disneymom3
<font color=green> I think I could adjust!! <br><f
- Joined
- Mar 11, 2002
- Messages
- 9,511
Hi, I thought I would post this here since I know some folks were asking about it before my trip.
I have a mixed review really. The short synopsis is, the kids really liked it and had a lot of fun and I do not regret taking them at all. Would I take them again? No, I would not.
So, from the top; We arrived a bit early which was a good thing as the Mouseketeer Club is kinda hard to find--you have to go outside the main building to get to it even though the map just shows it as being in the building. We found it with plenty of time after asking a CM in a shop how to get there. When they opened the doors the kids were taken to a table and their painting aprons were put on and they sat down to watch Mickey videos while the rest of the group checked in. At that point, we got to meet Chef Bobbi who came off as a grouch which was later confirmed. We were told very sternly and in a not at all Disneylike way that we were to wear our pager and that if it went off it meant they needed us to come immediately (which was emphasized several times) and that if we did not have our pager and our receipt, we would not be able to pick up our kids. (Which turned out to be totally untrue.) At this point, I went over to one of the young ladies who were putting aprons and nametags on the kids and tried to explain to them that our youngest did not like the idea of passing out their treats to people he did not know and if that was talked about he might get upset. They did not seem to care at all and pretty much blew me off. Ooookaaay.
DH and I said good bye to the kids and then went and got coffee and sat outside for a bit. We decided to go over to the MK and ride Pirates since he has not ridden it since DD was born as we know it would terrify our middle DS.
Got back to the lobby of the Cafe where we were told to meet them. Chef Bobbi reappeared and asked for pagers. She was really really snotty to some of the parents. She was incredibly rude about the fact that some of the children's parents were not there and made snide comments about how she guessed their children didn't get to do the parade then. (How this was our fault and why she felt the need to say this in front of all of us who were on time is truly beyond me.) The parents turning in their pager in front of us, were told that their four year old did not participate very well, was lousy at following directions and was the slowest walker ever-so-cheerful-Chef Bobbi had ever seen. How appalling! Talk about out of line. No mention was made of showing our receipts at all at this time. We were told that the kids had made a lot of treats and that it was our job to make sure they gave ALL of them away and that they could not have their treats they made themselves until ALL of the others were given away. This seemed a little weird but whatever. I am thinking the other children in that lobby, of which there were very few, didn't have their parents shelling out $30 a piece for bad sugar cookies, but I digress.....
So, the kids came in--cute as can be, grinning from ear to ear in their little chef hats and aprons. (By the way, Chef B told us to stay where we were and that if we came outside, the kids would NOT be parading in. I guess as punishment to naughty parents.)They all walked up to moms and dads with a heart shaped cookie on a napkin and handed them out. Kids were excited, we met the supposedly misbehaving four year old who seemed a total doll and cookies proceeded to be passed out. Then all of a sudden, our friend Chef B says there are no more cookies and off she and her cronies go. Now, thankfully, there had not been many people around that lobby and all of the parents had been given numerous cookies. If that had not been the case, our little chefs would not have gotten any due to the directive that they had to give them all away before they could have theirs.
As for what they did while in the Adventure, DD is 9, so I have a pretty good report. They decorated their aprons and wrote names on their hats. Then they decorated the cookies which were already mixed, cut out and baked. Somehow, I was expecting a little more than cookie decorating for a Grand Adventure in Cooking. The kids were paired up with a "friend" and DD and DS5 had a great time chatting with the other child. DS4 said his friend did not talk very much but, and I quote "That was okay, mom. She was just feeling shy and a little nervous." The reason this is of interest is that the parents who were told how difficult their child was were none other than the parents of this little girl who my 4 yo figured out was shy and nervous. He is not the most sensitive guy in town, let me tell you!
DD also mentioned that when they told them to paint their aprons, DS4 was upset because he said he didn't know how. When I asked more about this, she said they were given directions all at once, to pour paint on their hands, rub their hands together and then make handprints on their aprons. DS said, "But I don't know how to do that." And was then told that he then obviously did not listen to the directions. DD reported that DSs little partner looked about ready to cry and just stood there with the paint cupped in her hands.
I know that overall this doesn't sound very positive and as I said, I would not take them again. They had a really good time, but for $90 for the three of them and missing morning touring time while they were there, it was definitely not worth it. They have their aprons and hats which are a great keepsake and I am glad they got to experience it. It was something different that we had never done before and their experience of it was positive even if ours was rather lacking. I would say however, based on our experience that they are not equipped for dealing with 4 year olds and would strongly recommend against enrolling a child that age especially if they are at all shy or quiet.
Feel free to ask questions. I would be happy to answer.
I have a mixed review really. The short synopsis is, the kids really liked it and had a lot of fun and I do not regret taking them at all. Would I take them again? No, I would not.
So, from the top; We arrived a bit early which was a good thing as the Mouseketeer Club is kinda hard to find--you have to go outside the main building to get to it even though the map just shows it as being in the building. We found it with plenty of time after asking a CM in a shop how to get there. When they opened the doors the kids were taken to a table and their painting aprons were put on and they sat down to watch Mickey videos while the rest of the group checked in. At that point, we got to meet Chef Bobbi who came off as a grouch which was later confirmed. We were told very sternly and in a not at all Disneylike way that we were to wear our pager and that if it went off it meant they needed us to come immediately (which was emphasized several times) and that if we did not have our pager and our receipt, we would not be able to pick up our kids. (Which turned out to be totally untrue.) At this point, I went over to one of the young ladies who were putting aprons and nametags on the kids and tried to explain to them that our youngest did not like the idea of passing out their treats to people he did not know and if that was talked about he might get upset. They did not seem to care at all and pretty much blew me off. Ooookaaay.
DH and I said good bye to the kids and then went and got coffee and sat outside for a bit. We decided to go over to the MK and ride Pirates since he has not ridden it since DD was born as we know it would terrify our middle DS.
Got back to the lobby of the Cafe where we were told to meet them. Chef Bobbi reappeared and asked for pagers. She was really really snotty to some of the parents. She was incredibly rude about the fact that some of the children's parents were not there and made snide comments about how she guessed their children didn't get to do the parade then. (How this was our fault and why she felt the need to say this in front of all of us who were on time is truly beyond me.) The parents turning in their pager in front of us, were told that their four year old did not participate very well, was lousy at following directions and was the slowest walker ever-so-cheerful-Chef Bobbi had ever seen. How appalling! Talk about out of line. No mention was made of showing our receipts at all at this time. We were told that the kids had made a lot of treats and that it was our job to make sure they gave ALL of them away and that they could not have their treats they made themselves until ALL of the others were given away. This seemed a little weird but whatever. I am thinking the other children in that lobby, of which there were very few, didn't have their parents shelling out $30 a piece for bad sugar cookies, but I digress.....
So, the kids came in--cute as can be, grinning from ear to ear in their little chef hats and aprons. (By the way, Chef B told us to stay where we were and that if we came outside, the kids would NOT be parading in. I guess as punishment to naughty parents.)They all walked up to moms and dads with a heart shaped cookie on a napkin and handed them out. Kids were excited, we met the supposedly misbehaving four year old who seemed a total doll and cookies proceeded to be passed out. Then all of a sudden, our friend Chef B says there are no more cookies and off she and her cronies go. Now, thankfully, there had not been many people around that lobby and all of the parents had been given numerous cookies. If that had not been the case, our little chefs would not have gotten any due to the directive that they had to give them all away before they could have theirs.
As for what they did while in the Adventure, DD is 9, so I have a pretty good report. They decorated their aprons and wrote names on their hats. Then they decorated the cookies which were already mixed, cut out and baked. Somehow, I was expecting a little more than cookie decorating for a Grand Adventure in Cooking. The kids were paired up with a "friend" and DD and DS5 had a great time chatting with the other child. DS4 said his friend did not talk very much but, and I quote "That was okay, mom. She was just feeling shy and a little nervous." The reason this is of interest is that the parents who were told how difficult their child was were none other than the parents of this little girl who my 4 yo figured out was shy and nervous. He is not the most sensitive guy in town, let me tell you!
DD also mentioned that when they told them to paint their aprons, DS4 was upset because he said he didn't know how. When I asked more about this, she said they were given directions all at once, to pour paint on their hands, rub their hands together and then make handprints on their aprons. DS said, "But I don't know how to do that." And was then told that he then obviously did not listen to the directions. DD reported that DSs little partner looked about ready to cry and just stood there with the paint cupped in her hands.I know that overall this doesn't sound very positive and as I said, I would not take them again. They had a really good time, but for $90 for the three of them and missing morning touring time while they were there, it was definitely not worth it. They have their aprons and hats which are a great keepsake and I am glad they got to experience it. It was something different that we had never done before and their experience of it was positive even if ours was rather lacking. I would say however, based on our experience that they are not equipped for dealing with 4 year olds and would strongly recommend against enrolling a child that age especially if they are at all shy or quiet.
Feel free to ask questions. I would be happy to answer.
I thank you for giving me her name because I WILL tell her she needs to be nice to my kids. (I feel bad for that little 4 yr old!) My older daughter is visually impaired and if Chef B dares to mess with her I will raise **** as I checked with CRO (who checked with her supervisor) and I also checked with the concierge staff at the GF that this wouldn't be an issue - but it sounds like that lovely chef B makes every inconvenience an issue. She doesn't sound like a whole lot of fun.
It's sad that everyone else has to suffer for their mistakes.
