My pre and post exp. w/the autograph books

[Karpkg]

Got back from our September trip! I spent days...on Creative DiSigns doing the autograph book and figured I'd tell my trials, tribulations and triumphs with it, and how it worked in WDW.

Just like everyone I got real excited looking at autograph books and started downloading like crazy. So before I get going let me thank Donatalie, Chaos1Cent, BXTX and ljcollins_2008, you gals are amazing!

Before long I had downloaded, oh say, over a hundred? Then I spent hours on MS Word. http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2286193&highlight=autograph+book

I had printed up at least 115(per child, mind you), trying to discard some and keep others, agonizing over each one. Hindsight, I should have done more research on who were rare characters, but most importantly, which characters do not sign. Some due to their costumes(Ok, why did I expect a car would sign an autograph?), or are just show characters who don't even meet and greet (or have stopped doing that) I would have quickly ruled out.

I also went through the should I bind before? decision. The day before the trip I was in OfficeMax with my autographs and trying to decide to bind or get clipboards when I spied pencil boxes. Bingo! The ones there were too small but I remembered my kids I bought earlier from WalMart that would fit 5 x 7 cards that would work. Yes!!

Now, I had originally cut them to 5 x 8, leaving a lot on the top as a margin. So, imagine me in the van on the way down to WDW with a paper trimmer cutting 200+ autograph pages down to size to fit in my pencil boxes. (2 kids, double the work). I was worried but the binding takes so little space it worked out fine.

Let me tell you, those pencil boxes worked great.

They held all of the autograph pages safe in a waterproof container, (they survived splash mountain, the fieldpacker got soaked) the characters used the backs of them as a clipboard to sign,

they held all the colored sharpies together and each night after a park I took out the autographs that were done and stored them away for home. Perfect!


After our 7 day trip, we have 65 out of 105 character signatures! I brought along extra blank paper and have roughly 7 of them signed. (The majority were the safari clad Mickey & gang which I did not know when I was in AK. I wanted separate pictures and autographs than the regularly clad gang). The ones I did not expect to find were the White Rabbit in MK, Koda and Kenaii in AK, and since the line was soo long and I didn't have their pages printed up we didn't get Friar Tuck and Foul Fellow while DHS. The blank ones that were signed I took back to my printer and printed over the signatures. Not perfect since some of the signatures went over the pics but I'm satisfied.

After my trip, here's a list of characters I found would not/could not sign. Mike Wazowski, Goliath(but Jo Jo signed for him) Lightning McQueen and Mater. Others I heard were Bullseye, King Louie(but Baloo might sign for him) the beast (but Belle might sign for him) Jack Sparrow (he's there only for the Pirate Tutorial)

After our trip home, here's how they look bound. I'm saving the other pages for the trip we booked already for next year!

 

[Ohana90]

Everything looks great and smart idea. Good job

 

[DisneyMommy1022]

Got back from our September trip! I spent days...on Creative DiSigns doing the autograph book and figured I'd tell my trials, tribulations and triumphs with it, and how it worked in WDW.

Just like everyone I got real excited looking at autograph books and started downloading like crazy. So before I get going let me thank Donatalie, Chaos1Cent, BXTX and ljcollins_2008, you gals are amazing!

Before long I had downloaded, oh say, over a hundred? Then I spent hours on MS Word. http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2286193&highlight=autograph+book

I had printed up at least 115(per child, mind you), trying to discard some and keep others, agonizing over each one. Hindsight, I should have done more research on who were rare characters, but most importantly, which characters do not sign. Some due to their costumes(Ok, why did I expect a car would sign an autograph?), or are just show characters who don't even meet and greet (or have stopped doing that) I would have quickly ruled out.

I also went through the should I bind before? decision. The day before the trip I was in OfficeMax with my autographs and trying to decide to bind or get clipboards when I spied pencil boxes. Bingo! The ones there were too small but I remembered my kids I bought earlier from WalMart that would fit 5 x 7 cards that would work. Yes!!

Now, I had originally cut them to 5 x 8, leaving a lot on the top as a margin. So, imagine me in the van on the way down to WDW with a paper trimmer cutting 200+ autograph pages down to size to fit in my pencil boxes. (2 kids, double the work). I was worried but the binding takes so little space it worked out fine.

Let me tell you, those pencil boxes worked great.

They held all of the autograph pages safe in a waterproof container, (they survived splash mountain, the fieldpacker got soaked) the characters used the backs of them as a clipboard to sign,

they held all the colored sharpies together and each night after a park I took out the autographs that were done and stored them away for home. Perfect!


After our 7 day trip, we have 65 out of 105 character signatures! I brought along extra blank paper and have roughly 7 of them signed. (The majority were the safari clad Mickey & gang which I did not know when I was in AK. I wanted separate pictures and autographs than the regularly clad gang). The ones I did not expect to find were the White Rabbit in MK, Koda and Kenaii in AK, and since the line was soo long and I didn't have their pages printed up we didn't get Friar Tuck and Foul Fellow while DHS. The blank ones that were signed I took back to my printer and printed over the signatures. Not perfect since some of the signatures went over the pics but I'm satisfied.

After my trip, here's a list of characters I found would not/could not sign. Mike Wazowski, Goliath(but Jo Jo signed for him) Lightning McQueen and Mater. Others I heard were Bullseye, King Louie(but Baloo might sign for him) the beast (but Belle might sign for him) Jack Sparrow (he's there only for the Pirate Tutorial)

After our trip home, here's how they look bound. I'm saving the other pages for the trip we booked already for next year!

Would you be will to make a list of all the characters you were able to have sign? I am going threw the same process right now as to who to print and who not to print. This would help me allot!!!! I have 4 of these to make.

Kristen

 

[vanguardgator]

Your books are womderful!! Your kids will chrish them for years to come. Great job.

 

[Karpkg]

I'll make a complete list of who we met and got signed, where, who I downloaded and didn't get and why hopefully by tonight. Gonna go and pick up the kids from school.

 

[Karpkg]

Would you be will to make a list of all the characters you were able to have sign? I am going threw the same process right now as to who to print and who not to print. This would help me allot!!!! I have 4 of these to make.

Kristen

Okay, I did a recount and we actually have 63 signed autographs. After all that running around, 65 sounded better.

Bold is what we have, red is what we had but they couldn't/wouldn't sign.

The majority of the autographs were through the character meals. The best park was DHS. The first night we arrived we did:

1900 Park Faire Dinner- and we got Cinderella, Lady Tremaine, Anastasia, Drizella and Prince Charming. DD said she saw the Fairy Godmother leave, so we missed her.(But got her at the castle later)

The next day we went to DHS and saw so many there! At Playhouse Disney we got the Einsteins-Quincy and June. Next to them Handy Manny was switching off with Jo Jo and Goliath. Buzz Lightyear and Woody were right across from TSM. Mike Wazowsky came out at the back lot and we chased him back to his studio but he couldn't sign so it was just a pic. We also saw Lightning McQueen and Mater at Luigi's Garage but they were more like props. The Power Rangers were also around and we got the Blue, Green, Red, Pink and Yellow Rangers.

The second day we went back to DHS and into the Animation building at the back of the gift store and got Sorceror Mickey, Frozone and the UP characters Russell, Dug and Carl. We had to run for the Fantasmic show and passed up Friar Tuck and Foul Fellow. Now I'm told the time slot between 4 and 6 pm you'll find a lot of rare characters there. Darn!

The third day was MK. We went to the O'hana breakfast and got Lilo and Stitch, Mickey and Pluto. I used the Polynesian O'hana Mickey and Pluto autographs for that one. We saw Rafiki at the Aloha Whip stand but he was just leaving. (Got him later at AK). Rode the Magic Carpets and saw Jasmine and Aladdin nearby and rushed them. By now DH was getting good at this. He handled the camera and the photopass card, I would take out the autograph pages and ask the kids which color sharpies they wanted. The last we saw that day was Captain Hook and Mr. Smee and they were right across from PofC. Jack Sparrow was out there doing a pirate tutorial but as soon as he was done he ran away(part of the act).

The fourth day was Epcot. We had the Princess Akershus breakfast and saw Belle, Ariel, Aurora, Snow White, Cinderella dressed in evening ball gowns. We saw Mulan in China, just as you enter on the right (we almost missed her, she's dressed like a CM working in China) I couldn't find the one in France, I read later there's a library(?) in the back that Belle and maybe the Beast could be found. We poked around the UK and I didn't see anything. I was walking ahead and almost passed through UK when my DH yelled out "Quick! Go look in the Toy Store!" Tigger, Eeyore and Pooh were there! I was soo happy since I thought they could only be found at the Crystal Palace. I later saw Tigger and Pooh at the MK at the Pooh playground and again Tigger, Pooh and Eeyore at the AK in the Discovery Island just before you enter Dinoland.

The fifth day was AK. We saw at Camp Mickey-Minnie in their safari outfits Mickey, Minnie, and Goofy. We were running late so we passed up Chip and Dale. (We later got them again at DHS). We also passed by Lilo and Stitch at the Discovery Island but we already had theirs. At the Rafiki Watch Pocahontas, Rafiki, and Jiminy Cricket were there. We went to Epcot EMH and between 9pm and 11:30pm the Character Spot opened and we saw Mickey, Minnie, Goofy and Pluto.

The sixth day was MK again. We had to pass Daisy Duck at the Exposition Park because the line was sooo long. We went to the castle and saw Belle in her apron outfit finishing her storytelling and leaving.(Darn!) Next to the fountain at the back of the castle we waited for and got the Fairy Godmother. Around the corner in the fairytale garden I was told Lady Tremaine and her daughters were there but we have theirs. On to Toontown and saw the fairies- Tinkerbell(the CM says Tinkerbell will always be there, too many kids would be disappointed, but the other fairies rotate) and 2 others- Iridessa and Rosetta. The other side of the tent were the Princesses and we didn't go but I heard Aurora, Jasmine, Ariel and Belle were there. We missed the judge's tent, but I'm assuming Mickey and the gang were there, I wished we checked. We passed by the Mad Tea Party and saw Alice and the White Rabbit. For dinner we ate at Chef Mickey's and got Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto and Donald Duck in their chef outfits. I wished I had the Chef Mickey autograph pages but we used the regular clad outfit ones instead.

The final day we park hopped 3 places. At DHS we went straight to the Animation Building waited and got Mr. and Mrs. Incredible, and the Queen of Hearts. We saw and got Leo from the Einsteins, waited around for Annie but she wasn't there that day, and got Handy Manny which we had missed before. At the Sorceror Hat we saw Goofy, Tigger and Minnie, but what we wanted and got were Chip and Dale. We went to AK and saw Goofy running past us, Lilo and Stitch again, but no one else. During AK EMH we saw safari clad Mickey and Minnie at the Outlander Store but passed on by. We had our last dinner at Epcot but saw no one else.

 

[Karpkg]

Here are links I now have that I should have used prior to my trip.

http://www.wdwinsiders.com/character_finder.php
Character cheat sheets- http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2260802
A CM who regularly blogs and tells the latest characters she sees. http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2300844

Went through my stash and here are the ones I printed but didn't get and possible reasons why.


Abu- haven't been seen in a long time and not expected anytime soon.

Princess Atta- they say she hasn't been seen in at least a year. Used to be around AK Discovery Island near Bug's Life with Flick.

Baloo- I don't know, just haven't seen him but he's around AK.

Beast- sometimes is seen in France?

Brer Bear, Brer Rabbit- sometimes seen around Splash Mountain although one CM I asked said they haven't been around MK in a while, I heard maybe in AK.

Bolt- no longer there at DHS because newest movie is now UP!

Cruella De Vil- mostly seen MNSSHP but since we didn't go, I just kinda hoped maybe DHS or MK.

Clarice- was told rare now.

Darby- haven't seen in a long time

Bullseye- rare, and he doesn't sign. If seen may be with Jessie Girl but haven't seen either and only had Bullseye's.

Daisy Duck- we just couldn't get in the line that wrapped around Exposition park. That was just toooo crazy!

Dopey- I was at least hoping to see with Snow White in Germany but nope.

Annie Einstein- apparently not all of the Einsteins appear altogether and she was the one that didn't.

Fawn Fairy- one of the Fairies they rotated out. You won't know until you step inside that Fairy room.

Silvermist Fairy- same as above.

Genie- rarely seen, I was told. May not sign.

Goofy- O'hana breakfast- he wasn't there.

Green Army Man- saw him in the parade but I'm told not out to meet and greet anymore.

Jafar- didn't go to MNSSHP, so we didn't see him.

Darth Goofy- we're star wars people, but apparently only star wars characters are around star wars weekends- May and June.

Jedi Mickey- see above

Kim Possible- Now, with all the Kim possible stuff around Epcot, wouldn't you think she'd be more common? but no, she doesn't meet and greet anymore.

Ron Stoppable- apparently same as above.

White and Black Ranger- the only 2 of the 7 Rangers we didn't see. Probably not in this rotation.

Mad Hatter- was hoping was around Mad Tea Party but he's at 1900 Park Faire breakfast and Grand Tea Party.

Mr. Walrus- not seen around anymore.

Maleficent- MNSSHP- but we didn't go.

Mary Poppins- maybe CRT? only saw her in the parade.

Meeko- usually AK but we didn't see him. Darn!

Mushu- I'm told not seen around much anymore since Spring '09

Peter Pan- didn't see, wished we could've

Piglet- was told by Eeyore's handler only at the Crystal Palace.

Pinocchio- don't know, not out as much I'm guessing.

Terk- I'm told at AK but haven't heard of a recent sighting.

Tiana- was too new, I hear now she'll be out maybe Nov/Dec?

Timon- I heard around AK but didn't see.

Tweedle dee and dum- 1900 Park Faire- breakfast?

Wendy- haven't seen, was disappointed.

 

[Karpkg]

If you see a CM dressed like this:

she's a handler, and keep an eagle eye out. Sometimes the character is nearby or coming out.

Where the handler stops is usually where the line forms, or she'll point out where the line will start. If the character is leaving or the handler closes the line (they only last 10, 15 minutes then leave sometimes) ask what times they'll be back. I was told White Rabbit every half of the hour and Alice on the hour, so we did the Speedway and Mad Tea Party in between sightings. Same thing with Fairy Godmother, she was 1:15, last will be 4:15 (it was 11:30 at the time) so we came back and was first in line.

I later found out that Guest Services sometimes can tell you where and when specifically a character might be.

The Times Guide for the week, found with the maps, will list character times. DHS was more specific, AK and MK were vague but at least we had a time slot to know not to miss.

Steve had a more updated and specific instructions on where to see the characters. http://pages.prodigy.net/stevesoares/index.htm Click on each park and scroll through.

I had so many extra maps, I just grabbed one for the next day that I marked with quick abbreviations of who I hoped to find scribbled along the sides with arrows pointing to the spot. I have lousy memory so that helped me a lot.

 

[mgcgoose]

This is great info...thanks so much for sharing.

 

[Karpkg]

Well, if I did this right, I have 63 autographs and 62 sightings.

Let me tell you of our first newbie's mistake...

We arrived at 1900 Park Faire for our first WDW character dinner, autographs in hand. And who did we see in the lobby but...Cinderella!

We followed her, I handed the autographs to the kids and said go ask nicely for an autograph and picture! She graciously said yes, asked their names, signed it and we were so excited!

We were then beeped and we sat down at our table. Then I looked across the table and saw...Cinderella sit down nearby us with her family!

Mommy, look! Cinderella's sitting next to us!

After Anastasia and Drizella came through, the "fake" Cinderella came up to our table and apologized. "I'm so sorry, the kids were pleading and I couldn't say no". I said it was alright, but now I had to tell DD "Sweetie, that wasn't the real Cinderella, the real one is down the aisle coming really soon."

"That's ok mommy because she's prettier than the one that's coming and she wrote my name and everything."

Looking at the autographs, the "fake Cinderella" had written on both of them

To DD, with Love Cinderella. To DS, with Love Cinderella.

Anastasia and Drizella only had their names written.

I quickly scooted the autographs of the table and presented the blank, printed background one. The real one came by, smiled, signed, and we took pics. Here are the 2 pics and you decide!

Fake Cinderella:

Real Cinderella:

 

[2princesses2princes]

My vote is for the "fake" Cinderella. She looks genuinely happy, not fake at all.

 

[mommyof3princess27]

mine too she looks like she wants to do it not like she is being paid to do it and thats sad the real cinderella should love her job! SHE IS CINDERELLA!!!!! not many ppl can say that lol

 

[Karpkg]

mine too she looks like she wants to do it not like she is being paid to do it and thats sad the real cinderella should love her job! SHE IS CINDERELLA!!!!! not many ppl can say that lol

My vote is for the "fake" Cinderella. She looks genuinely happy, not fake at all.

I had to laugh at myself, I was soo embarrassed, our very first autograph and it was not a real character! But my daughter was satisfied and happy, and in her eyes she has 2 Cinderella autographs. The lady was kind and gracious and started the Disney Magic, so if she sees her pic here (you never know) I want to say thank you again!

Now, for our next trip, I think I may print up several same characters but different designs- like if I'll meet 2 different Cinderellas again