Dinglehoppers and Snarfblats! Sept/Oct TR at AoA ~ NEW Nov13 ~

Mickey_Mom

DIS Veteran
Joined
Mar 17, 2009
Hello and welcome to my familys fall trip to a place some of you here may have heard about.. some little place in Florida that we occasionally like to venture to once in a while. This was our seventh trip in as many years&. or as my co-workers would say, Youre going there AGAIN?!.

Why yes. Yes I am.

f0107b42.jpg


My oldest son stayed home this time so as not to lose valuable school and co-op time in his last year of high school and yes, the house was still standing when we got home ;)

In a nutshell:
We stayed at the brand spanking new Art of Animation Resort in a standard Little Mermaid section room from September 28th to October 8th. We flew out on Arianas birthday :bday: celebrating her Sweet 16! We had a few old favorite ADRs mixed in with some new ones and we went to a Mickeys Not So Scary Halloween Party.

4c8f49a2.jpg




My Cast of Characters:

DSCF1542_zpsa38ce027.jpg


DH and I have been married 18 years. :love2: Im always looking for the fun and positive in things and have been known to be a little goofy. George is impatient and sarcastic and one of the most generous people I know. Ariana is our Sweet 16 princess princess:& she loves anything pink, watching movies, and dancing. She has autism and when in her favorite place on earth she is free to laugh loudly, jump up and down with excitement and break into a dance. Demetri is our vivacious seven year old :hyper:&. he loves Lightning McQueen, playing hockey and taking lots of pictures. Hed promised his brother hed take over 300 pictures to show him how much fun he was having and he accomplished that mission by day 4. :rotfl:

Hope you follow along!
:welcome:


Handy Dandy Chapter Links:

~Welcome!~ You're here!

~Arrival Day~ PART 1 and PART 2 and PART 3 and PART 4 and PART 5 and PART 6
~Demetri's Recap of Arrival Day and Disney Trivia~ HERE

~Day 1~
Toys at Play PART 1 and PART 2
I Know What We're Going to Do Today!

 
In the days leading up to this trip, I was more organized than I'd ever been. I'd already packed just about everything and I had some extra days off work. Kids were still in school, so what's a girl to do? Get her nails done of course. :thumbsup2


IMG-20120926-00199_zpscf3bdf00.jpg



I also had a pedi and had crystal Mickey heads glued on my big toes. :teeth:


Car packed and ready to go, once Ariana was home from school I took her out for her nails too.

IMG-20120927-00202_zps86fdded2.jpg



Goodbyes to Alex :worried: and we were on our way to Buffalo! We had an early flight the next morning so we were staying over that night and leaving the van in a park and fly. The hotel we chose, Sleep Inn, was VERY nice and Ariana made herself at home right away.

DSCF0043_zpsb300f25d.jpg



We had a quick dinner at a nearby restaurant and settled in for the night with a 3:00 am wakeup call for the shuttle. :crazy2:

Breakfast was included with our reservation and the next morning we indulged while awaiting the shuttle. The hotel is minutes away and soon enough we'd reached the Southwest counter. Everything was a breeze at that hour and we amused ourselves by trying to read all the other yellow ME tags that were in line ahead of us.

DSCF0047_zps1f8b9192.jpg


DSCF0048_zpsc8ab024f.jpg



The flight was nicely uneventful (and pleasant due to my Ginger Gravols taken 30 minutes prior to flight time ;) ) and soon we were on the Minnie-monorail!

DSCF0049_zpsfe1267f6.jpg


DSCF0050_zps80e4c437.jpg



I LOVE the Orlando airport :lovestruc


DSCF0052_zps1b748697.jpg


New for us this year was an interactive board the kids paused to play around with a bit.....

DSCF0053_zpsbfbe9d7a.jpg


DSCF0056_zps6325cc8e.jpg



....before making our way over to our AoA line!

DSCF0057_zps59f8a8ae.jpg


We waited mere moments before being waved to our ME bus and I was seriously doubting we'd have good seats for an arch picture based on the number of people in front of us.

DSCF0058_zps66a92d5a.jpg



Yup, back of the bus for us, separated even. Bummer. No arch picture again.


DSCF0067_zps5a62adbe.jpg


What I did get though was a quick shot out the side of the bus as we passed.

S0010062_zpsc580116f.jpg



A quick stop at Pop where most of the entire bus emptied....

DSCF0068_zps3bfe2fff.jpg



.... and then we were here!! :banana:

DSCF0069_zps24e15340.jpg



Up next..... picture tour to Part of Our World ;)


 
The lobby was amazing and though we moved straight to the counter through the online checkin line, I couldn't wait to come back and explore it more. Sadly, we never did and I only have a few pictures of this first part.

DSCF0072_zpsd9a776a1.jpg


DSCF0071_zps9bb4eaf9.jpg


DSCF0070_zps602a49c6.jpg


DSCF0075_zps2b6d2602.jpg



It was just before 10am and they were struggling to find an available room for us. The only request I'd made was for building 7 but we were tired from our early morning and George was anxious to get settled and grab a quick nap so we were willing to take whatever they offered. The computers weren't showing anything and I was half hoping they'd throw us in a suite ;) but after a quick phone call we had a room. Building 8 here we come!


DSCF0076_zps91414fea.jpg


Stepping out of the main hall and seeing the Big Blue Pool was the moment for me when the excitement really cranked up. I'd read so much about this resort before coming here - we'd actually been booked for this trip at Port Orleans French Quarter but I switched once the different sections started opening up - but pictures do not do it justice, it's amazing!

Turning left at the Big Blue Pool, we started through the Lion King section saying hello to our favorite characters along the way.

DSCF0077_zps18d23d84.jpg


Hello Mufasa!

DSCF0080_zps6517b453.jpg


Hello Simba, Pumba and Timon!

DSCF0081_zps7183201a.jpg


Hello Banzai, Shenzi and Ed!

DSCF0083_zps5ce991c0.jpg


How do you do Scar?

DSCF0084_zps24bbd63f.jpg


Top of the morning to you Zazu!

Then we'd reached the Little Mermaid section. Building 8 was the last one and our room was on the fourth floor facing the parking lot. The incredible theming continued!


DSCF0085_zpsf495a471.jpg


DSCF0086_zpsafb34163.jpg



Oh look... a dinglehopper!

DSCF0087_zpsf70a67a8.jpg



A snarfblat!

DSCF0088_zps7093726f.jpg



Demetri said the treasure chest held all of Ariel's thingamabobs.

DSCF0089_zps6afeec19.jpg



Prince Eric royally greets you at the end of the walkway.

DSCF0090_zpsc4faf78e.jpg



While Ursula with Flotsam and Jetsam and King Triton with his entourage face off on either side.

DSCF0091_zps0a64eb56.jpg


DSCF0092_zpsf09cda9d.jpg


You can see all the plantings are new and fit in so well with the area. George noticed a few sections even had crushed shells in them.


Almost there....

DSCF0094_zpscd95f91d.jpg


DSCF0095_zps0cb072bc.jpg


Hello Ariel and Flounder! We've made it!

Up to the fourth floor and here was the amazing view from our room.

DSCF0096_zpsd024ffbe.jpg




Oh wait. No, no hold on... the room numbers suddenly jumped up when we went around this corner. Backtrack! Go around the other corner....


DSCF0097_zpsc7a66fdc.jpg


Ah, there we are! This was actually our view....

DSCF0115_zps4fb35b42.jpg


Quiet and close but not too close to the elevators. :thumbsup2 I'd asked George to time the walk and he said it was around 10 minutes from the main hall right up to our room. Most mornings and evenings Demetri and I would greet each character, though Demetri was reluctant for Scar since he's such a meanie.


Up next..... The room!



 
As hard as I'd tried not to look up too many pictures or videos of the resort before the trip - I'd wanted to be surprised! - I caved :rotfl: I knew what the room was going to look like but the kids didn't and they were thrilled!


The table (complete with a bounceback offer :cool1:) had the sheet music for Under the Sea on its top and two clam chairs.

DSCF0098_zpsafebc69a.jpg


DSCF0112_zps1ad2431f.jpg



The beds were framed with clams and the lights were pearls. Flounder and Sebastian were high-finning between the two and the comforters were a cute under the sea pattern with starfish and coral trim. We took both of them off and used them as a mattress of sorts for Demetri to use. They were a bit stiff but served very well as a comfy 'bed' for him. The under the sea theme carried into the carpeting and the curtain divider that separates the vanity area.


DSCF0099_zps698ead0b.jpg


DSCF0110_zps13a71521.jpg




The unit that the TV was on had three small drawers on one side and a mini fridge with a fake front on the other. I thought I'd taken a picture of the fridge but I guess not. The drawers were VERY small so all of our shirts were hung in the closet area.

DSCF0102_zps6ae0cf3c.jpg



Over the table was a cute mirror/light and outside of the bathroom was an octopus hanger.

DSCF0103_zps8a0c5886.jpg


DSCF0104_zps7fcea113.jpg



I LOVED this picture of Eric, Max and Scuttle.

DSCF0114_zpsdb58fd44.jpg



The vanity area had a 'sand' sink and a great textured tile floor that carried into the bathroom as well. No shelf but we used baskets to keep the area tidy and the cubby hole to tuck stuff away.

DSCF0105_zps139495d5.jpg



Saving the best for last.... the shower was AMAZING! Ariel is amongst her treasures when the curtain is closed...

DSCF0106_zps5b2122df.jpg



.... and the inside is beautiful!

DSCF0107_zpsc2f2a803.jpg



Our tour of the room done, we curled up for a mid morning nap. Our plan for the balance of the day was to cab it to Walmart for some quick shopping, some swimming time and then off to Downtown Disney for dinner.

Most of that actually happened.


Coming up.... closing off arrival day.





 


Subbing! Will be back later today or this weekend to read. Way behind on the DIS...
 
I'm here!!:goodvibes I can't wait to read all about your trip.:thumbsup2 I need to go pick up the boys from school but I'll be back to catch up in a bit!!
 


great first few chapters...looking forward to your DTD pics, we were there night as well for dinner...the rain was fantastic:rolleyes1 that evening.

you got a good picture of the entire courtyard from up there.:thumbsup2

we never had a bounceback offer in our room:confused3probably for the best as we are taking off going next year, and doing more smaller trips instead.
 
Count me in! I loved your tour of the Little Mermaid room. Those look absolutely adorable and the whole resort just looks like a blast! :thumbsup2
 
I'm here!!:goodvibes I can't wait to read all about your trip.:thumbsup2 I need to go pick up the boys from school but I'll be back to catch up in a bit!!

Hey Angie! :welcome:

great first few chapters...looking forward to your DTD pics, we were there night as well for dinner...the rain was fantastic:rolleyes1 that evening.

you got a good picture of the entire courtyard from up there.:thumbsup2

we never had a bounceback offer in our room:confused3probably for the best as we are taking off going next year, and doing more smaller trips instead.

Hello! :welcome: Thanks for coming over! I remember the rain that day... yikes did you get stuck in that?

I used that gap over Ariel's head a few times for pictures :thumbsup2

The bounceback offer was free dining with an AoA suite or at WL from mid Aug to the end of Sept. Got a shock when George suggested right away booking the WL which put me in an even better than normal mood the rest of the vacation :laughing:

Count me in! I loved your tour of the Little Mermaid room. Those look absolutely adorable and the whole resort just looks like a blast! :thumbsup2

Hi! :welcome: Welcome aboard! AoA's over the top theming and detail is amazing. I'd planned three resort days for this trip and we were looking forward to some exploring time.
 
Hello! :welcome: Thanks for coming over! I remember the rain that day... yikes did you get stuck in that?
that night somewhat, the next week, we really got stuck in it at DTD
The bounceback offer was free dining with an AoA suite or at WL from mid Aug to the end of Sept. Got a shock when George suggested right away booking the WL which put me in an even better than normal mood the rest of the vacation :laughing:
smart man knows what to say to butter you up a little bit, even if he had not intention of going through with it:cool:, he still put it out there. lol
 
smart man knows what to say to butter you up a little bit, even if he had not intention of going through with it:cool:, he still put it out there. lol

You are sooooooo correct, that's exactly right.... hmmmm, sounds like you two have met.... not that you would remember each other's names or anything :lmao:
 
:wave: Hi!

I'm back and caught up!:goodvibes

Glad you had an uneventful flight! Hmm...we missed the interactive board at the airport. I wonder if it was there in July.:scratchin It looks very cool!

Sorry about the arch picture. I know how you feel though.....I'm still waiting on that great shot....maybe someday.:rolleyes1

Love your Little Mermaid room pics! The details are amazing!!:thumbsup2
 
:wave: Hi!

I'm back and caught up!:goodvibes

Glad you had an uneventful flight! Hmm...we missed the interactive board at the airport. I wonder if it was there in July.:scratchin It looks very cool!

Sorry about the arch picture. I know how you feel though.....I'm still waiting on that great shot....maybe someday.:rolleyes1

Love your Little Mermaid room pics! The details are amazing!!:thumbsup2

We didn't spend too much time at the board so I'm not sure what all it does... too antsy to get to the ME!

I actually ended up getting a pretty good arch shot later that day :rolleyes1
 
At the last minute we'd ditched our plans to get a rental car for our first day. Other trips when we had a room only ressie for arrival day, we'd gotten one so we could hit Walmart for room snackies and any souveniers we liked, but this year we opted to cab it instead. We had an ADR that night so wouldn't need to fend for ourselves for dinner either. Turned out to be a good decision, the driver was awesome and seemed to get us there and back much faster (and cheaper! :rolleyes1) than in years past, and we didn't have to worry about returning a rental.

Oh and check out the arch shot I got with my cell phone on the drive back! There's some schmutz on his windshield... but I'll take it!:thumbsup2

IMG-20120928-00203_zpsfc800f6e.jpg



The whole time we were shopping we couldn't wait to go swimming and now was our chance. George and the kids went ahead while I finished up a few last organizational things... I was about 10 minutes behind them. Grabbing my camera....

DSCF0117_zps697a63eb.jpg


.... about to join them, it started to rain. I decided to grab a few more shots from that gap over Ariel's head then take my camera back to the room before swimming.

DSCF0118_zps96acdddc.jpg


DSCF0119_zps0cd05f39.jpg


DSCF0120_zps067953cd.jpg


DSCF0121_zps5ef493a4.jpg



I really love the zoom on my new camera! :thumbsup2 Sebastian looks like he's singing in the shower.


DSCF0122_zps66c2d82c.jpg


DSCF0124_zpsdcbeab21.jpg



Then the rain worsened considerably and the life guards whistled everyone out of the pool because of lightning in the area. :headache: I hadn't even made it to the water.


Back to the room and we decided to decorate our window. I'd gotten a silver and black ghost tinsel thingie and a few cute dollar store decals, and I'd also made a few decals at home too.

DSCF0127_zpsc7bcebbf.jpg


DSCF0128_zpsc6b2dda0.jpg



The pumpkins were supposed to have glowed in the dark but they didn't really. :confused3


About when we finished up, the rain subsided too so we headed out for DTD. It was sprinkling a bit still so we skirted through one of the Lion King buildings on the way to the main hall.


DSCF0130_zps2981938f.jpg



DSCF0132_zpsc853e90f.jpg



Love the decor and there were a few other things I would have liked to check out as we zipped through, but onwards we went. The rain had stopped completely as we came out the other end of the building and it was a short wait for the bus.


Strolling through DTD we saw the new Phineas & Ferb Reality setup we were going to come back to after dinner.


DSCF0138_zps8ee4f28a.jpg


DSCF0140_zps35ba4e71.jpg



Speaking of dinner.....

DSCF0142_zpsfbf1b6b5.jpg



Yum!!! One of our favorite places for dinner, it's a must do for us.


DSCF0143_zps4a423862.jpg


DSCF0144_zpseacdb26e.jpg


DSCF0145_zps1ff15a02.jpg



Though our server was sometimes hard to find, the meal was delicious as usual. Demetri was a little more excited than usual... we'd watched Hell's Kitchen before the trip and Wolfgang Puck himself was one of the guest judges. He was hoping he'd be there. :rotfl:

George and I had the Steak Frites (10oz flat iron steak with fries, arugula and crispy onions)....

DSCF0149_zps754aa2af.jpg




Continued in next post.......





 
I didn't get a pic of it but Ariana's was a special order buttered penne pasta with no seasoning (she'd pick out each grain otherwise) and Demetri's was from the kids menu, Grilled breast of chicken with mashed potatoes and vegetables.

DSCF0148_zps135f3518.jpg



George opted to pass on dessert but it was carrot cake for me...

DSCF0153_zps02bfb3b8.jpg


....and vanilla ice cream for both of the kids with a special birthday song for Ariana. :lovestruc


DSCF0152_zps568967a1.jpg


DSCF0151_zps4b7a983a.jpg



Tummies full, we headed back over to the short line at Phineas and Ferb.

DSCF0155_zpsc8ac6e87.jpg


DSCF0157_zps262f878c.jpg



Ariana still had room for one of her favorite treats, so George took her to the Candy Cauldron while Demetri and I waited in line and decided which skit to pick.


DSCF0156_zps8e34d231.jpg



There are lots of different experiences with P&F, Agent P or Doofenshmirtz to choose from. You look at the giant screen above while it's on and at the end you pose for a picture that you later download from a website. The kids chose to rock out with guitars.


DSCF0160_zps6a2a0f45.jpg



Here's the picture I downloaded....

SEP280162_zpsaac41826.jpg



We continued on strolling towards the Lego store, Ariana with her candy apple.

DSCF0162_zps2f548b61.jpg


The Harley Davidson store was in a new spot and Demetri got to check one out.

DSCF0164_zps96bd35ed.jpg



Lego store! All the new structures were VERY awesome....


DSCF0169_zpsf3307a2c.jpg



DSCF0173_zps94c5279b.jpg


DSCF0174_zpse9b953fe.jpg


DSCF0175_zpsb1b82c1c.jpg



My personal favorite, Prince Philip and Malificent battling it out....


DSCF0178_zps21797e84.jpg



DSCF0181_zps8f5a18de.jpg



DSCF0184_zps43c7fcc4.jpg



Demetri enjoyed building cars and racing the other children that were there...

DSCF0182_zpsa00772f0.jpg





Several victories under his belt and George wanted some free chocolate.

DSCF0193_zps53a9f0ff.jpg


It was a pumpkin caramel chocolate this time that I really liked but he didn't care for.


Demetri got snagged briefly by Mr. Potato Head....

DSCF0195_zpsd4b9e4fb.jpg



.... and we finished up with a quick pic at the Christmas spot.


DSCF0199_zps05a204d5.jpg



Back home, Ariana and George walked up ahead while Demetri and I wanted some night time photos.

DSCF0202_zpsab3a4f61.jpg



Continued in next post......








 

GET A DISNEY VACATION QUOTE

Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.

Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!





Top