Let's Graduate! Let's Get Engaged!! Let's Celebrate!!! May 2016 UPD 5/3: 1 WEEK AWAY!

[PadmeNaberie]

Celebrate a world filled with magic
Where happiness is found around the bend
Where all of your dreams and fantasies
Magically will never end!

Welcome everyone! I can't wait to share this celebration with you all!

My name is Emily, Trip-Planner Extraordinaire! I will be your guide through this wonderful journey! I will be graduating with my Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree in 18 days! I will soon be working on an intensive care unit and couldn't be more excited! This graduation is what started this trip- I wanted to celebrate! Plus- when do I ever NOT want to go to WDW?

First thing's first: Let's do some introductions!


My parents took me to WDW & DLR many times growing up so of course I am completely hooked! My Disney favorites include Ariel, Baymax (he's a nurse!), the PeopleMover, Splash Mountain, Tower of Terror, Soarin', all things princess, tsum tsums, Cinderella Castle... I could go on and on!

Originally, the only people joining me on this trip was to be my boyfriend Adrian and his 6-year-old daughter Eliza. As time has passed however, my parents, brothers, and aunt have deciding to tag along!


Here is Adrian & Eliza (at our local Six Flags)! Adrian & I have been best friends since my first year of high school, and dating for nearly four years now! Neither Adrian nor Eliza have been to WDW so I am super excited to introduce them to the magic!
Adrian's Disney favorites include Snow White, Pooh, & Anna.
Eliza is a sweet'n'sassy pixie girl and her Disney favorites are Minnie Mouse (RED Minnie- not pink! ), princesses, Tinkerbell, & Bolt!


And here is the rest of the crew on our last trip together in December 2014!
Red shirt is Josh, the youngest brother, who loves Chicken Little (???), Emperor's New Groove, Star Tours, and "all the thrill rides".
Purple shirt is Ben, the oldest boy, and he loves the PeopleMover, Laugh Floor, Test Track, & Tower of Terror.
Blue is Aunt Diana, who is a newly-converted Disney fan after her first trip in 2014! She won't admit it but I think her favorites are the coasters She also loves Maleficent in the FoF Parade!
Yellow is Chris, who loves Tower of Terror, Rock'n'Roller Coaster & Expedition Everest.
Green is my Dad, who loves Celebrate the Magic & Soarin'.
White shirt is my Mom. She loves Tower of Terror, Expedition Everest & MSEP!

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So what are the details??

Dates: May 10-22, 2016
Pop Century & Animal Kingdom Lodge- Kidani Village
Disney Dining Plan, Park Hoppers & MemoryMaker
Lots of DisneyBounds!
EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival; Senses Spa
Disney Fine Art Photography; Lilo's Playhouse

So, this trip is going to be a new experience for us. My youngest brother has a school band competition that he can't bear to miss, so he and the middle brother are coming on May 15. Adrian and Diana could not get off work for more than a week, so they'll be showing up on May 14 & May 15, respectively. We have never done a split trip so that should be interesting.

That leaves me, Eliza, Ben, Mom, and Dad with four days on our own at the beginning of the trip. We will have two rooms at the Pop Century (preferred room) for those days, and once everyone shows up we will hop on over to Animal Kingdom Lodge- Kidani Village for a savanna-view two-bedroom villa! We have never stayed at either of these resorts and are very excited!! Eliza does not know about Animal Kingdom Lodge, and she loves animals so I cannot wait for that surprise

One more important thing to mention... Adrian and I will be getting engaged! Yes, I already know about it- we aren't your normal couple I guess! I don't know when he is going to do it or anything like that, but I know it will be magical because I love him so much

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I hope y'all are ready for some magic! ​

 

[PadmeNaberie]

Contents
1. The Plans: Days 1-3
2. The Plans: Days 4-6​

 

[PadmeNaberie]

The Plans: Days 1-3

Let's get on with the show and share some plans!

Day 1- May 10
We will be arriving at MCO at 9:15am!! Yes, that means our flight leaves at 5:45 which is soooo early but we are also really excited to be arriving so early in the morning and having a nearly full day at the park!

I always wear this shirt at the airport- here is 2011 & 2014

Once we get settled in at Pop Century, we will be heading to our always-on-the-first-day park: None other than the Magic Kingdom! After the always magical stroll down Main Street, we will head to Dumbo first.
This is a different tradition for us rises from Adrian. He was always promised a trip to WDW as a child but that unfortunately never worked out. However, he had several of the trip planning videos and was always so entranced by Dumbo, so he has always said that would be his first ride if he ever got to go.
So even though Adrian will not be with us yet, Eliza will be- and it is her first trip. So in his honor, we are taking her on Dumbo first!

After Dumbo, we have a lunch reservation at Be Our Guest! We have eaten there for dinner, and my parents have had breakfast there, but none of us have ever experienced lunch! I have really been eyeing that croque monsieur



After lunch, we have a FP+ for what is usually our first ride: Peter Pan's Flight! We will then head through Liberty Square and Adventureland and hit our favorites before our second FP+, for Splash Mountain. We will then jump on the train back to Fantasyland for our final FP+ at Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. We will then time-travel on over to Tomorrowland and have dinner at one of our favorite quick-service locations, Cosmic Ray's The rest of the evening is open to whatever, considering we will probably be pretty exhausted! I would really like to be able to stay for Wishes though!

Disneybounds for this day: Emily- Minnie; Eliza- Pluto; Mom- Pooh


Day 2- May 11
Yay for our first morning! OF COURSE, we are heading back to Magic Kingdom this morning! There is just something about walking down Main Street in the early morning that truly starts the trip Since Eliza and I will be disneybouding as Rapunzel and Pascal today, we have a FP+ for Princess Fairytale Hall while the rest of the group has a pass for Haunted Mansion. We will meet up for lunch at Columbia Harbor House, then check out Adventureland before our FP+ at Splash Mountain.


Chris kept getting stuck under this waterfall on Splash in 2014

Then we'll hop the train over to Tomorrowland where some of us have passes for Space Mtn, and some for Buzz. Then after watching the Festival of Fantasy Parade, we will head out to Hollywood Studios for some movie magic!

We don't have many plans for this evening, other than dinner at Sci-Fi Dine-In- which we WILL be making!! I have made a reservation at this restaurant for the last I-don't-know-how-many trips, and we always end up having to cancel it for some reason! I am determined to make it this time as I have never eaten there before!
I will probably take Eliza to the Frozen Sing-Along at some point this evening so that Adrian doesn't have to sit through it I love Frozen, so I am excited for it myself!
This is also one of the only nights that fits our itinerary that has Symphony in the Stars scheduled, so we will see that as well! This is a new show for us

If anyone has any tips on how to get a six-year-old to ride Tower or Terror, I would be much obliged!! She isn't scared of thrill rides and I think she would end up loving this, but I don't know how to get her past the "creepiness"

Disneybounds for this day: Emily- Rapunzel; Eliza- Pascal; Mom- Magic Carpet


Day 3- May 12
We are starting this day with a pre-opening breakfast at Tusker House to meet Mickey & friends! We then have FP+ for Kilimanjaro Safaris, Kali River Rapids, and Expedition Everest. Also planning to see Flights of Wonder in there! Last trip I got to go up and be part of the show and it was so fun!



That owl flew too fast for my GoPro though so I didn't end up with any good photos Anyway, we will finish up in DinoLand then head out to EPCOT!

Again, not too many plans for this evening other than dinner at Via Napoli. This is another new one for us and I keep drooling over photos of the pizza! I also want to take Eliza to meet Alice, as she has been talking non-stop about how she wants to meet her at EPCOT and not Magic Kingdom . We will see Illuminations and that will close out this day!

Disneybounds this day: Emily- Dory; Eliza- Nemo; Mom- Crush​

 

[PadmeNaberie]

1 MORE WEEK!!!
I have no idea if anyone is reading this but...

The Plans: Days 4-6

Day 4 - May 13
Time for a morning at Hollywood Studios! We have a pre-opening breakfast planned at Hollywood & Vine so Eliza can meet the Disney Junior characters. Honestly though, she isn't a huge fan of these characters, so we might end up skipping it to go something more pleasing to the entire group; the only real draw at this point is getting into the park early. She can still meet the characters out in the park!

We have fastpasses for Toy Story Midway Mania, Star Tours, and Tower of Terror this morning! After a yummy lunch at Starring Rolls Cafe, we will head out to EPCOT!


These sandwiches are just too good, and I usually hate sandwiches!

Eliza, for some reason, is set on meeting Alice at Epcot instead of Magic Kingdom- don't ask me why!! So while I am still hoping to be able to get her to the meet at MK and *hopefully* Alice will ride the Tea Cups with her, I want to take Eliza to the Epcot meet on her first time there. After that, we will have dinner somewhere new for us- Via Napoli!

**mini rant** I am so heartbroken that we are missing out on Soarin' this trip It is a favorite of almost all of us, and I know Adrian and Eliza would love it just as much!

how we will all feel

We will stay for Illuminations- one of my all-time favorites- and then head out!

Disneybounds: Emily- Bo-Peep; Eliza- Bo's Sheep; Mom- Jessie


Day 5 - May 14
ADRIAN FINALLY ARRIVES THIS DAY!!!
I'm not even there yet and I can't wait!!

We also check into Animal Kingdom Lodge! Wooo!!! AKL is one of the few things I have been able to keep as a surprise for Eliza, and I cannot wait for her to see it!
We will start our day at Magic Kingdom, where I have a breakfast reservation for Eliza and myself and Cinderella's Royal Table! I absolutely love it there, and come one- you can't take a little girl there on her first trip and not eat in the castle! My parents and Ben have been there several times and since it is a 2-credit restaurant, they are okay missing it this time. So this morning will just be about us princesses


Plus- how could I resist another plate of these??

While we are at breakfast, the rest of the family will be off doing their own thing, plus fastpasses for Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin and Haunted Mansion.


Here is Ben bounding as a Ghost Host last trip; funny story- the ride was supposed to be under refurbishment for our entire trip. This photo was taken right before our pre-opening breakfast at CRT; when we came out of breakfast, we found out that the ride opened early and we were some of the first riders! All because of Ben's Disneybound!

Adrian's flight lands at 11:30-ish, so once we are done with our brunch, Eliza and I are going to head over to AKL to meet him and get checked in! Then BACK TO MK!! I am hoping we will be back in time for Festival of Fantasy, but if not it's no big deal because we will have a chance later in the trip. We of course must make Adrian's first ride Dumbo (see previous post)!

We then all have a fastpass for our love, Splash Mountain!


Chris wasn't the only one who kept getting stuck under that waterfall last trip

Since we are Disneybounding Princess and the Frog today, we will go meet Tiana & Naveen somewhere around this time!

In the evening, I have another surprise for Eliza- Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique! I never got to do this as a child so I will be living vicariously through her As far as her dress goes, I decided that she should be her own princess, so it is not a Disney dress. It is awesome however because I sewed fairy lights into it so it will light up! Another surprise- she won't know about the lights until Main Street Electrical Parade!!!

After she gets all dolled up, we will go meet some princesses! Adrian, Eliza, and I have fastpasses for Princess Fairytale Hall and Anna & Elsa so she can show off her princess-ness We'll have dinner somewhere in there, probably between the fastpasses at Pinocchio Village Haus, then stake out a great spot for Main Street Electrical Parade, Celebrate the Magic, and Wishes. Time to head to AKL after that!

Disneybounds: Emily- Evangeline; Eliza- Tiana; Adrian- Ray; Mom- Charlotte
**A note about our Disneybounds** Adrian and I are disneybounding as couples the whole trip, and Eliza is the sidekick/other related character


Day 6- May 15
And now it is time for everyone else to finally arrive!! My other two brothers land around 9:30 and Diana lands around 4:00p.

We have an early breakfast at a new one for me, not new for my parents- Kona Cafe. I am drooling over that tonga toast and the macadamia nut pancakes (hoping the recipe isn't bad now like I gave seen posted )!

Then it is time for a monorail ride and full Epcot day- and you know what that means!
DRINKING AROUND THE WORLD!

But before we get there, here's our morning: fastpasses for Spaceship Earth, Test Track (no Soarin' ), and Character Spot. I also really wanna try the new (to us) grilled cheeses at Taste Track; this will also put a little bread in our tummies to soak up the upcoming binge-drinking



We did this last trip and oh my goodness- SO MUCH STINKIN FUN! My only regret is that we didn't get over to World Showcase fast enough- we weren't back there until about 1:00p. We started in Mexico, and started cutting it close by the time we got to France!! So this time, I plan to be back there right at 11:00, and this time we are starting in Canada (it works better this way due to the the performance schedules). Adrian loves his alcohol, so I know he will have great fun with this. It is also Flower and Garden Festival time, which is new to us. So we are adding in snacking around the world as well!! Someone will have to roll us all out of there- probably my poor underage brothers

I am also excited for Eliza to experience the Kidcot stations and Phineas and Ferb's Adventure. I know that I myself was not interested in World Showcase at all as a child, but I think she will be. She's cultured

After Illuminations (and maybe sobering up a bit) we are gonna head over to one of our new favorite restaurants- Beaches & Cream! We discovered this place last trip; I was actually trying to cancel our late night dinner reservation for it because we were all so exhausted, but it was within 24 hours so we would have been charged. My brothers and I decided to go ahead and go (even if one person shows up from your party, it prevents cancellation charges) and it was one of the best decisions we made!! We ended up going back again later in the trip, and my parents went too after hearing us raving!


THAT GRILLED CHEESE AND TOMATO BISQUE THOUGH

Ironically, none of us ever got any ice cream there So this time, we are getting the Kitchen Sink! Plus, I hear they now have boozy ice cream, so that will be added onto our already very boozy day

Then it's time to roll our bloated selves on home to AKL!

Disneybounds: Emily-Snow White; Eliza- Dopey; Adrian- the Prince; Mom- Baymax​