**COMPLETED 4/30**Life Is Way Too Short to Take It Slow - October 2013 TR

[NancyLuvsMickey]

Congrats on DVC!!!

 

[princess_momma]

GAHHHHHHHH CONGRATS!!! That's so exciting? So like can I stay with you at the Grand?

AHHHHHHHHH!!! SO excited!! Of course!!

LOL all I know is that we plan to go back in 2016. I want to rent from someone I know (kind of lol) so I'd prefer you or Lynn. But I'll go through a broker if I have to.

I love Wreck-It Ralph! Such a cute movie. You look so happy!

Yeah, I know what you mean! LOL 2016 is kinda far ahead, I'm not sure our plans now. I'll probably know around...oh next week! Disney planning multiple vacations ahead problems.

Ahhh, I love your Wreck it Ralph tshirts!! Yours and Landon's shirts really make it! And I love that Garrett matches at least somewhat with a black polo!
AHHHHHHHH DVC!!! I totally LOVE the idea of DVC, but Zach prefers going with a discount, like free dining. GF is a wonderful place to own points, though. The location is just perfect for MK!

Lol thanks heavens I can squeeze into the larger child sizes!

So excited to be DVC! Garret is already sad about no free dining, but we're really excited that some trips (once we are AP holders as well), we will literally only need to pay for flights and food!

Great update and congrats on DVC! We own at VWL. You will love being in the MK area.

Thank you!! I'm thrilled!

Congrats on DVC!!!

Thank you! So exciting!

 

[emmysmommy]

I was wondering when the reveal for DVC would happen! How EXCITING! Congratulations years of Disney vacations to come. Seriously that's awesome!

Your matching tees are adorable.

I'm a huge fan of the banana foster dessert at Brown Derby. They ran out last time we were there. I need to return just for that.

 

[princess_momma]

I was wondering when the reveal for DVC would happen! How EXCITING! Congratulations years of Disney vacations to come. Seriously that's awesome!

Your matching tees are adorable.

I'm a huge fan of the banana foster dessert at Brown Derby. They ran out last time we were there. I need to return just for that.

I LOVE being a DVC member. It's basically my favorite thing ever.

The banana foster dessert looked so good! I can't even remember if I tried any. I was too busy floating on a cloud.

 

[princess_momma]

We went on a quick spin on RnRC and then had to head back to Pop to pack. AHHHHHHHH leaving WDW is so depressing!!

After the packing depression, we headed over to the MK…where we detoured to take pictures of our new “home” resort.





I was nearly in tears of joy the whole time. I had spent so long worrying and worrying that I wouldn’t be able to get Garret to fall in love with Disney but I did and we basically just guaranteed a bunch of vacations there for the rest of our lives! I couldn’t believe this dream of mine was coming true!! And at the GRAND FLORIDIAN of all places.

I was a bit camera happy as we strolled down Main Street.













We had one thing on our mind…SPLASH MOUNTAIN!





The wait was a tad long, so we grabbed FP’s and headed to find some food. We decided to eat at Cosmic Ray’s. We made our way to Tomorrowland as the sun set and it was absolutely stunning.



Garret and I both got bacon cheeseburgers.


Landon got a turkey sandwich.


When we were all done, we had some Splash fp’s to use!

I don’t know if you noticed…but this whole we hadn’t seen any Disney fireworks. Obviously, we couldn’t leave without seeing them! We headed that way and got stuck behind the parade. Oh well. It’s pretty!

Then we fought some crowds, but we ended up right in front of the castle to watch Celebrate the Magic AND the fireworks. It was pretty amazing. Here are my favorite pics!













And then we went back to Splash. It may or may not be the 2nd best ride ever. (After ToT, of course.) We proceeded to ride it 5x in a row. Yay for a chilly night and no one wanting to ride the water ride!

Since we got to ride so many times in a row, by the end, Landon’s bravery appeared by leaps and bounds. We have a photographic proof of the progression of him holding on, having someone hold his hands up, and then holding his cute little 5 year old hands up all by himself. It was basically my proudest moment as a parent.






He actually held his own hands up twice in a row, but I won’t bore you with every ride picture!

After we were all Splashed out, we headed over to BTMRR…wait was posted as 20 minutes at 10:43, but we were on at 10:58!

Then Garret was a big sweetheart and decided I needed to go “Under the Sea” so we headed over to New Fantasyland. The wait was posted as 10 minutes at 11:14, but we were on by 11:18. We were clearly having the best last night ever!

Then we walked onto the carousel.





After, we decided to cap off our last night with a spin on Space mountain…the wait was posted as 55 minutes, but we got in line at 11:40 and were on by 12:12, so just over half an hour!

And the next day we would have to leave…WHY?! WHY DO TRIPS HAVE TO END?! I still don’t know the answer to that, but stay tuned for the final updates!

 

[jenny105]

It always sucks when trips have to end! You spend so much time waiting for it and it's gone in a flash.

I love that picture of Garret holding up Landon's hands!

So not to be a Debbie Downer but when you stay at your new home resort, rent a car! When we stayed at GF the bus service was TERRIBLE. We waited for 20 minutes for a bus to show up and then it wasn't even the bus we wanted! That was my only complaint about the resort. People pay enough to stay there - you'd think everything would be top notch. Ok, end rant.

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

Always a sad thing when the trip winds down towards the end. I start feeling depressed about halfway through the day before but try to distract myself from it with all of the Disney things around me.

5 times in a row on Splash! That's excellent!

 

[princess_momma]

It always sucks when trips have to end! You spend so much time waiting for it and it's gone in a flash.

I love that picture of Garret holding up Landon's hands!

So not to be a Debbie Downer but when you stay at your new home resort, rent a car! When we stayed at GF the bus service was TERRIBLE. We waited for 20 minutes for a bus to show up and then it wasn't even the bus we wanted! That was my only complaint about the resort. People pay enough to stay there - you'd think everything would be top notch. Ok, end rant.

I'll have to keep that in mind...although we may not be staying at "home" for a few trips. Need to add a few more points on for the length we want to stay.

Always a sad thing when the trip winds down towards the end. I start feeling depressed about halfway through the day before but try to distract myself from it with all of the Disney things around me.

5 times in a row on Splash! That's excellent!

Agreed. We had a great last night!

 

[princess_momma]

We have another trip booked!! We are going to be staying at....


BOARDWALK VILLAS!!!!

I'm soooo excited!! I can't wait to be so close to DHS & EPCOT!!

We will be going in November for Landon's birthday! There is also a very strong possibility that Landon's best friend, Lexie and Troy, will be joining us! Landon and Troy have been friends since they were in-womb and were born a little over a month apart...so that would be so fun!

It'll be our first trip without the dining plan, but we're still going to be at quite a few sit down places! We are also going to be getting AP's...so after that, there will be another trip on the horizon!! SOOOO excited!!

 

[jenny105]

AWESOME! That's where I want to stay for our next trip. I can't wait to hear ALL about it!

 

[marDgreen88]

Ahh yay! So excited for ya, girl.

 

[lauren_elizabeth]

Yall are going to have so much fun staying at Boardwalk Villas! I've always wanted to go down the clown slide.

 

[princess_momma]

AWESOME! That's where I want to stay for our next trip. I can't wait to hear ALL about it!

I'm SO excited for it! I've always loved the Boardwalk!

Ahh yay! So excited for ya, girl.

Thank you!! It's almost time for YOUR trip!

Yall are going to have so much fun staying at Boardwalk Villas! I've always wanted to go down the clown slide.

Me too! I think it looks so fun!

 

[klacey1]

Somehow I missed your last update!! What a fun night-- we never seem to go on a lot of rides at night, so I'm always impressed when people do lol. Yay for Landon growing to love Splash! Hands down my favorite right in the MK!
And awesome to have a trip coming up!!! I always said the Boardwalk is the one Epcot resort I'd love to stay at! Being able to walk to DHS will be awesome for you

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

Congrats on your next trip!! The Epcot Resorts are such a great location as I experienced last October. Hope you'll have another fun visit!

 

[princess_momma]

Somehow I missed your last update!! What a fun night-- we never seem to go on a lot of rides at night, so I'm always impressed when people do lol. Yay for Landon growing to love Splash! Hands down my favorite right in the MK!
And awesome to have a trip coming up!!! I always said the Boardwalk is the one Epcot resort I'd love to stay at! Being able to walk to DHS will be awesome for you

I would really prefer to be out and about alllll day but with the time difference, those rope drops are just hard to make! I love being there at night! (This next trip should be REALLY interesting. I'm currently working graves...on Disney time, my hours are from 10pm to 8am...should be interesting to see how I adjust! g)
I'm really hoping that we somehow get a room with a view of DHS! I am really excited that the DVC side is closer to DHS!

Congrats on your next trip!! The Epcot Resorts are such a great location as I experienced last October. Hope you'll have another fun visit!

Thank you!! We are so excited! 199 days!

 

[princess_momma]

So I’ve been procrastinating finishing this TR but we only have a little bit left so I suppose I should just wrap it up already.

Our last day was here and while we did have one more day on our park tickets and 3 FP+ reservations at the MK, we didn’t go to a park. However, after finishing up our packing and dropping off our luggage with bell services, we still took a bus to the MK.

And then hopped straight on the monorail…we wanted to check out our new “home”!

https://flic.kr/p/mHuzU5

I just love that the GF has a Basin…I LOVE Basin products, especially the bath bombs and bath salts. Can’t wait for the day when I can stay at the GF Villas and use Basin products in those gorgeous tubs!

https://flic.kr/p/mHuzLj

We enjoyed the main building first…every part of the GF is so gorgeous!

https://flic.kr/p/mHuvVd

And yes…I felt so underdressed and borderline grungy in my Finding Nemo tee and jeans…but everything else was packed and I was preparing to return to the cold CO weather! I’m already planning on what cute dresses and outfits I can wear to “go with” the Grand. LOL.

I love how gorgeous the grounds are!

https://flic.kr/p/mHsDRD

I do love Pop, it has been where I stayed 3 out of 4 trips…but the Grand just knocks it out of the water. There’s no comparison. We felt this even stronger when we stopped for lunch at the Grand’s quick service, Gasparilla…it was a million times better than Pop’s food court. Here is just the view.

https://flic.kr/p/mHsMr6

For lunch, G had the Grand Gaspy Burger. (I always want to call it the Gatsby Burger…lol!)

https://flic.kr/p/mHuzdq

I had the Chicken Cordon Bleu Sandwich, with sweet potato fries.

https://flic.kr/p/mHuyCN

Landon had the kid’s flatbread pepperoni pizza.

https://flic.kr/p/mHsLTH

We got 2 German Chocolate Cupcakes and 1 S’mores Cupcake for dessert.
https://flic.kr/p/mHsLtz

We were all BLOWN AWAY by the quality of this “quick service” location. It was probably both of mine and G’s favorite qs. SO GOOD. We highly recommend it!

After we were all full, we continued our tour of the grounds. We found a map, if anyone is interested in viewing that.

https://flic.kr/p/mHuybA

The pathway from the main building to the Villas is just a covered pathway. Near the Villas is a beautiful fountain. (Excuse the sun in my eyes…)

https://flic.kr/p/mHuxYw

And here is the Villas building! (Please note that this is 4 days after they opened officially!)

https://flic.kr/p/mHsKDi

We had bell services take our picture to commemorate our DVC purchase!

https://flic.kr/p/mHsBv6

Hooray for being VGF owners!! This must be what heaven looks like…if only I could keep my eyes open! Lol.

https://flic.kr/p/mHuwV9

We weren’t planning on going inside, but bell services insisted we had to check it out!

https://flic.kr/p/mHuwJC

We loved it! It was really cozy and intimate inside. I’ve heard some issues that people have been having with checking in at off hours and there not being anyone in the villas building, but I don’t think that will ever really be a problem for us with our travel schedule. I really loved the feel of the lobby and was just blown away by it! It was so brand spankin’ new and I just loved taking it all in! LOVED it. Can’t wait for the day we finally get to stay here!

Oh and if anyone cares…here is the bag and the documents folder they send when you are signing your contracts. I love my DVC bag!

https://flic.kr/p/mHsHjZ

Then we, sadly, took the monorail back to the MK bus stop to head back to Pop and ride the Unmagical Express.

Of course, this was the longest wait for a bus of the trip. We waited over 15 minutes. And the whole time, it was a handful of families waiting and as soon as a bus shows up, so does a wheel chair. Which is fine, it is just a time consuming process of lowering the bus and getting them strapped in and then raising the bus…naturally, as soon as the bus was raised again, another wheel chair showed up! So we started the process all over again. What could you do but laugh?

Eventually we made it back to Pop and our bus was running late. I tried to run to the Pop food court and use our last 3 snacks credit but somehow got in the slowest line ever. So we didn’t use those. And during that time, the bus came. I came back in time and it was still there, but the bus driver had told G to just wait for the next one. So that’s what we did.

We head to the airport with more than enough time to make our flight. And then got to their security check-in. HOLY GUACAMOLE!! I know it’s usually bad at MCO, but that was the worst I’ve ever seen it. (Also…why can’t other airports be as efficient as the one at home? Does everyone think this about their home airport?! LOL!)

We did eventually get lucky and the security line split right in front of us, so we were first in that new line! (We would’ve had to wait a LOOOONNNG time if that hadn’t happened! We got really lucky!)

At this time the Broncos game was on. We were watching in the terminal and nothing had happened when we boarded. Then by the time we get on the plane and in the air and tune into the game, the Broncos were losing 21-7!! I almost had a heart attack, but they scored immediately as we started watching and then ended up winning 45-21. So it was all good. So good they made playoffs and won the AFC championship and then…THEY DECIDED TO BREAK MY HEART INTO A MILLION TINY PIECES AND I DON’T KNOW IF I’LL BE OKAY GUYS. AND THIS IS MONTHS LATER…I’M STILL SO SAD.

Okay…sorry for that. I just can’t mention the Broncos without being sad. The wounds are still fresh. And yes, I know I’m crazy.

That’s also where my notes stop, but I think it’s safe to say, after that, we landed and made it home.

Stay tuned for the wrap up!

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

A nice relaxing end to a great trip! I always feels underdressed when I enter the GF. Then I remind myself that I'm still at Disney.

Sorry about your Broncos and how the season ended. Being a fan of Manning I was rooting for your team. Plus Pete Carroll is not one of my favorite human beings. We were on our return flight home while the game was happening and our flight attendant gave score updates throughout the flight.

 

[marDgreen88]

Omg, the Grand. I can't. It's too perfect.

Boo for your trip ending. Boooo.

 

[jenny105]

Yay! You are DVC official. Grand Floridian is beyond gorgeous. I love the grounds, the rooms are huge, and yes even their QSD is amazing. We ate at GG a couple times during our stay and everything was delicious. So excited for you! But I will miss reading your TR