July 2012. Yes it was hot. Yes it was crowded. Yes it was FUN! ***COMPLETED***

[Angies1274]

Great update!!

It sounds like you had such a nice afternoon in the WS. Yum! That Napoleon pastry looks so good!

I haven't tried pick a pearl in Japan yet. It's always on my list every trip but for some reason I never get to it. I definitely need to make it a priority next time. That ring is so pretty.

 

[solana131]

You'll be happy to know - when I was at the craft fair this weekend - I not only got one, but TWO necklaces to string it on... I really want to splurge and get a silver one some day - but I need to wait until I go up north to go to my regular jeweler. I can't wait to show you pictures - and I can wait to finally wear it!

I can't wait to see it in action But I wish I had known you didn't have a necklace for it....just assumed....I have a ton of plain chains at home Sorry. Next time I go to Japan and pick a pearl I will include the chain

Great update!!

It sounds like you had such a nice afternoon in the WS. Yum! That Napoleon pastry looks so good!

I haven't tried pick a pearl in Japan yet. It's always on my list every trip but for some reason I never get to it. I definitely need to make it a priority next time. That ring is so pretty.

We really did have a great afternoon. Going around WS in the heat really isn't as bad as some parks because you are constantly going in and out of AC. It was a great time! Still can't say that I have seen every inch of the WS...but I'm getting there

 

[KatMark]

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the setting you picked for Dani's pearl...great choice. I will get the bag back to you as soon as I get settled back at work (and there will be a little surprise in it as a thank you from Mark and I).

 

[solana131]

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the setting you picked for Dani's pearl...great choice. I will get the bag back to you as soon as I get settled back at work (and there will be a little surprise in it as a thank you from Mark and I).

No hurry...you are going back before I am I've been using my balloon UPB at home here and I love it! Bradey will be wearing the Dory bag when we go if he wants.

 

[Chicago Mo]

Yes, time and date please...



Yup! You will all get a crash course in sewing... and I will work you like dogs. while I... And you'll love it so much that you'll never want to go home.
D~

I have a sewing machine! have NO idea what it does besides collect dust???
I will gladly help... as long as you know when we get started and end up somehow tangled in the world's larges ball of string you know how to get us out.

 

[solana131]

So here we are at Epcot with only an hour until an ADR at Chef Mickeys. I didn't really want to go, but I knew they would charge my cc if I didn't, so we hustled out of the park. Luckily this was one time the bus was there waiting! And FQ is very close to Epcot, so we were actually able to quickly shower and get changed before heading back out. We took the bus to MK, then decided to chance the monorail working correctly and made it just in time. We were actually seated only 5 mins past our ADR time because we opted not to have the picture taken before.

We had a horrible seat. Way in the back room behind some wall partition so we couldn't see anything at all that was going on in the rest of the restaurant. It took about 10 mins for our "server" to take our drink order. He told us to go up to the buffet at that point, but the characters were just coming. We thought we had time enough, so we hopped in line. This line wasn't that long at all, but because of the way they had things set up it took forever!

They have two sides that meet in the middle at a meat carving station. So the one poor CM who's job it was to carve all the different meats, had to serve both sides of the line at once. It was just a horrible design and it really surprised me that Disney wouldn't see the flaw in this. By the time we got our meats, the sides were all cold and less than appetizing.

We made our way back to the table just as the last of the characters went by. So we ate our tasteless meal and tried to take our time so they would all come back around. This was my plate....not too wonderful, but there just wasn't anything that looked good up there.

I think our server forgot about us because we didn't see him again all evening. But one of the blue character CMs came by and asked if we had seen every one yet. We told her we had missed them all because the line too so long. She was very very nice and told us she would send them back around. So first came Pluto

Then came the Chef himself...

I had to get in on this action!

Then my favorite guy int he whole wide World came around.

I told him that he was my favorite and it got me a big hug and a smooch!

I asked him if he wanted to join us for dessert, but he had to get moving.....lots of kids to see and all...

So here we decided to go grab some dessert. Again, the selection was less than stellar, but we managed to find a couple things. When we were finished, the nice lady CM came by again and asked if we had seen everyone yet. I told her we were just missing Minnie, but that I had already met her before so it was alright. We just needed to find our missing server to pay the bill and we would be gone. She insisted that we needed to meet Minnie...so she took us by the hand down to where she was greeting and we got a personal little meeting with the Mrs.

And I think this one is my favorite of the trip.

When we returned to our table the check was sitting there. So we paid (a different server...not sure where ours went) and were gone.

Now, maybe if we had had little ones, or sat somewhere else, or went for breakfast it would be better, but I'm not sure I could give it another try just yet. I was very disappointed in the whole experience. Except for Goofy, the characters juts hugged and went. We had much better interaction at Garden Grill in Feb. And there are just too many other great restaurants at WDW to waste the time and money on Chef's again.

We left the Contemporary and hopped on the monorail to explore more of the MK that night. We hit up Tomorrowland to ride Buzz Lightyear. She beat me pretty badly....I think my gun was broken or something.

See those Minnie Ears I have on?? Let me just tell you how hard those are to find. We had both wanted a pair of the light-up ears, but when we tried them on they were way too tight. So we started looking around. We spotted these sparkly ones on a lady and just had to have them. So we proceeded to Main Street to look through the shops. We didn't see any and asked a CM. She knew which ones we were talking about, but didn't know where we could find them. I spotted someone else with them on and stopped her to ask. She said she got them at a store in Frontierland. Nex tto the Turkey Leg guy. So off to Frontierland we went. None in that shop....no little carts with them either. So we were just about to give up when walking through Adventureland we spot them at a cart across from Aloha Isle! Yay! We both got a pair and 5 minutes later we took them off because they hurt. The sequins stick into your ears and are really uncomfortable! I gave them to my 4 year old niece when I got home.

So now we are on to our last night at WDW. It was a sad night, but a very good night. We had no plan and just walked around doing whatever we felt like. It was great! We went back to POFQ at a reasonable hour and fell asleep. What would we do on our last day?? Wait and see...

 

[jennyjinx3]

I am just getting caught back up...and now you are on your last day??? I have to echo your review of Chef Mickeys. We have done dinner there twice now and I think we have had our fill. Too rushed for us.

 

[partyof2]

Oh no, I'm sorry to hear about a less than impressive visit to Chef Mickey's. I am so looking forward to eating there as it's so iconic.

I'm planning an early dinner so hopefully we'll have better luck.

 

[oopsiDAISY]

Yeah, the food at Chef Mickey's is so-so, but we all pay for the experience rather than the food, right? I think we approach character meals differently than other folks. We don't really go expecting to laugh and play with the characters, our kids are more interested in just getting extra autographs to add to their books and I am more interested in just getting a snapshot. So, we don't mind being "rushed" through the character interactions as long as we walk away with the picture and the "john hancock".

I love those sparkly Minnie ears on you, so cute! Too bad they were uncomfortble. I am with you, though....comfort trumps fashion any day of the week!

 

[Angies1274]

I'm sorry that you didn't enjoy Chef Mickey's. It's one of our favorite places to eat. (well...actually it's the boys favorite place to eat.) I definitely agree about the food...not too much variety and just okay. But, we love the atmosphere. You should try it for breakfast next time...we liked it so much better!

Aww...too bad the Minne ears were so uncomfortable. They are too cute!

 

[solana131]

I am just getting caught back up...and now you are on your last day??? I have to echo your review of Chef Mickeys. We have done dinner there twice now and I think we have had our fill. Too rushed for us.

I guess I would give it another try but maybe breakfast next time I didn't feel rushed...just took forever and the food was horrible. And don't worry, we still have a whole day almost because our M.E. bus didn't come get us until almost 5pm.

Oh no, I'm sorry to hear about a less than impressive visit to Chef Mickey's. I am so looking forward to eating there as it's so iconic.

I'm planning an early dinner so hopefully we'll have better luck.

I hope you experience is better than ours. Our ADR wasn't very late, and the place wasn't packed, they just didn't handle the lines well. I agree that it is iconic though....you have to give it a try at least. I hope we just caught them on a bad night.

Yeah, the food at Chef Mickey's is so-so, but we all pay for the experience rather than the food, right? I think we approach character meals differently than other folks. We don't really go expecting to laugh and play with the characters, our kids are more interested in just getting extra autographs to add to their books and I am more interested in just getting a snapshot. So, we don't mind being "rushed" through the character interactions as long as we walk away with the picture and the "john hancock".

I love those sparkly Minnie ears on you, so cute! Too bad they were uncomfortble. I am with you, though....comfort trumps fashion any day of the week!

You're right, once we get to the "john hancock" stage, I'm sure we will feel the same way. But this was Dani's first and probably only trip, so I wanted her to have a great experience.

Thanks on the Ears They were super cute, I kept them on as long as I could stand it. I made it longer than Dani did as you can see. And her head is much smaller than mine. Might have something to do with the fact that I paid for them

I'm sorry that you didn't enjoy Chef Mickey's. It's one of our favorite places to eat. (well...actually it's the boys favorite place to eat.) I definitely agree about the food...not too much variety and just okay. But, we love the atmosphere. You should try it for breakfast next time...we liked it so much better!

Aww...too bad the Minne ears were so uncomfortable. They are too cute!

We will definitely try it again sometime. I remember eating there when I was little, so I have to take my little guy there sometime.

The ears look much cuter on my little niece. I'll have to get a pic of her in them.

 

[DMGeurts]

Ok Suzi... You need to text me when you do an update... I always feel bad when I miss them.

Loved this update...

Here's my thought on CM... When we went in 2008, GG was amazing! All the characters came around and spent ample time with our group. We considered GG a "must do" experience. Fast forward to 2012... My girls are now 12 &13... Character experience at GG was less than stellar. Very sad - brought it from a "must do" to a "meh" meal. It didn't even make our list for the next trip. So, I figure that your GG experience was fantastic because of Bradey... Characters just ham it up for the little tykes, but barely give the time of day to the big kids at heart.

We are hoping to try CM for the first time on our next trip... I guess I will try to make it a breakfast meal.

Love the Minnie ears... Alli got those on our trip too (she got them in Epcot)... She had a hard time keeping them on too... She said they didn't work well with her sunglasses, and she'd rather have her sunglasses on than her ears.

D~

 

[solana131]

Ok Suzi... You need to text me when you do an update... I always feel bad when I miss them.

Well I would, but I don't have your number silly But I can probably try to FB you when I do one. I just don't want to be a pain....if you read it, you read it. I let you know on the P.A.P. one because I knew you were waiting for it.

Here's my thought on CM... When we went in 2008, GG was amazing! All the characters came around and spent ample time with our group. We considered GG a "must do" experience. Fast forward to 2012... My girls are now 12 &13... Character experience at GG was less than stellar. Very sad - brought it from a "must do" to a "meh" meal. It didn't even make our list for the next trip. So, I figure that your GG experience was fantastic because of Bradey... Characters just ham it up for the little tykes, but barely give the time of day to the big kids at heart.

Very true...I noticed that all week in July. Plus, it was Dani's first time with any sort of character, so she didn't really know how to act and that it was okay to be silly in Disney. The "face" characters were much better with us older girls because they can talk and you can actually have a conversation with them. I really really wanted to meet Tink and her friends, but the line was always too long!

And half my love for GG was the fact that we were on the lower level and it just felt like we had the characters all to ourselves. It is just a great design they have.

We are hoping to try CM for the first time on our next trip... I guess I will try to make it a breakfast meal.

We'll try breakfast too, but honestly...if lunch/dinner works better for you, do it. Don't let my review sway you....we were just in a really horrible spot. I think it would've been tons better if we were at a different table and could see what was going on around us.

Love the Minnie ears... Alli got those on our trip too (she got them in Epcot)... She had a hard time keeping them on too... She said they didn't work well with her sunglasses, and she'd rather have her sunglasses on than her ears.

Yep, I would chose sunglasses over ears too....luckily we got them at night so no need of glasses.

 

[Chicago Mo]

That stinks!! First visit to Chef's M was when they still had lunch. it was AMAZING. the ribs were awesome. We went again last year and it was SO SO. the table we had was behind YOU next to the wall and the window so we were able to watch wishes too.. then people think it's ok to push their children to the window to watch the fireworks while we were still eating.. the CM stopped it. the character's had a hellova time getting to the kids. but they did get there!! adn they spend a good amount of time with them! our server was quite the flirt too so we all laughed AT him!

 

[solana131]

Quick question everyone.... How do you make pictures smaller when you are quoting someone on their TR?? I like to comment on pics, but it takes up so much room when I include the picture. I see other people do it and make them much smaller, but I can't figure it out

That stinks!! First visit to Chef's M was when they still had lunch. it was AMAZING. the ribs were awesome. We went again last year and it was SO SO. the table we had was behind YOU next to the wall and the window so we were able to watch wishes too.. then people think it's ok to push their children to the window to watch the fireworks while we were still eating.. the CM stopped it. the character's had a hellova time getting to the kids. but they did get there!! adn they spend a good amount of time with them! our server was quite the flirt too so we all laughed AT him!

I think I might try it again sometime with my little guy, just because it is so iconic, but it won't be anytime in the near future. Maybe a couple trips from now??

 

[Chicago Mo]

Quick question everyone.... How do you make pictures smaller when you are quoting someone on their TR?? I like to comment on pics, but it takes up so much room when I include the picture. I see other people do it and make them much smaller, but I can't figure it out



I think I might try it again sometime with my little guy, just because it is so iconic, but it won't be anytime in the near future. Maybe a couple trips from now??

I don't know either.. But if your talking about my report don't fear give me more pages!

it's a fun place.. Im sorry you had a crappy one!!!!
Ya know when we plan a trip together we will go again!

 

[solana131]

Definitely....when is this said trip?? I'm ready whenever you are

 

[DMGeurts]

This tutorial brought to you by D~ <---- That's me.

When you go to Photobucket, you get an image URL that looks like this:

[ IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v416/dmgeurts/IMG_4760.jpg[/IMG]

^ I put a space right there, so you could see the code.

The photo looks like this... Who can resist a little Maxy Moo-moo?

Now if you want to make the photo smaller when you are quoting... You have to add th_ in to the code right after the last forward slash... Like this:

[ IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v416/dmgeurts/th_IMG_4741005.jpg[/IMG]

Here's the code with out the th_ - see the difference?

[ IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v416/dmgeurts/IMG_4741005.jpg[/IMG]

And here's that picture...

And because I can... Here's a picture of him about a month ago - laying on the same dd the same way... He's a "big boy" now.

Easy-peasy right? It's all fun until you have to multiquote and add the th_ to a billion pictures... and most of them are not as nice to find as mine are... Sometimes I really have to squint to find that last forward slash.

D~

 

[solana131]

Thanks D. Will try it next time

 

[oopsiDAISY]

This tutorial brought to you by D~ <---- That's me.

When you go to Photobucket, you get an image URL that looks like this:

[ IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v416/dmgeurts/IMG_4760.jpg[/IMG]

^ I put a space right there, so you could see the code.

The photo looks like this... Who can resist a little Maxy Moo-moo?

D~

Just practicing the technique using your tutorial...

and IT WORKED! Thanks, D~!

And thanks, Suzi, for allowing me a little threadjacking space...