"Let's See What We Can See!"- Surviving WDW With Three Under 3! - And now... A CRUISE?! Updated 4/19!

[suse66]

OMG Susan you need to get ALLLL of the ube things in Hawaii!! So excited for you; you will LOVE Hawaii and Aulani I know it!! If you need any tips please just let me know!

We will start oplanning in January so I will be sure to hit you up for tips!

Same here with the frosting If I'm PMSing, I can demolish an entire can in a weekend (my favorite kind is the Duncan Hines Dolly Parton vanilla buttercream or the Pillsbury chocolate fudge ). I'm too nervous to make my own, I'm afraid I'll screw it up and the butter will break or something!

here is the easiest recipe ever to make frosting;

1/4 cup soft butter
1 cup icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp cocoa powder
2 tbsp heavy cream

Beat butter with icing sugar until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and cocoa. Beat again for about 1 minute. Add heavy cream and stir. Highly recommend!

After stuffing our faces with some much-needed sugar, we took a pit stop in Candy Cauldron . Don’t worry, it was just for a bottle of water!! Then, we went to DisneyStyle to look around. I love this store! I feel like they always have the cutest clothes in here compared to the other clothes-centric shops.

Jake and I checked into Homecomin’ and were seated in no time at 9:15 PM! When we were planning the trip, I asked Jake if he had any input on ADRs. Zero hesitation, he mentioned Homecomin’. I instantly agreed; I’ve eaten at Homecomin’ many times, and it consistently has some of my favorite food at WDW. We thought that it would be the perfect way to start the trip off with a bang! We had a fantastic meal here on our last WDW trip together back in November 2021, and Jake still talks about the devilled eggs! So, those were a must-eat tonight.

I do love Homecomin and think Bill would really like it. We might just do cocktails and apps at the Shine bar though.

I overwhelmingly preferred the Strawberry Lemonade Shine, so I grabbed that glass all to myself, and I also claimed the Rumshine Punch and sipped on that. Jake loved the Sweet Tea Shine and the Moonshine Margarita, so he claimed those. Neither of us liked the Blue Hooch. The waitress commented that she likes to mix the flavors together, so at the end of the dinner, we had a fun time being chemists and mixing together the leftover flavors! The Rumshine Punch mixed with the Sweet Tea Shine was a good combo!

Moonshine is a pretty strong flavour so I am not surprised those drinks were too alcoholy tasting for you.

Ever since I went to Homecomin’ for lunch on my bachelorette party last year, I knew what I was ordering. Last year, I had ordered the Sweet Potato Mash Skillet as a side, and it literally changed my life. Here’s a picture of its gloriousness.

It looks like dessert!

Y’all. I almost started crying right there. That was like 75% of the reason I wanted to go back to Homecomin’ in the first place . I could tell the waitress felt bad, and she recommended the new side of roasted sweet potatoes instead!

Just not the same!

It was right around when we ordered our entrees that we started noticing the tables sat around us. This was really the day of RUDE people!! There was a child at the booth next to us (probably around 5 years old) that was CLIMBING the booth and literally using our table as a stepstool and walking right on our table! Multiple times!! We tried shooting the parents a look, but Mom and Dad were blissfully oblivious, drinking their beverages and even encouraging the kid (probably because it kept him busy)!

So his dirty shoes were ON your table???? Oh no, I would have headed on over to his parents and had a little (sweet) chat.

There was also a table near us that had a really disruptive 8-ish year old boy. He came up to our table and gave us the middle finger while “flossing” (again, multiple times with parents blissfully unaware). We did our best to just ignore it, but when Jake got up to use the bathroom, this boy walked over to our table and literally sat right in Jake’s chair across from me! He stared right at me, like, “What are you gonna do about it?”

Maybe I am too direct for my own good but I would have had to say something to the parents. One thing I drilled into my boys when they were younger was proper restaurant manners. And if they didn't behave they were taken out and not allowed back until they did.

Honestly, all of the food was delicious. We definitely had to pace ourselves because it’s so rich, plus we were eating kind of late and had a big park day tomorrow! The breading on the chicken was so crispy and both sauces paired so well with it. The BBQ pork continues to be a favorite of mine here, and the broccoli salad was a nice fresh option (even though the gobs of mayo kind of canceled out the health benefits .) The sweet potatoes were fine. Can you tell I’m still salty?

Fine does not equal delicious. Fine is mediocre.

We walked back to the tower and decided to check out Toledo and Dahlia Lounge before heading back to the room for the night! There was also a cute bar in the lobby called Barcelona Lounge; it was a coffee bar in the morning and turned into a regular bar at night! Sadly, we never got anything from here during our stay.

The CMs at Barcelona are great! I loved it there when Caroline and I stayed there in December.

Overall, we both really enjoyed that Gideon’s isn’t afraid to use salt in their cookies- it made the flavor so much more dynamic! That being said, these cookies were MONSTERS and super dense! I’m a sugar fiend and can demolish more sweets than a grown man . But, even I couldn’t eat a whole cookie in one sitting! These cookies lasted us for our whole stay at CSR, and we loved keeping them in the fridge and munching on them at night.

Those are monster cookies!

We're going next month with our daughter and 3 very rambunctious grandsons. I'm really worried how our meal time will go and hope we don't disturb those around us too much.

The difference is that you, Michelle and Dennis will actually pay attention to the boys and help them manage.

Unlike the night before, the bus left directly from the Gran Destino Tower station and was off to the parks! We were pleasantly surprised, as we had been allotting extra time this morning for the 3 additional bus stops around CSR. We asked the bus driver, and he explained that before 10:00 AM, GDT had their own dedicated bus to get them to/from the parks efficiently. I really like this. I mean, after all, you’re paying more money to stay in the Tower, so there should be some perks associated with that!

Nice!

This trip really solidified our opinions of DHS being our least favorite park; it just doesn’t hold crowds well with too many big-ticket rides, and neither of us are huge Star Wars people. But, we wanted to do a quick visit this morning to ride some of our favorites while the crowds were still lower!

DHS is my #4 park too.

After disembarking, we noticed that the line for Rise of the Resistance was only 30 minutes. GO GO GO!

Awesome!

Then, it was time to redeem our Genie + for Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway! Jake especially loves this ride. I still miss The Great Movie Ride sometimes, but I think that this is a great replacement

I miss the Great Movie Ride (lots of great memories there when the boys were little) but MMRR is fun too. I love the waltzing scene with Daisy best.

We quickly stopped in a couple shops at the park exit, then, at 10:15 AM, we boarded the Skyliner for Epcot. Quick visit, but we were very satisfied with our time at DHS and ready to move on!

The best part of hopper tickets or an AP is the flexibility. I could not stand to be stuck in one park all day.

Well, the title pretty much explains it all! That’s right, DISfriends! WE’RE GOING BACK TO DISNEY WORLD! IN SEPTEMBER 2024!!!!

Yay!!!!!

In my PTR, I’ve talked about how much the twins love everything Halloween. It’s one of their very favorite things! They are obsessed with skeletons, witches, bats, pumpkins, monsters… they adore any spooky book, song, or show they can get their hands on! Spoiler alert- they both LOVED Haunted Mansion!

Sweet!

Guess she wasn’t joking! And who am I to turn down a trip to Disney World?? So, I got to work looking at the bounceback deal. Luckily, it barely took any convincing. We are the definition of a Disney family! After much debate, we decided on September 25th- 29th at…

The perfect resort!

Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge- Jambo House (two resort-view rooms)!

Love it there! Sometimes the standard view rooms on Zebra and Kudu trail have partial savannah views.

We are sooo excited to stay here again; it’s been a while since we’ve stayed at this resort and we thought it would be perfect for this trip! It will be Ryan, Haley, and the 3 kids in one room, then Nana, Jake, and I in the other room. Cici and Chief politely opted out for this adventure- I think they’re still recovering from our last trip!

You are going to have so much fun!

This is a first for all of us; I’ve done MVMCP and Disney After Hours but never MNSSHP. The rest of the crowd has never done ANY special ticketed events!! I’m SO excited to cross this off my list, see the parades/shows, and go trick-or-treating in Magic Kingdom!!

I am so excited for you!!!! Will you Disney Bound? Full costumes?

We haven’t bought our tickets yet, but we are planning on 4-day park hoppers with one true resort day to enjoy the Grand Californian. I am sooooo excited to stay here again; we stayed here on our first DLR trip back in April 2023, and it had us completely spoiled rotten. To date, the GCH is one of our favorite resorts we’ve ever stayed at!

Nice!

Remember how I said on my PTR, “I’m not going to buy an annual pass, because this will be my last visit to WDW for at least this year….”

Famous last words! That was me in 2023 and I ended up spending more in tickets than an AP would have cost.

 

[skysmom99]

Following along.

 

[Woth2982]

After much debate, we decided on September 25th- 29th at…

Ok, now I am mad. We are going the 19-24 and ALSO staying at AKL! We just booked it a week or two ago! We asked Savannah if she wanted to go to the Halloween Party or have a birthday party, she picked the Halloween party. My parents are coming too.

We vowed that this trip would have a much more relaxed pace and we would do a lot more resort/pool time. The twins are going to LOVE the splash pad/kid’s area over at Kidani Village!

This is exactly why we picked AKL! We were gonna stay at POFQ, but there was no AP discount for the dates we were going, and it was $30 more per night to stay at AKL, so no brainer there. Plus S loved the pool and playground from the videos I showed her. It will be a MOSTLY resort stay with one night at the party, and we are gonna do one night at Epcot with a fireworks cruise if we can get it. My dad had a stroke last year, so his park days are over, but he will be able to enjoy the resort and this cruise.

I knew that as soon as I said that, I would have another WDW trip on the books, and be kicking myself for not buying an annual pass.

I would like to state for the record, I said get the AP

 

[ambula603]

Can you see how GREEN I am with ENVY!?

We are doing the MNSSP on October 8 I think! So close to when yall will be there!

But mostly I am jealous of DISNEYLAND! Both coasts!? You will have so much fun comparing and yay you will get to share with us!

 

[emilyhuff]

Molly!!! So excited for your upcoming trip!!!! We are going the 19th - 28th for our 1st anniversary! I know you and Jake are one day ahead of us anniversary wise! So fun!!!

 

[Mollydolly334]

I can’t believe you haven’t been to a MNSSHP! You will love it
My all time favorite special ticketed event EVER!!
The parade is awesome and trick or treating at MK is really spectacular!
I’m so excited for you with your trips this fall! Exciting times!!

I can't believe I haven't either!! SO excited to check this off my bucket list! It looks like you get tons of candy too which is always a plus for me

Thank you so much! We are truly blessed indeed!!

Oh yay! Love September trips, and MNSSHP is so much fun! Our trips overlap a few days, maybe we'll run into each other!

And I hear you about not buying APs, this past year I had three Disney trips and APs would have saved so much money. Oh well, at least we learned our lesson and have APs now.

YAY!!! We should totally try to meet up and say hi! That's awesome Staying at YC like always??

I was so far behind, but all caught up now!!! Love the start of your trip with just you and Jake And SO excited (and a tiny bit jealous) about your fall plans to celebrate Halloween on both coasts!! How incredible!!! You're going to have the most amazing 2024, aren't you!?

Hi Jackie!! Hope you're having a nice and relaxing summer so far, you deserve it! We are definitely blessed and SO excited to do ALL of the Disney Halloween things this fall!!

Wow you have some very exciting plans to look forward to this fall.

We went to our first MNSSHP this past year and loved it!

Even better that you get to party in Disneyland too!

We are SO excited!! I don't think it's set in yet!! 2024 has shaped up to be a pretty amazing year

We will start oplanning in January so I will be sure to hit you up for tips!

here is the easiest recipe ever to make frosting;

1/4 cup soft butter
1 cup icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp cocoa powder
2 tbsp heavy cream

Beat butter with icing sugar until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and cocoa. Beat again for about 1 minute. Add heavy cream and stir. Highly recommend!



I do love Homecomin and think Bill would really like it. We might just do cocktails and apps at the Shine bar though.

Moonshine is a pretty strong flavour so I am not surprised those drinks were too alcoholy tasting for you.

It looks like dessert!

Just not the same!

So his dirty shoes were ON your table???? Oh no, I would have headed on over to his parents and had a little (sweet) chat.

Maybe I am too direct for my own good but I would have had to say something to the parents. One thing I drilled into my boys when they were younger was proper restaurant manners. And if they didn't behave they were taken out and not allowed back until they did.

Fine does not equal delicious. Fine is mediocre.

The CMs at Barcelona are great! I loved it there when Caroline and I stayed there in December.

Those are monster cookies!

The difference is that you, Michelle and Dennis will actually pay attention to the boys and help them manage.

Nice!

DHS is my #4 park too.

Awesome!

I miss the Great Movie Ride (lots of great memories there when the boys were little) but MMRR is fun too. I love the waltzing scene with Daisy best.

The best part of hopper tickets or an AP is the flexibility. I could not stand to be stuck in one park all day.

Yay!!!!!


Sweet!

The perfect resort!

Love it there! Sometimes the standard view rooms on Zebra and Kudu trail have partial savannah views.

You are going to have so much fun!

I am so excited for you!!!! Will you Disney Bound? Full costumes?

Nice!

Famous last words! That was me in 2023 and I ended up spending more in tickets than an AP would have cost.

Thank you for that buttercream recipe! I'll be sure to try it out soon!!

One takeaway from my TR is that Homecoming is a GOOD meal. It had a lot of things stacked against it (rude guests, my favorite dish being off the menu, drinks that were too strong), and it STILL ended up being one of our favorites of the trip. The food is SOOOOO good!! You should definitely try it with Bill!

I always though AK was my #4 park, but this trip officially changed the ranking! Sad, because I really do like the rides at DHS, but it just does not hold crowds and handle heat well at all. We are SO excited to be staying at AKL again. The kids absolutely love animals and I think this resort will be perfect for relaxation time. So far, our #1 costume idea is Evie being Snow White, and all of us (7 in total) being Dwarves! My mom would be Doc of course and I'm obviously Happy!

Lesson learned- ALWAYS buy the annual pass

Following along.

Thanks so much for reading along

Ok, now I am mad. We are going the 19-24 and ALSO staying at AKL! We just booked it a week or two ago! We asked Savannah if she wanted to go to the Halloween Party or have a birthday party, she picked the Halloween party. My parents are coming too.

This is exactly why we picked AKL! We were gonna stay at POFQ, but there was no AP discount for the dates we were going, and it was $30 more per night to stay at AKL, so no brainer there. Plus S loved the pool and playground from the videos I showed her. It will be a MOSTLY resort stay with one night at the party, and we are gonna do one night at Epcot with a fireworks cruise if we can get it. My dad had a stroke last year, so his park days are over, but he will be able to enjoy the resort and this cruise.

I would like to state for the record, I said get the AP

NOOOOO KATIE that makes me so sad We are literally missing each other by a day!! One of us just needs to extend our trip so we can finally meet

LOL we're twins! POFQ was our #1 choice but it wasn't available with the BB offer. POR was, but it was only like $400 more to switch to AKL so we said #YOLO

Can you see how GREEN I am with ENVY!?

We are doing the MNSSP on October 8 I think! So close to when yall will be there!

But mostly I am jealous of DISNEYLAND! Both coasts!? You will have so much fun comparing and yay you will get to share with us!

Awwwww man so sad we're going to miss each other! Excited for you guys- did you decide on CSR??

But I KNOW ahhhh I can't believe it!! It was SO funny- the other day, out of the blue, Jake said, "I'm so excited to compare and contrast WDW and DL since we're going just a month apart" MUAHAHA- my plan to make Jake a Disney Adult is slowly coming to fruition!!!

Molly!!! So excited for your upcoming trip!!!! We are going the 19th - 28th for our 1st anniversary! I know you and Jake are one day ahead of us anniversary wise! So fun!!!

EMILY HI!!!!! Yay!!! Jake and I are counting California/Disneyland as our "anniversary trip" We should definitely try to meet up and say hi! So fun! Where are you guys staying??

 

[ambula603]

Excited for you guys- did you decide on CSR??

I wanted to try the tower and it was unavailable but it ended up working out for me because last night I snagged a dedicated reservation for the exact two nights we need at POLYNESIAN! I am SOOO pumped!

 

[Mollydolly334]

Day 2 (The One Where Molly Faces Her Fears, And the Poison Control Center is Called!) - Part 2


Hi everyone! Hope you are all having a good week so far. I'm so happy that some of our trips overlap in September- hopefully I can meet up with all you lovely peeps

Where I last left off on the TR front, Jake and I were headed out of DHS and to Epcot via the Skyliner! It was funny; as we were leaving the park, a security guard asked, “Have you had enough of us already?” It was only 10:15 AM and the park had just officially opened one hour ago.



While we switched over at Caribbean Beach Resort, we noticed this poster for Aulani. Aulani is where Jake and I got engaged, as well as where we honeymooned for part of the time! So many great memories there.





This Skyliner ride felt loooooong. We kept starting and stopping, and we were getting eager to try some Flower and Garden treats! I was really regretting not at least grabbing a coffee from DHS; the early morning was catching up to us! While on the Skyliner, I made a Genie + for Spaceship Earth from 10:45 -11:45 AM.

Finally, we made it to Epcot at 10:55. It looked like a pretty quiet morning so far!









We made a beeline through the International Gateway to our first F&G food booth for some much-needed sugar. We decided to share a Peanut Butter and Jelly Soft Serve from Swirled Showcase!



DELISH! This was the perfect refresher and energized me considerably! The salty peanut butter soft serve mixed with the sweet grape flavor (think grape bubblegum or Laffy Taffy) was an amazing combo. I got to have most of it; Jake only took a couple bites since he’s not a big ice cream person. I knew that this was a treat that I’d have to have again during the trip!

Jake was still really hungry, so we decided to head further into Future World to check out the booths there. We stopped in The Odyssey at The Citrus Blossom!

Jake was considering trying the Orange Tempura Shrimp and beer flight, but bailed last-minute. Jake gets in these moods where when he’s hangry, he refuses to eat and claims “nothing sounds good.” Whereas, when I’m hungry, any and every food will do.

I decided on the Key Lime Wine Slush and the Lemon Meringue Pie!





I kind of rushed through these snacks; Jake was getting hangrier by the second and I was worried I had a mutiny on my hands! The Lemon Meringue Pie was great; a perfect balance of sweet and tart with no cheesecake-y flavor (remember my disdain for cream cheese frosting)? But, the Key Lime Wine Slush was too sweet AND tart somehow. It reminded me of a melted green Skittle , which you’d think my sweet tooth self would love. But, fun fact, I HATE Skittles and they (along with Nerds) give me an instant headache whenever I eat them. So, sadly, half of this slushy went in the trash.

Next, we went over to the BrunchCot booth. I KNEW there would be food here that Jake would like! We decided to share the Froot Loops Shake, the Fried Cinnamon Roll Bites, and the Plant Based Chicken Biscuits and Gravy!



About two bites into this, Jake immediately said, “I’m soorrrrrry, I was just hangry”

Reminds me of that Snickers slogan- “You’re not you when you’re hungry”

I took most of the shake, and it was pretty yummy and tasted like Froot Loops milk! We both really liked the Plant-Based Chicken Biscuits and Gravy. Although it could have been warmer temperature-wise, the flavor was super good and it was nice and savory. We both enjoy plant-based meat (we have Boca Burgers for dinner a lot at home), and we thought that the plant-based chicken was very juicy and tender! Sadly, the Cinnamon Roll Bites were trash. They were basically like dry churro nuggets with absolutely no icing. We each had one bite and probably tossed the rest!

I was pretty full at this point, but Jake decided to grab one more food item before our Genie + at Spaceship Earth. We meandered over to Farmer’s Feast, and Jake grabbed a Grilled Street Corn on the Cob!



I passed on a bite, since I have an intolerance to allium vegetables (onion, garlic, scallions, leeks, shallots, and chives), and this thing was FULL of garlic. Jake had some pretty toxic breath for a bit.



Jake said that this was satisfying but nothing special; we had some AMAZING street corn at Mekiko Cantina in Ko Olina, HI during our honeymoon at Aulani, and all other street corn pales in comparison now!

Bellies now full (for the moment), we cashed in our Genie + at Spaceship Earth. We arrived in the nick of time- I think we were even a couple minutes late!



There was kind of an annoying couple in front of us filming on/off during the ride, and when the picture was taken, the guy had his camera right in front of Jake’s face. So, we didn’t get a picture of Jake for our future



We cracked up at my sassy picture, however!

It was a great ride, as always. This is the one ride where I definitely feel like I could take a nice long nap. But not because it’s boring- it’s just so relaxing!

After our ride, I booked a Genie + for Soarin’ from 11:55- 12:55 (AKA, right now!) I grabbed a picture at the Bubblegum Wall.



Time to head over to The Land!







The Land Pavillion has always been one of my favorite places at WDW. I’m not sure why, I think it’s a combination of nostalgia and the delicious food smell.



We cashed in our Genie + at 12:25, but we had a bit of a wait. I was getting a little worried, because I was going to try to book the virtual queue for Cosmic Rewind at 1:00!

No need to worry. We made it to Patrick by 12:45!



We both love this ride; it’s one of my favorite rides at WDW! However, I think I still slightly prefer the California version.

Jake had been craving a beer since he regretfully turned down the beer flight at the Citrus Blossom, so he jumped into line at Sunshine Seasons after we got off Soarin’. I parked myself down at a table and prepared myself to grab a Cosmic Rewind boarding group right at 1:00!

Those of you who read my PTR know that I really struggled with the decision to ride Cosmic Rewind. I tend to get disoriented when moving screens are utilized, and I struggle with emetophobia (fear of vomit and/or vomiting). I had heard so many mixed reviews on the motion sickness potential with this ride! But, Jake was really looking forward to this ride, and I wanted to be brave and try it at least once.



SUCCESS! Jake returned with his Yuengling, and I shared the good news

We were able to sit in Sunshine Seasons and take a much-needed breather for about 20 minutes. It was really nice to chill out and chat about our amazing day! At some point, I booked us a Genie + for Living with the Land, so we rode that after our short break,

When we got on the ride, Jake pulled this face and said, “Look, I’m your mom!”



My mom has a reputation of falling asleep on slow-paced rides, especially LWTL!! I instantly cracked up and sent this to my Mom as well as posted it on my Instagram story, which got a lot of “haha” reactions from our friends!



I’ve always had a soft spot for this ride. It’s so tranquil! I like listening to the relaxing ride music when I’m doing admin work. They had done a really cute overlay, with different displays capturing scenes from classic Disney movies.



Here’s the little set-up for Snow White!

After we disembarked, I booked us a Genie + for Journey Into Imagination with Figment for 5 minutes later, so we headed over to the Imagination pavilion! We were really getting the most out of Genie + today!

Had to grab a shot by the Butterfly Garden!



No ride photos of Figment, but it was its usual fever-dream of a ride.

After Figment, it was about 2:00 PM, and we decided that we needed more food! Coming up next- more eating and drinking around the world!



​

 

[Mollydolly334]

I wanted to try the tower and it was unavailable but it ended up working out for me because last night I snagged a dedicated reservation for the exact two nights we need at POLYNESIAN! I am SOOO pumped!

WHAAAT OMG now I’m the jealous one That’s amazing!! What a happy accident!!

 

[emilyhuff]

EMILY HI!!!!! Yay!!! Jake and I are counting California/Disneyland as our "anniversary trip" We should definitely try to meet up and say hi! So fun! Where are you guys staying??

We rented DVC points to stay at the Poly!!!! And absolutely yes to a meet up!!!

 

[VAtink]

YAY!!! We should totally try to meet up and say hi! That's awesome Staying at YC like always??

That would be so fun, we definitely should! We're at the YC the second half of the trip, for the first part we're doing something completely new...the Contemporary!

 

[vamassey1]

Finally, we made it to Epcot at 10:55. It looked like a pretty quiet morning so far!

Wow, look how empty!

This looks so good. I'm so sorry I missed getting it.

We cracked up at my sassy picture, however!

Love it!

However, I think I still slightly prefer the California version.

I think I do too.

But, Jake was really looking forward to this ride, and I wanted to be brave and try it at least once.

You're brave. I rode it one time and have been able to work up the courage to ride it again.

I’ve always had a soft spot for this ride.

Me too. This is a family favorite.

They had done a really cute overlay, with different displays capturing scenes from classic Disney movies.

They did a really good job on these.

 

[piglet1979]

After those strong drinks, we were ready for some food! Of course, we had to start with the Church Lady Deviled Eggs.

My husband would love this. When I make Deviled Eggs at home he eats all the filling that is left.

The pool was closed, but we were really excited to eventually try out the Dig Site!

This is one of our favorite pools.

Grilled Street Corn on the Cob!

I wanted this on our last trip but by the time we got to where they were it was too close to our dinner reservation so I passed. They look so good.

 

[Woth2982]

NOOOOO KATIE that makes me so sad We are literally missing each other by a day!! One of us just needs to extend our trip so we can finally meet

Haha I totally agree!

LOL we're twins! POFQ was our #1 choice but it wasn't available with the BB offer. POR was, but it was only like $400 more to switch to AKL so we said #YOLO

Haha so funny! Great brains think alike right?! My logic is, if the price difference isnt huge, why not stay deluxe? We are a "controversial" Disney family who enjoys resorts almost as much, if not more than the parks sometimes.

The Lemon Meringue Pie was great; a perfect balance of sweet and tart with no cheesecake-y flavor (remember my disdain for cream cheese frosting)?

That sounds sooooo good! Lemon Meringue was my grandmas favorite, and I am the only one who continued her love of lemon.

Sadly, the Cinnamon Roll Bites were trash.

This is so sad because they sound so good!

Grilled Street Corn on the Cob!

This looks yummy too. I think I had it along with impossible ribs. My friend and I challenged each other to try something new that trip.

This is the one ride where I definitely feel like I could take a nice long nap. But not because it’s boring- it’s just so relaxing!

Yes! Especially when it goes backwards back to earth. I always close my eyes and relax at that spot.

We both love this ride; it’s one of my favorite rides at WDW! However, I think I still slightly prefer the California version.

This is Savannah's favorite ride. We went on it three times in April, this and small world (shoot me), and I agree the California version is better. Probably because it isn't as distorted.

 

[Mollydolly334]

We rented DVC points to stay at the Poly!!!! And absolutely yes to a meet up!!!

AHHH love the Poly- you guys will have a fabulous time! And yay awesome!! I'll send you a DM closer to the trip and we can figure out plans

That would be so fun, we definitely should! We're at the YC the second half of the trip, for the first part we're doing something completely new...the Contemporary!

YAY! I'll DM you closer the the trip and we can figure out plans!

So fun!! I love doing split-stays between Monorail and Boardwalk resorts- you really get the best of both worlds! I'm anxious to hear your thoughts on CR- I stayed there in the Garden Wing once back in 2020, but I feel like I need to stay in the Tower at least once in my life!!

Wow, look how empty!



This looks so good. I'm so sorry I missed getting it.



Love it!



I think I do too.



You're brave. I rode it one time and have been able to work up the courage to ride it again.



Me too. This is a family favorite.



They did a really good job on these.

It was funny, it didn't seem to quiet while we were actually at the park, but looking back through photos, it looks so dead!! I think the heat made things seem more crowded than they actually were

My husband would love this. When I make Deviled Eggs at home he eats all the filling that is left.

This is one of our favorite pools.

I wanted this on our last trip but by the time we got to where they were it was too close to our dinner reservation so I passed. They look so good.

You guys have to go to Homecomin' if you haven't already! It's one of my very favorite TS at WDW!

Haha I totally agree!

Haha so funny! Great brains think alike right?! My logic is, if the price difference isnt huge, why not stay deluxe? We are a "controversial" Disney family who enjoys resorts almost as much, if not more than the parks sometimes.

That sounds sooooo good! Lemon Meringue was my grandmas favorite, and I am the only one who continued her love of lemon.

This is so sad because they sound so good!

This looks yummy too. I think I had it along with impossible ribs. My friend and I challenged each other to try something new that trip.

Yes! Especially when it goes backwards back to earth. I always close my eyes and relax at that spot.

This is Savannah's favorite ride. We went on it three times in April, this and small world (shoot me), and I agree the California version is better. Probably because it isn't as distorted.

I am the exact same way- I love the WDW resorts so much and find them much more relaxing than the parks! I also think the people-watching is better at the resorts

I feel like food at F&G was very hit or miss this trip- either totally yummy or gross! Luckily, we had way more "yummy" than "gross"- and we certainly ate our fair share this day!!

 

[Mollydolly334]

Day 2 (The One Where Molly Faces Her Fears, And the Poison Control Center is Called!) - Part 3


Where we last left off, Jake and I were heading back into World Showcase to hit up some more F&G booths. I wanted to have some food in my stomach before our boarding group for Cosmic Rewind got called (it was estimated to be about 4:45 PM), but also give ourselves a nice buffer to digest and relax.

Our first stop was the Florida Fresh booth, where Jake got the Cubano.



Jake really likes Cuban sandwiches, and this was a great one! It was flavorful and had a good amount of pickles and mustard.





Reason #343804938 why Flower and Garden is my favorite Epcot festival. You can’t beat views like this!

Our next stop was Joffrey’s, where I got an Iced Berry Chai Latte to sip on.



Then, I ran over to Trowel and Trellis to get an order of the Soy-Glazed Sticky Ribs!



It’s not an Epcot festival if you don’t eat food off of a trash can at least once! Also AHHHHH my fork is touching the trash can, I can’t unsee it now.

The Iced Berry Chai Latte was DELISH! I wish they had it year-round! The blueberry flavor was strong and it was nice and light in the heat, but still sweet and gave you a caffeine kick. The ribs were also surprisingly tender and moist with great savory flavor. After a bad experience with ribs in Honolulu back in 2022, Jake has basically sworn off all ribs, so I got to have these to myself. The peanut/jalapeno mixture on top added a great crunch and kick!

We saw a photopass CM just around the corner, so we decided to get some Epcot shots!





It was soooo windy in this area- you can tell by my crazy hair!







The CM was adorable and very enthusiastic; he kept referring to us as “my friends.” He probably said it like 20 times! As we walked away, I whispered under my breath to Jake…



We were cracking up. Fans of South Park will understand!

Jake was craving another beer, so we headed over to England next.







He grabbed a Bombardier Amber Draft, and we strolled through the cute little streets. We LOVED England in WS so much. Everything was so cute and quaint. It made us want to visit the real England!!





I spotted these crew necks everywhere around WDW, and I regretfully did not purchase one I couldn’t decide between Piglet and Eeyore!

Our next stop was France. There were two food items that we had been dying to try! We split up; Jake got in line for the Fleur De Lys booth, while I got in line for L’Artisan Des Glaces! It really did not feel too crowded in Epcot today at all. The France booth was the longest line for a F&G booth we had seen, and even then, the line only took about 10 minutes. We had our treats in no time!

Jake decided on the Pulled Duck Confit with Orange Sauce and Garlic-Rosemary Mashed Potatoes!



And I went with the Chocolate Macaron Ice Cream Sandwich from L’Artisan Des Glaces!



I had tried the seasonal Macaron Ice Cream Sandwich before in Fall 2021 (it was Pumpkin Almond- YUM!), but never the chocolate. The chocolate one was great! Super rich, fudgy, and chewy! I didn’t try any of Jake’s duck (I prefer my ducks cute and quacking, thank you very much). He stated that he was really nervous when he first got the portion, because it looked NASTY! But, he said that it actually tasted very good and he was pleasantly surprised, especially with it being theme park duck.





France and England are tied with being our favorite WS country! It especially looks so fancy after the big Ratatouille refurbishment!

We passed through Japan and took some quick pictures, vowing to return after our final F&G treat of the afternoon.







Jake and I had room for one more food item to split, so we headed towards America for one last snack until Cosmic Rewind!



We grabbed a Bananas Foster Bread Pudding to share (and Jake got a beer flight).





I normally despise beer, but Jake encouraged me to try the Fruit Punch Ale. Surprisingly, I actually enjoyed it; it wasn’t too sweet and very refreshing in the heat!! I made Jake take a picture to document me drinking (and enjoying) beer!



The bread pudding was FANTASTIC. They were generous with the caramel sauce and the banana foster flavor was spot on (both Jake and I are huge suckers for anything banana flavored). This was Jake’s favorite food item of the day!

It was starting to get realllly toasty at this point in the day. We made a pit stop at Mitsukoshi in Japan before looping back around WS. I grabbed some lychee mochi to snack on later in the trip!



Then, we kind of breezed through Germany, looking for a shaded area to rest our feet, since we still had about an hour before our boarding group was due to get called. I love the Germany pavilion around Christmas, it’s so festive!





I knew that Oliver would LOVE this train station, so I vowed to show him this later in the week!

We finally found our shaded refuge in China!



We wandered around the gift shop for a bit, then took a seat at some of the benches inside the Temple of Heaven area. This was an OASIS; it felt so good to be inside in the AC and resting our feet. Jake and I took some much-needed downtime and just chilled, chatted, and people-watched. We also saw Mulan have some cute interactions with guests! We really wanted to go in and watch the Reflections of China movie, but it was standing-room only with no seating?? Weird??

Jake was starting to hit a wall; we were both getting really tired! So, we decided that we would skip the fireworks tonight and head back to CSR earlier to enjoy the pool. That sounded heavenly in this heat!

We chilled in China (hehe) for about 25 minutes. Then, at 4:20 (20 minutes early), our boarding group for Cosmic Rewind was called!!

EEEK! It was time! Would I love it? Or would I end up getting sick and hating my life? You’ll find out in the next update!!



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[skysmom99]

I spotted these crew necks everywhere around WDW, and I regretfully did not purchase one I couldn’t decide between Piglet and Eeyore!

I want one of those!!!!! I hope they still have them when I go!

 

[Mollydolly334]

I want one of those!!!!! I hope they still have them when I go!

They were SOOOO cute!! They also had a dark green one with Pooh and a navy blue one with Tigger Upon further inspection, it looks like they have them for sale on disneystore.com!! I might need to make a purchase

 

[Mollydolly334]

Mini Real-Life Update + TR Update!


Hi everyone! Thought I’d share a quick RL update since exciting things are happening around here!

First of all- JAKE AND I ARE OFFICIALLY GOING TO OOGIE BOOGIE BASH!!



I am SO excited!! I was really trying to not get my hopes up, since I had heard horror stories about how cutthroat and crazy the ticket-buying process was for this. But, one of my good DISfriends, @Lesley Wake helped us out and I was able to snag these tickets today! THANK YOU, LESLEY!!

I only had to wait in the virtual queue for about a half hour- not bad at all! We are going to OBB on Tuesday, October 29th. Jake and I are so pumped to check out the Halloween festivities on both coasts (we are also doing MNSSHP on September 27th)!!

Any ideas for a couple’s costume for us??? I think we’ll do a big family costume for MNSSHP, but we’re stuck on what to wear for OBB!



Think I can convince Jake to squeeze into a pair of tights?

In other news, one week from today, Jake and I leave for a long weekend vacation to Colorado!



We will be gone from July 3-7, staying for 3 nights in Estes Park and 1 night in Vail. We booked this trip right before leaving for WDW back in May, and it came up so fast!! Jake has been to Colorado a couple times before, but never Estes Park or Vail. I went on a Colorado trip back when I was 7 and visited Estes Park, but I don’t remember a thing! So, I’m considering this my first time.



Overall, our plans for this trip are VERY chill. No need to make ADRs or anything We rented a Jeep Wrangler, and we’re so excited to drive all around Colorado in our sweet ride!

We totally dropped the ball and forgot to get passes to Rocky Mountain National Park and Bear Lake ahead of time (they use a reservation system in the summer months, and tickets drop the month before)! D’oh! But, another set of passes drop 24 hours in advance, so we’re hoping to snag ourselves a pass then. These are our (estimated) plans- but we’re really planning on being spontaneous and flexible this trip!

July 3rd- Work all day, flight out of Milwaukee leaves at 8:00 PM, landing in Denver at 9:45 PM. Grab a super late dinner in Denver, drive to our hotel in Estes Park and check in.
July 4th- Spend the holiday exploring Estes Park! I think they have a fireworks show that night too
July 5th- Morning/afternoon at Rocky Mountain National Park (fingers crossed), evening and dinner in Boulder.
July 6th- Check out of our hotel in Estes Park, drive to Vail and check into our hotel in Vail. Spend the day in Vail and Lionshead Villages!
July 7th- Check out of our hotel, spend the day exploring Red Rocks Amphitheatre and Golden. Explore the Denver area if time allows, flight to Milwaukee leaves Denver at 6:00 PM.

I know that a couple of you (@SimplyGoofy and @ambula603 ) commented with some recommendations on my PTR (thank you!). If anyone else has any CO recommendations or tips, I would GREATLY appreciate it! We feel a little out of our element traveling to a place that’s non-Disney related.

Onto the TR update!

Day 2 (The One Where Molly Faces Her Fears, And the Poison Control Center is Called!) - Part 4

Well, friends, it was the moment I had been anxiously waiting for. Our boarding group for Cosmic Rewind finally got called!

This was where I started to get pretty quiet. I’m not going to re-hash it over here, but I posted a long and annoying post on my PTR basically just word-vomiting all of my insecurities about Cosmic Rewind. I was mostly worried about #1. Getting motion sickness and potentially ruining my first full day at Disney World, but also a bit worried about #2. Seeing someone ELSE get motion sickness and being grossed out/anxious because of this. I was considering taking some preventative medicine, but I couldn’t find any Bonine OTC, and I don’t like how this kind of medicine can make you drowsy. So, I was just going to wing it!

Basically, the only thing keeping me sane and somewhat excited for riding was trying to guess which song we were going to get. For the entire time leading up to the trip, Jake and I had been really hoping to get “September” by Earth, Wind, and Fire for this ride. “September” is a very special song for Jake and I! Our rehearsal/rehearsal dinner was on September 21st, 2023, and we were singing this song all night long. (“Do you remember? The 21st night of September?”)



Throwback picture to our rehearsal dinner

Then, on our wedding night, “September” was the first song that the DJ played when he opened up the dance floor. So, we were really hoping for that pixie dust today!

We got in line at 4:35. I was NERVOUS!



It didn’t help that, even with the virtual queue, this line is long, with a VERY unnecessarily long pre-show. Both Jake and I didn’t like the pre-show; it seemed forced and out of place. I had mentioned before that we are not fans of the Guardians of the Galaxy movies (or any movies the Marvel franchise, rather). There was just wayyy too much jargon and over-explanation of this ride. “WE HAVE TO ENABLE THE TESSERACT TO ESCAPE THE HYDRO-SHIELD TO STOP EMPEROR GALAXON FROM CAPTURING THE NOVA-RING.” Why can’t it just be a fun, music-filled ride through space? The only way that they can save this pre-show is to bring in Patrick Warburton.

We were on-ride by 5:15! I made sure to listen to advice given to me, and sit on the left side of the car. We also got a middle row, which I was grateful about!

As the ride was building up, I could start to feel my nerves melt away. We sat in the dark for a moment, when I heard Chris Pratt say, “Wait, I think we’re jumping back…”

Then, Jake and I heard the beautiful opening chords of “September” start.



I WISH I could have filmed our reaction. We both just screamed at the top of our lungs and stared at each other maniacally like this...



It was honestly one of my Top 5 magical moments on a Disney trip ever. I almost cried!! We were so happy to get “our song!”

As for the ride… I *think* I liked it? It was INTENSE. Wayyy more intense than I was anticipating! As a coaster, I absolutely loved it! The backward launch was breathtaking, and I loved the speed and smoothness of the coaster. The spins took me off guard! I wasn’t expecting too much spinning, but it reminded me of a Tilt-A-Whirl at times and the G’s were strong! I only wish that it was just a classic coaster with no screens utilized.

I had made the decision to look down at my ride restraints the entire time so I could “spot” where I was during the ride and not lose perception. And, that was a 10/10 decision. Every time I tried to look around, I would get disoriented and need to put my head back down in order to not get dizzy. Also, I cemented my eyes shut during the double-helix around the moon at the end. I had heard WAY too many reports of that particular moment causing people trouble.

I didn’t feel one ounce of nausea! But, I definitely felt “sea legs” while getting off the ride. Almost like when you’ve been running on the treadmill for a long time, then you get off and you feel like you’re moving faster than you really are? Jake absolutely loved this ride, I could hear him hooping and hollering the entire time next to me!

So, my verdict? I loved the movement and the music, but sadly, the screens make it hard for me! I’m SO glad I tried it once, but it’s not a ride I would need to do over and over again! Unfortunately, keeping your head down and focusing on not getting dizzy kind of ruins the atmosphere of a ride.

Sadly, we didn’t get our ride photo This was a common theme throughout the trip with the “automatically linked” photos… I’m not sure if it was my MagicBand or my phone that caused me trouble?

We were both on Cloud 9 after that ride. We had a rush of adrenaline and weren’t quite ready to leave Epcot yet! I was proud of myself for being brave, and I was excited, because I could finally have a couple adult beverages. I had been avoiding alcohol up until that point to make sure I didn’t make myself dizzier than I needed to be!

We got some PhotoPass pictures to commemorate our ride!







Afterwards, we jumped in the single-rider line at Test Track. We were on it in a jiffy and got the same car!



Then, we took a quick stop at Creations to get me a new phone charger cord to connect to my Fuel Rod. Since I had gotten a new phone the week prior, my old Fuel Rod cord didn’t connect to my new phone, and my battery was at like 2%!

Finally, to end the night, we decided to take a loop around World Showcase and get a couple more snacks/drinks from Flower & Garden to end the night.

We saw an adorable Mama duck and her ducklings on the way



My first stop was the beer cart in England that we had visited earlier. I had seen a drink on the menu that sounded glorious in this heat! Meanwhile, Jake stopped at Refreshment Port to get us a snack to share. I found us a great table next to Rose and Crown that was right on the water, and we dug into our snack!



To drink, I ordered the Scottish Thistle from the UK beer cart. This was Ford’s Gin with lemon and blackcurrant-cucumber syrup. This was WONDERFUL and probably now one of my favorite alcoholic drinks at Epcot. The blackberry flavor was nice and sweet, but the cucumber and gin made it cool and refreshing. It tasted so good, I chugged it down quickly!



To eat, Jake and I shared the Plant-Based Buffalo Chicken Tender Poutine from Refreshment Port. Once again, we were really impressed with the plant-based options from Flower and Garden Festival this year. This was loaded with plant-based chicken and sauce (they did not skimp), and the “chicken” was very juicy and tender! Jake and I are both big buffalo chicken fans, and this hit the spot.

I was starting to get a little full, but I wanted to check a couple more items off my list. In hindsight, I probably should have stopped here, but we’re on vacation, so YOLO.

Our next stop was Morocco. This (along with the PB&J soft serve) was my most highly-anticipated item of the day. I got the Mediterranean Flatbread!



OMG. This was absolutely delicious. SO flavorful and fresh! I love greek salads (the Med Salad from Noodles & Company is one of my go-to fast food meals), and this was like greek salad and pizza had a baby. The kalamata olives and artichokes gave it a nice saltiness and the feta cheese was decadent! I wish they had this at Epcot year-round! Also- this thing was BIG. Definitely more of a meal than a snack… you get a lot of bang for your buck! I had to admit defeat around ⅔ of the way through it. Overall, this was my favorite food item at Flower and Garden Festival this year.

Jake was thinking about getting some food at the Japan booth, but nothing was tripping his trigger. I grabbed a Tokyo Sunset from Garden House in Japan. This came at the recommendation of @Woth2982 on my PTR and I was very excited to try this drink!



I sent her a picture as evidence This was very refreshing! You could really taste the banana liquor- it tasted a lot like the Banana Cabana drink that they have at the pool bars around WDW! It wasn’t too strong and very sweet, which is always a huge plus for me. Great recommendation, Katie!

Jake and I speed-walked over to Italy to get one last treat. We decided on the Chocolate Cannoli with Peanut Butter Ricotta Filling from Primavera Kitchen!



This was good! I liked the crunchy outer shell of semi-sweet chocolate, and the filling wasn’t too cheesecake-y and definitely had a strong peanut butter flavor. I don’t really remember much about it, except being realllly full at this point. But, chocolate and peanut butter can never be wrong

We were both ready to head back to CSR, so we headed back to Future World and bid goodbye to Epcot for the night!



We didn’t see much of Mexico today! I knew that I would be eating at San Angel Inn later in the week, but I felt bad that Jake didn’t get to see it.









Another picturesque night in The World! Bye Epcot!

We were out of the park by 7:25 PM, and back by CSR at 7:50.



Check out that crazy sunset!

We ran back to the room to change into our swimsuits. We were jonesing for the pool! Then, we took a peek in Panchito’s, where we browsed the souvenirs and Jake bought a bottle of water. Before heading over to the Dig Site, I also stopped by El Mercado to buy a refillable mug. Since I would be at WDW for so long this trip, I knew I’d get good use out of it! I decided on orange this time; I always take advantage every time there is a new color choice!



I filled my mug up with Cherry Coke, and we decided to FaceTime Haley/Ryan/Nana on our walk to the pool. Nana (my mom) had driven from Milwaukee to Chicago this morning and was staying the night at Haley and Ryan’s house to help them pack/prepare; together they would fly out to WDW tomorrow. It was actually Ryan’s 35th birthday today! So, we immediately wished him a happy birthday. We asked everyone how their day was going and if they were READY FOR WDW TOMORROW!

Haley responded, “Oh, it’s fine, except for the minor issue that Evie swallowed a penny this afternoon.”



WHAT?? Jake and I were speechless. Literally, neither of us spoke for like, a minute. Haley said that she had spilled some change out of her purse during the chaos of packing, and that she thought she cleaned it all up and didn’t really think much about it (although she remembered seeing Evie holding a penny at one point).

Then, later in the day, Evie had approached her and said “I have moneys on my tongue.” Haley asked, “Where is the money? Did you swallow it?” and Evie said “Yep.” Haley searched everywhere for a missing coin, and Evie’s not really at the developmental age of lying yet, so we’re taking her statement as the truth. They immediately called Poison Control Center, and they didn’t seem concerned at all, which was a huge relief. Their advice was to bring rubber gloves on our trip and, for the next two weeks or so… um… check the evidence…



Of course, this made Jake and I burst out laughing. This kid has seriously bad timing. Out of all days to swallow a coin, she chooses the day before leaving on a weeklong WDW vacation?? Needless to say, that kind of dampened their Day Zero!!

We wished them smoother travels moving forward, and my mom ensured that she’d keep us posted on their flight tomorrow morning. We ended up not seeing any evidence of a coin during the trip, and haven’t seen any signs since?? So maybe it was a fib after all??

Thoughts of pennies and poop swirling in our heads ,we finally headed to the pool!



Those thoughts quickly vanished when we saw the mass of humanity awaiting us…

CHEERLEADERS. EVERYWHERE.

Ugh. It made perfect sense! We didn’t see them at the parks all day today, but what better way to cool off after grueling cheer practice than in the pool? There were hundreds of girls ages 8-14 swarming the pool, volleyball courts, playground, hot tubs… absolutely everywhere! Suddenly, the pool didn’t sound too appealing anymore.





It doesn’t look too crowded in this pic, but believe me, it was!

On top of this, the pool was FREEZING! We were so hot at Epcot earlier, but the bus ride and change in pace cooled us down immensely! And, there was no way we were fitting in the hot tub tonight with all the crowds. So, we took a 10-minute dip before calling it quits at 8:45.

Since we were now shivering from the cold pool, I decided that hot chocolate in my new resort mug sounded PERFECT!



Sipping on this brought back some sweet memories. When my mom and I first started going on mother-daughter WDW trips, we would always get hot chocolate in our resort mugs and watch a Lifetime movie in the room to end the night. I was really excited to see her tomorrow!

We were back in the room by 9:15, and it felt really nice to take warm showers and get settled in. Jake had some of his Valentina’s Cake from Gideon’s. I’m not a big fan of red velvet cake, but I took a bite (for research purposes ).

I have to say- neither of us liked this cake!! It probably would have tasted better fresh, but once again, the buttercream (cookies and cream flavored this time) was NOT good. I couldn’t put my finger on it; I think it was just way too cloyingly sweet without any other distinct flavor. Sadly, most of this went in the garbage I was super surprised, because I loved their PB&J cake last year and had plans to get another cake slice later in the week! This definitely made me pause on that for a second.

I munched on some more Gideon’s cookies and the rest of my peanut butter buttercream, and they paired fabulously with my hot chocolate! There was absolutely NOTHING on TV (an issue that Jake and I have had with Disney resorts in the past), so we watched the “Tangled” bedtime story.



I took a picture of the “Cars” bedtime story to make sure Ollie saw this later in the week!

Jake and I had an earlier night and went to bed at 10:40 PM. We LOVED our solo park adventures today, but we were super excited for Haley, Ryan, Nana, and the kids to arrive tomorrow!



​

 

[vamassey1]

Wow what a great Epcot day! I'm so proud of you for riding GOTG. I did it once and haven't worked up the nerve to do it again. It I ever do ride again I would really love to get September. This is a family favorite song. It's great that it means so much to you and Jake.

I'm impressed with all the great food and drinks you got too. Sorry the Cheerleaders interrupted you nighttime plans. They were coming in as our trip was coming to an end.