Jennifoofoo
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Aug 19, 1999
- Messages
- 72
My two year old and I visited my parents for a couple of weeks in August 2002 when they relocated to Jacksonville. So we planned a winter escape in Jan/Feb, knowing we'd visit WDW at some point in the trip. Here's a little recap of our Disney adventures!
me 33 year old Disney fan
DS 2 year old Disney fan in training
DM fifty something Mom willing to tour at my lead
DH 35 year old Disney enabler
We flew into MCO rather than JAX b/c my DH would be meeting us in FL and then we'd be visiting his parents on the west coast. My parents agreed to pick us up at MCO. We arrived a bit early and met my parents at baggage claim. My Mom and I had made arrangements to visit Disney for a couple of nights when my DH was flying down in two weeks. After lots of excited hugs and kisses when my DS saw Pop Pop and Gamma, not Mama anymore, we headed out of the airport. As my Dad was paying the toll, I heard him ask which way to Disney World! They figured that since we had a 2 hour drive home, that we might as well eat first and what better place than Disney! Since we had no dining arrangements, we decided to eat at the RFC at AK. We arrived around 3:30 and were seated right away. We had a wonderful meal and my DS had fun showing Pop Pop all of the animals. It actually worked out great b/c DS had been sitting in the plane for 2.5 hours and the atmosphere of the restaurant gave him the chance to get the wiggles out! When we finished up, AK was closing shortly so we strolled through the few shops on the way out and headed to JAX. What an unexpectedly great start to a Florida trip!
Skip to two weeks later....
Had a wonderful time in JAX visiting St. Augustine, the outlets, the JAX zoo etc.
My Mom and I along with DS headed to Disney World for two days. My DH was flying into MCO on 1/31, so we figured that we'd go on Thurs. 1/30 and spend a couple of days at Disney before picking him up at the airport the evening of the 31st.
We left JAX around 8 am and pulled up to the Beach Club by 10:20. There was no line at check in but, our room was not ready yet. So we stored our luggage and headed to MGM! We arrived in time to catch Playhouse Disney, a must for the little guy. Afterwards, we headed to the next showing of B & B. We grabbed some fruit and drinks from the stand outside the theatre and enjoyed a wonderful show. My DS has really gotten into watching the video and he loves the Beast. I wish I could put into words the expression of awe and excitement in his face while he watched the entire performance. He was truly mesmerized! He squealed whenever the Beast came onto the stage and clapped his hands with the audience. Afer the show, our only other must see was the parade, so we headed toward Muppets 3-D. We enjoyed the show and spent some time in the Muppet store afterwards. We checked on Al's Toy Barn, but Buzz and Woody were taking a break. We did luck into about 5-6 Green Army Men walking out from backstage to a meet and greet area. They all came up to my son when they saw that he wanted to first, high 5 and then high 10 them! We also stumbled upon a very playful Chip and Dale.
Can't remember where we grabbed a bite to eat for lunch, but then we headed over to the Great Movie Ride. Along the way, we saw that Mike and Sulley were taking pictures. My DS was in heaven and gave both of them the biggest hug in the world! Then, onto the GMR. Since I heard it is closing in the future, I'm glad we got to ride it on our trip. We had the gangster side and enjoyed it. Upon exiting, we noticed that the crowds were lined up for the parade. We found a nice spot along Sunset Blvd. and enjoyed the parade. I called for our room, and it still wasn't ready. She asked if I was waiting for someting specific and I said just non-smoking, she then gave us our room # and it was the perfect location. Second floor, two doors down from the elevator, overlooking a lovely garden area. We could literally walk up the stairs from the lobby and be in our room within twenty steps!!!! Only wish we were staying longer to enjoy it! We headed back to our room to get our luggage and freshen up. We relaxed for a bit. We had plans to eat at O'Hana's that night. So we boarded a bus to the MK and then monorailed over to the Polynesian. We asked for a fireworks view and with a few minutes had a great table overlooking the castle! The food was awesome! My DS enjoyed the hula hoops but didn't do the coconut races, maybe next time. We saved room for dessert. It was a chocolate mousse and it was to die for. We should have ordered three b/c my two year old ate most of mine! They piped the music in for the fireworks and we enjoyed watching it from this view. This restaurant is a must-do again! We were full but not tired, so we decided to monorail over to Epcot.
We did Spaceship Earth and went through Mousegears. We then headed toward World Showcase. We toured a few countries and noticed that DS had finally fallen asleep in the stroller. It gave my Mom and I time to check out some of the shops. We decided to find a spot to catch Illuminations. We decided on the bridge between France and England. We watched the wonderful show and my DS woke up just in time and then strolled back to the Beach Club. We shopped a bit and then headed to the room. Little guy fell right to sleep while my Mom and I enjoyed the evening sitting on the balcony.
The next morning we checked out, we were staying the day at Disney but going to the airport Embassy Suites, to meet my DH flying in that night. We stored our luggage and went to breakfast at the Cape May Buffet. It was wonderful as usual. But, here is where I met my first and only DISer ever! I noticed a lady at the next booth with a lime green ribbon on her bag. I wasn't sure if I should say anything, but I got up the courage and asked if her lime green ribbon meant anything. She said yes and I met, candlemaker, I think! It was nice to finally see a green ribbon out there! We wished eachother a nice day and then headed over to the MK. We walked through the YC first. I wanted to say hello to Captain Bob. He had brought our DS a balloon, card and stuffed animal for his birthday back in November and said hello to him every time we passed through the lobby on our fall trip. Sure enough, Captain Bob was there! We then caught the YC bus to MK. It was a good idea anyway b/c the bus picks up at the YC before the BC and after the BC, it was standing room only!
We enter the MK and I decided to check the wait at the Barber shop. My DS had gotten his first haircut there when he was one and they do such a wonderful job I figured that let's go back. Well, they weren't busy so DS played with a Buzz toy and a light up Mr. Potato head all while getting his hair cut! Then, we headed to Dumbo. While walking up to Dumbo I hear someone calling my name. I look up and it's my friend and her family! I knew they were coming down on vacation yesterday, but we didn't know if we'd have time to meet up! They had just gotten off Dumbo with their son, who is my DS's friend and were getting a coffee! What a small world after all! After the boys gave eachother big hugs and the parents took pictures of the little ones together at Disney, we headed to Dumbo and they headed to the Carousel. It was sooo great to run into them like that. I thought maybe that we'd run into eachother again throughout the day, but we didn't. We have a couple of great pictures of the boys together though.
We had grabbed a fastpass for Pooh before the Dumbo ride and then went on Pooh. Then, we grabbed a fp for Peter Pan and then rode IASW, Snow White and the Carousel. Then we did Peter Pan and Buzz. There weren't any lines anywhere and we did everything in Fantasyland that we wanted to within a couple of hours. Then, we headed to Goofy's Barnstormer. My Mom chickened out but DS and I got on. I held onto him as tight as possible. Let me tell you, a rollercoaster never felt so fast in my life when you are on one with your two year old! His mouth was wide open the entire ride I wasn't sure if he liked it. But, when we stopped, he said, "More Mommy, more!" Since Grandma didn't ride we only rode once and then headed to the play area. DS ran around a while and then we got pictures with a ton of characters. Baloo, Pinocchio, the Penguins from Mary Poppins, Brer Fox and a few others. We decided to then grab lunch at Pinocchio's Village Haus. Then, we headed over to Adventureland.
We wanted to do Pirates, but it was having technical difficulties. We rode Aladdin's Magic Carpets and then grabbed some ice cream. We were getting hot, so we decided to head back to the BC to go swimming. We changed into our bathing suits, which we had taken with us and enjoyed a few hours at the pool. DS loves the sand bottom pool and crawled and climbed all over the place! My Mom and I grabbed a couple of drinks and nachos and relaxed while playing with the little one. We got changed and decided to hit Epcot.
My DS started his 2nd ever Kidcot mask. We made it to Italy, where we had a PS. The food was wonderful, but unfortunately, my DS was not! With no nap that day, he was having one of his very rare meltdowns. We ate as quickly as possible and then left. Unfortunately, the waitstaff didn't seem very "kid friendly" that night. As we excited, TOD was getting ready to begin. A very nice CM at the Italy cart started to talk to my DS. He was flirting back with her and when the parade started, she asked if she could hold him. Since I was right there, I said okay. Well, she held him and almost every puppet and dream catcher came over to him! He was soooo excited. We listen to the TON CD in the car all the time and "Wayla, Wayla" is his favorite. I'm so glad we made time for the parade since it is now discontinued. It was a very special "magical moment" for us. We walked around a bit, but then decided that we had fit a lot into the two days and walked back to the BC. One more tour through the giftshop, got the luggage from storage and the car from the valet. We then headed to the Embassy Suites where my DH would be meeting us in an hour.
Flash forward to Monday afternoon.....
DH, DS and I are driving from my parents' house in JAX to my DH's parents' house north of Tampa. DS falls asleep in the car and wakes up around 1 pm. Time for lunch, wait where are we? One exit away from Disney? You guessed it, we stopped at Downtown Disney for an extended lunch!! This is Disney stop #3 for me and DS so far!!!! It was a beautiful, warm day. We had a quick bite to eat at Wolfgang Puck Express, by far the best pizza we've ever had on Disney property! Then, we walked around a few shops, got DS his 2nd Mr. Potato head figure, this time I didn't forget the ears! Then, we let DS play in the playground, got some popcorn, ice cream etc. We had a wonderful few hours and really didn't want to leave. But, the purpose of this trip wasn't Disney, sigh, it's to visit family, so off we go! It was a wonderful, spur of the moment stop and it really was one of the best times we've ever had!
Fast forward to Friday afternoon...
After spending three days in a retirement town, DH and I are ready to leave! We had a nice time but when you ask what there is to do and they say "Walk around Walmart with the rest of the seniors," it's time to go. We tried to see if we could get a discounted room at the YC/BC, Boardwalk etc. No discounts; then we called the Downtown Disney hotels, there is availability. But wait, I read that you can go on Priceline and maybe get the Dolphin for $75. So we crossed our fingers and BINGO, WDW Dolphin for $75 for Saturday night! Disney trip #4 within this trip!
We leave DH's parents around 10:30 Saturday morning and check into the Dolphin around 1pm. The room is ready. I love the lobby and DS is loving the fountain and the seahorses he can see on the chandeliers. We get a 7th floor room overlooking the little pond and can see the Sorcerer's Hat at MGM. Unfortunatley, it is rainy and cold today! We decided to grab lunch on the Boardwalk at ESPN. It's good but the service was tremendously slow! Lunch took over two hours! With a two year old, that is forever! We leave and decide to head back to the room to put more layers on. Then, we head to MK. We arrive and it's crowded, I know, it's Saturday, but today was all about what our DS wanted. We head right to Buzz and it's packed. We grab fastpasses and then head to IASW. We crisscross over to do Pirates, which we missed earlier on in the trip and then we ran into Hook and Smee. DS was loving it! He loves to watch Peter Pan and he even says "Peter Pan" like Hook says it in the movie. By now it 's almost 6pm and I had lucked out with getting a last minute PS for Tony's. But, if we eat at Tony's, we'll miss our Buzz fp time. Well, when a two year old needs to eat..... We hand a couple with a 3 year old little girl our fastpasses and have a very fast meal at Tony's. The food as always is delicious and huge! All three of us could have probably shared the spaghetti and meatball! We head out and check out the Buzz line, it's only 15 minutes, so we get on. Then we head past Peter Pan, the line is 50 minutes, no way! DS will want to be held the whole time and we just can't carry his 30 pounds that long. We do IASW again and when we finish, the Peter Pan line is down to twenty minutes! We ride that and then we get a spot on the bridge to Tomorrowland to watch Tinkerbell's flight. We start chatting with a couple on their honeymoon. They got married at Disney just a few days ago! We watch the fireworks, DS has fallen asleep and misses them. We catch the bus back to the Dolphin and fall right to sleep exhausted. Tomorrow we fly home! Back to reality and about 4 days of snow in a row.
Thanks for reading!
me 33 year old Disney fan
DS 2 year old Disney fan in training
DM fifty something Mom willing to tour at my lead
DH 35 year old Disney enabler
We flew into MCO rather than JAX b/c my DH would be meeting us in FL and then we'd be visiting his parents on the west coast. My parents agreed to pick us up at MCO. We arrived a bit early and met my parents at baggage claim. My Mom and I had made arrangements to visit Disney for a couple of nights when my DH was flying down in two weeks. After lots of excited hugs and kisses when my DS saw Pop Pop and Gamma, not Mama anymore, we headed out of the airport. As my Dad was paying the toll, I heard him ask which way to Disney World! They figured that since we had a 2 hour drive home, that we might as well eat first and what better place than Disney! Since we had no dining arrangements, we decided to eat at the RFC at AK. We arrived around 3:30 and were seated right away. We had a wonderful meal and my DS had fun showing Pop Pop all of the animals. It actually worked out great b/c DS had been sitting in the plane for 2.5 hours and the atmosphere of the restaurant gave him the chance to get the wiggles out! When we finished up, AK was closing shortly so we strolled through the few shops on the way out and headed to JAX. What an unexpectedly great start to a Florida trip!
Skip to two weeks later....
Had a wonderful time in JAX visiting St. Augustine, the outlets, the JAX zoo etc.
My Mom and I along with DS headed to Disney World for two days. My DH was flying into MCO on 1/31, so we figured that we'd go on Thurs. 1/30 and spend a couple of days at Disney before picking him up at the airport the evening of the 31st.
We left JAX around 8 am and pulled up to the Beach Club by 10:20. There was no line at check in but, our room was not ready yet. So we stored our luggage and headed to MGM! We arrived in time to catch Playhouse Disney, a must for the little guy. Afterwards, we headed to the next showing of B & B. We grabbed some fruit and drinks from the stand outside the theatre and enjoyed a wonderful show. My DS has really gotten into watching the video and he loves the Beast. I wish I could put into words the expression of awe and excitement in his face while he watched the entire performance. He was truly mesmerized! He squealed whenever the Beast came onto the stage and clapped his hands with the audience. Afer the show, our only other must see was the parade, so we headed toward Muppets 3-D. We enjoyed the show and spent some time in the Muppet store afterwards. We checked on Al's Toy Barn, but Buzz and Woody were taking a break. We did luck into about 5-6 Green Army Men walking out from backstage to a meet and greet area. They all came up to my son when they saw that he wanted to first, high 5 and then high 10 them! We also stumbled upon a very playful Chip and Dale.
Can't remember where we grabbed a bite to eat for lunch, but then we headed over to the Great Movie Ride. Along the way, we saw that Mike and Sulley were taking pictures. My DS was in heaven and gave both of them the biggest hug in the world! Then, onto the GMR. Since I heard it is closing in the future, I'm glad we got to ride it on our trip. We had the gangster side and enjoyed it. Upon exiting, we noticed that the crowds were lined up for the parade. We found a nice spot along Sunset Blvd. and enjoyed the parade. I called for our room, and it still wasn't ready. She asked if I was waiting for someting specific and I said just non-smoking, she then gave us our room # and it was the perfect location. Second floor, two doors down from the elevator, overlooking a lovely garden area. We could literally walk up the stairs from the lobby and be in our room within twenty steps!!!! Only wish we were staying longer to enjoy it! We headed back to our room to get our luggage and freshen up. We relaxed for a bit. We had plans to eat at O'Hana's that night. So we boarded a bus to the MK and then monorailed over to the Polynesian. We asked for a fireworks view and with a few minutes had a great table overlooking the castle! The food was awesome! My DS enjoyed the hula hoops but didn't do the coconut races, maybe next time. We saved room for dessert. It was a chocolate mousse and it was to die for. We should have ordered three b/c my two year old ate most of mine! They piped the music in for the fireworks and we enjoyed watching it from this view. This restaurant is a must-do again! We were full but not tired, so we decided to monorail over to Epcot.
We did Spaceship Earth and went through Mousegears. We then headed toward World Showcase. We toured a few countries and noticed that DS had finally fallen asleep in the stroller. It gave my Mom and I time to check out some of the shops. We decided to find a spot to catch Illuminations. We decided on the bridge between France and England. We watched the wonderful show and my DS woke up just in time and then strolled back to the Beach Club. We shopped a bit and then headed to the room. Little guy fell right to sleep while my Mom and I enjoyed the evening sitting on the balcony.
The next morning we checked out, we were staying the day at Disney but going to the airport Embassy Suites, to meet my DH flying in that night. We stored our luggage and went to breakfast at the Cape May Buffet. It was wonderful as usual. But, here is where I met my first and only DISer ever! I noticed a lady at the next booth with a lime green ribbon on her bag. I wasn't sure if I should say anything, but I got up the courage and asked if her lime green ribbon meant anything. She said yes and I met, candlemaker, I think! It was nice to finally see a green ribbon out there! We wished eachother a nice day and then headed over to the MK. We walked through the YC first. I wanted to say hello to Captain Bob. He had brought our DS a balloon, card and stuffed animal for his birthday back in November and said hello to him every time we passed through the lobby on our fall trip. Sure enough, Captain Bob was there! We then caught the YC bus to MK. It was a good idea anyway b/c the bus picks up at the YC before the BC and after the BC, it was standing room only!
We enter the MK and I decided to check the wait at the Barber shop. My DS had gotten his first haircut there when he was one and they do such a wonderful job I figured that let's go back. Well, they weren't busy so DS played with a Buzz toy and a light up Mr. Potato head all while getting his hair cut! Then, we headed to Dumbo. While walking up to Dumbo I hear someone calling my name. I look up and it's my friend and her family! I knew they were coming down on vacation yesterday, but we didn't know if we'd have time to meet up! They had just gotten off Dumbo with their son, who is my DS's friend and were getting a coffee! What a small world after all! After the boys gave eachother big hugs and the parents took pictures of the little ones together at Disney, we headed to Dumbo and they headed to the Carousel. It was sooo great to run into them like that. I thought maybe that we'd run into eachother again throughout the day, but we didn't. We have a couple of great pictures of the boys together though.
We had grabbed a fastpass for Pooh before the Dumbo ride and then went on Pooh. Then, we grabbed a fp for Peter Pan and then rode IASW, Snow White and the Carousel. Then we did Peter Pan and Buzz. There weren't any lines anywhere and we did everything in Fantasyland that we wanted to within a couple of hours. Then, we headed to Goofy's Barnstormer. My Mom chickened out but DS and I got on. I held onto him as tight as possible. Let me tell you, a rollercoaster never felt so fast in my life when you are on one with your two year old! His mouth was wide open the entire ride I wasn't sure if he liked it. But, when we stopped, he said, "More Mommy, more!" Since Grandma didn't ride we only rode once and then headed to the play area. DS ran around a while and then we got pictures with a ton of characters. Baloo, Pinocchio, the Penguins from Mary Poppins, Brer Fox and a few others. We decided to then grab lunch at Pinocchio's Village Haus. Then, we headed over to Adventureland.
We wanted to do Pirates, but it was having technical difficulties. We rode Aladdin's Magic Carpets and then grabbed some ice cream. We were getting hot, so we decided to head back to the BC to go swimming. We changed into our bathing suits, which we had taken with us and enjoyed a few hours at the pool. DS loves the sand bottom pool and crawled and climbed all over the place! My Mom and I grabbed a couple of drinks and nachos and relaxed while playing with the little one. We got changed and decided to hit Epcot.
My DS started his 2nd ever Kidcot mask. We made it to Italy, where we had a PS. The food was wonderful, but unfortunately, my DS was not! With no nap that day, he was having one of his very rare meltdowns. We ate as quickly as possible and then left. Unfortunately, the waitstaff didn't seem very "kid friendly" that night. As we excited, TOD was getting ready to begin. A very nice CM at the Italy cart started to talk to my DS. He was flirting back with her and when the parade started, she asked if she could hold him. Since I was right there, I said okay. Well, she held him and almost every puppet and dream catcher came over to him! He was soooo excited. We listen to the TON CD in the car all the time and "Wayla, Wayla" is his favorite. I'm so glad we made time for the parade since it is now discontinued. It was a very special "magical moment" for us. We walked around a bit, but then decided that we had fit a lot into the two days and walked back to the BC. One more tour through the giftshop, got the luggage from storage and the car from the valet. We then headed to the Embassy Suites where my DH would be meeting us in an hour.
Flash forward to Monday afternoon.....
DH, DS and I are driving from my parents' house in JAX to my DH's parents' house north of Tampa. DS falls asleep in the car and wakes up around 1 pm. Time for lunch, wait where are we? One exit away from Disney? You guessed it, we stopped at Downtown Disney for an extended lunch!! This is Disney stop #3 for me and DS so far!!!! It was a beautiful, warm day. We had a quick bite to eat at Wolfgang Puck Express, by far the best pizza we've ever had on Disney property! Then, we walked around a few shops, got DS his 2nd Mr. Potato head figure, this time I didn't forget the ears! Then, we let DS play in the playground, got some popcorn, ice cream etc. We had a wonderful few hours and really didn't want to leave. But, the purpose of this trip wasn't Disney, sigh, it's to visit family, so off we go! It was a wonderful, spur of the moment stop and it really was one of the best times we've ever had!
Fast forward to Friday afternoon...
After spending three days in a retirement town, DH and I are ready to leave! We had a nice time but when you ask what there is to do and they say "Walk around Walmart with the rest of the seniors," it's time to go. We tried to see if we could get a discounted room at the YC/BC, Boardwalk etc. No discounts; then we called the Downtown Disney hotels, there is availability. But wait, I read that you can go on Priceline and maybe get the Dolphin for $75. So we crossed our fingers and BINGO, WDW Dolphin for $75 for Saturday night! Disney trip #4 within this trip!
We leave DH's parents around 10:30 Saturday morning and check into the Dolphin around 1pm. The room is ready. I love the lobby and DS is loving the fountain and the seahorses he can see on the chandeliers. We get a 7th floor room overlooking the little pond and can see the Sorcerer's Hat at MGM. Unfortunatley, it is rainy and cold today! We decided to grab lunch on the Boardwalk at ESPN. It's good but the service was tremendously slow! Lunch took over two hours! With a two year old, that is forever! We leave and decide to head back to the room to put more layers on. Then, we head to MK. We arrive and it's crowded, I know, it's Saturday, but today was all about what our DS wanted. We head right to Buzz and it's packed. We grab fastpasses and then head to IASW. We crisscross over to do Pirates, which we missed earlier on in the trip and then we ran into Hook and Smee. DS was loving it! He loves to watch Peter Pan and he even says "Peter Pan" like Hook says it in the movie. By now it 's almost 6pm and I had lucked out with getting a last minute PS for Tony's. But, if we eat at Tony's, we'll miss our Buzz fp time. Well, when a two year old needs to eat..... We hand a couple with a 3 year old little girl our fastpasses and have a very fast meal at Tony's. The food as always is delicious and huge! All three of us could have probably shared the spaghetti and meatball! We head out and check out the Buzz line, it's only 15 minutes, so we get on. Then we head past Peter Pan, the line is 50 minutes, no way! DS will want to be held the whole time and we just can't carry his 30 pounds that long. We do IASW again and when we finish, the Peter Pan line is down to twenty minutes! We ride that and then we get a spot on the bridge to Tomorrowland to watch Tinkerbell's flight. We start chatting with a couple on their honeymoon. They got married at Disney just a few days ago! We watch the fireworks, DS has fallen asleep and misses them. We catch the bus back to the Dolphin and fall right to sleep exhausted. Tomorrow we fly home! Back to reality and about 4 days of snow in a row.
Thanks for reading!
