Gimmie Some Food & Wine Annual Oct Trip UPDATED!! Pics Of DD's Bday Trip

[karebear23]

Hello! I have to admit....I am one of THOSE lurkers. But I'm trying to break out of my lurker mode and be more active on the dis!

So I decided to start a PTR.

Here is the cast for our upcoming trip:

A family picture...with our not so distant cousin goofy

DH Dave the NON Disney lover...he just doesn't get it.

DD Emilie (4yrs) & DS Alex (2 1/2yrs)

My father (aka Pop Pop) with cousin Goofy & DD.

My Mother (aka Grandma) and her new friend. She just met Brer Fox on Thursday. I can't figure out his future world connection ???

Oh and me! I'm Karen mama of 2 and Disney nut!

Our trip is booked for October 3rd-10th. We are staying off property. My parents own a timeshare with Marriott. So that means my family gets to stay in Orlando once a year for free !

 

[karebear23]

Well let see where to start. My disney obsession started young with watching movies & the disney channel when we got cable!
I love watching the Mickey Mouse Club and was obsessed with The Party. I still have their tapes (yes I still listen to them)!

My 1st trip did not happen until 1990. I was 10 years old. Another reason we went that year was the opening of Universal.
My parents let me plan the whole trip. I checked out every Disney World book from the library. Read every part and planned our entire itinerary.


The trip was wonderful and I was just checking out some video from it they other day. If I can I will post some video and pics from then. I'm not sure if I want to share my ridiculous 90's outfits with everyone . Let me say that neon pink and green were very cool then!!!

After that trip we went about every 3 years...1993, 1996, 2000.
And then I think in 2002. Then a dry spell..

But alas we are very lucky. We actually live close to WDW about 80 miles. My parents moved down to FL to retire in 2005. Hubby & I soon followed when I was pregnant with DD.

In 2008 we bought passes to WDW and have been going as often as possible.

So in this PTR there will not be much planning...since we go pretty often we will just wing it. One this is a must is Food & Wine of course!

Last year at F&W I didn't get much food...and I had no wine . It was too darn hot and my kids were needing too much attention .

This year will be different!

 

[karebear23]

Ok so as I said before we are sort of winging it...
This is only sort of true. Here are the plans so far for our trip

Sunday- We will leave in the morning and drive over to Orlando.
Shopping at the outlets and maybe taking the kids to Monkey Joe's to play in the inflatable houses & slides.
Have lunch at Sweet Tomato!
Check into the resort, get settled, eat dinner, and play in the pool.
Early to bed so we can make rope drop in the morning!

Monday
Make rope drop at Epcot.
Must do's: Soarin
Nemo
The Land
Spaceship Earth
Mexico Gran Fiesta Tour
Enjoy & explore world showcase.
Possibly in the evening see the MSEP & fireworks and do a few rides at MK.


Tuesday
Get up and make our 8:10 ADR at Crystal Palace!!!
Must do's: BTMRR
Barnstormer
See Tiana & Naveen & Tinkerbell
Dumbo
Pooh
Magic Carpets
Peter Pan
Carousel
and whatever else the kids want to ride
Meet with Pop Pop & Grandma's friends at Epcot later in the day. Enjoy F&W!
Hopefully watch Illuminations.

Wednesday
Today is Pop Pop's Birthday!
So we will make rope drop at DHS
Must do's: TSM
Playhouse Disney Live
Picture with McQueen & Mater
Beauty & the Beast
Lights, Motors, Action
Maybe Rock N Roller Coaster & TOT for me and DH

Thursday
Animal Kingdom rope drop!
Must do's: Kilimanjaro Safaris
Maybe EE for just me & DH
TriceraTop Spin
Rafiki's Planet Watch
Lion King
Nemo
Exploring the trails
Fantasmic at DHS

Friday
No plans just to do whatever we missed

Saturday
Hang out at the resort & shopping!!

Sunday
Checkout
Visit Downtown Disney before we drive home

I didn't put any meals...well because I don't have any ADR's. We will mostly eat at our resort since we have a kitchen. At the parks if we get food it will be QS. Of course lots of snacking at F&W .

 

[TyRy]

Great way to come out of lurkdom! I have one of those DH's too - although he is being dragged back again this year, it'll probably be it for a couple of years before he goes back.

Your plans look really good...maybe one of these days we won't have so many ADR's and will be able to wing it a bit more. Look forward to hearing more.

 

[karebear23]

Great way to come out of lurkdom! I have one of those DH's too - although he is being dragged back again this year, it'll probably be it for a couple of years before he goes back.

Your plans look really good...maybe one of these days we won't have so many ADR's and will be able to wing it a bit more. Look forward to hearing more.

Yeah I'm not writing to myself anymore!! Who else is lurking out there???

Yeah my DH usually doesn't come along but he is being dragged this year. Crowds, heat, and waiting are not his favorite! He went on DD's bday this year and for a few days in Jan. This is the 1st year he will actually be going with us for a week. I hope he survives!!

I wish we could have more ADR's! But my parents pay for almost everything (joy of being an only child!). It does get expensive for 6 people! So we try to make most of our meals. We will eat out...but more off property than on.

 

[karebear23]

So here are 2 video clips from our trip in 1990.
Nothing too exciting...warning my dad was not the best with a video camera

1st clip shows a bit of Frontierland and Country Bears

2nd cilp-Fireworks from fantasyland. You can see the skyway going by.
A small clip of a stage show and the Electrical parade.

There is a lot of video from 1990...but most is kind of boring. He taped all of the rides. Kind of interesting how things have changed but are still sort of the same.

Will post some more later

 

[karebear23]

So here is a picture of our countdown calendar

 

[karebear23]

Here are some pictures of our last visit. It was only DD & I. We went to see the MSEP & Summer Nightastic fireworks.

Our "must do" on this trip was BTMRR. The visit before was on DD's bday and we didn't get to ride since the wait was too long. She was very disappointed since it would be her 1st ride.

Here she is on the monorail...

I promise she was really happy to be there! She just did not want me to take her picture this day .

As soon as we got to MK we went for a fast pass!

out in front of BTMRR

The we went off to see the Country Bears. This was another 1st for her. She really enjoyed it.

Then off for a ride on the magic carpets!

After that we got a popsicle while waiting for our FP time.

Finally it was time for us to get in line!
We had a short wait!

here she is in line right before we got on!

 

[karebear23]

Well she had a blast on BTMRR! I was very suprised because she was putting her hands up in the air. Very brave little girl. Of course I was holding on to her tightly! I thought she was going to slip right under that lap bar!

Next we headed over to Fantasyland. Teacups are a favorite of ours...of course we can't spin it fast enough .

After the tea cups she decided she had to visit her favorite character's house!

continued in next post

 

[karebear23]

After Minnie's House we ate dinner at Cosmic Ray's.

After dinner she wanted to do Buzz Lightear. I tried to talk to her into going on the TTA but she didn't want to.

Of course after getting in the line for Buzz she had to go to the BATHROOM NOW! So we dashed out of line and ran to the nearest bathroom.

We went back over toward Buzz lightyear but the line was even longer and it was getting darker and closer to MSEP time.

So we hopped on the TTA...

Everything was going well until we went inside the Buzz and SM. She started to freak out in the dark. She kept saying that something bad was going to pop out! So luckily I carry a little light for them and I broke it out. She still was a little leary of it being so dark...but was much better.

After the scary ride on TTA we took at spin over on the carrousel

 

[BrooklynnsMommy]

Great start. Love the countdown calendar and your kids are cuties! Brooklynn loves BTMRR and says it is her favorite ride.

 

[YukiPhnx]

I'm here for the ride!

Wow...it must be really cool to live so close to WDW! You don't have to worry about transportation costs that much.

Your daughter is absolutely lovely. So brave for a little girl her age!

 

[MeMom]

So here is a picture of our countdown calendar

Very cute.
Must be so nice to just go whenever you want.

Brooklynn loves BTMRR and says it is her favorite ride.

I think she called it the crazy choo-choo when we were driving home from Atlanta Sunday.

 

[karebear23]

Great start. Love the countdown calendar and your kids are cuties! Brooklynn loves BTMRR and says it is her favorite ride.

Thanks I think I'm addicted to taking the mickey head paint colors! I have a whole stack of them sitting here...that I didn't use for that calender.
You girls are adorable too! I think Emilie would love Brooklynn & Bella. Her favorite rides are Soarin & BTMRR. She told me she wants to ride Soarin 7 times when we go...we are going to need lots of FP!

I'm here for the ride!

Wow...it must be really cool to live so close to WDW! You don't have to worry about transportation costs that much.

Your daughter is absolutely lovely. So brave for a little girl her age!

It is nice to live close. Everyday I wake up I have an incredible urge to drive over to WDW. I would if I had all that extra gas money!!!

And I must confess my husband told me he wanted to move closer to his siblings in Ohio. I told him no way...I didn't want to be that far from WDW. I did agree only to move if he bought us a condo near WDW . He thinks I'm .

She is pretty brave for 4. I'm not sure if I would have rode BTMRR at that age. She is not as brave as Brooklynn. She won't try Dinosaur like her!

 

[karebear23]

Very cute.
Must be so nice to just go whenever you want.

I think she called it the crazy choo-choo when we were driving home from Atlanta Sunday.

Thanks MeMom.

Yes it is...but I have to admit I don't think I could go during the summer like you all did! It's too hot and crowded.
I'm spoiled now. I like January when it's nice and cool...and hardly any wait!

Not sure how that is going to work out when DD starts kindergarten...I can take her out of school for disney right ?

Yes the crazy choo-choo! DS is obsessed with trains...and he wants to ride it so bad. He is about 2" shy of 40". Oh well daddy is going to have to take him on an extra Dumbo ride to make up for it!

 

[karebear23]

After the spin on the carrousel I decided to head on over to get a dole whip. I wanted to get one and a spot for the parade. This was the parade I remember seeing on my 1st trip to WDW.

Well of course the line was barely moving and took forever to get our ice cream. So off we went to find a spot for the parade. We ended up in frontierland. I really wanted to be on main street...it was getting late.

We found a spot and of course more people SQUEEZED in next to us as time ticked on.
Here are the few pictures I took...they didn't turn out so well.
Tink

Alice

Cinderella

Pince Charming & Step Sisters

Peter Pan & Hook

Emilie is the best to see parade's & fireworks with...
She just loves them. Everything is oooohhh & aaaahhh...look it's so beautiful...magical!

 

[karebear23]

Then we rushed over to find a spot for the fireworks. It was super crowded!
We found a spot in front of the castle. I put her on my back so she could see over everyone.

She loves the castle lit up! I do too!

The fireworks were amazing! And there was the usual stampede out of MK.
We went through the Emporium to get out of the crowd. We stopped for a bathroom break before we left the park.

I did have my umbrealla stroller with me...it was a blessing and a curse. Getting through the crowd is a pain with a stroller. I decided to take the ferry it seems to move faster than the monorail.

We had a problem getting throught the turnstile before the ferry (note to self stroller will not fit through unfolded). At least I wasn't the only one with a stroller stuck in the turnstile .
Everyone was having problems getting through since the turnstile just snuck up on us. We couldn't see it until we got to it.

After we got through the turstile she fell asleep in the stroller and we were one the ferry back to the TTC. This is why I brought the stroller I didn't want to have to carry her if she fell asleep.

I drove straight home...although I really wanted some coffee to keep me awake!
She woke up when we got home and was so excited to tell dad about her ride on BTMRR. Then into bed we went! It was a great night with my little girl .

 

[MommyMcQueen]

Hi Karen! Joining in!

YEAH for 2 Weeks!!!

Your day plans look really good! We didn't do any ADRs either, just did counter service meals and that worked really well for us.

Can't wait to hear more!

Karen

 

[jc040404]

So excited that you started a PTR! I can't wait to read all about your trip!

Sucks that your DH isn't so into the Disney thing. That seems to be common on here and makes me soo thankful mine loves it. I'm glad you still go without him. I did my first Disney Day without mine this week... with both kiddos! It went amazingly well. I may try to do it more often.

Loved the videos and your mini-TR about your last visit! Can't wait to read all about your plans! What CS are your favorites? I know what you mean about not really having a bunch of planning to do though.

 

[karebear23]

Hi Karen! Joining in!

YEAH for 2 Weeks!!!

Your day plans look really good! We didn't do any ADRs either, just did counter service meals and that worked really well for us.

Can't wait to hear more!

Karen

Thanks for joining! I think we are alike with the eating. I read your PTR and your reasons. We hardly eat out with the kids...it's to stressful for me! DD is ok...but DS won't sit still for very long. When he is done he wants down. So QS is usually the best for us. Maybe in another year he will do better and we can sit down and have a nice meal!

So excited that you started a PTR! I can't wait to read all about your trip!

Sucks that your DH isn't so into the Disney thing. That seems to be common on here and makes me soo thankful mine loves it. I'm glad you still go without him. I did my first Disney Day without mine this week... with both kiddos! It went amazingly well. I may try to do it more often.

Loved the videos and your mini-TR about your last visit! Can't wait to read all about your plans! What CS are your favorites? I know what you mean about not really having a bunch of planning to do though.

Yes he is a party pooper! He just hates crowds, waiting in line, and the heat doesn't help. So I usually just go with my parents. We have more fun without him !

My mom and I like CHH and Cosmic Rays. But the guys like Pecos Bills.

At Epcot I love Tangerine Cafe...and just to snack on everything.

I don't think we have a favorite CS at HS or AK yet. I do like Kusafiri Coffee for a cupcake . Sometimes we pack PB&J for the kids.

Well off to get DD ready for school.
Your brave to go without DH. I really want to go once before October. But I would have to do it by myself. I think I can do it?
More to come later!