Friends & Fun, a Fabulous First Family Trip

[dd50]

Sounds like you had a good time and you sure did get some fabulous pictures. My granddaughter is going to the BBB and grandson is getting the pirate treatment. I think he will be wearing his costume the whole trip. You have to pick your battles wisely and found that it is easier to let them wear what the want.

 

[rpbear]

Wonderful trip report. I am enjoying reading about your very first trip. There is something so magical about the first time but every time after that is magical too. My DDs first trip was at ages 3 and 9. We are returning in August for our 26th trip. They are now age 15 and 21. When I ask where do you want to go on vacation they still say Disney.

 

[ellajeansmom]

What a fun day you had!! It sounds like you got alot accomplished!! Wow! Love all the pictures with the Playhouse Disney characters!! Glad to hear you enjoyed TSM!! We were sad to miss all the fun things in the stand-by line. But we agreed it wouldn't be worth waiting an hour or more to see them. Another great update as usual! Can't wait for more...

We did have a fun day - I feel like I keep repeating myself but for the whole trip that's the best way to describe it, we had a LOT of FUN!! The character Photopasses all came out great - it makes it worth standing in line and buying the photopass CD just for those pictures, they are so good at capturing the best moments

Looks like you all had a blast with the HSM show ! Great pictures with the Playhouse Disney characters , we had a blast doing this also ! Glad to here that you enjoyed the buffet at Hollywood and Vine , that place really seems to get a bad rep here on the dis boards but it's my favorite buffet at WDW . Cute Star Wars photo pass pictures , we also did photo pass here and they were some of our best photo pass pictures of the trip Your DD was very brave for doing TOT , I've only done it once myself and probably won't do it again unless one of the kids wants too , just leaves you w/ a really funny feeling IMO . Sorry to see that you didn't get your photo pass picture on the way out You did pretty good on your own though . Can't wait to see how your next day goes at MK !

The HSM show was great - all day whenever we heard the music starting we would start singing along! We were surprised that Jean went through with TOT, but looking back we had told her it was scary but I don't think she had anything to compare it to to know how scary! And the kids from both the P-family and the B-family had done it and told our girls yeah its scary but its fun!

I didn't know what to expect at H&V as I had read some iffy reviews as well, but we thought it was great

Sounds like you had a good time and you sure did get some fabulous pictures. My granddaughter is going to the BBB and grandson is getting the pirate treatment. I think he will be wearing his costume the whole trip. You have to pick your battles wisely and found that it is easier to let them wear what the want.

Thanks! You definitely have to pick your battles - and as long as no one gets hurt who cares if they wear the same outfit multiple days, what else are holidays for The pirate treatment sounds really fun from what I have heard I'm sure your grandson will have a great time

Wonderful trip report. I am enjoying reading about your very first trip. There is something so magical about the first time but every time after that is magical too. My DDs first trip was at ages 3 and 9. We are returning in August for our 26th trip. They are now age 15 and 21. When I ask where do you want to go on vacation they still say Disney.

Thank you!! I had a lot of people at home wondering if it would be magical for me since I had done so much planning, but it was - I think because I was decently prepared the few bumps that we hit we were able to deal with and keep going. Wow, your 26th trip, that's amazing...and coming soon, you must be excited

 

[ellajeansmom]

Day 6 - May 7

The plan for today was to arrive at MK mid-morning head to Tomorrowland, visit Arielle’s Grotto, do Splash Mountain, and whatever else we were able to fit in by 3pm then come back to POR for a rest/swim. E and I had ADRs at Artiste Pointe at Wilderness Lodge at 5:45 and the girls would be going to the Cub’s Den.

As I got this post ready I realized that we were light on the pictures today - I think I was starting to get tired (not that I realized it at the time) and half the time forgot that I even had a camera

We let the girls sleep until 8:30 and we were under way about an hour later – I still don’t understand why it takes them so long to eat and get dressed As planned we arrived at the MK shortly after 10am and headed to Tomorrowland. I suggested we do Astro-Orbiter first as the line for that would likely only get longer as the day went on – we thought we could grab a FP for something else as we went by but the lines were all so small that the FP machines weren’t available yet. We had a 20 minute wait for our spaceship and then we were on – this was the last ‘circle ride’ for Jean to check off her list! I managed to get a picture of the castle as we rode

Jean was disappointed that I didn’t make our rocket go up and down, but I don’t do well with spinning and this ride is just that much faster than the others that I was getting quite dizzy!

Next we headed to Space Ranger Spin, the wait here was less than 10 minutes and while this ride was fun it paled a bit compared to TSM which we had just done the evening before. The girls stopped for some photo ops on the way out

The next show at Monsters Inc Laugh Floor was in 5 minutes so in we went. This was amusing – the guy next to us got picked on quite a bit – but I could see how it might get old after seeing it a few times. That’s my perspective anyways, I think the girls would have laughed at the jokes over and over again!

From here we went on Stitch’s Great Escape. The girls think Stitch is very funny so they were excited about this one. Jean had some trouble following the storyline so I kept having to repeat everything for her. The most memorable part for all of us was the burp – and I’ll leave it at that

At this point we were all a bit hungry so stopped for some chips and drinks. Then we headed to the Indy Speedway. I think the posted wait time was 20 minutes but it seemed longer – probably because it was getting really hot - even hotter than the previous days. Jean rode with E and Ella rode with me. I told her that I remember doing this ride when I was 11 and I had found it frustrating because being the oldest kid in a family of five I had to ride alone and I could not get the hang of steering, I kept bumping into the guide rail. Ella couldn’t quite reach the pedal so I did that while she steered – she was very proud that she did better than I had at 11!

It was close to 1pm so we decided to get some lunch. I had heard Cosmic Ray’s had decent counter service and since it was right there that’s where we ate. The girls split a cheeseburger from the adult menu and E had a hamburger as well. I knew I would be having a large dinner so I had a salad. The meal was OK, but not outstanding, a typical fast food as far as we were concerned.

We knew that Ella really wanted to meet Arielle (she went through a phase at age 2&1/2 where any boulder or planter she came across turned into the boulder from the TLM where Arielle glides up on the wave and Ella would peek over top of it and burst into “I don’t know where, I don’t know how…”) and Jean still wanted to do Splash Mountain, so I got in line with the girls at Arielle’s Grotto while E went to get FPs for SM. The posted time at AG was 60 minutes but we were only in line for 30 minutes. The girls had a great time cooling off at the splash pad while I sat in line.

When I called them over to join me in line they were completely soaked!

We waited another 10 min or so then it was our turn. Arielle was very sweet and chatted with the girls while she signed their books. Thank goodness there was a Photopass person there as my pictures did not turn out very well!

After signing their books Arielle asked them for a hug and Jean said “Well, we’re kind of wet”, and Arielle replied “That’s alright, I like wet hugs!”. The girls thought this very funny – since she is a mermaid you know!

We met E at the exit. We needed to do some strategizing. Our FPs for SM were at 3:30 and he said there was a 70 minute stand-by. The issue was that we had planned to leave the park around 3pm so that we would have time to have a swim/rest and get properly showered and dressed for our date night. Jean really wanted to ride SM and we did not see the point in spending over an hour in line, so we figured we could be leaving the park around 4pm and make do with a quick shower and forego the swim before dinner.

At this point it was a little past 2pm so we had 90 minutes for more rides. I suggested we go to Adventureland as we hadn’t done PofTC or Jungle Cruise. Before we left Fantasyland we stopped for some more souvenirs – E had been debating between two different Grumpy t-shirts. One said “I’m Grumpy because you’re Dopey” but he decided that was a little harsh so settled on “Genius by birth, Grumpy by choice”. We also broke down and bought a misting fan – this was definitely the hottest day so far!

There was only a 10 minute wait posted for the HM as we walked by but I wasn’t sure if the girls would like it so we kept walking. PofTC was essentially a walk-on and it was so nice and cool in there! Other than it being a nice break from the heat I wasn’t really impressed – maybe I would get it more if I had seen any of the movies. However I just asked the girls and they both thought it was a neat ride and they enjoyed the animatronics, particularly the dog.

We exited from there and went to the Jungle Cruise. The wait here was posted at 30 minutes and that was about how long it took. We had a really fun guide, she was right into it and was really funny! I didn’t take any pictures, I’m not sure why

When we got off it was just about time for our FPs so we headed towards SM. I could hear the parade coming and was afraid we would be cut off but we made it across with no problem. When we got to the FP entrance, Ella was still refusing to ride. I asked the CM about the child swap so that we didn’t have to walk through even the FP line twice since both E and I wanted to ride – every minute counted at this point because of our evening plans. However child swap apparently didn’t happen up at the ride, you had to come back to the FP entrance – that didn’t really help us as we had four FPs. So Jean and I headed on and we agreed to meet near the exit. We had a lot of fun, the scenes are all so well done here and we even got to see some of the parade going by after we came down the big hill! We found E - Ella was playing in the little playground just near the exit (with mostly toddlers!). So E and Jean set off – Jean was very excited to be riding twice in a row! Apparently she told E what was coming next all through the ride and at the first couple small hills she said, don’t worry Daddy this is just a little one!

Once they were done we headed out as quickly as possible. It was 4:50 when we got back to our room – the girls were booked at the Cub’s Den at 5:15 and our ADRs at Artiste Pointe were at 5:45, yikes! I figured it was alright if the girls were a bit late to the Cub’s Den but I didn’t want to be late for dinner. We very quickly got out of our sweaty park clothes, did a quick wash and got dressed in our dinner clothes. I had planned to wear my hair down but only had time to make sure that my French braid wasn't falling out too badly, quickly threw on more eyeliner and we were off.

Luckily Wilderness Lodge is a short drive from POR. This is a beautiful resort and is stunning from both the outside and walking into the lobby. E didn’t tell me until later but apparently Ella was admiring my dress (she had helped me pick it out when shopping together a few weeks before). Jean and I were walking a little bit ahead and Ella was with E, she kept saying to him “doesn’t Mommy look so pretty in that dress – I helped her pick it out you know”. Anyways we got the girls signed into the Cub’s Den and they made their dinner selections. They were pleased that there was a Disney Princess sing-a-long movie on and settled in on the couch. I gave the caregivers our cell phone numbers and told them we were just at AP for dinner and off we went. We ended up actually being a bit early at AP and were seated almost right away. Our table was perfect; it was right at the window and looked out over the waterfall and the pool. Again, I should have taken some pics or had the server take pics of us, but I just didn't think of it

Our server was very friendly and explained everything on the menu and also made wine suggestions. We started with roasted wild boar – apparently this was new appetizer and it was amazingly tasty! I had the cedar plank salmon and E had the beef tenderloin. I enjoyed the salmon, whatever sauce it was cooked in was delicious – so much so that I actually ate all of the brussell sprouts that were also cooked in it and I’m not usually a fan of brussell sprouts! E had a taste and wasn’t as impressed although he doesn’t like sweet sauces on his meat. He did however enjoy his tenderloin, I had a taste and it was excellent. We managed to have room for dessert - I had a crème brulee and E had a mousse- both were very yummy!

When we were done I asked him if he wanted to walk around a bit but he was too tired. I did convince him however to let the Photopass photographer set up in the lobby take some pics. Unfortunately the combination of us both being exhausted (3rd day in a row with no nap ), not having time to get prettied up and the way we had to pose came out with less than flattering pics but here they are anyway

We went and picked up the girls – they were sitting on the couch watching a movie. Ummm, isn't this what you were doing when we left?! The caregivers did assure us that they had in fact gotten up and played and eaten dinner while we were gone! Ella had a cheeseburger and Jean had a pizza. They both gave the Cub’s Den a , the main reason being that they could watch movies! We made a quick stop at the WL’s gift store – I had decided that I would need a new shirt for the next day, I only had dark coloured ones left and couldn’t stand the thought of wearing a dark colour in that heat! Besides I was the only one in the family that hadn’t got anything yet I found a cute white one with Minnie Mouse on it and we were set.

We got back to POR and our room and the girls pretty much went right to bed, it had been a long day again! It was good that they got to sleep right away as our friends (we’ll call them the ‘D’ family) who we were meeting the next day called soon after and we were trying to keep this meeting a surprise for the girls.

Some background on this, the D’s had decided over the winter to come to WDW but they were keeping it a surprise for their kids, so even though E and I knew, we couldn’t tell Ella and Jean. The D’s had arrived in Orlando on Tuesday but we knew that Friday would be the best day to meet up so had planned to touch base by phone tonight. D-DW and I chatted - she didn’t realize that we hadn’t told the girls about meeting up with them so she was excited to see their surprise. Our plan had been to do whatever the D’s wanted to do in the morning and then we would spend the late afternoon/evening at Epcot. The D’s didn't have any specific plans and had not been to Epcot yet so despite there being evening EMH (so it might be more crowded than a non-EMH day) they thought it would be fun to spend the whole day with us there. So we planned to meet just inside the entrance shortly after 9am.

Next time…do we pull off the surprise?!

 

[dd50]

Sounds like you had another fabulous day. Love the pics of the girls soaking wet. That was nice that Ariel wanted to hug them even though they were wet.

 

[Angies1274]

Such cute pictures of your girls with Ariel!! and the "I like wet hugs" was so sweet!!

Splash Mountain is alot of fun!! Yay!! for Jean getting to ride twice!! I bet she was so happy!!

It sounds like you had a great dinner at Artist Point!!

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

great pictures and update!!!

What picture site do you use and how do u get them all to that same standard size?? When I do mine on photobucket they always seem to be HUGE!!!????

 

[WrightFamily06]

Another great update ! Love all the photo pass pictures ! How cute that the girls thought that they may upset Ariel if they got her wet . LOL Sounds like the dinner was great and the cubs den worked out well for you Can't wait to see how the next day at Epcot goes !

 

[ellajeansmom]

Sounds like you had another fabulous day. Love the pics of the girls soaking wet. That was nice that Ariel wanted to hug them even though they were wet.

The girls had a blast at the splash pad - it really is set up well as I could see them easily from the line and they were able to play and cool off instead of getting restless in a long line. They are both fish anyways - give them water (bath, pool, lake, sprinkler) and they're happy

I'm sure with the splash pad Ariel is used to wet kids and on hot days she's probably glad for it -even though she's in the shade that outfit does not look like it "breathes"!

Such cute pictures of your girls with Ariel!! and the "I like wet hugs" was so sweet!!

Splash Mountain is alot of fun!! Yay!! for Jean getting to ride twice!! I bet she was so happy!!

It sounds like you had a great dinner at Artist Point!!

The girls had a great meeting with Ariel, the wet hug comment just made it even more memorable!

Jean was thrilled to ride SM twice and E thought it so funny that she was telling what came next and not to worry the big hill isn't for a while yet

The dinner was excellent...the view, the service and especially the food

great pictures and update!!!

What picture site do you use and how do u get them all to that same standard size?? When I do mine on photobucket they always seem to be HUGE!!!????

Thanks! I use photobucket - to get them the same size I select the pic (click on it) and then on the new page mouse-over the pic it has options at the top, one of them being "re-size" and from that menu I choose the "large" option. Mine came out all huge in the first post I tried so I just played around in photobucket until I figured it out. Hope that helps!

Another great update ! Love all the photo pass pictures ! How cute that the girls thought that they may upset Ariel if they got her wet . LOL Sounds like the dinner was great and the cubs den worked out well for you Can't wait to see how the next day at Epcot goes !

Thank you! I was so happy when I saw the photopass pics with Ariel because mine were all blurry - I think I was holding 4 or 5 different things and trying to take the picture at the same time!

Ella was "helping" me with the photopass borders and insisted that one of the Ariel ones had to have the "Dreams come true" on it because it had been her dream to meet Ariel

Dinner was wonderful...I highly recommend not only Artiste Pointe but also doing the date night (if your kids are comfortable staying at a kid's club). It was really nice to just have a quiet meal without the constant interruptions and have an adult conversation

 

[Queenofallthings]

I'm in, now going back to ready every word....

 

[ellajeansmom]

Day 7 - May 8

Note – there’s a lack of pictures again from this morning I do seem to realize that the photo taking is lacking by evening so hang in there!

We woke the girls up a little before 8am. I kept prodding them to keep moving we had to get to Epcot. Ella kept asking why we had to get there in such a hurry, that this was supposed to be a relaxed day (in the initial planning this day had been designated as “unplanned” so we could do whatever was left undone and we all agreed by mid-week that Epcot was it). I just replied that I had a surprise that they would just have to wait to see what it was but to hurry up already!

We got to the parking lot shortly after 9 and made our way through the bag check and the gates. Knowing the D-family I figured they would be there already so as soon as we were through the turnstile I was looking for them. Unfortunately I didn’t think to have my camera out and ready So I’m scanning the crowd with Ella right beside me pushing Jean in the stroller, all of a sudden we hear a voice shouting “Ella! Ella!" Ella kind of looks around with a confused look on her face - since who on earth would be calling her name, and she thought she recognized the voice. Then all of a sudden D-DD6 was in front of us with the rest of the family a bit behind her! Ella’s face was priceless – her jaw literally dropped and she couldn’t speak. Jean was also dumbfounded but not quite as shocked as Ella. Ella recovered as D-DD6 was jumping around her and looked up at me, I was doubled over laughing but managed to say “I told you there was a surprise”! Both our girls recovered their ability to speak and all of the kids started talking at once, and so did the adults!

We quickly agreed to head for Soarin’ first and on the way heard all about how the D’s surprise went for their kids. D-DS8 had been asking for a Disney trip for a while and his reaction had been the best of the three kids when over breakfast Tuesday morning their parents had casually said, yeah you’re not going to school today, we’re going to Disney. He jumped up from the table and literally jumped all over the kitchen yelling Thank-you! Thank-you! Thank-you! D-DD6 and D-DS4 took a while to process it and just sat there with blank looks on their faces! They showed us the video, its pretty funny

By the time we got to Soarin’ it was a 40 minute wait so we grabbed FPs and I suggested we do Spaceship Earth while we waited since I had promised the girls on Sunday that we would do it again and they could do the interactive stuff at the end. While waiting in line (it was posted 10 minutes but it felt less than that) the D’s asked what we were doing for dinner - they knew we were on the dining plan and as they were staying off-property they were not and were trying to keep the food budget down. They had however planned for a few “nice” dinners and thought they would do one tonight if they could join us. I tried to call WDW Dining while in line but was on hold too long. So after the ride while the kids explored the interactive exhibits I went out to call again. As I was trying to find a spot with decent reception I realized that Guest Services was right in front of me, so while staying on hold I got in line. Guest Services beat the phone. Anyways, our ADR was at Tokyo Dining at 6:15, I asked if we could add 5 more to it or if they could give me an additional ADR for 5 people at about the same time. The best she could do was an ADR for 4 at 6pm and told me to get there 10 minutes early, explain the situation and if they could sit us together they would and that since the 5th person was a kid adding that on shouldn’t be an issue. I thanked her and went back to SE – I didn’t see any of our party outside so managed to slip back in the exit when someone else came out and found everyone.

It was taking a bit to round up all the kids and convince them to leave. Our FPs for Soarin’ were now valid so we decided that the moms would go to TT to get FPs for that while the dads finished rounding up the kids and we would meet at the entrance to the Land. D-DW and I got caught up on our WDW adventures so far as we made our way to TT, easily got the FPs, and then went back to the Land to meet the dads and kids. We made it there first and after a few minutes I called E to make sure they weren’t inside – no they were just picking up the strollers and would be right there. We were chuckling that the guys must have had trouble getting the kids out of there but they insisted it was simply that the games took a long time

We made our way through the FP line – it was still at least a 10 minute wait before we got to the pre-boarding area and it felt even longer with 5 kids bouncing around. We got on and luck was with us, we were in the front row again, and this time in the middle section. It was just as much fun the second time!

Exiting from there D-DS8 saw the line for Living with Land, it was only 5 minutes and the girls were OK with doing it again so we all got on. It was kind of neat to see it all again and find the different plants we had missed the first time.

We then headed over to see Honey I shrunk the Audience. It was OK but I thought the whole storyline was a bit contrived. The kids thought it was great though – D-DS4 kept saying “that snake was coming right at me!” and really thought he was the only one in the audience that happened to We watched the fountain outside for a little while and then our TT FPs were good so we went there.

Again the FP line was about 5 minutes to get through before getting to the pre-show part. Still much better than the 75 minutes in the stand-by line. We organized ourselves so that E, Jean and I were in one car and Ella went with the D’s in the next car. This was a fun ride – I was concerned that D-DD6 would get scared as she is not into the thrill rides but we all had a blast! I managed to swipe the picture of Ella and the D’s with our Photopass card but missed ours so I went and asked in the gift shop…they were able to find the pic and put it on my card.

The kids seemed to have just as much fun trying out all the cars in the GM showroom on the way out

It was past 1pm and we wanted to go back for a swim/rest after lunch so we decided to go to Mexico for lunch as it was somewhat close by. E had spotted a turkey leg stand and wanted to have another try at those (the first one on Sunday had sat pretty heavy but he wanted to give it another chance, this time with bread to soak up the grease) so he went to get that while the rest of us headed to Mexico. We ended up going through the butterfly garden (I’m pretty sure there’s a quicker path but I missed it) but we didn’t linger long as we were hungry and it was even hotter in the butterfly enclosure than outside, which was hot!

The D’s had brought a snack style lunch but I knew we had counter service meals left that wouldn’t get used so at Cantina de San Angel I ordered a couple of extra meal platters and we all shared burritos, quesadillas, nachos and the D’s snacks, while E showed up with his turkey leg.

We figured we had just enough time to squeeze in the Gran Fiesta Tour, which was cute. The kids thought it was really cool that it was always nighttime inside the pyramid. I’m sure we could have a spent a fair amount of time looking around the market but if Jean was going to get her nap we had to get going. We decided it was easiest to meet up with the D’s at Japan at 5:45 to see what we could do with our ADRs.

Back at POR Jean had her nap while E took Ella to get a hair wrap – she had decided this was what she wanted to spend the rest of her money on (the P girls –remember them from our first day?- had them so that had something to do with it!). Turns out it cost twice as much as she had left ($37 in total – yikes!) so she promised to pay us back the difference from her piggy bank when we got home. When they were done and Jean was awake I gave them the choice of going back to Epcot right away and trying to meet some more characters or going for a swim and then having to go straight to dinner. They choose swimming!

Of course it took longer than I anticipated to get everyone out of the pool and changed, so we were late for our meeting time with the D’s. We power-walked around WS to Japan and did see several characters as we went by UK, France and Morocco (Mary Poppins, Alice, Belle and the Beast, Aladdin and Jasmine). We didn’t see the D’s anywhere outside so went and checked inside but still didn’t see them. E and the girls waited inside while I went to look around again outside – I must have missed them coming while I was in the store since when I came out E was there saying everyone was up at the restaurant. Now that we were all there, I went to check in and to see what they could do for us. To seat all of us together it was going to be at least a 45 minute wait, but if we split up in our families it would be 10 minutes or less. So I said to seat us separately but close together if possible and got two pagers.

The D’s got seated first and we were a few minutes later, and luckily we were only a couple of tables away so the kids were able to be back and forth. We decided pretty quickly what we wanted but the D’s were still debating so I went over to see if they needed help (we love Japanese and already have our favourites but it was a new experience for the D’s). They were pretty much decided and our food all arrived in a reasonable time. It was very good – I hadn’t taken food pictures at all during the week but the Japanese presentation is always so good that we felt it worth a picture

E was very happy to be getting his sushi!

Ella was very proud to be mastering chopsticks!

As we left the restaurant the drummers were doing their show in the courtyard. They were really good and we all enjoyed watching. The D’s had done China and Norway while we had our break so the main country left that we all wanted to see was of course Canada. We walked back in that direction at a much more leisurely pace and I apparently got back into the picture-taking zone!

We checked out the store in Canada, laughing when the kids asked to get things – uh no, you can get that at home for half the price! The kids all posed for a photo with one of the totem poles

Then we went to see the movie. I really like the 360degree effect it is very cool. I had read mixed reviews of the movie but I thought it was pretty good and having Martin Shortt be the narrator adds the right amount of humour to it! We had fun all pointing out places that we had been or places where we knew people.

When we were done it was after 8pm so we figured we better start finding a spot to watch Illuminations. We found one possibility between Canada and the bridge back to Future World but were concerned that some branches overhead would block our view. We kept going but looking back we probably would have done better to just stay there. We ended up behind one of the planters at the entrance to WS figuring we could stand on the ledge of the planter when the show started. There was a gift store right there so the kids entertained themselves in there while the adults took turns holding the spot. Unfortunately when Illuminations started everyone on the front side of the planter also stood up on the ledge so the kids only ended up seeing the high fireworks. Jean and I moved over a little bit and we were able to see some of the globe part of the show through the crowd. Oh well, add it to the list of to do's for next time

After the show we said our goodbyes to the D’s and they headed out. Epcot had EMH that night so we considered doing a ride or two but we were all pretty tired. We stopped at Mouse Gear to pick up some souvenirs but it was so crowded that we decided we would get what we wanted at DD the next morning. We stopped for one last Photopass on the way out

Back at POR we got the girls in bed and I started to get packed. My original plan had been to be ready to check-out when we left for our ‘Ohana breakfast and spend our last couple of hours at MK but we decided it would be less stressful to just come back to the room, finish packing and make a stop at DD on the way to the airport. So I was also soon in bed!

Next time…our last day.

 

[ellajeansmom]

I'm in, now going back to ready every word....

to a fellow Canadian and thanks for joining! Looks like you have a trip coming very soon...you must be very excited!

 

[dd50]

Sounds like you had a another great day. I can't wait to go to Epcot. I haven't been there in about 10 years.

 

[WrightFamily06]

Great update ! Sounds like you had a really nice day at Epcot with your friends and great meal in Japan also Sorry to hear that your trip is coming to an end , I've really enjoyed reading along !

 

[Angies1274]

Ahhh...what a great surprise for your girls, when your friend's showed up.

Yay!! for getting the front row of Soarin' and twice too!!

Beautiful Photpass pictures in Epcot!! After seeing all your great photopass pictures, I can't wait to go back and get some of our own.

Oh no...your last day? Now I'm sad that your TR is coming to end!!! I've really enjoyed reading it!!

 

[Lost in Wonderland]

I just love reading all about your family trip. The girls are precious. Their princess makeovers were sooo cute. Thanks for sharing your experience and tips. I can't wait for our first family trip in a few weeks.
On to find out if the surprise was a success! Oh the suspense

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

oh no! Last Day That mean's that you need to start another TR right??!!!! It's for the best I believe!!!!!

 

[Queenofallthings]

to a fellow Canadian and thanks for joining! Looks like you have a trip coming very soon...you must be very excited!

Thanks for the welcome. I finished reading your report this morning and I am LOVING it. The pictures of the girls ar BBB actaully brought a tear to my eye...I wish they had that when my DD16 was little....but I was able to enjoy watching my oldest niece experience it

We are very very very excited about our trip We are fortunate enough to be going for 3 weeks....probably our last yearly trip as DD in going into grade 12 in Sep and that mean University next year....so much for a WDW vacation now that there is that to pay for

Can't wait to read more....

 

[ellajeansmom]

Hi everyone! Thank you for all the wonerful comments

Just wanted to let everyone know that there will be a brief hiatus as we will be away for the next week or so - some relaxing cottage time and some camping on Manitoulin Island! When we get back I will be posting our last day and "final thoughts" - and if anyone is interested I could go a little off topic and report on next week's mini-adventure

 

[ellajeansmom]

Sounds like you had a another great day. I can't wait to go to Epcot. I haven't been there in about 10 years.

I wish we could have spent more time in Epcot, I really enjoyed what we saw but there was a lot that we didn't get to. I'm sure you'll love it

Great update ! Sounds like you had a really nice day at Epcot with your friends and great meal in Japan also Sorry to hear that your trip is coming to an end , I've really enjoyed reading along !

Thanks! It was really nice to spend the day with our friends and great for the girls to have other kids to talk to after being each other's only playmates for a week

Ahhh...what a great surprise for your girls, when your friend's showed up.

Yay!! for getting the front row of Soarin' and twice too!!

Beautiful Photpass pictures in Epcot!! After seeing all your great photopass pictures, I can't wait to go back and get some of our own.

Oh no...your last day? Now I'm sad that your TR is coming to end!!! I've really enjoyed reading it!!

I was thrilled that we pulled off the surprise - I still laugh every time I think about the look on Ella's face

Soarin' is amazing, but I think we're spoiled now by getting front row both times!

I am so pleased with the photopass pics, I wish now I had made an effort to find more of the photographers instead of just grabbing them in the usual spots - oh well, note to self for the next time

I just love reading all about your family trip. The girls are precious. Their princess makeovers were sooo cute. Thanks for sharing your experience and tips. I can't wait for our first family trip in a few weeks.
On to find out if the surprise was a success! Oh the suspense

Thanks! The BBB was definitely a highlight of the trip and I recommend it for any little girl who likes to dress up - although the new pirate makeover sounds fun too

oh no! Last Day That mean's that you need to start another TR right??!!!! It's for the best I believe!!!!!

Unfortunately it will be a while before we get back to WDW - partly because my brother finally proposed to his long-time girlfriend last month and they are getting married next summer in Ireland, which we are all thrilled about but it eats up a lot of the travel budget! We have promised the girls that we will be back to WDW sometime though

Thanks for the welcome. I finished reading your report this morning and I am LOVING it. The pictures of the girls ar BBB actaully brought a tear to my eye...I wish they had that when my DD16 was little....but I was able to enjoy watching my oldest niece experience it

We are very very very excited about our trip We are fortunate enough to be going for 3 weeks....probably our last yearly trip as DD in going into grade 12 in Sep and that mean University next year....so much for a WDW vacation now that there is that to pay for

Can't wait to read more....

I think you have already left on your trip, hope you have a wonderful time - and for 3 weeks , can't wait to read all about it...I'm curious to know how Canucks handle the infamous Florida summer humidity!


I hope to get our last day posted later this evening...