 

[onescgirl]

Love the pictures of Henry with Mike & Sully and on the playground. He's just adorable! Those toy buses look like pretty cool toy. Levi would have loved those when he was little.
I'm glad you were able to get some TSM fastpasses!

 

[Lovemy3babes]

Great update Brook! I love being able to take the boat. It's fun to have a little relaxing ride and be off of your feet for awhile.

My last trip was the first time I had ever done the Backlot Tour too and I thought it was pretty neat! The costume shop was my favorite part. I love seeing things behind the scenes.

Henry in his manpris is adorable! He's getting to be such a big boy.

 

[reelmom]

So many great updates! And so many adorable pictures of Henry. He is so stinkin' cute. I have not tried a carrot cake cookie yet. It is on my to do list for June.

 

[Disneyfreak616]

This is a great TR! I am loving it! Your son is adorable! And I love the manpris!

 

[MRYPPNS]

Ah you proved my point with your ride on the Backlot Tour: everyone should TRY everything at Disney at least once!

Love the buses.....I think that's what I'll get for Liam as a gift from my January trip. Thanks for the idea

 

[glennbo123]

Looked like a great morning at MGM, er I mean DHS Brook. (I hope it stays that way, you hinted that maybe your luck would change.)

FastPasses acquired

(FP pose stolen from Glenn )

Woohoo! You rocked that picture!

We had never done this before, we had wanted to on previous trips, but it never worked out for one reason or another. I had read many, many poor reviews on the DIS, so I wasn't expecting much.

I've done the tour before, maybe the last time was in '01, but I don't remember that PT boat section where the guy gets hit with the huge wave. I've seen it on a lot of reports, but I don't remember seeing it myself. You'd think I'd remember that!

There are my boys, a very happy Henry with a bag in hand.

That's the way I look when my wife lets me buy something too.

(and yep, he's wearing manpri's! )

I was thinking that in some earlier pictures. "Those shorts are almost pants!"

Where did my kid go?!?!

I love this picture!

 

[SoonerGirl]

Great update Brook! I actually enjoyed the Backlot Tour when we did it too, but we've never done it again, not sure why

Henry looks so stinkin' cute with his buses, I wish my kids were still at an age to be overjoyed with such a simple purchase!

The picture of him disappearing in Sulley's hug is too funny, how great that the photographer captured that.

And, check out Henry, graduating to the big kid slide on the playground, go Henry! I agree, that playground is too cute. We've only been in there once though, the boys were 9 & 4 on our first trip and they had a ball in there, but the next time at ages 10 & 6 they weren't even the slightest bit interested in it

 

[All7OfUs]

I think there may actually be a few things (very few) that I probably won't ever get to just because my kids are too old. Like that fantastic playground where Henry seemed to be having the time of his life. Ahhhhh.... well, maybe when I get to be a grandma.

I have to agree, that picture of Henry "hidden" in Sully is just too adorable!! What a fabulous shot!

ETA: Both times I've done the BLT, have been duds. The first time, some college kids acted like buffoons, and were goofy to the point of ruining it; the second time, the ones who got chosen were like animatrons and didn't do anything. It was just sad.

 

[MEK]

Awesome update.

When did the backlot tour become so cool? I will confess. I have only done it once and that was years and years ago. Probably around a time when my kids were small enough to enjoy the "Honey I shrunk the kids" playground. Now that's a long time ago. Almost went on the tour in May, but never made and well, September - we only spent a couple hours in HS.

Maybe some of the east meet west girls will want to go there in May. I am seriously going to take some pics.

You are the second person I've heard rave about the Writer's stop, so I must stop in for a visit.

Ah - lovey the bus. How cute! What a great purchase.

Also - I had no idea they made so many different buzz lightyears! Very cool!

 

[jenjolt]

Super Awesome update Brook!! WOWzers what a great time was being had at DHS!!!!

Can I just say I also love the Backlot Tour and I would love to be one of those volunteers I would so OVERact that scene!! I would be divebombing on the boat and screaming, it would be so much fun!!!!!

Oh my beloved Carrot Cake Cookie, how I will enjoy you again in such a short time LOL!!!!

Henry is just adorable! I love the photo of him and Sully when he gets swallowed up...how cute was that!!!