"Don't catch snoap flakes on your tongue!" a December 2016 PTR/June DLR TR *updated 12/13x2

[xlsm]

I can't wait either although I will be totally honest...I haven't even sat down to plan what FP's I want on which days! I am finally sitting down today to make a plan so I am not totally overwhelmed on Saturday morning

Love your Cali pics! I went back in 2008 to DL/SoCal before I had my son...it was so beautiful out there! I'd love to go back...I am a WDW girl at heart but there is something very special about DL and seeing the "original" park that Walt created

Your ADR's for your Dec trip sound great! I was going to do Skipper's Canteen as well but ultimately I didn't think anything on the menu would appeal to Jacob or my BF who are much pickier eaters than I am.

We are doing Garden Grill too but for dinner! I am excited about that one, haven't been there in years!

I am still on the fence about MVMCP...I wanted to do it with my son but it is so crazy expensive! It would be almost $200 just for the two of us and I am finding it hard to shell the money out for it on top of all the other expenses at WDW. I may give in at some point but who knows!

Um, so, if you're being honest, I have to be too...I haven't picked my FPs either! Except for knowing that I will try for Frozen Ever After first for our last Epcot day, I haven't thought about it nearly enough.

I loved Southern California so much! I'm telling the boys they need to look for colleges there, so I can visit or move there, lol!

The party ticket price was a sticking point with me too, but in the end I couldn't resist. We have a lot of Disney reward points to use for food and whatever else, so luckily that made it less of an issue.

OMG I am ashamed to be 2 days late to your PTR but at least I'm still on the first page. And you even have my boy Dean on here!! Have to run but I'll be back asap to read up! Glad you finally started this!

Alright, caught up! The boys got big Sad, isn't it? Ricky started high school this year and it's just.....I don't like it!
I really do hope you throw in some DL fun while you're writing this, even though I know you prefer WDW I'd like to see how your trip went and hear just a few thoughts!
OK your park plans/ADR's look good, I'm excited you guys are trying Sanaa because we LOVE it! And Yachtsman too. And I know I said this before but make sure when you're resort hopping to check out the decorations you don't miss the Swan & Dolphin, they were absolutely gorgeous last year

We might have to come up with some kind of custody arrangement for Dean, LOL!! We can share, right??

Ugh. The kids. I look back at pictures even just of last year and they look so much older. Xavier is as tall as I am. How did that happen?? I'll be a wreck when he starts high school.
Sanaa is something I've been wanting to do forever, but it never seemed convenient to make the trip over to AKL. I'm really glad we decided to make the effort this time.

I think you're my little Swan/Dolphin conscience on my shoulder! I told DH yesterday that we need to put them on the list.

Loved seeing your collage of pics, so fun!

Your plans sound so great, I'm excited for you!

Thank you!! I'm really looking forward to all things holiday this time around. It's going to be such a different trip than what we're used to!

Following along from the December board. I read your trip report about phoebe and loved it. Maybe I'll try to write one after our December trip. Got any tips??

Hello!! I'm glad another December friend is here! Oh, that Phoebe. She made the trip! I wonder how she's doing sometimes!!

Hmm...as for tips, one thing I recommend is taking pictures of things just to remind yourself what order you do things in. I don't take notes when we travel, but I snap pictures of random things, signs and the like, to retrace our steps when it comes time to sit and write. Then, after I do that, I often forget to take pictures of WHAT we're actually doing...I'm the worst. When we go in December, I'm going to try to be better about food pictures and keeping receipts, that's something I struggle to remember.

 

[xlsm]

Hello!!

I have about 30 minutes to spare before I have to go coach quiz bowl...12 insanely smart 6th graders with more energy than anyone ought to ever have. It's fun, but WOW, some days are completely crazy.
I thought I'd maybe try to throw in a little bit of Disneyland real quick.

Chapter Three: California Here I Come

We flew into the John Wayne airport, with a short layover in Salt Lake City, from St. Louis on June 13. It was our first time flying west, and it was so fun to see the differing landscapes. I love the mountains! I really feel like I need to make a trip to Colorado. After picking up our rental car, we drove to Newport Beach to see the ocean, and immediately fell in love.

Mountains from the air:




Newport Beach:




We stayed at the HoJo, which ended up being perfect for us since we had the rental car. The parking was free and we were always able to find a spot right near the door we used to get in and out of our building. Our room was in building two facing the pool. There was no balcony because we got a corner room...it was huge! At least compared to what we're used to with WDW hotels.




After setting in, we made our first trip down the street to visit Downtown Disney.



It was crazy to see how close the parks were to each other!! Disneyland to the right, California Adventure to the left.





Security was pretty easy with low lines most of the time. Everyone over 14 went through the scanners after bag check, and then you just carry on your merry way.

When we finally got to Downtown Disney, and wanted to look at everything, but our first priority was FOOD. We were so hungry. The kids picked Rainforest Cafe, and when we got there we had two options. Wait 40 minutes or sit in the bar area.

We sat in the bar area!



It's funny seeing this picture of X...last spring, he began myobrace treatment, which is orthodontics without traditional braces. He has had his expanders in for about 6 months or so (gets rid of them next week!), and those teeth next to his front two have already moved into place where they should be. It's crazy. I can't wait to see his smile when he's finished with everything in another 18 months or so.

After eating, we visited the lego store






and picked up our lanyards and pins that came with our package, and stopped by the bakery for a treat before heading back to the hotel.









So that was our first introduction to California and Disneyland!

I've got to run, but I'll see you real soon!!

 

[xlsm]

OOh those pictures are big...I'll fix it for next time!

 

[dnllmz]

Your ADR list sounds great. Garden Grill (breakfast) and LTT (lunch) are on my list for next trip, along with about 10 other places that I couldn't squeeze in this trip.

 

[Jasmine81]

So I just realized that you said you flew from St. Louis. That's where I'm from too! Crazy! Oh yes, receipts. I need to get better at that too. I'm normally good at food pics though. Hopefully this time will be ok. Going with my 4 yo and 10 month old

 

[xlsm]

Your ADR list sounds great. Garden Grill (breakfast) and LTT (lunch) are on my list for next trip, along with about 10 other places that I couldn't squeeze in this trip.

ADRs are always hard to narrow down! It was tough for us to give up some things we really love, in particular a Crystal Palace breakfast or a Tusker House breakfast. Both of those are back on the table for the trips with MIL and my mom.

So I just realized that you said you flew from St. Louis. That's where I'm from too! Crazy! Oh yes, receipts. I need to get better at that too. I'm normally good at food pics though. Hopefully this time will be ok. Going with my 4 yo and 10 month old

We actually live in Northwest Arkansas, but the best flights we found were out of St. Louis. It's a looooonnngg drive, but it was worth it in the end. It was the shortest, least expensive flight to the SNA airport. We did not want to fly into LAX!
My best friend from high school and several other friends live up there, though, and DH has about a gazillion family members in Creve Coeur and west county. We love it up there!

My specialty is food pictures with bites already taken out of whatever the food item is. It's a gift, what can I say?? LOL! Somebody will take a bite, and I'll panic and say "no no no! i have to get a picture!" I'm terrible!

 

[dnllmz]

I love food pictures. My dh has already said to me "You aren't going to be taking pictures of your food the whole time, are you? OMG you are? aren't you?" I'm really bad at remembering to take pictures though.

 

[missangelalexis]

Sounds like a great first day! It really is crazy how close the 2 parks are!

 

[ariane37]

Ah, a HoJo! I remember staying in lots of them all around when we'd go on vacation when I was little And that IS a huge room!
I haven't heard of myobrace treatment, unless there's another name for it. Ricky got is top braces off back in Feb. and is getting the bottoms off soon, and poor Chris is getting his on 10/27 Does your insurance cover the treatment?

I love the BaTB lego!

 

[xlsm]

I love food pictures. My dh has already said to me "You aren't going to be taking pictures of your food the whole time, are you? OMG you are? aren't you?" I'm really bad at remembering to take pictures though.

This made me laugh! He'll soon realize that Disney food is much prettier than regular plain ol' food, and definitely worth documenting!!

Sounds like a great first day! It really is crazy how close the 2 parks are!

It was surreal, the closeness! You can read about it all day, and even look at pictures, but it was still so odd seeing it in person for the first time!

Ah, a HoJo! I remember staying in lots of them all around when we'd go on vacation when I was little And that IS a huge room!
I haven't heard of myobrace treatment, unless there's another name for it. Ricky got is top braces off back in Feb. and is getting the bottoms off soon, and poor Chris is getting his on 10/27 Does your insurance cover the treatment?

I love the BaTB lego!

There's a movie that I love called Drop Dead Gorgeous, a mockumentary about a teen pageant in Minnesota...There's a part when the winner gets the letter about the next stage in the pageant and she reads from it that they'll be staying at the airport HoJo. Every time I thought about our Anaheim HoJo, all I could hear in my head was Kirsten Dunst's voice saying it in the Minnesota accent, LOL!!

I'd originally wanted to stay at the Park Vue, right across from the walkway to Disneyland, but it wasn't a good neighbor hotel. I wanted to book with Disney to get the lanyard and pins, so I picked the Howard Johnson. We were really pleased with it, the location was great for us because we went other places in SoCal, and the access to the freeway was convenient.

Myobrace...I'm not very good at explaining it, but I will try. So, regular braces use the wires and brackets to move the teeth, and then retainers to maintain. Myobrace takes a different approach. Instead of moving the teeth, myobrace treatment changes the shape of the mouth so that the teeth move into place naturally. It improves face shape and jawline, opens up the airways for improved breathing, and fixes more than just the crooked teeth. Does that make sense? X had his top expander put in, and then was given some exercises to do to strengthen his jaw and cheek muscles. One was called puffer fish, where he puffed his cheeks out as much as he could for 30 seconds a few times a day, and one called lip pops, where he...well, made a popping sound with his lips. It sounds weird I know!
Our orthodontist then added a bottom expander, and he's had it since June. He wears them all day every day, except the one time per day he takes them out to clean them, and we turn them with a key every other day to expand. Next Wednesday he is supposed to be getting rid of those and getting a new mouth piece that he will wear overnight and for an hour a day. These mouth devices will change every few months as the shape of his mouth changes.

Like I said, I know it sounds weird, but the results are incredible. Our insurance pays for it just like they would for regular braces. We decided to try it, and I'm really happy with the progress so far. The dr said there might be a need for regular braces at the end of treatment, but it would only be for two or three months, just to pull everything together. It was no more expensive than just going the traditional route, so we gave it a shot. So far so good!

And the B&tB lego thing was my FAAAAVORITE!!

 

[xlsm]

TGIF!!

Hey guys! Hope everyone's Friday is going well!!

Today has been busy. MIL is coming to visit tomorrow. We'll be working on May's Disney plan so we can get booked...ADRs for that trip will be on November 1st, so we need to get things going there. She's been calling DH complaining about flying. At dinner I got mad and said, "I don't even want to go if she's going to be like that!" That sounds callous, but here's the thing - she's not freaking out because she actually has some kind of mental issue about flying, she's freaking out for the sake of freaking out. It's just how she is. It irritates me beyond belief. Should be a fun trip.

One more kind of fun thing happened...

A couple weeks ago, I decided to try Stitch Fix. If you don't know what it is, it's kind of like an online personal shopper. You fill out a style profile with a gazillion questions, link your fashion Pinterest page or other social media, and leave specific notes to your stylist about things you like/don't like and why, and they send you a box of clothing and/or accessories in the mail as frequently or infrequently as you want. You get 5 pieces, and you can buy whatever you like and send back what you don't like in a prepaid envelope. There's a $20 styling fee per box that is rolled into the cost if you buy anything. If you don't buy anything, you lose the styling fee. If you buy all 5 items, you get 25% off the total.

My first box came today, and I was so excited! My stylist did a really good job picking things out for me, but the fit on a couple of things didn't work. I ended up buying one shirt, and sending the rest back. But after each box, you review each item you received with very specific comments. Like, I told her I loved one of the tops, it was the perfect print and color, but my chest size made the buttons pull if I moved my arms, and that I loved the dress they sent as far as style, cut, and material, but the striped pattern wasn't flattering.

So even though I only kept one thing, I'm calling it a success because I liked all of the things sent. If you have any questions, let me know and I'll try to answer

Today was also picture day at school. I hate picture day, because it's usually a major fight with X. He despises picture day. Last year, he had a major diva meltdown because I wanted him to wear a polo shirt
He likes looking nice, but he hates wearing "real" clothes. Somehow, he was happy with the button down I picked out for him. Miracle.
L on the other hand actually likes having his picture taken. They are so opposite.

I did a mini photo shoot in the kitchen...

X:



This child. I swear. You can see the progression from annoyance to annoyING, lol! He did tell me he actually smiled for the photographer, lol.

and here's L:



They look so much older than last year. It's crazy.

Anyway, that's about all that's going on here. I'll be back Sunday or Monday with another update and I'll throw in another Disneyland day!

 

[missangelalexis]

I hope you are able to work everything out for your May trip!

Wow, your boys are getting so big!!

 

[PolDisneyfam]

Following along! I was so excited to see that you have a new trip report. I quietly followed along on your previous ones. Your trip report inspired a mini trip for us to Universal last year. Worked out great and we had the express pass by staying onsite. We double booked because we had a locked in room at Disney, but it was worth it.

Also going in December, but earlier. We have also never been in December so looking forward to the Christmas Party.

 

[xlsm]

Hello again!!

Another busy day for me, but I've got a little bit of time to visit with all of you

MIL came to visit this past weekend, and we made a *few* plans for May. I know at least I'M going for the full week. She is still deciding if she is flying alone, flying with me, or driving down with her boyfriend (it feels weird calling him that, they've been together as long as DH and I, but they aren't married...they might as well be.) We're staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge. We will be doing a Beauty and the Beast-centric trip, and right now the only ADRs I'll be making will be BOG dinner, Akershus breakfast, and probably a Garden Grill dinner. Otherwise we'll just pick our restaurants while we're there.

Chapter Four: Hurry up and Wait

As for DECEMBER, which is the reason you're all here, we are 73 days away from our holiday extravaganza!!

I've even finally got a plan in place for our fast passes! Here's a little rundown:

Day one: arrival day, none

Day two:
AK morning, DHS evening
I am still hoping for the Star Wars Dessert Party on this night. This is the park we'll make FPs for, and I'm planning on:
Tower of Terror
Toy Story
Star Tours

Since we do not have a dinner reservation this night, I'm still trying to figure out times with this one. I will probably do Toy Story first, then Star Tours. Since hours are only given as 9am - 7pm for this date right now, with only one Fantasmic scheduled and the fireworks not on the schedule yet, I'm not set on times. I do know I want to do Tower after fireworks and before the second Fantasmic (which I'm sure will be added to the schedule at some point...it's the Saturday before Christmas.)

Day three:
No FPs this day, it's our party night. We plan to get to MK in time to get to our 4:40 dinner at Skipper's, and then go get in character lines.

Day four:
MK morning, no FPs
AK evening, FPs for :
safari
everest
and ROL if it's there, OR dinosaur

Day five:
Epcot

Boo. Epcot is hard this year.
This is the day I have set aside for our Frozen Ever After FP. I hope my kids don't kill me when they find out I'm not making any FPs for Test Track this year! We're going to brave standby lines here.

We'll pick:
FEA
Spaceship Earth
and...?? I don't know, maybe character spot

Day six:
MK morning, Epcot evening for our Candlelight Processional

We'll do FPs at MK on this day:
Seven Dwarfs
Splash (will change if it's cold!)
Big Thunder

Day seven:
Departure day

Our flight leaves at 1:30, so we'll be on the Magical Express too early to do much of anything.

I wonder how many times I'll change my mind between now and FP day???

My next update will be a Disneyland post, our first park day. When my pictures transferred to photobucket they got all out of order. There's a chance I'll get it up tonight, but it might not be until Friday.

Have a happy Tuesday!!

 

[xlsm]

Following along! I was so excited to see that you have a new trip report. I quietly followed along on your previous ones. Your trip report inspired a mini trip for us to Universal last year. Worked out great and we had the express pass by staying onsite. We double booked because we had a locked in room at Disney, but it was worth it.

Also going in December, but earlier. We have also never been in December so looking forward to the Christmas Party.

Hiiii!!! I'm glad you're here!

I'm also glad you had a great mini-trip to Universal! It's such a whirlwind, but we were so glad we did the book-a-room-to-get-the-passes-and-early-entry thing, too. I'd do it again in the future.

Are you on our December trip thread? It's HERE if you want to join in!!

 

[ariane37]

Glad you and your MIL got some plans going! The idea of being there by yourself for a few days if she doesn't stay all week sounds.......nice And YAY for AKL! That's new for you if I"m remembering correctly, right? You've only stayed at WL? Steve and I LOVED AKL in January, in fact it's tied now with WL for my favorite resort Might change after we try BCV next month, but we'll see!

BTW I forgot to comment on your post with the "kitchen photo session" last Friday and I know I've said it before,but I can't believe how big your boys have gotten-especially X! He looks SO OLD lol!! Ricky went to his first Homecoming dance last weekend and I cried

 

[xlsm]

Glad you and your MIL got some plans going! The idea of being there by yourself for a few days if she doesn't stay all week sounds.......nice And YAY for AKL! That's new for you if I"m remembering correctly, right? You've only stayed at WL? Steve and I LOVED AKL in January, in fact it's tied now with WL for my favorite resort Might change after we try BCV next month, but we'll see!

BTW I forgot to comment on your post with the "kitchen photo session" last Friday and I know I've said it before,but I can't believe how big your boys have gotten-especially X! He looks SO OLD lol!! Ricky went to his first Homecoming dance last weekend and I cried

Yes...in fact...I just booked about an hour ago! I got a pin code in my email today, and I got 30% off a savanna view for our dates. You are right, it will be my first time staying there...I have only ever stayed at WL, and I miss it so much, but am excited to try new things. Next October with my mom will be at the Poly...I don't know when I'll get back to my beloved lodge!

Homecoming?? But that's for BIG kids!! Ugh! I am not ready for that at all, I would have been crying too. High school Nope, nope, nope.
Xavier's voice has really changed, and he's as tall as me...and he's just 13. I'm holding tight to L and his 11 year old 5'2" self!

 

[missangelalexis]

Your plans sound great! It really stinks that Frozen Ever After, TT, and Soarin are all in the same FP tier!

 

[xlsm]

Your plans sound great! It really stinks that Frozen Ever After, TT, and Soarin are all in the same FP tier!

It is frustrating! We don't mind so much about Soarin' because we think it's just ok , although I do like the new version. We were in DLR when it premiered, so we feel like, Ok, we've done that, and it isn't as much of a priority. We have an early Garden Grill reservation one morning, and we'll hop in line for Soarin' after that.
Test Track just throws a huge wrench in the plans. I don't mind missing it, but the boys love it. I like designing the car more than the actual ride, LOL!! Probably because I either forget to put on my sunglasses before it goes outside, and I get blinded by the sun most of the time!

 

[xlsm]

It's Thursday, guys!! Thursday means that tomorrow is Friday, and then the glorious weekend shall be upon us!!

That was my lame attempt to make Thursday seem cool. I'm trying anything to make the weekend seem closer!!

First things first...for any of you who are in the path of Hurricane Matthew, my thoughts are with you. Stay safe! I can't imagine the emotional turmoil that residents of coastal hurricane-prone areas must go through.

I have a free hour right now, so I thought I'd add in a Disneyland post...our first day in the original park!


Chapter Five Part One: Gotta get to Disneyland, on a western breeze

Our first park day was a Tuesday. Because we had 5 day hoppers, we had access to one Magic Morning. It's the Extra Magic Hours benefit for offsite guests with 3 day+ tickets. You get one during your stay, typically on a Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday.
We chose to do the Tuesday since it was our first day and we wanted to get the most out of our day.

We got up and around pretty early...this is where our difference in time really came in handy. Getting up early in California was easy since we are CST back home!

After getting up and around, we headed down Harbor, ready to hit the park!




It was cool and overcast this morning, and we were regretting not bringing our hoodies with us! Well, at least X and I were. We're the ones who are always cold!

We got there about 20 or 30 minutes before the 7am park opening, if I recall. The line wasn't too bad, maybe 10 or so people deep across all turnstiles. I ran up and snuck a picture through the fence:



I assume those lucky peeps were getting ready for a tour?? I had originally made an early dining reservation for breakfast at Plaza Inn for this day, but then I realized I'd be wasting our Magic Morning hour. None of that early ADR business on the west coast! So, I adjusted our time and made a reservation for 9:10 instead.

**disclaimer: My pictures are not all that great**


Once the turnstiles opened, I realized we were going to be that annoying first-day-using-tickets family that everyone had to wait for. They scan your ticket and take your photo, which takes a little extra time. Thankfully no one grumbled loud enough for us to hear, or threw anything at our heads.

Reason for the disclaimer above, my first sight as we passed through the gates:



Nice trash can, eh??

But I had to document our very first park moment, good photo or not!

All of my WDW vets...steel yourself. Are you ready to see the view down Main Street at Disneyland?? With Sleeping Beauty Castle shining in the distance?? The original castle, WALT'S castle? Here goes!!



Not quite the same visual impact as Cinderella's Castle, is it?? You might think this made me sad, but it did NOT. I had been told so many times before taking this trip that I would be really disappointed by SB castle, but guys...seriously...it is such a beautiful castle. No, there is not the dramatic view down the street, but it has its own special kind of magic. And it is stunning. That soft pink just glows, and the decorations for the 60th added a sparkle that you could not stop staring at. I'm a fan!!

If you're looking for a gigantic icon, look to the right toward Tomorrowland and check out the Matterhorn:



We didn't take a ton of time here to take in our surroundings, really, because we knew we had limited time this morning. Our first ride was one that had been hyped (foreshadowing) up so much on the DIS, and because of that I really talked it up to my family and got them all really excited. I'm talking about Hyperspace Mountain.



OMG, it was like the running of the bulls for this ride. People were pushing and shoving and full on sprinting to get in line. Um, no. I do not have the patience for that, folks. We walked like normal people. Unfortunately, pushing and shoving gave them the advantage, because we probably waited 20 minutes to get on this ride.

And then we didn't like it.

Everyone said it was soooo much better than the MK version in Florida, but we did not feel that way at all. The Star Wars music that is played during the ride was so loud you almost couldn't hear it. Does that make sense? It was just blaring in our ears at top volume and was really distracting. It took us out of the experience rather than adding to it. Also, the ride felt like it started SO SLOW. It was creeping along and chugging up the hill...I was so confused. When we got off, all I could think was, "That was IT??"
It didn't start things off the way I wanted it to. But we were left with this gem (gag! ):



L was smiling, so at least it wasn't all bad!

Our next stop was the Matterhorn! I could not WAIT to ride this for one major reason - I was a superfan of the Babysitters Club books when I was younger. Dawn was my favorite, and she mentioned the Matterhorn in one of the books. Ever since then, I've wanted to go on it! I also remember thinking it looked really cool on the episode of Blossom where they went to Disneyland. Good reasons, don't you think??



Xavier was not so sure about this!




The line for this was long, too. It was another 20 minute wait. I'm not used to waits like that first thing in the morning!

By the time we got off the mountain and away from the Yeti, the park was open for everyone. Yep, only TWO RIDES in the first hour.
How would the rest of the day go??

We wanted to get in a couple of other things before our breakfast reservation, so we started across the park toward Adventureland. Luckily, crossing the park here does not take very long at all - it's quite compact.

We cruised through the edge of Fantasyland



Disney ducks do not discriminate...they are bicoastal!

We paused in front of the castle for some photopass pictures. Photopass at Disneyland during our trip was a one-day-at-a-time thing. They discontinued the multi-day pass, but then brought it back after we got home. Of course they did, lol! We bought it for this day and for the next day at California Adventure.

In this one, I was supposed to be a princess, and the guys my strong protectors. Not exactly in line with my personal views, but when in Disneyland, if the man with the camera tells you to pose, you pose. Unless you're X, who thought the whole thing was nonsense, and who might need to start working out:






The castle is just so prettttyyyyyyy!!!!!




After our photo shoot we headed toward Adventureland



The goal was to get FPs for Indiana Jones and ride Pirates before going BACK to Plaza Inn, which is just off Main Street near the castle on Tomorrowland side.

Indy FPs were a fail. Well, I GOT the passes, but the time on them were not the return time that was listed on the sign out front. The times we pulled conflicted with our breakfast. I guess the machine I used hadn't caught up yet?? Either way, i was really annoyed.

Thankfully, Pirates of the Caribbean was a short wait, maybe 7 minutes.



You've probably heard that PotC is a lot different at Disneyland than it is at the Magic Kingdom. It definitely is! I enjoyed the longer ride here, so much fun stuff to see. It feels very authentic old school classic Disney dark ride, which I love. I didn't like it more than WDW's version, but I didn't like it any less. Pirates of the Caribbean is one of my top 5 rides ever, and it was closed for refurb during my last WDW trip, so I was thrilled to be surrounded by those filthy scoundrels once again!

We had about 20 minutes to kill before our meal, so we started walking back toward the hub and the Plaza Inn. We stopped for more photopass pictures (and this CM was the best one we encountered during the entire trip!)






The line for AstroOrbiter is right next to Plaza Inn, and the time was posted at 10 minutes...X said he wanted to ride, so we decided to risk it, because we had 15 minutes until our reservation (see how fast we got around?? small park!)

But first, we took a family selfie:



The wait was every bit of the 10 minute posted time. We were behind a woman who had brought her granddaughter. They were from Arizona, visiting their local daughter (the little girl's aunt), and decided to take a few days at Disneyland. They were very nice, and it made the time pass. I rode with X and DH rode with L. We got loaded into our rocket and X began questioning his decision:



But we had a nice view!



After we finished cruising the skies, it was time to eat breakfast and hang out with a few friends!

Part two of this update coming later tonight or tomorrow!