I'm giving up Black Friday for a Disney Cruise! A DCL PTR/TR - 1/28 NEW PTR!!!

Hi!! I am here and cant wait to hear all about the trip! We leave next month for our first ever cruise on the 3 night Disney Dream! I had such a hard time giving up Disney World though that we will be spending two nights at the Wilderness Lodge and one day at the Magic Kingdom before the cruise!

If we like it, we will be booking May 2013 Eastern Caribbean to celebrate our 10th Anniversary. :goodvibes
 
So after brunch, we went to collect the boys from the kids club, and took them up for a late lunch. They had eaten a big breakfast before we took them, but they were ready to eat! :goodvibes I, on the other hand was NOT ready to eat anymore! :laughing: Brunch did me in! LOL! :rotfl: So we grabbed the kids, and headed out on deck to get burgers and fries, and then made it to the Walt Disney Theater… here are a few photos I took of the window displays in the shopping zone, of course these are right in front of the theater, so how can you avoid them!!! :rolleyes1

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Anyhow, I had a date with these shops but after the show!!! So in to the theater we went! I can’t really retell the story, but basically it is what would have happened if the evil step sisters had the chance to change the course of events in the story of Cinderella, knowing what they now knew about the slipper, etc. And so of course the whole princess focus was not lost on my kids, but the special effects more than made up for it! As did the “fairy godfather” at the beginning, Franco, who put on quite a Broadway old-style tap number show with a few pyrotechnics, etc. It was basically their attempt to foil the plot of the fairytale, and break the slipper, woo the prince, lock Cinderella up, you know all the making of a "Real Wives of the Kingdom..." :laughing:

So I am not going to narrate, but enjoy the photos!!!

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MORE in the NEXT POST!!!!
 
AND more from the fabulous matinee!!!

SO the evil step mother and sisters lock Cinderella up in the attic, break the slipper, and they are then sent to another ball to woo the prince. Franco makes the two evil sisters "charming" ... LOL!!! They were a hoot!!!

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Cinderella is "shrunk" and is the size of her mice friends, who then are inadvertently turned human sized when the Fairy Godmother comes to the rescue...

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CHECK OUT THE CAT!!!!!!! TOO funny!!!!

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OF course all is put right, I just loved the end how the show set went from somber and black and white to ALL COLOR!!! So pretty, so well staged, as is always the case with the Disney shows.

After the show, I can’t remember too well what we did, but I know we had to get organized for “formal night”. So I think at this point we must have headed back to the room, where I got the kids ready, including baths, and then Matt took them to go see Grandma and Grandpa while I finished pulling myself together! I know we ordered a cheese plate, though, and had that in the room while we got ready, along with our prosecco! :goodvibes We took advantage of the cheese plate/big cookie room service option this cruise. I will never forget that option again! It was great to end the night with cookies and milk, and have cheese with my sparkling wine every afternoon before dinner!!! LOVED it! AND very indulgent!! We had our room attendance get a big bucket of ice and had a bottle on ice the entire cruise, b/c the fridge was really a cooler and not very cold! So if you bring white wine or something like that on the Magic, be sure to get an ice bucket. I can't remember how the in room cooler/fridge worked on the Dream, but I will be sure to compare when I get on that ship in February! :cloud9: Fortunately for us, our room attendance changed it regularly so something was always cold!!!!

I will post the photos I have from Formal night in the next update!!! :thumbsup2

TA TA for now!!!!
 


Hi!! I am here and cant wait to hear all about the trip! We leave next month for our first ever cruise on the 3 night Disney Dream! I had such a hard time giving up Disney World though that we will be spending two nights at the Wilderness Lodge and one day at the Magic Kingdom before the cruise!

If we like it, we will be booking May 2013 Eastern Caribbean to celebrate our 10th Anniversary. :goodvibes

Well HI there! How are you!!??!! SO fun that you will be on your first cruise! Three nights will be a great way to see what you think about the whole cruising experience! AND YES! get a little Disney in there too! Good for you! I was on the Dream last year, and I have two Dream reports, they are in my Signature if you want to check them out!!! :thumbsup2

We are on the T-day 2013 Fantasy. Enjoying your report.:thumbsup2

YAY!!! We are booked for a Nov 2012 cruise as well as summer 2013, but we may be moving one of these... I was thinking about Thanksgiving again, too, what is the itinerary?? I better check! :laughing: You will LOVE cruising Disney if you haven't already!!!! Thanks for joining in!!!! :goodvibes
 
I LOVE all your reports! Your report on the Dream with your hubby and your stay at Bay Lake at the Contemporary is kind of how I got thinking that I could do WL for a couple nights before the cruise!! I remember reading a TR from you sooooo long ago (when you went to Disney for xmas) the boys look so much older now!! :goodvibes
 


Loved your updates!! The cruise looks absolutely delightful!!! The show sounded like so much fun!!!

Can't wait to read more!! OOOH cheese and cookie plate...that sounds awesome!!
 
The show looked fabulous!! I can only imagine how funny the stepsisters were....I love seeing them out in the MK....I will never forgot the one with the red hair....she was so mad at my niece because she has red hair (my older niece not the one you met ;)) and she was acting all jealous :rotfl2:

Mmmmmm cheese plate and prosecco. What a wonderful combination!! We got the cookie a few times but I don't remember a cheese plate....probably a good thing seeing that I am part mouse when it comes to cheese :rotfl: I can't stop myself!!

Tracy
 
It is a Western. This will be our third. Two on the Wonder and 1 on the Magic.

Oh you are going to have such a great time! Everything I read about the Fantasy sounds so amazing! We loved being on the Dream, but my DH really prefered the Wonder and Magic.

I LOVE all your reports! Your report on the Dream with your hubby and your stay at Bay Lake at the Contemporary is kind of how I got thinking that I could do WL for a couple nights before the cruise!! I remember reading a TR from you sooooo long ago (when you went to Disney for xmas) the boys look so much older now!! :goodvibes

Oh how funny, yes, we sure loved Christmas that year! We are planning Christmas 2012. Well, going to the resorts for a day w/o the park was very doable for us, and fun. You seemed to have had a few great trips yourself recently! You must be stoked for this one coming up. Be sure to bring Bonine. NOT dramamine. Just in case. :thumbsup2

Loved your updates!! The cruise looks absolutely delightful!!! The show sounded like so much fun!!!

Can't wait to read more!! OOOH cheese and cookie plate...that sounds awesome!!

Thanks, Jen! I am trying to get it done this month!! CHEESE plate = YUM. Cookies are ALWAYS yummy!!! The show was too too cute.

The show looked fabulous!! I can only imagine how funny the stepsisters were....I love seeing them out in the MK....I will never forgot the one with the red hair....she was so mad at my niece because she has red hair (my older niece not the one you met ;)) and she was acting all jealous :rotfl2:

Mmmmmm cheese plate and prosecco. What a wonderful combination!! We got the cookie a few times but I don't remember a cheese plate....probably a good thing seeing that I am part mouse when it comes to cheese :rotfl: I can't stop myself!!

Tracy

Oh we love good cheese too! Lots of cheese, I can go on forever! :laughing: That is super funny about the red hair. Yes, they were a hoot. When they got "class" and "cultured" it was HIGHLARIOUS, because they were already over the top, and this made it even more so, JUST too fun.
 
I hope they have that show this summer on the Dream! It looks like a fun one!


It's getting close to Christmas, are you ready?
 
What a fun show! I loved looking at all the sets and costumes!

What a great idea to have wine and cheese in the afternoon and cookies and milk at bedtime -- storing that idea away for future reference.
 
The show looks great. I've heard that the shows are quite the productions on the cruise. Another thing I will look forward to if I ever take the plunge and book one. And the daily cheese plate delivery... that might sell me on a cruise right there. ;)
 
After the show, I can’t remember too well what we did, but I know we had to get organized for “formal night”. :goodvibes So I think at this point we must have headed back to the room, where I got the kids ready, and then DH took them to go see Grandma and Grandpa while I finished pulling myself together! I know we ordered a cheese plate, though, and had that in the room while we got ready, along with our prosecco! :thumbsup2 I had a champagne flute in one hand and the Hair Dryer wand in the other!!! LOL! If you are familiar with the Wonder and the Magic, you'll know what I mean!!!

Regarding wine/sparkling wine, etc. We had our room attendance get a big bucket of ice and had a bottle on ice the entire cruise, b/c the fridge was really a cooler and not very cold! So if you bring white wine or something like that on the Magic, be sure to get an ice bucket. Our room attendant changed it regularly for us…

So our formal night dinner was in Lumiere’s. I was excited to eat in this restaurant, and it did not disappoint. I like it better than Triton’s but the Royal Palace is definitely my favorite! As we were walking towards dinner we got caught in the Captain’s reception, THANK YOU very much… FREE before dinner cocktails, don’t mind if I do!!! :lovestruc And I did!!!! LOL!!!!

The menu that evening was a special menu, it was themed, and I remember having a divine meal!!! Since we had the wine package, we had a bottle of wine with dinner. The photographer came around, and while he took a great photo of us, the photographer missed one detail, he had positioned my older son behind the chair, and based on how he was standing and the way it was taken, it looked like his head was on the back of the chair! Like a ghost in the Haunted Mansion! The talking head busts? Yep, so that was not one I was going to buy!!! LOL!! Here are some candids from the evening, though!

My MIL took this photo of us just as we were going into dinner, it is on the stairs... she took a couple, DS6 was not looking, but this is the one where at least THREE of us were!!! :laughing:

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At the table... DS9 and my DFIL were playing cribbage, a pocket sized game that came in one of our FUN FE gifts!!

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DS6 and daddy checking out the menu games... love that they had these each night! And each one was different!

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Loved this little detail... each night! That and Mickey shaped ketchup...

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You can see how festive the restaurant was, the whole ship, really, with all the poinsettias!

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The Chandeliers had Belle's rose... Similar to the glass slippers at the Royal Palace!

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Of course we had several amazing dessert choices nightly, and even on the kid's menu they had variety... but the dessert my DH6 had EVERY night? You guessed it. A mickey bar. COMPLETE with sprinkles and chocolate syrup... :laughing:

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After dinner, the lines to take pictures were way too long, and before dinner, of course we didn’t have time, so instead I just went with the plan that on “semi-formal” night I could get some holiday photos, and for now, we decided it was time to get to the theater to see Villans!!

Except WE (DH and I) were NOT going to see Villans! :rotfl: WE were going to go lounge it, while my DMIL and DFIL took the boys to see the show. Since we had seen it now four times, it just wasn’t high on our priority, and with us being all dressed up and no where to go, it made sense to go to BEAT Street!

It was funny though, we backtracked to Guest Services, b/c I wanted a copy of the Navigator, and when we turned the corner we were met with a CM and a tray of drinks. He offered us a round, and, well, who was I to not accept his generosity!!! LOL!! Here are the photos I could take on the way to the Sessions lounge…

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We hung out here, Sessions, but of course I was uncomfortable taking pictures b/c it was so dark! We had a nice round of martinis – I had some raspberry concoction, and DH a sidecar. I love sugared rims! So we enjoyed the mood and some jazz piano player, it was very empty, I think it was still too early, and everyone was either at the show or at dinner, so that made a big difference. I didn’t take many pictures when we were in this area, simply because it was SOOO dark, that the flash would be a major distraction… We then met my inlaws in their cabin to pick up the boys. When we got back to our cabin, here was our towel art, a scorpion I thought at first, but actually, I think it was supposed to be a lobster!!!

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With some face washing and teeth brushing we were finally off to slumber land, and our NEXT day at sea!!!!

Stay TUNED!!!!
 
I hope they have that show this summer on the Dream! It looks like a fun one!

It's getting close to Christmas, are you ready?

Oh you know I wonder if they will??!!! I think it is a feature show for the Magic, like the Wonder has Golden Mickey's... Both the Wonder and the Magic have the Disney Dreams show, and the Dream has Believe, so I am not sure... I think b/c those boats do the longer cruises... not certain. Basically the Dream takes Villains, Golden Mickey's from the other ships... I know they are cooking up some neat originals for the Fantasy!!!

Christmas! UGH! Crazy!! Do you know we had an offer to go to Boardwalk for $850.00? One bedroom... 6 nights. Christmas eve to the 30th... We just couldn't get our head around it so quick like that... We had already made our summer and next CHRISTMAS plan as it is. Never mind we'll be at AKL for a night before our cruise! I have an AP and ONE day. What kind of trouble can I get into!! LOL!!!

All cookies BAKED! Decorated!!! (well most). Gifts are being wrapped, house all decorated the past few weeks have been very cheery at our house, I LOVE Christmas time!!! I am so excited for you and your grand gathering!!!
Will be memorable I am certain!!! :santa:

What a fun show! I loved looking at all the sets and costumes!

What a great idea to have wine and cheese in the afternoon and cookies and milk at bedtime -- storing that idea away for future reference.

It was a great show, and yes the cheese and cookies and basically any roomservice was great! the wings were good too.. JUST sayin' :rolleyes1

The show looks great. I've heard that the shows are quite the productions on the cruise. Another thing I will look forward to if I ever take the plunge and book one. And the daily cheese plate delivery... that might sell me on a cruise right there. ;)

Oh, and there are Tequila tastings, and martini tastings, and wine tastings, and beer tastings, and... :rolleyes1 Just a little something to go with your cheese... :laughing: We did the tequila tasting.. coming up NEXT!!!

What a fun day at sea!
A Disney show, wine, and cheese. :cloud9:

Oh yes, that pretty much summs up our Days at Sea! That and brunch and tea and massages, it was a week of indulgences for certain!!!!
 
So our second Sea day began pretty much the same as the first. gym, breakfast, pool time, matinee, lunch, pool-time…
Ah, yes. The life of leisure on a cruise ship… what to do what to do… LOL!!! After lunch, the boys headed to the kids club to try their hand at Remy’s “everyone can cook” class, and the making of GLOP.
We? Well after showers, we headed to Animator’s Palate… not for dinner, but for our scheduled Tequila tasting session… and boy was that fun…

Here are the boys vogue-ing in the hallway… on the way to the kids club! :cool2:

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These I took from across the balcony area on the 5th level… midship. The Oceaneer’s Lab is on one side, the Club on the other. For the Dream, and the Fantasy, they have them side by side so the kids can go between as the mood strikes. Which was still possible for them to do on the Magic, but they had to be escorted over there by CM! LOL! Which was funny to see.

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So boys delivered, we were off! :thumbsup2

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Once we got to the restaurant, here is what was waiting for us…

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I am not a big tequila fan. Mostly, I like them mixed in margaritas, but shots, no, not my think… at least not since college!!! LOL! So we went through this hour long session, tasted several, tried a mango margarita (as you can see) and finished with the blue Caracao Margarita… Which you can see here… the aftermath. :rolleyes1

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But probably the MOST fun was watching the CM bartender pour margaritas live into the mouths of passengers… or paying participants! :eek:
And my DFIL was one of them!!! :laughing:

He had signed up for three different tastings, if that tells you something, so he got to know this bartender REALLY well!!! LOL! She was a hoot.
Here are the blackmail shots…

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Needless to say that would never had been me… She put that in my mouth and it would have been OVER. OVER!!!! And there were three people she did this with!!! ACK!!!! :scared1:

I decided that I like my top shelf margarita just fine, thank you very much! And I like that mixed on ice with salt on the GLASS rim. :cloud9:

So we left the tasting with a blue margarita in hand, and we went out to stroll on deck a little, before collecting the kids for dinner. We all went back to the cabin, got organized and headed back to Animator’s for Dinner!

COMING UP NEXT!!!!!!!!!!
 
So we left the tasting with a bluecaracao margarita in hand, and we went out to stroll on deck a little, before collecting the kids for dinner. I am sure the sway of the boat was due to the water ... cough, cough...

We all went back to the cabin, got organized and headed back to Animator’s for Dinner!

Now the boys had only been to Animator’s on the Dream. The original concept restaurant was very different. All black and white which slowly turns into a "palate" of color...

I took lots of cameos here. Not perfect posed photos, but trying to keep up with all the movement was tough!!!! :laughing: So as we were seated I first noticed the cute menus... from my DMIL ordering...

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Now, this menu started a silly little series of photos with my DH... Basically the picture "changes" if you move the direction of the menu... I wanted to get that image change so I asked for DH to help... he was mildly amused... And I was laughing, so a few got a little blurry as a result

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OBVIOUSLY this was not very Disney-friendly of him, such hand gestures with Lady and the Tramp I mean really!!!! :rolleyes:

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Even Animator's had christmas decorations!!! Too cute!

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These are all just random shots, here and there, fun pics through the dinner... I liked being able to take pictures of the boys with their grandparents! :lovestruc

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These photos all show the restaurant as it starts to evolve in colors...

Some images start in black and white then turn color...

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CONTINUED in the NEXT POST!!!! BONUS!!!! FOUR ENTRIES TODAY!!!! :laughing:
 
Dinner CONTINUES!!!!

Now the real fun of the evening came at the end, before the fun light show, yes, but the show of my Disney Boys Do Dessert in WHITE SHIRTS. Sigh.

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Of course he was not in my reach so I was having heart palpitations about the idea of that chocolate ending up all over his WHITE shirt… Did I mention to my left, was DH9 who decided on the CHOCOLATE pudding/mouse for dessert??!! :faint:

I must have looked like this crazed woman…

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Well, at least in the dark I cannot see the demise... but here is when the restaurant got dark for the show…

The boys were busy watching the screen change, and listening to the "story" in the show... They play Colors of the Wind, which is ONE OF MY FAVORITE DISNEY SONGS!!!

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It happens very fast, from THIS:

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To THIS!

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If you squint, you can make out Mickey, Sorcerer Mickey, making his way through the restaurant! He actually entered right next to our table, waved, and then was OFF! :lovestruc I love these characters popping up all over the place! On the ship even more so then ever at Disney parks... with everyone contained in the same place, it just happens EVERYWHERE!!!

So another great meal and company and fun behind us, we headed out of the restaurant... We took some pictures on the way out... here they are... NOTICE the shirts made it through unscathed... thank goodness, b/c they had to wear them again!!!! :laughing:

Here they are demonstrating the HERCULEAN effort keeping their shirt white took....

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After dinner … well those photos are not YET loaded to Photobucket! But I hope these few updates will keep you entertained for now!!!

Hope everyone is having a great time getting ready for the madness and the onslaught of the final week before Christmas countdown!!! I for one, AM already missing Disney Holiday spirit, just looking at some of these photos, but I have my Disney Tree all decked out, and I have spent the past weekend wrapping presents on the floor sitting next to it and admiring its festive Disney-ness! :santa:
 

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