It's my big 4-0 so we're all gonna go to Disney! COMPLETED w/ highlights video!

[disneychic]

It’s my Big 4-0 so we’re all gonna go to DISNEY!!

Hello all! I’m usually not a TR-writing kind of gal (I’ve done one or two BRIEF TR’s for our Disney Cruises, but never a WDW TR). So, please bare with me on this one. This trip originally began as a little birthday trip for just my husband and I -- but to our surprise it turned into a whopping family blowout!

The Dates – February 5th – February 10th 2011
Stayed at Disney’s Boardwalk Villas
Here’s who joined us on this trip:

Me – Jen-- I’m actually a former CM (I worked front desk at the Boardwalk, and then I worked in an administrative position in group reservations at the Grand Floridian). My DH and I moved to Celebration after 9/11 (we were both working at WTC). We lived in Central Florida from 2002 until 2009, when my DH accepted a position with the Dept. of Defense and we relocated from Florida to mid coastal MAINE! Needless to say, we’ve beefed up our DVC points considerably to allow travel back and forth to Disney multiple times a year (if he was going to move me all the way up to Maine there had to be a guarantee that I’d be able to visit WDW at least 3- 4 times per year!) I LIVE for our WDW trips.

My DH, Tom – Engineer – WDW fan like myself (Thank God!) He couldn’t wait to get back down to Florida and escape the horrible Maine winter…even if it was just for a week. Tom and I do not have any children of our own, just 2 small dogs who we consider our kids

Here we are near our home in Maine

My Mom and her boyfriend Jim – They are also DVC members, and actually they booked the rooms for themselves, my brother, and my cousin Brian & his family. My mom LOVES Disney as much as I do. We usually do a mother-daughter trip to WDW every year in August - Just us. My mom lives in NJ so living far from her is really hard for me. She comes up to Maine for a week every 2-3 months or so. So, at least I get to see my mom – but it’s still not enough.

Here I am with my mom and Jim on the Disney Wonder back in 2008

My Brother and his girlfriend Ellie – both in their mid 30’s (my brother has been to WDW 4 times, his girlfriend has never been). I am very close with my brother, but because we are both so busy, and live so far apart (he lives in NJ too), I only get to see him once - MAYBE twice per year. So, I couldn’t wait to spend the week at WDW having fun with him and Ellie.

Here's a photo of Louie and Ellie

My cousin Brian & his wife Danielle & their 2 little girls Victoria (4) and Samantha (22 months old) – All first timers! My cousin Brian is also turning 40 this year, he is my mom’s godson and it has been a dream of his to go to WDW. We have always been very close growing up. We lived around the corner from each other, and went to school together and were in the same classes from kindergarten through high school. Since we don’t have any children, we consider Victoria and Samantha our nieces. We love spending any time with them that we can. They live in New York so needless to say, I don’t get to see them as often as I would like either -- Apparently, I’ve got to work on getting my DH transferred closer to my family!

Here's the happy 1st time Disney family

Due to work schedules, etc. everyone except my cousin and his family arrived on the 5th (myself, DH, mom, Jim, brother & Ellie). Brian, Danielle and the girls came in on the 6th. This trip originally started out with just my DH and I, but then my mom and her BF wanted to come, and then my brother said he could also make this trip (to help celebrate my big 4-0) and then my mom invited my cousin and his family. So it really turned into a week long birthday celebration!

Next up.....Day 1...our journey to WDW begins!

 

[Thadine]

Great start! I am turning 4-0 in November this year too.
But we will celebrate it till December with the family at Disney.

Can't wait to hear all about your trip

 

[disneychic]

Great start! I am turning 4-0 in November this year too.
But we will celebrate it till December with the family at Disney.

Can't wait to hear all about your trip

Walt Disney World is the BEST place to celebrate your Big 4-0! We had a great time! Thanks for reading my TR start I'm doing my best to at least get the first few days of our trip and photos uploaded so that I can keep the TR moving quickly.

 

[disneychic]

Welcome back to my birthday/family trip TR

Friday evening, the night before we leave for WDW…..SNOW! Luckily, not enough to delay any flights. But, my DH did spend Friday evening using the snow blower and making sure everything was all set for our dog walker who would be coming to take care of our dogs while we were away.

Friday Night

DH making a path in the snow so the dogs will have a place to go for walks

Day 1 -Saturday - YES! We leave for Disney World Today


We left home at about 8:00 AM for the hour drive to the airport in Portland, Maine. The dog walker was all set (4 walks per day for 6 days = A LOT of $$) as was the gentlemen who we hired to plow our driveway, and sidewalk up to our front door each time it snowed (this ended up costing us a pretty penny as well – my husband usually does this himself with our snow-blower) but we had to make sure the dog walker could get into our driveway, and walk up the path to the house.

Well, this was a close one – weather-wise. There was a snow storm due to hit on Saturday evening. So, we were sure glad we were able to get out on our flight which left at 11:00 AM – actually, the flight was over booked and they were asking people to take the next flight out (which was about 3:00) but, with the snow looming there was NO WAY we were going to switch our flight! We couldn’t wait to board our flight and get out of Maine for the week!

Our flight was uneventful (thank goodness) except that my DH surprised me and upgraded us to business class as a surprise! I LOVED this…..I think I never want to fly coach again! We arrived in Orlando, headed straight down to the DME and ended up getting to the Boardwalk just before 4:00 PM.

Welcoome to the Boardwalk!

My brother and Ellie had arrived at about 10:00 AM and my Mom and Jim arrived around noon. So, we checked in and met up with everyone in the lobby at 5:00 to head over to our dinner reservations in Epcot at Via Napoli at 6:00. We also had some friends – Marc & Gwen joining us for dinner as well. I met Gwen when we worked together at the Grand Floridian. We became great friends and it was great that our husbands had a lot in common so we all became very close. We miss living in Florida quite a bit, especially the great friends we have there. When we checked in to Via Napoli, we were surprised that they put our group in a private room in the back! Hey – what a great birthday dinner with family and friends in a fancy private room! We did not plan that at all, I think it was because we were a big party, that they put us back there. Dinner was FANTASTIC. I LOVED the minestrone soup appetizer (I’m a sucker for a good soup!) and I had the Ortolano Pizza (pizza with vegetables on it).

With my brother & Ellie at Via Napoli

My mom & Jim at Via Napoli

With good friends, Marc & Gwen

After dinner we headed back to the Boardwalk for my actual birthday party. The weather changed since going into Epcot. It was now drizzling out and really cold. But, rain or sun, cold or warm we were in Disney and I was so happy that my husband put this party together for me! To my surprise, he had invited an additional 5 couples, and 3 additional single friends of ours to meet up with us at Belle Vue Lounge and he had ordered me a big Mickey Birthday cake (as well as an additional chocolate cake) from the Boardwalk Bakery (they said the Mickey cake would serve 16 – 18 people and he wasn’t sure how many would actually come, so he ordered a second cake just in case). I was surprised and so happy to see our Florida friends! The Belle Vue lounge worked out great because there just happened to be nobody in there at all except for our group (which was about 21 people.) The bartender was also great, and I think he was relieved that there was a good amount of people in there. It was a cold outside and it was also raining quite heavily at this point, so the magician that is usually out on the Boardwalk came in and entertained our group for a bit – I loved it! A great party with great friends AND a Magician! He was actually very good. I still wonder how he did some of those tricks. Little by little our group began to leave – except for Tom and I, my brother and Ellie, and our friends Adrianna & Gilbert, and Anna. We ended up staying in the Belle Vue Lounge until 2 AM! How did that happen! Time flies when you’re turning 40 and catching up with friends and family!

My Mickey Birthday Cake

With my gals Adrianna & Anna

Time to blow out the candles & make my birthday wish (P.S. it comes true...but more on that at the end of my TR)

Having fun with friends

Boardwalk magician

At 2:00 A.M. we knew it was time to turn in because tomorrow morning my cousin and the girls arrive for their very first Walt Disney World trip…..and we have LOTS planned!

Next up...... Day 2 The cousins arrive and we get to bring them to the Magic Kingdom for their very first time

 

[CW4DW]

I just found your trip report and can't wait to read more. So far it sounds like great times with great friends and family!

 

[disneychic]

I just found your trip report and can't wait to read more. So far it sounds like great times with great friends and family!

Thank you for following along I'll be posting day 2 in a little while. It was a great way to celebrate my birthday - hey, if you have to turn 40 there's no better way to do it!

 

[heaven2dc]

What a fun start to your trip! Happy Birthday!!!

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

I just love going to Disney with family and friends. I can't wait to hear how your cousin and his family loved Disney. At least I hope they did. Great start to your trip report. Happy belated birthday.

 

[407-W-DISNEY]

Hi! I'm here! Great report so far, can't wait to hear more.
I turn the big 4-0 this year as well!

My DH and I would love to live in Celebration! We spent some time there on our 2008 trip...we hope to spend more time there next time we go down.

I hear you about getting away from this winter - it was awful!

So cool you worked Disney and got to meet-up with so many friends...must have been a special trip.

 

[disneychic]

Hi! I'm here! Great report so far, can't wait to hear more.
I turn the big 4-0 this year as well!

My DH and I would love to live in Celebration! We spent some time there on our 2008 trip...we hope to spend more time there next time we go down.

I hear you about getting away from this winter - it was awful!

So cool you worked Disney and got to meet-up with so many friends...must have been a special trip.

Thanks for reading my TR! We should start a DIS 4-0 thread! It seems like there are quite a few of us turning the big 4-0 this year. We loved living in Celebration. We moved there in 2002, and we have made the most amazing friends while living there. I really miss living in Florida. My DH is in the process of waiting for a job transfer. We thought we were going to South Carolina (Hilton Head area) but now it looks like he may get a promotion that would take us to Houston. Either way, as long as I get a warm winter this year I'll be happy!

I just love going to Disney with family and friends. I can't wait to hear how your cousin and his family loved Disney. At least I hope they did. Great start to your trip report. Happy belated birthday.

Thank you for reading my 1st WDW TR! Thanks for the birthday wishes! It was an amazing way to celebrate. Just having my family with me on such a fun trip was the best present ever. My cousin and his family had an amazing time....you'll see how special it gets. Lots of unexpected surprises!

What a fun start to your trip! Happy Birthday!!!

Thank you! I'm going to be uploading day 2 in a little while. Still working on it. But, I'm having such a great time reliving our trip by writing this TR. Now I know why so many people write trip reports!

 

[disneychic]

Welcome back to my Big 4-0 TR!


Day 2 - Sunday

YAY!!! The cousins are coming today!!!! DH & I woke up at about 8:30 when my mom called our room and invited us to breakfast at Kouzzina. DH and I got down to the restaurant at 9:30. My mom & Jim were there already and Louie and Ellie were right behind us – perfect timing because as soon as they got there we were seated for breakfast. It was a gloomy, raining/misting and cold Sunday morning. I wasn’t too thrilled about it, but at least it wasn’t snowing --which by the way our town in Maine got hit with 11 inches of snow the night before The breakfast at Kouzzina was really good. I had the orange/blueberry pancakes and I LOVED them. After breakfast, my brother & Ellie headed off to Epcot, but the rest of us wanted to wait for my cousin and his family to arrive. They had an 8:00 AM flight getting into Orlando at 10:30 or so, so I figured they’d be arriving around noon. We had about an hour to wait (which felt like forever). Before I knew it I got a text message with a picture of the girls right after the plane landed and saying that they were on the Magic Express and on their way to the Boardwalk!

Victoria & Samantha on their first flight!

It had stopped raining, and warmed up a bit. Still no sun, but at least it stopped raining. We watched 3 DME busses come through, but I was sure the next one would have my cousin & his family on it -- and I was right! When they got off the bus we were all out in front of the resort to greet them….with lots of Disney presents for the girls of course

I can see Victoria waving to me from the bus

Yay!

OK, I can cry every time I see this one!

Some presents for the girls...

Yay they were finally there at Disney! A bit tired and overwhelmed but at least they were there! We got them checked in (the room wasn’t ready) so we dropped their carry-on stuff in our room and headed out to the bust stop to go to the Magic Kingdom!

Samantha was really happy and excited to go see Mickey!

We have arrived!

I thought Victoria (who is 4 years old) was going to burst at the seams waiting to get into the park! She had zero patience to wait for family pictures in front! She was literally jumping up and down waiting to get in to see the castle already! So, my husband went in ahead of our group with my flipcam and video’d us all coming into the park. I was holding Victoria’s hand and she was running in and saying “I want to see the castle! I want to see the castle!” When she saw it she said “I want that Castle! I want it at my house!” This was something she repeated multiple times during the week. When we went into It’s a Small World she said “Daddy, I want this for my birthday, you can build it in the basement!”

The Official 1st picture

Running in to see the castle!

Everyone was really hungry so we had lunch at the bakery (sandwiches) and then positioned ourselves outside for the 3:00 parade. I love WDW in the beginning of February – just sit down right on the curb. Small crowds & great views. The perfect way for 1st timers to see Disney. The parade was a big hit. Prince charming blew a kiss in Victoria’s direction…..she couldn’t believe it! This made her day! (Let’s face it, this is HUGE when you’re 4!) After the parade it was time to check out some attractions!

Parade watching

Holding Sammy to give her a good view

How about some icecream while watching the parade!

It's easy to steal some icecream while Victoria's watching the parade!

We started off on Buzz Light year, and then Brian, Danielle and Victoria waited to go on the speedway while my mom, Jim, Thomas and I took Samantha on the people mover. She wasn’t feeling too well (she was starting to get an ear infection). But, she’s just so good, you’d never know she didn’t feel well. We got off the people mover just in time to catch Brian, Danielle & Victoria get into their race cars! Victoria loved this ride as well (again, driving a race car is a big deal when you’re 4).


Victoria gets to drive

Look Ma - no hands!

Getting ready to take Samantha on her 1st WDW attraction – The People Mover

With Sammy on the people mover

Nap time on Uncle Thomas

Next Brian, Danielle and I went onto Space Mountain while my mom, Jim and Thomas watched the girls. It’s funny when you go to the Magic Kingdom with adults AND kids who’ve never been to Disney before. They all have this glazed over look. They just can’t take it all in quick enough. My cousin was in awe of the Magic Kingdom. Every bit of it! Next was Winnie the Pooh. I haven’t gone on this in years. I loved the little play areas before getting on the ride. The girls both really enjoyed this, and made some cute little friends while playing. By the time we finished this ride my brother called and said that he and Ellie just got into the park. We met up with them to go onto Mickey’s Philharmagic --the girls LOVED this! It was cute to see them reaching for Ariel's jewelry...I'm pretty sure this was their first 3-D movie experience. After this we headed back in front of the castle where the girls did a little dancing (there was some music playing out there) and we all took family photos/videos. It was a very moving moment for us. We all knew how rare of a trip this was, for all of us to get to travel and spend our vacations together at WDW.

Dancing in front of the castle

The Cousins at the castle

Uncle Louie & Victoria

After our castle fun, we all headed to dinner at Tony’s Town Square. We were all really hungry at this point. Dinner was really good, and then right before our dessert was served the fireworks were starting, so Brian and I took Victoria out onto Main Street USA to watch Wishes – when my cousin says “Oh my God, I have tears in my eyes, this is so amazing”. That’s when I knew…..whew, gets it! He’s one of us! A few minutes later Danielle came out to catch the end of Wishes. Then we went back in and finished our dessert with the rest of the group. It was about 9:00 and it was starting to get drizzly and cold out. Everyone headed to the bus to go back to the Boardwalk but tonight there was EMH at MK so my brother, Ellie and I stayed to go on some attractions. We went on Space Mt, Big Thunder Mt., Pirates, and the Haunted Mansion before heading back to the resort. What a great day with my family.

Next up…..Day 3 --Victoria meets her very first princess, Samantha takes a road trip to the doctor, and a lot of fun in between

 

[disneychic]

Day 3 – Monday

Welcome back to my Big 4-0 birthday bash TR! Well, at about 8:00 AM I heard my phone going, it was Danielle. Samantha was running a fever and rubbing her ear. So, I told her to call the front desk and get the information for the walk in clinic. She called me back and said they would be picking her up in 20 minutes. Not sure if I would have known this if I hadn’t worked at the front desk. The walk in clinic has a van that will pick up at the resort, and bring you to the walk in. They used to even bring you to the pharmacy after, but now you have to walk to the pharmacy and then walk back to the walk in, and then they’ll bring you back to your resort. So, she took the baby to the doctors while my mom, Jim, Thomas, Brian, Victoria and I met in the lobby at 10:00 to head over to Epcot. My brother and Ellie were going to head over to Animal Kingdom this morning.

We took our time and walked into Epcot – oh, and it was a BEAUTIFUL day out (sun AND warmth!). When we got into Paris Princess Aurora was there and there was NO LINE! So, Victoria got to meet her 1st princess, and get her photo taken with her…..she was star struck.

Bonjour and welcome to Paris!

Family shot..

A hug from Aurora

Next, as we are walking through Paris……Belle….and NO LINE! So, off she goes to meet Belle! Since I don’t have any kids, I’ve never done this – meeting the princesses. I was so impressed with how they speak to the kids, and have little conversations with them! It makes it so personal and a real memorable experience.

Meeting Belle

As we walked into Italy, Victoria took the time to stand on that little stage area and do a dance to the Italian music playing in the background – it was really cute, & then some cast members clapped and said “Brava! Brava!” when she was done…..luckily, my hubby captured this on video.

Dancing in Italy

When we got into Germany Snow White was there (a bit of a line) and my mom noticed the other kids with autograph books, so off she went to get one for Victoria (I don’t know why I didn’t think to buy this beforehand, but I don’t have kids of my own, so it never occurred to me to buy her an autograph book). Mom got back in plenty of time with an autograph book for Miss Victoria. The cast member who was Snow White was great! She sounded just like her, and couldn’t have looked more like her. Three princesses in one day….this was a major accomplishment!

Having some fun in Germany

Waiting patiently (somewhat) to meet Snow White

As we continued to walk around WS we came across the face painting booth…..so of course it was face painting time! My mom asked Victoria if she wanted to do this and she most certainly did! We said “oh do you want to get Tinkerbell?” But she asked for Wonder Woman (I think it was actually called American Pride or something like that). It came out really cool! She loved it.

Face Painting Time

Crying because his little girl is wearing makeup for the first time (when they asked if she wanted lip stick she was SO excited!)

We then made our way to Space Ship Earth and waited on the entrance line but the ride was actually broken down for some reason, so we ended up going on Living with the Land and then having lunch at Sunshine Seasons. This was my first time eating here – it was actually really good! Lots of choices for everyone in our group.

Trying to get SSE in the palm of his hands….OK, I was a little off

With my Tori girl!

By now Danielle texted Brian and said she was heading back to the hotel w/ the baby. So we made our way back to the Boardwalk. Brian took Victoria back to the room to take a nap & to wait for Danielle and the baby to get in (it really took a long time go to the walk in & get back). At this point I wasn’t feeling all that well either. I was having some asthma/breathing trouble. It started before we left Maine, and I thought my inhaler would be enough to get me through but I was starting to really feel bad. I called my doctors office in Maine and asked if they would call in prednisone or something to help alleviate my breathing issues, but they wouldn’t, so I took a chance and called the family doctor that I used for the 8 years that I lived in Florida, and they said they could take me at 4:00. So, my mom, Jim, Thomas and I ended up renting a car over at the Dolphin and we went for a ride through our old neighborhood, Celebration and then over to my doctors office (also in Celebration) for my appointment. I’m so glad I was able to do that, because I’m not sure I could have run around all week wheezing and coughing and using my inhaler every 2 seconds! After my appointment I called Danielle and she said the baby had a double ear infection (it was probably so painful for her on the plane, poor baby) and that they were going to stay at to the resort, and just have room service dinner in the room. Plus it was now POURING out. We had reservations at Boma for dinner so the rest of us went over to the Animal Kingdom for dinner. My brother, Ellie and Jim had never been to Boma before but they all loved it! I could eat dinner there more than once on a trip. But, because we had so many Disney Newbies with us this time, I’d have to settle for just one Boma dinner. When we got back to the resort we headed to the Belle Vue Lounge for a little while. My cousin came down to join us for a drink. He said the baby was feeling better, and that they would be joining us in the morning to head over to DHS. My brother had mentioned going over to Downtown Disney, but it was really raining heavily out there, so we stayed in the Belle Vue Lounge for about another hour or so, and then we all called it a night.

Next up…. Day 4 -DHS in the morning, MK in the afternoon & Ohana for dinner!

 

[Thadine]

Poor baby, she must have been in a terrible pain.
Glad though that both she and yourself could get some help.

We always go to Celebration while on vacation in Disney. I even have a picture of myself in front of the house I am going to buy when I win the lottery and can finally move to Orlando

Do you think you will ever go back to live there? Or do you prefer Maine?

 

[disneychic]

Poor baby, she must have been in a terrible pain.
Glad though that both she and yourself could get some help.

We always go to Celebration while on vacation in Disney. I even have a picture of myself in front of the house I am going to buy when I win the lottery and can finally move to Orlando

Do you think you will ever go back to live there? Or do you prefer Maine?

I would LOVE to go back and live there and we both agree that we will go back one day, even if it's to retire. Right now my husbands career is what keeps us moving. Maine is beautiful but we know we won't live here for much longer. He's up for 2 different transfers right now. We're just not sure if we'll end up in Houston, TX or South Carolina. We should find out any day now where we'll be moving to. Celebration was a great place to live. We made amazing friends there. It has changed a bit since we moved at the beginning of 2002 but we enjoyed living there until the fall of 2009 (when we moved to Maine).

 

[disneychic]

Day 4 – Tuesday

Well, after a day of rest and medication Samantha was looking and feeling
much better and it was a beautiful morning (but quite chilly). We all met at 8:30 in the lobby and headed over to the Hollywood Studios. When we entered the park, my mom, Jim, Danielle, Brian and the girls headed over to The Voyage of the Little Mermaid while my brother & Ellie and Thomas and I went over to TSM to get fast passes for our group. After we acquired the fast passes we met up with the group over by the Little Mermaid. Victoria wanted an Ariel gown, which she used her princess credit card (she calls Disney gift cards from Grandma & Grandpa her princess credit cards) to make her 1st WDW purchase! DH & I wanted to go into the Animation Gallery and check out the cels. I’ve been collecting the ink & paint cels since 2000 (this would be our 11th cel from there) and I’ve wanted the Lady & the Tramp one for a while so DH got it for me as a birthday present. Also, one of the artists, David Rippberger was there and we always like speaking with him. He’s a really nice gentleman. My DH told him that he was purchasing the cel for me as my birthday gift, and he let me come up by his desk and sit in his seat and take my photo. I’ve been painting for many years. I love to draw & paint. I have oils, pastels and watercolors at home. I paint everything from canvas to ornaments to ceramics, etc. So, this was really cool!

Having fun at DHS

With artist David Rippberger

Next the whole gang went onto The Great Movie Ride. We all had a blast (I knew the newbies would like this one) and the girls LOVED the Wizard of Oz part.

After the Great Movie Ride it was time for our fast passes at TSM! I knew everyone would love this one.

Brian & Samantha

Time to head to Muppets 3-D – this was a huge hit with the entire gang!

Time for shopping!

This is my favorite picture from DHS….

After shopping we had lunch at Toy Story Pizza. This wouldn’t have been my first choice for lunch but the girls were hungry and we avoided meltdowns at any cost. Actually, lunch wasn’t bad at all. We were all hungry since we were up and out of the resort so early. After lunch Mom, DH, Brian & the girls & I headed over to the Magic Kingdom. Jim had a conference call he needed to take so he went back to the Boardwalk. My brother and Ellie wanted to go on TOT and RNR so they said they’d meet up with us at the Magic Kingdom later.

Victoria had to put her Ariel dress on before she met Ariel – who by the way Victoria likes to pretend that Ariel and Prince Eric are her “real parents”. I thought this was the funniest thing I ever heard! My cousin said “when you meet your real father ask him for college tuition”

When the girls spotted The Magic Carpets of Aladdin they couldn’t wait to get on!

Next was the Swiss Family Robinson Tree house and then Pirates of the Caribbean. On our way out Jim met up with us. My brother and Ellie were still at DHS and said they’d meet us at ‘Ohana for our dinner reservations.
On our way to Frontier land for a coon-skin hat for someone…..

After Brian got his special hat (P.S. he’s been wanting one of these since he was a kid) we went onto The Haunted Mansion and then Peter Pan and It’s a Small World – the girls LOVED this so much that we had to do it twice!
Samantha getting excited to see Peter Pan!

Dinner at ‘Ohana was soooo good! We were all really hungry, and it’s a good thing too because they give you so much food!

Samantha was clapping she enjoyed her dinner so much

Uncle Louie got Victoria a Shirley Temple

After dinner Brian took the girls back to the resort. It had been a long day and although Sammy was being a trooper she was too tired to do anything else that evening.

The rest of us went back into the MK to see Wishes. It had gotten pretty chilly out, but we were able to get a great spot for viewing the fireworks. We left immediately after to go back to the resort and get some sleep.

Next up……MK and a REALLY REALLY BIG SURPRISE

 

[heaven2dc]

What a great "Ohana" day! Family is so much fun at WDW esp with newbies and little children I tried to click on a couple of pics that I thought were videos but nothing happened. Are some of the pics with the black borders videos? I would love to see them!

 

[407-W-DISNEY]

Sounds like you guys had a wonderful first few days.....other than getting sick
That stinks....I can't believe your Dr's office would not call in a RX for you. Good thing you had the Dr in Celebration you could go to.

On our 08 trip I had my hair cut at a salon in Celebration. I actually donated about 13 inches. It was the best haircut I've had....It grew out perfectly! I'm due for another hair donation..I should use that as a reason to head back to WDW and Celebration. Sorry for the Hijack....

 

[disneychic]

What a great "Ohana" day! Family is so much fun at WDW esp with newbies and little children I tried to click on a couple of pics that I thought were videos but nothing happened. Are some of the pics with the black borders videos? I would love to see them!

Thanks! Those are actually clips from videos. I'm not sure how to post videos though?? And I do have a highlight clip that I'd like to post. I'll work on gettiing that up right after I finish the last day of the TR. Thanks for following along!

Sounds like you guys had a wonderful first few days.....other than getting sick
That stinks....I can't believe your Dr's office would not call in a RX for you. Good thing you had the Dr in Celebration you could go to.

On our 08 trip I had my hair cut at a salon in Celebration. I actually donated about 13 inches. It was the best haircut I've had....It grew out perfectly! I'm due for another hair donation..I should use that as a reason to head back to WDW and Celebration. Sorry for the Hijack....

I am really thankful that my Celebration doctor squeezed me in. We were running NON STOP in the parks with the kids, and I was wheezing along but I definitely needed something a bit stronger to get me through the rest of our trip. Your hair looks great! I LOVE that you donated to locks of love! One of my best friends does that all the time. She donates and then lets it grow until she can donate again. I think that's a great excuse to go back to Celebration! That's a wonderful thing that you are doing so treating yourself to a little trip is well worth it! Thanks for following my TR!

 

[disneychic]

Welcome to Day 5 of my Big 4-0 TR!

Well, this day turned out to be the best day of our entire trip! Since this was our last full day on vacation, we decided to take the girls back to the Magic Kingdom. We didn’t quite make it for opening, but we arrived at about 9:30 or so. We took our time going up Main Street USA and going in and out of the shops. My brother and Ellie wanted to see the Hall of Presidents and as we were on our way there Princess Tiana was walking over to her autograph spot (close to Ye Olde Christmas Shoppe). The Girls couldn’t get over there fast enough, so we got on the line (not too long of a line) to meet her.

Here’s our group on our way to Fantasyland (My brother & Ellie went to Hall of Presidents)

We really hadn’t spent enough time in Fantasyland, so we knew that this morning would be pretty much dedicated to the girls getting to do whatever they wanted.

First up….Mickey’s Philharmagic….again

Dumbo

A pretty big pre-lunch snack for Victoria. This was the HUGEST icecream cookie sandwich I’d ever seen!

Time for the Carousel

This one sums it all up into one photograph. It's my all time favorite!

We actually spent a bit more time in Fantasyland. The girls wanted to go on It’s a Small World again, Peter Pan again, Winnie the Pooh again. Since this was their first trip, and my cousin really didn’t know how many years it would be before they could come back to WDW, we let them call all the shots. It was about the girls having their time at WDW. My DH & I, and my mom & Jim all travel to WDW multiple times per year because we are DVC members. So this trip was all about them having the best Disney experience they could have in such a short amount of time. After the girls had their fill of Fantasy Land we all went to lunch at Cosmic Rays. I’ve gotta say, the burgers here were really good! I was really pleasantly surprised at how good the counter service is at the parks. When DH & I travel we have a completely different way of spending our time. We usually stay at the resort, have lunch, do the pool and then go to the parks in the late afternoon, early evening. So, this was a comletely new way for us to experience the parks and restaurants. After lunch we watched the Dreams Come True show at the Castle. The girls were mesmerized by this. Again, because I don’t have children I’ve never stopped to watch this. I usually just walk right on past. But, it was a really cute show. After this my mom & Jim and my brother and Ellie all went back to the Boardwalk for a little while. So they were going to miss the “big surprise” that was coming our way.

Now, what happened next made everyone’s entire trip. It was a surprise none of us could have ever imagined! We were on Main Street USA, I went into one of the shops with my cousin, but my DH, Danielle & the girls were watching the marching band on Main St. when a cast member approached them and asked if they would like to have a “Magical Moment” (or something to that effect). At this point Brian and I were coming out of the shop and just followed our gang into City Hall (we had no idea what was going on). The Cast Member told the girls to knock on the door 3 times and say 3 magical words “Bibbidy Bobbidy Boo” and there would be a surprise. When the door opened a wave of camera flashes started to go and Cinderella was there! We were given a private meeting with Cinderella! Just our family! It was amazing. My cousin actually cried! He said “I can’t believe this! This is too good to be true – I have tears in my eyes!” The girls got to spend just about 5 minutes with Cinderella. It seemed much longer, but my DH video’d the entire thing from the door knock to the time we left and it was only 5 minutes. If it seemed longer to us, it must have seemed like a lifetime to the girls. It was truly so special. Cinderella was so sweet, and so larger than life to them. The girls got to take lots of photos with her and talk to her. She said it was so nice to see them hugging each other because her stepsisters never hug. It was just such a wonderful experience. I did tell my cousin and Danielle that this wasn’t the norm! I said, I don’t know how you’re going to explain to the girls that this doesn’t happen on every trip to WDW! This was truly a once in a lifetime experience!

After the Cinderella meet we were all just super star struck! I never even knew this type of thing happened….and I am a former CM! It was just a wonderful experience. The girls were so happy, they kept hugging each other. We decided to take the Monorail to Epcot (even though Sammy was due for a nap). We went on Space Ship Earth while DH tried strolling Sammy around hoping she would fall asleep…no such luck. So, after SSE my DH & my cousin took Samantha back to the Boardwalk.

My mom, who had gone back to the Boardwalk with Jim after lunch at the MK decided she wanted to meet up with us in Epcot, so it was just us girls. We took Victoria on The Seas with Nemo, and then to Turtle Talk with Crush. She loved Turtle Talk (she got to speak with Crush). Next we walked through World Showcase. We saw that Belle was back and Victoria hadn’t gotten her autograph (because my mom didn’t get her the autograph book until after she’d met Belle) so we got on the line to meet Belle again – until the Beast showed up Victoria found him to be too big and scary. So, off the line we went. A bit further into WS in Morocco, Jasmine was out and there was only a short line to meet her. When Victoria met her she asked where Aladdin was and Jasmine explained that he went to the bazaar because Apu was in some trouble. But, while Victoria was posing for pictures with Jasmine someone tapped her on the back and when she turned around it was Aladdin! She was SOOOO happy to see him! We continued to walk through the countries and when we got into Germany it was time for a snack! Giant pretzels! Soo yummy!

We were originally planning on having dinner in Epcot that evening, but we decided that since it was our last night we wanted to go back to the MK and see Wishes one last time. So, we headed back out and got the monorail to the MK. Everyone met up with us at Tony’s Town Square for dinner and then fireworks. We were all exhausted after the fireworks so we took one last look at Main Street USA and headed out to the bus to go back to the Boardwalk. It was a long day MK, Epcot, MK…3 parks in 1 day! But, it was an amazing day for all of us.

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[407-W-DISNEY]

What a wonderful (and LONG) day!
That would be so cool to have a private meeting with Cinderalla!!!

That's so great you get to so a few times a year.
Do you miss being a CM?