Our Royal Adventure: Nine Nifty Nights in November (Updated 6/4)

[MickeyMomTo2]

I am happy to report that I have not fallen off the face of the earth, but I am so sorry it has been almost a month since my last update! I plan to restart the writing later today. Hope I haven't lost everyone!

 

[MickeyMomTo2]

DH and DS had arrived the night before, and we woke up on Friday ready for some family fun! We planned the trip so that DH and DS would have a few days before the big Thanksgiving crowds arrived. DS did have to miss a day of middle school to do this, but it was worth it!

First thing on Friday, we headed to the Magic Kingdom. We are almost always rope drop people, and I have to get to the MK early because the Welcome Show is my favorite way to start the day. While we wait, we usually take the time to put on sunscreen or eat a granola bar for breakfast (we don't like to waste time sitting down for breakfast when we could be enjoying short lines, and we don't want to wake up earlier). What else did we do to kill the time before opening?


036 - Copy by baseballsandbows, on Flickr

We don't let our kids have their devices out all the time, but they sure do come in handy with the waiting! And, the wireless in the parks is great for this. DD was actually watching a show on her Disney Channel app. We also used this time for a family photo.


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After rope drop, we went to Space Mountain to grab some Fastpasses. The machines weren't online yet, so I waited there while the rest of the crew went to Buzz. DH was clearly thrilled when they took this picture.


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I made it over to the exit at Buzz in time to snap the obligatory "Locked Up with Zurg" photo.


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Next up was the Tomorrowland Speedway. My kids LOVE this attraction. I guess all kids like having the opportunity to drive. Riding with DS is smoother than riding with DD. Since I had the bumpy pleasure of riding with her during our Mom/Daughter time, I opted for the less jerky ride this time around.


225 by baseballsandbows, on Flickr

Next, we were off to Fantasyland for Pooh and Peter Pan. I'm glad that DS still enjoys these attractions even though he is quickly approaching the teen years! Bouncing with Tigger is always one of our favorites.


232 by baseballsandbows, on Flickr

After Peter Pan, we went back over to Space Mountain. We had four Fastpasses, but DH and I don't ride this anymore now that the kids can ride alone (too jerky and makes us sick), so the kids rode twice. DS loves Space Mountain, and he especially likes knowing where the cameras are.


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At this point, it was about 10:20 and time for us to head to our late breakfast reservation at 'Ohana. When we are eating breakfast at a table service location, we prefer booking the latest seating (a little after 11:00 in this case). It serves as an early lunch, but we still get to take advantage of the low lines at rope drop before stopping for a meal. On the way out of MK, we posed for a few pictures, and then hopped on the monorail bound for the Poly.


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Coming soon...Our Full Day at Magic Kingdom, Part Two!

 

[Chilly]

Yeah your back.

I like that idea of a late breakfast/early lunch, I might do that next time we go, makes loads of sense.

 

[jedijill]

I'm glad you are back and updating! Late breakfast/early lunch is a smart plan!

Jill in CO

 

[scottny]

Great update and pics.

 

[ProudMommyof2]

Great am and fantastic pictures!
Glad you are back!

 

[chattadisser]

What a fun mother/daughter mini-trip and now onto the full family fun. I agree the dinner at 1900 Park Pare is not my favorite but the Tremaine family is so entertaining.

You all packed a lot into the morning portion of your MK day!

Christine

 

[MickeyMomTo2]

Yeah your back.

I like that idea of a late breakfast/early lunch, I might do that next time we go, makes loads of sense.

I'm glad you are back and updating! Late breakfast/early lunch is a smart plan!

Jill in CO

Great update and pics.

Great am and fantastic pictures!
Glad you are back!

What a fun mother/daughter mini-trip and now onto the full family fun. I agree the dinner at 1900 Park Pare is not my favorite but the Tremaine family is so entertaining.

You all packed a lot into the morning portion of your MK day!

Christine

Thanks to all of you for sticking with me! I'm trying to do better. We are building a house and getting our current house ready to sell, so it's crazy around here!

 

[MickeyMomTo2]

As we left Magic Kingdom for the Poly, my DD wanted to ride the boat. There was no watercraft in sight, so we decided on the monorail instead. We made it to 'Ohana a little early for our 11:10 reservation, but we were ready to eat!


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The kids and I had eaten breakfast at 'Ohana two years before, but DH had never been there. We were excited for him to enjoy the biscuits, Mickey Waffles, sausage, eggs, and potatoes! Of course, visiting with Mickey, Pluto, Lilo and Stitch was part of the fun as well!


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238 by baseballsandbows, on Flickr


241 by baseballsandbows, on Flickr


248 by baseballsandbows, on Flickr


252 by baseballsandbows, on Flickr

DD and I participated in the parade (she wouldn't go without me), but DH and DS were way too cool for that. After completely stuffing ourselves, particularly with waffes and biscuits, we rolled ourselves out of 'Ohana. DD really wanted to ride the boat, and DS wanted to return to MK on the monorail, so we divided up. DS and I headed to the monorail, while DD and DH chose the boat.

DS and I arrived first, and he wanted to explore the Swiss Family Tree House while we waited for DH and DD. Once we were all together again, we headed to the Jungle Cruise, or the Jingle Cruise as it was called on this trip. The holiday theme was especially cute in the queue, but I thought they could have done even more with it during the actual ride. I just love the Jungle Cruise, and I love that my kids are starting to really get the jokes! As an added bonus (I think it was Limited Time Magic), we got a souvenir Jingle Cruise poster as we were leaving. I'll try to get a picture and add it to the report tomorrow.


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258 by baseballsandbows, on Flickr

Next up was Pirates, Big Thunder and Splash. We had Fastpass+ reservations for Big Thunder and Splash, but the lines were still relatively low, so we rode twice. It was so nice to have a slow day before the Thanksgiving crowds started pouring in over the weekend!


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Notice DH did NOT want to get wet:


wdw201332623052419_6887678524 by baseballsandbows, on Flickr

The second time he was risky and didn't wear the hood:


wdw201332623044704_6887667677 by baseballsandbows, on Flickr

Although we had completely stuffed ourselves at 'Ohana, my DS was suddenly starving. That might have had something to do with the fact that he spotted the ice cream cart. This isn't a great picture, but he loves these Mickey sandwiches!


044 - Copy by baseballsandbows, on Flickr

Coming Up...More MK fun and more food in "Our Full Day at Magic Kingdom, Part Three!"

 

[jedijill]

Sounds like a fun day so far!

Jill in CO

 

[chattadisser]

Great Splash Mountain pictures! It looks like you all were having a wonderful time.

Christine

 

[scottny]

Great updates and pics.

Nice breakfast pics.

 

[MickeyMomTo2]

Okay, I fell off the face of the earth again, and I am sorry. Actually, I was getting our house ready to go on the market and making decisions for the house we are building. I am happy to report that our house went on the market last Friday, and by Sunday evening we had an offer! We don't have to move out until July (our new house will be ready in early August), so my stress level has gone down significantly! Since I am not having to keep my house spotless 24/7, I am planning to knock out this trip report before things get crazy again. I'm sure I've lost most readers by now, but I want to document the trip for my own sake--I love to go back and read the details (if I can even remember them to write about them at this point).

So...I'll be back tonight with a new post. I'm looking forward to writing the report again!

 

[MickeyMomTo2]

I ended the previous section with my DS eating a snack, even though there was no possible way he could be hungry. Of course, I followed suit almost immediately. But before the snack, we visited the Haunted Mansion. This is one of my favorite WDW attractions. I love it! My favorite scene is probably the dancing ghosts, but there are so many things to notice--I never get tired of it! It's funny that this is one line my kids don't mind waiting in. They want to go through the new, longer queue, even when there is no wait!



After HM, we went to New Fantasyland. DS thinks he's too cool for all the new girly attractions (one of the reasons why DD and I hit them all during our girls' day), but how could he argue with visiting the tavern belonging to the manliest man of all? I've always loved the cinnamon rolls at the Main Street Bakery, so I wanted to try them at Gaston's Tavern. Unfortunately, I was disappointed. It was dry and didn't have much icing (you could ask for extra at the bakery). Perhaps I just had a bad batch, but I ended up not eating much of it. We did, however, take the time to relax in Gaston's chair and meet with him. He let us know how blessed we were by his presence! My DD thought he was HILARIOUS!



After basking in Gaston's glory, we headed over to the Storybook Circus area. Although we didn't ride Dumbo, the kids wanted to go in the play area for a minute. Sadly, we realized that DS has gotten a little to old/big for this. Thankfully, he still wanted to ride the Barnstormer. I still remember him riding this over and over as a two-year-old!



I can't remember where we headed next--it's possible it was Mickey's Philharmagic, but I'm not sure, and I have no clues from my pictures. I bet I would have remembered if I hadn't waited 5 months to write it out! I'll be back later tonight for the final installment from our FULL day in Magic Kingdom, and it will involve even more food. I'm realizing why I gained 6 pounds over the course of 10 days!!!

 

[MickeyMomTo2]

We had a dinner reservation at Chef Mickey's at 6:30, so we headed toward the front of the park. Although we were about to eat dinner, my DD had a snack credit burning a hole in her pocket, so we stopped at the Confectionery for a treat. She was thrilled with this Mike cake pop. The cake pop was such a hit that she ended up with several more throughout the trip. I thought they were very good as well.



We also stopped to watch the strawberry dipping. These strawberries were massive!



Before we left the park, we used our last Fastpass+ to visit with Mickey. I loved that we could schedule this when we knew we would be on our way out. It was nice knowing we could go without a long wait and make it on time for dinner. DS hadn't visited with talking Mickey yet, so he especially enjoyed this.









It was time for dinner! Chef Mickey's is a tradition for us. We actually prefer the dinner over breakfast, and when I ask the kids to name restaurants they want for each trip, Chef Mickey's always makes the cut.



It seemed like we had been eating all day, but we continued to stuff ourselves. I don't remember what I had for dinner, but I remember dessert! I LOVE the Mickey truffles (oreos with chocolate mousse and Mickey ears). When we first entered, there were also some strawberry cakes out, but when I went to get one, they were gone. I wanted one so badly that I actually asked one of the chefs about them. She was very nice and went to the back and got me some. They were declicious!

We enjoyed the food, but the highlight of Chef Mickey's is the fab five! We had a great time interacting with them.















When we finished with dinner, we practically rolled ourselves back to the monorail. Magic Kingdom was closed for Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party, so we headed back to Port Orleans, ready for a good night's sleep. It was a wonderful day filled with food and fun, and we went to bed thankful and ready to hit Hollywood Studios on Saturday!

Coming Up...Day 5: A Fantasmically Great Day at Hollywood Studios

 

[MickeyMomTo2]

On Saturday morning, we went to Hollywood Studios. I was expecting crowds to pick up because of Thanksgiving break, but Saturday and Sunday weren't crowded at all (more than earlier in the week, of course, but very manageable). We had a Fastpass+ for Toy Story Mania in the evening, but we wanted to ride more than once, so we headed there first thing.

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DS is highly competitive. Nothing is "just for fun." He was out for the TSM victory.

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After TSM, we went to Rock 'n' Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror. I happily waited outside while the rest rode RNR. I get motion sickness easily, and although I rode with DD when it was just the two of us, I gladly skipped this time.

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I joined them for Tower of Terror (but I can only do it once or twice).

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After this, we had a few minutes before our Fastpasses for RNR and TOT (some attractions are worth multiple visits), so the kids got a very nutritious snacks about 9:45 in the morning. It's vacation, right?

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050 by baseballsandbows, on Flickr

After the snacks, we stopped for some Photopass pics.

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DH and I didn't care about experiencing RNR again, so the kids used their bands for the first ride and ours for the second.

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Then, it was one more visit at the Hollywood Tower Hotel.

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I am so glad we were able to get the ride photos. I really like that Disney is offering this now. Yes, the package is expensive, but I LOVE having photos of the entire family. I am always behind the camera, so I'm glad my kids will have photographic evidence that their awesome mom took them to Disney World!

Next up was Star Tours. DH and I hate this attraction (motion sickness), so we skipped (it makes me so happy that the kids are old enough to ride without us!). After the kids were finished, we had a little time before our lunch reservation, so we stopped by Muppet Vision 3D. This is my least favorite of the 3D movies (Mickey's Philharmagic is my fave), but the kids love it.

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At this point, it was after noon, and we were hungry! We had never eaten at Mama Melrose's, but decided to take advantage of the Fantasmic Dinner Package. We REALLY enjoyed this meal, and it turned out to be one of our favorites from the trip. The calamari appetizer was delicious, and we were all pleased with our entrees. DD especially liked the spaghetti and meatball cupcake that comes with the kids' meal! We decided this was a great use of a meal credit, especially considering we got reserved Fantasmic seats. We will definitely do this again in the future.

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After lunch, we returned to POR for some pool time. It was a beautiful day, and the kids had a great time. I sat poolside, and DH took the opportunity to go for a run. The weather turned cooler later in the week, so this ended up being the best swim day. I'm glad we took advantage of it!

Coming Up...Day Five: A Fantasmically Great Day at Hollywood Studios, Part 2!

 

[Chilly]

I'm still here and loving your report. Great ride photos, the kids faces on RnR are funny.

 

[ProudMommyof2]

Great update and nice job getting on the headliners twice!

 

[WDWaddictt]

your kids faces on rides are absolutely precious

great family picture.. I am excited to try the package for the first time in Sept when we go.

We tried Mama Melrose last year when we went and it was good and we had great seats for Fantasmic, can't go wrong.

 

[Chilly]

So I realised our plan to go the first 2 weeks of November next year isn't going to work as we'll miss my FIL's 70th birthday on the 9th, so we'll either go earlier or later meaning our dates could be similar to yours. I think you said the Thanksgiving crowds weren't too bad? How warm was it? Pool weather or not?