Gotta Perfect That Hula - A July 2010 PTR - UPDATED 8/3 - I STARTED THE TR!!!!

[Nermel9]

Awww that shirt is so cute!!!

I say wear the headband ears and the shirt, it's Disney World, it's probably the only place you can do that!

 

[MarieTheCat24]

the new tee! It is adorable!

I'm really excited to wear it!!

I love Delia's! I just about got that shirt...I still might have to..if you don't mind.

Buy it! I don't know how you've been able to resist its amazingness so far!!

Your new shirt is so cute, I love Minnie Delia's has some good stuff!

I love Minnie, too. Despite what my user-name might lead people to believe, Minnie will always be my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE Disney character. I mean, we just go way back...I've known her since I was 4.

Awww that shirt is so cute!!!

I say wear the headband ears and the shirt, it's Disney World, it's probably the only place you can do that!

I totally will. Assuming I remember to pack my headband. I should probably just throw it in my suitcase now to make sure I don't forget.

 

[wdwgirl03]

hahaha, I love Glee. That line about Mr. Schuester's hair was great. I can't wait for that show to be back on...

Your plans look great!

 

[MarieTheCat24]

hahaha, I love Glee. That line about Mr. Schuester's hair was great. I can't wait for that show to be back on...

Your plans look great!

I know! It's been a week and I miss it already. But at least it's one week closer to new episodes (and my trip)!!!

 

[jenbear123]

Let me just say right now you are an awesome writer. You had me at the mention of Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Finally a Beatles fan who realizes there is more to this band than Abbey Road.

Before I knew it, I hit "subscribe to Thread" and am along for the ride.

Your philosophy of just being yourself is great. Made me think of one of my favourite quote:

"Why try to fit in when you were born to stand out?"

I'm still catching up so expect more from me soon!

 

[MarieTheCat24]

Let me just say right now you are an awesome writer. You had me at the mention of Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Finally a Beatles fan who realizes there is more to this band than Abbey Road.

Before I knew it, I hit "subscribe to Thread" and am along for the ride.

Your philosophy of just being yourself is great. Made me think of one of my favourite quote:

"Why try to fit in when you were born to stand out?"

I'm still catching up so expect more from me soon!

Thanks for joining, girl!!

I love that quote. For my high school yearbook, all of the seniors had to pick a quote to go with their senior pictures. I, of course, picked one of my favorite quotes of all time from the wonderful Dr. Seuss...

"Be who you are, and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind."

It's kinda my life philosophy.

 

[MarieTheCat24]

Alright, my dear readers. Here are the last 2 days of "plans". I'm using that word loosely because it's more like a bunch of pictures and stories. But I am "planning" on doing it all again. So maybe that does make it a "plan"?

Anyway....

July 27th: Last Full Day at WDW!!!
The 27th is our last full day in the parks. Last full days are always so bittersweet. You want to make it the most fun day ever because you’ll be leaving tomorrow, but at the same time, it’s hard to be completely excited because you know you’ll be leaving tomorrow. A catch-22 at its finest.

My family has a few LAST FULL DAY traditions, the first being that we MUST go to the Magic Kingdom on the last full day. It’s absolute. Set in stone. There is no wavering from that plan. Ever. As much as I love the other parks (Epcot especially) the Magic Kingdom IS Disney. It’s magical. And I NEED to absorb as much magic as possible before we leave! It's gotta last me a full year!

Some things we will definitely do on the LAST FULL DAY:
-Ride the usual MK attractions (ie: the Mountains, HM, Pirates, etc.)
-Let my sister kill us both on the Tomorrowland Speedway

A couple years ago, my sister and I decided it would be fun to ride this silly little attraction. We hadn't been on it in YEARS because, well, the line is always MASSIVE and, frankly, driving a car on a track doesn't appeal to us anymore. But I must say, we had a pretty darn good time.

Who wouldn't have fun with this menace behind the wheel?

She had the hardest time keeping the car straight. As you can see from this picture's blurriness, our ride was a constant "Ooops we're too far left! Let me attempt to straighten it out. Oh, wait now we're too far right! I'll straighten it out. Oh, shoot now we're too far left again!" I was dying laughing.

-Dinner at Whispering Canyon Café:

I’m super excited for this meal. We’ve eaten here once before, and it will be nice to go back and visit the Wilderness Lodge. I’m pretty sure I’ve mentioned this before, but just in case I haven’t, we stayed at the WL on our last two trips. It’s a gorgeous resort. Definitely my second favorite (only behind the Polynesian). I’m looking forward to hanging out in the lobby for a little while.

I love these lamps! Maybe I can buy one for my art-deco MGM-inspired house...A giant western-themed chandellier wouldn't seem too out of place.

I also LOVE this fireplace!! And the rocking chairs at the base of it. I could sit there for hours.

-Ride the Mad Tea Party at night…and spin so fast that I get sick.

It’s kind of become tradition that my sister and I have to take at least one spin on the Mad Tea Party at night. I mean, spinning yourself silly is WAY more fun at night! And it looks so pretty at night!

Last summer, my sister and I discovered that one of the tea cups spun WAY faster than the rest. It was ridiculously fast. We were standing in line for a bit, so we got to watch a couple of ride cycles, and every time, regardless of who was in the tea cup, this thing spun like no other. So of course my sister, being the thrill seeker that she is, insisted that we ride in that tea cup.

Never again.

It was insane. I could barely stand up and walk off of the ride. I probably looked drunk out of my mind the way I was stumbling. I swore I’d never ride again.

But low and behold, I found myself getting back on the ride on the condition that I ride with my little cousin who hates spinning...And isn’t freakishly strong like my sister.

My sis somehow coerced my other cousin into a ride on the INSANE Tea Cup. So I, of course, documented the ride. I was convinced one of them was going to puke.

Before the ride:

After the ride:

Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately, depending how you look at it) there was no puking. But the dizziness is pretty evident in the way my sis is death-gripping the tea cup.

-Nighttime Main Street Pictures
Nighttime Main Street pictures are a staple of any Last Full Day. Mainly because I’m trying my hardest not to leave. You all know what I mean, I’m sure.

July 28th: Last Day at WDW
Our last day at WDW begins with us frantically trying to pack up our room, getting everything in the car, and STILL making it over to the MK for Rope Drop. We've gotten pretty good at this over the years. It helps that nobody really tries to pack neatly. It's more like stuff everything into your bag.

I'm not entirely sure why, but on the last morning, my dad always insists on taking pictures of our packed up room. And the people sitting in it.

I'm not sure why we're watching the OkGo music video for Here It Goes Again. I don't even know what channel it would have been on.

Oh, and you can kinda see my sweet Alice in Wonderland bag that I always use to hold stuff in the car on the ride down. I got that bag a few years ago, and I LOVE it. I have a blanket and my trip report notebook shoved in it!

Once we make it over to the MK, breakfast at the Main Street Bakery is our first order of business. It's a last day tradition.

Then we head back to Frontierland for one last spin on Big Thunder Mountain. It's my favorite ride...I could never leave without riding it one more time. And as you can see, depsite what most people seem to think, even in July it can still have 5 minute waits. The more you know...

After "the wildest ride in the Wilderness" we usually hop on the train and head over to Toontown. This will probably be our last visit to Toontown before it gets torn down. I'm not sure exactly when construction starts, but I'm assuming it will have started before we make it back to WDW.

Toontown holds a special place in my family's hearts because of one thing...

Fake Mickey Mouse-shaped Pumpkins.

You're probably thinking they're not that special, right? Well, those pumpkins have become our "picture spot". We have pictures of my sister and I in front of them from each of our trips. Literally every trip from when we were little kids to now. And they are all framed and hanging on the "Disney wall" in our living room.

But maybe it's good that the pumpkins are going away. In a way, it's kind of symbollic. My sister turned 18 last month and will be going off to college in the fall, so neither of us are (technically) kids anymore. We can close the book on our childhood with one last pumpkin pic, and then find a new picture spot to use for our "adult" WDW memories.

So here's our pumpkin picture from last summer. I can't believe I'm posting this because it is a HORRIBLE, TERRIBLE picture, but the good ones are on our desktop computer, and I don't feel like going up there to get them. So you can have this one where my sister and I barely look like ourselves. And I look like a mess because I was super hormonal (TMI, I know) and was in a bad mood because we were leaving, so I threw on my sis's softball t-shirt. But this year I will definitely try to look more presentable for the LAST. PUMPKIN. PIC. EVER.

After we've had our last dose of MK magic, we head back to the resort, say goodbye, and get in the car and drive to Downtown Disney for some shopping and lunch.

I had never noticed the Mickey heads in this sign until right now. Weird. I'm normally good at spotting them.

It is imperative that we stop here and buy a Disney christmas ornament or two. Or five. We collect ornaments from all of our family vacations.

We also ALWAYS stop at Goofy's Candy Co for a quick treat. And, of course, we stop at the World of Disney. I love that store!

Then we enjoy our final "Disney" meal at the Earl of Sandwich. I know that a lot of people recommend eating at Wolfgang Puck Express, and I do really want to try it, but I'm a Cancer, a creature of habit, so we will probably end up dining with the Earl again. Not that that's a bad thing...The Earl NEVER disappoints.

After we stuff our faces, it's time to go back to the car and start the 2 hour drive to my grandma's house near Clearwater Beach. We always go stay with her for a while after leaving Disney. It's nice to just relax and float around on a raft in her pool for a few days before heading back home. I have tons of GORGEOUS pictures from the beach, but I think I'll save those for another update.

Passing this sign is always so sad! But at the same time, the fact that it's so Disney always makes me smile.

So that's it...A rough "itinerary" of our entire trip. I always wish that we could stay for like 9 or 10 days, but as the Rolling Stones say, you can't always get what you want. My parents can't take off that many days of work. And they hate boarding our dog for too long. But ultimately it's not the length of the trip that matters. I'm just grateful that we get to go to WDW every year. I don't know what I'd do without our annual trip! Probably cry. A lot. Because I am 5 years old on the inside.

Thanks for reading!

 

[disneydreamingdebby]

Love your pictorial plan! We haven't been enough to have a must do before leaving. I've let my daughters each pick a last ride, and we've gone to MK and Epcot. Okay really, I went to MK with them while DH took care of luggage. Then, we met, I headed to AKL to purchase the flamigos that they wanted (that were not ANYWHERE else on property) and met them at Epcot.

Maybe we will establish a ritual to be followed for future annual trips.

 

[MarieTheCat24]

Love your pictorial plan! We haven't been enough to have a must do before leaving. I've let my daughters each pick a last ride, and we've gone to MK and Epcot. Okay really, I went to MK with them while DH took care of luggage. Then, we met, I headed to AKL to purchase the flamigos that they wanted (that were not ANYWHERE else on property) and met them at Epcot.

Maybe we will establish a ritual to be followed for future annual trips.

I've found that sometimes the best rituals just happen naturally. I mean, we didn't set out to take a pumpkin picture every year, but then after we realized that we had, it became something we absolutely had to do. Or we didn't intend to make the Magic Kingdom a Last Day tradition, but after going on the last day for a few trips in a row, I can't imagine doing anything else.

Your family will definitely start to make some traditions of your own...even if you might not realize it yet.

 

[Cat0727]

Aww last full days and last days are so sad But it looks like you have a lot of great things planned!

The teacups look SO fun at night! I have to try that next trip (lol, my list of "i have to try and do this and that" is getting longer and longer by the minute!)

I know what you mean. I've been meaning to try WPE so bad but we always end up going back to Earl I think we need to visit DTD more than once during our trip.

 

[__disneygirl]

Isn't it strange how we all have certain things we do on the first/last day? Yours is quite involved LOL. Usually I obsessively make a list of things that we meant to come back and do, but didn't, and then we end up hitting all 4 parks in a day. But usually the last moments are spent at MK. During my solo trip AKA the Solo Mess, I didn't get to go to MK last... and it just felt weird. Anyway, OMG your trip is getting so close... i'm soo jealous!!

Oh and I LOVE THE MICKEY PUMPKINS TOO. We didn't even go to ToonTown on our April trip. I hope it's still open in Oct but I doubt it!

 

[Nermel9]

Awww that pumpkin picture is cute! I love that tradition that your family has, most people have to take a picture in front of the castle or Spaceship Earth, I bet no one else HAS to take pictures in front of Mickey shaped pumpkins!

I have to buy an ornament every time I go to Disney too...my goal is to have a Disney tree someday. Last November I went SO overboard with the ornaments...I have a feeling this year I will too!

I also want to try WPE, but I'm like you, I love Earl of Sandwich, I know it's good, so I always go there. Multiple times, if possible!

Oh, and I'm terrified of those teacups...I don't know why, I'm not prone to motion sickness, but something about those teacups freak me out...just looking at them makes me feel sick. I'd like to try them someday, though, especially since I love Alice in Wonderland so much! Love your pics from that ride!

 

[MarieTheCat24]

Aww last full days and last days are so sad But it looks like you have a lot of great things planned!

The teacups look SO fun at night! I have to try that next trip (lol, my list of "i have to try and do this and that" is getting longer and longer by the minute!)

I know what you mean. I've been meaning to try WPE so bad but we always end up going back to Earl I think we need to visit DTD more than once during our trip.

The teacups are really fun at night. They're fun during the day, but they're extra magical at night. And they just look so pretty all lit up. I'm a sucker for bright, shiny things.

The Earl is just old reliable. He never lets ya down.

Isn't it strange how we all have certain things we do on the first/last day? Yours is quite involved LOL. Usually I obsessively make a list of things that we meant to come back and do, but didn't, and then we end up hitting all 4 parks in a day. But usually the last moments are spent at MK. During my solo trip AKA the Solo Mess, I didn't get to go to MK last... and it just felt weird. Anyway, OMG your trip is getting so close... i'm soo jealous!!

Oh and I LOVE THE MICKEY PUMPKINS TOO. We didn't even go to ToonTown on our April trip. I hope it's still open in Oct but I doubt it!

When I went with my high school orchestra, we spent our last Disney day at Epcot (our last day in Orlando was at Islands of Adventure) and it felt really weird. I absolutely adore Epcot, but the last day is supposed to be spent at the Magic Kingdom. The last "park" memory from the trip is supposed to be walking down Main St and through the train station. That's just the way the world works. Or at least the way my world works.

And I KNOW!!! Only a little over a month. I'm freaking out!! I can't shut up about the trip. I'm pretty sure if my friends hear me say "Disney" or "Polynesian" one more time, they are going to smack me. I really don't know how they put up with me.

I hope Toontown is still open when you go...October is pretty close...I feel like Disney would have announced something if it was closing before then.

Awww that pumpkin picture is cute! I love that tradition that your family has, most people have to take a picture in front of the castle or Spaceship Earth, I bet no one else HAS to take pictures in front of Mickey shaped pumpkins!

I have to buy an ornament every time I go to Disney too...my goal is to have a Disney tree someday. Last November I went SO overboard with the ornaments...I have a feeling this year I will too!

I also want to try WPE, but I'm like you, I love Earl of Sandwich, I know it's good, so I always go there. Multiple times, if possible!

Oh, and I'm terrified of those teacups...I don't know why, I'm not prone to motion sickness, but something about those teacups freak me out...just looking at them makes me feel sick. I'd like to try them someday, though, especially since I love Alice in Wonderland so much! Love your pics from that ride!

I know, right? Maybe we are the only family in the whole entire world that takes mandatory pumpkin pics. I should ask Disney to send us one of the pumpkins when they knock Toontown down...It would look wonderful in our backyard.

I have a bit of a Christmas ornament addiction as is, but when you add Disney to the mix...I'm in heaven. Every single ornament is just so cute!

You NEED to try the teacups. It's not as bad when you're on them, as long as you don't spin too much. Especially if you just focus on the person you're riding with and don't try to look around you much. It's when you look around a lot that the dizziness sets in. Or at least for me that's how it is.

 

[__disneygirl]

When I went with my high school orchestra, we spent our last Disney day at Epcot (our last day in Orlando was at Islands of Adventure) and it felt really weird. I absolutely adore Epcot, but the last day is supposed to be spent at the Magic Kingdom. The last "park" memory from the trip is supposed to be walking down Main St and through the train station. That's just the way the world works. Or at least the way my world works.

And I KNOW!!! Only a little over a month. I'm freaking out!! I can't shut up about the trip. I'm pretty sure if my friends hear me say "Disney" or "Polynesian" one more time, they are going to smack me. I really don't know how they put up with me.

I hope Toontown is still open when you go...October is pretty close...I feel like Disney would have announced something if it was closing before then.

I AGREE so much! Twins! Especially this: The last "park" memory from the trip is supposed to be walking down Main St and through the train station.

Boy did I move SLOW back in April when walking down Main St for the last time. SIGH!!!!! You'll read about that moment in my TR approx 7 years from now.

I also can relate... right before our trip, we brought my cousins to the zoo and I could not stop comparing the crappy zoo to Disney, as if there was any comparison. Everyone was so annoyed at me. Then a bird pooped on my head (seriously) which I guess I deserved. WHATEVER, I was excited!

 

[MarieTheCat24]

I AGREE so much! Twins! Especially this: The last "park" memory from the trip is supposed to be walking down Main St and through the train station.

Boy did I move SLOW back in April when walking down Main St for the last time. SIGH!!!!! You'll read about that moment in my TR approx 7 years from now.

I also can relate... right before our trip, we brought my cousins to the zoo and I could not stop comparing the crappy zoo to Disney, as if there was any comparison. Everyone was so annoyed at me. Then a bird pooped on my head (seriously) which I guess I deserved. WHATEVER, I was excited!

7 years from now? I'm looking forward to it.

When I saw Toy Story 3 last night, the theater we were at had new carpets rolled up, just sitting there in the middle of the hallway where everyone could see them. They were kind of haphazardly covered in plastic like they tried to cover them up, but didn't really try that hard. The first thing out of my mouth was "Disney WOULD NOT do this." I got three "Seriously, Kara? You're ridic. Why are we friends with you?" looks from my friends in return. But it's true. Disney WOULD NOT do that.

 

[NikkiLovesWDW!]

7 years from now? I'm looking forward to it.

When I saw Toy Story 3 last night, the theater we were at had new carpets rolled up, just sitting there in the middle of the hallway where everyone could see them. They were kind of haphazardly covered in plastic like they tried to cover them up, but didn't really try that hard. The first thing out of my mouth was "Disney WOULD NOT do this." I got three "Seriously, Kara? You're ridic. Why are we friends with you?" looks from my friends in return. But it's true. Disney WOULD NOT do that.

I do that all the time! Almost like a WWWD? I am often heard saying things like, "You'd never see that in Disney!" The worst was last summer when we went to Great Adventure (the 6 flags in NJ) and Robin (of Batman and Robin) asked me for the time. Seriously. Aladdin would NEVER break character like that! And I also passed some cat lady and, who I think was the Riddler chatting it up like they were old pals. Literally just BSing on the street. NEVER in WDW would you see such a thing!

 

[MarieTheCat24]

I do that all the time! Almost like a WWWD? I am often heard saying things like, "You'd never see that in Disney!" The worst was last summer when we went to Great Adventure (the 6 flags in NJ) and Robin (of Batman and Robin) asked me for the time. Seriously. Aladdin would NEVER break character like that! And I also passed some cat lady and, who I think was the Riddler chatting it up like they were old pals. Literally just BSing on the street. NEVER in WDW would you see such a thing!

Oh my. I think I would have given Robin a piece of my mind. Or a snarky, "It's half-past-you're not supposed to be asking me this."

 

[MarieTheCat24]

DISers…YOU ABSOLUTELY MUST GO SEE TOY STORY 3.

Drop everything you are doing, and go right now. You won’t regret it. It’s that good. I saw it last night, and it was AMAZING.

I had really high expectations for this movie. Like, out of this world expectations. It would have been really easy for me to be disappointed. I mean, I’ve been waiting 11years for this. (And yes, I am a member of the facebook group “Move Out of the Way Children, I’ve Been Waiting 11 Years to See Toy Story 3”…whoever thought of that is GENIUS) 11 years is a long time. Especially for someone like me who can’t watch movies/tv shows without thinking of how I would have written them.

I guess my number one question for the Pixar brass was, why wait? Why not complete the trilogy years ago when Toy Story was at the height of its popularity? Weren’t they afraid that the audience wouldn't care as much about Woody, Buzz, and the rest of the gang anymore?

Well, last night as I sat in a theater that was filled with teens and twenty-somethings, I got my answer.

Pixar waited for those of us in “Andy’s Generation” to grow up.

I don’t know for sure if we were the target audience, but I do know that the movie packed a far bigger punch at this point in my life than it would have 11 years ago. It’s a movie about growing up and moving on, which is something that all of us “Andy’s Generation” kids can relate to right now, because WE ARE ANDY and we’re going through it ourselves. We’re walking the fine line between childhood and adulthood. We’re being forced to grow up and move on with our lives, while at the same time trying to hold on to what we can of our youth.

And because of that, there was not a dry eye in the theater. I think my tears alone could have flooded the place. There were many scenes that had tears rolling down my face. And by the end, I was completely sobbing. My face was soaked. I felt like I couldn’t breathe, I was crying so hard. I just wanted to go home and give my stuffed manatee, named Manatee (which is shocking because I was a very original kid...I promise) a hug. Manatee is MY Woody. He’s been through everything with me. I’ve had him since I was a baby. I’d sleep with him tucked along my stomach every night. He’s gone everywhere with me. Every family vacation. Every sleepover. I’m not going to lie, I brought him to college with me. I just couldn’t leave him at home. I thought about it, but just as we were leaving, I threw him in my bag. I mean, what if I needed him and he wasn’t there?

Anyway, what I’m trying to say is that Toy Story 3 is a beautiful film. And if this is the end of Woody and Buzz’s adventures, well, I’m incredibly satisfied with how everything turned out.

And, sure, the Toy Story movies have storylines that appeal to people of all ages, but I can’t help but think that kids my age are the luckiest. We got to grow up right alongside the Toys. And as I get older, these movies about childhood will remind me of my childhood…for infinity and beyond.

 

[NikkiLovesWDW!]

Excellent post! You really hit the nail on the head. The theater was filled with teens and twenty somethings and I thought that was just amazing. They grew up watching Toy Story and this was the crossover into adulthood movie. I love "the andy generation!" It's like, there was gen x, gen y...and the andy gen! I think you should really start to push that phrase. It could be the next big thing!

Really, it was amazing though. I was a hysterical mess at the end. Even DH cried a little. Having such nostalgic feelings for the first 2 movies makes this third one so meaningful. Just a fantastic movie like only Pixar (and Disney!) can do!

 

[dawnbu40]

You did a great job summing up TS3 and the significance to your generation

As a mom of an "Andy's generation-er" it was as hard watching Andy grow up and move on as it was my own daughter. I too was a sobbing mess by the end and Caitlin and her dad were crying too. It was a wonderful movie and sure to be a Disney/Pixar Classic!