Oh, Just A Few GALLONS of Pixie Dust! - A July/August 2012 TR

[StitchsGurl]

Yay another Marissa update!~

Your Up shirt is phenomenal - I want one!!!! Also, that hair bow is BEAUTIFUL~ If you could send me the link, that'd be fantastic. I'd love to see her work!

I absolutely LOVE Chef Mickey's - what a great way to end a great day at the MK~

Hehe Donald's such a cutie! I have had some of the best interactions with him.

Hahahaha I LOVE the napkin twirling - I always feel like I'm the only one who does it at my table {okay, so does my mom, but seriously, I get right into it, I feel like my napkin may go flying across the restaurant }

The Mickey Oreo ... thing (hehe~) is SOOO good, I just love it!

I'm looking forward to the next update!!!!

 

[emma212010]

I'm so happy you liked Chef Mickey's!!! I want to eat there sooooo badly!!!!! The food looks yummy, and it's a great way to meet the characters without having to wait in a huge long line!!

OMG, you bow is ADORABLE!!!!!!!! I love it!!!! I wish I wore bows more...maybe I'll just have to start! I'm totally PM-ing you about them!

My, oh, my Jacob's ice cream looks good!!! I'm such a sucker for ice cream with toppings! Plain ice cream is ok, but it doesn't have the full effect that a full on sundae has! What can I say? I go all out!

ANYWAY your Mickey Oreo...thing rotfl2 also looked delicious!!!!

 

[PopArtGal]

I also remember the Country bear not being loud enough. Plus the guys beside me had decided that it was the perfect place to have a conversation.

Rapunzel wasn't there during the July parade I saw either.

 

[PopArtGal]

Want to hear a secret?

I only eat the mousse on top of the oreo cookie thing hehe

 

[jecskc]

We were going to go to Chef Mickey's in a couple of weeks, but DH put the hammer down on spending and said we needed to really think about where the money for our annual passes was coming from. So I decided to downgrade our DDP to QSDP saving over $400 which is enough for one DVC AP renewal (we need four). So, sadly, I had to cancel all of our ADR's for our upcoming trip In the interest of compromise in my marriage and all, it wasn't TOO horrible and it made DH feel better, so I guess that is OK.

Looking forward to reading more !!!

 

[ShortStuff]

Wow!! Talk about some super awesome pixie dust!!!! : That's awesome!! I can hardly wait until next month when we will be back in the world!! We will be eating at Chef Mickeys our last day on property!!

Looking forward to more pixie dust!!

 

[marDgreen88]

I love Chef Mickey's. You seem to have my problem with charecter buffets you get so excited the charecters are coming you forget about the food. I hear people warning parents about that and that your kids may not eat but its not my kids that have the problem its me. When I'm at the buffet line I'm scouting out the dining room making sure I won't miss someone and I skip or miss some of the good foods by not paying attention.

Oh my gosh, I really do have that problem. I basically have the mindset of a small child. It's fine. HAHAHA. I mean, I was watching Donald like a hawk and I had to RUN back to that table! Forget the food!

I have to say, you have excellent taste! Donald is truly the best out of the Fab Five. In our household, Donald is king. He's both Alex's and my favorite, so I can definitely understand your excitement at meeting him during dinner. And your bow is really cute! That's such a neat idea, especially if someone gets headaches from the Mickey ear headbands. (*coughcough*me*coughcough*)


The food getting cold does sound probable when you're interacting with all those characters. But, it's totally worth it. You can hot food any day of the week back at home. It's not every day you get to hug Chef Mickey!


All those desserts look amazing.

Hahaha, thank you! What can I say??? Yall have pretty awesome taste as well! OH NO do you really? That stinks! They definitely are a good alternative then. I actually never ended up wearing my Minnie ears which is WEIRD for me.

That's so true! I mean... I could have easily gone back up to get more but I didn't even care anymore at that point! I'm ridiculous.

The desserts were great! I loved them all!

Awwww, loved it!! I've never eaten at Chef Mickey's, but it looks a lot like Goofy's Kitchen in Disneyland, where I have spent plenty of time.

In fact, the first time we ate there was Sept. 11, 2001. Yes, THAT Sept. 11th. We arrived at Disneyland that morning when all the horror was happening in NYC and DC. The Disney folks were absolutely AMAZING that day. They really took care of the kiddos and sheltered them from everything, while having closed door conference rooms with the news on television so the adults could watch. We were staying in the Disneyland Hotel, and while the parks were closed (understandably), ALL the characters came to the hotel and just played with the kids in the lobby and in special rooms where they served them cookies and lemonade and played Disney movies on the big screen. They took them to the arcades (all the machines were free), organized games in the lobby and conference rooms (jump rope, hopscotch, tag, etc.), read them stories (Cinderella and Prince Charming), and Captain Hook and Peter Pan were at the pool goofing off and leading games for kids who wanted to swim.

Goofy's Kitchen stayed open and the characters were SO attentive, sweet and wonderful that day that I couldn't help tearing up over it. So, I have a soft spot for those character buffets...no matter how cold or...um...average the food might be.

Ok, sorry about that tangent. Got a little carried away. LOL

Anyway, your photos are soooo cute!! And what a great way to celebrate a first day at MK....dinner with The Mouse himself!! *beaming* Awesomeness.

I bet the two places are pretty similar!

WOW. WOWWWWW. Please never apologize about telling stories on my TR. I really do enjoy reading them. It's so nice to hear how well Disney handled the situation. That is certainly a unique memory! Thank you so much for sharing.

Thank you! I agree, it was a perfect beginning!

Yay another Marissa update!~

Your Up shirt is phenomenal - I want one!!!! Also, that hair bow is BEAUTIFUL~ If you could send me the link, that'd be fantastic. I'd love to see her work!

I absolutely LOVE Chef Mickey's - what a great way to end a great day at the MK~

Hehe Donald's such a cutie! I have had some of the best interactions with him.

Hahahaha I LOVE the napkin twirling - I always feel like I'm the only one who does it at my table {okay, so does my mom, but seriously, I get right into it, I feel like my napkin may go flying across the restaurant }

The Mickey Oreo ... thing (hehe~) is SOOO good, I just love it!

I'm looking forward to the next update!!!!

AHH YAY ANOTHER STITCHSGURL COMMENT!!!

Thank you! Ahh you should totally get one! I love that shirt! I will GLADLY send you the link! Her work is definitely worth seeing, it's really amazing.

Chef Mickey's is wonderful! I agree, it totally was! It was a perfect welcome dinner!

HE'S SO AWESOME!!! Ahhh I love him so much. Just wait til you see the video!

The napkin twirling is awesome! What is with these unenthusiastic people?!?! Hahha TWIRL THOSE NAPKINS WITH PRIDE, EVERYONE!!!

HAHA. Thank you, that is the official name after all! I agree, they're delicious!

I'm so happy you liked Chef Mickey's!!! I want to eat there sooooo badly!!!!! The food looks yummy, and it's a great way to meet the characters without having to wait in a huge long line!!

OMG, you bow is ADORABLE!!!!!!!! I love it!!!! I wish I wore bows more...maybe I'll just have to start! I'm totally PM-ing you about them!

My, oh, my Jacob's ice cream looks good!!! I'm such a sucker for ice cream with toppings! Plain ice cream is ok, but it doesn't have the full effect that a full on sundae has! What can I say? I go all out!

ANYWAY your Mickey Oreo...thing rotfl2 also looked delicious!!!!

Ah I hope you get to! It's such a fun place!

Exactly!!! No time like the present, right?! And girl you know I got you!!!

Hahah I agree! Oh man, ice cream. I want some! Mmmmmm. TOPPINGS.

Hahah yes, the name is spreading!!! It was SO GOOD.

I also remember the Country bear not being loud enough. Plus the guys beside me had decided that it was the perfect place to have a conversation.

Rapunzel wasn't there during the July parade I saw either.

Weird!!! Maybe they'll fix it during the refurb. At least I hope so!

LAME!!!!

Want to hear a secret?

I only eat the mousse on top of the oreo cookie thing hehe

HAHAHA that's okay. I love Oreos, I couldn't miss it!

We were going to go to Chef Mickey's in a couple of weeks, but DH put the hammer down on spending and said we needed to really think about where the money for our annual passes was coming from. So I decided to downgrade our DDP to QSDP saving over $400 which is enough for one DVC AP renewal (we need four). So, sadly, I had to cancel all of our ADR's for our upcoming trip In the interest of compromise in my marriage and all, it wasn't TOO horrible and it made DH feel better, so I guess that is OK.

Looking forward to reading more !!!

Aww. Well, I bet yall will get to go sooner or later! Quick service sounds great too, there will still be a lot of great places to go. Saving money is always great!

Wow!! Talk about some super awesome pixie dust!!!! : That's awesome!! I can hardly wait until next month when we will be back in the world!! We will be eating at Chef Mickeys our last day on property!!

Looking forward to more pixie dust!!

WOW indeed! Hahha definitely! Ahh yay, next month! How exciting!!! I hope you love Chef Mickey's!

Thank you so much! Glad to have you here!

 

[LilAnn]

GAH! I don't log on all summer and not only am I still in the middle of reading your old TR, I am now woefully behind on this new one!

I must remedy that situation STAT!

Um, and why is ABC making us wait until the end of September before Once Upon a TIme comes back?

 

[PIRATEGIRL007]

I wanted to add I checked out Disney Ribbons b/c I loved your Donald bow. They were just too cool. I need alot of them, too bad I dont have time to get them before my trip. Maybe I'll have another trip soom I can wear the bows for.

 

[disneyhockeymad]

Love love lot your Up shirt! Amazing! And love Chef Mickey's, such a great character buffet! We've never actually tried it because we love CP far too much but I've read so many good reviews about it, including yours!

It is so perfectly decorated! I love all the little details!

Haha I hate that will I won't I thing that goes on with character buffets, I never know when to go to get my food! Glad you got it eventually though... Even if it did go cold! The desserts look amazing!

Your photos are all adorable, sorry Minnie kinds sucked though, there is always one isn't there?!

Can't wait for more

 

[marDgreen88]

GAH! I don't log on all summer and not only am I still in the middle of reading your old TR, I am now woefully behind on this new one!

I must remedy that situation STAT!

Um, and why is ABC making us wait until the end of September before Once Upon a TIme comes back?

AHHH! I'm so excited to see you back on here! Don't even worry about it, you are actually not too far behind at all! I'm still on Day 1 of the trip!

Ugh I wish I knew! I don't want to wait that long... it's still over a month away! At least it isn't the end of October like it was last year!

I'm so glad you're here! I hope you find the time to catch up soon!

I wanted to add I checked out Disney Ribbons b/c I loved your Donald bow. They were just too cool. I need alot of them, too bad I dont have time to get them before my trip. Maybe I'll have another trip soom I can wear the bows for.

Oh yay! I agree, they're awesome! I hope that you're able to get some for a future trip!

Love love lot your Up shirt! Amazing! And love Chef Mickey's, such a great character buffet! We've never actually tried it because we love CP far too much but I've read so many good reviews about it, including yours!

It is so perfectly decorated! I love all the little details!

Haha I hate that will I won't I thing that goes on with character buffets, I never know when to go to get my food! Glad you got it eventually though... Even if it did go cold! The desserts look amazing!

Your photos are all adorable, sorry Minnie kinds sucked though, there is always one isn't there?!

Can't wait for more

Thank you! I love it too. Hahah we went to Crystal Palace on this trip too. We're just a big fan of character meals apparently.

Oh I know! I mean the main reason to go to a character meal is to see the characters, so it would stink to miss them! I thought I was going to miss Donald! I didn't even come close to missing him but better safe than sorry! Hahah yeah, I could have gone back to the buffet to get more food... but I didn't care anymore. HAHA.

Minnie didn't suck! She was great! I just don't know where all her pictures are hahaha! They're probably on my sister's camera.

 

[marDgreen88]

IT'S TIME TO CELEBRATE MICKEY MOUSE...

...with a video.

I'm excited to share this one! It's so cute.

THE BEST PART INCLUDES DONALD DUCK!

VIDEO: Chef Mickey's!

Please forgive my dad's finger in part of the video. HAHA.

I hope you enjoy it! And remember, you can find my spectacular videos anytime on the Table of Contents on the first post of the TR!

Continued in Next Video Post​

 

[marDgreen88]

The One With More Contemporary Pictures Because They're Awesome

July 29, 2012

We left Chef Mickey’s and started leisurely strolling back to our beautiful villa. Well, my mom and brother didn’t. They basically sprinted back to the room. My dad, Anna and I did the leisurely stuff.

I couldn’t stop admiring the Contemporary! Something that I didn’t realize before is that the mural wraps around the walls!

This is the ‘back’ of it.

For all I know, the five-legged goat could be right in there. Sigh. I will find him someday.

MONORAIL SIGHTING… again!

I feel like monorail yellow was the most prominent one that we saw throughout the week.

This is what you see before you go out to the Skyway bridge.

This is the actual Skyway bridge. Nice.

I was basically taking pictures from every angle.

Poor little Contemporary Garden Wing… and Wilderness Lodge!

I’m a fan.

“OH, hello.”

The boat dock.

“HELLO DOWN THERE. I don’t actually know you… but still, hello.”

On the other side of the bridge you can see:

Let’s just count all the awesome things: Disney bus (complete with bus stop), monorail track, Space Mountain, tip of the castle. YEP. That’s a lot of awesome.

Let’s go back to the other side now, because I can’t make up my mind. Hello, beautiful Contemporary!

Well, that was fun! Then we really went back to the room. PROMISE.

But first, let’s take another picture of the pool from the hallway window… because it’s necessary.

COOL!

When we got back, we made a plan for the rest of the evening. My parents and Jacob were tired. It was understandable, since we’d been up since 4 AM. Anna and my mom had never been to the Grand Floridian before and they really wanted to see it. We figured that now was a great time to go!

The plan was for me, my mom, and Anna to get on the monorail to the Grand Floridian, explore a little bit, then get back on the monorail. Anna and I would get off at the Magic Kingdom because OF COURSE we weren’t done yet. My mom would stay on the monorail and get off at the Contemporary to go back and get some rest. Sounds good to me. LET’S DO IT.

Clearly, I’m a fan of taking pictures from inside the monorail.

Continued in Next Update​

 

[marDgreen88]

The One With Many Full House References

July 29, 2012

After a perfect ride on the monorail, we arrived at the Grand Floridian!

Our first order of business was to gawk.



…

Our SECOND order of business was to point out various spots that were seen on the Disney episode of Full House. We grew up watching Full House (literally) and would always watch the new episodes on Friday nights. My favorite episode was the Disney one (for obvious reasons) and on the Disney episode, they stayed at the Grand Floridian! To be honest, that’s the only reason my mom and sister even cared to go visit it. If it weren’t for Full House, the only thing they would know about the Grand Floridian would be the fact that it exists, and it’s one of the places the monorail stops at. I’m not even kidding.

Being the Full House fans that we are, we knew what we had to do: FIND THE PIANO.

(That would require us to go downstairs, so naturally I took pictures on our journey.)

WE FOUND IT!!!!

Since we didn’t think the piano player would let us borrow his instrument, we decided to stand NEARBY the piano and sing Jesse’s signature ‘Oh sorry that I spent more time rehearsing with my band than celebrating our anniversary while we’re at Disney but we’re in a classy hotel so I’ll sing now’ song.

“For the times… we’re at odds… here’s a gift… from my heart. And a breath… in your ear… telling you, I’m so sorry.”

“OOOOOOOOOOOH, AAAAAAAAAAAH.”

For whatever reason, John Stamos wasn't actually there to serenade us. I'm a little disappointed in him... I thought we had a deal. It's okay though, I won't hold a grudge (for too long).

We were also really excited when we saw the check-in desk. You see, the check-in desk is the setting of the funniest part of the episode. For the entire trip, DJ is basically hallucinating and thinking she’s seeing her boyfriend Steve (ALADDIN) everywhere. So when DJ and Kimmy come down the stairs (the ones I took pictures of earlier) and see Steve checking in, DJ thinks she’s going crazy once again. LO AND BEHOLD, it actually IS STEVE!!! They go running towards each other in slow motion, and Steve trips and falls. It’s hilarious and cracks me up every single time.

(Has anyone else ever wondered how Steve could possibly afford a stay at the Grand Floridian? Life’s mysteries, am I right?) Moving on!

Then it was time to go outside and find THE hammock. If you’re a Full House fan then you will automatically know what I’m talking about, but if you’re not, then allow me to explain. THE hammock is where Stephanie sat and sulked for a while because she just wanted to be the princess of the day instead of Michelle. Michelle was acting like a spoiled brat, which is not the way a princess should behave. All Stephanie wanted to do was ride Splash Mountain (and who could blame her???) but she couldn’t handle all the brat-ness that was happening. Joey came to talk to her about it, and she realized she was being silly because she “missed all her favorite rides!” Michelle, too, had realized her mistake, and she gave up her crown to a very grateful Stephanie. (Snow White was there too, because the princesses go with you wherever you need them in the television world of Disney.)

Will we find it THE hammock? WILL WE?!?!?

Well… none of those pictures include a hammock.

Let us continue on.

THERE IT IS!!!!

Okay, so there’s no way of knowing whether or not that was the actual hammock, but I say it is. Works for me!

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.

After that we were basically done, so we went back inside to go back to the monorail. Luckily I was able to grab this beautiful shot of a trashcan.

You’re welcome. While we were waiting for the monorail, the monorail attendant CM gave us monorail STICKERS!!!! I wanted to put mine on right away, but I learned from my mistakes from December (when the CMs at Magical Express gave me a Donald Duck sticker… and it fell off) and put it in my bag instead. Unfortunately it got really messed up over the course of the week. Oh well. It basically looked like the stickers they give little kids on airplanes, but it was for the monorail. Interesting, I know.

When the monorail arrived, we got on and took the short ride over to the Magic Kingdom!

IT’S TIME FOR EXTRA MAGIC HOURS.

Continued in Next Update​

 

[CandleontheWater]

your full house references totally had me cracking up! I loved that episode too, sometimes you can still catch it on TV.

Glad you guys enjoyed your time at the GF and sorry John Stamos wasn't available that evening!

 

[StitchsGurl]

TWO updates in one day??!! Sounds amazing to me~

I love being in The Contemporary. I could literally just sit in the Contempo Cafe all day and just admire its pure beauty. THE MONORAIL. *breathes* I've got tears in my eyes. It's just so beautiful.

Ahem. Moving on. I LOVE the Skyway bridge - it's gorgeous at night when the castle's all lit up, just stunning. Although, not fun when it's super windy outside, as there's obviously big open spaces that let ALL the wind in, haha. My hair can be beautiful when I start at the beginning of the Skyway bridge, but by the end - it's a rat's nest. That's why I always wear a hat. Problem solved

I LOVE taking pictures from inside the monorail and then posting them on Facebook and having people guess which hotel I'm outside of. Most people are like "Whaaat?" but my true Disney lovers know exactly where I am. Oh, the magic of Disney.

The Grand Floridian. Sigh. How stunning. I've never seen the Disney episode of Full House (I know, I know ... shame on me! *runs to youtube*)

The picture you took with the palm trees and the Poly in the background is beautiful. SO pretty~ I wanna be there right now!!!! *stomps foot* Ahem.

I thought I was one of the only people who took pictures of the garbage cans - I actually love the garbage cans at Disney - how they all fit into the themeing of each park.

A monorail sticker? I don't think I've ever seen one - or maybe I have, I'm not sure - but I want one, haha.

YAY for EMH~~~~ I can't wait to see all the fun that was had at EMH at MK, which is by far, my favorite EMH~

 

[GrimGrinningStitch]

Frist off, Donald is AWESOME in that video, and I love Jacob with Pluto. I always love character interactions where you can tell the characters really care about the people they're seeing.

You are totally making me re-think my stance on the Bay Lake Tower. What amazing views!

AUGH I love the Grand Floridian. Danielle and I have been discussing saving up so we can buy some points for the DVC at Grand Floridian that they're currently building. Hey, we can dream!

A visit to the Grand Floridian is one of my "must do's". It doesn't feel like a visit to Disney until I've stopped at all the hotels on the monorail loop, but I always like to spend an extra long time at the Floridian. And I remember watching that Full House episode and both loving it, but also getting annoyed with all the little inaccuracies. What can I say? I'm a giant nerd

Can't wait for the Magic Kingdom!

 

[MEK]

You update made me go on youtube to see if I could find that episode of full house, but no luck. Boo!

I think exploring the monorail resorts, especially the GF, looks like a ton of fun.

I do love that view on the bridge between the contemporary and BLT.

I see that the new GF DVC is coming along. Can't wait to stay there.

 

[monica23535]

Great updates Marissa!

Isn't the GF beautiful? I will stay there one day!

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

So funny that you posted this! Last weekend's "after the kids are in bed" activity was Brandon, me, and some awesome cheese dip, sitting in bed and watching the Full House Disney episodes! (Yes, we're wild like that!)

Here's what I took away from it:
Their park-hopper passes must have included time-travel, as well. They were all over those parks and accomplished SO MUCH before the three o'clock parade!
Steve just randomly spent part of the day missing DJ, then just showed up at the airport and hopped a plane and was in FL in minutes?? Mmmkay.
Chip and Dale just sit around waiting on picnic baskets on random docks, so make sure you keep an eye out.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but the last scene with Jesse playing in front of the castle is actually Disneyland, right? Sure looks like it what with all those trees. I could totally be wrong, though, so don't quote me. And the Rippers are obviously more than a little basement band if Disney is having them on the forecourt stage! AWESOME! So why are they still living in the attic???

We had a blast re-watching this, and now I'm pretty sure I need a GF pilgrimage, as well. I've never even been there ONCE! But I'd totally pull a Steve because I'm classy like that.