"Now That's What I'm Talkin' 'Bout!"- Our 1st DVC stay-May 2010-Wrap Up 9/23

[mickeystoontown]

Very cool pictures of an empty park! Makes me want to make a breakfast ADR simply to get those kinds of pictures.

The girls look really excited to see the characters and I had to laugh when you said Josie abandoned you to go sit with Mary's family.

It always makes me so mad when people jump in front of you or run when trying to get to an attraction. I just can't stand it! At least you guys were able to ride without any real wait time and were able to snap up Fastpasses too!

 

[kaysmommie]

I love the empty Hollywood Studios pics! Never been to H&V yet, my kids are not into those characters and I have heard the food was just okay. Sorry about the rude woman who trampled your stroller and pu, glad Josie was not in it. Glad you were to get on TSM quickly and then get FP's for later!

As for SSR, you know we stayed there last May. I agree with you on the Disney/theme feel of SSR . However we would stay there again for a few reasons. Our room was very nice and clean, the pools were great, and the boat to DTD was nice too. It was a beautiful resort but just so huge and seemed more like condo community is some ways. I think if you don't get VWL you be fine with SSR. If you want to be near the main pool/ lobby/foodcourt then request to be in the Springs area. My second choice would be Grandstand since it's usually first picked up on the buses. I hope that helps.

 

[racefanof88]

Speaking of Dallas being embarrassed; here is a picture from 2006

Great pictures of the empty park . We have never eaten at H & V, we may have to try it. Your girls are really brave; I don't think there is enough money in the banks to get me to try ToT .

 

[leamom2princesses]

I love your pictures of the empty DHS. Your hat picture ROCKS! The character breakfast shots make me feel old. I don't recognize a single character...

Looking forward to hearing about the TOT

Thanks so much! The characters at H&V are becoming extinct (with the exception of Handy Manny). JoJo will always have a special place though so she can stick around.

Info on TOT coming up!

 

[leamom2princesses]

Great pictures of the empty DHS that morning. It's definitely a benefit of getting to the park early.

Your girls look so cute in their pictures at H & V breakfast. They look as if they had a great time.

Can't wait to hear about Josie's first ToT ride!

Thanks Michelle! The girls did have a great time. Info on Josie's first ToT ride is coming up!

Woo hoo, gotta love an empty park! What a cool chance to take pictures without everyone getting in your way.

I am very anxious to hear how Josie did on TOT!

I love the empty park pics too. It has a completely different feel. More info on Josie coming up!

 

[leamom2princesses]

Never been to a breakfast ressie at DHS...how great to see an empty park!!!

Love the pics from H & V....I laughed out loud when I ready about Josie sitting at Mary's table....too cute!!

I can't wait to hear how she did on ToT

Thanks Queen! Josie just disappeared on us, but I had a feeling where we might find her.

I have some details on ToT coming up!

Wow, I wish there was a breakfast in DHS that I actually wanted to do so I could see the park that empty!! Glad you enjoyed H+V. Score on the non-existant TSMM line!

Thanks Kylie! I have a hard time dining at DHS for any meal. Breakfast is the best option for us. We've tried some others but just haven't found anything we're crazy about...yet. :

Loved getting on TSM to easily! We wound up riding it 3 times that day!

 

[leamom2princesses]

You will love Tony's! We have never eaten at the Garden Grill either but I do remember a long time ago we went there for this ice cream social thing (we had some sort of voucher with our package) which was really cool!

I will tell you, as I'm sure you already know though, SSR is a LOT different that AKV which is partly why we like staying at all the different DVC places. It is a massive resort (there are several different bus stops within the resort itself). The two times I've stayed there we've been in Congress Park, but I think when my parents and Emma went they were in a different area. We like Congress Park since it's close to DTD. If you plan on spending a lot of time at the pool you might want to request a room near the Carriage House too. I forget exactly which section that is offhand. (ETA: Just looked at the map and the Springs is the section closest to the Carriage House). There are other quiet pools throughout too but I bet your girls would enjoy the main pool. I really hope you like it there! Let me know if you have any other questions...I'll try to help!

Thanks for all the info Sarah! I really do appreciate it! I will request a room in the Springs as I think the girls would like it as well. We plan on spending the afternoons at the pool since it is going to be soooo HOT!! We hit the 10 day mark on Wednesday so I will make my special requests then. I hope we can get in there. The size of SSR is a little intimidating. We loved the boat ride from POFQ to DTD so I think it will be neat this trip to check it out again from a different resort.

I'm really excited about Tony's. I loved your review and I can't wait to try it now! :thumbsup:

 

[leamom2princesses]

My kids really enjoyed Jojo's Circus when they were little, but they really don't know the characters that well now. I wonder if they will be switching the characters at H&V anytime soon, because I would love to get in DHS early. Such pretty pics! All of our morning DHS pics are of the crazy crowd behind whichever one of us is standing at the rope for rope drop!

You had me cracking up with your stroller driver description - "one of the fastest stroller walkers this side of the Mississippi"


Love TSM!!!

Sara

Thanks Sara! It really is time to change some of the characters around at H&V. I hate to see JoJo go though, but that's just me being selfish.

I wish y'all could have seen that woman running over top of us. CRAZY! I ended up beating her though and we ended up coming off the ride as they were getting on...kharma is a nasty booger.

We love TSM too!!!

 

[leamom2princesses]

I just wanted to let you know that I am really enjoying your TR! I have two princesses also, so it is fun to see your adventures. We had an 8:05 breakfast at H&V during our trip. Wasn't it great to get that little bit of a jump on the masses?

Thanks so much and welcome to my TR!!

I think it's great that you have two princesses as well. Isn't it so much fun! We really enjoyed getting that little jump as well. It wouldn't be something I did every trip but we will do it again for sure.

 

[leamom2princesses]

I love your empty park pictures! Especially the one with the dinosaur in front and the palm trees in the back and the trees in the water!!!!
I'm with you for Jojo! I loved Jojo's circus! "Hey Jojo, what do you say? We all want to know what you learned today, so step on up and give it away we all want to know what you learned today!"
Happy belated birthday, Lindsey!!!
Hope I got at least one character smiley that she likes.
Cute character pics at breakfast! Looks like the girls really enjoyed it. The pics where they are dancing with Jojo and June; that girl in the blue kind of looks like Amy.
How rude of that family. It's always the nicest ones that abandon you in the end. (Lotso from TS3)
We use the same strategy for TSM and works well for us, too.

Hi Barbara! Thanks for the kind words and the birthday wishes! I miss hearing the JoJo song everyday. The girls enjoyed the breakfast and had a lot of fun dancing.

You cracked me up with the Lotso reference. So true my friend, so true.

Getting there first thing can be a little crazy but it works!

 

[leamom2princesses]

Mailed Jasmine's graduation picture to you this morning I'm interested to see how long it takes to reach you

Yay! I wish I could say the same...still haven't made it to the post office. I will get there this week. Hope Jasmine (and Mom) have a magical day tomorrow. Congrats to both of you!!!!

What great pictures of an empty HS!!! Beautiful!! Glady ou enjoyed H&V--we ate there for lunch last year--loved the character interaction but the food left a lot to be desired. YAY for getting on TSM so quickly!! How fun!!

I agree the food isn't that great there. Food in general was kind of weird the week we were there in May. The character interaction was great though! TSM is a family favorite so it's nice to get on so quickly. :

 

[leamom2princesses]

Very cool pictures of an empty park! Makes me want to make a breakfast ADR simply to get those kinds of pictures.

The girls look really excited to see the characters and I had to laugh when you said Josie abandoned you to go sit with Mary's family.

It always makes me so mad when people jump in front of you or run when trying to get to an attraction. I just can't stand it! At least you guys were able to ride without any real wait time and were able to snap up Fastpasses too!

Thanks Lisa!! I love empty park pictures.

The girls did enjoy their time at H&V. I was really watching the clock because I had TSM on the mind.

I hate it when people are unnecessarily rude. Makes me want to go all Momma on them. We did get to ride VERY quickly so it was forgotten pretty fast. Some TSM was just what we needed to forget about it.

 

[leamom2princesses]

I love the empty Hollywood Studios pics! Never been to H&V yet, my kids are not into those characters and I have heard the food was just okay. Sorry about the rude woman who trampled your stroller and pu, glad Josie was not in it. Glad you were to get on TSM quickly and then get FP's for later!

As for SSR, you know we stayed there last May. I agree with you on the Disney/theme feel of SSR . However we would stay there again for a few reasons. Our room was very nice and clean, the pools were great, and the boat to DTD was nice too. It was a beautiful resort but just so huge and seemed more like condo community is some ways. I think if you don't get VWL you be fine with SSR. If you want to be near the main pool/ lobby/foodcourt then request to be in the Springs area. My second choice would be Grandstand since it's usually first picked up on the buses. I hope that helps.

My kids aren't really into the Einsteins but they did enjoy the breakfast overall. I was cracking up after the fact that the woman got so tore up over getting to TSM that she felt the need to trample over the stroller. I'm glad Josie wasn't in it. It could have gotten ugly if she had been but she wasn't so it was okay.

Thanks on the info about SSR. I had forgotten that you stayed there last year. I'm glad you have so many positive things to say. I'm sure if you liked it that we will too. I highly doubt that our waitlist on VWL will come through. I will be sure to request the Springs or Grandstand. It has kind of a condo feel to mee too. We are planning on driving to every park but the MK. We found it to be faster...since we're rope drop people and don't mind getting up at the butt crack of dawn. Thanks again Nichole. If you think of any other tips, be sure to pass them along. We are going at one of the busiest times of the year so we can use all the help we can get.

 

[leamom2princesses]

Speaking of Dallas being embarrassed; here is a picture from 2006

Great pictures of the empty park . We have never eaten at H & V, we may have to try it. Your girls are really brave; I don't think there is enough money in the banks to get me to try ToT .

That picture of Dallas is priceless. Look at his little red face. I love it!!

The breakfast at H&V is common breakfast food, nothing too fancy. If you like basic breafast foods you should be fine. I know you have some picky eaters that's why I say that.

My girls surprise me all the time. Adrenaline junkies just like their father (I love a good thrill myself...as long as it's not a plane or automobile...). TOT details coming up!!

 

[petals]

Great trip report! You're girls look fab done up after BBB

 

[leamom2princesses]

I have to come back to update....I had the next update all typed up and I just lost it. I'm a little frustrated but I will be back after I get the girls settled in and ready for bed. Sorry readers!

 

[leamom2princesses]

Great trip report! You're girls look fab done up after BBB

Thanks so much! Welcome to my TR!!

 

[leamom2princesses]

So let's try this again...

When I left off we were heading towards RnR & ToT. We ended up using our GAD FP's for these two attractions. We rode ToT first.

Making our way over...

We got our FP's and headed to the return area to get in line for Josie's first ride on ToT. We got up to the entrance and the CM measured Josie. She exceeded 40 inches. The CM, a young man...early 20's at the oldest, started telling me how Josie wouldn't be 40 inches flat footed, and although he couldn't tell me that she couldn't ride, that I was making a big mistake letting her ride the attraction. He went on and on. I bet he told me 4 times that I was making a mistake letting her ride it. I listened patiently, let him finish, handed him our FP's and we got in the queue.

I can't tell you that it didn't bother me because it did. I started wondering why he was making such a big deal-she rode the 40 inch rides yesterday, none of those CM's fussed, she had no issues on those rides, did you need to be 42 inches to be safe? She had normal shoes on that day and was tall enough. Alas, we made it to the front, got our row assignment and waited patiently for the elevator to arrive. We put Josie between Joe and I just to be sure there wasn't anything unusual we had considered.

Anyway, we started going through the attraction and listening to the Twilight Zone music. Josie said "this is SO COOL!!!". I laughed. She wasn't scared at all. We made it to the front of the attraction where the drop sequence begins. We waited just a moment and we were dropped for the first time. Josie got this wide-eyed crazy look for a brief moment. Then we started shooting up, she stuck her hands up in the air and starting laughing and screaming. She LOVED it!!! Not once did she make us feel that she wasn't safe. That was a relief.

As soon as we stopped Josie looked at us and said "Can we do it again?". We cracked up and explained that we had other things to do. It was a lot of fun to do the ride with her.

After we exited, we grabbed the stroller and headed over to RnR. Josie and I went up to the entrance and got a rider swap so that Lindsey and I could ride it when she finished riding with Joe. While they were riding, Josie and I went off to find some candy. We usually let her have a little treat while she waits on the big kids.

It didn't take long and Joe and Lindsey were back. Next, Lindsey and I rode the ride. While we were riding, it started raining. When we exited through the gift shop I could see it pouring outside. I was briefly reminded of last year's trip. Luckily, the rain didn't last long.

Next we headed over to Star Tours. They measured Josie twice and never even flinched. She kept telling Joe she didn't want to ride it because it was a "boy ride". We boarded our ride and we were off. Again, she ended up loving the ride and asked to go on it again.

Next we went to Muppets 3D. It was air-conditioned and we walked right into the staging area. By this time (11:30 ish), the brief shower and excessive heat had made it really sticky and humid outside. Like always it was fun and we enjoyed the show.

After the show, we went over to Pizza Planet and grabbed a bite to eat. We got there at a good time as we were able to get our food and find a table without any trouble at all. By the time we finished eating, there were people scoping out our spot and waiting for us to get up and leave.

After filling our bellies, we walked over to the shop outside Muppets 3D and looked around for a little bit. We were just wasting time before Lights, Motors, Action. The list the CM gave us for our GAD FP's showed that this was an attraction we could use our passes on. Turns out you CAN get an FP for the show but it means ABSOLUTELY nothing. We talked to at least 3 CM's and all told us the same thing.

We did get lucky though. We were looking for some seats, when Joe spotted a nice CM and asked her if there was a section for FP's. I guess he figured it was worth checking with just one more. She told us the same as the others, but wished Joe a happy b-day and then sat us in the middle section that is reserved for driver's families etc. They were great seats right in the middle. Yay Joe for talking to just one more CM!

After the show we decided to check out VOTLM. We used our GAD FP's to get some FP's for the next show. We had about 20 minutes before we had to return so we decided to look at the princess shop next door. It was the weirdest thing. While I was walking around, I spotted my brother looking too. Apparently, he had gotten to the park and was wasting time waiting on me to call him back. I never heard my phone ring so it probably would have been a while.

We chatted for a minute, rode VOTLM and then decided to head back to the hotel for a quick swim. The girls were chomping at the bit to get into the pool so we decided to go back for a few minutes and let them cool off.

When we got back to the hotel, here was the view from our room...

James came back and checked out the room. He borrowed a pair of Joe's swim trunks and the crew headed downstairs. It turned out to be a great idea. All of us felt so refreshed after a quick dip.

About 4:45 we ran back up to the room and quickly changed so that we could meet Mary and her family and the McF's for dinner at O'hana. We made it there a little late but no worries we were able to check in and were seated relatively quickly. We drove over to this ressie because we had offered to let Jay and Leona borrow our rental so that they wouldn't have to pay for a rental in order for Jay to make it to the Richard Petty Driving Experience at 8am the next morning.

We were all seated together and that's when the fun began. (James came with us too!)

Here are the boys with Pineapple #1...

Here's what pineapple #2 looks like....

Those are much bigger smiles huh?

After tons of food and lots of fun, it was time to go our separate ways. Jay and Presto took Joe, Josie and I back home, while Lindsey rode back with Uncle James. On the way to the hotel, I texted Mary and invited she and her family to come check out their new "home". They agreed and within about an hour or so they were there. I was up in the room getting cleaned up when Mary called and told me to come down because she had spotted Megan (Braveteacher). I hurried up and made my way down.

I spotted her right away. We chatted for a few minutes and introduced our family members. It was brief but fun!

We ended up hanging with Mary and her gang until about 10pm. It was a lot of fun. Mary and I had a Pina Colada by the pool while the little and BIG kids swam. This is when Joe decided that Cayley was his girlfriend. Cayley is a pistol and the perfect match for Joe. She gives him a run for his money. Soooo cute! This was another perfect ending to a great day! I wish I had thought to take some pics because everyone was having such a good time.

Up Next: MK/EPCOT day! Crystal Palace, Coral Reef

 

[Lifelong_Dreamer]

How odd that the CM would make such a fuss when Josie clearly was tall enough. Glad she enjoyed the rides!

 

[ladybugmom]

I can't believe the CM gave you grief about Josie riding ToT?! How annoying!! I'm so glad that she liked it!! Yummy O'hana!! I just love that place!! I always leave there soooo stuffed but happy!!