Fleeing Wedding Showers for Epcot Flowers: My Final Morning, Finally! NEW 4/12

[GreatBiscuit]

Hey Nory!

I’m glad to finally get all caught up. That room looks amazing! I’m totally jealous now!

The only Alice captions that come to mind involve inappropriate hugging.

Congrats on your trip booking!

 

[brookelizabeth]

I hope you had a great Christmas!!

I'm with ya on the personality thing - once I get on here I'm an addict. Take your time, we'll be here!

 

[2 princess 3 princes]

Hi Nory,
Just wanted to let you know that I've been madly reading your TR's. You are such a talent! Best of all you are inspiring me to be brave and do a Solo mission! I just "celebrated" my 40th. Mid-December birthdays should be outlawed as they always get lost in the shuffle of the holidays! We don't have anyone to take care of our kids, so I was thinking of going on my own and leaving DH to take care of the crew on his own. Would be a solo adventure for both of us! Thinking of BC as they have the best price for what I'm looking for right now. Anyways, thank you, thank you for giving me the courage to try it on my own!! Cheers!

 

[norybell]

Happy New Year (almost)!

Hey Nory! Merry Christmas!

Hope you had a great Christmas!

Thanks! Hope you had wonderful Christmases, too!

Merry Christmas Nory! I hope you had a relaxing time with family and friends. I'm still in denial that it has come and gone already! Months of planning, wrapping, preparing, wrapping, shopping, wrapping and of course more wrapping! And it's all over in about 1/2 hour on Christmas morning!

Looking forward to future updates even if they're a month apart...

It is amazing how quickly it's over, isn't it? We had a nice holiday, though I can't say it was particularly restful...it was our first year visiting both of our families for the holidays, so it involved flying from NY to WI, spending four nights in a house with eleven other people (fun, but crowded!), then driving 8 hours to his parents, spending two nights there, then driving another few hours to Indianapolis to fly home. All with the dog, of course! It was fun, but we sure are happy to be home -- we just got back last night.

I did get some awesome presents this year. Like Epic Mickey!

Hey Nory!

I’m glad to finally get all caught up. That room looks amazing! I’m totally jealous now!

The only Alice captions that come to mind involve inappropriate hugging.

Congrats on your trip booking!

See, that's why I take such long breaks -- so people can get caught up! Yeah, that's why. Really.

I hope you had a great Christmas!!

I'm with ya on the personality thing - once I get on here I'm an addict. Take your time, we'll be here!

I know you all understand...the DIS is a dangerous and addictive place! I plan to spend the next few days getting caught up on all the TRs I'm a month behind on (and playing Epic Mickey, of course. And I suppose going back to work, too), and then it'll be update time!

Hi Nory,
Just wanted to let you know that I've been madly reading your TR's. You are such a talent! Best of all you are inspiring me to be brave and do a Solo mission! I just "celebrated" my 40th. Mid-December birthdays should be outlawed as they always get lost in the shuffle of the holidays! We don't have anyone to take care of our kids, so I was thinking of going on my own and leaving DH to take care of the crew on his own. Would be a solo adventure for both of us! Thinking of BC as they have the best price for what I'm looking for right now. Anyways, thank you, thank you for giving me the courage to try it on my own!! Cheers!

Thanks, 2p3p, and (and happy birthday, too!) You should totally go on a solo trip...they're so fun, and so much more relaxing -- you'll love it!

 

[Leshaface]

Woot i'm here!!

Will read tomorrow, since I'm feeling HORRIFIC right now!!!

 

[brookelizabeth]

How is the Epic Mickey game? I've just read a couple reviews that it's really hard!

 

[norybell]

Woot i'm here!!

Will read tomorrow, since I'm feeling HORRIFIC right now!!!

Oh no! I hope you're feeling better now!

How is the Epic Mickey game? I've just read a couple reviews that it's really hard!

It is really hard. Granted, I suck at these sorts of video games, where you have to jump over lethal lava and fight enemies and stuff. I prefer video games where there's very little threat of death and no stress whatsoever (like Harvest Moon, or the Sims). But I'm addicted to it anyway (and managing to slowly make it through with the help of an online walkthrough). It's really neat to see the creepy versions of DL lands, and there are all these cool in-between bits based on old Disney cartoons.

I'd say that overall, it's a game meant for 15-year-old kids with no jobs or obligations and a whole lot of free time on their hands!

 

[Leshaface]

Just got through your first day and it was hilarious!!!

ESPECIALLY SWB!!!! Poor kid...

Thank you SO SOOOO much for making 'chapters'! It's so much easier to navigate through a TR, which is why I did my TR like that too!!!

Welp, on to the next day I go!

 

[Leshaface]

Just got through your second day!!

First, your mom looks sooooo good!!! She looks incredibly young and so do you!! I'm sure you get that a lot!!

Second, haha I loved your "He's either going to collect some firewood or do the running man" quote!

Third, your room looks AH-MAZIN! I always imagined the decor of the GF rooms to be 'stuffy' and tasteless, but it's great! And the view.......fan-freakin-tastic!!! It's gorgeous!!! Gosh, I don't know what to do if we ever decide to splurge...it's between the Epcot resorts (just cuz we spend most our time at Epcot) or the monorail resorts (since we can get everywhere much easier)....

Fourth, your camera takes great shots! I noticed that it's a Sony...do you have a lens on it??

 

[norybell]

Just got through your first day and it was hilarious!!!

ESPECIALLY SWB!!!! Poor kid...

Hi, Lesha! Thanks -- I'm glad you're enjoying it! SWB was really pretty hilarious. I wish I'd gotten a picture of him, though then he probably really would have gotten the wrong idea!

Thank you SO SOOOO much for making 'chapters'! It's so much easier to navigate through a TR, which is why I did my TR like that too!!!

Yeah, the chapter links are really key, I think. Especially for me right now, while I'm trying to get caught up on a month and a half of TRs that I missed!

Just got through your second day!!

First, your mom looks sooooo good!!! She looks incredibly young and so do you!! I'm sure you get that a lot!!

Aw, thanks. I'm truly blessed to have two attractive and youthful-looking parents (also blessed that they're wonderful people, looks aside) -- my fingers are crossed that I look as good as they do when I'm 60! Granted, they're better about eating and exercise than I am...now that I'm in my mid-30s (eek), I should probably get on that...

Third, your room looks AH-MAZIN! I always imagined the decor of the GF rooms to be 'stuffy' and tasteless, but it's great! And the view.......fan-freakin-tastic!!! It's gorgeous!!! Gosh, I don't know what to do if we ever decide to splurge...it's between the Epcot resorts (just cuz we spend most our time at Epcot) or the monorail resorts (since we can get everywhere much easier)....[/quote

The room was amazing. There is no other way to put it. And I swear it looked way better in real life than in pictures! Much cozier and brighter than I expected. I never thought I could be anything but an Epcot resort girl, but between the GF and the Poly, I've totally changed my tune over the past year.

Of course, a split stay is really the way to go! That way you don't have to decide!

Fourth, your camera takes great shots! I noticed that it's a Sony...do you have a lens on it??

Thanks! It's a Sony Superzoom, so no lenses (though apparently a non-Sony company has just come out with a wide-angle lens that works for it)...I didn't feel quite ready for a real camera (i.e., an SLR), so I thought a superzoom would be a good compromise. Overall, I've been really happy with it, and it's been great to learn on. I hope to graduate to an SLR in another year or two!

I was hoping to get another update up today, but as of this morning I have a terrible cold (or, rather, "I hab a tewwible code"), so I think I'll just tackle the mindless task of uploading photos, instead. Hopefully tomorrow for an update. I gotta get through this thing, so I can start posting my new one, which is already half written! So many TRs, so little time!

 

[Leshaface]

I was hoping to get another update up today, but as of this morning I have a terrible cold (or, rather, "I hab a tewwible code"), so I think I'll just tackle the mindless task of uploading photos, instead. Hopefully tomorrow for an update. I gotta get through this thing, so I can start posting my new one, which is already half written! So many TRs, so little time!

OMgosh, I know how you feel!! I felt HORRIBLE on New Year's eve, and have FINALLY felt somewhat better today! On Tuesday I lost my voice and continued over to yesterday...I haven't lost my voice like that in years!! I hope you get better soon!

I still want to go back and read your other TR so I don't mind waiting for your next update (jk of course!)

 

[not_Joanna_eggs]

I hope you feel better. Your medicine head allowed me time to catch up. Wow, I was way behind!

I have total room envy over your room at BWI. I love it.

Il Muno is always one of those restaurants that I want to try but keeps getting bumped for something more flashy.

As always, I also have big picture envy too! Love the report - feel better soon so you can update us!

 

[norybell]

OMgosh, I know how you feel!! I felt HORRIBLE on New Year's eve, and have FINALLY felt somewhat better today! On Tuesday I lost my voice and continued over to yesterday...I haven't lost my voice like that in years!! I hope you get better soon!

I still want to go back and read your other TR so I don't mind waiting for your next update (jk of course!)

Glad you're finally feeling better! I feel much better today, so my fingers are crossed that maybe it wasn't a cold at all, but just a terrible sinus day?

I hope you feel better. Your medicine head allowed me time to catch up. Wow, I was way behind!

I have total room envy over your room at BWI. I love it.

Il Muno is always one of those restaurants that I want to try but keeps getting bumped for something more flashy.

As always, I also have big picture envy too! Love the report - feel better soon so you can update us!

I'm glad there were some upsides to my medicine head!

Il Mulino was fine, nice and peaceful, but not someplace I'd rush back to...a good back up, I suppose, for a last minute reservation.

Update on its way...

 

[norybell]

We woke up early on Thursday, knowing that earliness is the key to a good day here:

During our concierge-lounge breakfast of croissants and fruit, we kept debating our strategy: to Toy Story Mania, or not to Toy Story Mania? We’d both ridden it once before and thought it was undeniably fun, but not necessarily worth the stressful race to get there, or the loss of other FPs you could otherwise be collecting (we’re both huge fans of TOT and RNR). After much back and forth on this critical decision, we finally concluded that yes, we’d give TSM another try. And with that in mind, we hustled along the walking path to DHS, knowing that every second that passed would make our choice more problematic.

We got to the gates at 8:15 and were the second group at the turnstile—not bad at all.

Soon enough we were let through to waiting point #2, where these guys displayed their impressive brawn and ice-cold stares to prevent us from going any further:

Famous director Alberto Dante (or was it Flavio Fellini? clearly my film trivia skills just aren’t up to snuff—oh, wait, the megaphone has answered my question. Whew; I would hate to fill this report with erroneous streetmosphere names!) graced us with his presence:

Joined by his lovely-yet-bumbling assistant, Paige Turner:

The opening show seemed shorter to me than usual, which made me happy, because I think it’s gotten pretty dull over the years.

The audience cheered, pistols were fired into the air, and we all turned into cattle for the mad dash to TSM. My mom and I were at the front of the pack—and proud of it, thank you very much!—until we were flagrantly cut off by two jerky running men (Why does it seem like it’s always thirtysomething men who do this? Can’t they grow up a little? And I say this as someone who’s married to one of them…)

We cheered silently (or, OK, maybe not so silently) when the two guys were politely out-walked (not even a hint of a run) by a solo woman traveler wearing a red T-shirt. Ha, breaking-the-no-running-rule men! You got yours!

Also, I may have stepped on the heel of one of their shoes after they cut me off. Maybe. You can’t prove anything, though. And it was totally an accident. Of course it was. Really.

TSM was fun, of course, though my shooting arm got a little sore. Clearly I need more practice. I scored somewhere around 80,000 points, which is pathetic, but still beat my mom. We both won bunnies. Or pictures of bunnies. Woo-hoo!

We booked it over to RNR for fastpasses,

and then we jumped in line. Or, rather, we jumped in the absence of a line. We walked straight into the pre-show room, but after meeting Aerosmith, things got a little dicey. I’ve never seen the ride load so slowly—they were clearly having some sort of problem. And when we finally got into our car, it stopped, right before takeoff, for ages. We spent a good ten minutes or so just sitting there watching the “Fasten Your Seatbelts…Keep Your Head Back…etc” screen cycle in front of us. The anticipation was killing me.

After we finally sped off, I unfortunately spent most of the ride realizing that I’d made a very poor choice in my shirt for the day: a blouse-y, loose-fitting tank top. The straps kept kept falling down off my shoulders, while I tried as best as I could to pull them back up with my arms trapped beneath the harness. I was a little worried that my ride photo would show more than I intended!

Luckily, I hadn’t inadvertently flashed the cameras, so I shouldn’t have worried.

After RNR, we went next door to our all-time favorite:

We got a spot in the front, which always makes me really happy, because the effects look even more amazing up there. But the ride, sadly, was ruined. And I’m not even exaggerating, not even a little bit. Our elevator contained about seven or eight teens from the same group, and they screamed—ear piercingly, bloodcurdlingly—for the entire ride. Not because they were afraid, but because they were being obnoxious teenagers. We couldn’t hear the narration at all. I really should have said something to a CM afterwards, but instead we just got a set of FPs for later, then rode again.

The elevator-operator CM recognized us this time.
“Didn’t you stay with us recently?” he asked.
“Why yes,” I said, “The Hollywood Tower is one of our favorite hotels.”
“I’m so happy you like it. A lot of the guests seem to have trouble finding their rooms…”
And with that, the door opened and he ushered us to our seats. We weren’t in the front row this time, but we weren’t surrounded by insufferable screaming, either, so it was a worthwhile tradeoff.

After our thrilling thirteen-story plummet, we used our FPs to ride RNR, and got yet another set of FPs for TOT. Then we headed to lunch at the Brown Derby.

Our ADR was for 11:35 and it was around 11:00, but we figured they’d let us in early. We didn’t realize until they turned us away that the restaurant doesn’t open at all until 11:30. We killed time by strolling around the area and poking around the shops, buying some little presents for my three-year-old niece.

At promptly 11:30 we returned to the Brown Derby and had an excellent lunch, as always.

I can never bring myself to order anything other than the Cobb Salad:

My mom was more adventurous, and ordered the tofu. She said it was good, but I didn’t try any:

Of course, no Brown Derby meal would be complete without the grapefruit cake:

After our meal, we ambled back down Sunset Boulevard,

where we rode our beloved TOT not just once with our FPs,

but twice.

Even without a FP, there was no wait at all.

Afterwards we debated trying something new, like American Idol or the Animation Academy, but instead we decided to head back to our wonderful room at the BWI. We always intend to try new things at the parks, but old habits die hard, don’t they?

 

[3prettyprincesses]

Fabulous update Nory!

I'm so with you about those dorky people who run past everyone in their haste for TSM! I feel like yelling "hey, dude, are your pants on fire or something?" They really run like it's some kind of marathon! It does feel like cattle being prodded though, doesn't it? Ugh, everytime I say I'm not going to bother yet I still talk myself into doing it. Apparently I have little resolve!

Oh how I love, love, love ToT! It is one of the best (excepting Expedition Everest of course) themed rides ever! I love every little detail and how it gives you just enough creepiness to enhance your experience but not enough that it would give you nightmares! (Heck, my youngest DD was 4 1/2 when she rode it and thought it awesome. She's my little thrill seeker!) Cool that the CM recognized you from your previous stay at the ToT!

Sorry to hear you had to deal with obnoxious teenagers. Were they Brazilian by any chance? There's always reports of tour groups from Brazil reeking havoc at Disney! Did you give them the evil eye? Actually I suppose that would be hard to do while plummeting 13 stories, huh?

Don't you just love the Brown Derby? We eat dinner there every trip when we're at HS and it never disappoints. I love all of the art deco/hollywood glam decor there. The Cobb salad is amazing but I'll have to pass on it this upcoming trip since I am now allergic to avacados! Bummer!

Your last shot of HS is really spectacular! Did you take it from the boat going back to the BW?

Great update, awesome pics and glad to hear you didn't flash anyone while riding RnR!

 

[Leshaface]

Yay an update!!

@ "I may have stepped on the heel..." Totally sounds like something I might do to!!!

I love both Rockin' and Tower of Terror!!!!

3prettyprincesses - of COURSE those teens were Brazilian!! But really though, when we went last year in Jan, they were everywhere and they were so loud and annoying...I should be fair and say that not all the Brazilian tour groups were like that, but the vast majority of them were

Mmmm, the cobb salad is FABULOUS!!!....i feel like a fatty now when I say, I had that as my appetizer as you had that as your entree!! But oh so worth it!...and that Grapefruit cake is ridiculous good!!!!


Can't wait to read about your next installment!

 

[norybell]

Hi 3pp, how are you?

I'm so with you about those dorky people who run past everyone in their haste for TSM! I feel like yelling "hey, dude, are your pants on fire or something?" They really run like it's some kind of marathon! It does feel like cattle being prodded though, doesn't it? Ugh, everytime I say I'm not going to bother yet I still talk myself into doing it. Apparently I have little resolve!

It really is ridiculous, isn't it? I'll admit to my fair share of speed walking. But at least I try to remain polite while I'm doing it!

Sorry to hear you had to deal with obnoxious teenagers. Were they Brazilian by any chance? There's always reports of tour groups from Brazil reeking havoc at Disney! Did you give them the evil eye? Actually I suppose that would be hard to do while plummeting 13 stories, huh?

Nope, they were good ol' American teens. And I may have attempted some pointed "shhhhs", but to no effect whatsoever!

Don't you just love the Brown Derby? We eat dinner there every trip when we're at HS and it never disappoints. I love all of the art deco/hollywood glam decor there. The Cobb salad is amazing but I'll have to pass on it this upcoming trip since I am now allergic to avacados! Bummer!

That sucks about the avocados! I have to be careful about them, myself...usually they give me a pretty bad stomachache, much as I love them. But not in the Cobb salad, for some bizarre reason -- maybe they react with something else in the salad, so they don't effect me the way they usually do? Isn't that weird?

Your last shot of HS is really spectacular! Did you take it from the boat going back to the BW?

Thanks! I took it on the walking path.

@ "I may have stepped on the heel..." Totally sounds like something I might do to!!!

Let's just come out and admit it: Some people deserve a little heel stepping!

Mmmm, the cobb salad is FABULOUS!!!....i feel like a fatty now when I say, I had that as my appetizer as you had that as your entree!! But oh so worth it!...and that Grapefruit cake is ridiculous good!!!!

If it makes you feel any better, if we'd been there for dinner instead of lunch, I totally would've had it as an appetizer! But I try my best to not have big lunches in the parks (the BD is the only place where I'll have a dessert exception), just cuz they make me sleepy (and also so I can save room for big dinners!). And I don't want to spend too much time napping while at WDW, if I can possibly avoid it!

 

[mistyt]

Nory- just had to tell you that your TR is fabulous! I've been at home sick the last few days going stir crazy and just took the last hour or so to read this entire one so far! Thanks for sharing your vacation with us (you and your mom are too darn cute)!

Can't wait to hear more from you, and I'm planning on spending the rest of my night reading your other trip reports (you have quite the way with words)!

 

[norybell]

Thanks, mistyt, and

I hope you're feeling better today! My body can't seem to decide if it's sick or not...I had one day of feeling miserable, two days of feeling fine, and now my sinuses are acting all up again...no fun!

 

[glennbo123]

Great update Nory! Sorry that your ride was spoiled by those obnoxious teenagers, but it sounds like you got plenty of other rides in -- you were really rockin' those fastpasses!

I've yet to try the Brown Derby, but if I did...I'd either have to order the Cobb salad, or make sure that Judy ordered it so that I could at least try it.