Let's See How *Little* Planning I Can Do - Memorial Day at Beach Club, Day One *NEW* 6/18

[amazingact21]

Great ADR choices! I've heard Splitsville is delicious, and Be Our Guest is the best QS place in the MK. The food is such a nice break from the standard burger and nuggets.

Ohana is a perfect rest day option. Just be warned, it can take FOREVER and the boys could get antsy. One of you might have to take them for a walk around the lobby. The food totally makes it worth it, but even my patient restaurant visiting son was restless by dessert. I had to let hi. Sit my lap and sing nursery ryhms for the last twenty minute.

 

[Elleshoodat]

Ooooohhhhh! Sounds great!

Sorry you missed out on Tusker House. It's a must-do for us. Had that issue happened to us, I'd be checking different browsers and/or on the phone at 8AM with a CM to get it booked.

Love the pre-park CRT! That will be awesome!! The face characters weren't as scary to my DS, but he still didn't want to have anything to do with them. Granted, he cries when a stranger talks to him in the grocery store.

We've never done Maya Grill, Splitsville, or Ohana. I considered Ohana this trip, but the spice didn't appeal to me, so we have breakfast booked instead. I love BoG lunch (and dinner!).

I'm kinda bummed about Tusker House, but I figure it will still be there in a few years -- when both boys are hopefully over being afraid of characters.

Be Our Guest lunch is the one I'm most looking forward to, so I'm always happy to hear when people enjoy it. What do you recommend?

Great ADR choices! I've heard Splitsville is delicious, and Be Our Guest is the best QS place in the MK. The food is such a nice break from the standard burger and nuggets.

Ohana is a perfect rest day option. Just be warned, it can take FOREVER and the boys could get antsy. One of you might have to take them for a walk around the lobby. The food totally makes it worth it, but even my patient restaurant visiting son was restless by dessert. I had to let hi. Sit my lap and sing nursery ryhms for the last twenty minute.

Ugh, yeah -- I was worried about that with 'Ohana. I'll keep checking to see if I can move that one up.

***

On Saturday night we went to a baseball game, and there were fireworks afterward -- the ballpark even played the soundtrack from Fantasmic!

Both boys were a little freaked out -- the 4-year-old more than the 1-year-old -- and so now I'm considering getting noise-canceling headphones for the nighttime shows.

Anyone have experience with those or can suggest another solution to the loud noise?

 

[Lidian]

I'm kinda bummed about Tusker House, but I figure it will still be there in a few years -- when both boys are hopefully over being afraid of characters.

Be Our Guest lunch is the one I'm most looking forward to, so I'm always happy to hear when people enjoy it. What do you recommend?

I loved the pork! Officially the Disney site menu says:
Braised Pork (Coq Au Vin Style)
Eight Hour Slow-cooked Pork with Mushrooms, Onions, Carrots and Bacon served with Mashed Potatoes and Green Beans Jardiniere.

It was Y-U-M! I cleaned my plate. DH had the beef sandwich and said it was really good. And the Master's Cupcake... WOW. It has the "Grey Stuff" on it and was so yummy!

On Saturday night we went to a baseball game, and there were fireworks afterward -- the ballpark even played the soundtrack from Fantasmic!

Both boys were a little freaked out -- the 4-year-old more than the 1-year-old -- and so now I'm considering getting noise-canceling headphones for the nighttime shows.

Anyone have experience with those or can suggest another solution to the loud noise?

I'm not sure, but this is something I may need to research as well. My DS1 has a noise sensitivity and can't even handle the TV being on (unless it's music-y stuff like some of the kid programs that sing often). You could always try cotton if you just need slight noise reduction, I suppose. Maybe just regular earbuds/headphones would work, too? I'm not real sure.

 

[KathyM2]

I'm here following along!! Great plans so far!! Always wanted to go to CRT and what a score that you got an early ADR for that! So awesome!

 

[bunnyboo]

Love your ADR choices! Grats on getting almost everything you wanted.

 

[Elleshoodat]

I loved the pork! Officially the Disney site menu says:
Braised Pork (Coq Au Vin Style)
Eight Hour Slow-cooked Pork with Mushrooms, Onions, Carrots and Bacon served with Mashed Potatoes and Green Beans Jardiniere.

It was Y-U-M! I cleaned my plate. DH had the beef sandwich and said it was really good. And the Master's Cupcake... WOW. It has the "Grey Stuff" on it and was so yummy!

I'm not sure, but this is something I may need to research as well. My DS1 has a noise sensitivity and can't even handle the TV being on (unless it's music-y stuff like some of the kid programs that sing often). You could always try cotton if you just need slight noise reduction, I suppose. Maybe just regular earbuds/headphones would work, too? I'm not real sure.

Thanks for the BOG recommendation! I *must* get that cupcake. It sounds right up my chocolate-loving alley!

Cotton's a good idea, or we have some regular kid-sized headphones. That could work, too...

I'm here following along!! Great plans so far!! Always wanted to go to CRT and what a score that you got an early ADR for that! So awesome!

Thanks, Kathy, and You scored some pretty great ADRs on short notice, so I know you appreciate my getting CRT.

Love your ADR choices! Grats on getting almost everything you wanted.

Thanks, Ruby, and I hope you got lucky with your ADRs, too!

 

[Elleshoodat]

Portrait Session Booked!

A couple of weeks ago, I called Disney Fine Art Photography and booked a mini portrait session for our September stay. Our session is at Animal Kingdom Lodge, and I think it will be so cool to have pictures in our home of us in our favorite resort – the gorgeous lobby … the rope bridge that spans the lobby … the beautiful staircase at the back of the lobby. (Can you tell I’m obsessed with the AKL lobby?!)

Anyway, the mini session is $150 for 20 minutes, and I think it’s totally worth it. We did this at the Poly during our trip a few years ago and got some good family pictures as well as some nice shots of just Andrew out of it – about 60 different shots altogether.

Here are some of my favorites from that shoot:

 

[bunnyboo]

Aww those photos are so precious. I especially love the hammock one!

 

[KathyM2]

Those are amazing photos! I had no idea Disney did that!

 

[JoshAndEvsMom]

Joining in! Your family is adorable and your plans sound so fun!

My DS is also sensitive to loud noises, especially when he was younger. We got him a pair of those kid-sized ear muffs (like the kind you'd wear shooting) for the Monster Truck show and they REALLY helped! I wish we'd had them when we went to Disney. He might have felt better on Ellen's Energy Adventure & Fantasmic. For some reason he was okay with Wishes though!

What a great idea for the portrait session! $150 is a great deal. Does it come with all your images or do you purchase those individually?

 

[lilmape]

Love love love , the last one with the castle in the background! Really pretty! I didn't know Splitsville had a restaurant, but because of your PTR I added a ressie on our rest night and figure we can introduce Miss K to some bowling after supper Wonder how hard it is to reserve bowling...

 

[Elleshoodat]

Aww those photos are so precious. I especially love the hammock one!

Thanks, Ruby! That one is my favorite, too. I call it The Claw because I have no idea what my hand is doing in that pic.

Those are amazing photos! I had no idea Disney did that!

Thanks, Kathy! Yeah, and it's a pretty good deal! We couldn't do longer than a mini session anyway; I just don't see the boys cooperating for an hour, lol.

Joining in! Your family is adorable and your plans sound so fun!

My DS is also sensitive to loud noises, especially when he was younger. We got him a pair of those kid-sized ear muffs (like the kind you'd wear shooting) for the Monster Truck show and they REALLY helped! I wish we'd had them when we went to Disney. He might have felt better on Ellen's Energy Adventure & Fantasmic. For some reason he was okay with Wishes though!

What a great idea for the portrait session! $150 is a great deal. Does it come with all your images or do you purchase those individually?

Thanks, Lauren, and

Thanks for the input on the earmuffs. I am definitely going to look into those.

Yep, the $150 includes all of your images on a disc. You can add on retouching and print packages, I think, but I just sent some of ours to like, Shutterfly to print.

Love love love , the last one with the castle in the background! Really pretty! I didn't know Splitsville had a restaurant, but because of your PTR I added a ressie on our rest night and figure we can introduce Miss K to some bowling after supper Wonder how hard it is to reserve bowling...

Thanks, Tiffany!

I've heard really good things about the food at Splitsville (the sushi gets rave reviews!), and bowling sounds so, so fun ... I can't wait until our boys are both old enough to try it!

 

[amazingact21]

Great idea booking a family portrait session. Those ones from the Poly are great, and you're right, they're wonderful momentos to have around the house

And what better resort to get them taken at? (Since you've already done one at the Poly.) AKL is just gorgeous, and every picture I've seen from there turned out beautiful. Honestly, a friend got wedding pictures done there and another friend got engagement pictures there, and they are some of the best ones I've seen. The resort alone makes for an amazing photograph!

 

[Elleshoodat]

Great idea booking a family portrait session. Those ones from the Poly are great, and you're right, they're wonderful momentos to have around the house

And what better resort to get them taken at? (Since you've already done one at the Poly.) AKL is just gorgeous, and every picture I've seen from there turned out beautiful. Honestly, a friend got wedding pictures done there and another friend got engagement pictures there, and they are some of the best ones I've seen. The resort alone makes for an amazing photograph!

Oh, how cool – I can’t imagine having wedding pics from Animal Kingdom Lodge! The resort is gorgeous, and you’re right – pretty much any photograph taken there is amazing.

 

[Elleshoodat]

Two Weeks To Beach Club!

Earlier this week I checked in online, requesting an upper floor. We have a standard-view room, so I checked out possible views on Touring Plans and used their new room request feature, so five days before our trip they’ll send a fax (what year is it?) to Disney with a handful of room numbers that fit our booking category and requests. I’m curious to see how well that works!

I’m thinking about having something delivered from Disney Floral & Gifts – either the Mickey’s Kool Snack cooler or the Disney Family Treat Tote. I’m a sucker for anything monogrammed and love the idea of a tote or cooler we can use in the parks on our September trip. (I am a bag marketer’s dream, lol.)

For Easter both boys got new swimsuits in their baskets (from the Disney Store, of course), and I can’t wait to see them in action! I’m also thinking about ordering a new suit for myself.

Star Wars for Andrew...

and Nemo for Matthew!

Most of all, I’m just looking forward to escaping reality for a bit. It’s been a rough couple of weeks, and our little family needs a break – a time to unwind and experience some magic (even without going into the parks), and mostly just to enjoy some quality time together.

 

[KathyM2]

Adorable suits!! I hope that room request thing works out well!! I can't imagine the logistics Disney has these days with everyone being so specific about what they want lol..but it's always worth a try!!

 

[Elleshoodat]

Adorable suits!! I hope that room request thing works out well!! I can't imagine the logistics Disney has these days with everyone being so specific about what they want lol..but it's always worth a try!!

I know, right? We're all super picky when it comes to our Disney trips.

 

[JoshAndEvsMom]

I saw that feature on Touring Plans! You'll have to let us know how that works for you! (...the fax...)

Those suits are too cool. That Star Wars one is awesome! I'm sad that my 8.5 y/o son is getting too old to want characters.

I just know we'd get along well... i'm a bag person too! Lol! My husband jokes "You have BAGS for your bags!" I tell him, it could be worse, I could be into diamonds.

Hope you have a wonderful & relaxing trip!

 

[bunnyboo]

Hope you get a room that meets your requests!! I'm tempted to make a request too, but since we're arriving early I think it's better not to ask for anything and hope for an early check in instead.

I have a collection of bags, and I don't even use half of them. But hey! Just in case, they're there if I need them! You can never have too many bags! I absolutely love the tote bag, it's soo cute. I like how it can work as a casual bag but also has an insulated bottom if you need it. However, that price is scary. Price alone would lean me towards the cooler, but whichever one you choose, they're both great!!

 

[Elleshoodat]

I saw that feature on Touring Plans! You'll have to let us know how that works for you! (...the fax...)

Those suits are too cool. That Star Wars one is awesome! I'm sad that my 8.5 y/o son is getting too old to want characters.

I just know we'd get along well... i'm a bag person too! Lol! My husband jokes "You have BAGS for your bags!" I tell him, it could be worse, I could be into diamonds.

Hope you have a wonderful & relaxing trip!

^^^ Oh my gosh, I so have to use that! We would definitely get along.

I will definitely let you know how the room request works out!

Hope you get a room that meets your requests!! I'm tempted to make a request too, but since we're arriving early I think it's better not to ask for anything and hope for an early check in instead.

I have a collection of bags, and I don't even use half of them. But hey! Just in case, they're there if I need them! You can never have too many bags! I absolutely love the tote bag, it's soo cute. I like how it can work as a casual bag but also has an insulated bottom if you need it. However, that price is scary. Price alone would lean me towards the cooler, but whichever one you choose, they're both great!!

You could always try for both -- on the check-in form on Disney's site, you indicate your requests, then there's a checkbox at the bottom that says something like "Early check-in preferred over all other requests." It couldn't hurt.

Yeah, the tote looks expensive at a glance, but it comes with snacks! And drinks! And it's monogrammed! See, I can talk myself into pretty much anything when it comes to bags. LOL!