Disney Dining,DIS Meets,and WAIT-Why is that lady holding..... FINAL THOUGHTS 11/27

[MHTeacher]

For dinner, Kevin and Rachel both ordered the teriyaki New York strip, and I ordered the ginger-crusted rib-eye. Elizabeth ordered the shrimp and scallops, but she substituted all shrimp instead of scallops. The shrimp were HUGE---In typical Rachel fashion, she had to try some of everyone’s food, so here she is trying one of Elizabeth’s shrimp!

I wish I had taken a picture of our steaks, but it was so good, we just started eating! Kevin and I both agreed that this steak beat the steak we had at Yachtsman earlier in the week, hands down! The flavor was wonderful, and they were cooked just perfectly! YUMMY!

As we were finishing our meal, we were brought out a special anniversary dessert---

I thought it was very cute and sweet. We snacked on that, and decided what we wanted to order from the dessert menu. I chose the coconut cream Kiki tart-

Kevin (my ice cream loving husband) and Rachel both chose the Kona cone.

Elizabeth decided on the white chocolate cheesecake.

After finishing our yummy meal at Kona, I had thought we might go over to Magic Kingdom and watch Wishes for one last time. But, there was an uprising against me------I was outvoted by the girls who wanted to go to Downtown Disney.

Since our van was at Poly, we decided to drive over. Once reaching DTD, I was reminded why this was not such a good plan! The parking lot was CRAZY---I didn’t think we were ever going to find a spot, but finally we did. We got out and headed to World of Disney. Once again I realized why this was not a good plan---Friday night at WoD!!! The crazier it got, the more I wished I‘d just gone to MK and watched Wishes!

After finally making decisions, we made our purchases, and got out of there! As we were leaving I reminded everyone that the next time they should go with my plan!

We returned to Beach Club, where we began to pack up as much as possible. Kevin and I loaded nearly everything except our clothes for the next day, and toiletries. We were leaving out by 6:30 the next morning.

It wasn’t my idea of how to spend a last, perfect, evening at Disney, but I guess everyone was happy, and that’s what matters. It was the end of our week at Disney. As I fell asleep, I was sad, but already dreaming of where I’d stay the next time I come to Disney!

UP NEXT---FINAL THOUGHTS

 

[KatMark]

Hi, Michelle...we've missed you, but we do understand.

Love your last day except for the "going to Downtown Disney on a Friday night" and having to deal with the crowds. So glald you and Kevin got to go and hear Voices of Liberty one last time. Those shrimp at Kona look great.

Will look foward to your final thoughts.

 

[klacey1]

What a lovely last night! Yet again, mom knows best as far as plans go! Can't imagine how crazy DTD was!

 

[MickeyisBeast]

The food looks delicious! Sounds like a fun last night, too bad about DtD, that place is always packed on the weekends.

 

[pinkxray]

Wow, Kona looks good. I'm having a tough time trying to decide between Kona which we have never tried and Ohana which we have tried.

Sorry about DTD. We made the mistake of heading over there on a Thursday night and it was packed. Friday must have been even worse.

I can't understand not wanting to be on the boards too much not having a trip in the works. I think after our next trip in May I will have a hard time getting through my trip report knowing I won't have another trip any time soon.

The shrimp is so big. I always see pictures of the scallops and shrimp at Kona and wonder how they could charge so much for it. Now I know. I had never seen them next to anything to see how big they actually are. Yum.

 

[MHTeacher]

Hi, Michelle...we've missed you, but we do understand.

Love your last day except for the "going to Downtown Disney on a Friday night" and having to deal with the crowds. So glald you and Kevin got to go and hear Voices of Liberty one last time. Those shrimp at Kona look great.

Will look foward to your final thoughts.

Thanks, Kathy! I miss hearing about all of y'alls trips, but I guess I'm in some sort of post-Disney funk.

The shrimp looked and tasted great!

 

[MHTeacher]

What a lovely last night! Yet again, mom knows best as far as plans go! Can't imagine how crazy DTD was!

Would you please send my kids a facebook message and tell them that! :laughing:

The food looks delicious! Sounds like a fun last night, too bad about DtD, that place is always packed on the weekends.

It was delicious, Sara---Probably our favorite meal of the trip!

 

[MHTeacher]

Wow, Kona looks good. I'm having a tough time trying to decide between Kona which we have never tried and Ohana which we have tried.

Sorry about DTD. We made the mistake of heading over there on a Thursday night and it was packed. Friday must have been even worse.

I can't understand not wanting to be on the boards too much not having a trip in the works. I think after our next trip in May I will have a hard time getting through my trip report knowing I won't have another trip any time soon.

The shrimp is so big. I always see pictures of the scallops and shrimp at Kona and wonder how they could charge so much for it. Now I know. I had never seen them next to anything to see how big they actually are. Yum.

Having eaten at both, I would definitely say go for Kona---and eat a steak! DELISH!

Thursday night, Friday night.........I'm wondering when DTD is not packed. If someone knows, please tell me. I'd love to shop when it's not elbow to elbow people!

 

[Charleston Princess]

You must have been booking it to Voices of Liberty if Kevin didn't even stop to ogle the belly dancer!

That coconut cream tart looks divine!!!

Sorry that WoD was such a madhouse!

I know what you mean about being sad when there is no definite trip on the horizon.

 

[SOUTHERNtinkerBELLE]

I've missed seeing you here, Michelle! I completely understand your Disney depression - I'd say the cure is to start planning another trip.

I'm so glad you got to try the Napoleon! And dinner at Kona looks and sounds so yummy.

 

[MeMom]

Thursday night, Friday night.........I'm wondering when DTD is not packed. If someone knows, please tell me. I'd love to shop when it's not elbow to elbow people!

First thing in the morning - while most people are either crashing the gates of a park, eating breakfast, or snoozing away. World of Disney in the morning can actually be enjoyable. The only drawback is forfeiting prime park time, but it could be worth it to give up one morning for some quality, uncrowded shopping.

 

[MHTeacher]

You must have been booking it to Voices of Liberty if Kevin didn't even stop to ogle the belly dancer!

That coconut cream tart looks divine!!!

Sorry that WoD was such a madhouse!

I know what you mean about being sad when there is no definite trip on the horizon.

Oh, Jackie---We were definitely moving pretty quickly!

The coconut cream dessert was delicious. It wasn't heavy on the coconut, so if you aren't crazy about the stuff, you could still enjoy it.

It is definitely sad when then there's no trip in the near future. What about you? Any plans for next year?

 

[MHTeacher]

I've missed seeing you here, Michelle! I completely understand your Disney depression - I'd say the cure is to start planning another trip.

I'm so glad you got to try the Napoleon! And dinner at Kona looks and sounds so yummy.

That sounds like the perfect cure, Courtney! If only my Grumpy husband would say that's ok!

The Napoleon was perfect! I must thank you for showing me the wonders of this little tasty treat!

 

[MHTeacher]

First thing in the morning - while most people are either crashing the gates of a park, eating breakfast, or snoozing away. World of Disney in the morning can actually be enjoyable. The only drawback is forfeiting prime park time, but it could be worth it to give up one morning for some quality, uncrowded shopping.

That's something to put into the Disney folder in my brain! I think I would really enjoy shopping at WoD if it wasn't such a zoo!

 

[ladybugmom]

It was soo much fun running into ya'll again that day! Here is the pic I took of you and Kevin taking your phone call!!

The Voices of Liberty were incredible as always!! Glad that Kona ended up being so yummy!!

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family, Michelle!!

 

[MHTeacher]

It was soo much fun running into ya'll again that day!

The Voices of Liberty were incredible as always!! Glad that Kona ended up being so yummy!!

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family, Michelle!!

I was so glad to get to meet you and your family, Becky. I enjoyed running into you again on that Friday.

Voices of Liberty- I saw on FB where you are at Disney, so you will be listening to them again. They'll be dressed as Dickens carolers and singing Christmas songs. I love it!

Hope your family had a wonderful Thanksgiving, Becky!

 

[MHTeacher]

Having finally finished up this trip report, I want to wrap up with some final thoughts on this trip. Before I do that I want to say “Thank you” to all of you who have stuck through the past six months to read about my family’s trip to Disney! I appreciate all of you and have enjoyed ‘talking’ to you throughout this report!

So, without further wait-----Here are my final thoughts on this May, 2010 trip.


1. I could do Disney every month!

Between May, 2009 and May, 2010, we made four visits to Disney World. Some people would argue that there’s nothing new to see, or wonder if we don’t get bored doing the same thing. But I would have to say, that it never gets old. There were actually things we did during this trip, which we haven’t done in probably four or five years. So, for me, Disney never gets old!

2. The Hoop-de-doo gets a big WHOOP from us!

In ten visits, we had never gone to the HDDR, so I decided that we would finally see what all the fuss was about. WE LOVED IT! Yes, it was corny, and the food was average, but it was such a nice break from the parks. I enjoyed sitting for several hours and watching my kids laugh out loud at all the corny jokes. I understand why it's the longest running show at Disney. It's something we will definitely do again!


3. I miss the Poly!

The last time we stayed at the Poly was during our May, 2009 trip. On the subsequent trips, we stayed at Yacht Club, Port Orleans Riverside, and Beach Club. I realized that with five people in our family, we just need and appreciate the size of the rooms at the Poly. Although it is a beautiful resort, a week in one of Beach Club’s rooms gets to be a little tight for this family of five.

4. May is HOT!

I know, I know…….Disney’s in Florida….It’s hot. But, I also know that there are cooler times. By the third or fourth week of May, it may be just a little too warm for me. We’ve visited Disney during March, May, June, July, September, November, and December. I think I may be ready to visit again during the “cooler” times of the year!

5. Stick to the plan!

My plan for the last evening was to go to Magic Kingdom and watch Wishes for our last night. Stroll up Main Street slowly, taking each thing in, as we would exit the park. BUT, no----that’s not how it went down. My girls insisted on going to DTD-on a Friday night at that. I’ve never been so stressed or crowded in my life! So, the next time, we visit DTD early in the morning, and spend the last night the way I envision it being spent!

6. DIS meets rock!

After finding this board and meeting so many nice folks through trip reports, I was so excited to take part in my first real DIS meet. My husband and kids kept asking me beforehand about what I’d do if I met all these people and they were just weird! I have to say that I never worried about it. In fact, I just anticipated that they would be great folks----AND, THEY WERE! Everyone I met was just like they are here on the boards, friendly and down-to-earth! I loved meeting everyone in person.

7. Eat your way through the DDP!

Before this trip, we’d only experienced the DDP once-during Free Dining several years ago. During other trips, we would just make several reservations and pay for those meals. As the kids have gotten older, it got harder and harder to manage this. We would ask them to try to share at some of the table service restaurants, but inevitably, they wouldn’t agree about what to eat. The DDP allowed me to be able to say to each of them, “Just choose what you want to eat,” and not worry about the price of what they ordered, or even if they ate only half of the meal. I am now a DDP convert----I will not make another trip to Disney without the DDP!



Well, that’s about it. Now, maybe without this hanging over my head, I can actually get over to read everyone else’s pre-trip and trip reports! I will leave you with a couple of my favorite pictures from the trip!

Enjoy-and may all your wishes be magical ones!

 

[racefanof88]

I have to say your wrap up left me with tears in my eyes. It is always so sad to have a Disney trip come to an end; even with a new one in the works.

It was so wonderful to meet your family and spend time with ya'll. Dallas thinks Reid rocks and that we should all meet up again .

I have to agree with your "May is hot" comment. We have been in May four times and I'm ready for cooler months again too.

 

[999ghostslover]

Your final thoughts made me get teary! And I know what you mean when I am done with a trip it is hard for me to come on here and get excited for everyone else. Especially since lately it has been two years between trips. I'm so glad you guys had such a wonderful time. Can't wait to hear when you will be back.

 

[Charleston Princess]

Great pictures to wrap up your report, Michelle!!! I agree 100% with your number one -- I have no doubt I could do Disney every month, too! Thank you for sharing your trip with us! I hope you are able to take another one soon!