Bella’s Very Merry WISH-mas Party ~ 10 Days of Dreams Come True MAW/GKTW Dec 3-10

[rosedolph]

Great trip report!

 

[kdzbear]

I love the Sponge Bob photos. It was nice of the cast member to find you a dry and somewhat warm place to wait. It looks like the girls were enjoying themselves!

 

[StefaniLyn]

Loved Shrek & Donkey!! I am so glad to hear you all had a great time at US - we've never visited and hope to on our next trip. Too bad it was raining so hard but hopefully it lets up so you can enjoy the rest of your day. BTW do you think (now that you've visited US) that a one day pass would be enough? I'm not sure whether to visit Islands of Adventure or Universal Studios - I really want to see the Harry Potter attraction but can't remember which park it's supposed to be at.

Harry Potter will have it's own Island at Islands of Adventure when it opens next year. It will be after The Lost Continent and before Jurassic Park. We saw glimpses of it (I will have some pics in my trip report, but you will have to wait until day 9) and it looks incredible.

A one vs. two day pass depends on how many little kids you will have with. If the trip is all about little ones, then Seuss Landing and Jurassic Park are about the only things in IOA for them. US has a few more, but not a full days's worth.

If you are going with adults and older kids, there are many rides and attractions at both parks and would more likely require two days. IOA has two coasters (Hulk and Dueling Dragons) as well as a couple of water rides. And US has quite a few rides for older kids and adults as well.

I know that doesn't exactly answer your question, but I hope it gives you an idea of how long each park can take depending on who you are going with.

Great trip report!

Thank you, and thanks for chiming in!

I love the Sponge Bob photos. It was nice of the cast member to find you a dry and somewhat warm place to wait. It looks like the girls were enjoying themselves!

I need to scan the purchased photo and post it as well. It's very cute with the border around it.

It really so nice to have somewhere warm and dry. The girls were wearing sweatshirts, but their legs were bare in skirts and getting rather chilly.

And they were definitely having a great time!

 

[ladybugmom]

GREAT Universal update!! I haven't been there since '94 and it looks totally different than it did back then!

 

[that's nice]

Great updates!!! Once again it looks like everyone was having a blast!!!! It was so nice for the characters to spend extra time with the girls. I'm glad you still had these pics. If you are on facebook you can save a picture to your desktop by right licking it. The print quality won't be as good as the original but at least you will have some pics printed.

I wonder if/when we go to US what rides Juliana would be able to do. She is about 40 inches now. I''m not sure she would even know who Shrek is. She knows Sponge Bob though.

 

[kayrosek]

Wonderful updates. US/IOA looks like such fun! I'm excited to read more.

 

[StefaniLyn]

GREAT Universal update!! I haven't been there since '94 and it looks totally different than it did back then!

I hadn't been since the early 90's either and I didn't recognize a single thing! Some day I need to dig up those old photos and reminisce!

Great updates!!! Once again it looks like everyone was having a blast!!!! It was so nice for the characters to spend extra time with the girls. I'm glad you still had these pics. If you are on facebook you can save a picture to your desktop by right licking it. The print quality won't be as good as the original but at least you will have some pics printed.

I wonder if/when we go to US what rides Juliana would be able to do. She is about 40 inches now. I''m not sure she would even know who Shrek is. She knows Sponge Bob though.

Tim you are a genius! I saved the photos to my pictures folder last night after reading this. I need to find a place where I can print 3X5 or wallets because of the size (they are 604X402 and I think normal 4X6 is 480X640 minimum) but this is a wonderful way to retrieve most of my photos from day 1 and 2!! Thank you!!!

Bella was 40 inches (with chunky shoes) when we went. She was able to go on Jimmy Neutron, Shrek, and the Simpsons Ride. She could also ride ET and go on Woody Woodpecker's Nuthouse Coaster and play in the Curious George Play area. There is also a Barney show - who doesn't love that big purple dinosaur?

Wonderful updates. US/IOA looks like such fun! I'm excited to read more.

Thanks! I will be working on another one this afternoon! (hopefully)

 

[StefaniLyn]

No update today, sorry. Ufortunately, I forgot that the kids had soccer clinics all afternoon. Oops! Thankfully we made it there on time, but I had to run back to the house for shinguards and waterbottles.

But I did want to let you all know that today, my dear sweet mailman brought me my:

PHOTOPASS CD!!!!

I will be uploading them to facebook over the next couple of days so if we are facebook friends and you don't want to spoil the surprise before you read about it here in my trip report, stay away from the new photos! No peeking!

You have all been so patient in waiting as I slowly write and post these TR updates. I appreciate you faithfully reading along and posting thoughtful replies when I finally do post something, so I'm going to give you just a little taste of some of our PP photos to keep you interested and coming back for more (hopefully)! I am purposely not picking my favorites, I want to save those for later. So just know they will get better from here! One from each park - Enjoy!

@Epcot

@Animal Kingdom

@Magic Kingdom

@Disney Hollywood Studios

k, I'll have to edit and post one from this park later. . . it's still uploading to Facebook and I need to get some sleep.

 

[VroomVroomLightning]

I love all those pictures! Such a wonderful family! My favorite is the Animal Kingdom one though, your daughters are beautiful and you can just see the love they have for each other in those smiles of theirs!

 

[buzz for boys]

beautiful Pictures - Cant wait to see more if they are not your favourite ones x

 

[pipersmom]

Woohoo for photopass! I love the one at MK!! The girls look soooo cute in their matching outfits! I can't wait to see more hon!!

 

[yinyanggirls]

Great teaser!

 

[christymarie]

Wow, I've been busy with post Holiday stuff and missed a few posts.

We've never been to US but based on your experience we may just give it a try!

I LOVE the outfits for the girls. Who doesn't like to dress up at that age and all of them looked sooo cute!

 

[StefaniLyn]

I love all those pictures! Such a wonderful family! My favorite is the Animal Kingdom one though, your daughters are beautiful and you can just see the love they have for each other in those smiles of theirs!

Thanks! The best ones are yet to come! Despite their occasional bickering, they really are good friends as well as sisters.

beautiful Pictures - Cant wait to see more if they are not your favourite ones x

Day 3 of our trip is Epcot so I will be able to share some favorites then. I'm finishing up day 2 at Universal this evening and then just need to post the Pirates and Princesses party at GKTW that evening.

Woohoo for photopass! I love the one at MK!! The girls look soooo cute in their matching outfits! I can't wait to see more hon!!

Photopass turned out to be more of a blessing than I imagined given the loss of my flash drive. There are so many great ones from MVMCP and I have very few left after the flash drive crashed.

Great teaser!

Thanks . . . . did I leave you begging for more?

Wow, I've been busy with post Holiday stuff and missed a few posts.

We've never been to US but based on your experience we may just give it a try!

I LOVE the outfits for the girls. Who doesn't like to dress up at that age and all of them looked sooo cute!

We had such a great time at US! I highly recommend it. The staff, clenliness, and theming rival Disney. I'm a true-blue Disney fan, but our experience at US will have me heading over there on future vacations as well.

 

[StefaniLyn]

As we concluded our hilarious interaction with Shrek and Donkey, we noticed the rain was letting up a smidgen. Hopeful that sunny days were just around the corner, we continued in our original direction and saw, off to our left, the Rip Rock It Roller Coaster. After crossing a small courtyard, we found ourselves face to face with a Universal ride attendant who informed us that the ride was closed due to the rain. Boo hoo!

Only slightly disappointed, we vowed to check back later and continued on our way. We entered the New York section of Universal Studios and spied Twister – Ride it Out ahead. Bella scrambled to show the attendant her GAC. With a smile and gesture, we were again led to a warm, dry waiting area as we passed the time until the next show. In the waiting area, we viewed a short documentary featuring Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt, stars of the 1996 movie. It kept my attention as I had seen and enjoyed the movie, but DD8 and DD10 quickly lost interest. See - don't they look thrilled?

The doors opened and we entered a queue which was designed to look like a town torn apart by a tornado. The girls were fascinated by all of the damage.

From there, we were directed into an area where several tiers of people faced a town setting. The warning sirens went off and that’s when it got scary . . . . .really scary! Imagine being in the center of an F5 tornado – howling winds, lightning, and spraying water quickly turn into flying cows, fireballs, torrential rain, and an overturned vehicle. The girls were frightened. And I’ll admit I was too. Overall, we enjoyed it and I looked at it as somewhat of a realistic learning experience in a controlled environment. Thankfully we have never gone through a tornado, but I think my girls now comprehend the seriousness of tornados.

Moving on, but still in the New York area, we saw Revenge of the Mummy looming ahead. Remember Kennedy’s height check at the entrance to Universal? Too short by just about ½ inch. Drat!

But wait just one minute! DH had an idea. We had purposely brought tennis shoes for Bella (size 10) that had nearly a 2 inch chunky heel to ensure she would be able to ride the 40 inch rides. What if, just what if we could fit Kennedy (size 12) into those shoes. Kennedy decided it was worth a shot so we quickly squeezed her feet in and approached the attendant.

Would she make it? The attendant measured her annnnnndddddd . . . . . she made it! By just ¼ inch, she passed! So DH, DBIL, DD10, and (now tall enough) DD8 and I went on Mummy. DD8’s feet hurt so badly that DH had to carry her through the queue.

Grandma and Bella went to get a popcorn treat and find a place to stay out of the rain. One of those survey people convinced Gma to take a survey that he promised would only take 15 minutes. She started taking it, but she walked out after 20 minutes because there was still clearly a lot more to go. Warning - those surveys take WAY more than 15 minutes. Don't waste your time!

Revenge of the Mummy was truly frightening!!! It was very dark, with lots of realistic creepy animation (including a swarm of rats), sudden rapid accelerations, and unexpected bursts of flame. At times the speed, twists, and turns were similar to a roller coaster. I enjoyed it, with the exception of the rats. DD10 loved it, and DD8 said it was ‘okay’ but she didn’t want to go again.

Upon exiting Mummy, we searched for GMa and Bella without emerging from the awning because it was pouring by now. We found them and quickly decided it was time for lunch. Looking around, we spotted Finnegan’s Bar and Grill. Finnegan’s is a casual sit down restaurant that serves Irish American food. I remembered it from my list of recommended restaurants so we parked the stroller and headed inside. Unlike nearly every restaurant in Disney, we didn’t have or need a reservation. Even at 1pm, we were quickly seated and our orders taken.

I ordered hot cocoa. It definitely hit the spot as our clothes were now not only wet, but wet and cold! We had been seated by a door which was propped open, but the hostess quickly closed it upon request. We started with a bread plate.

I didn’t like this very much. It was hard. Everyone else seemed to like it enough though so while they ate it, I started feeding Bella her lunch. She cried as soon as I pulled her medication from the lunch bag. Fortunately, I was able to entice her into playing “magic” with her food this afternoon. This is where I scoop the food, close my eyes, and Bella ‘magically’ makes it disappear before I open them. It wasn’t a perfect meal, but we managed to avoid drawing the attention of the entire restaurant.

By the time Bella was done eating, the food had arrived. I ordered a shepherd’s pie.

It was very, very good. The veggies on the side were a little bland so I offered them to DH. Bella took a nap while the rest of us finish our lunch.

Overall, we enjoyed Finnegan’s and I would recommend it. The waitstaff was quick and polite, and the food was good. The bill was just over $120 including gratuity for 4 adults and 2 children.

With our bellies full, we were ready to take on more rides. But first, we all donned our ponchos. The weather outside had gone from pouring to downright torrential rainshowers. There was standing water in most parts of the street and the puddles were unavoidable.

By the time we reached Disaster Studios

located in the San Fransisco area, we were all soaked.

We started in a large holding area where an assistant director explained that she was casting for a new movie – Mutha Nature. DD10 was picked out of the audience to play the "young girl" role and DGma got to go along with AJ as her “talent agent” too!

And then, with some assistance from DBIL, DH raised his hand to play the "scared guy" and he was picked too. That's the back of his head wearing the black windbreaker and you can see DD10 and DGma on the TV screen above.

The second part of the show was pretty boring as we listened to Christopher Walken talk about being a director. The 3rd area was a stage and we saw the filming take place. DD10 had to stand against a wall (painted like a road) and look scared. Then she had to jump onto a mattress and land safely. Soon it was DH’s turn. They brought him out in a giant tub of balls (like the kind you find in a ball pit.) and we could not stop laughing. He was supposed to look really scared and flail his arms about, but he couldn’t stop laughing so his ‘terrified’ look included a huge smile on his face.

Following the filming, we were lead into subway cars and suddenly the ground was shaking, and the subway tunnel around us began to erode. A semi fell from the street above and nearly exploded on our subway car. After the near disaster, we viewed the trailer for Mutha Nature during our subway ride to the exit. We saw AJ and Ben in their starring roles. The whole thing was hilarious, especially DH’s scared face! We all enjoyed Disaster! and my only disappointment was that we were not allowed to take video or pictures of any kind. They didn’t even sell the video afterwards!

Here are the agent, the scared guy, and the actress from Disaster! movie .

And her is DH recreating his ‘scared’ face. I’m completely serious – this is what he looked like!

We emerged from Disaster! and discovered that the rain had stopped! Our next stop was Jaws!

Despite a 42 inch height restriction, our little 40” Bella was allowed on the ride. When Bella showed the attendant her GAC, he didn’t even bother to measure her, just took us around to the back entrance and we immediately boarded our boat!

I hated this ride in a good way! The entire time, I was on edge – knowing that that darn shark would be jumping out of the water any second now. I most of the ride with my fingers in my ears and my eyes half closed! Bella agreed with me – she did not like Jaws either so we huddled together. The rest of our group loved it. Kennedy enjoyed screaming back at Jaws when he lunged at us!

After the ride, we had to take the traditional tourist photos:

And then Jaws ATE Kennedy! So Uncle TJ had to rescue her!

We decided to skip the Fear Factor Show (although I read somewhere they don’t run it in Winter months anyway?) and headed straight over to The Simpsons. Now, let me just say that I don’t allow my kids to watch this vulgar show, but it is on after the news and they have caught glimpses of it so they know the characters. I am ashamed to admit that I was a big fan of that dysfunctional family when I was a child. It’s hard to believe they’ve been around for 20 years!

Bella showed the attendant her GAC and he directed us to the handicap entrance. It was like going through a cornmaze! Back and forth, up and down, in and out. We were thoroughly discombobulated by the time we finally reached the waiting area.

When we finally got to the top, the attendant there said we shouldn’t have been sent up that way! We waited in a queue area and then were assigned to a room. Each room had just one car in it and thankfully, we all fit in one.

Our entire family LOVED the Simpsons ride and I would have to say it is my personal favorite at Universal Studios! Once we were in the car, it was raised up and we were facing a huge screen. The ride began and we joined the Simpsons and many other characters from the TV show on an adventure through Krustyland. The motions were very realistic and coaster like. My only complaint is that they let the next riders in immediately after our ride was over and they nearly plowed over my kids!

Still laughing our heads off, we exited the ride and discovered the attendant from the top of the queue scolding the attendant at the bottom that directed us to the wrong entrance. Oops!

Because Bella was too little for the next ride, Grandma took her over to the Curious George Play area while the other kids and us ‘big kids’ went on Men in Black - Alien Attack. With AJ wearing the GAC, we didn’t have any wait to get on the ride. However, my backpack wouldn’t fit into their free lockers so we had to do a child swap of sorts with the backpack. DH, DD10, DD8, and DBIL went on first. Only DD8 wanted to ride again so I rode with her for round #2. MIB is similar to Toy Story Mania or Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin, but the theme was obviously different. Although I love TSM and Buzz, I wasn’t too impressed by MIB and deem it a “won’t wait more than 10 minutes” ride. I realized why nobody else wanted to ride again.

We exited MIB and headed towards our meet up with GMa and Bella. This is when Bella decided she wanted to star in the Disaster! Movie too!!!

Act 2: Scene 5 - Bella's Stars In Her Own Disaster! Movie

 

[pipersmom]

Very cool update, Stefani! Your dh looked so funny trying to look scared! The girls looked like they were having a good time in spite of the rain. LOL @ The Simpsons, I don't let Piper watch it either, but we may have to do the ride since you said it was one of the family's faves! Eeks@ Bella deciding she wants to star in the movie too, I'll be anxious to see how that comes out! You're such a tease

 

[that's nice]

WOW!

You guys hit quite a bit so far at US. By the sound of it the Florida one sounds 10X better than the California one. I must admit that I know 0 (ZERO) about US but it sounds like you guys had a lot of fun here. I must also admit that I am a Simpson's fan- I don't watch it every week but if it is on and I have nothing to watch I'll check it out. It is a cartoon geared towards adults and I think over the years it has gotten 'racier'.

How warm was it while you were there? How busy was US?

 

[StefaniLyn]

Very cool update, Stefani! Your dh looked so funny trying to look scared! The girls looked like they were having a good time in spite of the rain. LOL @ The Simpsons, I don't let Piper watch it either, but we may have to do the ride since you said it was one of the family's faves! Eeks@ Bella deciding she wants to star in the movie too, I'll be anxious to see how that comes out! You're such a tease

Me? A tease? Ha! That's what DH says! sorry, TMI! I have to keep you coming back for more somehow!

Simpsons is a great ride, but it's only MY favorite, I can't speak for the rest of them. I think I read somewhere that it used to be Back to the Future themed.

DH is such a goofball. He always makes me laugh!

I think Piper would LOVE being cast as the young girl! Tell her to wave her hands frantically in the air and stand where the assistant director can see her (and her MAW pin too!)

Here's another teaser. Bella's Disaster! movie has nothing to do with the ride!

WOW!

You guys hit quite a bit so far at US. By the sound of it the Florida one sounds 10X better than the California one. I must admit that I know 0 (ZERO) about US but it sounds like you guys had a lot of fun here. I must also admit that I am a Simpson's fan- I don't watch it every week but if it is on and I have nothing to watch I'll check it out. It is a cartoon geared towards adults and I think over the years it has gotten 'racier'.

How warm was it while you were there? How busy was US?

The Simpsons show has definitely become a bit racier over the years. I don't recall anything inappropriate on the ride though. It's pretty G rated.

We didn't miss a whole lot at US on our first day. Despite the rain, we used our time there to the fullest.

It was between high 50's and low 80's for the duration of our trip. On this day it was in the 60's. And the crowds were nonexistent. The longest ride wait we saw was 30 minutes I think for Disaster Movie. We walked in at 1pm and got a table for lunch in a sit down restaurant. I'm sure the rain drove some people away, but I doubt the park would have been much more crowded even with better weather.

 

[yinyanggirls]

I'm cracking up at the pics, because as the day goes on the girls' hair is getting shorter.

 

[StefaniLyn]

I'm cracking up at the pics, because as the day goes on the girls' hair is getting shorter.

That's funny! I never noticed it before but you're right! They start out with heavy wet hair in the morning (believe it or not Bella's hair goes all the way down to her bottom when it is wet and brushed out!) and as it dries and the humidity getss to it their hair gets shorter and shorter . . . . gotta love those crazy curls!