Faith, trust & a whole lotta pixie dust :: Aug/Sept 2015 TR (UPDATED 07/03/16)

[Wills Mom]

Day Three: Magic Kingdom? Why not!!

Firstly today seriously lacks photos but its one of the only days we didn't take any - I promise!

So today was supposed to be a lazy day, according to my plans. My SIL and her son had plans to do Universal Studios so we bundled into the car and drove them. But the GPS messed up and sent us a little wrong, which made us late dropping them off.

We went back to the villa, stopping at a Walgreens along the way to buy arm bands for the boys. They spent the morning splashing in the pool til it got too hot so we all went for a nap for TWO HOURS!!

We grabbed a quick lunch and then into the car to go collect SIL and her son. It was about 3.20pm by the time we got to them due to traffic.

An executive decision was made on the way home just as we were coming up to the WDW exits. SIL says to DH: "Fancy going to MK?" and surprisingly he laughed and said why not! Yay!!

We arrived just after 4pm and I had been able to snag us BTMRR FP+ while in the car for 4.30pm however just as we were walking in that direction we got an alert telling us the FP+ was an invalid choice and it gave us a list of others to choose from. Bummer!

We decided to eat instead of riding anything so Cosmic Rays was the QS of choice this time. I had a cheeseburger with a pile of toppings on it (love that toppings bar!) James had the cheeseburger too and the boys shared a kids portion of chicen nuggets.

After eating we did some people watching and browsed some of the souvenirs. I bought a pair of WDW sunglasses. I do this on every trip!

We eventually ended up outside Philharmagic! so we got in the queue. A show had just started so we had about a 10 minute wait to get into the theatre.

Apprehensive that the boys might freak out James and I were ready to make a dash for the exit if we needed to - but surprisingly both of them LOVED it! They were trying to catch everything in their hands and both of them jumped so bad when Simba says "I'm working on my ROAR!"

Straight over to Its A Small World after Philharmagic! which was a walk on. Of course we were all singing along throughout - except my nephew who absolutely hates this ride



When we exited though we saw it was absolutely bucketing down! I ran to get the stroller and was upset to find not only was it moved (so I was dashing around in the pouring rain trying to spot our City Mini in a sea of City Minis!) but the hoods had been pushed all the way back so the seats were not covered at all! It was absolutely saturated!

So that put an end to our evening at MK! We put on our ponchos, which we had only bought the previous day, and made our way to the monorail as quickly as we could.

We had a quiet evening back at the villa, the rain was down for the night so there was no pool this evening but the kids were happy enough to play together inside.

Next: Washed out of Animal Kingdom!​

 

[Wills Mom]

Day Four: Washed Out of Animal Kingdom!!

We were up at 8am this morning. Showered, fed, dressed and out the door before 9am! We got to Animal Kingdom within 5 minutes!!



We were at Kilimanjaro Safari for our FP+ at 9.45am and managed to see quite a few animals still out before the real heat of the day set in! I didn't take too many Safari photos as I always tend to do that. This time I snapped a handful but was mostly just enjoying the moment



After the Safari we made our way towards Kali River Rapids for our next FP+ selection but decided on the way to stop for a PP photo at the back side of the Tree of Life!



We walked straight on to KRR with our FP+ and even managed to stay pretty dry!



Once we were off Kali it was almost time for our FP+ at the Adventurers Outpost so we waited around just outside and were allowed into the FP+ queue about 10 minutes early. The wait even with FP+ ended up being about 15-20 minutes but the boys were great and entertained themselves.



The M&G that followed was easily our favourite to that point! The interaction was excellent!! We got some great pics that I love from this meet




But our delight was short lived We walked outside and it was raining - I mean rivers in the place of paths! We sheltered under some trees opposite Adventurers Outpost.

There was zero sign of it letting up so we slowly made our way towards Dinoland USA. SIL and her DS wanted to do Dinosaur so we sheltered in Restaurantosaurus for about 20 minutes. The place was packed!



Jamie fell asleep in the stroller on the way over to Dinoland so we decided to get Will a hamburger while we were there. It came in a bucket and spade which he thought was so cool.

Once SIL got back we left the park. The rain was torrential and we were getting cold from being so wet.

We went back to the villa, got changed and decided to try the Outback Steakhouse down the street for our lunch. We shared the Bloomin' Onion to start. I had a 6oz sirloin steak as mains, as did James. The boys shared a nugget meal which Jamie mostly ate as Will had ate in AK. We all got dessert too, mine was a salted caramel cookie and ice cream. It was delicious!!



The bill was $80 inc tip for the 6 of us. We didn't tip our usual 15-20% as we felt the service was incredibly poor. She got our order wrong, left us waiting AGES between courses and never once gave us a refill - we had to ask her colleague for any thing extra we wanted/needed as our server was no where to be seen. Needless to say we didn't choose to go back there again.

We ended up going to the Vineland Outlets after lunch. We bought Sketchers which were buy one get one half price. We let the boys explore the Disney Store but strangely enough they didn't buy anything

We had a late tea after getting back to the villa before getting clothes and bags sorted for tomorrow - which was going to be a busy day!

Next: Fun at the Studios!​

 

[Wills Mom]

Day Five Part One: Fun in the Studios!

We were up at our usual time of about 8am so once we were fed and changed we were out the door and at Hollywood Studios just after 9am.



We needed to have a word with Guest Relations about our MM package as I had linked my SIL on MDE but the pictures were not visible for both of us. Everything ended up being fine but I was glad we checked just for peace of mind.

We hit Tower of Terror first. I had gotten FP+ for all of us and gave Will the option of waiting with me and Jamie but he wanted to ride. He did remarkably well according to James but he did say afterward that he didn't want to ride again

You can just about make them out in the back row on the left



I then did Rider Swap so James stayed with the kids and I rode with SIL and her DS! Front row, of course! My nephew really didn't want to do the front row but we were mean and made him



SIL and her DS queued for RnRC afterwards as it was showing a wait time of 30 minutes and I knew she hadn't gotten a FP+ for it so it was the best opportunity they would have.

We organised to meet in Pixar Place before our first ever ride on TSMM! Every other previous visit all the legacy FP were gone by the time we got to the ride but because we got to do FP+ this time we actually got to ride

When we got to Pixar Place we saw the queue to meet Buzz and Woody. It was about 30 minutes long, and that was how long we had to kill until our FP+ time.

The boys were great in the queue bless them. The props kept them more than happy!



The queue ended up being a little longer but the interaction more than made up for the wait!! At one stage Woody grabbed our autograph book off of Buzz and threw it across the room, nearly hitting a CM in the head! He had the whole place in the stitches laughing!





And here you can see Woody is just about to launch the autograph book



Afterwards we went onto TSMM and after about 10 minutes we were playing. James beat me by about 3000 on the bonus round

Next: A Fantastmic Evening!​

 

[Wills Mom]

Day Five Part Two - Hollywood Studios: A Fantasmic Evening!

After our ride on TSMM we had an ADR for the Fantasmic Dining Package at Hollywood & Vine so we went over to check in. We were seated within about 5 minutes and I have to say the buffet was just lovely.

I particularly enjoyed the cornbread, BBQ Citrus Chicken and the Lobster Mac & Cheese. The characters seemed to be quite hurried though and not very interactive. Paired with the fact that Jamie did not like these characters at all I felt it was a little bit of a waste when paying $254 OOP for 4 adults and 1 child (nephew was 11 so a Disney "adult" and Jamie was under 2 so ate free). If we were on the Dining Plan it would be a great bargain.




We missed Handy Manny and he never came back around. It didn't matter as Will didn't even know who he was anyway.

The boys really enjoyed themselves here, getting involved with the dancing and Will enjoyed helping himself to what food HE liked. I'm on the fence about this place. If we were on DDP I'd definitely do it again but not OOP.

After H&V we had a Star Tours FP+. James waited with a sleeping Jamie while I rode with Will, who absolutely loved it. He ran into the store at the end of the ride and picked out a blue lightsaber as a souvenir. When Jamie woke he chose a green one for himself and my nephew got a purple one as Mace Windu is his favourite character.



We made our way home after they were all shopped out. We had planned on getting in to see Voyage of the Little Mermaid but we just barely missed the show and we didn't fancy waiting around for the next.

We had a swim in the pool then washed up, had a bit of a rest and later made our way back to Hollywood Studios for that nights showing of Fantasmic! We were apprehensive about how the kids would take it but we needn't have been.

We were seated with a couple of minutes to spare when James decided he wanted to get some snacks so he and our nephew braved the crowd while SIL and I kept the boys and our seats safe. They made it back eventually but the lights had been switched off so they found it hard to find us and not trip over anyone.




We slowly made our way back to the stroller parking afterwards and braved our way out into the crowds gathered for the Frozen fireworks. It was NOT easy navigating a double buggy with some people walking against the grain making it even harder. We stopped close to the park exit where there was actually space made for us by a lovely young family so we got to watch the fireworks after all!



And then it started to snow!!! We were all just in awe but didn't hang around too long after that, we wanted to get a head start on the crowds exiting the park!



We got home within 15 minutes of park closing and we were all bundled up in bed within the hour!

Next: Day Six - Shopping and an Expedition!​

 

[Mrs Doubtfire]

A busy couple of days. We had a day in July when torrential rain at AK saw us all looking like drowned rats!! It seems like you are packing plenty in and the drive to and from the parks for a break isn't too bad. We were at CSR and then Windsor Hills which I think isn't far from where you were?

 

[Wills Mom]

A busy couple of days. We had a day in July when torrential rain at AK saw us all looking like drowned rats!! It seems like you are packing plenty in and the drive to and from the parks for a break isn't too bad. We were at CSR and then Windsor Hills which I think isn't far from where you were?

Its not great when it rains in any park but I felt AK was the hardest as there seemed to be only a handful of attractions available to us that provided shelter. But saying that its the nicest park in the extreme heat as theres quiet a bit of shade!

The vicinity of the villa was great! Indian Creek is literally around the corner from WH! We had stayed in a property out on Hwy 27 on our first trip with Will - MASSIVE mistake! It was just too far to make breaks worthwhile and we were forever getting caught in traffic!! I think our stay at the Contemporary has ruined me for off site

 

[mdsouth]

All caught up! It looks like you had a great trip despite all the heat and rain! The heat can be unbearable. Your TR reminds me of my own for my daughter's first trip when she was 2 and a half. It was in late May and the heat was CRAZY HOT! Like you, we tried to hit the parks early and then leave before she was cranky

I love the photo of the boys in Pixar Place with the little green aliens. They are both just so happy in it.

 

[DisneyJo]

Loving your report, your boys are adorable

 

[Wills Mom]

All caught up! It looks like you had a great trip despite all the heat and rain! The heat can be unbearable. Your TR reminds me of my own for my daughter's first trip when she was 2 and a half. It was in late May and the heat was CRAZY HOT! Like you, we tried to hit the parks early and then leave before she was cranky

I love the photo of the boys in Pixar Place with the little green aliens. They are both just so happy in it.

Thanks for following along I really didn't mind the heat but the torrential rain, especially on our last day in particular when we had a very hard to get M&G FP+ but were literally cornered in by the rain, was just plain annoying I can't think of a more apt word!! Getting to the parks in the AM is definitely the way to go with small kids - we got tonnes done and then when they started to get cranky or tired we were able to leave without feeling like we were missing out.

Oh thankfully there was some props to keep them occupied in the Buzz and Woody M&G queue in Pixar Place, otherwise I think we may have missed out on what ended up being one of our favourite encounters

Loving your report, your boys are adorable

Thank you very much and to my TR! Hoping to be able to get a couple more updates done in the coming days (it definitely helps keep the PDD at bay!!)

 

[Wills Mom]

Day Six - Animal Kingdom: Let's Try This Again, Shall We?

Today, Saturday was an intended rest day but since we were able to get decent FP+ times for Expedition Everest we decided we would try our hand again at Animal Kingdom.

But first - myself and my SIL hit the outlets at Vineland. We got dropped off around 10am and had a Starbucks latte and a delicious cake pop to start our morning. The boys headed back to the villa with James promising faithfully that he would ensure the boys had napped before he collected us at 2pm.

I spent rather a tidy sum in the Disney Store - as always and grabbed a couple of t-shirts for my dad in Tommy Hilfiger and before we knew it we were late to be collected!!

We hadn't eaten, having previously organised with the boys not to eat either so we grabbed a McDonalds on the way to AK. I had a Fillet o Fish meal which I hadn't tried before but found it ok. At only $20 for the 4 of us it was a cheap alternative to eating when we got to the park - plus we ate in the car, which saved precious time.

We got to AK and SIL and her DS ran ahead to secure our FP+ for Expedition Everest which were just about to expire at 3.30pm. We were quickly on their heels HOWEVER we came across the M&G queue for Dug and Russell, two of Will's ultimate must-dos, and seeing as there were only 3 in front of us we hopped in line.

They weren't long about coming out and our boys faces, Will's in particular, were just priceless!





After some great interaction we met the others and found they had been given Rider Swap passes for James and I, even though we hadn't been there and they had been over 10 minutes late for our allocated return time! Score!!

James and I brought our nephew on with us, as Will wouldn't have met the height requirement. SIL watched the boys for us.



On our way to Dinoland USA we spotted a PP photographer so went to have our picture taken with EE as the backdrop however Will just was NOT in the humour! It was HOT and sticky and he probably hadn't napped enough for James. We had our pics taken regardless but we are still laughing at the scowl on his face in every. single. picture Oh the indignity of it all!!



Oh that cracks me up - and even now he looks at these pictures (and several others where he wouldn't entertain a smile) and gets really cross with himself saying he should have just listened to his mommy

We needed to lift his spirits asap and once we saw the zero queue at Triceratop Spin we knew it would perk him up. We rode twice in a row. The boys loved it, although I found the heat and lack of shade to be distracting. It was BOILING!

We saw a queue for the Pluto and Goody M&G just opposite so we got in line. The wait ended up being about 20 minutes, during which time we saw plenty of hot, impatient kids. Thankfully ours were content to snack and wait.

We had some great interaction when it was our turn. Goofy kissed my hand, and was full of hugs. Jamie was mesmerised by Pluto - his favourite from Disney Junior.



We had a FP+ for Festival of the Lion King so slowly made our way in that direction but while en route we found a Pocahontas and Meeko M&G! Score! The queue was only about 5 minutes long too so even better.

First we met Meeko, who didn't have a PP photographer hence the well below parr photos!



We all agreed she was the best character so far! And Meeko was so funny, he kept trying to interrupt our M&G with Pocahontas!





She was great with the boys, we all loved her!!



We were seated in the Lion area of FOTLK and we enjoyed it, though Jamie was a little young to sit still for the required amount of time. Plus there was a very very vigilant cast member assigned to our area who was woefully quick to jump to attention the moment Jamie stood up. I was quite tired of her telling me to get him to "stay in his seat" by the end!

We got a Tree of Life photo on our way out of the park around 5.20pm.



On our way back to the villa we dropped into a Publix, grabbed some things for tea (and more of those yummy Grapery grapes!) before spending a quiet evening in the pool.

Next: Taking on The Kitchen Sink!!​

 

[DisneyJo]

How great you got to meet so many characters, the boys faces are just priceless

 

[mdsouth]

Oh your boys are just so cute! I love looking at their reactions to the characters! Too precious!

 

[KTwiegs]

love your trip report! I'm reading everything I can about trips with toddlers. we are doing disney with our 2 year old in 2 weeks!

 

[Wills Mom]

I haven't abandoned this TR, I swear! Life just got in the way a teensy bit in the shape of our third son arriving later this year I'm only just getting past the super tired phase I've been existing in since before Christmas! I really want to get this finished and re-live our Disney magic as the weather has just been depressingly bad here of late! I find myself dwelling longingly on sweat filled Disney days so on with the show

 

[Wills Mom]

Day 7 - Break Day

We had a bit of a lie on this AM and headed to Denny's for breakfast around 10am. Our breakfast was delish and we enjoyed it so much we were sorry we never made time to go back another morning!

There was a man making balloon characters - Will got Aurora and J got Elsa. Princess lovers my two boys



We drove to Clermont shortly afterwards on the hunt for Jim Smith's moonshine as DH loves the show Moonshiners (I *think* thats the name of it anyway!) He found it in a store and we drove back while the kids napped. We also stopped off at a small Flea Market but it wasn't wonderful so we quickly loaded back into the car.

After an hour or so at the villa during which we freshened up, we bundled into the car again and set off to pick up a Wendys, which we had never had before. It was OK. We made our way to the Beach Club for our Beaches & Cream ADR after that, we had plans on ordering the Kitchen Sink in an effort to make my nephew blush!



We checked in at 5.45pm, right on time but we were not seated until 6.25pm so we got a seat outside and people watched while the kids drooled over the pool and moaned about their lack of suits to go try it out I've been told that next time we need to seriously consider BC!

Soon enough we were seated with our order of the Kitchen Sink on the way! While the experience of the Sink being brought to our table was funny with the flashing lights and the big announcement, we felt the price of $36 which included an automatic tip as we were a table of 6 was over priced. It was fun but I wouldn't see us doing it again. The ice cream was almost all melted by the time we had it dished out into individual bowls so we basically got a bowl of ice cream slush each. But the kids really enjoyed it and they could have cared less about what consistency the ice cream was



We had FP+ for IllumiNations that night so after our sugar fix we walked through International Gateway only to realise Will had taken off his MB in the backseat of the car. DH ran all the way back to the BC parking lot to get it, although he was highly unimpressed.

He was back with us within about 10 minutes and we were through the turnstiles with no wait. After a toilet break we walked onto the Nemo ride, a hot favourite with the boys.



Afterwards we walked around to kill some time before we were allowed into the FP+ area for the fireworks at 8.40pm.

Although the boys were tired at that stage they really enjoyed the fireworks! We all did. I absolutely adore IllumiNations - it's a must-do on every trip!!

We slowly made our way back to International Gateway while watching some of the Frozen fireworks which just so happened to be going off in the direction we were walking as we were leaving. We got back to the car without incident after stopping for about 10-15 minutes to enjoy some of the movie on the beach which just so happened to be Frozen.



We were back at the villa and all tucked up in bed by 10.30pm absolutely shattered tired!

Up Next: Our only waterpark day!​

 

[DisneyJo]

Congratulations on baby number 3

 

[Mrs Doubtfire]

Congratulations Still enjoying your report. What was the reserved viewing are like for Illuminations. We did the Wishes one and thought it was good.

 

[Wills Mom]

Congratulations on baby number 3

Thanks so much

Congratulations Still enjoying your report. What was the reserved viewing are like for Illuminations. We did the Wishes one and thought it was good.

Thank you We mostly enjoyed the reserved viewing for IllumiNations. The upside was definitely not having to stake out a spot an hour in advance which wouldn't be idea with a toddler!! Its in a nice spot with good views of the whole lagoon. What I didn't enjoy, which I guess can happen anywhere but really thought it wouldn't in the reserved area, was people turning up late and elbowing in front of our kids. As I said it could have happened anywhere but it put a negative spin on our experience.
We had FP+ for the reserved area for Wishes too but never ended up going!! Is it worth it? I'd definitely do it on the next trip if its a good experience. My experience of watching Wishes in the parks is mostly of being jostled and shoved left and right!

 

[Mrs Doubtfire]

Yes I enjoyed the Wishes viewing area. I had read if you wanted to stand to get near the railings at the back, so we did that and it worked fine for us. It was great not to feel like a sardine on Main Street!

 

[DVCStephanie]

Looks like everyone had so much fun!