It's a tooting, baptizing, spitting Disney adventure! - A Nov. 2017 Completed TR

[Smilelea]

Chapter 3 continued...

Then it was time to head back to the train (where they did make us collapse the stroller )



We then saw…


​

We were disappointed that Baloo wasn’t with him.



Then we headed over so that I could ride something I’ve never ridden before.







It was awesome!!!



After this we decided it was time for supper. So we headed to Flame Tree. C and I shared the pork/ribs/chicken plate with baked beans and coleslaw. D chose the hotdog, applesauce, grapes and chocolate milk. G ate a little bit of everyone’s. He especially liked the baked beans.​

After this we headed back over to do a night time Safari that C had managed to grab a FP for. On the way, we went behind the TOL as the night time show was going on. I have never seen this so I was in awe. I wish we could have stood and watched but I just got to catch bits and pieces the entire night as we passed by.





On the Safari, we saw and heard…


And that was pretty much it.


Then it was time to head to our seats for ROL.


Nana and Mr. B made it there just in time. I had to wake-up poor G when we parked the stroller.





We had read some reviews that others don’t like this show but we loved it. Even the boys oohed and aahed and called out the different animals they saw/heard.


After this, we called it a night and headed back to the resort for baths and bed. I don’t remember waits for the bus but I believe we had to wait until like the 3rd bus even with Mr. B and his scooter because there were so many others on scooters all trying to leave at park closing.


My only regrets are that we didn’t get to do the Maharaja Jungle Trail – it was closed when we did go over there to do it around 4 or 5. We didn’t get to see The Lion King show – I was the only one that wanted to see it so I’ve made it a must for May. AND we didn’t go back over to Pandora to see it at night. So all of these have been moved up on the priority list for May.


But all in all, it was a great day. ​

 

[Lesley Wake]

Happy New Year! I don’t know about any others but it takes me a good 3 -4 hours to do an update. Is this normal or am I just slow? I also have to resize all of the photos I want to upload.

Totally understand this! I wrote up most of the TR in an unedited and rough form, but the photos are a hassle! I found https://bulkresizephotos.com/ to work best (from a desktop) because you can do a lot of resizing at once.

She checked us in and then asked if we wanted to add ROL to our dining. She gave me a 6:30 and 7:45 time. I was shocked. Clint had tried to do a ROL dining package with our TH and never could get it. So here I am waving like a mad woman for Clint to come over because I have no idea what time we needed. He was the man with the plan. If I had had to make the choice I was going with 6:30, Well, I’m glad he saw me and hurried over because he went with 7:45. So that was an exciting addition to our day. We waited only a few minutes and they called us in.

Woohoo! It’s always awesome when that happens!

My only regrets are that we didn’t get to do the Maharaja Jungle Trail – it was closed when we did go over there to do it around 4 or 5. We didn’t get to see The Lion King show – I was the only one that wanted to see it so I’ve made it a must for May. AND we didn’t go back over to Pandora to see it at night. So all of these have been moved up on the priority list for May.

Yeah, we spent a bunch of time at AK but still had a lot of things we didn’t do that are huge priorities for my March visit: Gorilla Trail (didn’t do at all), Maharajah trail (to see baby tigers), more time with Tree of Life Awakenings, Expedition Everest at night, and more relaxing exploration of Pandora, rather than looking as walking through. I feel right now the park isn’t open late enough to allow guests to really enjoy everything! I visited in Sept and there was barely an hour of dark, but we also needed to get to Rivers of Light!

 

[chs27]

Y'all had a great time! You can't worry about what you can't fit into your day. I swear a Disney day lasts fifteen minutes! You do a couple of attractions, meet and greets, and a nighttime show and your day is over. Glad you have an upcoming trip to fit in what you had to skip this time. I generally go just once every two or three years. Our last trip was in October, around Columbus Day, when it was hot and crowded. There was so much that we left undone.

 

[Smilelea]

Enjoying your TR! I had to chuckle at the pic of your husband squeezed in between the car seats....that's my youngest son (age 24) every time his sister visits with her two children. And the part where Dallas says "Mama, you just baptized yourself!" - that was the best! You have such adorable kids!

One benefit that I like about a corner room is that you usually have more windows so you get a little more natural light.

That is a nice, positive way to think about it. Thanks!

I hopped over from your PTR. I am enjoying your TR already. I love the chapter titles!

Just found this so I'm stopping in to say I'm here! I'll be back soon to get caught up

I'm so glad you made it!

What type of phone did Dallas lose? I hope POFQ or someone was able to find it - kid's toys are so precious to them and sometimes hard to replace!

We actually gave up hope of finding it but there is good news later on in the trip.

This sounds like a pretty excellent plan, really.

I thought so too.

I have to agree! I like the covered areas and the places to sit down. But even at the deluxes we've stayed at, we found that sometimes you're hard-pressed to get on the bus if you don't stand and wait at the front the whole time. Doesn't seem quite fair.

Exactly. I'm glad it's not just me that noticed this. But I can imagine that we will appreciate that they are covered on those hot, sunny days and/or rainy days in trips to come.

I found https://bulkresizephotos.com/ to work best (from a desktop) because you can do a lot of resizing at once.

Oh great! I'll have to check it out. That would help save me so much time.

Our last trip was in October, around Columbus Day, when it was hot and crowded. There was so much that we left undone.

Yikes! We are considering going around Columbus Day ourselves. The possible heat and crowds does concern me. We have been spoiled these last two trips with great temps and low crowds.

 

[cajunfan]

Enjoying your report!

 

[MeghanEmily]

A Happy belated New Year! Just starting to get caught up after being away. All your character pictures are awesome!

 

[bluejasmine]

Boys are adorable!!

 

[Smilelea]

Enjoying your report!

Thank you!

A Happy belated New Year! Just starting to get caught up after being away. All your character pictures are awesome!

Thanks! We were spoiled this trip with having PhotoPass. Glad you're back safely from your marathon trip!

Boys are adorable!!

Thank you! They are a mess

 

[Stasieki]

Reading along. Sounds like a great trip so far!

 

[Smilelea]

Quick Exciting News:


We are going back in September!! We’ve turned into crazy Disney people!!! I’ve read stories – some of yours even – where you’ve got multiple trips planned in the same year. I would think, “Wow, I can’t imagine going that close together.” OR “How do they have the time/money to go that many times?” Now here we are doing the same thing, AND I’ve realized that it’s not that difficult. To be even crazier, we are also going in January for marathon weekend! We of course don’t have that trip booked but we will in just a few weeks. I’m so excited!!


No updates on the May trip yet so I’ll carry on with a trip update.​

Chapter 4: Epcot – “Quick, look. Do you see the stroller Nazi?”

My notes for this morning start off with “craziness at the bus stop”. So I’m guessing there were a lot of people out by the time we got down to the bus stop. I also had that we did not have a long wait and we were first on thanks to Mr. B and his scooter.


We arrived at Epcot right after rope drop. Some cast members directed us to the monorail side of security where there was a shorter wait. Once in the park, D hitched a ride with Mr. B – something that had become one of his favorite things to do. Then we headed straight for Soarin since we had FPs. As we got to the bottom before going up to the entrance, there were two cast members directing people to the stroller parking. Since we were going to have to ride in shifts because of G, I was headed up just a few feet and over to the side where you could sit. One particular Cast Member pointed and said that stroller parking was over to the right. I said okay and continued on my way. Then she hollers “You can’t take it inside” and I holler back “I’m not going to.” It did come out harsher than I intended but I already knew the rules and we weren’t even going halfway to the door. So we stopped right where I had intended and decided who was riding first. Nana, C and D went first. Mr. B parked beside the stroller (about a foot away) and I got G out so he could walk around while we waited. We walked down to the water and then back to the stroller a couple of times. As we turned to head back to the stroller on one of our trips, I see the same cast member coming towards us with our stroller. I hollered “wait” (smiling and nice) and she stopped. I stated that it was ours and she said that we have to stay by it. She turned to put it back as I was saying that it was right beside him and I pointed to Mr. B. She parked it so that it was touching his scooter. As she walked away, Mr. B said “I looked up and she was walking away with it. I don’t know why she took it since I was right here by it.”


I don’t know what the deal was with her. We certainly weren’t the only ones that had strollers parked on the side with one or two people with them. Anyways, the rest of our group came out and I eagerly searched their faces for any indication of how D did. I didn’t see any tears so I was hopeful. Well, he apparently followed through with riding it but he said he didn’t like it and didn’t want to ride it again. Then it was mine and Mr. B’s turn. We loved it of course and then met back up with the group.


We had a few minutes before time for our next FP but we headed over anyways. I heard Nana and Mr. B discussing needing food. Nana wanted to go look for some but C mentioned that she had said she wanted to see the boys meet some of the characters and other than Tusker House, she had missed them all. So they decided to wait until after we used our next FP and then find food.


So this is where we went next.

​

After Mickey, they took a quick break. When Goofy came back out, he went over to Mickey’s spot and pretended to be Mickey. We all had a good laugh and then he came back over to his spot.




Then we headed to Starbucks for food for Nana and Mr. B. D got a snack too – chocolate milk and some cookie with cream in the middle. He ate less than half.


Next on our agenda was Spaceship Earth. We had FPs. We headed that direction. C, D and I scanned our bands and we turned to see a cast member directing Mr. B to a different location. Come to find out, we didn’t need FPs for this because we could use the handicapped entrance (that we didn’t know about). The cast member said that it usually goes faster than the FP line. Something to remember for the future.


D and C ended up in front of G and I. G went to town touching the screen as we started the ride. A couple of minutes into the ride I realized our narration was in a different language. At the end of the ride, the print on the screen was also in a different language. It looked like Chinese or hieroglyphics .I realized then that G had to have set ours on something other than English at the very beginning. That little stinker.


After this, I was ready for my first snack and I knew exactly what I wanted. C and D wanted to try Mission Space. So G and I headed towards France and the rest of the group headed to MS.


Although I knew what I wanted, I wasn’t sure where I needed to go. It took a little exploring but I finally figured out where. I felt a little silly taking the double stroller in but I knew I wouldn’t be able to hang on to G and the food. I also didn’t see a good place near-by to leave the stroller. The cast members were very nice and accommodating in France so I was very thankful for that after the start to our morning.




G and I thoroughly enjoyed it. As we were eating, I received a text that said D had chickened out of MS. C asked where we were and said they were headed over.

​

Apparently they stopped to visit some ducks on the way.


We finished our snack and was about to head their way when I noticed the line for Belle. It was fairly short so I texted C to find out if I needed to stay in line. He texted back no, that we didn’t have time because she was about to go on break and wouldn’t be back out in time before our ADR. He also added that D saw Alice and wanted to meet her and the line was short. So we quickly headed that way because I realized I had the pillowcase that she needed to sign.




We arrived right afterwards, so no pillowcase signature. We had a little bit of time before our ADR but we also had a bit of walking to get there so we headed that way.


By the time we got over there and found stroller parking it was just a few minutes ‘til so we checked in. We didn’t wait very long at all and they were calling us. The cast member told us we would be meeting Belle first and would then be lead to our table.




Our waitress came over immediately and explained how everything worked and took our drink orders. I went to find something for G and was very excited to see fruit.
​

*Continued in next post*

 

[Smilelea]

​

Chapter 4 continued…

It didn’t take long and the princesses started arriving at our table.



My camera was fogged up from being in my pocket. Nana has more pictures that I will share once I get them.


In between visits, we had a very attentive and helpful waitress. She helped us decide on meals with our picky eaters. She brought us an extra bowl of mashed potatoes for G and a bottle of water just in case. We also forgot to have Mulan sign the autograph book and she kindly took it back for her to sign for us. Now to be honest, we weren’t expecting to like the food at Akershus. We had perused the menu and had read lots of mixed reviews before this trip. We only booked it because of all of the princesses in one location. Boy were we surprised. This ended up being one of our favorites. The food was delicious. Everyone found something they liked. And the character interactions were great. We knew it could be any combination of princesses and we were fine with that. I was ecstatic that one of them was Mulan! After she walked away, D asked who she was. He didn’t recognize her without her armor .

We ended our lunch with D & Nana joining in the Princess Parade.




After lunch, Nana decided she needed to go rest but she didn’t want to leave the park. She and Mr. B headed back towards the big Christmas tree and we continued on with our itinerary.


I was on another mission. I had a particular magic shot I wanted to get so we headed to China. There was no sign of a photographer so we continued on. As we were walking, I asked what was next. C said, “Well if you don’t remember then I guess you don’t really want it so we will just keep going”. It took me a minute to realize what he meant.





When we got there, G had fallen asleep so I went in to get my number. It was going to be a little while so the big boys went looking for a bathroom. I stayed with G and kept checking on what number had been called. Finally, my number was next so I texted them to hurry-up. It was quite crowded around the counter and I didn’t want to leave G unattended since there wasn’t room for the stroller. They arrived just in time. Thankfully, I had managed to eyeball which clam I wanted before it was my turn. I had read multiple times that the ugliest/hairiest one is the route to go.


She called my number. D and I walked forward and I pointed out the one I wanted. She grabbed it and carried it back to the work space. She went through the routine and we counted. There were TWO pearls! Oh I was so ecstatic! This was my first time to do this and I got two pearls in one!!!! They were also the same size. She finished up cleaning them and bagging them and handed them over. D and I joined C and G who was still sleeping. I had already picked what I wanted to do with one pearl. I hadn’t considered that I might get two. I told C I was going back to look and was he okay if I got earrings. He told me Merry Christmas and gave me the card. It didn’t take long for me to pick what I wanted and they told me to come back in an hour or before the park closes.





Then we headed over to see someone else. G woke-up right before she came out.





He didn’t have any interest in meeting her so D went solo.


Next, we walked over to wait for….





We had a little bit of a wait for her. So by the time we finished up it was time to go pick up my earrings.


Then we decided it was snack time. C wanted a funnel cake and I wanted something involving caramel and chocolate. I ended up not getting either of the two snacks I had on my list. Instead I got a caramel butter bar that I don’t remember the exact name. It was good but I wish I had stuck with my chocolate and caramel plan. D enjoyed it as well but he like his Daddy’s funnel cake more. G didn’t like either one.
​

*Continued in next post*

 

[Smilelea]

Chapter 4 continued….

After devouring our snacks, we headed back to China to try for a photographer one last time. We lucked out.




This photographer was the one for Mulan. Mulan was currently on break. She said she hadn’t done the magic shot before but she thought she knew how. I was a little concerned but decided we’d try it. If it didn’t work then we could try again on Wednesday.


Once we finished up here, we headed to Mexico for a bathroom break. Yes, I mention this because this is the only reason we stopped here but it lead to more fun.





We also went ahead and rode Gran Fiesta Tour Starring the Three Caballeros since there was no wait.


Afterwards, we texted Nana to let her know we were headed back their way and we decided we were getting hungry. So we headed towards Sunshine Seasons. We decided we’d check the wait for a certain character since we would pass right by. The wait was short so we took a detour to see…





D said he wanted to meet Joy and Sadness but their line was fairly lengthy and we were hungry. We told him we’d try again later.


As we approached The Land, I said, “Quick look. Do you see the stroller Nazi?” Everyone laughed. We did see a cast member but he was by the stroller parking so we headed that way. I said something about parking over here and he said “Or up by the door.” I asked if we could park up there and he said yes. So that’s where we went. I’m guessing that you can’t do that when the crowds are higher and that’s what it was all about that morning.


We headed into Sunshine Seasons to learn that there wasn’t anything C wanted to eat here. He decided he really wasn’t that hungry so he chose a cinnamon roll. It didn’t come close to comparing to Gaston’s of course. He wasn’t impressed. D chose mac and cheese and I went with the sweet and sour chicken, veg rice and strawberry shortcake instead of a drink. G was cranky and didn’t really want anything we had. So, note to ourselves, Sunshine Seasons isn’t the best option for our family.


We went back by to check Joy and Sadness and it was still a fairly lengthy line. D was okay with skipping them again. Nana and Mr. B decided they’d go wait by the tree again until time for illuminations (that we had gotten fast passes for).


C checked the wait times for a few things and we headed to….


But wait, we stopped to get this once we saw the photographer was available



​

*Continued in next post*

 

[Smilelea]

Chapter 4 continued…

Then we headed to see…





By this time, we had to head to get ready for illuminations. There was some confusion as to where we needed to go but Nana finally figured it out when she overheard some people talking. So we got in line. Then I got concerned about the stroller and if it needed to be parked. C went and asked and was told we needed to keep it with us. It was a fairly short wait and the line started moving. C, Nana, D, and Mr. B went first. Then it was my turn, no magic band. It wasn’t on my wrist. I panicked. They had me go over to the side and the rest of my family was on the other side of the rope. They started tearing through the bags they had and I did the same. Just about the time that I started to cry, a lady walked up to the cast member beside me and said they had found a magic band. It was mine. Sweet relief and thankfulness! All was saved.



So we headed to find spots to wait on the show. Thanks again to Mr. B, we got to go to the scooter parking and we had a great view. G soon fell asleep so I put the carrier on so I could hold him and be hands free. It was a fairly lengthy wait I remember. I can’t remember how early we had to get there for our spots but I remember waiting a while once we did have them. Finally the show started. G slept through the first few minutes. I had one hand over his ear and his other was against my chest. But a few minutes in he woke up. He was a little in awe for a moment and then he started to get upset. It ended up being awful. He was absolutely terrified. Every time it would get really loud and a lot of fireworks in succession we would think it was almost over (we’d never seen it so we didn’t know). But it wasn’t. By the time it was over, he was screaming and trembling in fear. So much for seeing HEA later on in our trip .



We got him calmed down once it was all over and we decided to just chill and wait out the crowds. It ended up being a good idea because there was no wait for the bus once we got to it. ​

 

[cstorm65]

Sounds like a great night at Epcot with the exception of the little guy not loving the fireworks. We've certainly been there with both of our boys at one time or another. Thankfully they've both gotten to where they will watch as we've done it more and more. DS2 still just lays his head on DW and watches the show. Looking forward to reading more.

 

[ariane37]

Wow when you do an update you do UPDATES! Since I haven't been here in forever, here I go:

She checked us in and then asked if we wanted to add ROL to our dining. She gave me a 6:30 and 7:45 time

That's great! We've only watched ROL once but we did have the dining package which was nice so we didn't have to go sit really early.

We only rode the River Journey this time. We plan to hit FOP in May.

Make sure you do it! It's amazing.

Dallas and I got this one…

Adorable!

TOL as the night time show was going on.

This is probably my favorite thing about AK at night, I adore the TOL Awakenings. My second favorite would be riding EE after dark

On the Safari, we saw and heard…

Seems everyone hears the lions on the evening safari's which is so cool!

And that was pretty much it.

And seems that's about all anyone sees/hears lol

We didn’t get to see The Lion King show – I was the only one that wanted to see it so I’ve made it a must for May

Oh you have to make sure you do this, too. Not sure if you've seen if before but it's definitely the best show on property. Our favorite.

We are going back in September!!

It's a wonderful feeling having multiple trips booked, isn't it

She parked it so that it was touching his scooter. As she walked away, Mr. Bill said “I looked up and she was walking away with it. I don’t know why she took it since I was right here by it.” ​

What the.........

It didn’t take long and the princesses started arriving at our table.

Cool you got Mulan! I love when there's a "surprise" substitution. When we ate at CRT a couple years ago we had Merida instead of Aurora (why is she out so much lol) and I was thrilled since Merida is one of my favorites, plus the unexpected is so nice.

We also went ahead and rode Gran Fiesta Tour Starring the Three Caballeros since there was no wait.

I enjoy this ride also; it's underrated! Nothing that special but nice to do and a nice break in the heat.

 

[MeghanEmily]

I don't know why, but for some reason I stopped get updates here! Anyway, I'm back now! Your character photos are adorable! I love the ones with Anna and Elsa!

And how exciting that you've got another Disney trip booked! Yay!

 

[Smilelea]

Sounds like a great night at Epcot with the exception of the little guy not loving the fireworks. We've certainly been there with both of our boys at one time or another. Thankfully they've both gotten to where they will watch as we've done it more and more. DS2 still just lays his head on DW and watches the show. Looking forward to reading more.

Oh how I hope he outgrows his fears soon. I really want to see HEA in May or September. We haven't seen it yet. But, I'm not really holding my breath on it to happen that soon.

Oh you have to make sure you do this, too. Not sure if you've seen if before but it's definitely the best show on property. Our favorite.

I have not seen it. C asked yesterday what my must-dos for May are and that was at the top of my list.

BTW - we are having some snow days this weeks so I've taken advantage of the time off . Also, I'm only allowed to update when it doesn't interfere with family time. I take too long to do an update apparently

Cool you got Mulan! I love when there's a "surprise" substitution.

You know I didn't realize she was a rarity until earlier this week. C said he'd been reading on here (of course. ) and he learned that Mulan isn't typically there. Its usually Aurora. Mulan was a must meet for me and it was extremely nice for it to happen here instead of us having to go wait in line which is what we originally planned.

And how exciting that you've got another Disney trip booked! Yay!

Woohoo!

 

[Elizabeth Smith]

When he hung up we asked him what Mickey said and he couldn’t tell us. He was so excited to get the call he couldn’t remember what he said

Wow! That's magical!

On the Safari, we saw and heard…

That's one of the best Lion pictures I've ever seen from the safari. You go a lot of really great animal shots at AK for sure!

We had read some reviews that others don’t like this show but we loved it

Agree, agree, agree. It's a calmer night time show, for sure, but it is so beautiful and fits the theme of AK so well.

It didn’t take long and the princesses started arriving at our table.

Wow! Mulan! Her outfit is really cool!

We had perused the menu and had read lots of mixed reviews before this trip.

I would fall in the not so much category for Akershus. . .

There were TWO pearls! Oh I was so ecstatic!

You're so lucky! I want to do this sometime.

 

[Smilelea]

We are now on day 4 of no school. Monday was a holiday and the last 3 days have been ‘snow’ days – but we didn’t get any snow . So I’m taking advantage of it and doing a second update in less than a week. This one should have the most pictures, yet. Here we go!​

Chapter 5: Magic Kingdom – “Broke down again!?! & I can’t believe you forgot the pot!”

My notes for this day start off with:



“7:00 am – breakfast in room. Bus arrived in less than 10 minutes (Bill).” So apparently we were up and eating by 7am and we didn’t wait long for a bus. We must have been first on again thanks to Mr. B.



We arrived at MK by 9:10 am. As we were headed towards security, C brought up that last trip we were all pulled for the extra security check at one point or another except him. So he said he’d probably be pulled this time. He just got it out of his mouth when the security guard called him over. I laughed …. Until they called me …. and then Nana and Mr. B. They were checking everyone at MK this time .



Our first FP was at 9 am for ….




I love D's face in this one!


G and D were ecstatic to meet Talking Mickey. I also just realized that we finally got Nana and Mr. B to join us in a picture.



Afterwards, we needed a quick break. D asked for this picture to be taken.



​

We also noted the location of a certain place we needed to be at a little later. Then we headed down Main Street. We kept an eye out for a photographer that wasn’t too busy so we could get the traditional castle picture. We found one and got these:







Crazy hair and all!



Then it was straight to our next FP.





Elena asked him if he had a magic wand. He said he did (it’s a Harry Potter one that I made) but that it didn’t have magic powers. He did show her that his shoes light up. She tried to make hers light up, too.



​

G was in awe of the “pipincess”es. By this point he was loving all of the attention at the meet & greets and was beginning to be a little show off. He started it with Anna & Elsa the previous day and it continued on the rest of the trip.

After this, we checked the time and saw we were good. So we did…



​

Prince Charming Regal Carrousel

And then Mickey's PhilharMagic which was a first for me and the boys. Maybe C too, but I don’t remember. I enjoyed it. The boys didn’t seem to care much either way. I think D was a little freaked out and kept his glasses off. ​

*Continued in next post*

 

[Smilelea]

Chapter 5 continued…

Next, D insisted on trying out his muscles.


​

No luck, so we moved onto our next appointment. I’ll just let the pictures tell most of this story

We tried stickers.
hmmm...maybe


didn't want the Mickey toy

nope, not that one either


so here we go

maybe bubbles....

nope
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*Continued in next post*