Our First Anniversary Trip! New Friends and Summer Nightastic Fireworks!!!

[iheartpluto]

Hello Everybody!! After FINALLY finishing our Disneymoon TR, I am starting this one! (Only a month after the actual trip, unlike the previous TR) I guess the first thing to do is introduce myself to any new readers (For those of you who already know me, I'll keep it short.) My DH and I got married last year, and spent a wonderful honeymoon in WDW and in Key West. It was absolutely fabulous, and if you want to see how it went you can [thread=2454134]click here.[/thread] I am one of those lucky people who actually managed to convert my anti-Disney boyfriend into a Disney- (and DIS!) loving husband! I count it as one of my greatest achievements in life, although I didn't even set out to do it on purpose. The story of how my DH allowed himself to go to WDW for our honeymoon is on the above-mentioned TR, so I won't post it here again, but I'll still give a brief intro. My name is Joanne, and my awesome DH is Eric. (Yes, my very own Prince Eric!)

Anyway, here's pic of us (just taken on the 4th of July while we were waiting for fireworks)

Yes, you're going to see lots more pics of us, but I like to start out with one anyway. I LOVE pictures so there's going to be a bunch!! On with the intro. We met in 2007, and fell in love almost instantly. Eric's so great, and he puts up with my craziness really well. My inner child is not so inner and sometimes I'm sure it bugs him, but most of the time he just pats me on the head indulgently and says, "Ok, hun." Um, what else... I love to knit, and crochet and lately I've been bitten by the tie-dye bug... (as you'll see in some of our pics!) I adore kids and my nieces and nephews are the most amazing kids in the world. (of course!) To round out the family, we have an awesome dog named Lola (that's her with her Pluto in my avatar) and a beautiful kitty named Mala. Lo is SO smart, we've been doing some dog agility and she loves it, but we're taking a little break at the moment for summer, and Mala is the sweetest kitty... She loves to cuddle and she's not stuck up at all, for a cat.

We adopted both of them from the Michigan Humane Society. Mala was 3 when we got her (she's now 5) and Lola was a 10 week old puppy when we go her and she'll be 2 in November. If I had the space and the money, I would constantly be bringing animals home, but for now they are enough. I think adopted animals are the most loving, amazing beings in the world (aside from kids. ) Sorry for the ramble, but animal adoption is a cause that I love.

Anyway, we decided to go to WDW for our 1st Anniversary kind of late... We had planned on going on a little weekend trip to Toronto (not a very far drive, since we live in Michigan) and we were pretty excited about it. Then, about a month before our anniversary, my awesome DH did some research and he called me from work and said, "Well, we were gonna live it up in Toronto and do nice dinners and a show and stuff... but, for a couple hundred bucks more we could do Disney for a few days.." Of course, I jumped on it!!! So, we booked!! I was SO excited! Then, in the process of writing my last TR, I made an awesome pal (actually, a few awesome pals, but I actually got to hang out with this one! Legs, you rock!) and we discovered that not only were we 1 day off from being wedding date twins, we were actually both going to be celebrating our first anniversary at WDW the same weekend!!! I was ridiculously excited at the prospect of a DISmeet!! So in the midst of writing a TR that was already a year late, I was planning another trip and planning on meeting new DIS friends... and basically on Disney overload. (No, that is not a complaint!) So, I hope that that's enough of an intro, and I hope you guys come along for the ride!

 

[iheartpluto]

Day 1 (Friday, June 4th)

DH had to work a half day this day, so our flight out of Detroit was later in the evening. My mom drove us to the airport, and we managed to make it to Orlando without any crazy issues, thank goodness. DH and I were a bit crazy, and I decided to try to pack everything into our carry-on luggage instead of checking any bags. We somehow managed, and so we walked through the airport down to the Magical Express station. Now, last time we didn't get to do ME, so I was so happy to see Mickey's face on that sign!!

Here's DH and I each anxiously awaiting the bus...

And here we are finally on the bus!!!

There was a little girl and her mom who got on the bus right after we did, and she got on the phone with her grandma and told her all about the flight, and the bus, and she was SO excited... It made me tear up a bit (because I'm a sap when it comes to little kids) and I thought it was just so great that she got to have this experience with her mom... Sorry for the ramble, but it's just one of those memories that sticks out, y'know?

We got to POP around 10:15 pm, and got our room right away since we had done the online check-in. We were in a preferred room in the 50's building, which was really nice so we hurried to the room, dumped our stuff and then went right back out to grab a bus to MK, since it was EMH that night!! Yay for Extra Magic Hours!!!!

We had to stop at Guest Services and get our AP's. DH and I decided to get AP's this year since we were also planning on going in January to celebrate DH getting his Master's Degree in December. Plans have changed a little bit, because instead of simply going on a visit in January, we are going to be moving to Florida! DH has wanted to get out of Michigan for a while now, and I told him that if he wanted to get me out of state and away from my family, we would have to go to Florida because that way when I got lonely I would have WDW to go to to make me feel better. Well, he took me up on it! So, we are now planning an apartment-hunting trip in November, and then a move in January!! It's SO scary, but SOOOO exciting at the same time!!! But I digress.. So we went up to Guest Services and got our AP's and... mine had Pluto on it!!!! It made my night!! DH got Minnie and he said he was ok with it, but as we stood there waiting for our Anniversary buttons I said, "You really want to change it, don't you?" And he said, "Yeah...." So the CM (I'm so sad I can't remember his name) laughed and said it was no problem so DH's AP now has Donald on it instead of Minnie.

So into the Magic Kingdom we went. DH decided he was hungry, so we went and grabbed a snack at Pecos Bill's. DH had the pulled pork sandwich, and I munched on some of his fries. I did take a bite of the sandwich though, and it was really yummy! After that we headed towards POTC and the wait was a whopping 5 minutes.

Right near the end of the ride, our boat came to a stop. And it stayed stopped. I don't know what the Pirates were intending to do with us, but they kept us in our boats for about 20 minutes.

This is where we were stuck:

Which, incidentally, is one of my favorite scenes. I even have the pin that has Pluto holding the keys on it! (I have a confession to make: I am slightly obsessed with Pluto. I know, I know, you would never realize it unless I pointed it out but I felt the need to come clean...) Anyway, the pirates finally let us go (I guess my "larboard side" wasn't tempting enough for them to keep me..) and we continued our late night adventure.

 

[Disney9.9.10]

Hi I followed the link in your signature and I am here for the TR ride! I am excited for a new TR to read. I absolutely love your tie dye disney t-shirts! It seems like this trip is off to a great start!

And moving to Florida?! That is quite a move, but you must be really excited! I have threatened to let my passport expire while on our Disneymoon and become a resident of Florida but that hasn't really been well received lol You will be so lucky to live so much closer to WDW - annual pass holders every year!? I think so! lol I wish you guys the best of luck with your big move!

 

[princessallegra]

HIIIIII!!!!!!! Yay for your TR!!!! You are very entertaining my friend!!! I love that you guys wore your matching tie dyes right off the bat! They are super cute. Can't wait to read more mama!!!

 

[tashybea]

Moving to Florida????? That is amazing. You lucky, lucky lady. Think of all the TR's you'll be able to entertain me with then?? lol.

Your pets are gorgeous, your cat looks very much like our oldest cat. I love cats, would have a house full of them if i could.

Looking forward to reading the rest of your trip.

I am loving the brown hair by the way

 

[iheartpluto]

HIIIIII!!!!!!! Yay for your TR!!!! You are very entertaining my friend!!! I love that you guys wore your matching tie dyes right off the bat! They are super cute. Can't wait to read more mama!!!

Thank you!! I was so excited that Eric actually wore his tie-dyes!!! I didn't even have to twist his arm!

Hi I followed the link in your signature and I am here for the TR ride! I am excited for a new TR to read. I absolutely love your tie dye disney t-shirts! It seems like this trip is off to a great start!

And moving to Florida?! That is quite a move, but you must be really excited! I have threatened to let my passport expire while on our Disneymoon and become a resident of Florida but that hasn't really been well received lol You will be so lucky to live so much closer to WDW - annual pass holders every year!? I think so! lol I wish you guys the best of luck with your big move!

Yay, you're here! The whole moving to Florida thing is ridiculously exciting and unbelievably terrifying... And yes, we'll definitely never let our AP's expire!! Especially now that there is a payment plan for them for Florida residents!

Moving to Florida????? That is amazing. You lucky, lucky lady. Think of all the TR's you'll be able to entertain me with then?? lol.

Your pets are gorgeous, your cat looks very much like our oldest cat. I love cats, would have a house full of them if i could.

Looking forward to reading the rest of your trip.

I am loving the brown hair by the way

Hey Tash!!! Thanks for the hair compliment! I got it cut right before we left, and I was scared it was too short so it's nice to hear that people like it. I think that once we actually move there I'll just have to keep up a monthly TR for you guys... Unless I start working there or something. In that case it'll be picture of the day!!!

 

[jc040404]

Wow! That's quite a big move!!

Signing on to hear more!!

 

[iheartpluto]

Wow! That's quite a big move!!

Signing on to hear more!!

And yes, it's definitely a big move!! Thanks for being here!!!

 

[pixiegirl]

I wish I could pack up and move to be near the mouse but I don't think DF would do it. Lucky you!! It must be scary but you will have fun!!

 

[iheartpluto]

I wish I could pack up and move to be near the mouse but I don't think DF would do it. Lucky you!! It must be scary but you will have fun!!

Aw, thanks so much! It's funny, I never thought anything like this would happen, but it just goes to show; you never know where life will take you!

 

[Luvchefmic]

Aw, thanks so much! It's funny, I never thought anything like this would happen, but it just goes to show; you never know where life will take you!

That is so true...I have to point out something to you you mentioned that you're the one that not only has an inner kid but an outward kid especially at WDW...well you have a DH that is made for you. His reaction to Minnie on his AP & his happiness to now have Donald confirmed for me what I was already guessing by reading your Disneymoon report...he's a Disney Kid too !! I mean you can see it on his face in the pictures too

Yes a move is scary, I've been going to WDW forever but DH, Me, our cat, 8 dogs, and our horse moved down from NY it will be 2 yrs this Sept.

You can have a ready made friend here in Fl who can help in the times when you miss your Mom (I'm 55 but when I go to WDW I drop 50 yrs off that number ) and I know you'll want to meet our "kids"

Ruthie

 

[iheartpluto]

That is so true...I have to point out something to you you mentioned that you're the one that not only has an inner kid but an outward kid especially at WDW...well you have a DH that is made for you. His reaction to Minnie on his AP & his happiness to now have Donald confirmed for me what I was already guessing by reading your Disneymoon report...he's a Disney Kid too !! I mean you can see it on his face in the pictures too

Yes a move is scary, I've been going to WDW forever but DH, Me, our cat, 8 dogs, and our horse moved down from NY it will be 2 yrs this Sept.

You can have a ready made friend here in Fl who can help in the times when you miss your Mom (I'm 55 but when I go to WDW I drop 50 yrs off that number ) and I know you'll want to meet our "kids"

Ruthie

You know, it's so funny because everyone says I converted him into loving WDW, but it really was just the magic of the place that did it! We had so much fun on our honeymoon that he was talking about DVC when we came back! (Not that we'll need that with the move coming, but still...) 8 dogs!! And a horse!! You sound exactly like who I want to be "when I grow up!" I used to have a horse too, and giving him up was the first major grown up decision I ever made. I was going to school and working two jobs to feed him, but that meant I had no time for him, and that wasn't fair. It was the hardest thing I ever did, giving him up, but I know that it was the right decision at the time... Sorry, thinking about him still makes me sad. And thank you so much for the offer, I would LOVE to meet your kids!! Lola would have a whole bunch of friends to play with!!! And I would get to kiss a horsey nose again... And I have to tell you, your kind words made me tear up a bit... I really appreciate them.

 

[Luvchefmic]

consider yourself & Eric to be "adopted" into our family..hopefully you won't move too far away from us.....see now the move is not scary at all...Ruthie

 

[iheartpluto]

consider yourself & Eric to be "adopted" into our family..hopefully you won't move too far away from us.....see now the move is not scary at all...Ruthie

Ruthie, you are amazing and wonderful. I really appreciate that! It definitely helps to know that we already have a friend in the area. I like being adopted!!

 

[iheartpluto]

After spending some quality time with the Pirates we went back towards BTMR, which I LOVE to ride in the dark! It wasn't a bad wait at all, and after that we went on Haunted Mansion. I LOVE Haunted Mansion!! I think it has something to do with watching all of those Wonderful World of Disneys when I was a kid. I remember seeing the ones where Walt was talking about Haunted Mansion and POTC, and it was one of my biggest childhood wishes to see the dancing ghosts! I get a kick out of it every time!!. On our way out of Liberty Square, I saw what looked like wet spots on the ground and I thought, "That's odd, it didn't rain lately..." When we got closer and into better light we saw these!

and then I turned around and DH said "Look, honey!" and I saw a CM busy working on another one!

Here's Donald all finished:

I think I glowed with Pixie Dust the whole rest of the night! It's so hard to explain to people why I love Disney so much, but I think if everyone got to experience little moments of magic like this, and then realize the fact that Disney goes out of its way to make them happen nobody would ever ask that question again!

After enjoying the water pictures for a bit, DH wandered around for a while just drinking in MK and we found ourselves in Tomorrow Land.DH and I had to go on Space Ranger Spin, and I kicked his butt! That is so gratifying, because he's such a gamer. I play some video games too (just got Lego Harry Potter! I die!) but not like he does, so I'm always very happy when I win! Luckily, he's a good sport. After that we went on Stitch's Great Escape. While we were waiting to be briefed, the CM shouted, "I found a Hidden Mickey!" and pointed at my tie-dye shirt! I laughed, and gestured at DH and the CM said, "I found another one!" It was fun, and I always enjoy interacting with the CMs. (I wonder if that's because I long to be one...? Hmmm....) We went into the gift shop, and DH got a pic of Stitch nomming on my head:

Walking out of Tomorrow Land on the bridge, I turned and got a pic

And also took some pretty castle pics. (I always take a TON of castle pics. It never gets old!)

And then we strolled out of MK to our bus back to Pop. It was a perfect first night!

 

[Luvchefmic]

In case you didn't see it on the other board...sent you a PM

 

[iheartpluto]

In case you didn't see it on the other board...sent you a PM

Thanks, just replied!

 

[iheartpluto]

Day 2 (Saturday, June 5th)

We woke up and got ready pretty early that day, and we were going to spend the day at Epcot. While we were walking to the bus, DH snapped a pic of me in front of our hotel building.

We got to Epcot pretty early, and went over to grab our FastPasses for Soarin', then we went over to Test Track. I really like Test Track, and I totally appreciate (especially since we're from Michigan) seeing all of the GM stuff in the queue line. It puzzled me to see that people had taken keys from the keyboard of the computer near the entrance of the queue. I mean, is that really necessary? I don't agree with thievery or anything, but if you're gonna steal something, wouldn't it be better to get something more valuable? People, if all you want is a souvenir from Test Track, take a picture or something. After being tossed around in our test vehicle, we went over to hop in a clamshell for an adventure with Nemo.

I always feel so bad for Peach at the end of that ride... I'd like to rescue her so she doesn't have to listen to everyone singing anymore, but I never seem to remember to bring a container to put her in. Plus, I don't think they'd let me bring her on the plane...

Anyway, our next stop was an appointment to have a conversation with Crush. He's a very entertaining turtle! However, he was entertaining other guests when we arrived, so I took some pics while we were waiting. (Crush has a very nice waiting room, I must say...)

I just love the colors of these tiles!

DH patiently waiting...

While we were waiting, I noticed that there was a stingray trying to escape his pool. He would bob up and down, but he never could get a grip on the wall. Poor guy.

Crush was very entertaining, and so were the kids in the audience. He was taking questions and one little girl, instead of asking a question, said, "My cat always scratches..." Everybody laughed, and Crush said, "Your cat always scratches? That's good to know... (really long pause) What's a cat?" He cracked me up!

After being thoroughly entertained, we decided to go back to Pop and chillax for a couple hours before we went back to Epcot to drink around the world. (This would be our third attempt, since both times we tried this on our honeymoon we got rained out!) When we got back to Pop, we found our first and only towel animal in our window!

We changed and went swimming for a while in the Hippy Dippy pool (such a fun name!) and then relaxed for a bit before heading back to Epcot...

 

[msnwithers]

Fun times!! I'm in!

 

[iheartpluto]

Fun times!! I'm in!

Hi!!! And Thanks for hangin' out!