I've got a dream...of a Disney trip where I don't get sick! **May 2-11, 2014**

[esquared221]

Welcome to my first ever trip report (I think)!

First things first: Introductions!

Hubs (D) and I (E) live in New Hampshire with our 2 children and 2 cats (one of which is being as big a pain in the butt as possible as I'm trying to type). I'm lucky enough to be a stay-at-home mom having left behind my soul sucking 9 to 5 cubical job 2 years ago to raise my kids myself. Hubs works full time to bring home the bacon

DD7 (A) is a precocious and often reserved child who despite having a very vivid imagination takes everything very literally.

DSalmost 3 (J) is a sweet, sensitive and active boy who likes to live fast and play rough.

We are self-described Disney Freaks and have been traveling to WDW approximately every 1.5 to 2 years since our 1 year wedding anniversary. I have done WDW pregnant TWICE and both kids have been before their 2nd birthday

After taking DD the first time when she was only 23 months I vowed I would never again take such a big vacation with a 2 year old. Despite this, DH convinced me to squeeze in one last trip when DS would be free and since he is generally more easy going than his sister was at the same age I agreed. The trip was planned for May 2nd through the 11th, just a week or so before J's 3rd birthday. We planned for 7 days in WDW and 2 days at Universal. This did not include an off day which we normally plan for and so obviously need

 

[esquared221]

Day 1: Travel

Fly from Boston to Orlando with a layover in Atlanta. Arrive around 6pm and continue to our resort Wilderness Lodge Villas.


We flew out of Logan Airport in Boston MA and just like the city in which it resides that airport is a pain in the neck to navigate and it set up nonsensically. Once we walked the labyrinthine distance from security to our gate (seemingly on the other side of the city) we set up shop with the littles. I stayed at the gate with DS and Hubs and DD went all the way back to where the food was to grab us some lunch. Let me add that had we known that our gate wasn't located anywhere near the food stalls we would have stopped and grabbed lunch on our way through the first time. Of course while he was gone they started announcing boarding 20 minutes early so I call DH in a panic and he barely made it back in time for us to inhale our lunch and get on the plane where the kids finished theirs. Panic attacks aside, we were on our way!

Blurry pic but the feeling comes across!

We arrived in Orlando around 6 and I waited with DD to get our luggage while Hubs took DS to get the rental car. I was so proud of my girl She really was a very big help. I think with her we have hit the age where she can start to help reduce stress rather than being the cause of it!

Hubs had made us dinner reservations at Whispering Canyon for 7:15pm to which we were woefully late. Despite our best efforts we were not able to get out of the airport and to our resort fast enough. I wanted to call the venue to let them know we were on our way and to make sure that we would still be allowed a table but the only phone numbers I found were for the general Disney Dining service line. I was on hold almost the whole ride and although the man I spoke with was very nice and completely understanding he wasn't able to do much for us. We arrived about 40 minutes late eek and then had to wait another 30 to 40 minutes for a table. When we finally sat down it was close to 9pm. Our kids are awesome sleepers and usually go to bed right at 8pm but somehow managed to stay awake for what turned out to be a very entertaining dinner. For those who have not had the pleasure of eating here, there are no ketchup bottles on the tables so when you need some you yell "I NEED KETCHUP!!" and everyone with a ketchup runs it to your table. Imagine the surprise of the family next to us when about 20 bottles of ketchup were delivered via giggling 8-10 year old boys throughout the restaurant! Ketchup fiasco + glass of wine= lightened mood!

After dinner we made our way to our room where we thought we'd usher everyone right to bed. Yeah, right DS is still in a crib at home (he's just never tried to get out and we're milking it as long as possible!) but on this trip he was going to be sharing the pull out sofa with DD who was very worried about being harassed all night. DD passed out almost immediately and eventually we got DS to calm down and fall asleep...around 11pm!! Eek!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

joining! Can definitely identify a bit as we have done Disney twice with my wife pregnant (I think she knows where every bathroom is ). We are going in August with a 2 year old boy (who is very much a two year old boy) so interested to see how things went!

Airport layouts are never fun and making the time to get food, etc. just always takes more effort than it should. Plus I think somewhere it is written that I must fly out or or into the gate furthest away.

Though later than you wanted, dinner sounds fun. Actually, "Ketchup fiasco + glass of wine= lightened mood!" would have made for a good trip report title

 

[esquared221]

joining! Can definitely identify a bit as we have done Disney twice with my wife pregnant (I think she knows where every bathroom is ). We are going in August with a 2 year old boy (who is very much a two year old boy) so interested to see how things went!

Yay! Welcome I will most def be talking about the pains, er...joys, I mean of traveling with a 2 year old

Airport layouts are never fun and making the time to get food, etc. just always takes more effort than it should. Plus I think somewhere it is written that I must fly out or or into the gate furthest away.

We usually fly out of the much smaller but more intelligently laid out Manchester Airport (in NH) so Logan was def a change!

Though later than you wanted, dinner sounds fun. Actually, "Ketchup fiasco + glass of wine= lightened mood!" would have made for a good trip report title

Lol, you're so right!

 

[esquared221]

On our first full day we planned to go to Animal Kingdom and this decision was based on crowd charts. We'd known since before we left that this day had been forecasted to be rainy so we picked up some >$2 ponchos from Target before we left and prepared to get wet!

We had breakfast at the counter service style restaurant at the resort (Roaring Fork) and found it to be busy and crowded on such a rainy morning but the food was good and quick and did the trick. Hubs and I are sort of coffee snobs and don't often like the coffee served in hotels and restaurants like this so we were pleasantly surprised to find it very good. A good cup of coffee in the AM is essential to a smooth start to our day!

We headed out to AK and straight for Kilimanjaro Safari. Turns out rainy mornings are some of the best times to go on the safari! The animals love the rain and were out and easy to see. The giraffes were super close to the truck and we even got to see the cheetahs (which are usually hiding and sleeping- we've only seen them from very far away)!!

After our safari we headed to Rafiki's Planet Watch via the train and got to touch an alligator, watch a snake get a check up by the veterinary team and check out the goofy goats in the petting zoo area. Luckily the rain stopped around then and the kids and I went back to the Pangani Trail while Hubs rode Everest. There's a little fish pond that I unintentionally started the tradition of taking the kid's pictures in front of several trips ago and I wasn't about to start now.

DD back in 2009

DD back in 2011 (just before DS was born)

DD and DS in 2012

DD and DS current trip!

We met up at Flame Tree BBQ for lunch which is a favorite for us although admittedly this time it wasn't that good. After lunch we had our first Meet & Greet with Mickey and Minnie and then it's off to the Bone Yard! DS and I dig and play while DD goes on Dinosaur with Hubs. She was not a fan! Bone Yard is a brilliant solution for families that have a mix of ages. There aren't many rides that the >48 inches set can do but the Bone Yard is a wonderful place to play and explore while the bigger kids enjoy the bigger, faster attractions.

We could tell the rain was on it's way back so we wrapped it up with a trip to one of the many gift shops, a quick family pic with the Tree of Life in the background and high tailed it for the car. We had dinner reservations at Boma which Hubs and I were really excited for. We had been there once on our trip in 2009 and loved it (I was really excited to see if they still had that awesome sweet potato and white potato mash that I loved from last time- they did!). We had an awesome dinner; Hubs and I branched out and tried some of their African dishes while the kids stuck to their tried and true Mac and Cheese The carrot ginger soup was amazing as was the cava cakes. I ordered an agave margarita which was aggressively strong (not to mention expensive) so I only got one. Good thing too, as you'll see...

We headed back to the room and I put on a movie on the giant TV and puttered about doing laundry and prepping for our next day. Hubs took a trip and extensive shopping list to Walmart to stock up on breakfast items and other necessities. I laid down with the kids for a few minutes and suddenly felt very ill. To my surprise I had to rush off to the bathroom where I was sick. Luckily, the kids had fallen asleep so I had some time to myself and I started feeling well enough to move to the bed. Hubs was texting me with questions about milk and I was tossing the proverbial cookies I don't think we've ever had a vacation where one of us doesn't get sick to some degree and this time was no different. As Hubs texted me "Now it's officially a vacation!"

 

[Jennifer48]

Great start!

I'm sorry to hear you started getting sick, I hope it doesn't last!

 

[Marsheliz]

I am in!! We sound so alike!! I have been to Disney pregnant twice - too and both of our kids have been before 2 as well... We are hoping to have a 3rd and final hopefully soon! Patiently waiting...

I also have a soul sucking cubical job too but my dreams of Disney make it bearable and the fact, that I need the job for now.

Love the pictures in front of the tank.. It is so cool to see how life changes!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Ugh, so sorry you were feeling sick! Hope it didn't last too long

Glad you had a good, if rainy day at AK and your safari sounded great!

 

[bhwhiz]

joining!

 

[chocolateMinnie]

such a great start and then you got sick hope it was short lived and didn't travel the family

 

[Villainess]

Joining in!

Ugh - hate that stomach bug - hopefully it didn't last long and didn't visit the rest of the family too!

 

[esquared221]

Our plan for the day was to go to Hollywood Studios (again, based on crowd calendars) and I woke feeling MUCH BETTER! We had breakfast in the room and Hubs went down to fill our souvenir resort cups with hot coffee. Nothing like a hot cup of coffee and a hot shower the morning after having called god on the porcelain telephone

After arriving at HS, the kids and I poked around some shops where we got DD started on a Disney charm bracelet like mine and just HAD to get the tractor from Cars that looked like a storm trooper for DS I think I like the Cars movies as much as DS so I grabbed the Luigi and Guido as R2-D2 and C-3PO. I mean, how could I not? Hubs had run off to ride Rockin' Rollercoaster early before the lines got too long and then we met up at Starring Rolls. We've been there before but man is that place TINY! I was smart enough to leave the stroller outside but even then I felt like we were taking up too much space.

After that we did Toy Story Mania, did the back lot tour for the first time and then got lunch at the ABC Commissary. We were there on May 4th so we checked out the special Star Wars merch and rode Star Tours (I think I was the Rebel Spy!).

Our Darth Cupcake!

Some lunch time silliness!

It was super hot and we're from New Hampshire so we were wilting. We headed back to the resort and hit the pool for a little while. Well, Hubs napped with DS while DD and I hit the pool Once we'd all cooled off in the water we headed back to HS for our dinner reservations at Hollywood and Vine for a special Star Wars dinner! We were greeted by Chip and Dale as Ewoks and the guests of the evening were Darth Goofy, Storm Trooper Donald, Princess Leia Minnie and Jedi Mickey. It was super cute and fun but it took an unusually long time for all the characters to make their rounds. Our waitress went out back and "made a lot of noise" to get them to come to our section (after all, her tables weren't turning over because there was no way we were leaving until we got to meet the characters and get pictures!). Thank goodness she was on top of things!

Of course we forgot our camera when we went to our super awesome dinner full of great opportunities for pictures These pics were taken on Hub's phone.

After that it was late so we headed back to the resort again for bed, which was delayed because DS had actually napped that day and was wound until about 10p! At home he usually takes a short nap in the afternoon, usually when we leave to pick up DD from school and then goes to bed at 8pm but I guess Disney is just too exciting! Hubs and I went to bed listening to the kids giggling in the other room and I'm pretty sure I passed out immediately when they finally went quiet. If there's one thing I've learned from all my trips to WDW with littles is that sometimes it's actually better to toss the usual schedule and just go with the flow

 

[MeeskaMomma]

Joining in! We were there around the same time. Can't wait to catch up on how your trip was!

 

[esquared221]

I am in!! We sound so alike!! I have been to Disney pregnant twice - too and both of our kids have been before 2 as well... We are hoping to have a 3rd and final hopefully soon! Patiently waiting...

I also have a soul sucking cubical job too but my dreams of Disney make it bearable and the fact, that I need the job for now.

Love the pictures in front of the tank.. It is so cool to see how life changes!

Lol, I'm the only one of my local friends crazy enough to take my kids while they're so young but there's such a HUGE community of young families here on the Disboards and of course, once you get there it's a stampede of strollers!

The tank pics started out completely unintentional. I took the pic of DD on her first trip and on her second remembered that pic and shot a new one. When we went with DS for the first time I insisted on the pic and this time I actually back tracked in order to get it!

 

[esquared221]

Joining in! We were there around the same time. Can't wait to catch up on how your trip was!

You were? That's awesome! Such nice weather (minus the rain at the beginning of the week so hopefully you were there for the nicer part!)

 

[MeeskaMomma]

We missed the rain thank goodness! It was lovely!

 

[esquared221]

At this point I was sort of chomping at the bit to get to Magic Kingdom (my favorite park) but Day 4 was reserved for Epcot. *Sigh* That's ok, I still love it! The Flower and Garden Festival was on going and I breathed deep the whole time we were there. It smelled so good!!

We headed off for Test Track first thing thinking that everyone would hit Soarin' first and since we didn't get a FP for Test Track we needed to get in line before it got out of control. I have never been able to go on Test Track, either because I was pregnant, had a very young on (and didn't feel like riding by myself) and more recently because on our last trip it was closed for renovations. Come hell or high water I was going on it this time! Well, unfortunately it seemed like everyone else had the same plan so the line was already a 55 min wait! Hubs pointed out that the estimated wait times are usually inflated a bit so DD and I got in line and Hubs got his rider swap. We had brunch reservations at Akershus for 10:30 but we had time. DD and I waited and waited and I was thinking, 'so much for the time being inflated!'. We designed the most ridiculous car that was pink (of course!) and went on the ride for the first time together. We had a blast and our car designed for looks only got 2nd place! Once we got off the ride DD and I had to pee like crazy so we ran off to the bathroom and then back to where the ride got out to meet Hubs. On the way I get a panicked call from Hubs, "WHERE ARE YOU? We're late for our reservations!!" WHAT?! Turns out the wait was actually an HOUR AND A HALF! Crap!! We booked it to Norway for what was now our second late arrival for a reservation (hangs head in shame ) and had a side stitch to show for our rush. Luckily we were sat right away and settled in for a princess-filled brunch.

We've never done Akurshus before and figured this was probably going to be the last trip where DD would be excited to see princesses. When asked she always seems indifferent about them but when she meets them her eyes light up and she chats their ears off with a smile from ear to ear DD had told us at the beginning of the trip that her favorite princesses were Tiana and Elsa (a Queen of course, she'll be the first to correct you) but after meeting Repunzel on another day she added her to the list as well Even though her favorite princesses were not in attendance we had fun posing with Disney royalty.

Turns out Ariel is still my favorite princess (although I think Elsa and Anna are only millimeters behind for second) because every time I see her I turn into a 7 year old girl again This pic of fishy faces with Ariel is one of my all time favorites from our trip!

After brunch we rode the rides in Norway and then Mexico before heading back to the front of the park to ride Finding Nemo and our FP for Turtle Talk with Crush. Our little dude #1 (DD) sat up front and little dude #2 watched from the safety of my lap. Crush is indeed a righteous dude and we had a great time

After that we headed to Soarin' (DS and I rode The Land and as expected he passed on me afterwards). When Hubs and DD got off Soarin' we switched and Hubs took his place in the long row of napping children waiting on riding family members (I submit we name this waiting area Baby Row ).

Once DS woke from his nap we hit the Visa Rewards Character Meet & Greet and were thrilled to find Mickey and Goofy! Then it was off to our dinner reservations at The Rose and Crown where we had a wonderful dinner. DD ate spaghetti like she had a hollow leg while we had to convince DS to eat his spaghetti by pretending he was a bird eating worms. Whatever works right? Next we hit the character spot because the line was so short (which almost never happens!) and were so glad we did. Goofy was hilarious and had DD in stitches (plus every one else in the room)

We ended our night with a traditional ride on Spaceship Earth. The slow ride in a cool building with silly pictures at the end is always a hit!

 

[esquared221]

At some point in getting ready that next morning I pulled my sunglasses from my bag to find them broken. I had lost a screw earlier but they were holding up ok until that point, I guess. It was like a movie moment, I pulled them out of my bag and one lens tipped sickeningly and then just fell off. It was going to be another gorgeous, sunny day in Florida and I just became sunglasses-less. I dug through the bottom of my bag finding the teenie tiny screws and bits and put them back together as best as I could as to avoid having to spend Disney $$ on a new pair.

We took the short boat ride from Wilderness Lodge across Bay Lake to the Magic Kingdom. We almost got there in time for rope drop (we could see the ceremony as we were docking). It was at this point that I realized that I had left my precariously repaired sunglasses back in the room. Are. You. KIDDING ME.

To our shock and surprise DD decided at the last minute that she guessed she would go on Space Mountain if one of us would ride right behind her and grab her from behind so we booked it for Tomorrow Land and got on SM while it was a walk-on. Because there was no one waiting we got right on a cart and DD was placed in the FIRST SEAT. Afterwards she told me she wasn't going to do that again, it was too scary but the dad/son team coming off behind us gave her high fives for a brave first run in the first seat. I was so proud of her!

After that we did Fantasy Land Speedway and then Hubs and DD rode Barnstormer while DS and I poked around the gift shop looking for a new pair of sunglasses (it had to be done, all the squinting was giving me a headache). We also said "Hi!" to Donald and Goofy while we were right there

Next we had early lunch reservations at Be Our Guest which we were super excited for! We sat in the main dinning room and tried to take pictures but the lighting was tough for an amateur like me. We tried the grey stuff, it was delicious!

It was after this that we discovered that one of our mister bottles was missing. Anticipating the heat we brought 2 inexpensive bottle fan misters with us and at some point we lost one (or some small child found it in our parked stroller and made off with it, likely to their parent's chagrin). I don't let stuff go easy so I even made a short trip back alone to see if it could be found but by then it was pretty busy and I was obviously not going to find it.

After I let it go (see what I did there? ) we rode The Little Mermaid ride, Peter Pan, Small World and then did a meet & greet with Repunzel and Cinderella before heading off to Frontier Land for Big Thunder Mt Railroad (DD and I's favorite!).

Normally I'd be all about skipping the parade but Hubs talked me into hanging out in the baking sun to watch the new one. DS had fallen asleep so I held him while Hubs lifted DD up to see. Heat aside, I'm so glad we stayed to watch the new parade. BEST. PARADE. EVAH!

After that we were all too hot and sweaty to do anything so we took the train back to the front of the park and headed back to the resort to spend some time in the pool. This time instead of swimming in the main pool we checked out the smaller pool behind the Villas. It was shady and not as crowded which was perfect! DD is not a strong swimmer and although she loves to play in water she often gets scared in water that comes up to her chest. They had life jackets for kids to use (for FREE!) and we found she had a ton of confidence in the water with one on! She actually swam around the pool without clinging to one of us. Looks like I need to get her one for this summer!

We had dinner at Roaring Fork and again found the food to be surprisingly good for a quick service style place. The cupcakes were amazing! I had a strawberry lemonade cupcake that had a lemony filling and Hubs got the S'mores cupcake. They were huge so we all had a little of both.

After dinner we got back on the boat and headed back to MK where we did Pirates and Jungle Cruise and then grabbed a spot for the Electric Parade and then Wishes. Our thought was that the kids were staying up late in the room despite our efforts to get them to bed at a somewhat reasonable hour so we might as well have one late night out. The kids made it through the parade (mostly) but both passed out before Wishes started and slept through it (they did this on the last trip too- someday they'll see some fireworks!). We were standing in the middle of the hot mess that is Main Street during Wishes but we were near a bunch of first-timers and I always love hearing people's reactions. They added a Frozen segment in there and it was cool to hear hundreds of voices singing along to Let it Go

There was a big benefit to staying at Wilderness Lodge on the days we went to MK. The boat dock is directly across from the exit so even when we exited with the thousands of others leaving right after Wishes it was a quick walk (albeit around people confused about where to go) to the dock and a quiet, cool ride back to the resort. DS slept through the WHOLE THING. Even through his diaper change and putting on his jammie pants! We were thankful for an easy bedtime and all of us hit the hay HARD.

 

[esquared221]

Usually our trips include one "day off" where we head to Downtown Disney for a little while and then spend the rest of the day hangin' at our resort but this time one was never scheduled in. I had asked Hubs at the beginning of our trip what day we were planning on doing Downtown since I knew we had booked ourselves solid and he told me he hadn't planned on us going (after reading all about the parking nightmare right now while they build the garages). Personally, I love the giant Disney Store and so I was disappointed. Hubs suggested we take the earlier part of Day 6 to go and then we could spend the rest of the day at MK and I happily agreed.

Off we went to see what new stuff, if any, they had at the huge store and get our traditional souvenir article of clothing and mug. Also, DD had her allowance money to spend on anything she chose and that is the best place for that sort of thing. We try to allow her an opportunity to earn some money before our trips (plus Gramma and Grampa give the kids some $$ as well) and it's a nice incentive plan to get her to do some chores After shopping we hit Wolfgang Puck's for lunch and Goofy's Candy Co for dessert.

We decided on an unplanned stop back at the room before continuing to MK to change DS out of his marshmallow covered shorts (he's so messy!) and get DD's coveted "tweezer things" (they're little tweezers from a marble game that she has become extremely attached to over the years) that she had left behind and can't seem to live without.

Back to MK we went and had a really fun day We had a FP for Enchanted Tales with Belle and DD volunteered to be Phillipp again (she was selected for that part on our last trip too when we caught them on an unscheduled soft opening) but got really stage shy when it was time to perform. Also, when Belle tried to give her the book mark she told her "No thank you. You gave me one last time." LOL!! Belle looked completely dumb-founded and we were like, "just take it!!" That's my daughter

Then we rode the Little Mermaid ride and went to meet the be-tailed Ariel where DD announced to her, "You're my mom's favorite princess!" That got a chuckle from everyone After that we all went on Barnstormer together and made friends with a nice little girl and her mom from Indianapolis in line. By the time it was our turn to ride the girls wanted to ditch us and ride together! DS loved his first "roller coaster". Next we rode Dumbo and then the tea cups had some dinner at Cosmic Rays (I wasn't feeling well again and got a salad which was horrible). Next up was Buzz's Space Ranger Spin and People Mover. DS fell asleep so we did Carousel of Progress next and once he woke up we headed over to Haunted Mansion and then Country Bear Jamboree.

Next was Big Thunder Mt, of course We also did Aladdin's Flying carpets and Tiki Room (which we have NEVER DONE) and Big Thunder Mt again at night! We stayed a lot later than we had originally planned but we had fun deviating from a schedule and doing what we felt like doing. Hubs is always a bit of a Disney Drill Sargent at first but after we've done all of the MUST DO things once he relaxes and we really start having some serious fun

 

[esquared221]

Somehow we had already been there for a week and our last day we reserved for a full day at MK. It just never seems fair. You plan for months and months and then all of a sudden your vacation is almost over! How'd that happen?!

I had gone to bed with the sniffles the night before and woke with a full blown head cold. Congestion headache? Check. Sneezing? Check. Nose running like someone left the faucet on a little? Check to that too. Ug. I packed up my little packet of tissues I brought with me and hoped against all hopes that my nasal discomfort would tone it down in a couple of hours.

Hubs had scheduled us a special treat for our last day that I had completely forgotten about. We had reservations for the Family Magic Tour at MK! We didn't tell the kids and just went along our merry way and registered in the Chamber of Commerce. We were a little early and Pluto was out in the center of Main Street so we got in line to get his autograph.

HOLD UP! I can't believe I forgot to mention this!! We did an autograph book on DD's first trip and I've never felt the need to do it again BUT I saw this great idea on Pinterest that I just HAD to do! I got an inexpensive photo frame from Target before we left and brought along the mat for it and a cheap clipboard. Instead of a book, we had all the characters we met sign the mat with some markers I brought along. That way we can frame our favorite vacation pic with the autographed mat! By this point we had the princesses from the Akurshus breakfast and all the classic characters EXCEPT Pluto and there was just enough space to squeeze it in. As a funny side story when we got Mickey and Minnie's autographs at the Character Spot in Epcot Minnie and I shared a really funny moment. The princesses had taken up a lot of space on the mat and so Minnie kind of had to squeeze her signature in somewhere. I apologized to her for there not being much room saying "you know how those princesses are" and she stopped signing for a second and gave me a 'you know it girl' kind of look (well, you know... it was more about her body posture than her "look"). I laughed so hard!
That was the same Minnie that noticed my nails (again, how did I miss this stuff!!). Before we left, DD and I painted our toes to match in a bright sparkly red with Mickey heads on our big toes. DD didn't want to sit through the detailed mani I was planning so she just got the red on her finger nails but I did a whole Minnie/Mickey mani for myself. I love how it came out! Out of all the people I came in contact with, that Minnie was the only one who noticed. I don't want to brag or anything but we kind of bonded

So anyway, back to the days events....

The Family Magic Tour is like a group scavenger hunt throughout MK geared towards kids and lead by an enthusiastic CM. The game is that there was a big party after hours the night before where all the characters came to play but a lot of their favorite items were accidentally left behind and it's your job to follow the clues (left by one of the villains who has hidden them throughout the park) and find them. The fun includes a ride on Pooh and a couple of meet and greets.

DD does NOT like surprises so Hubs' plan to not tell her anything backfired. She was taken off-guard and was weirded out by the super friendly CM who knew her name and was trying to get her to participate. Once I explained that it was a big scavenger hunt she got on board... kinda. We wandered the MK looking for Bolt's squeaky carrot, Repunzel's frying pan, Russel's grape soda badge and Mickey's Duffy (which DS found!) among others. We rode the Pooh ride as part of the hunt and had a surprise meet up with Peter Pan! This was my favorite part; we've never met with Peter Pan before and this was like a really fun visit not just the standard getting your picture taken. It all ended with a hilarious game of Follow the Leader back to Main Street and a meet up with the new talking Mickey. I would highly recommend this to other families with kids that like games and are looking for something a little different to do. We had a blast!


The kids piecing together a clue

This was the result of my telling to DD to take a picture "with Peter" so Pan jumped out and told out CM guide (named Peter) we wanted his pic. Pan then photo bombed them but our stupid camera is too slow and we missed that shot! Sorry so blurry! They were all moving fast and Hubs had the camera in the wrong setting.

It was around the time we were done with the Family Tour that I also ran out of tissues and had to resort to using napkins. I must have grabbed 3 or 4 giant fist fulls of napkins from the different snack carts around MK for my seemingly inexhaustibly runny nose. As you can imagine my nose was bright red and sore!

We fit in some more of our favorites like Tea Cups (TWICE in a row at DS request) and Cinderella's Carousel and had dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern. It was after that Hubs suggested we go see the "mystery princess" at the pavillion. At this point it was about 6 or 6:30p and while Anna and Elsa were done at 5p Hubs had read that the mystery after-hours princess had usually been the illustrious Frozen girls. We had been unable to get a FP for them although Hubs checked back EVERY DAY so this would be our only chance. We also figured even if it was a Princess we don't often see it would still be worth it. The line was a 40 minute wait so we jumped in. As often happens at WDW we chit chatted with the family in front of us who were native Floridians and we learned had never seen real snow (being born and raised in Maine and NH this still blows my mind). We were conversing so naturally by the time it was their turn that the CM thought we were all together When we went in I peaked around the corner to see who it was and involuntarily gasped in excitement. IT WAS ELSA AND ANNA!!! Everyone turned expecting to see an excited little girl no doubt and smiled and chuckled to see a grown-*** woman so excited to see E & A.

DD was completely star struck and it took several minutes and a ton of effort from Elsa to get her to come out from behind the curtain and Hub's leg. They were amazing. Anna chatted with me about Olaf and how Elsa used to be really shy too and she used to beg her through the door to build a snow man. Finally, DD came out for some pics and stared in absolute awe at Elsa, her recently added absolute FAVORITE Disney character. It was truly magical <3

I love, love, LOVE this picture

Poor Aurora, everyone was so excited to see E & A but she was there too

We had a wonderful day and it felt sort of strange like we were cheating to be headed to Universal Studios for our last 2 days of vacation. We headed back to the resort before full dark to get everything packed up and ready to switch resorts in the morning. I was feeling sort of sad to be leaving such a comfortable little apartment-type place for a standard hotel room. Staying on DVC properties on our trips has completely spoiled me!