Oh It's A Jolly Holiday With Katie! - Beach Club / Grand Floridian

[MagentaMulan]

Hi Katie, I love your report so far!

 

[pmama]

Fabulous trip report so far! You are so lucky to be so well traveled! I love your style of writing and your enthusiasm for all things is uplifting and refreshing to read. I'm sure you've been told, but you would make an excellent Ariel. Looking forward to reading more!

 

[TheLittleKatie]

Joining in as well. Love the TR so far!! We are heading back to the world 9/9-9/19 so I'm excited to see the low crowds!!

and thank you!! How exciting! To me, low crowds are a priority!! You will have a great time in September

Woah! 40 bucks one way does sound like quite a bit! I'm wondering if a one day car rental would be cheaper?!?

Oh my gosh, Diagon Alley looks absolutely amazing! The imagineers did such a great job, from the looks of it.

And the fire breathing dragon on top of Gringotts is pretty darn cool

On RipRide Rocket, you get to choose your own music?! How are you able to do that, is there a screen in front of you? Is it like Top 40 type music? Or do you even know since you were probably closing your eyes the whole time

How cute, you were definitely Minion-like!

I love that they still have ET. I really enjoyed it when they had it at Universal Hollywood waaay back in the day.

The DOC!!! My DH would FLIP! Speaking of BttF, I found the cutest Valentine's day card on Pinterest that says on the front, "You're my density" on the front and on the inside it says, "I mean, my destiny" that i'm totally giving him. He'll appreciate it!

OH MY GOODNESS THAT PUG IN A SUIT! I have a Pug named Percy (from Pocahontas of course ) that i'm obsessed with. What a fun show!

What in the world...what kind of stretches are those?

Hey girly! Yes we thought of that after the trip, I think a one day car hire would be a good idea, if there are any that provide transportation to/from the rental place - although here in England we're used to driving on the other side of the road, with the wheel on the right hand side of the car, AND the vast majority of our cars are stick shifts.. I've never touched an automatic!! (- which I think the majority of your cars are?!) So that could make for an interesting read in our next TR

YES you choose a song to be played into the headrest of your seat on Rip Ride Rockit! There's a little screen in the seats and you get to choose while you're waiting to set off, here are the choices..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hollywood_Rip_Ride_Rockit#Musical_selections

What would you choose? I think Pump It by Black Eyed Peas would've been good! But you're right, I was panicking so I didn't even really register how to do it, or what choices I could make...!!

Oh my goodness, that Back to the Future valentines card sounds toooo good! I read it in George McFly's 'heroic' voice too

I can't believe you have a pug, that is amazing! I looove them. You should get Percy a little suit

Hahaha, I know, right?! Jamie turns into such a goober / infant at Disney World! I'm sure him and lil Calvin could be best friends!!

Haha, for the Dragon/camera stuff, I was totally only referring to those who popped the camera right after. I absolutely did it when it hadn't gone off in a while, so you're not lumped in with "them".

I'd say potentially worse. Within a year of it opening (and I had ridden it by this point) it shut down for "routine maintenance" for an extended period of time. It seems the builder of this coaster alerted customers (including universal) that used the particular cars used in that ride that they were flawed. This was back in 2010, and the ride was down for months. I don't actually recall if I've ridden it since.

Aww I know you were, I just meant I joined the crowds and stood aimlessly in the street waiting with my camera up in the air

Oh wow, that is really bad! How can you build a rollercoaster THAT big and not make sure that the cars are 100% NOT-flawed..?! I think I'll join you in not riding it again for a while

Hi Katie, I love your report so far!

Hello, thank you so much! And I'm glad you're enjoying it

Fabulous trip report so far! You are so lucky to be so well traveled! I love your style of writing and your enthusiasm for all things is uplifting and refreshing to read. I'm sure you've been told, but you would make an excellent Ariel. Looking forward to reading more!

Hi, thanks so much! I love this comment I'm really glad you're enjoying it
And actually, I have never been told I would make a good Ariel?!?! But that is AWESOME! Thank you!

 

[TheLittleKatie]

Day 3
(September 4th 2014)
You see, the most fantastic, MAGICAL things can happen,
And it all *ENDS* with a WISH!
Part 4 - Thousands of sparkling lights, and electro-synthe-magnetic musical sounds!

We left the Beach Club for an evening of night-time spectaculars at around 7:30pm.

I previously mentioned the super-speedy elevators at the Beach Club. You press the ground floor button and arrive pretty much instantaneously.
Well, as soon as we started to descend, Jamie decided this was a good time to check himself out in the reflective doors, so he lifted up his shirt and rubbed his belly, exactly like this..

And of course, seconds later, the doors opened to a bunch of people stood looking right at us..!

Jamie was face-palming so hard, and I could not stop laughing.

We walked to the bus stop to make our way to the Magic Kingdom (yay!) and arrived at 8pm.
We (I) had napped a bit too long, and the bus took about 20 minutes to pick us up, so we ended up missing our 7-8pm fastpass to Big Thunder Mountain.

But I really didn’'t mind because it meant we could take our time strolling into the park and down Main Street.

It'’s not very often you see the entrance completely empty! So we took advantage of the photo opportunity.

“There'’s so much room for activities!!”

(Veronica [HomeSweetDisney], I hope you appreciate that!)

We made our way to our 8:10pm fastpass to Splash Mountain, but it turned out to be a walk-on anyway.

While we were on Splash, Jamie realised he had never really followed the story, and he asked me to clarify.

(I'’m sure most of you already know it, but for the purpose of story telling, I'’ll briefly explain it.)

I told him about how Br'’er Rabbit is looking for some adventure so he leaves home to find his laughing place, only to be pursued by Br’'er Fox and Br’'er Bear.
Ultimately he is caught and is about to be cooked by Br'’er Fox, when he exclaims something along the lines of,

“"Yes Sir Br’er Fox, you go right ahead and roast me. But whatever you do, pleeeease don'’t fling me in that briar patch!”"

Br'’er Fox then throws Br’'er Rabbit into the briar patch (the big drop of the ride) because he thinks this is Br’'er Rabbits most feared situation, when in fact, we come to realise that Br'’er Rabbit was born and bred in the briar patch, and is now safely back home.

Jamie looked at me pretty blank faced and said,

"“So it’'s basically teaching kids that they should never explore life away from home because the world is evil and dangerous..?”"

WELL THEN.

He started to grin, and it became apparent that he was deliberately trying to put a negative spin on my favourite ride.

But I fought my case and I managed (with some difficulty) to spin it into more of a "“there’s no place like home”" story..

Look how much fun we’'re having!

We both got soaked !

And this happened again.

We then walked over to Pinocchio’s Village Haus for some food (I really like the seats on the balcony outside, and next to the window of It’s A Small World), but for some reason it was closed.

So we went to Columbia Harbour House.

We loved this meal!
I had the chicken pot pie and Jamie had the fish and chicken nuggets.
We both felt over-salted from theme park food already, so we were happy that they came with a BIG portion of broccoli.
(We referred to this restaurant as ‘Broccoliville’ for the entire trip.)

The food was delish, and it only came to $23 so we were really happy.

We finished up at 9pm, just in time to go catch the Main Street Electrical Parade!

Since we were already in Liberty Square we found an empty spot right on the curb.

(Click for listens...)

“Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls! The Magic Kingdom proudly presents our spectacular festival pageant of night-time magic and imagination. In thousands of sparkling lights, and electro-synthe-magnetic musical sounds:
The Main Street Electrical Parade!”

When we'’re at the front, Jamie likes to sit on the floor because he'’s so tall (isn'’t he nice).

Although this became a problem when the man next to me kept twisting around and slamming his HUGE backpack into me every few seconds, which made me almost fall on top of Jamie on multiple occasions…..

BUT I DON'’T COMPLAIN BECAUSE I’'M AT DISNEY!

(I love Pete’'s line in this video clip..!)

Click for Day 3, Part 5!​

​

 

[TheLittleKatie]

Day 3
(September 4th 2014)
You see, the most fantastic, MAGICAL things can happen,
And it all *ENDS* with a WISH!
Part 5 - Star light, star bright...

After the parade, we had fastpasses for Wishes, so we made our way over to the Rose Garden where the reserved area is.

But not before stopping at Sleepy Hollow for one of THESE.

Nutella and fresh fruit waffle!
Totally worth the $7. I would convince myself that this was a healthy, nutritious meal, and live off these if I could!

I didn't have time to enjoy it straight away though. Celebrate the Magic had started, so we squeezed through the crowd of people, waffle in hand, to try to find the Rose Garden.

We made it!

It had been raining a little earlier so the grass was a bit damp, but we were super prepared and had brought ponchos to sit on.

We so shmart.

A very poor attempt at a castle selfie...

Everybody sat down as soon as Wishes started, and I enjoyed my fruit waffle in front of the fireworks..

Perfection!

(Click for listens..)
(And credit to 'Menno Klerks' on Youtube!)

"When stars are born, they possess a gift or two.
One of them is this:
They have the power to make a wish come true!"

"You see the most, fantastic, magical things can happen,
And it all starts with a wish!"

Here comes Tink, right over our heads!

(Unfortunately it is very difficult to get a decent photo of her. In all of my pictures she looks like she's been fly-swatted..)

No words can describe how amazing this show is!

It makes me so emotional!

It is pure magic.

Once it had finished, everyone clapped and cheered, and we made our way out of the Rose Garden.

When we stood up we saw that there was a couple sat behind us, and the girl was in absolute pieces!!
She was crying SO much.

Her (assumed) boyfriend was holding her and rocking her back and forth, but we could tell he was doing his best not to laugh at her!

At any other fireworks show, she may have got some odd looks.
But crying girl, if you're reading this, I UNDERSTAND YOU.

I've seen a lot of mixed feelings about using a fastpass for Wishes.
But I will tell you, in my own personal opinion, I absolutely loved it.
I understand that Wishes is meant to be seen from Main Street with the castle being the centrepiece of the show, but I would rather watch it at this angle and be able to sit back and relax on the grass with plenty of space, rather than being stuck in the middle of the Main Street crowd with someone's camera held up in front of my face (a not-so-great 2012 experience..)

So if you like your personal space, this is the fastpass for you!
I will definitely be trying to get one next time I visit.

We made a quick bathroom stop at Tomorrowland Terrace, and joined the herd of people heading out of the park.

The line for the bus back to the Beach Club was huge, but we got on the second bus, so things turned out pretty good.

We're completely fine standing up on the Disney buses, so we left some seats available in case anybody else needed them more than us. But a lovely senior gentleman came down the bus behind me and absolutely refused to let me stand up.
I told him he could take the seat if he liked, and he kept saying,
"No no no, that is not how I was raised!"
He was lovely.
So I rested my little feet.

We got back to the Beach Club at 11:10pm and both crashed out straight away.

Seriously though, what was not to love about this evening?!

Splash Mountain
Columbia Harbour House
Main Street Electrical Parade
Celebrate the Magic (even though we were moving across the park during)
Sleepy Hollow Nutella and fresh fruit waffle
Wishes in the Rose Garden.

PERFECT!

Up next: Hollywood Studios!


*End of Day 3*

Click for Day 4, Part 1!​

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

Haha, so funny that Splash is SO POPULAR yet the movie that inspired it is pretty much impossible to find.

Hmmmm... Fish and nuggets? Oh heck yes!!! Broccoli? Just say NO!!!! Way to healthy for vacation, lol. But good on you guys.

I appreciate Jamie sitting down in the front row SO MUCH!!!!! Why are more people not that considerate??? And I totally feel for you getting whacked with a backpack. Been there. But yeah, I don't complain either Katie... Until I get home and unleash hell via a trip report.

God I'm seeing so many waffles lately. I'm trying so hard not to lick the screen.

WISHES!!! WHY ARE YOU SO PERFECT???? I just made a FP for this for next month so it's nice to see that it's a pleasantly relaxing place to view and now I'm even more excited about it!

Also, crying girl... Been there, done that, bought the T-Shirt. If Wishes doesn't get to you at least a little (but preferably a lot), we cannot be friends. And to boyfriend who was doing his best not to laugh at her... you don't deserve crying girl.

 

[HomeSweetDisney]

I just replied to one of your comments in my previous post, then spotted this one too

I'm glad you like the pictures, although to be honest they don't do justice to Diagon Alley! Ahh at least you've done Hogsmede and Forbidden Journey. Like I said in my post, I think I prefer Forbidden Journey to Escape from Gringotts. But as a huge Harry Potter fan you should definitely try and see it sometime! (also, just to build upon our new DIS-friendship, I also love Harry Potter, and I listen to the audiobooks when I have to drive long-distance by myself )

I know exactly what you mean, I am a WDW girl through and through, but they definitely need a couple more thrill rides. Because that's the main reason Jamie and I visit Universal, for a bit of a 'bigger thrills' day.

Ahh yes, in my personal opinion, the Universal Studios park is much stronger than IoA! We went back to do IoA later in the trip, and only spent a couple of hours there before heading back over to US

And I was so overjoyed to meet those Minions!! They're too cute.
Did you hear, there's a new Despicable Me spin-off movie coming out, it's called 'Minions'.. I can't wait!! I bet you and your little man would enjoy it

You're officially my new favorite person/BFF - you can quote Stepbrothers AND you love Harry Potter? You're awesome!!

The minions are so adorable and yes, I know Jacob would love them! He has the minion rush game on his tablet and is obsessed with it

“There’s so much room for activities!!”

(Veronica [HomeSweetDisney], I hope you appreciate that!)

I just got an image of us setting up bunk beds right there at the entrance of MK and I can't stop laughing!

I am DROOLING over your nutella & fruit waffle! I wanted one the last time I was there and somehow never got around to getting one. Sad times!

I totally 100% agree with you about the FP+ for Wishes. It is my ALL time favorite fireworks show in WDW and being able to watch it comfortably is a huge perk! I don't see it as a "waste" of a FP as some do.

Still having a giggle over your BF always having a wet butt after the water rides - he has some great luck huh?? You should have serenaded him with "I like wet butts and I cannot lie"

 

[STLMickeyMom]

what a great update! so much to do and so relaxing and fun! ok, maybe not a great start for Jamie with the elevator incident and wet tushie, but it's a small price to pay for being at Disney, right?

all of your MSEP pictures look great! so pretty! and that waffle.....looks so good! they have a special one during the Halloween party and we totally forgot to try it. good reason to go back!

loving all the fireworks pictures! since we've had the girls, we seem to be bad time managers and we've completely missed wishes every time. I miss it so much and would love to try the fastpass for it, mostly just to see Tinkerbelle fly right over our heads. your flyswatted comment made me laugh so hard! too funny!!

can't wait to hear about your HS day. it's my second favorite park!

 

[ursalita]

I love the image of Jamie getting caught in the elevator rubbing his belly. Your Jamie is a REALLY nice guy for sitting down. All I could think when looking at that picture was I hope it wasn't too sticky. He sounds like a great guy - funny and smart.

You got some amazing pictures of the parade and fireworks. I don't think I've ever seen a picture that good of Tink.

Your evening is pretty much exactly what I was hoping for with our first day at MK - dinner at CHH, parade, fireworks in that order. We've never seen the electrical parade and it's a must-do this trip. It's actually the only thing I can clearly remember from a trip to MK when I was a little kid so I have to do ie.

I'll have to try getting the FP for wishes, I also hate the idea of standing in the crowds which is why I usually skip the parades and catch the fireworks from afar. Thank you for the feedback, I don't think I would have even thought of it otherwise.

Have a happy holiday, Katie!

 

[mindylee847]

I am absolutely loving your review!! The pictures and gifs are great and your narration is fun! Can't wait for more.

 

[Leshaface]

You're so right it would be kind of scary trying to drive here. I'd say most cars here are automatic. My last car was manual and I loved it sooo much! I was watching The Holiday the other night and when CAmeron Diaz tried driving on the opposite side of the road on the opposite side of the car, it got me all nervous! I couldn't do it!

The playlist link you have is so cool! Nothing Country, but anything from the Classic Rock section, Daft Punk, Black Eeyed Peas, Kayne, Cypress Hill....oh man, i'd have to ride 10 times to get all the songs i'd like to hear!

I've tried many a times to put Percy in clothes but of course, like most dogs, he takes them off after a few seconds.

This has got to be a guy thing with lifting up the shirt. DH does this All. The. Time. Not kidding, if there's a place where he can see his reflection, he'll lift his shirt up real quick to take a look. I'm sure he's done this in an elevator before and i'm so used to it now, I don't notice anymore. What exactly are they looking for? That churro he ate protruding from his stomach??

Uh you quoted Step Brothers?! So i'll just leave this here..




DH would have said something smart alecy (sp?) along those lines too regarding the Splash story. Such Debbie Downers!

Love the Electrical Parade. When I was a little girl, we'd visit Disneyland and this was one of my favorite things to watch!

So if you get a FP for Wishes, everyone has to be seated right? No standing?

 

[HomeSweetDisney]

Uh you quoted Step Brothers?! So i'll just leave this here..

I am friends with you on FB - I followed your TR's too! I am Veronica Villarreal on FB, I wasn't sure if you even knew who I was when I sent you a friend request

Your son is so cute!!

 

[TheLittleKatie]

Haha, so funny that Splash is SO POPULAR yet the movie that inspired it is pretty much impossible to find.

Hmmmm... Fish and nuggets? Oh heck yes!!! Broccoli? Just say NO!!!! Way to healthy for vacation, lol. But good on you guys.

I appreciate Jamie sitting down in the front row SO MUCH!!!!! Why are more people not that considerate??? And I totally feel for you getting whacked with a backpack. Been there. But yeah, I don't complain either Katie... Until I get home and unleash hell via a trip report.

God I'm seeing so many waffles lately. I'm trying so hard not to lick the screen.

WISHES!!! WHY ARE YOU SO PERFECT???? I just made a FP for this for next month so it's nice to see that it's a pleasantly relaxing place to view and now I'm even more excited about it!

Also, crying girl... Been there, done that, bought the T-Shirt. If Wishes doesn't get to you at least a little (but preferably a lot), we cannot be friends. And to boyfriend who was doing his best not to laugh at her... you don't deserve crying girl.

I know right?! I managed to watch Song of the South online a few years ago, and I didn't notice anything supposedly racist. But I was doing uni work at the same time so maybe I missed parts of it.. I just love the songs, I wasn't even following the actual story properly Have you seen it and would you say it was too racist for release?

I noticed in your TR you opted for the fish and nuggets at Columbia Harbour House, how can you guys pass on that chicken pot pie?!?! I tried to force it upon Jamie but he enjoyed the fish and chicken too much Haha, I will choose chips over broccoli every time, but our lunch at Krusty Burger was so (deliciously) salty / fatty / greasy, I don't think we would've been physically able to eat any more chips!

Aww I'm glad you appreciate him sitting down! I'm quite small, so if we stand at the back to be considerate, I end up not being able to see anything. Of course i would always let children stand in front of me, but most adults can see over me, so this seems to work best for us and people around us

Hahaha yes! I remember commenting on your TR about how I also had someone swing their backpack into me too NIGHTMARE! And I agree, when we're at Disney we're feeling pretty happy about everything.. But once we're bored back home, we are allowed to sit and dwell on these things and unleash our wrath into our TRs

Those waffles are SO good.. With 3D printing becoming more popular, there is no doubt in my mind that one day we will be able to 3D print a Disney waffle.. No longer a need to lick your screen (which I fully believe that you do, by the way)

I'm glad you have a Wishes FP, I really do recommend it I look forward to reading about your thoughts in your new TR.. if you will be writing one..?!?!

You're officially my new favorite person/BFF - you can quote Stepbrothers AND you love Harry Potter? You're awesome!!

The minions are so adorable and yes, I know Jacob would love them! He has the minion rush game on his tablet and is obsessed with it




I just got an image of us setting up bunk beds right there at the entrance of MK and I can't stop laughing!

I am DROOLING over your nutella & fruit waffle! I wanted one the last time I was there and somehow never got around to getting one. Sad times!

I totally 100% agree with you about the FP+ for Wishes. It is my ALL time favorite fireworks show in WDW and being able to watch it comfortably is a huge perk! I don't see it as a "waste" of a FP as some do.

Still having a giggle over your BF always having a wet butt after the water rides - he has some great luck huh?? You should have serenaded him with "I like wet butts and I cannot lie"

Hahaha!! Seriously, if we were allowed to set up a bunk bed at the MK entrance, I would never leave! Although I'm not sure how we would decide who gets the top bunk and who gets the bottom..

Aww yes, you need to try the waffle!! And I agree about the Wishes FP, I was in my element! I think some people have a problem with the fact that you can't get a 4th FP until you've used that last one.. But since we travel at quiet times of the year, that wasn't a problem for us

Haha I know! I laughed at him so much when he was walking around with a wet patch on his shorts. But he definitely got to laugh at ME when we went on Kali River Rapids at Animal Kingdom... OMG..

what a great update! so much to do and so relaxing and fun! ok, maybe not a great start for Jamie with the elevator incident and wet tushie, but it's a small price to pay for being at Disney, right?

all of your MSEP pictures look great! so pretty! and that waffle.....looks so good! they have a special one during the Halloween party and we totally forgot to try it. good reason to go back!

loving all the fireworks pictures! since we've had the girls, we seem to be bad time managers and we've completely missed wishes every time. I miss it so much and would love to try the fastpass for it, mostly just to see Tinkerbelle fly right over our heads. your flyswatted comment made me laugh so hard! too funny!!

can't wait to hear about your HS day. it's my second favorite park!

Aww thanks Lori!! Haha I know, he's a good sport about it though. He was mortified at the elevator incident, but now he finds it hilarious!

Haha I like your thinking, there is ALWAYS a reason to go back!! "Hey, we didn't do Ellen's Energy Adventure... We better go back." But really, the waffles are definitely a legitimate reason to go back!

You guys should definitely try the Wishes FP! Especially for your girls. You'll all be able to relax on the grass, rather than having to pick the girls up the entire time so that they can see

Hahah Lori, I challenge you to try to get a non-flyswatted photo of Tink when she flies past!! It's so difficult, but I'd love to be able to see her cute light-up costume properly

 

[TheLittleKatie]

I love the image of Jamie getting caught in the elevator rubbing his belly. Your Jamie is a REALLY nice guy for sitting down. All I could think when looking at that picture was I hope it wasn't too sticky. He sounds like a great guy - funny and smart.

You got some amazing pictures of the parade and fireworks. I don't think I've ever seen a picture that good of Tink.

Your evening is pretty much exactly what I was hoping for with our first day at MK - dinner at CHH, parade, fireworks in that order. We've never seen the electrical parade and it's a must-do this trip. It's actually the only thing I can clearly remember from a trip to MK when I was a little kid so I have to do ie.

I'll have to try getting the FP for wishes, I also hate the idea of standing in the crowds which is why I usually skip the parades and catch the fireworks from afar. Thank you for the feedback, I don't think I would have even thought of it otherwise.

Have a happy holiday, Katie!

Merry Christmas to you too Colleen! Or 'Happy Holidays' as you Americans say

Aww i know bless him, to be honest it didn't even occur to him that it might be sticky... Maybe that is something we should check for next time

And you're right, Jamie is really smart!! I think he's the smartest person I know. Since you could tell, it must radiate off him!!

I hope you get to do that MK evening, it really is my perfect evening! The FP for the Electrical Parade might be good for you too, if you don't like the crowds I'm definitely thinking about getting one for my next trip I might try the popcorn too.. that popcorn smell at MK is amaaazing!! but I'm not sure it will beat the waffle

I am absolutely loving your review!! The pictures and gifs are great and your narration is fun! Can't wait for more.

Hey, thank you so much!

 

[TheLittleKatie]

You're so right it would be kind of scary trying to drive here. I'd say most cars here are automatic. My last car was manual and I loved it sooo much! I was watching The Holiday the other night and when CAmeron Diaz tried driving on the opposite side of the road on the opposite side of the car, it got me all nervous! I couldn't do it!

The playlist link you have is so cool! Nothing Country, but anything from the Classic Rock section, Daft Punk, Black Eeyed Peas, Kayne, Cypress Hill....oh man, i'd have to ride 10 times to get all the songs i'd like to hear!

I've tried many a times to put Percy in clothes but of course, like most dogs, he takes them off after a few seconds.

This has got to be a guy thing with lifting up the shirt. DH does this All. The. Time. Not kidding, if there's a place where he can see his reflection, he'll lift his shirt up real quick to take a look. I'm sure he's done this in an elevator before and i'm so used to it now, I don't notice anymore. What exactly are they looking for? That churro he ate protruding from his stomach??

Uh you quoted Step Brothers?! So i'll just leave this here..




DH would have said something smart alecy (sp?) along those lines too regarding the Splash story. Such Debbie Downers!

Love the Electrical Parade. When I was a little girl, we'd visit Disneyland and this was one of my favorite things to watch!

So if you get a FP for Wishes, everyone has to be seated right? No standing?

Haha ohh yes I remember that from The Holiday! Funny when it's someone else, but terrifying in reality!!

There are some good song choices, I think if I had managed to not freak out during the selection time, I would've been much more relaxed with some familiar music playing to me I would be seriously impressed if you could ride that THING 10 times..!! I really wish they would get rid of that vertical incline, then I'd be right there with you

Aww I know that situation. We got my dog Stanley some reindeer antlers and he was NOT impressed..!

Hahaha I know!?! They are an odd species There's never an explanation, like "oh, I feel kinda bloated right now.." NOPE. Completely out of the blue. Forget standing in the crowds waiting for Festival of Fantasy.. In our hotel room I got to enjoy many random stomach parades

I love how Step-Brothers is bringing me closer to DIS-ers!! There are a few of us who seem to love it! If we're ever in WDW at the same time, we'll have to have a Step-Brothers slumber party..!

Living in California I bet you've done Disneyland quite a lot right?! I haven't been there yet, but I'm desperate to go! Only thing is, it takes around 12 hours from London to LAX, and since it's so far away I'd feel the need to stay for at least 10 days! Although I'm sure I wouldn't be stuck for things to do?! That part of California seems like such an exciting place

With the FP for Wishes, I guess there's nothing stopping people from standing... We got there at the end of Celebrate the Magic, and everybody was stood up, but as soon as Wishes started, they all sat down But maybe if it's been raining bad more people would be stood up? I'm not sure what the 'rules' are, but everybody there on our night had the courtesy to sit down

I am friends with you on FB - I followed your TR's too! I am Veronica Villarreal on FB, I wasn't sure if you even knew who I was when I sent you a friend request

Your son is so cute!!

Hahah you guys! I don't use Facebook very often, but feel free to add me at www.facebook.com/katie1991
Veronica I had a quick look for you under that name, but there are a lot of you..!!

 

[ursalita]

Merry Christmas to you too Colleen! Or 'Happy Holidays' as you Americans say

Aww i know bless him, to be honest it didn't even occur to him that it might be sticky... Maybe that is something we should check for next time

And you're right, Jamie is really smart!! I think he's the smartest person I know. Since you could tell, it must radiate off him!!

I hope you get to do that MK evening, it really is my perfect evening! The FP for the Electrical Parade might be good for you too, if you don't like the crowds I'm definitely thinking about getting one for my next trip I might try the popcorn too.. that popcorn smell at MK is amaaazing!! but I'm not sure it will beat the waffle

Now that I read this I think I probably meant that Jamie was funny and NICE - what with the belly rub and the sitting down on the sticky ground. But I'm not surprised he's smart, too.

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

I know right?! I managed to watch Song of the South online a few years ago, and I didn't notice anything supposedly racist. But I was doing uni work at the same time so maybe I missed parts of it.. I just love the songs, I wasn't even following the actual story properly Have you seen it and would you say it was too racist for release?

I know, I pretty much agree. I think it's because we live in a very Politically Correct environment. Granted I haven't seen it in a very long time so it's hard to remember.

I noticed in your TR you opted for the fish and nuggets at Columbia Harbour House, how can you guys pass on that chicken pot pie?!?!

I always get the fish and nuggets. To be honest, I've never had Chcken Pot Pie before. I'm not sure if Id like it.

Then again...

I'm glad you have a Wishes FP, I really do recommend it I look forward to reading about your thoughts in your new TR.. if you will be writing one..?!?!

Well if this next trip goes even close to what I'm hoping, there's no way I couldn't do one. The potential is there for Best.. Trip... Ever.

 

[TheLittleKatie]

Now that I read this I think I probably meant that Jamie was funny and NICE - what with the belly rub and the sitting down on the sticky ground. But I'm not surprised he's smart, too.

Ahh that makes more sense!!

I know, I pretty much agree. I think it's because we live in a very Politically Correct environment. Granted I haven't seen it in a very long time so it's hard to remember.



I always get the fish and nuggets. To be honest, I've never had Chcken Pot Pie before. I'm not sure if Id like it.

Then again...

Well if this next trip goes even close to what I'm hoping, there's no way I couldn't do one. The potential is there for Best.. Trip... Ever.

Rob, I recently watched Peter Pan.. if Song of the South was banned for racism, Peter Pan has done VERY well to survive!!!

I LOVE that you have used that gif, so funny!!!

Oh my god, that has made me so excited for you!!!! All of your TRs seem to be the best trips ever, I can't imagine what you have planned this time

 

[TheLittleKatie]

Day 4
(September 5th 2014)
Hoooraaay forrr HOLLYWOOD!
Part 1 - Love in an Elevator.. Goooiiing Dowwwn!

Hoooraaay forrr… HOLLYWOOD!!

Can you guess where we went today..?!

I'’ll give you a hint, a certain attraction features the song ‘Hooray for Hollywood’.

AND I DID NOT STOP SINGING IT
ALL
DAY.

(So I figured it would be an appropriate title for Day 4.)

HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS!

I woke up at around 7:30am, but I let Jamie sleep in until 9am while I downloaded some of my Memory Maker photos and emailed them to my Dad.

We were out the door and headed to the friendship boat dock by 9:30am.

A boat was just pulling away as we got there, so I used the opportunity to take some photos.

The Epcot resort area is just tooooo perfect!

I was always kind of confused by the weird ‘definitely-not-a-dolphin’ -looking fish that sits on top of the Swan and Dolphin..

Our boat Captain later informed us that it is in fact a Mahi Mahi, which is apparently a Dolphin-fish.

Although this made a little more sense, it still seems that an actual Dolphin would’'ve been a more elegant statue to go with the elegant Swan that sits opposite it..?!

Please feel free to enlighten me if anyone knows the reasoning behind the Mahi Mahi!

Today I decided to get my pins out! I planned on buying a lanyard for them, so for now I fixed them to Eeyore’'s strap.

I hadn’'t bought a pin since 2001 (!)
The only exception here is the Minnie Mouse pin at the bottom, which came from a special pixie dust moment in 2012.
A senior gentleman Cast Member approached Jamie and I as we waited for IllumiNations to start, and he told me I was a "“baby-doll”" and gave me this pin!

It was possibly my favourite thing that happened on that trip!!

I had only read about little magical moments like that, and I assumed that they only really happened to kids.
But that was proof to me that the magic is definitely still alive at WDW!

We got on the boat at around 9:50am.

I didn'’t even position Eeyore like this on purpose. He obviously just loves the Epcot area too.

The friendship boat ride to Hollywood Studios makes me so happy.

We arrived at around 10:10am.

Hooooraaaay fooorrrrr HOLLYWOOOOD!

Hooooraaaay fooorrrrr FROZEN FUN!

(Ok I'’ll try to stop.)

My Magic Band decided not to co-operate, but I was directed to a Cast Member holding an iPad who simply asked me which park we had visited first, and when I said Magic Kingdom, she told me to go right ahead!

Super easy!

I had read some serious horror stories on the DIS about Magic Band malfunctions and people spending HOURS at guest services, but we were fortunate enough to have an easy breezy time with them throughout our trip.

Our first stop of the day was Rock 'n' Roller Coaster, so we headed down Sunset Boulevard.

We weren’'t doing Tower of Terror yet because we had a fastpass for it later, but I love taking photos of it!

“"Alright! Aerosmith is taking the stage! Whoa, check out Steven Tyler’'s hat!”"
(Love that line.)

“5... 4…... 3...… 2...… 1..!!”

"“Gooooiiinnnng dowwwwwwwn!”"

Although that kid behind Jamie looks super chilled (especially compared to us..) he actually screamed SO loud the WHOLE way round, I was almost crying with laughter!

After our trip to downtown L.A. we strolled up towards the hat while we decided what to do next.

And we spotted this guy!!

Oh look what we'’ve stumbled upon..

Hoooorraaayy!!

We were sat right in the back of our car and it was really difficult to hear anything, I think there was a problem with the microphone. But we enjoyed it all the same.

And we had a Cowboy take-over!
I’m glad because I’'ve heard the Gangster is more common.
(I think sometimes they only have the Gangster one running?)

I love when he tries to take the jewel from the Indiana Jones scene and becomes a skeleton!

We finished up at the Great Movie ride at around 11:10am, right when a Frozen event was ending nearby, so there seemed to be a lot of people concentrated in the area.

We started to head back down Sunset Boulevard to use our Tower of Terror fast pass, and I made a quick stop at the bathroom.

But while I was there, TO MY HORROR, I realised my Steamboat Willie pin (ie, MY FAVOURITE PIN) had GONE!!

I had checked my pins as we got off the Great Movie Ride, so it must have JUST fallen off.

I was soooo sad. I had had that pin for over a decade.
We retraced our steps through the crowd back to the Great Movie Ride but he was no where to be found..

'Twas a sad time.

In loving memory.

Needless to say, I removed all the pins from my bag strap.

And we went down to Tower of Terror.

Which, of course, cheered me up a lot!

Click for Day 4, Part 2!​

 

[TheLittleKatie]

Day 4
(September 5th 2014)
Hoooraaay forrr HOLLYWOOD!
Part 2 - Bonjour!

After Tower of Terror, the 11:45am Beauty and the Beast Live was just beginning.

I could hear the introductory music starting, and I physically could not walk past and leave it behind.

Ladies...… Take a look at THIS Gaston..

Oh my!

The girl on the left agrees..

(The version of Be Our Guest in this video makes me overwhelmed and emotional...! I LOVE IT.)

"Through the mist, through the woods,
through the darkness and the shadows,
it's a nightmare but it's one exciting ride...
Say a prayer, then we're there,
at the drawbridge of a castle,
and there's something truly terrible inside!"

I also really love this Prince..

He has the sweetest little face ever.

Look at how he gazes at Belle..

And this cheeky smile.

He is adorable.

And Belle knows it.

I love this show!!

When it was over, Jamie and I got into a bit of a domestic over Gaston.

Magic Kingdom Gaston is still my favourite.
He’'s so quick witted and funny, while Hollywood Studios Gaston just reads from a script.

Jamie argued that Hollywood Studios Gaston was his favourite, because he could sing, and had legit muscles.

He said that his Gaston would easily beat my Gaston in a fight.
But I said that, due to his quick wit, my Gaston would beat his Gaston in a rap battle.

So we had to agree to disagree.

(Seriously, this is the kind of thing we argue about..)

Back to Rock 'n' Roller Coaster with fastpasses!

Our deadpan plan was made so much funnier by the woman sat behind me..!!!

We realised we were kinda hungry, so we walked towards ABC Commissary.

We stopped by the hat to see if they had any Steamboat Willie replacement pins.

Sure enough, I found this little guy, and Jamie bought him for me because he is a sweetheart.

YAY!

Thank you Jamie!!!

At ABC, I had the bacon-cheese burger and a bottle of water.

And Jamie had the chicken club and a chocolate milk (!)

Hollywood Studios is a bit of a disaster for quick service meals.
This meal was just.. Meh...
It had nothing on Columbia Harbour House!

We finished up at 1:15pm.

Next stop, Toy Story Mania!

Jamie and I have a Toy Story Mania tradition where we double our competitiveness by playing "‘guess the wait time"’.

The wait time was posted at 40 minutes.
I took 25 minutes and under, and Jamie took 26 minutes and over, with a cupcake for the winner.

And I won!

Every time we have done Toy Story Mania the wait time has been really overestimated.

Raise your hand if you had one of these viewfinder toys as a kid!

*Raises hand*

I think these have been around for quite a while, but I grew up in the 90s and they were still the best thing EVER.
I had SO many of these wheels!

Ummm soooo… THIS happened....

I thought I had done kinda bad.. But come on Jamie, WHAT IS THAT?

He obviously got mad and blamed his “"broken gun"”..!

And I laughed.

We then went to use our fastpasses for Star Tours!

I love this photopass picture, and I find it really funny that the Cast Member took it from this angle, where Jamie is completely blocked by my grinning, attention-seeking face.

Why didn’'t she move around a bit to get both of us in the shot?!

Anyway.

Jamie loooooves Star Tours.

His main goal in life is to be the Rebel Spy.

The ride was completely empty, and there were only two other people in our ship! So Jamie was really excited at the prospect of getting chosen.
I told him to keep his head up so they could grab a picture of him, I really thought this was his moment!!

But they just used a generic photograph of a random woman instead..

Booooo.

If anyone has any tips for being chosen as the Rebel Spy, please let us know!

After Star Tours we went to the Backlot Tour, but it had a 20 minute wait... So we skipped it for now.

You know you’'ve been spoilt by the quiet season when you refuse to wait 20 minutes for something.

We then found ourselves wandering into an unfamiliar building and finding this..!

Click for Day 4, Part 3!​