Jumping, Dancing & Jamming Our Way Through Walt Disney World! I'm With the Band Now!

[mickeystoontown]

Hi there Lisa! Great update! The pictures of the desserts at Coral Reef are absolutely beautiful.

I love that you and the family are so goofy! We tend to be goofy as well and it's nice to see another family embrace their goofiness! LOVE the pictures of you all "gettin' your groove on" on the sparkly lights!

We really enjoyed Coral Reef the one time we ate there. I'm not a big fan of fish or aquariums, but the boys really liked being able to watch the fish while they ate. And I agree about the less than modest breast-feeder. I don't deny you the right to feed your child in the manner you choose, however be respectful of the fact that you are in a public place and make some effort to cover up for the sake of the other diners.

I have never heard of Tom's shoes, but what a great idea! How cool that Lacey was able to participate in a mission like that.

Oh we definitely embrace our inner goofiness!

I would have been okay with the breastfeeding mother if she had just covered up at least a little bit and had not disrobed right in front of us.

Tom's Shoes is amazing! Here's the website if you want to read more about it: http://www.toms.com/our-movement/

Hooray....you get to go see Lacey.

I love Gatlinburg and shopping there...so much fun.

She is just as excited as we are. We are trying to talk Mama into going but she hasn't said yes yet. I'm thinking she may pass on the trip because she knows we will be doing a lot of walking on trails and she simply isn't up to it right now.

 

[mickeystoontown]

I'm looking through my photobucket account and it looks like I may be missing some of my Hollywood Studios pictures. Bear with me for a little while and I promise I'll get an update posted soon. Just need to find the rest of my pictures.

In the meantime, I do have pictures of my most recent backsacks and girl dresses. If any of you are interested, just let me know. The backsacks are $10 plus shipping which, in the United States, is pretty darn cheap. I'm talking around $3.00 or so. And, the dresses are $15 plus shipping which is also cheap.

I had to roll up a bath towel to put in the backsacks so you'd know that they look like when they have something in them. There's still plenty of room in the backsacks for more "stuff".

And here are the close-up pictures of the fabrics so you can better see the designs:

**Continued in next post

 

[mickeystoontown]

Now on to the dresses:

Close up on the fabric design on the dress above:

Close up of the fabric design in the trim on the dress above:

Close up of the fabric design in the trim on the dress above:

Close up of the fabric design in the trim on the dress above:

Tinkerbell trim on the dress above:

If you'll notice, a couple of the dresses and backsacks match. I may even have fabric to match some of the other dresses and could make backsacks if you were interested.

Okay, I'm off to see if I can find those missing Hollywood Studios pictures.

 

[KatMark]

Great backsacks, Lisa (and dresses too!). And what a sport Hunter is "modeling" them for you so you can post the pictures.

 

[mommytothreeboys]

Wow! That sounds like a packed-full Thanksgiving weekend! It looks like ours is going to be that way as well. I think we are going to travel to my brother's house just outside of Philadelphia (about a 6 hour drive) for Wednesday-Fri, then come back home and spend the night Friday at our house before taking the 2 1/2 hour drive to my Gram's for our extended family celebration on Saturday. Whew! But...there's nothing like being with family for Thanksgiving, right?

Very cute backsacks and dresses! I love the red one with the black fabric with red and white spots at the hem. Very cute!

 

[Mom&RN]

I'm so glad you get to spend Thanksgiving with Lacey. My son is 16 and I'm already having panic attacks whenever I think of him growing up and moving away from me. I know it is part of the normal process of kids growing up but I can't help wishing sometimes that I could turn back time.... Love the backsacks. What is the best way to get in contact with you to order? PM?
Barb

 

[jenseib]

Wow, you've been an updating fool.
I'm with you on the breastfeeding thig. I don't mind it at all. I understand it totally, but many men don't. And it's just curteous to cover up. And as soon as you said toddler, I was thinking "that sounds like the kid might be too old to be doing this?"
Your food a Coral Reef looks good. I keep wanting to go there, based on your reviews, but I just never make it. Some day I will.

I love the dancing photos. Too funny. Now we all want to see video!

Yay! I bet you can't wait to see Lacy. It won't be long now. This year is just flying by.

 

[PhoenixStrength]

Yay for seeing Lacey and Jesse over Thanksgiving! Sounds like it will be a fun trip with lots to do and see.

I love all the dresses and backpacks. I want at least half the backpacks

 

[MeMom]

All of the backpacks are cute. One could have a different pack for every park every day with your creativity!

I think we are finally heading to East Tennessee to check out Dollywood in the spring. No spring Disney trip for anyone this year, I am afraid, but this gives us a good excuse to get over there to Pigeon Forge, since we've talked and talked about it. I hope you will give us a mini-report and some pictures. Thanksgiving will be here in the blink of an eye, as busy as things are!

 

[Stringbean&Wingnut]

How fun that you guys are going to see Lacey and Jesse for Thanksgiving! (And that's so sweet that Jesse posted that he misses you guys! ) I'm sure everyone can't wait to see each other!

 

[MissLiz]

Clingmans Dome scared the bejeebers out of me when we went!!!

The hike up killed me, first of all. It just kept going and going and going.

And then, when we finally got to the top, I saw that big curving walkway and thought "Oh no, no way, can't do it." I made it about a fourth of the way up and turned right back around. DH didn't even attempt it. We just sat in the shade at the bottom and relaxed before heading down again.

 

[RVinMomma]

Awww you daughter and son in law are such a cute couple. Their wedding video made me tear up. So sweet!! I wish them a lifetime of happiness!!

 

[GrammyJudy]

I am happy for you that you are going to see Lacey and Jesse. Will they be coming home for Christmas?

My son live about 3 hours from us and he has a new job and is not sure about time off for the holidays this year. IT will be our first time without him and he is 34! I can't bear to think about it, I just keep hoping it works out that he can come.

Loving your report as always.

 

[mickeystoontown]

I'm so glad you get to spend Thanksgiving with Lacey. My son is 16 and I'm already having panic attacks whenever I think of him growing up and moving away from me. I know it is part of the normal process of kids growing up but I can't help wishing sometimes that I could turn back time.... Love the backsacks. What is the best way to get in contact with you to order? PM?
Barb

Barb, I hate to tell you but the kids leaving the nest is pretty darn bad! Lacey had gone to college in Georgia for three and a half years before she moved back home to prepare for her wedding. She was home for almost eleven months and we got used to her being with us again. I was proud of myself though and didn't cry at all the last time she and Jesse pulled out of our driveway. But, I also knew that I'd be making the drive to Tennessee later on too.

If you want any of the backsacks, just send me a p.m. and we'll get the details worked out.

Wow, you've been an updating fool.
I'm with you on the breastfeeding thig. I don't mind it at all. I understand it totally, but many men don't. And it's just curteous to cover up. And as soon as you said toddler, I was thinking "that sounds like the kid might be too old to be doing this?"
Your food a Coral Reef looks good. I keep wanting to go there, based on your reviews, but I just never make it. Some day I will.

I love the dancing photos. Too funny. Now we all want to see video!

Yay! I bet you can't wait to see Lacy. It won't be long now. This year is just flying by.

I know! I couldn't believe that I got so many installments posted since I've been slacking on updating lately.

I don't mind it when someone breastfeeds but this was a bit much and I felt she should have covered up, at least a little.

You should try and book an ADR at the Coral Reef. Every time we have been, the food and service has been done.

I wish we had done a video of us dancing 'cause we had to take so many "takes" on getting the pictures that I got. I'd take a picture and say "let me take another one". Too bad they didn't tell me to take another picture 'cause my face was a mess!

The year has flown by hasn't it. I'm ready to see Lacey and Jesse and just get away for a while. It'll be a quick trip but a quick trip is better than no trip at all.

Yay for seeing Lacey and Jesse over Thanksgiving! Sounds like it will be a fun trip with lots to do and see.

I love all the dresses and backpacks. I want at least half the backpacks

I'm trying to fit in as much as I can during our Tennessee trip. However, I know that we won't be able to do it all because it's a holiday and I figure it'll be super busy.

Oh, come on, induldge yourself and by all of the backsacks.

All of the backpacks are cute. One could have a different pack for every park every day with your creativity!

I think we are finally heading to East Tennessee to check out Dollywood in the spring. No spring Disney trip for anyone this year, I am afraid, but this gives us a good excuse to get over there to Pigeon Forge, since we've talked and talked about it. I hope you will give us a mini-report and some pictures. Thanksgiving will be here in the blink of an eye, as busy as things are!

Lacey and I brought three of the backsacks with us to Disney. We actually spotted one of my backsacks when we were walking through Epcot. I couldn't believe it and knew that, more than likely, it was a Diser.

We went to Dollywood a few years back and it was nice. It was really hard for us not to compare it to Disney World though. Still, we had a good time.

I'll definitely be taking lots of pictures and I'll come back with a trip report for sure.

How fun that you guys are going to see Lacey and Jesse for Thanksgiving! (And that's so sweet that Jesse posted that he misses you guys! ) I'm sure everyone can't wait to see each other!

I am excited to go see them! Isn't Jesse sweet to post that on Facebook.

Clingmans Dome scared the bejeebers out of me when we went!!!

The hike up killed me, first of all. It just kept going and going and going.

And then, when we finally got to the top, I saw that big curving walkway and thought "Oh no, no way, can't do it." I made it about a fourth of the way up and turned right back around. DH didn't even attempt it. We just sat in the shade at the bottom and relaxed before heading down again.

Oh great! I am going to start praying now that I'll be able to even make the hike. Maybe I need to start walking on the treadmill again so I'll get in shape for the walk.

Like I said, I told John I don't know if I can walk out onto the walkway or not. I'm so scared of heights. I may be doing just like ya'll did and be sitting in the shade while everybody else goes and looks.

Before John and I had the kids, we went to visit my sister in Colorado. We went to Mesa Verde National Park to see the indian ruins. There were quite a few that we didn't see because there was no way I was climbing down a ladder that was hanging over a canyon. I have pictures of John standing right on the canyon's rim and I'm waaaaay back on more solid ground.

Awww you daughter and son in law are such a cute couple. Their wedding video made me tear up. So sweet!! I wish them a lifetime of happiness!!

Thank you! Every time I see the video, I cry like a baby.

I am happy for you that you are going to see Lacey and Jesse. Will they be coming home for Christmas?

My son live about 3 hours from us and he has a new job and is not sure about time off for the holidays this year. IT will be our first time without him and he is 34! I can't bear to think about it, I just keep hoping it works out that he can come.

Loving your report as always.

Before Lacey got married, she would say that she and Jesse were going to spend their first Christmas together in their own little apartment with their own tree and decorations. Yeah, well that went right out the window after just a few weeks. They'll be at our house for Christmas. My family celebrates Christmas on Christmas Eve when we all get together at my mother's house. Santa Clause still comes every Christmas morning and that's when our immediate family gets to see all their gifts.

Oh my gracious! I sure hope thatyour son will get to come home for Christmas. It doesn't matter if he is 34 or not....he's your baby boy forever.

 

[mickeystoontown]

Good morning, good morning, everybody good morning. Good morning, good morning to you and you and you!

I think I have found the missing Hollywood Studios pictures and while looking, I found a few more Epcot pictures. I'll post those now before moving on to our Hollywood Studios day.

Hunter took these of the twinkly sidewalk lights:

I forgot that we saw this big snail on the concrete wall:

And, as we were walking to the bus stop, I had Hunter stop so I could take his picture. Hunter is just like his Mama and hates to leave the park so he'll stop for a picture, to look at something in a window, etc. Everybody else was up ahead of us so I took a quick picture and it turned out blurry:

A few more while walking out:

Okay, now I'll start working on the Hollywood Studios update.

 

[mickeystoontown]

Almost forgot one. Lacey must have used my camera to attempt a picture of her Tom's Shoes at Epcot:

 

[mickeystoontown]

I am still missing some pictures from the start of our Hollywood Studios day but I am going to start anyway. I also realized that lots of pictures from the middle of our day are not on photobucket so I guess I'll have to search through my memory cards for them.

Today was THE day. THE big day. It was Hunter's second Star Wars Weekend and he was on a mission to get something cool for the Star Wars actors and creators to sign. But, first, we had to get in line for Fastpasses to see those actors and creators.

I'm getting ahead of myself aren't I? Mama had no desire, whatsoever, to fight the Star Wars Weekend crowds and said she would join us later that day for dinner and Fantasmic. If she didn't see or do any of the attractions, she was okay with that. John and his slow to get up self was going to sleep in. The plan was for Hunter, Lacey and I to go and try to get there early like we did last year. Lacey was still getting ready when Hunter and I said we were ready to go so she said to go on without her and she'd meet up with us in a little while. She didn't have to say it twice before Hunter was out the door and on the way to the bus stop.

Fortunately for us, the bus came much quicker than it did last year. It was there within ten minutes and we were on our way to Hollywood Studios. I've heard a lot of folks complain about the bus service at the CBR and not liking the fact that the buses have to stop at each village bus stop before leaving for the parks. So, I decided to time our ride. From the time we sat down on the bus in Jamaica, made our way to the other bus stops and pulled into the bus stop at Hollywood Studios, it was a grand total of 11 minutes. Yeah, such a long time and something to complain about? Seriously?

We immediately made our way to the lines where the Fastpasses were being distributed and noticed that the lines weren't all that long. That's because they were already moving! What? We weren't late so what's the deal Lucille? As a matter of fact, upon closer inspection, some of the lines were gone because they had already distributed all the Fastpasses. Hunter had to do some quick thinking and (I am a bad bad Star Wars non-fan and don't remember who we got in line for.) got our Fastpass. We thought that we might be able to do as we did last year and hop in another line but we knew that we'd never make it back around before the other Fastpasses were gone. That was okay because Hunter was pleased with the person we had the passes to see.

For those of you who read about our adventures last year, you may remember that we went all over Hollywood Studios looking for Boba's Bounty where the Star Wars Weekends merchandise was sold. It took us forever and two days to find it and then we found it by mistake. This year, we were determined to find it immediately so we could, maybe, ride some of the rides before our Fastpass return time. I asked a castmember who actually knew where it was and we were on our way. (Last year every castmember told us something different.)

Lacey called and said that she was on her way out of the room and would call us when she got to the park. I told her that was fine and we'd see her in a little bit.

From what the castmember had told us, the Star Wars Weekends merchandise would be sold in a temporary tent which was set up just past Rock N Roller Coaster. There were very few people walking that way and we pretty much had the street to ourselves. When we got to the Rock N Roller Coaster turnstiles, we saw that the gate there was open and we walked right on through to a backstage area. And, there was the tent. There were a couple of guards standing there and I asked if we were going the right direction and they said we were indeed. They said it was going to cost us though and I told them they could have Hunter. They thought that was funny and we joked around with them for a few minutes before heading into the tent. I love cheerful castmembers.

The tent was pretty large and Hunter decided he wanted to walk around a bit before picking anything out. We saw some prints on a table and asked the castmember if they had a picture of X (insert name of the Star Wars actor...which I don't know right this minute). She said that they did have but thought they were sold out. She flipped through the prints and then went to the back to ask. They were sold out so we decided to just get the 2011 Star Wars Weekends print with Jedi Mickey Mouse. That would do. Hunter also picked out a couple of Star Wars Weekend pins and we were done.

Lacey called and said she was there and I told her to meet us in front of Rock N Roller Coaster and we'd take a spin with Aerosmith since the wait time was super short. Hunter had to pose while we were waiting:

One of Aerosmith with the hidden Mickey:

As soon as Lacey got there, we jumped in the line and were soon twisting and turning our way through the Hollywood sign. I was hoping that the wait time would be short by the time John got there because Rock N Roller Coaster is John's favorite ride in all of Walt Disney World. But, if the crowds ended up being like last year, we would probably have to skip it. I kept my fingers crossed anyway.

Without my pictures, I am having a hard time remembering where we went next. I do remember that the crowds along the street weren't too bad at that time. I was in front of Lacey and Hunter and took this picture:

Then, I held the camera over my head and took these:

Oops, no Lacey. Another:

Lacey minus part of the top of her head and a little beheaded Hunter.

There's Lacey! I have no idea why I didn't just stop, turn around and take pictures but I didn't.

Okay, so I guess I'll stop here. I need to find the other pictures in order to continue on. Hopefully, I can get another installment written today.

 

[KatMark]

Great Epcot photos, Lisa.

I wonder why the fastpasses were gone already for some of the "actors?" Do you think they opened the lines earlier?

I've never understood the complaint about CBR (and CSR) and the buses and the walking. We had a 10-12 minute walk to our room at the AKL and I know going from the main building to the furthest building at CBR or CSR is NOT that long. Anyway, back to the TR.

I love that you tried to take pictures of the kids over your shoulder. You did better than me...I would have ended up with the sidewalk or a kneecap or something.

 

[Caretames1]

Your dresses for girls are so cute! What sizes to do make? Kadence wears an 7-8 in most things.

I know not a thing about Star Wars, so I have a question. Are the actors there, or is it just the "characters" that you can get pics with?
I can understand how fast a FP would go if it was the actors.

 

[mickeystoontown]

Your dresses for girls are so cute! What sizes to do make? Kadence wears an 7-8 in most things.

I know not a thing about Star Wars, so I have a question. Are the actors there, or is it just the "characters" that you can get pics with?
I can understand how fast a FP would go if it was the actors.

The dresses that I have in the pictures are 6,7, 8. If you have a particular one in mind, I'll go home and see which ones are which sizes. I guess I should have thought about putting that info when I posted pictures huh.

There are actual actors there and then there are castmembers who are dressed like the Star Wars characters. Even though I'm not a Star Wars fan, it's pretty neat to meet a real movie star.