No cats to herd this time! It's just the two of us!UPDATED 11/24-DIS Meet & Departure

[ladybugmom]

WOW!! Love all the pictures! And I agree--I like the pic of the mill in black and white the best! I loved looking at these pics b/c you captured a lot of the details that we missed on our trip!

 

[mommytothreeboys]

First...I love how you can see the drops of dew on this flower. GREAT pic!

Don't you love a leisurely MK morning?

I never noticed the raised dirt on that grave at HM...something to look for next time! I love that ride...so creepy and silly all at the same time!

Cute pics of you and Shawn in the stocks!

Another vote for the b&w of Harper's Mill.....it's a perfect pic for the black and white!

 

[mom2mek]

I'm glad you got to ride on BTM after all. Did you do any special effects to the pictures of BTM? They look "oranger" than I remember.

It's a whole different experience without doing that morning dumbo run.

Love the picture of your Dh just before riding BTM. I know it's just the flash in his sunglasses but it looks like a mechevious twinkle.

You know what, that one picture of Splash Mountain looks over-saturated to me too. Shawn did some editing to some of the pics, but always left the original and for that one, the one I posted is the only one in his pics, so I don't know....

THat's funny about the twinkle in his eye....I'll have to tell him that...

WOW!! Love all the pictures! And I agree--I like the pic of the mill in black and white the best! I loved looking at these pics b/c you captured a lot of the details that we missed on our trip!

Thanks Becky! I love the B&W of the mill too - looks timeless and perfect for the Tom Sawyer setting!

First...I love how you can see the drops of dew on this flower. GREAT pic!

Don't you love a leisurely MK morning?

I never noticed the raised dirt on that grave at HM...something to look for next time! I love that ride...so creepy and silly all at the same time!

Cute pics of you and Shawn in the stocks!

Another vote for the b&w of Harper's Mill.....it's a perfect pic for the black and white!

Thanks Missy! I had never noticed the raised dirt either....Shawn actually pointed it out to me! I like the spooky-silliness of HM too - which is how I usually try to talk to my kids about it if they seem scared...it's kind of like "Scooby-Doo....spooky and silly".

Sara

 

[meeko_33785]

Great updates! I love all the photos of the details throughout the park. Looks like you're really getting the taste of what MK without kids is like.

 

[faerieprincess]

Great update Sara and those are some really amazing pictures. i actually like the greens in the first mill picture even more than the b&w (though i'm usually a big fan of black and white!). Can't believe you passed on a Dole Whip!

 

[mkluvsmickey]

What a great way to stary my morning, reading an update from Sara! (Especially on the morning of our Disney trip!!!)

Love all the details you captured while being able to take your time and really notice things. And definitely the black and white picture of Harpers Mill. It looks like it was a beautiful morning!

 

[mom2mek]

Great updates! I love all the photos of the details throughout the park. Looks like you're really getting the taste of what MK without kids is like.

Yes - it's amazing at what you miss when you are herding cats!

Great update Sara and those are some really amazing pictures. i actually like the greens in the first mill picture even more than the b&w (though i'm usually a big fan of black and white!). Can't believe you passed on a Dole Whip!

Thanks Sare! I love all of the mill pics - the mill is really a great photo subject! I can't believe I passed on a Dole Whip either! Still puzzled at why I did that!

What a great way to stary my morning, reading an update from Sara! (Especially on the morning of our Disney trip!!!)

Love all the details you captured while being able to take your time and really notice things. And definitely the black and white picture of Harpers Mill. It looks like it was a beautiful morning!

Oh sure....rub it in Michelle! Just kidding - have a FABULOUS time this week! (Although it sounds like you have quite a following on your trip this year.... Lots of extra tagalongs! )

DON'T LOSE YOUR CAMERA THIS TIME!!! (I thought of you when we were riding THunder and I was taking video....had that thing wrapped around my wrist pretty tight!)

Sara

 

[Tnkrbelle565]

You got some gorgeous pics!!!! Isn't it amazing what you notice when you aren't chasing after kiddos????

 

[crocko]

Great morning! Frontierland in the morning is so beautiful!

And I love both of those edits on the Harper's Mill pictures...but might lean towards the B&W as the favorite.

 

[mom2mek]

You got some gorgeous pics!!!! Isn't it amazing what you notice when you aren't chasing after kiddos????

Thanks! Yes, it certainly was nice to be able to stop and smell the roses, so to speak!

Great morning! Frontierland in the morning is so beautiful!

And I love both of those edits on the Harper's Mill pictures...but might lean towards the B&W as the favorite.

Thanks! I agree - Frontierland is really quite lovely when not inundated with mass crowds of people! Lovely and quiet!

Sara

 

[mom2mek]

Day 3- May 15, 2009
Part 3 - Lunch for Two at The Plaza, Please!

After we had had our fill of pineapple, we ventured towards the main hub. VERY leisurely! Shawn’s feet were slowing us down but that was fine with me – I really enjoyed slowing our pace and watching the people, the families, the cast members….everyone immersed in the Disney magic.

Shawn captured more flowers….

And more of this beautiful place…

And we couldn’t forget to get a picture of this cute duo…

We found a bench right in the hub and rested Shawn’s feet. The 10:30 castle show was about to start and I have never seen it before, so I was excited!

(looks like that girl is sprouting out of Mickey’s head…)

We didn’t stay for the whole show, but decided to walk over towards Tomorrowland, check out the wait time for Buzz and try to find PUSH, the talking trashcan.

We did stop for a photopass shot:

The wait for Buzz was 20 minutes which wasn’t bad, but we had an early lunch ADR at the Plaza in 20 minutes, and I didn’t want to risk being late by waiting in line, so we grabbed fastpasses (which we were going to do anyway) and set out on our mission to find PUSH.

Well, low and behold, I turned around to check out Monsters Inc wait time and there was PUSH chatting it up with a few unsuspecting guests. How cute! I stood around to see if he might come up to me, but he never did. Then I started scanning the crowd looking for the “voice” of PUSH, but never could tell where he was. It was fun to watch.

(my one and only pic of PUSH)

Oh yeah, and Monsters Inc was shut down for the time being, and some lady there was complaining about how “EVERYTHING IS SHUT DOWN OVER HERE….GEEZ” - I bet the CMs just love hearing that over and over all day long!

It was about five minutes to 11:00, so we headed towards The Plaza.

We checked in right at 11:00 and were given a pager.

Ok.

Didn’t you just open? Kind of funny when that happens.

I walked over to Main St because I could hear the distinct sound of a song my girls so love to sing…."HEY….Get UP…..GET LOUD…..WE'RE PUMPING UP THE PARTY NOW!"

I had not had the chance to see this parade yet, but it was on its way up Main St. I grabbed my camera and tried to take some video of it but only got 10 seconds on video when they buzzed us for lunch. Literally, the total time for me to check in, get a buzzer, walk to the edge of Main St, see 10 seconds of a parade, was probably one minute total. What was the point of the buzzer??

For what it’s worth, here are the 10 seconds of parade video….LOL:



Ahhhh…the nice, cool, air-conditioned, beautifully decorated Plaza was so welcoming. We were seated over by the swinging doors to the kitchen and had great service by two waiters (one regular waiter, and one waitress in training)! They were so upbeat and friendly, and very talkative. I ordered the Plaza Club - (smoked ham, turkey, bacon, lettuce, tomato and mayonnaise layered on toasted multi-grain bread) with the broccoli slaw, and Shawn had the Grilled Reuben - (thinly sliced corned beef on grilled marble rye with sauerkraut, Swiss cheese, and Thousand Island dressing) with the homemade chips. While we waited we took a couple pictures of our fastpass booty to use later that day!

Shawn liked the “Hidden Mickey” in our condiments:

We were very pleased with the food at the Plaza – and very stuffed. I highly recommend eating there, especially if you aren’t on the dining plan. It counts as a TS restaurant and you aren’t going to get quite the “value” on the dining plan as some of the other TS choices; but if you aren’t on the dining plan, it’s a lovely little spot to enjoy a quiet meal! Those homemade chips Shawn had with his meal were wonderful!!!

We left sometime around 11:45, and made our way over to Fantasyland.

We grabbed fastpasses for Peter Pan and then headed to one of my favorites…PHILHARMAGIC!!!

We walked right into the next showing and Shawn thought it would be cute to try and get some pics with the 3D glasses covering his camera lens. Some turned out….some didn't....

(Those two….eh…not so much)


But this one I think turned out really cute….looks like she is reaching right to us….

So, it was now only about 12:15….where to head to next…..



Sara

 

[faerieprincess]

Excellent update, Sara! Sounds like a nice lunch and a welcome break for Shawn's sore feet. i love the picture of Ariel reaching out!

 

[mrsksomeday]

Great update, I love your castle pictures. I could look at castle pix all day long. We have never eaten at the Plaza, we might have to put that on our list. I am so sorry about Shawn's feet.

Shawn got some awesome shots, the flower one was fantastic, and what a great idea about the 3D glasses, that Ariel pic was amazing!

 

[ladybugmom]

Oh wow!! That Ariel picture is AMAZING!! LOVE it!! I'll have to show it to Ally tomorrow!!

 

[mommytothreeboys]

Good morning Sara!

Lunch at the Plaza sounds awesome...cute Hidden Mickey!

I've never seen the whole castle show either...just bits and pieces as we pass by. Glad Shawn got to rest his feet a bit.

I love the shot of the outside of Mickey's PhilharMagic. That's an unusual angle and makes for a very interesting picture. Nice job Shawn!

 

[meeko_33785]

Great photos, especially the ones around the castle! Just beautiful.

The Plaza Restaurant is great. I think it's our favorite restaurant at MK now- great food, great service, beautiful atmosphere, fairly peaceful. Glad to hear that you enjoyed it too.

 

[jillyb]

Love all the shots of the castle from different views. Shawn looks pretty happy in that photopass pic! Your sandwich sounds yummy! I never would of thought about putting the 3D glasses over my camera lens. Good thinking Shawn! That photo of Ariel rocks!

Ya know...since I've started reading TRs I've completely changed my way of thinking when it comes to vacation (or any activity) photos. I used to take the usual photos but now I look at the details too and look for opportunities to take unusual or different photos.

 

[mkluvsmickey]

Great update Sara - those castle pictures are fantastic! So crisp and clear!

Glad you enjoyed the Plaza, we discovered that place last year and really enjoyed it too. Did you get dessert there?

Cool idea to put the 3D glasses ont he camera!

 

[mom2mek]

Excellent update, Sara! Sounds like a nice lunch and a welcome break for Shawn's sore feet. i love the picture of Ariel reaching out!

Thanks Sare! Yeah, we were taking it slow this day due to Mr. Sore Feet! But we still managed to do a lot that morning, and we had a big afternoon planned!

Great update, I love your castle pictures. I could look at castle pix all day long. We have never eaten at the Plaza, we might have to put that on our list. I am so sorry about Shawn's feet.

Shawn got some awesome shots, the flower one was fantastic, and what a great idea about the 3D glasses, that Ariel pic was amazing!

Thanks Tracy! We really enjoyed The Plaza - it's really small and quaint, and the food was very good. I liked the 3D shots as well.

Oh wow!! That Ariel picture is AMAZING!! LOVE it!! I'll have to show it to Ally tomorrow!!

Thanks Becky! When we left Philharmagic, he put it on the camera display for me to see and I thought it turned out pretty cool!

Good morning Sara!

Lunch at the Plaza sounds awesome...cute Hidden Mickey!

I've never seen the whole castle show either...just bits and pieces as we pass by. Glad Shawn got to rest his feet a bit.

I love the shot of the outside of Mickey's PhilharMagic. That's an unusual angle and makes for a very interesting picture. Nice job Shawn!

It's funny Missy, because as we were leaving The Plaza and heading to Fantasyland, the castle show was going on again (which is why we had to go around) but this time it was at the point where Maleficient disappears in the poof of smoke! I'm like you, never have stopped to watch the whole darn thing, but can piece it together with all the little bits that I've seen over the last couple of trips!

Great photos, especially the ones around the castle! Just beautiful.

The Plaza Restaurant is great. I think it's our favorite restaurant at MK now- great food, great service, beautiful atmosphere, fairly peaceful. Glad to hear that you enjoyed it too.

We really did! I was thinking of trying Tony's next time since we will be on the dining plan and it's a better "value" than The Plaza when you are on the plan. What do you think? Tony's always gets mixed reviews, so I'm on the fence....

Love all the shots of the castle from different views. Shawn looks pretty happy in that photopass pic! Your sandwich sounds yummy! I never would of thought about putting the 3D glasses over my camera lens. Good thinking Shawn! That photo of Ariel rocks!

Ya know...since I've started reading TRs I've completely changed my way of thinking when it comes to vacation (or any activity) photos. I used to take the usual photos but now I look at the details too and look for opportunities to take unusual or different photos.

Thanks Jill! I thought the 3D glasses idea was silly....but he proved me wrong! Well, without kids with us this trip, not only were we ABLE to catch more details than we usually do, we had to take pictures of something that wasn't us! Usually we fill our shots with our kids, but with it just being the two of us we got tired of just taking pics of eachother! It was great to capture so much of the beautiful details that are all over the parks!

Great update Sara - those castle pictures are fantastic! So crisp and clear!

Glad you enjoyed the Plaza, we discovered that place last year and really enjoyed it too. Did you get dessert there?

Cool idea to put the 3D glasses ont he camera!

Thanks Michelle! We didn't get dessert - we were too stuffed! I really thought about it though because I knew the desserts were supposed to be awesome!

The Plaza was a great deal for us since we weren't on the dining plan, but we had the Tables in Wonderland card, so the whole meal with drinks came to like $20! Not bad for table service for 2, but you can see why it's not recommended if you are on the dining plan!

Sara

 

[mom2mek]

First of all....thanks for bearing with me as this TR sort of limps along....hanging by a thread. I really appreciate it. I will be putting it out of it's misery soon though....promise!

With that said....LOOK AT ME....DOING ANOTHER UPDATE.....

Day 3 - May 15, 2009
Part 4 - Back to the Oasis

We exited Philharmagic and heard some lovely music coming from Fantasyland, so we headed in that direction as we were going to wind our way around the hub and down Main St to head back to the Poly for a much-needed break!

We passed this cute guy:

And stopped to watch all the cute kids flying high on Dumbo:

(He’s so cute!)

Then we found the source of the music:

We hung out a while and listened to them play before making our way towards the TeaCups (no, not to ride….Shawn would barf):

As we rounded the corner at the Tomorrowland Terrace Noodle Station, we came upon the parade again, so I stopped to snap a few pictures as it went by:

(Mickey gets a whole new outfit, but poor Donald only gets a hat and scarf!)

(Wouldn’t you just love to be the costume designer for this parade? “Just throw all that stuff up there on top of the hat, Jim…that’ll look great!”)

I really liked this parade and I think my kids will love it! So interactive, so fun, so colorful, nice and short….just really, really fun!

We made it out of the MK and decided to take the boat launch back over to the Poly! Woo-hoo!

First stop on the boat ride….The beautiful GRAND FLORIDIAN….

A few pictures of the monorail while we were sitting at the GF marina:

While waiting….a picture of Mr. Sore Feet:

Quite a few monorails scooted on past us as we were at the GF:

We pushed back from the Grand Floridian marina, and the next stop…..our own little oasis….The Poly!

Remember that hammock Shawn claimed was his at the beginning of our day????

There it was….beckoning to him and his tired, sore feet!


Sara