Food, Fun, and Frivolity: 8 Funtabulous days w/pics! UPDATE 1/20 HELP!!!!

[Leshaface]

GREAT pictures! We were at the Grand Floridian the night before at V&A's other than the night that we might have passed each other in Epcot, we probably didn't cross paths...we spent this day at AK and made dinner in our villa, it was "free for all leftovers night". I made a crab and cream cheese dip out of our Fulton's leftovers, my mom heated up something, and I made the rest of us Pasta Carbonara because we had so much bacon and eggs left! We watched Julie and Julia and went to bed.

V&A's.....sigh....I MUST get there....that place sounds so fantastic! Is it better than Napa Rose do you think?? I know it's more elegant, but how do the two compare to each other!

Omgosh, I LOVE Julie and Julia!!! Everytime I see that it's on, I change the channel immediately to that! I even asked for a Julie Childs cookbook for Christmas and a baking casserole dish (the kind that Amy Adams makes the beouf bouginion [sp] in) so I can try making that dish...it just looks fantastic!

 

[Leshaface]

WISHES!

Aww, it was splendid....unfortunately, I STILL don't know how to post some dang videos on here, so here is our selection of 'Wishes' photographs from outside the park! (turn on 'Wishes' music!)

So as soon as 'Wishes' was over, I hauled butt outta the Magic Kingdom to meet DH over at our bus stop, thinking our bus stop was gonna be jammed with people by the time we got there, but there was only one other couple on our bus by the time we loaded!!! It's crazy to me to think that our Resort was packed with people, but the majority of those people were conventioners!

It's not too late by this time (since Wishes started at 8pm) so I went and did some laundry and hit the sack, knowing we had one more FULL day at the world!

 

[franandaj]

V&A's.....sigh....I MUST get there....that place sounds so fantastic! Is it better than Napa Rose do you think?? I know it's more elegant, but how do the two compare to each other!

Omgosh, I LOVE Julie and Julia!!! Everytime I see that it's on, I change the channel immediately to that! I even asked for a Julie Childs cookbook for Christmas and a baking casserole dish (the kind that Amy Adams makes the beouf bouginion [sp] in) so I can try making that dish...it just looks fantastic!

You really can't compare the two. They are so different. Napa Rose is a wonderful place, but I always sit at the Chef's counter and when you get to chat with Chef Sutton it seems like such a casual place since he's such a laidback and down to earth guy. The focus is so natural and CA based. We were at the resort on Mon. he saw us and waved "Hi".

V&A's is very formal and elegant, and not that they are not into natural foods, but Chef Hunnel will have ingredients flown in from all over. His preparations are intricate. The room has a much different feel, much fancier. I like them both, but maybe Napa Rose a tiny bit better for it's elegant but laidback feel.

 

[heathsf]

OMG that shrimp looked so good! I read through all the starters in your picture of the menu and that is definitely what I would have picked! Mmmmmm....
And those pictures your DH took from outside MK were awesome!

 

[bangzoom6877]

Hi there!! Your pics make me wanna go back right now!!!!

I'm loving your trip report! Hope you're doing well. We have 4 days of school this week, then we're off until January 3rd! Looking forward to time off with the boys! Have a Merry Christmas, and a Happy & Healthy New Year!!!

 

[Leshaface]

You really can't compare the two. They are so different. Napa Rose is a wonderful place, but I always sit at the Chef's counter and when you get to chat with Chef Sutton it seems like such a casual place since he's such a laidback and down to earth guy. The focus is so natural and CA based. We were at the resort on Mon. he saw us and waved "Hi".

V&A's is very formal and elegant, and not that they are not into natural foods, but Chef Hunnel will have ingredients flown in from all over. His preparations are intricate. The room has a much different feel, much fancier. I like them both, but maybe Napa Rose a tiny bit better for it's elegant but laidback feel.

I would LOVE to sit at the counter at Napa Rose someday! That would be so fun and relaxed I think! I was watching the Guy Fieri Disney special the other day, when he met Chef Sutton at Napa Rose and he just seems like such a nice, cool dude!

OMG that shrimp looked so good! I read through all the starters in your picture of the menu and that is definitely what I would have picked! Mmmmmm....
And those pictures your DH took from outside MK were awesome!

The shrimp was RIDICULOUSLY delicious!

I'm so glad he didn't make it on time to see the fireworks from the inside, cuz then I wouldn't have had these great photos! Just a different perspective of Wishes! I'm gonna be updating today!

Hi there!! Your pics make me wanna go back right now!!!!

I'm loving your trip report! Hope you're doing well. We have 4 days of school this week, then we're off until January 3rd! Looking forward to time off with the boys! Have a Merry Christmas, and a Happy & Healthy New Year!!!

Seriously, everytime I update my TR or look through my Disney pics, it gets me soooo depressed knowing I have nothing to plan right now! Soon though...i hope!

DH has been off since the 10th, but decided to work the 'Winter Academy' that they have at his school for three days (only 8-12 so not bad), and he doesn't go back until the 10th of Jan. Which is great, since he'll have PLENTY of time to start painting our house! Nothing like working over your vacation right?!

 

[bangzoom6877]

Seriously, everytime I update my TR or look through my Disney pics, it gets me soooo depressed knowing I have nothing to plan right now! Soon though...i hope!

DH has been off since the 10th, but decided to work the 'Winter Academy' that they have at his school for three days (only 8-12 so not bad), and he doesn't go back until the 10th of Jan. Which is great, since he'll have PLENTY of time to start painting our house! Nothing like working over your vacation right?!

I totally understand what you mean. The other day my sister said to me that it's almost time to start planning the 2012 Disney trip...they're most likely going to come again! Then I reminded her that even I want to focus on the cruise for now! When I get depressed about not going to Disney for another year and a half, I think about the cruise and how tomorrow we hit the 7-month mark until sailaway, and then on Wednesday my ticker will say 6 months and something!

As far as working over a vacation...we do it all the time! Friday is my first day off...I plan to clean out the bedroom closet which is...umm...spilling into the bedroom (can't close the closet door ). That should take about an hour (small closets in Brooklyn ). Then, I plan to clean our bedroom. It's the room that gets the most neglected in the house. To me, the priority is the kitchen and the bathrooms (we have 3 bathrooms), and of course the boys' rooms. Then of course we have to m,ake sure the dining room is clean since we eat there, and then there's the living room since people see it every time they come over! And of course the laundry. So the last thing is always our bedroom. I would love to get a cleaning lady come in even once a month to do some things around here, but the problem is that DH and I don't trust anyone in our house when we're not home. So then what's the point...if we're home we may as well do it ourselves. If someone was in my house when I am not home, I would worry and be tense...defeats the purpose of a cleaning lady to relax me!

So the answer is to do the best we can, but life gets in the way...work, the kids, busy weekends, etc. We manage somehow!

 

[heathsf]

Bangzoom - where are you cruising to?

 

[bangzoom6877]

Bangzoom - where are you cruising to?

Hi! We're leaving out of Bayonne, NJ and cruising to Bermuda, St. Thomas, St. Maarten and Puerto Rico! It's a 9-night cruise so we have a few days at sea too, which I love and am looking forward to!! We're under the 7-month mark, and once it's 2011 it will feel even closer!

 

[heathsf]

Hi! We're leaving out of Bayonne, NJ and cruising to Bermuda, St. Thomas, St. Maarten and Puerto Rico! It's a 9-night cruise so we have a few days at sea too, which I love and am looking forward to!! We're under the 7-month mark, and once it's 2011 it will feel even closer!

You must be sailing on Explorer! My parents just got back this past Sunday from a cruise on Explorer. They had a fabulous time as I'm sure you will too!

 

[bangzoom6877]

You must be sailing on Explorer! My parents just got back this past Sunday from a cruise on Explorer. They had a fabulous time as I'm sure you will too!

Yes, we are going on Explorer! I'm glad your parents enjoyed themselves! This ship is like none I have ever been on before (even in 13 cruises!). Ice skating rink with ice skating shows, mini golf course, rock climbing wall, parades in the evening, 24-hour promenade. All I keep hearing from people who have been on it, are great things! It will be a lot of fun! Looking forward to it!

 

[heathsf]

Yes, we are going on Explorer! I'm glad your parents enjoyed themselves! This ship is like none I have ever been on before (even in 13 cruises!). Ice skating rink with ice skating shows, mini golf course, rock climbing wall, parades in the evening, 24-hour promenade. All I keep hearing from people who have been on it, are great things! It will be a lot of fun! Looking forward to it!

I haven't been on Explorer, only her sister ships Voyager and Adventure and they were both amazing vacations. If I can't be in Disney, a cruise would be the next best thing!

 

[Leshaface]

Hello everyone!!!

Hope you guys had a great Christmas!!!

I sure did!!

let me tell you about the "Disney" things I received!!

I got the "4 Parks, 1 World" CD, which I've been wanting ever since January of this year, cuz dummy me, didn't think about grabbing it while I was there! I"m actually listening to it right now!!

My mom also got me Jim Shore's Cinderella Figurine, BUT she told me to open it and look at the bottom, and sure enough, it said, "To Alicia, from Jim Shore"!!! I have quite a few of his figurines, and now to added a signed figurine to my stash is AWESOME!!!! While I was lying SICK up in our room at Disney's Grand Californian, Jim Shore was at the World of Disney signing autographs/figurines, and my mom stood in line and got it autographed for me!! She's wonderful!

My mom KNOWS how much I love Nightmare Before Christmas, so she also gave me Jack, Salley, and Barrel dolls! SSSSoooooo cute!!! Can't wait to get my Disney room started so I can add all my things in there!

Dan got me A Disney's Christmas Carol with Jim Carrey, and I must say it's a little creepy but I liked it! He also got me Fanstasia 2000 (i think it's 2000 right?), along with a disney wallet I had spied on our recent trip to Disneyland.

Other than that, I got my iphone that I wanted, along with a fossil watch, a Dooney bag (not disney), a massage & facial, tons of stuff for the house, clothes, cookbooks and cookware, and i'm sure i'm forgetting some other things, but I must say, I made out GOOD!!



Anyways, i'll be finishing my TR TODAY since i'm here at work with nothing much to do!!!

So here we go!!!!!

 

[Leshaface]

So we woke up a little late, around 8ish and decided to go slow today. We had ADR's at Tutto Italia, for 11:45, but we REALLY weren't feeling Italian food today...I think we were pooped out on all the 'fancy' stuff and really just wanted the good ol' burger and fries. We were planning on heading over to DHS later today, so we thought, let's just see if 50's or Sci Fi had any available spots, and sure enough Sci-Fi had lots of openings so we took the 12:00!!! We were super stoked!

We get changed and head towards the bus stop, and I took a few more pics of CSR...

Since we arrive at DHS around 11am, we had time to spare, so we decide to ride Rock n Roller, TWICE and the Tower of Terror!! Love these two rides!!!

We then walk the long ways to Sci-Fi (walking towards Star Tours and all that) just cuz we had some more time, till we finally arrived!

-----Sci-Fi Dine In Theater-----




After our SCRUMPTIOUS meal, I wanted to watch the Beauty and the Beast show, since we've never been able to watch it!

But before we left for Disney World, I liked to look up Youtube videos, to get a little sneak-peek of what i'm getting into and I came across this one...


Mrs. Potts Takes a Dive


and


This One!


I was cringing during the scene of the show the entire time, fearing for the cast members that no one would eat it!!!

Luckily, no 'eating' occured so it was good!

The show was so cute!!! They all did such a great job!! After the show, we went over to Epcot to check out Innoventions!

Sorry no pics here, but we did the Sum of All Thrills virtual roller coaster! It was so neat to make your own coaster for free and actually ride it!! It's a little different from the one at Disney Quest in Downtown Disney, but I think I liked this one waaay better!

We also did Storm Struck and the Great Piggy Bank Adventure. Both great ideas and would say are more geared towards kids, but it was fun for us! We went over to Club Cool after, to check out the drinks!

Why, oh WHY do I continue to drink Beverly even though I KNOW it's gnarly!?!? I think it's because I always say, it can't be too bad, then I try it's and it's horrific! Haha!


My faves??? China, Israel, and Costa Rica!

It was about time to start heading over to our next ADR....I was excited for this one, but sad because I KNEW this was our LAST DINNER before leaving the World! Definitely bittersweet...

 

[Leshaface]

Tonight, we decided to not get changed....we were SOOOO exhausted from leaving the parks, going to CSR to change, then going to dinner from there...it was VERY nice not having to run here and there to get changed...

So we went straight from Epcot to the Animal Kingdom Lodge for our ADR at Jiko...but first a few pics!!

-----Jiko-----




Love, love, LOVE Jiko!

We decide to walk around the grounds of Animal Kingdom Lodge and walk on the little 'trails' that they have in their 'backyard'. We couldn't see anything, but it was so neat that they made these little areas!

But here are some more pics!

After dinner, I wanted to go to Epcot and watch Illuminations!! We found a good-enough spot, considering we weren't there as early as others to stake out a spot!

But before staking out a spot, I wanted to ride our LAST RIDE of Epcot...

I really do enjoy this ride...


After Spaceship Earth, I grabbed DH a hot chocolate and me some coffee and got ready to watch the show! Sorry no pictures; I taped the ENTIRE thing since I love the music soo much! But here's our spot!

The show ended and it was fabulous! That meant it was time to go home...But I NEEDED to take a shot in front of the golf ball at night!

We went back to CSR, did a little laundry and packed...I was soooo not ready to go home!!! WAaaaahhhh!

 

[Leshaface]

So we were leaving, on a jet plane today...and I was not feeling leaving yet...

But we woke up, packed the rest of our belongings and took our things down to Bell Services where they would hold our luggage for Magical Express....LOVE this option!

And get on the bus to Magic Kingdom to ride the ONE ride that we both wanted to do, and that was Tomorrowland Transit Authority. This is our favorite ride at Magic Kingdom!

Then we take some PP pics!

After our pics, we head over to the Wave for our last meal at Disneyworld!




-----The Wave-----



After lunch, we take the monorail all the way back to the Magic Kingdom, just cuz we had some time, and boarded the bus back to CSR and from there we boarded the Magical Express to MCO and were left feeling depressed but sooo thankful that we were able to go on this MAGNIFICENT TRIP!




So that's all folks! Overall, our trip went FANTASTICALLY and I couldn't have planned it any better! So now what do I do???


Well, this is what is more-than-likely happening: January 2012, we'll be boarding the Disney Magic (or is it Dream?) to the Bahamas on a five night cruise!!! However, i'm also thinking about adding a few extra nights BEFORE the cruise to see Disneyworld all done up for Christmas....i know, crowds are THE WORST there at this time, but I figure, we'll be there anyways, so just add 2 or 3 nights extra to the trip and check out the resorts and the parks...what do you guys think??

 

[franandaj]

Awwww too bad you're all done with your TR...

You could finish up your dining review, we never got to hear your #2 and #1 favorite restaurants before they shut it down.

Regarding your 2012 plans, I'd be torn between adding on before (to see the Christmas decoration) or afterwards to be able to visit the parks when they were not ridiculous! If you did go at Christmas, I'd stay out of the parks, just resort hop and perhaps take that Yachtsman Rain Check!

Sounds like you really cleaned up on the gifts. Our Christmas was more subdued gift wise, but I cleaned up at the outlet malls on the way to Nor Cal. You'll have to check out my PTR for the details.

Happy Planning! It's only a year away!

 

[Leshaface]

Awwww too bad you're all done with your TR...

You could finish up your dining review, we never got to hear your #2 and #1 favorite restaurants before they shut it down.

Regarding your 2012 plans, I'd be torn between adding on before (to see the Christmas decoration) or afterwards to be able to visit the parks when they were not ridiculous! If you did go at Christmas, I'd stay out of the parks, just resort hop and perhaps take that Yachtsman Rain Check!

Sounds like you really cleaned up on the gifts. Our Christmas was more subdued gift wise, but I cleaned up at the outlet malls on the way to Nor Cal. You'll have to check out my PTR for the details.

Happy Planning! It's only a year away!

Unfortunately, because DH and sis in law are both teachers, we could only do it before and not after the cruise.......or I could do a "Solo" trip after but i'm sure DH would not go for that!! I think it would be fun to do that by myself, plan whatever I want, go where ever I want....

Hahahaa Yachtsman Rain Check!!!! Seriously though, great idea! I'll have to tell DH that! I wouldn't mind braving the parks...but i'd rather resort hop!

Ooh yeah making my way over now!!!

 

[norybell]

After a month away from the DIS I was catching up on your last 8 updates or so, and am sad to see you've reached the end!

I loved your wishes pics! And now I feel like I have even more restaurants I have to try (Sci-Fi, Teppan Edo).

Unfortunately, because DH and sis in law are both teachers, we could only do it before and not after the cruise.......or I could do a "Solo" trip after but i'm sure DH would not go for that!! I think it would be fun to do that by myself, plan whatever I want, go where ever I want....

What about a few days before to see the decorations, AND a few days after solo?

 

[Leshaface]

After a month away from the DIS I was catching up on your last 8 updates or so, and am sad to see you've reached the end!

I loved your wishes pics! And now I feel like I have even more restaurants I have to try (Sci-Fi, Teppan Edo).



What about a few days before to see the decorations, AND a few days after solo?

Hiii! Yes, you HAVE been gone for quite a while, but good to see ya back!

Haha, don't even TEMPT me with this!!!! I'm easily persuaded!! Honestly though, if I found a group of friends to meet there or go with, I would ABSOLUTELY do it!!