Heat, Humidity, and Our Favorite Disney Dog Was a Thug! LINK TO NEW PTR!!

[dismagiclover]

Willow probably thought you were the coolest mom ever letting her stay out so late! I can't believe you were locked on Tower of Terror for so long! Seems like the CMs thought it was just normal. I've been hearing a lot more about routine breakdowns with the rides. When we were there it seemed like Big Thunder was down more than it was running.

 

[Nora03]

Willow is absolutely adorable in that Cinderella dress. I guess that long nap helped her stay up late. What fun!

Sorry you had such rotten service at Flying Fish. We went there a couple of years ago and had our best meal and service of the trip! Got a great table by a window, a wonderful server, and a perfect meal! We loved it. Too bad it wasn't magical for you and Willow, especially on your Family Day.

We had had such bad service at other restaurants that trip that Flying Fish really stood out as a winner for us. We'd been to Kona Café for dinner and the waitress was so rushed and not attentive. She didn't bring us the yummy bread that we had expected and I had to ask for it three times. By the time we got it we didn't really need it as the meal was almost over.

Also, we had dinner at Artist Pointe and while the food was very good, the service was awful, and looking back we should have complained, but we're not complainers. We were seated at a table in the center and then ignored for twenty minutes. The manager of the restaurant stood the whole time chatting with the people at the next table. Two servers chatted and had fun with the people at the table in front of us, and all the while we twiddled our thumbs, wondering if we should get up and walk out. We didn't even have a glass of water. Finally we were able to get someone's attention and then we got an apology that no one had been assigned our table! It almost ruined the evening, but we tried to brush it off. We weren't offered a complimentary glass of wine or dessert - nothing!

I guess these things happen, but it's hard to forget them.

Looking forward to reading more about your trip, and also looking forward to your upcoming trips. I've never been to Disneyland. Lucky you and Willow. It's so great that you found each other. It's a heartwarming story for both of you.

Nora

 

[RGirl]

Yow Za !!@!! I do believe I would have had a stroke if I had been there locked in those TOT seats and that happened....the twilight zone theme song playing in my head yes I CAN be a chicken and have a very vivid imagination ( which is why Halloween except for MNSSHP creeps me out BIG time) I even flip through the tv when those darn Universal commercials come on this time of year I can deal with TOT but haven't been on it in a long time ...there are seatbelts ? I didn't even remember that, see what I mean ?

It wasn't TOO bad except when the doors shut. That was a little scary, because no one had any idea why they were shutting! We had just been told that the ride wasn't functioning properly and we needed to get out.

Willow looked very happy even given the late hour, that's nice the parks are really beautiful at night aren't they ?

Yes - I just love the parks lit up at night. So pretty, and Willow definitely had a good time!

So glad you got to change that ADR check in with you tomorrow & cmon over when you can more posting then on mine

Popped in last night!

ToT creeps me out even though I have fun on it. I think I might have panicked if I was stuck in there! I love how Willow is such a brave little chick!

Luckily, everyone in there maintained good spirits, and there was a lot of joking around. That definitely helped a lot!

And I have to tell you--if my youngest saw her beautiful Cinderella dress, she would flip!! The one she has has been well loved and it shows. Lol! She would love a fancy, long, sparkly one like Willows but I'm trying to hold out until Christmas since I have little mermaid and sleeping beauty dresses stashed away! Who knew I'd end up with such a girlie girl?!?

Same here - I can't believe how girly Willow is! She wears skirts and dresses pretty much every day. And she sure loves a down-to-the-floor gown.

Aren't the parks so pretty at night? It's my favorite time of day there when you start to notice everything lighting up....

Yes - they are just beautiful! If I had any photography skills, I could spend a LOT of time snapping pictures at night in the parks.

Look at me commenting real comments!

I don't know what to make of this!!!

What a night! I don't know that I posted her about how angry I am at your FF server, but I'm sure that by now you get the idea

Yes - I am pretty clear on your complete indignation! And thankful for it - it's so easy to doubt an experience like that and worry that you were expecting too much or something.

LOVE the late night ride on ToT idea, dislike the result. I can't believe that happened! Willow is very brave to ride after all that. I'm fairly certain that we'd get a "no thank you" from Maddie

I'm pretty sure that Willow was just ticked off about having to wait so long. She was a little scared while we were locked in, but she was happy to get in a different elevator and take her turn on the ride.

I know it was a huge hassle to change that ADR. We had really bad cell service at WDW when we were with Sprint, but when we switched to Verizon it was much better. Must be more cell towers?

I'm just so glad that you were able to confirm via the computer that there WERE ADRs still available for later. I might have given up! It definitely wasn't a service problem - I had lots of bars (and Verizon). It was 100% the app - it just refused to make ADRs. I had had plenty of issues with it before though, so I wasn't exactly shocked!

Wow! What a late night. And being locked in at ToT for 20 minutes. No fun either. But Willow really IS a trooper, smiling through all of it.

She really loves that ride - enough to stay calm during 20 minutes of forced lock-down, I guess.

Don't remind me of the app! We tried to change some ADRs while in the parks and it ALWAYS just sent us in circles - just like a ride.

Exactly! I thought my head was going to explode! I was so thankful that I was able to get it to work on my computer back at the resort - prior to the trip, I had had plenty of issues with it even on the computer.

 

[RGirl]

Willow probably thought you were the coolest mom ever letting her stay out so late! I can't believe you were locked on Tower of Terror for so long! Seems like the CMs thought it was just normal. I've been hearing a lot more about routine breakdowns with the rides. When we were there it seemed like Big Thunder was down more than it was running.

Actually, with this particular incident, the CMs seemed to have absolutely no idea what was going on. It was kind of funny - and a little disturbing. It was hilarious when the CM was all, "Okay, everyone get up and come out now." And we all looked around at each other because we were LOCKED IN. I don't remember a ton of rides being down during our trip, but my memory is fading fast.

Willow is absolutely adorable in that Cinderella dress. I guess that long nap helped her stay up late. What fun!

Hi Nora! Thanks so much - the nap really did seem to do the trick on this day.

Sorry you had such rotten service at Flying Fish. We went there a couple of years ago and had our best meal and service of the trip! Got a great table by a window, a wonderful server, and a perfect meal! We loved it. Too bad it wasn't magical for you and Willow, especially on your Family Day.

I truly believe that it is just the luck of the draw at Disney restaurants - service one night may be great and the next pretty shabby. They really need to work on their consistency. Luckily, we chose to enjoy ourselves despite it!

We had had such bad service at other restaurants that trip that Flying Fish really stood out as a winner for us. We'd been to Kona Café for dinner and the waitress was so rushed and not attentive. She didn't bring us the yummy bread that we had expected and I had to ask for it three times. By the time we got it we didn't really need it as the meal was almost over.

We have never been to Kona - the menu just doesn't appeal to me that much - but I have read tons of rave reviews. That's too bad that you experienced such poor service there.

Also, we had dinner at Artist Pointe and while the food was very good, the service was awful, and looking back we should have complained, but we're not complainers. We were seated at a table in the center and then ignored for twenty minutes. The manager of the restaurant stood the whole time chatting with the people at the next table. Two servers chatted and had fun with the people at the table in front of us, and all the while we twiddled our thumbs, wondering if we should get up and walk out. We didn't even have a glass of water. Finally we were able to get someone's attention and then we got an apology that no one had been assigned our table! It almost ruined the evening, but we tried to brush it off. We weren't offered a complimentary glass of wine or dessert - nothing!

Wow - that is really too bad! And it again really emphasizes the above point - our dinner at AP was the best signature service we had this trip. You just can't tell from one visit to the next, I guess!

I guess these things happen, but it's hard to forget them.

It is. If the food is good, I am more than willing to give the place another try. I know tons of people have had great service at Yachtsman and FF, so I know that it is possible to have a great dining experience at both places.

Looking forward to reading more about your trip, and also looking forward to your upcoming trips. I've never been to Disneyland. Lucky you and Willow. It's so great that you found each other. It's a heartwarming story for both of you.

Thanks so much! We love Disneyland and can't wait to go back (well, Willow doesn't know we're going yet, but I know she will be psyched!). Depending on the timing, I may include the birthday trip in this TR; otherwise, I will post a link to the DL trip report board when it is up and running.

 

[Jackiemarie21]

Looks like a fun end to Family Day! I am glad you got that last ride in, even though it took awhile!

I would be freaking out if I was left on ToT for so long! My mind would go to all the things that could go wrong! I am always so impressed with Willow's bravery!

 

[RGirl]

Looks like a fun end to Family Day! I am glad you got that last ride in, even though it took awhile!

We definitely enjoyed the ride, but for all the time and effort it took, I'm not totally sure it was worth it!

I would be freaking out if I was left on ToT for so long! My mind would go to all the things that could go wrong! I am always so impressed with Willow's bravery!

You know, she is a pretty brave kid now that you mention it. She definitely wouldn't let a little malfunction keep her from her favourite (at least at this time) ride!

 

[RGirl]

A Yeti-Sized Infatuation Begins​

So after our later-than-planned night at ToT, I had managed to change our breakfast ADR from 8:00 to 10:00, and we slept in. We ended up waking up just before 8:00, and Willow was feeling pretty good! I had a big headache though, so I ended up taking some children’s Ibuprofen (yeah, realized at that moment that it was all I had brought ) before we grabbed our mugs and headed out the door by 8:12 (again - how did we do that????).

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Here, DD was recreating a ToT ride, I think.

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We headed to the Boardwalk Bakery to fill our mugs with coffee for me and lemonade for DD. I felt MUCH better after a few sips of coffee.

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Today, we were bypassing the boats and heading out front to catch a bus. By 8:20, we were on a bus to Animal Kingdom! (Man - we really had some amazing bus luck during this trip.)

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We stopped at the Swan.

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We saw our old fre-nemy ToT.

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We stopped at the Dolphin.

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We stopped at Blizzard Beach.

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And we were off the bus at AK by 8:45. Not bad - we had slept in and still made rope drop!

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The lines to get in were pretty long.

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We were girls on a mission though! This was the first year that Willow was tall enough to ride EE, and she was REALLY excited! So that’s where we headed.

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When we arrived, there was no wait at all! Willow was measured and okayed to board, and we stared through the queue. I had never seen the stand-by queue - had only ridden EE twice (FP and single rider) on our first trip when I had another adult with me. The queue was really cool, although we didn’t have much time to look around!

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Before we knew it, we were on the ride!

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It was awesome! I think this is my new favorite WDW ride. I feel a little guilty about that, Big Thunder - let’s call it a tie. DD was blown away - she loved this ride! She couldn’t decide whether she preferred it to ToT or not, so we’ll call that one a tie too.

When we got off, the posted wait time was 15 minutes. Imagine how psyched Willow was when we got off and I told her we could just go back through and ride again! Yep, pretty psyched! (The wait was nowhere near 15 minutes - maybe 5 minutes at most. We basically just walked (well, it looks like Willow was marching) straight through to the loading area.)

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After our second thrilling ride, we grabbed some FPs for later and headed to Africa for breakfast.

Up Next: A Safari Breakfast

 

[shan23877]

Yay for Willow's first EE ride!!! She looks soooo happy! Didn't you love that ride photos were included in PP+?

I'm so glad that you were able to get that ADR changed. I would have been sad if you missed that breakfast.

 

[dismagiclover]

First off, how sad is it that even the pictures in the Boardwalk elevator made me a bit homesick? Yay for Willow! Such a brave girl! My boys went on Expedition Everest for the first time this past trip and loved it too. I think they rode it 4 times in a row one morning! I love that Safari breakfast. Can't wait to hear about it.

 

[Luvchefmic]

Love Love Love EE yes that is ME the sometimes chicken saying that I was there over a 3 week period ( I USED to have a great govt job in NY and could take all that time) and watched it being built Since its my favorite park I have pictures somewhere of that, the whole skeletal frame going up I remember craning my neck and thinking " No Way ! " I think I actually waited about a year after it opened before I rode it, besides Splash Mtn its my favorite ride

Glad Willow was tall enough and you both had a great time My favorite picture in this update is the one you took of her from the back " marching" walking with a purpose hair blowing in the breeze Great shot

Looking forward to the breakfast report another personal favorite

Curious mind want to know--you mentioned " Family Day ?"

 

[STLMickeyMom]

woohoo for EE and riding twice in a row! she's doing better than I am since I still haven't ridden! i'm hoping our oldest will be tall enough this time and we can rider swap and ride with her. I love the picture of her marching through the line with her hair all bouncing around--action shot!

 

[DisneyJo]

Oh my goodness I can't believe you were stuck on ToT that long, it must have been kind of scary when the doors kept shutting!

How cute that Willow loved EE, I love how she was brave enough to put her arms up on her second ride

 

[Jackiemarie21]

Looks like a great first EE ride! That is one of my favorites too! Fun start to your AK day!

 

[chattadisser]

Ack! I was gone for a week and have gotten totally behind...

I can't believe you did Green AND Orange on MS! You go girl! I rode Orange with my husband one time and never heard the end of the complaints the rest of the day "I feel sick" (you know men).

Happy Family Day to you and Willow (belated). Sorry you had such bad service for your special dinner.

The heat can make everyone tired and cranky, I'm worse than my girls. Kudos to braving it out.

I had to chuckle a little with the picture of the maintenance man on ToT.

I LOVE your plans for next year. I can't wait to go to DL and every year I say "not as many presents at Christmas"...then I loose track of where things are hidden and I still end up with way too much. Please do a TR for the SF trip too (I love Disney and non-Disney TR's)...we went out to SF a year ago and fell in love with the city. Next time we will take the girls and I am looking for ideas on kid activities.

Christine

 

[RGirl]

Yay for Willow's first EE ride!!! She looks soooo happy! Didn't you love that ride photos were included in PP+?

You know, I really did love that! I didn't think I would care too much about that, but it is super-fun to have those!!!

I'm so glad that you were able to get that ADR changed. I would have been sad if you missed that breakfast.

At least we wouldn't have known what we were missing! But now that we've been, I can never miss it again! Seriously, though, changing that ADR time was one of the best decisions I made all trip.

First off, how sad is it that even the pictures in the Boardwalk elevator made me a bit homesick? Yay for Willow! Such a brave girl! My boys went on Expedition Everest for the first time this past trip and loved it too. I think they rode it 4 times in a row one morning! I love that Safari breakfast. Can't wait to hear about it.

It is a very beautiful elevator!

Gosh - EE is just insanely fun, isn't it!? The one downside to a year of Disneyland is that there is no EE.

I can't wait to share about our breakfast - it was such a blast!!!

Love Love Love EE yes that is ME the sometimes chicken saying that I was there over a 3 week period ( I USED to have a great govt job in NY and could take all that time) and watched it being built Since its my favorite park I have pictures somewhere of that, the whole skeletal frame going up I remember craning my neck and thinking " No Way ! " I think I actually waited about a year after it opened before I rode it, besides Splash Mtn its my favorite ride

That is so cool, Ruthie! It is such a great ride, isn't it??? I have a near-phobia of heights, but EE is so well done that even the climb doesn't really bother me. Just love that attraction!

Glad Willow was tall enough and you both had a great time My favorite picture in this update is the one you took of her from the back " marching" walking with a purpose hair blowing in the breeze Great shot

I love that pic too. She was SO happy on this morning - I was so glad that I chose to let us "sleep in" and go at a natural pace on this day. It worked out very well. It probably helped as well that AK seemed quite a bit less jam-packed with crowds than the other parks had.

Looking forward to the breakfast report another personal favorite

Can't wait to share about it - we had such a wonderful time!

Curious mind want to know--you mentioned " Family Day ?"

Oh, our Family Day is the anniversary of the day we came home together (from Guatemala) as a family via adoption. It is, obviously, an incredibly special day for us.

woohoo for EE and riding twice in a row! she's doing better than I am since I still haven't ridden! i'm hoping our oldest will be tall enough this time and we can rider swap and ride with her. I love the picture of her marching through the line with her hair all bouncing around--action shot!

Oh, I hope you get to do EE next time! It such a blast! And Willow loved it SO MUCH! She fell in love with that crazy yeti.

Oh my goodness I can't believe you were stuck on ToT that long, it must have been kind of scary when the doors kept shutting!

It was really crazy! We were lucky that everyone in the car was pretty laid-back about it and joking around. That made it a lot better.

How cute that Willow loved EE, I love how she was brave enough to put her arms up on her second ride

She loves that - since the first time she sat behind some teens with their arms up on BTMRR, she has been doing it on every fast ride. I'm sure she had them up during the first EE ride as well but just didn't for the picture. I almost NEVER do it - I like to use the death grip on the bar - but she has rubbed off on me a bit.

Looks like a great first EE ride! That is one of my favorites too! Fun start to your AK day!

Thanks! It was a great start to the day.

 

[RGirl]

Ack! I was gone for a week and have gotten totally behind...

It's hard enough to keep up when you aren't gone, right?

I can't believe you did Green AND Orange on MS! You go girl! I rode Orange with my husband one time and never heard the end of the complaints the rest of the day "I feel sick" (you know men).

Believe me - I couldn't believe it either! Too funny about your DH!

Happy Family Day to you and Willow (belated). Sorry you had such bad service for your special dinner.

Thanks! We had a great time together despite the less-than-stellar service.

The heat can make everyone tired and cranky, I'm worse than my girls. Kudos to braving it out.

Oh yeah - I can't pretend for a second that Willow was the only one getting all grumpy and snotty.

I had to chuckle a little with the picture of the maintenance man on ToT.

We were SO glad to see him!!!

I LOVE your plans for next year. I can't wait to go to DL and every year I say "not as many presents at Christmas"...then I loose track of where things are hidden and I still end up with way too much. Please do a TR for the SF trip too (I love Disney and non-Disney TR's)...we went out to SF a year ago and fell in love with the city. Next time we will take the girls and I am looking for ideas on kid activities.

I'm the same way with Christmas. But I am DETERMINED this year!!! I hope. g

I'm thinking I should be able to just start the DL TR with where our trip starts - SF and then down through the coast and end at DL. Seems reasonable to me! SF is a wonderful city - I can't believe I haven't been back since I moved away; I'm super-excited to go back for a visit finally!

 

[RGirl]

A Safari Breakfast​

When I last left off, Miss Willow had fallen in love with the yeti and we were the proud owners of a set of FPs for a third ride. But now we were headed to breakfast with Donald and friends at Tusker House!

At Tusker House, Donald greets guests outside before guests go in to eat. Unfortunately, he does not do autographs. We looked around a bit outside while we were waiting our turn to meet Donald.

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Miss Willow was looking pretty happy after getting to sleep in a bit and finally getting a chance to ride something exciting multiple times without a wait.

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Before long, we were meeting Donald!

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This whole area is nicely themed.

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Our server here was great! She brought the delicious juice as soon as we sat down. (I don’t like juice at all, but even I thought this was tasty, and Miss Willow loved it.) Our server explained everything about eating at Tusker House. And then the chef came out. This chef was by far the nicest and most helpful chef that we encountered at WDW (and that’s saying something, because most of them were just great). She showed us around the entire buffet, carefully explaining what was and was not safe (and there were a ton of safe options!) and offering to make a variety of things specially and gluten-free (including tater tots, Mickey waffles, donuts). She was just amazing and so kind and understanding.

Before we managed to get any food, Goofy came through our little room to lead the kids in a parade. Miss Willow was not in the mood to do it, but we both enjoyed watching and clapping along.

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Not only were the chef and server lovely here, but the food was fantastic. This was by far the best breakfast food we had on this trip. There were a lot of options, and everything was hot, fresh, and tasty. (If you want food details and pics, I have posted a more thorough review on my Dining Review.)

Great chef, great server, great food - would we be 4 for 4? Yep! Great characters too!!!! We loved seeing everyone in their safari gear.

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After Daisy, the chef spoiled me rotten with tasty gluten-free treats (Mickey waffles, warmed blueberry muffin, and warmed cinnamon-sugar donut and tater tots fried separately from the gluten-contaminated oil)! YUM!!

More characters! Mickey was quite taken with his autograph page - making special note that we had gotten his hat just right.

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Daisy stopped by again briefly!

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We had such a great time here! And when we were leaving, Donald was just hanging out at the podium, so Willow was able to stop and say good-bye and thank him for the great breakfast.

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I think one of the reasons that we had so much fun here and enjoyed the food so much was that I had changed the ADR from a pre-park-opening one to a late-morning one. It is awesome to get to the parks before they open, but when you are coming from the West Coast and hitting the parks hard each day, it just wears you down - well, it did us anyway. And we are just not hungry at what is basically 5:00AM for us. So this worked really well, and I think I may do this more often in the future.

Up Next: So We Love AK Now?

 

[dizneeat]

Looks like you had a great breakfast at Tusker House. Willow looks pretty happy to see all the characters and how nice of the chef to make you a few extra treats!

Can't wait to see what else you are up to!

 

[chattadisser]

Sounds like the ADR time switch was just the right thing. I agree, dealing with time change is hard. Throw in the heat and that you all had been going, going, going, you definately deserved a sleep-in day.

Tusker House is such a fun breakfast and has so many options. I'm glad to hear that they made you Gluten free Mickey Waffles. Were they any good? I know the gluten free food that I have had is hit or miss. I just know I would not be able to go to Disney and not have a Mickey waffle.

Christine

 

[STLMickeyMom]

I've always read good things about Tusker house. Sounds like you are having an awesome AK morning!