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

[khertz]

Great updates! I'm glad Olivia wanted to ride Mine Train with you...I'm sure hoping for the same reaction from Paxton! Not having ridden it myself, it does seem a bit milder than BTMRR so hopefully I can convince him to ride when the time comes.

The Barnstormer gif! That's totally the whole ride, right there.

Great Anna & Elsa meet. I absolutely love how Peter looks totally engaged in whatever Anna is saying or doing. So sweet. How fun that you were able to share the meet with Lauren & Aria! The girls are all so sweet in their Anna & Elsa gear.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I'm glad that Olivia liked 7DMT. All I'll say for now about our experience with it is that the seats are really small.

Aww poor Peter though. I mean, Barnstormer is a great first roller coaster to try out but I can get why it might be scary.

That girl is really giving the stink eye in the pictures.

Peter's love of Anna is adorable.

So is Olivia's face in just all the pictures with Elsa. Like, you can just tell how magical it was for them and it just makes me want to take my own kids (who aren't even like real yet) so much.

And very cute family pictures. Sounds like it really was worth all the hassle of the FP+.

You are so right Amber - the seats on the Mine Train are super small!

I totally didn't notice that girl at the time but funny to see her giving the stink eye int he pictures - not sure exactly why or at what but it is kind funny

It definitely is different bringing your kids to Disney and seeing the awe and joy on their face when they actually meet THE Anna and THE Elsa. Not that adult only trips are not as good, it's just different. Definitely was worth all the effort in securing the FP+ (and, I mean, thank goodness! I would have been pretty darn cranky if I felt like it was a waste!)

Peter's expressions were cracking me up during these updates! Again, you are hitting all the hard to get things! A 7DMT FP and A&E?! Two castle ADRs in one day. You are like a WDW planning Jedi.

One thing we have begun to understand is that Peter is just a funny little guy - even at home he does these odd funny things and you can't help but laugh with (at?) him

Good at planning Disney trips am I - Fast Pass + or not Fast Pass + ... there is no standby

 

[TheMaxRebo]

The Anna & Elsa pictures are wonderful and I'm glad you were able to get your FP time squared away. Can I just say I am glad I don't have young kids so I don't ever have to worry about that hassle, at least until I have grand kids which BETTER be years away.

Loved the recap on the mine train. I am super excited to ride that in 8 days!!!!!! Woo Hoo!

Thank you! Well, who knows what system they will be up to by then - Super Fast Pass ++++ with a side of fries .... whatever it is, I am sure there will be tons of threads in the Theme Park Strategies board complaining about it

Woo hoo indeed! Have a great trip!

Great updates! I'm glad Olivia wanted to ride Mine Train with you...I'm sure hoping for the same reaction from Paxton! Not having ridden it myself, it does seem a bit milder than BTMRR so hopefully I can convince him to ride when the time comes.

The Barnstormer gif! That's totally the whole ride, right there.

Great Anna & Elsa meet. I absolutely love how Peter looks totally engaged in whatever Anna is saying or doing. So sweet. How fun that you were able to share the meet with Lauren & Aria! The girls are all so sweet in their Anna & Elsa gear.

Mine Train is definitely calmer than BTMRR and is really smooth so in some ways it is "easier" than Barnstormer - if you can convince Paxton to go I am sure he will love it!

well, maybe only 93% of the ride

It was fun to do the M&G together and to be able to help each other out a bit. Definitely a fun morning!

 

[courtneybelle]

We are big fans of the Carousel too! Just good, classic fun, and I love the music.

The Mine Train gifs are awesome

HA I have to say I had a very similar reaction to Peter's when I was little. I hated the Barnstormer! Now I'd be much closer to Olivia's reaction, though.

Oh my gosh, those photos in the Pooh line are a riot!! Between Peter's expressions and the girl behind them just not having any of it…it's too much. I love it.

Such great pictures with Anna and Elsa!!! I liked seeing them interact together at Epcot, but I agree that it was mostly Anna chatting when they were together. I really didn't mind meeting them separately and it's definitely been effective in keeping wait times "down"

 

[TheMaxRebo]

We are big fans of the Carousel too! Just good, classic fun, and I love the music.

The Mine Train gifs are awesome

HA I have to say I had a very similar reaction to Peter's when I was little. I hated the Barnstormer! Now I'd be much closer to Olivia's reaction, though.

Oh my gosh, those photos in the Pooh line are a riot!! Between Peter's expressions and the girl behind them just not having any of it…it's too much. I love it.

Such great pictures with Anna and Elsa!!! I liked seeing them interact together at Epcot, but I agree that it was mostly Anna chatting when they were together. I really didn't mind meeting them separately and it's definitely been effective in keeping wait times "down"

I agree about the carousel - it does have great music and love how it is in the heart of Fantasyland

Thank you! I think I am getting the hang of making these gif and it is taking like 25% of the time it took me to figure out how to do the first one

seeing those pictures was a nice surprise as I was going through our pictures as I didn't quite notice it at the time. Definitely a funny sequence

I agree that it's been fore the best that they separated them. I was a bit disappointed when it was first announced but having experienced it I am happy they made that call

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Part 22 - Eat in another castle? Sure!
Wednesday, August 27th​

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After our wonderful meeting with the Queen and Princess from Frozen it was time for lunch! While we had eaten breakfast in a castle I don't think that means your can't also eat lunch in a castle, so we all headed towards Prince Adam's (a.k.a. Beast's) Castle for lunch at Be Our Guest.

Both Lauren and I were able to make FP+ for lunch here, though Lauren had also pre-ordered her food. Given that I had no idea what mood the kids would be that day we decided to just order when we arrived - but getting to bypass the waiting line was still nice.

We, of course, got into a relatively slow line. Nothing crazy just I think the people in front of us were ordering for a lot of people and the CM was not the fastest. I think just being in that kinda tight area with tons of people trying to decide what to order made it seem like it took longer than it really did.

Anyway, once we were done ordering I had gotten a text from Lauren as to where they were seated. We hoped to eat in the main ballroom by the windows but there really weren't any open tables close to being big enough for us, so we wound up in the Rose Gallery which was new to all of us.

And I even have a picture to prove we were there:

I really liked all the pictures/paintings on the walls - especially the ones that were more candid shots - and the music box statue was pretty cool, but other than that I think I prefer the other rooms. I mean, by quick service standards it is still super nice, just doesn't compare to the West Wing or the main Ball Room.

Our food came out a bit separately, but once it all arrived it was all very good!

I got the Braised Pork (Coq Au Vin Style): Eight Hour Slow-cooked Pork with Mushrooms, Onions, Carrots and Bacon served with Mashed Potatoes and Green Beans Jardiniere. This is a really good dish and still think this is pretty amazing for a quick service location. The portion is pretty large too!

Judi got the Tuna Niçoise Salad: Warm Seared Tuna Steak, chilled Green Beans, Potatoes, Olives, Roasted Bell Peppers, Tomatoes and a Hard Poached Egg. She really enjoyed this and loves that this is an option. I think the salad part didn't "wow" here, but still pretty good overall for lunch

Olivia got the kids Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup which I thought was a really neat option to have and like how they cut the sandwich into strips (or Soldiers) to be dipped. Olivia did pretty good eating this but she was still on a bit of a high after meeting Anna and Elsa. Peter had some of my pork and some of the grilled cheese:

We also got a Strawberry Cream Chesse and Triple Chocolate cupcake to split - both excellent! We had tried all the cupcakes our last trip and liked these the best. I wanted to really like the Masters Cupcake but found we like the Triple Chocolate one better:

After lunch we all went over to ride Peter Pan's Flight. This had been closed our last trip so I was very excited to ride - and glad we got a FP+ for it! Now, I feel like I have done pretty good getting pictures on the Safari and from the room and all around the parks ... but on the dark rides our point-and-shoot really showed it shortcomings so you will have to take this picture of the loading area as proof we did go on this ride:

The kids really liked this ride - though, being more familiar with Jake and the Neverland Pirates than the actual Peter Pan story, I think they reacted more to the characters they knew from there (Captain Hook and Mr. Smee, etc.) than some of the other scenes. Still a fun ride though!

After this we said good bye to Lauren and Aria. It was really fun getting to hang out with them and enjoy Disney with another Disney fan! They just got back from another trip so looking forward to seeing how Aria continued to grow and her visiting style evolving even from this summer.

Thanks for sharing part of your trip with us!

We deiced to do one more ride before taking a break since we had had an early start to the morning and had some plans for the evening. So we went on It's a Small World ... and, to the delight of some and disdain of others reading the TR, I did get pictures from this ride!

While I know this isn't a favorite of everyone I love how every trip I notice some other odd detail and try to capture on film.

For example, why does this little Irish Boy have red hair but a black beard?

And of course the Cactus and tripped out coyote (?) playing guitar:

And last for this trip, the platypuses that are casually swinging their unborn children around:

We then headed back for some rest - I think on the way out all three kids fell asleep in the stroller (at least for part of the trip) so that was a good start. All in all we spent a few hours back at the room.

I did spend a little time back out on the balcony (I mean, how could I not try to take advantage of it while I could?) I tried to zoom in a bit on different landmarks.

First, Splash Mountain:

Then Big Thunder Mountain (with some of the tops of Liberty Square buildings in the foreground):

Prince Eric's Castle (with what I think is the top of the Tomorrowland Arcade in front):

And lastly, the top of the Mine Train with Prince Adam's castle in the background:

I definitely think we had gotten a good amount of stuff done so far that we wanted to get to ... definitely a different trip for us so far as we didn't head to any of the big "mountains" yet. The rest was definitely needed and set up for a great evening ... but that is for another update.

TTFN

 

[geckodani]

I really want to eat at BOG for lunch when I'm there! I was underwhelmed by dinner last time, but the lunch menu looks awesome!

Peter Pan! Too funny that they are more familiar with the characters from Jake, but that makes sense.

My mom is not an IASW fan and neither is DH - so I haven't been on it in ages. I'm going next time! No one to tell me not to!

 

[missangelalexis]

Lunch at BOG and Peter Pan is a great way to cap off the first half of your day! Wow, I'm really impressed with those zoomed in shots- so cool!

 

[Li Li]

Alright, I always thought the platypuses (platypi?) were just playing bochi ball or something. So, thanks for that image of bowling unborn children! Lmao!

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

Yes, I definitely agree, The Rose Gallery is by far my last choice for seating. You're right that as far as counter service locations go, it's hard to beat, but I just like the others more.

It seems to me now with Mine Train and Anna/Elsa that getting a PP FP is much much easier. Not that it was terribly difficult before, but it just seems easier now. It is still a classic.

Well of course you just HAD yo get pictures of Small World.

Wow, you know it's really cool to see those MK landmarks fro that vantage point. Really really cool. Almost gets the horror of those Small World pictures out of my head.

 

[amberg93]

Really? I liked the Rose Gallery more than the Ballroom. I guess I just like it more cause it's smaller and all the cool pictures on the walls.

Alright, I'll buy that you got on the ride based on the loading picture.

You're raising the real questions here about IASW, Phil. I don't know if I can handle not having answers to them.

*sighs wistfully over balcony views* You definitely did have to take advantage of it.

 

[khaleesi]

All caught up!!! I am a very bad Dis-er

I don't remember everything I wanted to comment on, but I do remember some:

• I LOVE Peter's interaction with Anna!!! Absolutely adorable!
• Sanaa sounds delicious, and I probably wouldn't even need to eat anything past the bread service.
• The picture of Emma's fingers wrapped around Judi's hand on the safari is precious!!
• The idea of a dessert trio is fantastic. I need to incorporate those into my life. Daily.
• Caramel Apple French Toast?? Yes please!!! This time of year, everyone loves all the pumpkin stuff, and I enjoy that in small doses. But caramel apple anything is sheer perfection to me! And I'm usually a chocolate lover!!

But most importantly, THIS made me day!!!

Afterward I asked he how she liked it and she informed me that she "Did not like it and would not ride it again. Because it made my cheeks go like this:"

 

[Leshaface]

Yay for BOG! Your lunch looks great. We really enjoyed lunch, but i'm especially looking forward to dinner there in January.

Your observations on IASW are hilarious! I've never really paid that much attention to details of the dolls before - just kinda looked at them and went on to something else. Now I need to find this strange Irish boy

Really love those zoomed in pictures. I think it's amazing that you're able to see attractions from the comfort of your room!

 

[KatMark]

I'm really sorry we skipped our BOG lunch after seeing your meal, and I'm with you...love that chocolate cupcake (just wish they'd put it in easier paper to get the cupcake out).

Peter Pan is very hard to get pictures on.

Ah yes...It's a Small World. Normally, I would skip the pictures as I'm not a fan. But I like your very good observations.

Nice pictures from your balcony.

 

[khertz]

Glad BoG lunch was a success and the FP+ was helpful. DH is wary about eating there for lunch, but I totally want to. I really enjoyed dinner when we had it there last year, but I'd love to try out the different things they offer at lunch...especially that Master's Cupcake!

I totally feel the same way about Small World. I feel like I'm always noticing something different when I go on it!

Great update!

 

[Jackiemarie21]

I love doing two castles in one day! We did that last time, so much fun!

BoG lunch looks fantastic, I just hate that you don't get to meet the "Master" at that time. It's the only reason I always lean towards dinner.

We miss Peter Pan last time, but it is for sure one of my favs! I also love small world. A trip to WDW just is not complete without that iconic boat ride! I love you odd detail pics! Some of the scenes in that ride are a little strange!

 

[Dugette]

Yum yum yum to the Be Our Guest lunch. It is a nice change of pace as far as counter service goes. I have yet to try a cupcake there, though. Next time, I guess!

Glad you had a nice time with Lauren and Aria!

Love the It’s a Small World observations! Never thought about the carelessness of those platypuses before!

Those are really cool pictures from your balcony! Love the different perspective on everything. I never realized how many trees are in the MK.

 

[Mousemommy1]

Great update!

We have eaten at BOG for dinner twice. In April 2013, we had an excellent experience. Everything was delicious, service was fantastic. Then this past August 2014, we were not as in love. The food dishes had changed, and not for the better....

I don't think we will do dinner there again, but the lunch menu does look good so maybe we'll try that sometime!

*****Sigh***** The most amazing thing about that CR TPV is that you left the park, but didn't really leave the park...it's all still right there....I still have only the Bay Lake View booked but keep calling periodically praying that a TPV opens up for our April trip!!!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I really want to eat at BOG for lunch when I'm there! I was underwhelmed by dinner last time, but the lunch menu looks awesome!

Peter Pan! Too funny that they are more familiar with the characters from Jake, but that makes sense.

My mom is not an IASW fan and neither is DH - so I haven't been on it in ages. I'm going next time! No one to tell me not to!

We have never been able to get in to BOG for dinner ... I want to do it at least once (if for no other reason than to have a beer inside Magic Kingdom ) - but I have read some hit-or-miss things about dinner there. It really is pretty darn great as a quick-service lunch option though.

I thought it was kinda funny who and what they reacted to on Peter Pan's flight. Like, they know who Peter Pan and Tinker Bell are, but the actual storyline they aren't super familiar with so I don't think they really "got" the beginning with flying over London, etc.

You tell 'em! You are an adult and if you want to ride It's a Small World no one can stop you!

Lunch at BOG and Peter Pan is a great way to cap off the first half of your day! Wow, I'm really impressed with those zoomed in shots- so cool!

It was a great morning in that we got all the things we really wanted to get the FP+ for ... Mine Train, A&E, and PP (which was closed our last trip) so it was great to get all of that "done" so the evening and then our 2nd MK day was more just do what we felt like

Thanks! It was fun to see what we could see when we zoomed it!

Alright, I always thought the platypuses (platypi?) were just playing bochi ball or something. So, thanks for that image of bowling unborn children! Lmao!

Although, the Platypuses kinda have evil grins on their faces, so maybe it isn't their unborn child ... I don't know... just seemed odd

Maybe I should just assume they are playing Bocci or something ... actually easier to believe

 

[Imagineer5]

Back at work...which means getting caught up on the DIS! Just read through all the updates. THat was fun, since Aria and I were in them! JK it was fun to hear the back story for what you guys were up to before our TotWL meet & your MK day. You told me snippets (I remember you guys saying you had a TON to eat at CRT!). It will be fun to tell our side stories as well...once I get to those days LOL!

I'll give further comments on your later updates promise! Just a lot to get through.

I am surprised you didn't love the rose gallery though - in October we chose to eat there again for lunch vs. the main dining room!