"One More Waffle!" An October 2011 TR! *Update 4/24, pg 70-The End!*

[Nermel9]

It's always so nice going "home" isn't it? Makes me all warm and fuzzy inside! I love the view from your room. It looks so peaceful! I can't wait to hear about the party! I hope it's not too crowded!

It was nice returning to the WL, I didn't want to repeat a resort so quickly, but we both love it so much, it really does feel like home! The view from the room was beautiful, but during the day, definitely NOT peaceful!

I love hearing the Welcome Home too! Only certain resorts do it. It's a DVC thing.

It's one of my favorite parts.

Great pictures of the resort! I admit, I've only stayed at WL once. But I want to go back for sure.

LOL, yeah, I figured it was a DVC thing, although I'm not sure I remember them saying it when we stayed at the Beach Club!

WL is beautiful, I wonder once I have tried all the resorts if it will still be my favorite!

I want to stay at the GF one day too. I blame the Tanners for drilling that idea into my head.

John has decided he is done with Disney. He also pointed out that most women were with other women and I should just go to Disney with you b/c obviously we ware both crazy people and will only have fun with other crazy Disney people. I am ready for a Disney break since I am broke after our last two trips. I am thinking of trying to get there in Nov. in 3 years and staying at GF. We'll see though. I don't think I could go to Disney with you and not bring Caitin. After the issues we had with her on the cruise it will be years before I take her on another vacation.

I am glad to hear WL is getting refurb. I never liked the rooms much, but did end up liking the resort towards the end of our stay. I would like to give it another shot.

Haha, yeah, I thought about Full House while we were in the GF too, it's so nice in there.

Haha, that's funny, I guess we both are crazy Disney people! Brandon is pretty much done with Disney too, for now. He's stuck going in May for our anniversary, but other than that, he wants a break, and I suppose I can understand that. But I have AP's and there's no way I'm only getting one trip out of them. I'm thinking of possibly maybe considering a solo trip next summer. I'm not sure if I'm brave enough, but I'd like to try it, just to prove to myself I can do it. If you wanted to come, feel free, and bring Caitlin too, if she wants! I want to go in the summer because the parks are open so late, I love the idea of waiting til late to go to the parks, staying there until 2 am and then sleeping in and hanging out by the pool all day!

I'm glad the WL is getting a room refurb too, I like the rooms, but I'm not a big fan of the bedding, and I hope they change the color of the walls! Other than that, it's fine with me!

Haha, your day sounds like the opposite of mine!! I had like 8 posts on my TR so far for this day and I'm just now at the point you are at. Next up will be dinner and the, yes, SOLD OUT MNSSHP!!! How did we not run into each other?!

BTW, your pictures of the WL make me SOOO happy I'm saying there in Feb! I LOVE that place and can't wait to be back there.

I know, I can't believe you did so much that day, I admire your energy, especially in that heat! I don't sleep much in Disney, because I just want to keep going, but I do need an afternoon break!

I thought for sure I'd run into you at MNSSHP, but there were SO many people there, it was crazy!!

You're so lucky to be staying at the WL in February, it's such a perfect winter resort!

I heard about the MNSSHP being sold out that night. It was sure crowded wasn't it?! It was a cast member discount night. Oh well!

GF was awesome to stay at. I couldn't believe it when we got the phone call to stay there last year. Greg still jokes that we should book at CSR again so we can get upgraded for free again. Talk about pixie dust!

I've never visited the Wilderness Lodge. There's one in Wisconsin Dells which is just a few hour drive from us so for some reason I don't associate WDW with the Wilderness Lodge. Weird, right?

I can't wait to read about MNSSHP! I think we may have passed by you guys down main street. (The only time I thought I saw you by the way.)

Once I found out that it was sold out, I kept complaining to Brandon that it figures, my first MNSSHP and it's sold out! It was really, really crowded, but still fun!

I love the WL, but if you have one near you, it makes sense to stay away from it! I always thought I'd stay away from the Yacht Club, since it's supposed to be modeled after New England yacht clubs, but I'd probably still stay there if I had the chance!

I can't believe you got to stay at the GF, and as an upgrade!!! That must have been amazing!!!

Ahhhh, you thought you saw us!! Why didn't you come say hi! Although, I thought I saw you guys in Liberty Square, and I didn't say hi either...I thought it might have possibly been you, but I was afraid if I said something and it wasn't, I would have freaked that person out!

When I stay at Coronado Springs in December I sure hope I like it more than your DH... and then I'll be sure to let you know so you can let him know... because you know, men CAN'T be right, right?

LOL, I think you will like CSR! I think we would have liked it much better if we had more than one night there, and I didn't feel so awful!

Sounds like a relaxing way to spend the first half of your party day. Nice view from your room!

It was a nice way to start the day, but I was getting kind of impatient waiting for that text towards the end! The view from the room was great, especially in the morning!

Ugh, ok, I know I'm abandoning my responses right in the middle of everything, but it's SNOWING here in CT, so I should probably go out and do everything I need to do before it gets really bad! This is ridiculous!

 

[BerrysGirl]

If it helps, my DH LOVES the CSR.

Thanks!

 

[Nermel9]

Jen, great update. I'm glad you were able to go "home." I love when they do that too (they do that for us every visit to the CSR, they did it at AKL and OKW...it just sends gooosebumps up your arms.

Sorry Brandon didn't like CSR. Truthfully, I don't think any of the resorts have a "true" Disney feel unless it is the values with all the big icons, etc.

Glad you were able to get in your room and take a nap for the MNSSHP; ours was very crowded too (we won't be doing it again).

I remember when that happened and how excited you were. I would have had to ask to stay at CSR or go to another deluxe because my DH won't even go in the GF to eat.

I'm with you on the WL. I don't think it is weird. I think we see certain places that remind us of other places near home and we don't want to be anywhere near it on vacation (I feel that way about the WL and the BLT -- the BLT because I work in Downtown Chicago and it looks like an office building to me).

If it helps, my DH LOVES the CSR.

I think we might have liked CSR better if we had more time there and I felt better. I really wanted to explore, see the pool, get a drink somewhere, but my migraine killed any hope of doing that after Epcot that night.

I'm not sure if we would do the Halloween Party again, I really liked it, but I'm more of a Christmas girl, if I have the chance between MNSSHP and MVMCP, I'll take the Christmas party every time! I just hope they don't get too crazy like the Halloween parties are getting!

I agree about the Grand Floridian. It really is the ultimate Deluxe resort.

WL looks so nice, and it's nice that you guys have a resort that feels like home. I'm still waiting to find mine.
I can see why CSR can get confusing, some places are so big and all the buildings look the same at night!

I bet your Chip and Dale earrings were really cute, and it's great you got a lot of use out of them at the parks.

Isn't the GF amazing? I could have spent the whole day in there!

Don't worry, you will find a resort that feels like home to you! We were lucky to find ours so easily, but I have a feeling that once we stay in AKL and the Poly someday, they will become favorites as well!

I love my Chip and Dale earrings, I should take a picture of them for you guys!

I know what you mean about Wilderness Lodge, it just feels so right to be staying there. Even when we visit there, I get this all over calm feeling. I really want to stay there next year on our trip.

I agree with you about GF being "the" deluxe resort, I think for me it's ever since the Full House family stayed there on their Disney trip.

Every single time I sign up for a text when my room is ready it NEVER works. Maybe it's just me.

You should definitely stay at WL on your next trip, I think it would be a great resort for baby's first trip! So nice and peaceful, yet so close to MK!

LOL, everyone thinks of Full House when they think of GF! I really love that resort, I can't imagine staying there!

We never get texts for our room either, I don't know why we even bother!

Aw I just love WL! If we were to ever become DVC members I would want that to be my home resort. Your view looks to be on the opposite side of our view from Memorial Day week. Hope it was quiet enough for you.

I would want WL to be our home resort too, if we ever bought DVC! I wanted to walk over to the villas but I never got the chance!

Ugh...it was NOT quiet. Soooo annoying!

Your pictures of WL are gorgeous! I definitely want to stay there someday, it looks so cool! And that is pretty awesome about the random wandering princesses at GF!

Thanks! WL is beautiful, you should definitely try it out someday! Although, I bet after your stay at the Poly, you will never want to go anywhere else!

LOL, they say "Welcome Home" at all of the DVC resorts.

Great pictures of the Wilderness Lodge. I love it there. Such a neat resort and the theming is amazing. You don't even feel like you're in Florida!

I love the welcome home thing! I wish they said it at every Disney resort, but I guess only DVC resorts makes sense!

Thanks, that's what I love about WL, you know you're in Disney, it has all these cute Disney touches, and you can see MK from there, but you also feel like you're out in the woods! It's amazing!

All caught up

Sorry you had such a dreadful migraine on your first day, nothing worse than a migraine, esp at Disney

Loving your photos of the WL, it is a beautiful looking resort

Looking forward to reading about the party

Thanks! It was pretty awful having a migraine, I'm glad I recovered the next day!

WL is so beautiful, we really love staying there!

 

[Nermel9]

So happy to hear you woke up feeling good

WL is beautiful!! I stayed there 2 times when I was younger when my dad took me to WDW and loved it even as a kid I thought it was amazing!!

I am eager to hear how your MNSSHP experience was, I saw a lot of complaints on the boards, but our party experience was great so I am hoping it was for you too

Thanks!

WL is awesome, I know we will be staying there again!

The party was a lot of fun, but it did have some negative points too. I'm glad I finally got to go to one!

So sorry you started your trip off feeling so badly. I am glad you got a good night's sleep and woke up feeling better.

I feel the same you do about being "home" at WL but at the Boardwalk for me. It just makes feel so happy walking through those doors

Can't wait to hear about your first MNSSHP! After all the posts about bad experiences, I was really nervous about the night we attended, but it was great, even with the "small" tropical depression that crossed over FL the week we there!

Thanks!

We visited the Boardwalk on this trip and loved it, now it's another dream resort to add to the list! I never wanted to stay there because of the clown pool, but we looked at the pool area and it's not that bad!

What night did you go to MNSSHP? I think we left right when that tropical depression was just starting, 10/8, and it poured SO bad that day! I hope that's all the Disney rain I have to deal with for a while, I hope the party didn't get rained out for you!

Glad you felt better. Wow, you had a beautiful view at the WL. Can't wait to hear how MNSSHP went.

Thanks! The view was amazing, however, being that close to the pool was kind of annoying, it's SO loud in the middle of the day! I will be doing my MNSSHP update soon, I hope, maybe even later, since I'm trapped inside bc of the snow!

It's really too bad you didn't enjoy CSR (I love it!) but I am glad that you got to go "home". I can't wait to see how MNSSHP went for you guys, I've been hearing some horror stories from it this year.

CSR was absolutely beautiful, but we just didn't have enough time there! Maybe we will give it another chance in the future, when Brandon doesn't hate it so much!

Where are all of these MNSSHP horror stories that everyone is talking about? I've only seen positive reviews! I sometimes wonder if people expect too much from these parties!

I was there in October (13-17, stayed at CR). I just started my TR, come on over if you have a chance!

I was happy to read that you made a miraculous recovery in time to move to your favorite resort! WL looks beautiful. We originally were supposed to stay there on this last trip, but grabbed the chance to move to CR on the AP discount. One day I'll get to see how pretty WL is for myself, but for now I'll live vicariously through all you WL lovers.

I will definitely join your TR!

Thanks, I'm glad I recovered also! WL is awesome, although I can understand moving to CR when you got the chance, I love how close CR is to MK! Did you like the pool area at CR? I really think the back of it needs a serious upgrade, but other than that, CR is beautiful!

I also love the GF! The only time I have been inside is when we ate at 1900PF in May 2010, and I totally fell in love. I will stay there someday too!

Your view from WL is awesome.

Can't wait to hear about the sold out MNSSHP. We went two days later!

The GF is so beautiful, I can't even believe it's a resort, it looks like a movie set or something! I really want to try 1900 PF someday, but I doubt my DH would like it!

The sold out MNSSHP was crazy! Lots of fun, but wow, the crowds were out of control!

I'm sorry to hear you guys did not enjoy Coronado Springs, however yay on going 'home' and being welcomed when you got there!

Love the WL pics and yay on meeting Aurora whilst roaming Grand Floridian resort - how cool! Looking forward to hearing all about MNSSHP.

I think we would like CSR if we got to know it a little better, we weren't even there for 24 hours so it was a bit confusing, and I felt awful, so that didn't help! I think we might like it more if we stayed for a few days!

I loved passing Aurora on the steps in the GF! It was just so normal, walking by a princess on the stairs! The princess tea party thing they have for little girls there makes me wish I had a little girl of my own to bring there...someday, I hope!

 

[Mrs T 2009]

I love hearing the "welcome home"! Makes things that much more special

I love walking around and exploring GF- I told my DH we HAVE TO stay there one day as well

 

[Nermel9]

Getting ready for MNSSHP!​

9/30, Friday

Once our room was ready, we went up, got unpacked and passed out for a little while! We didn't have much time, because I wanted to be in MK at 4 and it was already around 2, so I didn't get to sleep as long as I would have liked! I also knew there was no way I could straighten my hair either, but that didn't really matter since it was so hot, it would have just frizzed up anyway!

I was hoping to be at least waiting for the boat to MK by 3:30, but that didn't happen, since Brandon was taking forever to get up and get ready, so we didn't get down to the boat dock until about 3:45. It didn't matter though, we made it to MK by 4 so I was happy! I wanted as much MK time as I could get, especially since the Halloween Party was sold out, I figured we wouldn't get much done once the party actually started!

Once I finished admiring the Fall decorations, we got our MNSSHP bracelets and went in to MK! We had dinner reservations at Liberty Tree Tavern at 4:40, so we still had some time before we had to be there, so I wanted to take my time on Main Street to see the Halloween decorations!

Finally I saw the castle! I love seeing the castle for the first time on any trip! We never do MK on our first day of our vacation, so even though I might be in a different park a day or two before we get to MK, a Disney vacation officially starts once you see the castle!

Ugh...stupid crane!
​

We got closer and noticed all the cute little Halloween statues! I've been wanting to see these ever since I saw them in Halloween TR's from last year! I had to find the Minnie one and take a picture with it:

We did walk around and look at each statue, but we didn't have time to take pictures of each one yet, we came back later to do that! We were getting hungry, and our ADR time was approaching, so we figured we might as well go in the direction of LTT and check in!

On the way, I noticed such a cute window display at Sleepy Hollow:

I love all the little details they put into decorating MK for Halloween, it's too bad they don't do that for all of the parks!

Before we made it in to LTT, I saw this:

Disney popcorn! If you have read any of my TR's or PTR's, you know how much I LOVE Disney popcorn! And I really wanted to get that Mickey ghost bucket, so I took a picture to remind myself to buy one later!

We went into LTT and checked in and I was prepared to sit and wait like we did last time, but we were seated immediately! I didn't get to take any pictures of the waiting area except this

Our table was right near a fireplace, in one of the rooms in the back, I forget which room it was, but it was so cute! I really love the theme in there, I love American history, so I like places that make you feel like you are back in that time period!

Our server came right over, and she was great, she explained how everything worked, that it was family style and we could have as much of anything that we wanted! So we told her to skip the salad, since we're just not salad people, so she brought us our drinks and bread, and then started bringing the food out!

Everything was so good, it was like Thanksgiving dinner! The only thing I didn't really like was the ham, and not because it wasn't good, but because it just didn't seem to go with everything else! The steak and turkey was awesome, Brandon loved the steak, I think he might have asked for more, and the mashed potatoes and stuffing were great too! I don't think I tried the mac and cheese or vegetables, but Brandon did and liked them.

Once we were finished, our server brought out our dessert:

We were a little confused, because we thought the dessert was apple crisp, and this definitely was not apple crisp! So Brandon asked our server, and she said it is now apple sponge cake with Craisins, with ice cream on top. We were a little disappointed at first, but after trying the cake, not anymore, it was great! The cake was so moist and the ice cream went perfectly with it! We considered asking for more, but felt kind of stupid, and we were stuffed anyway! We both really liked LTT for dinner, we had only been there for lunch before and the dinner was almost as good! The only reason I'd say I like lunch there a little more is because I like being able to choose what I'm going to eat! But I'd definitely go back, for lunch or dinner!

We didn't really know what to do until the party started, so we went towards Tomorrowland to see how long the wait was for Space Mountain. It was only 20 minutes, so we hopped in line! It was fun, as always, but I always find myself wishing for a huge drop and it never happens!

Once we were finished with SM, we went on the Peoplemover, which is one of my favorites! Brandon doesn't get my fascination with this ride, so when I told him I was going to take a picture of him, he acted really excited:

Ha ha!
​

I tried to get a picture of the castle from the Peoplemover, and this is the best I could do:

It was getting closer and closer to party time, and I wanted to be in Adventureland when the party started, so we walked in that direction. We stopped to see more of the cute Halloween statues

And then we stopped so Brandon could see some of the ducks

When we finally got to Adventureland, we went on Pirates of the Caribbean. I think it was maybe a 10 minute wait or so. When we came out, I looked for the line to meet Jack Sparrow, and it was insane! I don't know how I missed it on the way over to POTC, because it was seriously half way down Adventureland! Oh well, wouldn't be getting in that line right now!

Since it was getting close to 7, there was another line I wanted to check out, the wait to get a picture with Cinderella's coach, so we went over to Fantasyland.

I was surprised to see that they were already doing pictures with the coach, I thought they didn't start until the party officially started, but it was pretty close to 7 so maybe they start early? The line was pretty short, so we got in and waited maybe 15 minutes to get our picture.

It's cute, but I kind of wish we waited until it was darker to do it, so it would be lit up! Oh well, next time!

I think this is the point where I started to get a little overwhelmed...the crowds were getting crazy and I had no plan! I'm not one for touring plans, but it seemed like some sort of strategy was necessary for this party, since it was sold out! There was still so much to do, and I had no idea in what order we should do everything...

Up next...the most rude person I've ever encountered in Disney World!

 

[tankgirl427]

I'm glad you were feeling better during MNSSHP! I have that same shirt and wore it during my trip. Also I love Brandon's shirt. I remember seeing it in the Disney Store and having to take a picture of it because it was so funny and wanting to share it with others. I can't wait to hear about this rude person!

 

[Stefy]

I love the castle hub statues for Halloween, they are just too cute

Looking forward to reading about your experience at the party

 

[amazingact21]

I loved all the Halloween statues, but I somehow missed Minnie Mouse! It looks like it was really cute.
LTT dinner sounds really yummy. But, then again, can't go wrong with turkey and stuffing.

I can't even imagine how crazy the Halloween party was. I hope the night became smoother.

 

[Dugette]

Nice picture with Cinderella's carriage! Can't wait to hear more about what your (sold out!) party experience was like. I do think I'm with you on preferring the Christmas party, but we enjoyed the Halloween one too. Oh no, a super rude person

 

[xoktenox]

Yay I'm all caught up!

I loved hearing about your time so far at the MK waiting for MNSSHP to start! We've only done the Christmas party and I too felt overwhelmed and wished I would have planned better! I love the picture of you two in front of Cinderella's coach, it's adorable

I want to try LTT for lunch one day. I'm glad to hear you say you liked lunch better than dinner!

BTW, I started my Disneymoon PTR!
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2825619

Jump on over if you get a chance!

 

[TanzUnited99]

Great pics of MK with the Halloween decorations! I agree in that a Disney vacation doesn't feel complete until you've seen the castle

Mmm Disney popcorn in the Mickey ghost bucket - did you go back and get some later?

I'm glad you enjoyed LTT for dinner and had heard about the new dessert - am glad you really liked it!

Great shot in front of the coach and I'm looking forward to hearing about the rest of the party!

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

I felt the same way at the party!!!! We all know that I'm a planner too especially when my parents are in town but we pretty much went with the flow and it turned out okay.

Can you believe that the parties this weekend and Halloween are not sold out yet but Sept 30th was?!

 

[Joyciemc]

I love WL! Haven't stayed there yet, but we've visited a couple times now and we just think it's amazing!

Can't wait to hear more about the party!

 

[IheartDDuck]

When we went to LTT in July, I was disappointed too at first when I found out that they didn't have the apple crisp. But you are so right. OMG, I ate the apple craisin cake, and I wasn't sad anymore.

I love all of the touches that they have during MNSSHP. It's really the details that make it so much fun to go.

Can't wait to hear how it went with it being so crowded.

 

[pinkxray]

LTT looks so good. I wish we had made an adr there.

I didn't even see those statues. I love when Minnie is in costume.

 

[KatMark]

I'm glad you enjoyed your LTT dinner. We've only done lunch and I'd like to go back; we skip dinner because I am so NOT a Thanksgiving meal person (don't like turkey and will only eat my stuffing ; but I'd be eating that ham you were served).

Our MNSSHP party was insane (I've not gotten to that part of my TR yet). I'm glad you guys were abl eto get a picture with Cinderella's Coach (Mark didn't want to do this)--it's a great shot.

 

[Shannon84]

Im so sad we didnt get a picture in front of the coach, I really love that pic of you two!! We were going to but I think there was probably around a 30 minute to 45 minute wait for it

 

[Mrs T 2009]

I love the Peoplemover We always go on it!

I'm excited to hear more about your time at MNNSHP and hear about this rude person! I dislike encounters with rude people at WDW- that should never happen; everyone should be happy

 

[shan23877]

Great MK pics! Can't wait to hear more about the party!

And the rudest person ever... sounds interesting