Boo to Two, Kelley and Missy's Joint TR! Update! 3/28

[Missyrose]

Wow, what great updates! All of those pictures are so clear and so well-taken - there are a couple that I paused to look at twice just because they were so appealing!

That's awesome that your lunch was so good. I still haven't eaten at Le Cellier - but to be fair, I've only been twice in the past eleven years (twice in the past year!) and I wasn't in a position to take that amount of time to eat!

Also, what a cool Ariel and Eric! And, WHY ON EARTH do they not air condition EVERY MONORAIL??? We got on one of those non-air-conditioned monorails and I was so surprised. It was HOT.

Franklin says thank you for such wonderful compliments on his photos! You have to try Le Cellier, it's THAT good. I'm now trying desperately to get an ADR for my group of 6 in March (but sadly, it doesn't seem to be working). I really don't understand why they don't run the air conditioning on every monorail. One time, we mentioned to the driver how hot it was in the cars and he said "oh, I guess I should turn on the air conditioning." You think?

I am here!

Love the Food & Wine button and the face that the o's in Food are Mickey Heads makes it all the better!

And I completely 100% agree with you on the Epcot entrance music. Anytime I hear it, it takes me right back. It is probably my favorite place to be in all 4 parks!

Loving every update! Your pictures from your room are AMAZING. I was so thrilled when I heard of your upgrade I shrieked out loud! Looking forward to more!

Yay, welcome to the party Brook! For those of you who don't know, Brook was our oh-so-amazing Disney travel agent on this trip.

I realized on this trip that Epcot is gaining on Magic Kingdom in the race to be my favorite park. I love to just BE in Epcot.

Yeah for Jeffrey for giving you a break obtaining your AP! And for the extremely cute buttons!

If you write a letter/email to Disney Guest Communications praising the CMs who went above and beyond to make your trip special, you should mention how he helped you with your AP (although you should leave out the exact details where he bent the rules a bit)

Love the pictures taken from the monorail! Especially the ones of the attractions in EPCOT.

I love Franklin's laid back attitude! It doesn't sound like he was bothered by the already planned out meal or his mission to capture it in photos. When I started taking pictures of our meals, I encountered a lot of eye-rolling, but now my DH will help "Wait, Mom needs to take a picture first".

Wow, those are fantastic Ariel and Eric costumes.

Can't wait to see how you guys look. We already know Kelley and her family had Incredible costumes!

I did write an email to guest relations to praise a number of CMs from this trip, we really encountered some great ones! I really lucked out with Franklin. Not only does he actually LIKE Disney, he puts up with my Disney nuttiness while we're there.

I have to say that our MNSSHP outfits are nowhere near as fun as Kelley's family. But they were still pretty cute.

Joining in!

Thanks for joining in!

What a great day you've had so far! Lunch at Le Cellier...it doesn't get any better than that! That soup is all Jasmine ever has when we go there...I am waiting for the day she orders 2 bowls!

How cute was that couple on the monorail Can't wait to hear all about the party!

Next time we go to Le Cellier, we're definitely getting our own orders of cheese soup. No more sharing! I was so impressed by the couple on the monorail, such commitment to costumes! We had a ton of fun at the party, can't wait to tell you all about it!

 

[Joyciemc]

I completely agree about the Epcot entrance music- it automatically makes me feel ready for amazing Disney adventures and can kill any bad mood!

Those Ariel/Eric costumes are amazing, I can't believe they wore them in the heat!

 

[PrincessAmongPrinces]

NOW I see why people wait until they have all their pictures before doing their TRs

Bear with me, I am still kinda new at this! But now I have all my amazing Frank-a-lin pictures, and all of my PhotoPass pictures, so I just wanted to add a few extra MNSSHP pictures from 10/13/11

Here is our obligatory family shot in front of the castle (by PhotoPass)

Getting a front row seat for the parade with Missy (by Frank-a-lin)

The Boo To You Halloween Parade!! (by PhotoPass)

The boys favorite float (by Franklin)

Ryan meeting Woody at the Dance Party with Woody, Jessie, and Bullseye (by Franklin)

So yes, in retrospect, these should have made their way into my original MNSSHP entry and I am working on the rest of my TR notes to make them more cohesive.

 

[natebenma]

NOW I see why people wait until they have all their pictures before doing their TRs

Thanks for the bonus pictures!!!

 

[Missyrose]

Those Ariel/Eric costumes are amazing, I can't believe they wore them in the heat!

I know, right? i give anyone credit who can wear big, involved costumes in the Florida heat. I don't even know how Kelley's boys could handle their Incrdibles gear, it was so muggy that night!

 

[Nermel9]

Great update! Isn't the Epcot entrance music amazing? Sometimes when I walk in, I just stand there, in front of SE and listen to it, I LOVE it!

Mmmm, Le Cellier, I love that place! Sounds like you had an awesome server! Isn't that cheddar cheese soup the best?

 

[Missyrose]

Great update! Isn't the Epcot entrance music amazing? Sometimes when I walk in, I just stand there, in front of SE and listen to it, I LOVE it!

Mmmm, Le Cellier, I love that place! Sounds like you had an awesome server! Isn't that cheddar cheese soup the best?

Thanks! We had an awesome server at Le Cellier. I'm so excited because after weeks of trying, I managed to snag a LC ADR for our March trip! More cheddar cheese soup for me!

BTW, I just noticed your ticker...you get to go back in a month??!?!? I'm green with envy.

 

[Missyrose]

We last left off arriving back at the hotel to get ready for our very first Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party.

Franklin opened the beer on the balcony, I crashed onto the bed for a five-minute rest. Then it was back up to get ready for the party. As some of you may remember from the PTR, Franklin and I discussed whether we wanted to wear costumes to the party and ultimately decided to get Disney Halloween T-shirts instead. Mine had an applique of Minnie dressed up like a ghost (topped off with my fancy, new sequined Minnie ears) and Franklin’s T-shirt featured Goofy dressed up as Mickey (ears, gloves, shorts and all!). We looked pretty darn cute, if I do say so myself!

After our lengthy wait on the last monorail ride, we were in no rush to get back on another, so we decided to take the leisurely stroll from our hotel to the Magic Kingdom. I could not get over how cool it was that we could walk from the hotel to MK and be there in mere minutes!

We walked through the gates at around 5:25, later than I had hoped, but I shrugged it off as something I couldn’t change even if I wanted to. Our first order of business was renting a locker for Franklin’s camera tripod. Franklin was intent on taking the best pictures of the fireworks this year and had decided using his tripod was a must. But when he found the measurements for the MK lockers online, he realized his current tripod wouldn’t fit. So naturally he ordered a new one that folded up smaller than his current one. See, I’m not the only Disney-crazy in this bunch!

We wandered in and took our first glance at MK on this trip. It never gets old.

We took our time near the entrance before moving up Main Street, stopping to admire all the Fall decorations.

Sorry, you’re stuck with me in many of the photos because Franklin is always behind the lens!

Neither of us was hungry yet after our big lunch at Le Cellier, so we decided we might as well head back to Frontierland to get in line for the 7 Dwarfs.

When we arrived, the area was being used for a Woody and Jessie meet and greet. We asked the CM where we should line up for the dwarfs. She says, “Wow, you’re first!” And guides us to the bench at the front of the line area. A few people hopped in line a few minutes later. Once Woody and Jessie were escorted away, the line moved up the the front of the queue (where there were, thankfully, more benches). As we were all chatting the guy standing behind us kind of moseyed ahead of us and took the first spot in line. Normally, I’d say something. But he’d been hanging around the area since 4:30 as a place-holder for his wife and daughter, who were at Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique. So we waited, read on our phones and waited some more.

At about 6:20 they wheel out two wheelbarrows of “diamonds” from the dwarfs' “diamond mine.” And 20 minutes later, the CM announced the dwarfs would be out “soon.”

Sure enough, at 6:50, the seven stars of the show came strolling out (no whistling though!).

The wife and daughter of the man in front of us had arrived earlier and it was so precious to see her all dressed up as Snow White go and meet all “her” dwarfs.

Then it was our turn!

We checked Franklin’s watch as we left the dwarfs. It read 6:58 p.m. Sweet, we didn’t waste a single moment of the actual party time in line for the dwarfs!

We’d been in Disney World most of the day and we hadn’t step foot on a ride. It was time to remedy that! What would be our first ride? Well Big Thunder Mountain of course! For those of you who read my PTR, you’ll remember that this ride topped my list of favorite attractions, so it felt like the perfect first ride for our trip!

We walked through the line and right up to the gate for the next train! Wuh-hoo! Needless to say, we had a ton of fun on “the wildest ride in the wilderness!” So much so, that when we pulled back into the station and saw there was no one waiting to get on our train, we asked if we could stay on and the CM said “Have fun!”

When we got off the train, I realized I had a missed phone call from Kelley. They had arrived at the party and had headed for Tomorrowland. I called her and we agreed to meet at Pecos Bill’s for a little dinner.

I had a cheeseburger with onion rings, Franklin had the pulled-pork sandwich and we each had a soda. And we totally forgot to take any pictures.

It was the first time we’d ever eaten at Pecos Bill’s, the food was okay, nothing spectacular. For all the planning Kelley and I had done, we somehow managed to come out of dinner mere minutes before the first parade was supposed to ride through Frontierland. ACK!

Everything was roped off and there were people EVERYWHERE. We just wanted to get out of Frontierland but were thwarted at every turn. When a CM yelled at us for daring to cross the street, I asked how we could get out of the way of the parade and GET OUT of Frontierland. He said the easiest would be to wait out the parade. Um, no thanks...is there another plan? He pointed us in the direction of the Liberty Boat and said if crossed through its trick-or-treat trail, it would drop us out near Haunted Mansion.

We stopped for a little trick-or-treating (the Liberty Boat trail is a hidden treasure, there were three barrels of candy and no one was trick-or-treating there!).

Kelley and Mike took the boys on It’s a Small World while Franklin and I went on Haunted Mansion.

Kelley wanted to take the boys on “the silly ghosties ride” on this trip, but we all agreed we should wait until daytime and also on a day when the CMs wouldn’t be decked out in scary makeup.

We skipped the new queue and walked right into the stretching room. This was the first time we’d ridden HM since they’d added the extra ghosts in the graveyard, great animation there! It was also the first time riding it with the improved hitchhikers sequence at the end. That’s a wow sequence now! Very impressive.

We stopped for photos outside on our way out.

It was almost time to stake out a spot for Hallowishes, where would master photographer Franklin plant us? You'll just have to wait and see...

 

[Joyciemc]

Great update!! Love reading about MNSSHP!

 

[Queenofallthings]

Aren't the dwarves the cutest? Such great pictures! Sounds like a great start to your evening....oh btw....love the shirts

 

[ZehnJahren]

Yes, it WAS super-wonderful to be able just to stroll on over to MK in a matter of minutes from CR, wasn't it? Boy, it's so easy to get spoiled by that quick walk - and it still feels worth the money!

I love Frank-a-lin's shirt! I wouldn't mind having one of those myself!

Also, how great that you got to see the Dwarves even BEFORE the party started?? I didn't even know where they were, but we weren't planning on characters.

 

[Missyrose]

Great update!! Love reading about MNSSHP!

The party was so much fun! We're already planning on going back next year.

Aren't the dwarves the cutest? Such great pictures! Sounds like a great start to your evening....oh btw....love the shirts

Thanks Queen! The dwarves were adorable, each of them had their own personality. The evening only gets better from here.

Yes, it WAS super-wonderful to be able just to stroll on over to MK in a matter of minutes from CR, wasn't it? Boy, it's so easy to get spoiled by that quick walk - and it still feels worth the money!

I love Frank-a-lin's shirt! I wouldn't mind having one of those myself!

Also, how great that you got to see the Dwarves even BEFORE the party started?? I didn't even know where they were, but we weren't planning on characters.

We got our shirts from Deb's Diva Boutique on ETSY. She makes the cutest stuff! We soooo lucked out with the dwarves. We had never really done characters before this trip, it was a fun change of pace.

 

[natebenma]

Fantastic update!!!

But first, back to Le Cellier. Did the waiter give you a recipe card for the soup? Ours did on our last trip. There are also recipes floating round on the boards. I made it once, it was good, but certainly not as good as it is there. Plus, I wasn't able to find Moosehead beer, which I understand is an important component.

Love your costumes. Those are great shirts! I'm sure you were nice and comfortable.

Awesome that you got to meet the 7 Dwarfs before the party!

Great pictures, of course! I especially like the one of the train station at the entrance and the colors in the picture of Pecos Bill.

Yay for riding Big Thunder and Haunted Mansion.

And the night gets better?!?

 

[Missyrose]

Fantastic update!!!

But first, back to Le Cellier. Did the waiter give you a recipe card for the soup? Ours did on our last trip. There are also recipes floating round on the boards. I made it once, it was good, but certainly not as good as it is there. Plus, I wasn't able to find Moosehead beer, which I understand is an important component.

The hostesses gave us recipe cards on our way out. They said the key is to not use as much beer as the recipe calls for. Haven't had a chance to try making it. Hopefully, now that the weather has turned cooler, I'll get the motivation to try!

Love your costumes. Those are great shirts! I'm sure you were nice and comfortable.

Awesome that you got to meet the 7 Dwarfs before the party!

Thanks! We were very comfortable, yet we felt totally in the spirit of everything! I think we planned it right with the dwarfs.

Great pictures, of course! I especially like the one of the train station at the entrance and the colors in the picture of Pecos Bill.

Yay for riding Big Thunder and Haunted Mansion.

And the night gets better?!?

Franklin really loved taking photos of everything all lit up at MK. We realized early on that this was the first time we ever really got to experience MK at night together.

 

[Missyrose]

So sorry it's been so long since I last checked in. It's been a busy couple of weeks at work. Between the Penn State scandal, the NBA lockout and the Nationals catcher who was kidnapped in Venezuela, it has made for some very late nights at work. But I'm back and it's time to get back to the Halloween party!

It was just about time for us to stake out our spot for Hallowishes. I had left it up to Franklin to decide where he wanted to stand to take his pictures. He got all scientific while making his decision. Apparently, one day at work he printed out a Google Earth image of MK and used a protractor to determine the best place to stand while using his wide-angle lens. Yep, he took this very seriously.

So from his calculations, he wanted to sit at the corner where Main Street meets the hub, so that’s where we headed. I staked out the Franklin-approved spot while he went to the front of the park to retrieve his tripod. When he returned, I said I was going to wander through the character meet and greets in and around the hub. First up? Gaston

We had a nice chat. I told him I wished my hair looked as good as his did in this Florida heat. He said all the eggs he eats makes his hair better than everyone else’s. Ha!

I moved up through the Hub and over toward the left ramp to watch the Villains show. It was a really fun show, full of characters who don’t usually get to be front and center. My favorite part was the Queen of Hearts dancing to the Glee mashup of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” and the Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs’ “Heads Will Roll.”

I jumped into the makeshift line for Maleficent behind one couple. Soon, the evil queen sauntered down the ramp.

I quickly moved on to Judge Claude Frollo from “The Hunchback of Notre Dame.” Okay, I admit, I had no clue who he was until I got back to the hotel room that night and did some research on Google.

It was almost time for the fireworks, so I made my way back to where Franklin was camped out, taking test shots of the castle.

And now, on with the show! My apologies for the number of pictures, I had a really hard time picking just a few.

I loved Hallowishes. I didn’t think I could love anything as much as regular Wishes, but Hallowishes really topped it. The music is so much fun and the fireworks are bigger and so much more dynamic in this show. Totally worth the price of a party ticket.

That's it for now, there's still plenty more party coming up!

 

[Joyciemc]

SO, so jealous that you got to meet Gaston! I love/hate him.

Franklin out did himself with those Hallowishes photos! Stunning.

 

[Nermel9]

My favorite part was the Queen of Hearts dancing to the Glee mashup of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” and the Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs’ “Heads Will Roll.”

Is that what she danced to? I had no idea what that was, it was crazy! I loved that part too!

Great pics with the villains! I didn't even bother trying to get over to them, I figured it was a waste of time!

Wow, I love your Hallowishes pictures! I seriously need to get a real camera!

 

[IheartDDuck]

The meet and greet with Gaston is awesome! I think that's one of the best parts of going to MNSSHP. Getting to meet characters that aren't normally out.

Tell Franklin that those Hallowishes pictures are absolutely beautiful!

 

[natebenma]

WOW!!! Oh, WOW!!! Franklin done good! Beautiful shots! And I love that math helped him get there!

Very cool party! Great meet & greets!

 

[JolllyHoliday]

Wow!! The fireworks pictures are awesome!