Itchin' For Some Fun...12/10/09 - 12/14/09...Finished 3/17

[praisehisname]

Don't keep us waiting too long... I want to see those lights!!

I'm hoping to write the next update today. The kids are off school today, and they just announced closings for tomorrow and Wednesday. Did you guys get hit hard?

Just started reading... I made it up to page 10. Hopefully, I'll be able tocatch up soon! I'm really enjoying your trip report!

Welcome! Thanks so much for letting me know you're reading!

Sounds like MVMCP is off to a good start. It doesn't look too crowded in your pictures, which by the way are beautiful!

The only time it really felt crowded was during the castle lighting, but that's only because everyone is trying to see the same thing. We were very pleased with the crowds!

 

[praisehisname]

Glad you got such a great power nap. I think that amazing plate of nachos would have put me right to sleep, too.

Oh my gosh, they were so good! And you're probably right about them contributing to the good nap!

That poor girl! I hope she was ok! That's definitely not a good way to spend a WDW vacation!

I felt so bad for her. I hope it wasn't the last day of their trip.

I love the pics of the statues around the hub!

I did, too! Did I hear correctly that they change out every season?

 

[praisehisname]

The power nap before the party was a great idea.

We couldn't have made it through such a long night without it!

Yeay for the MVMCP -- all the pictures of the decorations are lovely, but I can't wait to see what party merchandise you bought -- 50% is such a deal!

I'm going to hopefully do an update this afternoon, but I'm not sure if it will take us up to the point of buying the stuff.

You mentioned the MVMCP pins - you did read my TR update about DH and the pins didn't you?

I did, and we definitely didn't have as much selection as you did!

 

[praisehisname]

All caught up.

Awesome; thanks!

You shouldn't feel self-conscious for dancing a little during a parade!! If you can't do that at Disney, where can you?? I'll bet even Walt did a little shake your groove thing. He was a pretty excitable guy.

My kids would have died of embarrassment if they were there, so at least I was alone!

I went and got nachos for lunch today. All your doing!!

Were they good?

 

[praisehisname]

I love the picture Tom took of the Partners Statue with the Castle in the background and the poinsettias all around. It's so pretty!

It's one of my favorites! It makes a great computer wallpaper!

I can relate to Tom on this one. I have a fear of vomitting (yes, it's an actual fear) so I probably would've been freaking out too if I had been there.

Tom very willing got up with the kids for night time feedings without complaining, but it was an unwritten rule that *I* was responsible for vomit duty!

The parade looks so fun. Somehow we missed it while we were there.

It was really fun! I can see how kids could really get into the dancing!

 

[praisehisname]

I did the same thing with the bus to Epcot attempting to monorail to MK - it was strange where the bag check is! But, like you said, you got a monorail ride in, so that's always fun.

Yep! I really would have liked to do the loop through Epcot, but we didn't want to take the time.

This is one of Drew's favorite meals.
I love seeing a purple Pop tray full of food.

I agree! Gives me a warm fuzzy feeling!

The Caslte lighting was going on just as my friend Jenna and I walked up Main Street! We both hugged and got teary eyed! LOL

We were so close! That would have been cool to meet up!

 

[Tnkrbelle565]

Hey...my comment disappeared????


Anyway, I guess I better re-type it. I love the statue pics. You KNOW how much I love those statue pics. I think Pinocchio is my favorite. Next time, you can sit on the crowd and get Chip and Dale with the castle in the background. People will look at you like you are nuts (no pun intended) but the pic will be worth it!!!

Why am I craving nachos?????

 

[praisehisname]

And I'm glad you were able to help the poor girl who got sick! Great way to pay the magic forward.

That, and I like to live by the "do unto others" saying. Someday I may need the help of a kind stranger.

My Dh is all about the naps when we go without the kids to Disney. I think there are his favorite part.

I'm not surprised Mr. Octopus Arms likes his naps!

That's exactly why I love staying onsite. So easy to get back to the resort and rest.

Yep! Everytime I think about staying off-site, I realize I don't want to give up the ease of getting back to the resort mid-day.

 

[praisehisname]

Are the lights coming soon????? Can't wait to see them- they are my all time favorite thing at WDW- so beautiful!!

I'm planning on writing the next update as soon as I get some lunch!

I did the same thing....rode the monorail to get to epcot...instead of just going to epcot but the ride was half the fun!!!

Yeah, we enjoyed the ride! Especially since it was in that late-afternoon light. It made everything look so pretty!

 

[praisehisname]

Next time, you can sit on the crowd and get Chip and Dale with the castle in the background. People will look at you like you are nuts (no pun intended) but the pic will be worth it!!!

Ooooo, awesome idea! I'll have to try that!

 

[Tnkrbelle565]

Ooooo, awesome idea! I'll have to try that!

That should have said GROUND not crowd! Don't sit on the crowd!!!

 

[praisehisname]

That should have said GROUND not crowd! Don't sit on the crowd!!!

I figured that's what you meant!

 

[Mndisneygirl]

Were they good?

They were good. Not as good as they would be at WDW of course. Then I went and made some at home on Sunday too. These TRs are bad for my diet!! They just make me so hungry. I better stay away from the dining reviews!

 

[praisehisname]

When I left off, it had gotten dark and we were waiting for the castle lighting to happen. I videotaped the whole thing and have posted it below. It’s roughly 6 ½ minutes. I apologize in advance for the shakiness during the parts when I zoomed in or out. Otherwise, it’s not too bad!



I can't even put into words how incredible the castle lighting show was. It was just so amazingly beautiful! When the show was done, I grabbed a few still shots of the castle. So gorgeous!









While we were waiting for the show to begin, we had decided that right afterwards we would high-tail it over to Casey’s for some dinner before the first parade started. We had never eaten there before and were really excited to try it! Apparently a lot of people had the same idea, because it was pretty crowded in there. Tom got in line and I hung back, ready to help him carry stuff if needed. We already had drinks from earlier, and didn’t want dessert since there would be cookies later, so we just got hot dogs and French fries. It cost $13.18 and we paid out-of-pocket.







There was nowhere inside to sit and all the tables outside were filled, so we ended up eating standing up against a trash can. At least it didn’t smell! We both loved our meals and would definitely go back!

Once we were done eating, we started looking for a spot to view the parade. I really wanted to be near the hub so that we could see Wishes afterwards without a lot of moving around. We lucked out and found a perfect spot! We were sitting on the curb right before the curb ends and the walkway to Tomorrowland begins. I probably didn’t explain that very well, but they were excellent seats!

I wanted to go check out the cookies and hot chocolate, so Tom spread his backpack out next to him and I went exploring. I ended up at the Noodle Station, and was VERY pleasantly surprised to find that in addition to the cookies and hot chocolate, they also had apple slices and apple juice.



Don’t get me wrong, I love a good cookie, but after eating vacation food for a few days the idea of some crunchy apples really appealed to me. I took 2 packs of apples, 2 cookies, and 2 hot chocolates and headed back to Tom. He really liked the cookies, but I thought they were too crumbly. The hot chocolate was very hot and yummy! But the apples were my favorite. In fact, I ended up going back for more and saved a pack for the next day’s breakfast.

When I got back, Tom introduced me to the family next to us, who he had been chatting with. The mom/wife is a DISer, and I’ve tried to find her online, but haven’t been able to. She said her screen name was kitty kat and I’ve tried several different spellings, but no luck. So if you’re out there, chime in!

At about 7pm, Tom headed over the Emporium while I saved the seats. He wanted to be there when the party merchandise came out at 7:15pm. When he got there, it was already out! He said it reminded him of Black Friday with everyone grabbing and fighting over items! He ended up getting an ornament, three different pins, the MVMCP throw, and two (of the same) t-shirts. He did a great job!

Front of ornament:


Back of ornament:


Pin:


Pin:


Pin:


Throw:


T-shirt:


While he was gone, I took a few pictures of the crowd but mostly just people watched and people listened. I’m serious about that being one of my favorite things to do! CMs were coming around checking for wristbands and I saw a few people get upset that they were being ushered toward Main Street and the exit.



At one point, a bunch of CMs formed a line shoulder-to-shoulder and wouldn’t let anyone past the Partners statue without a wristband. I also overheard some really interesting and funny conversations between people who thought they knew a lot about Disney but obviously didn’t know as much as DISers do!

The parade was scheduled to begin at 8:15pm and right around 8:10pm this lady comes out of nowhere and asks me if she can squeeze in next to me. Now let me just tell you that me and the guy next to me were pretty much touching hips, that’s how close we were. I explained to her that there was no room and she was extremely insistent that she could squeeze in. I hate confrontation and will usually go out of my way to avoid it, but I gathered all my courage and told her that we had been sitting there for over 1 ½ hours and she could not “squeeze” in. She was not happy, but moved on. I wonder if she was able to push anyone else out of her way? If she had had a small child with her, you know I would have found some way to work it out so the child could see, but come one…five minutes before the parade and you want to walk right up and get a prime viewing spot?

By now it’s past time for the parade to begin and we’re all getting antsy, wondering what’s going on. Around 8:20pm an announcement came out over the speakers saying that the parade would be delayed due to technical difficulties. My heart started to sink, thinking the parade would be cancelled and we had wasted all this time waiting for it.

Next up…does the parade go on?

 

[dawnbu40]

The castle is so beautiful in icicle lights! I will admit that when we saw that last year I teared up.

Casey's is one of my favorite cs places in wdw. Glad you enjoyed it!

Good for standing your ground and not letting the rude woman make you move! I hate when that happens!

 

[KathyRN137]

Hi Denise!

Oh, I actually got goosebumps watching your Castle lighting video!

But, seriously, who lets a balloon block people's view like that? Clueless people...

I'm glad you stood your ground at the parade line... we were put in a similar situation at DHS and it's not a very comfortable feeling.

I absolutely love those party pins and throws!!

I'm staying positive about the parade!


Kathy

 

[mickeystoontown]

Oh my! The castle lighting ceremony took my breath away. What I wouldn't give to go to Disney during the Christmas festivities.

 

[Native NYer]

The castle looks so beautiful.
Love the MVMCP throw.
Rude people that want to squeeze in between people who've been waiting a long time are the worst.
I hope you got to see the parade.

 

[podsnel]

Good for you, standing up to that "pushy" woman!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Great update! Love the castle lighting ceremony video, thanks for sharing. We saw the castle lit up, but didn't see the ceremony.

Good for you standing up to that woman. Never fails, that always happens to us. It really irritates me when I make the kids wait for over an hour for something and then someone comes up at the last minute and tries to get in front of them. I just might be the type of person who says something to people like that. . .

I hope the parade happened. You have me worried!