It's kind of fun to do the impossible - Disney with a 1 month old *new 2/13/15*

[Leshaface]

Thanks for the explanation of the movie! Sounds good, although it would take quite a bit of convincing to get DH to see it in theaters. If it's not visually appealling, he won't 'waste' his money. He's currently waiting for the next Hobbit movie to come out in December.

I would have thrown a fit about not having the keys with me! Ugh, and you know it was hot out too

Dang it, I can't view most of your pics.

Olivia is great at finding the camera on SM!

What a fun meet for Peter with Buzz.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I just caught up on your trip report, I'm so impressed how much you guys managed to do with 3 little kids, major props!

You're kids are just too cute.

I'm loving all the food pictures, I cannot wait to get back to all that Disney food, and drink. DBF will definitely be judging how much i consume and I don't even care

Thanks Jess! We just kinda roll with it and figure either we make it work or we don't get to go ... so we make it work!

Thank you! I think we managed to make some cute kids ... which works out well for them as it makes it hard to stay made at them at times

Just tell DBF that all food and drink at Disney contains no calories as it is made from wishes and pixie dust

Thanks for the explanation of the movie! Sounds good, although it would take quite a bit of convincing to get DH to see it in theaters. If it's not visually appealling, he won't 'waste' his money. He's currently waiting for the next Hobbit movie to come out in December.

I would have thrown a fit about not having the keys with me! Ugh, and you know it was hot out too

Dang it, I can't view most of your pics.

Olivia is great at finding the camera on SM!

What a fun meet for Peter with Buzz.

Well, not sure his definition of "visually appealing" but the scenes in Big Hero 6 are pretty amazing, very colorful and the action moves really fast. It is available in 3D too (though we tend to avoid that as it gives Judi headaches after a while)

Oh, it was hot out - and of course I had to be the tough guy that carried down three bags at once ... so I had to carry 3 bags back too. I was more mad at myself than anything.

Hmm, not sure what is wrong with the pictures - just checked and seem fine to me

Olivia specifically asked where the camera was and she was looking for it - and held that pose - pretty much from the second she got in the ride car

Pete had a great time with Buzz which I was happy about

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Part 32 - Trying to stay cool and heading under the sea​

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It was getting hot and the kids were getting a bit cranky so I offered up going to get ice cream .... at which point Judi shot me one of these looks:

You see we had all worn Mickey and Minnie shirts to get a nice family picture together in front of the castle .... a picture we had yet to get. For those of you reading this who have never had young children, at this point I would point out that it is impossible for them to eat ice cream and not make a gigonzo mess of themselves.

So we had to convince the kids we would get ice cream right after we got the family castle picture. This, combined with the heat, led to not the best photo session - but we got at least one half-way decent picture, along with some out takes. Emma seems to be protesting the delay the most:

We then did not stop at Go but went directly into the ice cream parlor to get some, well, ice cream. The kids each got a kids Mickey cone (also put in a cup to minimize mess / disappointed kid when scoop fell off the cone) and Judi and I split a float:

While we ate the ice cream, we also got to see the Move It, Shake It, Celebrate It! Street Party for the first (and, apparently) last time.

It was cute - though I felt like it took up valuable real estate in front of the Castle for too long of a period. Though I can definitely see kids and families having a good time dancing together:

After our treat we headed into Fantasyland for our next FP+ which was to meet Ariel in her grotto. This was actually the first time we would be meeting her in her fin form as in past trips the line was always too long and getting FP- never worked out. She was super welcoming and had some great exchanges with Olivia and Peter:

She also spent a bunch of time with Emma and then we got a nice family picture too (probably came out better than the one in front of the Castle )

After meeting the Mermaid we figured it made sense to go on her ride whose full name I believe is "Under the Sea ~ Journey of The Little Mermaid that is full of sights and sounds presented in full technicolor and, yeah, it's the same ride as in Disneyland but the queue here is so much cooler ... the ride!"

This was one ride that we had to transfer Emma out of her carrier because it had an actual safety bar (unlike the Nemo ride) - which I think is because of the part where it goes down backwards. Took a little bit to figure out how to get her set up properly as she had to face foward and have her legs under the safety bar. Clearly this attraction was not designed with 1 months old in mind!

I think this fish is my favorite - probaly something to do with the mustache and/or eye-brows:

and I love the Ursala animatronic - the movements are just so fluid! Part of me wishes they would go back to classic rides and upgrade the animatronics knowing what they can do now.

After this we decided to us up our ride swaps for the Mine Train ... an apparently the only picture I took this time was of the ground. Though, I think it was because I liked that Disney bothered to put the numbers on the ground in jewel shapes and that they actually used different jewel shapes throughout vs. all being in the same.

After this it was past lunch time and we also wanted to ensure a decent spot for watching the parade, so we headed off towards Liberty Square to secure a spot and get some food for while we waited. On the way though I did snap a picture of the Tangled Tinkle Tower:

That's where I'll leave it for now ... though as a tease I will let you know that the blue sky seen in the above picture is the last of that we would see for a while

(ooh, careful, dem sounds like foreshawdowing words!)

TTFN

 

[vleeth]

Tangled Tinkle Tower ~ I love it!!!

 

[KatMark]

You probably would have gotten the same look/threat from me if you had suggested ice cream BEFORE the family photo. And the kids look so sad in the picture.

Ice cream...do you know we have NEVER eaten at that Parlor? We go to the Plaza for lunch every trip and order dessert which I am sure comes from the Parlor. Does that count as the same? Mark loves those cones when they put them in a cup. At age 61-3/4, he still looks like a kid after eating ice cream.

Great pictures with Ariel and I think you are right...great family photo!

And I love the jeweled numbers at Mine Ride (similar to the honey pots at Pooh).

Tangled Tinkle Tower -- that is THE best line I've heard in months. I love it.

Uh oh...don't tell me rain is coming up to ruin your parade.

 

[disneyfreak25]

Love the magicbands!

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

In fairness, it's not the easiest thing for an adult to not make a gigonzo mess as well.

No! Wrong!! Move It Shake It takes up the exact right amount of real estate. Of course, I'm also obsessed (or I used to be until they changed it. We'll see how I feel now.).

Ariel is perfect. The end.

 

[KatMark]

Ariel is perfect. The end.

 

[MarbleBob]

Wow! Feels good to be caught up again

And now, I'm totally jonesing for a Mickey ice cream cone.... and a float too. Well, maybe two ice cream cones and a float!!

LOVE the Mermaid photos. Especially the one with Ariel going "hush" That's a keeper!!!

Looking forward to the next update, especially after a set up like that

Cheers!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Tangled Tinkle Tower ~ I love it!!!

Thanks! That has to be the bathrooms with the most different names in the world. I also like "Punzel's Potties"

You probably would have gotten the same look/threat from me if you had suggested ice cream BEFORE the family photo. And the kids look so sad in the picture.

Ice cream...do you know we have NEVER eaten at that Parlor? We go to the Plaza for lunch every trip and order dessert which I am sure comes from the Parlor. Does that count as the same? Mark loves those cones when they put them in a cup. At age 61-3/4, he still looks like a kid after eating ice cream.

Great pictures with Ariel and I think you are right...great family photo!

And I love the jeweled numbers at Mine Ride (similar to the honey pots at Pooh).

Tangled Tinkle Tower -- that is THE best line I've heard in months. I love it.

Uh oh...don't tell me rain is coming up to ruin your parade.

Well, to be fair I just totally forgot about the family picture ... ok, that doesn't really paint me in a much better light.

I think we can count getting ice cream form the Plaza as getting if from the parlor. And I don't think I ever want to be at a point in my life where I don't look like a kid after eating ice cream

Thank you! Definitely was a fun one - feel very fortunate to have so many memorable meet & greets this trip and that the kids are getting more into it. Just the look on their face when *the* Ariel asks them to sit by her and give her a hug, etc. makes for some happy memories.

Thank you! Glad I could give you a chuckle

Not to spoil every thing but our parade does get rained on - but it led to one of my favorite Disney moments ever so it is all good.

Love the magicbands!

Thank you! I think they came out pretty well - will have to up my game even more for next trip!

In fairness, it's not the easiest thing for an adult to not make a gigonzo mess as well.

No! Wrong!! Move It Shake It takes up the exact right amount of real estate. Of course, I'm also obsessed (or I used to be until they changed it. We'll see how I feel now.).

Ariel is perfect. The end.

Very true Rob - especially with the heat level that day I am sure I would have made a gigonzo mess with an ice cream cone as well

Ok, ok, I promise to never make a somewhat possibly negative comment about a dance party that no longer exists and I did say I liked it - just felt like it went on for longer than I was expecting ... but perhaps I was thinking of parades that keep moving along rather than staying in one spot for a while so was more of an apples/tangelo thing

Well, yeah, Ariel is perfect ... you know, other than constantly disobeying her father and then when she is a parent one upping him by literally building a giant stone wall to keep her daughter away from the ocean and 1/2 half of her family with total disregard for the impact it would have on beach erosion ....

.... or what Kathy said

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Wow! Feels good to be caught up again

And now, I'm totally jonesing for a Mickey ice cream cone.... and a float too. Well, maybe two ice cream cones and a float!!

LOVE the Mermaid photos. Especially the one with Ariel going "hush" That's a keeper!!!

Looking forward to the next update, especially after a set up like that

Cheers!

Thanks for catching up Matt - hope all is well!

I know, after all this discussion of ice cream I totally am having some after dinner tonight

I loved all the characters that would interact with Emma ... it is nice that they are so thoughtful!

yeah, I painted a pretty rosy picture, huh?

 

[missangelalexis]

Haha so I have to ask- did the kids end up making a mess with their ice cream after all?! They seem pretty clean!

Great pics with Ariel! And I too love that Ursula animatronic! It also helps that she's my favorite villain

Oh no, that foreshadowing does not sound good!!

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

Well, yeah, Ariel is perfect ... you know, other than constantly disobeying her father and then when she is a parent one upping him by literally building a giant stone wall to keep her daughter away from the ocean and 1/2 half of her family with total disregard for the impact it would have on beach erosion ....

Nope... Still perfect!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Haha so I have to ask- did the kids end up making a mess with their ice cream after all?! They seem pretty clean!

Great pics with Ariel! And I too love that Ursula animatronic! It also helps that she's my favorite villain

Oh no, that foreshadowing does not sound good!!

They did make a bit of a mess with the ice cream - not as bad as we feared but definitely were not spotless

Thanks - we have had some great interactions with Ariel over the years and she didn't disappoint this time.

Thinks definitely did not go as planned from here on out - but things turned out ok in ways we definitely didn't expect

Nope... Still perfect!

 

[Dugette]

Okay, back and all caught up - I can't believe your trip is almost over, though!

Garden Grill was great in June - though it was NOT rotating when we went - glad to hear that it's spinning again! Dug and I also went there back in 2010, I believe - both times were great. Good, fresh food and some of the best character interactions - some come around multiple times, as you experienced. Fun place - hard to go there with so many other options as Epcot, but an excellent character meal.

So cool that you saw all the fireworks shows in one night!

Glad you made it back to the MK on your last day and got some acceptable family shots and, of course, some ice cream.

I am sad that it rained on your parade.

 

[ElenaJane]

You can almost feel the heat looking at that melting ice cream! I'm sure some day your kids will appreciate those well coordinated castle pics!

Ursula is now one of my favorite animatronics! I agree that if they overhauled all the old ones to that standard, I wouldn't be mad!

 

[amazingact21]

I laughed out loud at her description of Judi's reaction when you suggested ice cream, only because I've shot that look to Alex about a hundred times in Disney before. I felt her pain.


I think the castle shots turned out well. When you look back on them you can remind yourself it was August. In FL. And you had three young kids to try and keep still. Honestly, when I see pictures of me and my two brothers as kids in WDW in July, one of our faces is always completely obscured, so compared to that ya'lls i great.



Ariel in her fins is a fun interaction. Glad you were able to finally meet her!


Ugh, those clamshells are such a pain to navigate with a baby. Especially if the kid is sleeping and/or has no neck control yet. But I'm sure if they didn't have those rules someone would complain about it being unsafe, so Disney couldn't win in that situation.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Okay, back and all caught up - I can't believe your trip is almost over, though!

Garden Grill was great in June - though it was NOT rotating when we went - glad to hear that it's spinning again! Dug and I also went there back in 2010, I believe - both times were great. Good, fresh food and some of the best character interactions - some come around multiple times, as you experienced. Fun place - hard to go there with so many other options as Epcot, but an excellent character meal.

So cool that you saw all the fireworks shows in one night!

Glad you made it back to the MK on your last day and got some acceptable family shots and, of course, some ice cream.

I am sad that it rained on your parade.

I know - these trips go way to fast (as I am sure you can attest by how it feels like your Hawaii trip went by in a blink of an eye)

That is a major bummer that the Garden Grill wasn't spinning when you were last there. I can confirm 100% that it was definitely spinning when we went in August. Glad you enjoyed it even without the movement. We really did, especially with the kids and everyone had a ton to eat and had fun with the characters. Especially during Food & Wine it is hard to make time for all the food option in EPCOT so will be hard to hit this one up every trip, but we will definitely have this on our list of places to consider.

Definitely a bummer - but just another reason to go back

You can almost feel the heat looking at that melting ice cream! I'm sure some day your kids will appreciate those well coordinated castle pics!

Ursula is now one of my favorite animatronics! I agree that if they overhauled all the old ones to that standard, I wouldn't be mad!

Yeah - it definitely was pretty hot ... though I have to admit we lucked out a bit as the week before we arrived it was even hotter! Hopefully they will appreciate the pictures. At least Judi and I do

I know there is something to keeping the classic rides, well, classic, but even like if the animals on the Jungle Cruise had more modern movements, etc. I think it would be pretty cool

I laughed out loud at her description of Judi's reaction when you suggested ice cream, only because I've shot that look to Alex about a hundred times in Disney before. I felt her pain.

I think the castle shots turned out well. When you look back on them you can remind yourself it was August. In FL. And you had three young kids to try and keep still. Honestly, when I see pictures of me and my two brothers as kids in WDW in July, one of our faces is always completely obscured, so compared to that ya'lls i great.

Ariel in her fins is a fun interaction. Glad you were able to finally meet her!

Ugh, those clamshells are such a pain to navigate with a baby. Especially if the kid is sleeping and/or has no neck control yet. But I'm sure if they didn't have those rules someone would complain about it being unsafe, so Disney couldn't win in that situation.

Pretty sure every husband has gotten that look at least once at Disney

Yeah, I think all-in-all they came out ok and like you said they do capture the mood of the moment Overall I am pretty happy with the number of pictures we got and super glad we went in on the Memory Maker share.

Yeah - as far as safety goes on the rides from research I have done my understanding is they are mostly for if something goes wrong and they have to stop the ride quickly - so if Emma was in her car seat and nothing went wrong there would be no issue, but if it had to stop short the bar could give it a jolt which could be bad ... that is the main reason for rides that have restriction on women who are pregnant riding them. Supposedly like Big Thunder and others could be ridden safely with no restraints, but it is if they have to stop the ride quickly that they are needed.

 

[OhioStateBuckeye]

I'm just starting to jump into your TR!

I know Max Rebo and his band, of course. He is my second favorite alien elephant, following Hooter from Captain EO. I always wondered if those 2 kind of influenced each other's creation.

Just out of curiosity, was your daughter's name influenced by Emma from Once Upon a Time at all? I love that show.

Your report looks really good so far and I'm excited to catch up

 

[sunnysideup3]

So, I just realized I've been reading along and really enjoying your TR this whole time and NEVER commented. I have to be better about this. Hello

I'm really enjoying reading about your trip. I love your BLT view. I dream of someday staying there.
All your dining reviews have been great (and delicious looking!).

I"m also loving seeing traveling with small children. My littlest will be around 17 months when we go, but it's still great to read about the adjustments you have to make with a little one in tow.

Thanks!